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As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 29, 2011

Securities Act Registration No. 333-170243

Investment Company Registration No. 811-22489

 

 

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, DC 20549

 

 

FORM N-2

REGISTRATION STATEMENT

UNDER

THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933

 

 

Pre-Effective Amendment No. 3 x

Post-Effective Amendment No. ¨

and/or

REGISTRATION STATEMENT

UNDER

THE INVESTMENT COMPANY ACT OF 1940 x

Amendment No. 3

PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd.

(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Charter)

 

 

590 Madison Avenue

15th Floor

New York, New York 10022

(Address of Principal Executive Offices)

(212) 905-1000

(Registrant’s Telephone Number, Including Area Code)

Arthur H. Penn

PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd.

590 Madison Avenue

15th Floor

New York, New York 10022

(212) 905-1000

(Name and address of Agent for Service)

 

 

Copies to:

Thomas J. Friedmann		Stuart H. Gelfond
David J. Harris		Paul D. Tropp
Dechert LLP		Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP
1775 I Street, N.W.		One New York Plaza
Washington, D.C. 20006		New York, NY 10004

 

 

Approximate Date of Proposed Public Offering: As soon as practicable after the effective date of this Registration Statement.

If any of the securities being registered on this form will be offered on a delayed or continuous basis in reliance on Rule 415 under the Securities Act of 1933, other than securities offered in connection with a dividend reinvestment plan, check the following box. ¨

It is proposed that this filing will become effective (check appropriate box)

¨ when declared effective pursuant to section 8(c)

CALCULATION OF REGISTRATION FEE UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933

 

Title of Securities Being Registered		Amount Being Registered		Proposed Maximum Offering Price per Unit		Proposed Maximum Aggregate Offering Price(1)		Amount of Registration Fee(2)
Common Stock, ($0.001 par value per share)		11,500,000 shares		$15.00		$172,500,000		$20,027

 

(1)	Estimated pursuant to Rule 457(o) under the Securities Act of 1933 solely for purpose of calculating the registration fee.

(2)	A filing fee of $71 was previously paid in connection with the initial filing.

The registrant hereby amends this Registration Statement on such date or dates as may be necessary to delay its effective date until the Registrant shall file a further amendment which specifically states that the Registration Statement shall thereafter become effective in accordance with Section 8(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 or until the Registration Statement shall become effective on such dates as the Securities and Exchange Commission, acting pursuant to said Section 8(a), may determine.

 

 

 

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The information in this prospectus is not complete and may be changed. We may not sell these securities until the registration statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission is effective. This prospectus is not an offer to sell these securities and is not soliciting an offer to buy these securities in any jurisdiction where the offer and sale is not permitted.

Subject to Completion, dated March 29, 2011

PRELIMINARY PROSPECTUS

10,000,000 Shares

PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd.

Common Stock

PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd. is a newly organized, externally managed, non-diversified, closed-end management investment company that intends to file an election to be treated as a business development company under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, or the “1940 Act.” We were formed on October 28, 2010 as a Maryland corporation. We will be managed by PennantPark Investment Advisers, LLC, and PennantPark Investment Administration, LLC will provide the administrative services necessary for us to operate.

Our investment objective is to seek current income. We can offer no assurance that we will achieve our investment objective or be able to structure our investment portfolio as anticipated. We will seek to achieve our investment objective by investing primarily in floating rate loans made to private middle-market companies whose debt is rated below investment grade. We may also invest in thinly traded or small market-cap public middle-market U.S. companies.

Floating Rate Loans are typically rated below investment grade. Securities rated below investment grade are often referred to as “leveraged loans” or “high yield” securities or “junk bonds” and are often higher risk compared to debt instruments that are rated above investment grade and have speculative characteristics. However, when compared to junk bonds and other forms of non-investment grade debt, Floating Rate Loans typically have more robust capital-preserving qualities, such as less credit risk, and have historically had lower default rates than junk bonds. Floating Rate Loans are typically the most senior source of capital in a borrower’s capital structure and often have certain of the borrower’s assets pledged as collateral. Floating Rate Loans feature rates that reset regularly, maintaining a fixed spread over the London InterBank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”) or the prime rates of large money-center banks. Floating Rate Loans typically have terms of three to ten years. Floating Rate Loans are typically made to U.S. and, to a limited extent, non-U.S. corporations, partnerships and other business entities which operate in various industries and geographical regions. Under normal market conditions, at least 80% of the value of our “Managed Assets,” which means our net assets plus any borrowings for investment purposes, will be invested in Floating Rate Loans.

This prospectus is our initial public offering, for which we have applied for listing on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the ticker symbol “PFLT”.

Shares of closed-end investment companies that are listed on an exchange, including business development companies, frequently trade at prices that reflect a discount from their net asset values. If you purchase shares in the initial public offering or otherwise and sell the shares on the NASDAQ Global Select Market or otherwise, you may receive an amount that is less than (1) the amount you paid for the shares and/or (2) the net asset value of the shares at the time of sale.

We are a newly formed entity and have no previous operating or trading history upon which you can evaluate our performance.

This prospectus contains important information you should know before investing in our securities. Please read it before you invest and keep it for future reference. We will file annual, quarterly and current reports, proxy statements and other information with the Securities and Exchange Commission, or “SEC.” This information is available free of charge by contacting us in writing at 590 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10022 or by telephone at (212) 905-1000 or on our website at www.pennantpark.com. The information on our website is not incorporated by reference into this prospectus. The SEC also maintains a website at www.sec.gov that contains such information free of charge.

Investing in our securities involves a high degree of risk, including the risk of the use of leverage. Before buying any shares of our common stock, you should read the discussion of the material risks of investing in us in “Risk Factors” beginning on page 11 of this prospectus.

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		Per Share				Total(1)
Public offering price		$				$
Underwriting discounts and commissions (Sales load)(2)		$				$
Proceeds to PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd., before estimated offering expenses to us(3)		$				$

 

(1)

We have granted the underwriters an option to purchase up to 1,500,000 additional shares of common stock at the public offering price, less the sales load, within 30 days of the date of this prospectus solely to cover overallotments, if any. If such option is exercised in full, the total public offering price, sales load, and proceeds, before offering expenses, to us will be $            , $              and $            , respectively. See “Underwriting.”

(2)

PennantPark Investment Advisers LLC will pay to the underwriters an additional sales load of $3.0 million, or $             per share, for a total sales load of $             per share. We (and indirectly our stockholders) will be obligated to repay this amount together with accrued interest (a) if during any four calendar quarter-period ending on or after the one year anniversary of the date of the closing of the offering, our Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income equals or exceeds 1.75% (7.0% annualized) of our net assets at the beginning of such period (as adjusted for any issuances or repurchases of shares of our common stock) or (b) upon our liquidation.

(3)

We estimate that we will incur approximately $1,000,000 in offering expenses in connection with this offering. Stockholders will indirectly bear such expenses as investors in PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd. The total underwriting discount paid by the Investment Adviser (subject to reimbursement as described in note (1) above) will be $3.0 million ($3.45 million if the over-allotment option is exercised in full).

Our shares of common stock do not represent a deposit or obligation of, and are not guaranteed or endorsed by, any bank or other insured depository institution, and are not federally insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the Federal Reserve Board or any other government agency.

Neither the SEC nor any state securities commission has approved or disapproved of these securities or determined if this prospectus is truthful or complete. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.

The underwriters expect to deliver the common shares to purchasers on or about             , 2011.

 

Morgan Stanley		SunTrust Robinson Humphrey		UBS Investment Bank

The date of this prospectus is             , 2011.

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You should rely only on the information contained in this prospectus. We have not, and the underwriters have not, authorized any other person to provide you with different information or to make representations as to matters not stated in this prospectus. If anyone provides you with different or inconsistent information, you should not rely on it. We are not, and the underwriters are not, making an offer to sell these securities in any jurisdiction where the offer or sale is not permitted. You should assume that the information appearing in this prospectus is accurate only as of the date on the front cover of this prospectus. Our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects may have changed since that date. We will update these documents to reflect material changes only as required by law.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

SUMMARY			1
FEES AND EXPENSES			8
RISK FACTORS			11
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS			27
USE OF PROCEEDS			28
CAPITALIZATION			29
DILUTION			30
DISCUSSION OF MANAGEMENT’S EXPECTED OPERATING PLANS			31
OBLIGATIONS AND INDEBTEDNESS			37
DISTRIBUTIONS			38
BUSINESS			39
MANAGEMENT			48
CONTROL PERSONS AND PRINCIPAL STOCKHOLDERS			55
CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND TRANSACTIONS			55
DETERMINATION OF NET ASSET VALUE			62
DIVIDEND REINVESTMENT PLAN			65
DESCRIPTION OF OUR CAPITAL STOCK			66
REGULATION			71
BROKERAGE ALLOCATIONS AND OTHER PRACTICES			75
MATERIAL U.S. FEDERAL INCOME TAX CONSIDERATIONS			76
UNDERWRITING			81
CUSTODIAN AND TRANSFER AGENT			82
LEGAL OPINIONS			82
FISCAL YEAR			82
INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM			82
AVAILABLE INFORMATION			82
INDEX TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS			F-1

 

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FEES AND EXPENSES

The following table is intended to assist you in understanding the costs and expenses that an investor in our common stock will bear directly or indirectly. Stockholders should understand that some of the percentages indicated in the table below are estimates and may vary. The expenses shown in the table under “Other Expenses” and “Total Annual Expenses” are based on estimated amounts for our annual operations and assume that the company issues approximately 10,000,000 shares of common stock in this offering. If we issue fewer common shares, all other things being equal, these expenses would increase as a percentage of net assets attributable to common stock. The following tables do not include the underwriters’ overallotment option of 1,500,000 shares of our common stock.

 

Stockholder Transaction Expenses (as a percentage of common share offering price)
Sales load paid by us			5.00%	(1)
Offering Expenses			0.67%	(2)
Dividend reinvestment plan fees			None	(3)
Total stockholder transaction expenses paid by us			5.67%
Sales load paid by the Investment Adviser			2.00%	(4)
Total stockholder transaction expenses			7.67%
Estimated Annual Expenses (as a percentage of net assets attributable to common stock):
Management fees			1.80%	(5)
Incentive fees payable under the Investment Management Agreement			0.00%	(6)
Interest expense on borrowed funds			2.05%	(7)
Other expenses			1.77%	(8)
Total estimated annual expenses			5.62%	(4)(8)

Example

The following example illustrates the projected dollar amount of total cumulative expenses that you would pay on a $1,000 hypothetical investment in our common stock, assuming (1) a 5.00% net sales load (underwriting discounts and commissions) and offering expenses totaling 0.67%, (2) total estimated annual expenses of 5.62% of net assets attributable to our common stock as set forth in the table above (other than performance-based incentive fees) and (3) a 5% annual return.

 

		1 Year				3 Years				5 Years				10 Years
Total expenses incurred		$	110			$	214			$	318			$	571

While the example assumes, as required by the SEC, a 5% annual return, our performance will vary and may result in a return greater or less than 5%. The incentive fee under the Investment Management Agreement, which, assuming a 5% annual return, would either not be payable or would have an insignificant impact on the expense amounts shown above, is not included in the example. This illustration assumes that we will not realize any capital gains (computed net of all realized capital losses and unrealized capital depreciation) in any of the indicated time periods. If we achieve sufficient returns on our investments, including through the realization of capital gains, to trigger an incentive fee of a material amount, our expenses and returns to our investors would be higher. In addition, the example assumes inclusion of the net sales load of 5.00% in the first year and reinvestment of all dividends and other distributions at net asset value. Participants in our dividend reinvestment plan will receive a number of shares of our common stock determined by dividing the total dollar amount of the distribution payable to a participant by the market price per share of our common stock at the close of trading on the valuation date for the distribution. See “Dividend Reinvestment Plan” for more information.

This Example and the expenses in the table above should not be considered a representation of our future expenses; actual expenses may be greater or less than those shown.

 

 

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(1)	The underwriting discount and commission (the sales load) with respect to shares to be sold in this offering, which is a one-time fee, is the only sales load payable by us in connection with this offering.

(2)	Amount reflects estimated offering expenses of approximately $1,000,000.

(3)	The expenses of the dividend reinvestment plan are included in “Other expenses.”

(4)

The Investment Adviser has agreed to pay the underwriters an additional sales load of $3,000,000 ($3,450,000 if the underwriters exercise their overallotment option in full). This amount will accrue interest at a variable rate (adjusted quarterly) equal to an annual rate of the three-month LIBOR plus 2.25%. As of March 24, 2011, three-month LIBOR was approximately 0.31%. We (and indirectly our stockholders) will be obligated to repay this amount together with accrued interest (a) if during any four calendar quarter-period ending on or after the one year anniversary of the closing of the offering, our Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income equals or exceeds 1.75% (7.0% annualized) of our net assets at the beginning of such period (as adjusted for any issuances or repurchases of shares of our common stock) or (b) upon our liquidation. If we are then permitted to do so, we will repay such amount and any interest on such amount through the issuance of shares of our common stock to the Investment Adviser. If we cannot then issue such shares pursuant to the 1940 Act or otherwise, we will pay such amount to the Investment Adviser in cash, and the Investment Adviser has agreed to use such payment to purchase shares of our common stock in the secondary market.

(5)

Our management fee under the Investment Management Agreement is based on our adjusted average gross assets, including those assets acquired using borrowings for investment purposes. PennantPark Investment Advisers, however, has agreed to waive the portion of the base management fee payable on any net proceeds of this offering that have not yet been invested in portfolio investments, inclusive of any temporary investments in cash, cash equivalents, U.S. government securities and other high-quality investment grade debt investments that mature in 12 months or less from the date of investment. See “Certain Relationships and Transactions—Investment Management Agreement” for more information.

(6)

Reflects the aggregate amount of incentive fees we estimate will be payable under the Investment Management Agreement during our first year of operations following consummation of this offering up to one year. During our first year of operations following consummation of this offering, we expect that we will not have any capital gains and will only have interest income that exceeds our quarterly hurdle rate discussed below during the second half of our first year of operations following consummation of this offering. The incentive fee consists of two parts:

The first part, which will be payable quarterly in arrears, commencing with the period ending June 30, 2011, will equal 20% of the excess, if any, of our “Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income” (as defined below) that exceeds a 1.75% quarterly (7.00% annualized) hurdle rate, which we refer to as the Hurdle, subject to a “catch-up” provision, measured at the end of each calendar quarter. The first part of the incentive fee is computed and paid on income that may include interest that is accrued but not yet received in cash. The operation of the first part of the incentive fee for each quarter is as follows:

 

•

no incentive fee is payable to the Investment Adviser in any calendar quarter in which our Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income does not exceed the Hurdle of 1.75%;

 

•

50.0% of our Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income with respect to that portion of such Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income, if any, that exceeds the Hurdle but is less than 2.9167% in any calendar quarter (11.67% annualized) is payable to the Investment Adviser. We refer to this portion of our Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income (which exceeds the Hurdle but is less than 2.9167%) as the “catch-up.” The “catch-up” is meant to provide the Investment Adviser with 20% of our Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income, as if a Hurdle did not apply when our Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income exceeds 2.9167% in any calendar quarter; and

 

•

20.0% of the amount of our Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income, if any, that exceeds 2.9167% in any calendar quarter (11.67% annualized) is payable to the Investment Adviser (once the Hurdle is reached and the catch-up is achieved, 20.0% of all Pre-Incentive Fee Investment Income thereafter is allocated to the Investment Adviser).

The second part of the incentive fee will equal 20% of our “Incentive Fee Capital Gains,” if any, which will equal our realized capital gains on a cumulative basis from inception through the end of each calendar year, computed net of all realized capital losses and net unrealized capital depreciation on a cumulative basis, less the aggregate amount of any previously paid capital gain incentive fees. The second part of the incentive fee will be payable, in arrears, at the end of each calendar year (or upon termination of the Investment Management Agreement, as of the termination date), commencing with the period ending December 31, 2011. See “Certain Relationships and Transactions–Investment Management Agreement” for more information.

 

 

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(7)

We may borrow funds from time to time to make investments to the extent we determine that the economic situation is conducive to doing so. The costs associated with our outstanding borrowings will be indirectly borne by our investors. We have a commitment for up to $200.0 million available to us under the Credit Facility, which we expect to become effective shortly after the completion of this offering. For purposes of this section, we have estimated that our wholly owned subsidiary will borrow an amount equal to 80% of our net assets under the Credit Facility at an assumed interest rate of 2.56%, which is calculated based upon the LIBOR rate as of March 24, 2011 and the expected base lending rate under the Credit Facility of LIBOR plus (i) 2.25% while the Credit Facility is in its revolving period and (ii) 4.25% thereafter. Although we do not presently expect to do so during the 12 months following completion of this offering, we may also issue preferred stock subject to our compliance with applicable requirements under the 1940 Act.

(8)	“Other expenses” includes estimated costs and expenses associated with our formation and organization and estimated costs for our first full year of operations.

 

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RISK FACTORS

Before you invest in our shares you should be aware of various risks, including those described below. You should carefully consider these risk factors, together with all of the other information included in this prospectus before you decide whether to make an investment in our common stock. The risks set out below are not the only risks we face. Additional risks and uncertainties not currently known to us or that we currently deem to be immaterial also may materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and/or results of operations. If any of the following events occur, our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially adversely affected. In such case, our net asset value and the trading price of our common stock could decline and you may lose all or part of your investment.

RISKS RELATING TO OUR BUSINESS AND STRUCTURE

We are a new company with a limited operating history.

We were incorporated in October 2010. We are subject to all of the business risks and uncertainties associated with any new business, including the risk that we will not achieve our investment objective and that the value of your investment could decline substantially. It could take us three to six months to invest substantially all of the net proceeds of this offering in accordance with our investment objective, depending on the availability of appropriate investment opportunities consistent with our investment objective and market conditions. We expect that it may take up to one year to invest all of the net proceeds of this offering, in part because privately negotiated investments in illiquid securities or private middle-market companies require substantial due diligence and structuring. During this period, we will invest the net proceeds of this offering in short-term investments, such as cash and cash equivalents, and we expect we will earn yields substantially lower than the interest income that we anticipate receiving in respect of investments in Floating Rate Loans. As a result, any distributions we make during this period may be substantially lower than the distributions that we expect to pay when our portfolio is fully invested.

Global capital markets could enter a period of severe disruption and instability. These market conditions have historically and could again materially and adversely affect debt and equity capital markets in the United States, which could have a materially negative impact on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

 

The U.S. capital markets have experienced a period of disruption characterized by the freezing of credit, a lack of liquidity in the debt capital markets, significant losses in the principal value of investments, the re-pricing of credit risk in the broadly syndicated credit market and the failure of major financial institutions. During this period of disruption, general economic conditions deteriorated, with material and adverse consequences for the broader financial and credit markets, and the availability of debt and equity capital for the market as a whole, and financial services firms in particular, was reduced significantly. These conditions may reoccur for a prolonged period of time or even materially worsen in the future. While current conditions have improved, we may have difficulty accessing debt and equity capital in order to grow. A return of severe disruption and instability in the global financial markets or deterioration in credit and financing conditions could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Volatility or a prolonged disruption in the credit markets could materially damage our business.

We are required to record our assets at fair value, as determined in good faith by our board of directors in accordance with our valuation policy. As a result, volatility in the capital markets may materially adversely affect our valuations and our net asset value, even if we intend to hold investments to maturity. Volatility or dislocation in the capital markets may depress our stock price below our net asset value per share and create a challenging environment in which to raise debt and equity capital. As a business development company, we will generally not be able to issue additional shares of our common stock at a price less than our net asset value without first obtaining approval for such issuance from our stockholders and our independent directors. Additionally, our ability to incur indebtedness will be limited by applicable regulations, such that our asset coverage under the 1940 Act must equal at least 200% of our total indebtedness immediately after each time we incur indebtedness. Shrinking portfolio values negatively impact our ability to borrow additional funds under the Credit Facility because our net asset value is reduced for purposes of the 200% asset coverage test. If the fair value of our assets declines substantially, we may fail to maintain the asset coverage ratios stipulated by the 1940 Act, which could, in turn, cause us to lose our status as a business development company and materially impair our business operations. A protracted disruption in the credit markets could also materially decrease demand for our investments.

The significant disruption in the capital markets experienced in the past had and may in the future have a negative effect on the valuations of our investments, and on the potential for liquidity events involving our investments. The debt capital that will be available to us, if at all, may be at a higher cost and on less favorable terms and conditions than those estimated within this prospectus. A prolonged inability to raise capital will require us to reduce the volume of Floating Rate Loans we invest in and could have a material adverse impact on our business, financial condition or results of operations. This may also increase the probability that other structural risks negatively impact us. These situations may arise due to circumstances that we may be unable to control, such as a protracted disruption in the credit markets, a severe decline in the value of the U.S. dollar, a sharp economic downturn or an operational problem that affects third parties or us, and could materially damage our business, financial condition or results of

operations.

If we are required to repay in cash the amount paid to the underwriters by the Investment Adviser, we may have to realize losses, and the amount that we have available for investment may be reduced.

The Investment Adviser has agreed to pay to the underwriters an additional 2% sales load, or $3,000,000 ($3,450,000 if the underwriters exercise their overallotment option in full) in the aggregate, with respect to this offering of shares of our common stock. We (and indirectly our stockholders) will be obligated to repay this amount, together with accrued interest on such amount (a) if during any four calendar quarter-period ending on or after the one year anniversary of the closing of the offering, our Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income equals or exceeds 1.75% (7.0% annualized) of our net assets at the beginning of such period (as adjusted for any issuances or repurchases of shares of our common stock) or (b) upon our liquidation. If we are then permitted to do so, we will repay such amount and any interest on such amount through the issuance of shares of our common stock to the Investment Adviser. If we cannot then issue such shares pursuant to the 1940 Act or otherwise, we will pay such amount to the Investment Adviser in cash, and the Investment Adviser has agreed to use such payment to purchase shares of our common stock in the secondary market. If we are obligated to repay this amount to the Investment Adviser in cash while making distributions to our stockholders necessary to maintain our RIC status and avoid the imposition of federal income and excise taxes, we may have to dispose of a portion of our investments. Any such disposition could result in our realizing losses and reduce the amount that we have available for investment.

PennantPark Floating Rate Capital will incur credit risk when it loans money or commits to loan money to a portfolio company.

Our primary business will expose us to credit risk, and the quality of our portfolio will have a significant impact on our earnings. Credit risk is a component part of our fair valuation of our Floating Rate Loans and other investments we may purchase. Negative credit events will lead to a decrease in the fair value of our Floating Rate Loans and other investments.

In addition, current market conditions have affected consumer confidence levels, which may result in adverse changes in payment patterns. Increased delinquencies and default rates would impact our results of operations. Deterioration in the credit quality of our portfolio could have a material adverse effect on our capital, financial condition and results of operations.

 

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Any unrealized losses we experience on our investment portfolio may be an indication of future realized losses, which could reduce our income available for distribution.

As a business development company, we will be required to carry our investments at market value or, if no market value is ascertainable or if market value does not reflect the fair value of such investment in the bona fide determination of our board of directors, then, at fair value as determined in good faith by or under the direction of our board of directors. Decreases in the market values or fair values of our investments will be recorded as unrealized depreciation. Unrealized losses of any given portfolio company could be an indication of such company’s inability in the future to meet its repayment obligations to us. If the fair value of our portfolio companies reflects future realized losses, this would ultimately result in reductions of our income available for distribution in future periods and could materially harm our results of operations and cause a material decline in the value of our publicly traded common stock.

Following periods of volatility in the market price of a company’s securities, securities class action litigation has often been brought against that company.

If our stock price fluctuates significantly, we may be the target of securities litigation in the future. Securities litigation could result in substantial costs and divert management’s attention and resources from our business and cause a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations.

Our borrowers may default on their payments, which may have a materially negative effect on our financial performance.

We intend to invest in Floating Rate Loans, which may involve a high degree of repayment risk. We intend to invest in companies that may have limited financial resources, may be highly leveraged and may be unable to obtain financing from traditional sources. Accordingly, a general economic downturn or severe tightening in the credit markets could materially negatively impact the ability of our borrowers to repay their loans, which could materially damage our business. Numerous other factors may affect a borrower’s ability to repay its loan, including the failure to meet its business plan or a downturn in its industry. A portfolio company’s failure to satisfy financial or operating covenants imposed by us or other lenders could lead to defaults and, potentially, termination of its loans or foreclosure on its secured assets. This could trigger cross-defaults under other agreements and jeopardize our portfolio company’s ability to meet its obligations under the loans or debt securities that we hold. In addition, our portfolio companies may have, or may be permitted to incur, other debt that ranks senior to or equally with our securities. This means that payments on such senior-ranking securities may have to be made before we receive any payments on our subordinated loans or debt securities. Deterioration in a borrower’s financial condition and prospects may be accompanied by deterioration in any related collateral and may have a materially negative effect on our financial results.

We are dependent upon the Investment Adviser’s key personnel for our future success, and if the Investment Adviser is unable to hire and retain qualified personnel or if we lose any member of our management team, our ability to achieve our investment objectives could be significantly harmed.

We will depend on the diligence, skill and network of business contacts of the investment professionals of the Investment Adviser. We will also depend, to a significant extent, on PennantPark Investment Advisers’ access to the investment information and deal flow generated by these investment professionals and any others that may be hired by the Investment Adviser. Managers of the Investment Adviser will evaluate, negotiate, structure, close and monitor our investments. Our future success depends on the continued service of management personnel of the Investment Adviser. The departure of managers of the Investment Adviser could have a material adverse effect on our ability to achieve our investment objectives. In addition, we can offer no assurance that PennantPark Investment Advisers will remain the Investment Adviser.

Our financial condition and results of operation will depend on our ability to manage future growth effectively.

Our ability to achieve our investment objectives will depend on our ability to grow, which will depend, in turn, on the Investment Adviser’s ability to identify, invest in and monitor companies that meet our investment criteria. Accomplishing this result on a cost-effective basis will be largely a function of the Investment Adviser’s structuring of the investment process, its ability to provide competent, attentive and efficient services to us and our access to financing on acceptable terms. The management team of PennantPark Investment Advisers will have substantial responsibilities under the Investment Management Agreement. In order to grow, the Investment Adviser will need to hire, train, supervise and manage new employees. However, we can offer no assurance that any such employees will contribute effectively to the work of the Investment Adviser. We caution you that the principals of the Investment Adviser or Administrator may also be called upon to provide and currently do provide managerial assistance to portfolio companies and other investment vehicles, including other business development companies, which are managed by the Investment Adviser. Such demands on their time may distract them or slow our rate of investment. Any failure to manage our future growth effectively could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We will operate in a highly competitive market for investment opportunities.

A number of entities will compete with us to make the types of investments that we will make in middle-market companies. We will compete with public and private funds, including other business development companies and closed-end funds, commercial and

 

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investment banks, commercial financing companies, CLO funds and, to the extent they provide an alternative form of financing, private equity funds. Additionally, alternative investment vehicles, such as hedge funds, also invest in middle-market companies. As a result, competition for investment opportunities at middle-market companies can be intense. Most of our potential competitors are substantially larger and have considerably greater financial, technical and marketing resources than we do. For example, we believe some competitors have a lower cost of funds and access to funding sources that are not available to us. In addition, some of our competitors have higher risk tolerances or different risk assessments, which could allow them to consider a wider variety of investments and establish more relationships than us. Furthermore, many of our competitors are not subject to the regulatory restrictions that the 1940 Act will impose on us as a business development company. We cannot offer any assurances that the competitive pressures we face will not have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. Also, as a result of this competition, we may not be able to take advantage of attractive investment opportunities from time to time, and we can offer no assurance that we will be able to identify and make investments that are consistent with our investment objectives.

Participants in our industry compete on several factors, including price, flexibility in transaction structuring, customer service, reputation, market knowledge and speed in decision-making. We will not seek to compete primarily based on the interest rates we offer, and we believe that some of our competitors may make loans with interest rates that are lower than the rates we offer. We may lose investment opportunities if we do not match our competitors’ pricing, terms and structure. However, if we match our competitors’ pricing, terms and structure, we may experience decreased net interest income and increased risk of credit loss.

While PennantPark Investment Advisers has identified an initial group of potential investments for our portfolio, we have not identified the entire portfolio that we will acquire with the proceeds of the offering. Also, the Investment Adviser will evaluate investments consistent with its selection process and may take up to one year to fully deploy such proceeds from an offering. As a result, we will invest our funds in temporary investments such as cash, cash equivalents, U.S. government securities and other high-quality investment grade securities that mature in one year or less from the date of investment. The income earned on such investments will be significantly less than what we would earn on investments in Floating Rate Loans and other investments contemplated within this prospectus.

PennantPark Floating Rate Capital may not replicate the historical performance of other investment companies with which our investment professionals have been affiliated.

The 1940 Act imposes numerous constraints on the investment activities of business development companies. For example, business development companies are required to invest at least 70% of their total assets primarily in securities of U.S. private companies or thinly traded public companies with a market capitalization of less than $250 million, cash, cash equivalents, U.S. government securities and high-quality debt investments that mature in one year or less. These constraints may hinder the Investment Adviser’s ability to take advantage of attractive investment opportunities and to achieve our investment objectives. Current market conditions and the depressed economic cycle present significant challenges to us that have not been present in recent years, if ever. In addition, the investment philosophy and techniques used by the Investment Adviser may differ from those used by other investment companies. Accordingly, we can offer no assurance that we will replicate the historical performance of other investment companies with which our investment professionals have been affiliated, and we caution that our investment returns could be substantially lower than the returns achieved by such other companies.

Any failure on our part to maintain our status as a business development company would reduce our operating flexibility which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We intend to file an election to be treated as a business development company. After doing so, if we do not remain a business development company, we might be regulated as a closed-end investment company under the 1940 Act, which would subject us to substantially more regulatory restrictions under the 1940 Act and correspondingly decrease our operating flexibility, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

You may have current tax liabilities on distributions you reinvest in our common stock.

Under the dividend reinvestment plan, if you own shares of our common stock registered in your own name, you will have all cash distributions automatically reinvested in additional shares of our common stock unless you opt out of the dividend reinvestment plan by delivering a written notice to the plan administrator prior to the record date of the next dividend or distribution. If you have not “opted out” of the dividend reinvestment plan, you will be deemed to have received, and for federal income tax purposes will be taxed on, the amount reinvested in our common stock to the extent the amount reinvested was not a tax-free return of capital. As a result, you may have to use funds from other sources to pay your federal income tax liability on the value of the common stock received. See “Dividend Reinvestment Plan”.

We will be subject to corporate-level income tax if we are unable to qualify as a RIC.

To qualify as a RIC under the Code, we must meet certain source-of-income, asset diversification and annual distribution requirements. The annual distribution requirement for a RIC is satisfied if we distribute at least 90% of our ordinary income and realized net short-term capital gains in excess of realized net long-term capital losses, if any, to our stockholders on an annual basis. To the extent we use debt financing, we are subject to certain asset coverage ratio requirements under the 1940 Act and financial

covenants under loan and credit agreements that could, under certain circumstances, restrict us from making distributions necessary to qualify as a RIC. If we are unable to obtain cash from other sources, we may fail to qualify as a RIC and, thus, may be subject to corporate-level income tax. To qualify as a RIC, we must also meet certain asset diversification requirements at the end of each calendar quarter. Failure to meet these tests may result in having to dispose of certain investments quickly in order to prevent the loss of RIC status. Because most of our investments are in private companies, any such dispositions could be made at disadvantageous prices and may result in substantial losses. If we fail to qualify as a RIC, we will have to pay corporate-level taxes on all of our income whether or not we distribute it, which would substantially reduce our net assets and the amount of income available for debt service as well as reduce and/or affect the character and amount of our distributions to our stockholders. Such a failure would have a material adverse effect on us and our stockholders. Even if we qualify as a RIC, we generally will be subject to a corporate-level income tax on the income or gains we do not distribute. If we do not distribute an amount at least equal to the sum of 98% of our ordinary income (during the calendar year) plus 98.2% of our net capital gain income (during each 12-month period ending on October 31), we generally will be required to pay an excise tax on amounts carried over and distributed to stockholders in the next year equal to 4% of the undistributed amount.

We may have difficulty paying our required distributions if we recognize income before or without receiving cash representing such income.

For federal income tax purposes, we will include in income certain amounts that we have not yet received in cash, such as original issue discount, or “OID,” or contracted payment-in-kind, or “PIK,” interest, which represents contractual interest added to the loan balance and due at the end of the loan term. Such original issue discount, which could be significant relative to our overall investment assets, and increases in loan balances as a result of contracted PIK interest will be included in income before we receive any corresponding cash payments. We also may be required to include in income certain other amounts that we will not receive in cash.

The part of the incentive fee payable by us that relates to our net investment income will be computed and paid on income that may include interest that has been accrued but not yet received in cash. If a portfolio company defaults on a loan that is structured to provide accrued interest, it is possible that accrued interest previously used in the calculation of the incentive fee will become uncollectible.

 

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In some cases we may recognize income before or without receiving cash representing such income. As a result, we may have difficulty meeting the tax requirement to distribute at least 90% of the sum of our ordinary income and realized net short-term capital gains, if any, to obtain RIC tax benefits. Accordingly, we may have to sell some of our investments at times we would not consider advantageous, raise additional debt or equity capital or reduce new investment originations to meet these distribution requirements, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. If we are not able to obtain cash from other sources, we may fail to qualify for RIC tax benefits and thus be subject to corporate-level income tax.

We will need to raise additional capital to grow because we must distribute most of our income.

We may need additional capital to fund the growth of our investments. We have issued equity securities and have borrowed from financial institutions. A reduction in the availability of new capital could limit our ability to grow. We will be required to distribute at least 90% of our ordinary income and realized net short-term capital gains in excess of realized net long-term capital losses, if any, to our stockholders to maintain our RIC status. As a result, these earnings will not be available to fund new investments. If we fail to obtain additional capital to fund our investments, this could limit our ability to grow, which may have an adverse effect on the value of our securities.

In addition, as a business development company, we are generally required to maintain a ratio of total assets to total borrowings of at least 200%. This may restrict our ability to borrow in certain circumstances.

Regulations governing our operation as a business development company will affect our ability to, and the way in which we, raise additional capital.

Our business requires a substantial amount of capital. We may acquire additional capital from the issuance of senior securities or other indebtedness, the issuance of additional shares of our common stock, the issuance of warrants or subscription rights to purchase certain of our securities, or from securitization transactions. However, we may not be able to raise additional capital in the future on favorable terms or at all. We may issue debt securities or preferred securities, which we refer to collectively as “senior securities,” and we may borrow money from banks, or other financial institutions, up to the maximum amount permitted by the 1940 Act. The 1940 Act permits us to issue senior securities or incur indebtedness only in amounts such that our asset coverage, as defined in the 1940 Act, equals at least 200% after such issuance or incurrence. Our ability to pay dividends, incur additional indebtedness or issue additional senior securities would be restricted if our asset coverage ratio were not at least 200%. If the value of our assets declines, we may be unable to satisfy this test. If that happens, we may be required to liquidate a portion of our investments and repay a portion of our indebtedness or redeem a portion of our senior securities, as applicable, at a time when such sales may be disadvantageous, which could materially damage our business.

Senior Securities. As a result of issuing senior securities, we would also be exposed to typical risks associated with leverage, including an increased risk of loss. If we issue preferred securities, they would rank “senior” to common stock in our capital structure. Preferred stockholders would have separate voting rights and may have rights, preferences or privileges more favorable than those of holders of our common stock. Furthermore, the issuance of preferred securities could have the effect of delaying, deferring or preventing a transaction or a change of control that might involve a premium price for our common stockholders or otherwise be in your best interest.

Additional Common Stock. Our board of directors may decide to issue additional common stock to finance our operations rather than issuing debt or other senior securities. As a business development company, we will generally not able to issue our common stock at a price below net asset value without first obtaining required approvals from our stockholders and our board of directors. Also, subject to the requirements of the 1940 Act, we may issue rights to acquire our common stock at a price below the current net asset value of the common stock if our board of directors determines that such sale is in our best interests and the best interests of our common stockholders. In any such case, the price at which our securities are to be issued and sold may not be less than a price, that in the determination of our board of directors, closely approximates the market value of such securities. We will not offer transferable subscription rights to our stockholders at a price equivalent to less than the then current net asset value per share of common stock, excluding underwriting commissions, unless we first file a registration statement that is declared effective by the SEC with respect to such issuance and the common stock to be purchased in connection with the rights represents no more than one-third of our outstanding common stock at the time such rights are issued. In addition, we note that for us to file a post-effective amendment to a registration statement on Form N-2, we must then be qualified to register our securities on Form S-3. If we raise additional funds by issuing more common stock or warrants or senior securities convertible into, or exchangeable for, our common stock, the percentage ownership of our common stockholders at that time would decrease, and our common stockholders may experience significant dilution.

Securitization. In addition to issuing securities to raise capital as described above, we anticipate that in the future, as market conditions permit, we may securitize our loans to generate cash for funding new investments. To securitize loans, we may create a wholly-owned subsidiary, contribute a pool of loans to the subsidiary and have the subsidiary issue primarily investment grade debt securities to purchasers who we would expect to be willing to accept a substantially lower interest rate than the loans earn. We would retain all or a portion of the equity in the securitized pool of loans. Our retained equity would be exposed to any losses on the portfolio of loans before any of the debt securities would be exposed to such losses. Accordingly, if the pool of loans experienced a low level of losses due to defaults, we would earn an incremental amount of income on our retained equity, but we would be exposed, up to the amount of equity we retained, to that proportion of any losses we would have experienced if we had continued to hold the loans in our portfolio. An inability to successfully securitize our loan portfolio could limit our ability to grow our business and fully execute our business strategy and materially adversely affect our earnings, if any. Moreover, the successful securitization of a portion of our loan portfolio might expose us to losses as the residual loans in which we do not sell interests will tend to be those that are riskier and more apt to generate losses.

 

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There are significant potential conflicts of interest which could impact our investment returns.

The professionals of the Investment Adviser and Administrator may serve as officers, directors or principals of entities that operate in the same or a related line of business as we do or of investment funds managed by affiliates of PennantPark Floating Rate Capital that may be formed in the future. The Investment Adviser and Administrator may be engaged by such funds at any time and without the prior approval of our stockholders or our board of directors. Our board of directors will monitor any potential conflict that may arise upon such a development. Accordingly, if this occurs, they may have obligations to investors in those entities, the fulfillment of which might not be in the best interests of us or our stockholders. Currently, the executive officers and directors, as well as the current senior investment professionals of the Investment Adviser, serve as officers and directors of PennantPark Investment Corp., a publicly-traded business development company. Although the Investment Adviser will endeavor to allocate investment opportunities in a fair and equitable manner, it is possible that, in the future, we may not be given the opportunity to participate in investments made by investment funds managed by the Investment Adviser or an investment manager affiliated with the Investment Adviser. In any such case, when the Investment Adviser identifies an investment, it will be forced to choose which investment fund should make the investment. We may co-invest on a concurrent basis with PennantPark Investment Corp., and any other affiliates that the Investment Adviser forms in the future, subject to compliance with applicable regulations and regulatory guidance and our allocation procedures. In certain circumstances, negotiated co-investments may be made only if we receive an order from the SEC permitting us to do so. There can be no assurance that any such order will be obtained.

In the ordinary course of our investing activities, we will pay investment advisory and incentive fees to the Investment Adviser, and will reimburse the Investment Adviser for certain expenses it incurs. As a result, investors in our common stock will invest on a “gross” basis and receive distributions on a “net” basis after expenses, resulting in a lower rate of return than an investor might achieve through direct investments. Accordingly, there may be times when the management team of the Investment Adviser has interests that differ from those of our stockholders, giving rise to a conflict.

The Investment Adviser has agreed to pay to the underwriters an additional 2% sales load, or $3,000,000 ($3,450,000 if the underwriters exercise their overallotment option in full) in the aggregate, with respect to this offering of shares of our common stock. We (and indirectly our stockholders) must reimburse this amount under certain circumstances. See “Obligations and Indebtedness.” As a result of these arrangements, there may be times when the management team of the Investment Adviser has interests that differ from those of our stockholders, giving rise to a conflict.

We have entered into a license agreement, or the License Agreement, with PennantPark Investment Advisers, pursuant to which the Investment Adviser has agreed to grant us a royalty-free non-exclusive license to use the name “PennantPark.” The License Agreement will expire (i) upon expiration or termination of the Investment Management Agreement, (ii) if the Investment Adviser ceases to serve as our investment adviser, (iii) by either party upon sixty days’ written notice or (iv) by the Investment Adviser at any time in the event we assign or attempt to assign or sublicense the License Agreement or any of our rights or duties thereunder without the prior written consent of the Investment Adviser. Other than with respect to this limited license, we have no legal right to the “PennantPark” name. In addition, we pay PennantPark Investment Administration, an affiliate of the Investment Adviser, our allocable portion of overhead and other expenses incurred by PennantPark Investment Administration in performing its obligations under the Administration Agreement, including rent and our allocable portion of the cost of our chief financial officer and chief compliance officer and their respective staffs. These arrangements may create conflicts of interest that our board of directors must monitor.

We expect to use borrowed funds to make investments and will be exposed to the typical risks associated with leverage.

If we borrow funds to make investments we will be exposed to increased risk of loss due to our use of debt to make investments. A decrease in the value of our investments will have a greater negative impact on the net asset value attributable to our common stock than it would if we did not use debt. Our ability to pay distributions will be restricted when our asset coverage ratio is not at least 200%, and any amounts that we use to service our indebtedness will not be available for distribution to our common stockholders.

Any use of debt would be governed by the terms of a credit facility or an indenture or other instrument containing covenants restricting our operating flexibility. We, and indirectly our stockholders, will bear the cost of issuing and servicing debt. Any convertible or exchangeable securities that we issue in the future may have rights, preferences and privileges more favorable than those of our common stock.

If we incur additional debt, it could increase the risk of investing in our shares.

We intend to enter into the Credit Facility shortly after completing this offering, which we expect to initially provide us with up to $200.0 million in available borrowings. Leverage is generally considered a speculative investment technique. If the value of our assets decreases, leveraging would cause the net asset value attributable to our common stock to decline more than it otherwise would have had we not utilized leverage. Similarly, any decrease in our revenue would cause our net income to decline more than it would have had we not borrowed funds and could negatively affect our ability to make distributions on our common or preferred stock. Our ability to service any debt that we incur depends largely on our financial performance and is subject to prevailing economic conditions and competitive pressures.

As a business development company, we will be required to meet a coverage ratio of total assets to total borrowings and other senior securities, which include all of our borrowings and any preferred stock we may issue in the future, of at least 200% of total indebtedness. If this ratio declines below 200%, we may not be able to incur additional debt and may need to sell a portion of our investments to repay some debt when it is disadvantageous to do so, and we may not be able to make distributions.

The following table is designed to illustrate the effect of leverage on the return an investor in our common stock would experience, assuming a debt to gross asset ratio of 44% and a weighted average annual interest rate of 2.56% and investment portfolio total returns (comprised of income and changes in the value of securities held in our portfolio) of –10%, –5%, 0%, 5% and 10%. These assumed investment portfolio returns are hypothetical figures and are not necessarily indicative of the investment portfolio returns that we may experience. The table assumes that we will maintain a constant level and weighted average rate of leverage. The amount of leverage that we use will vary from time to time. As can be seen, leverage generally increases the return of stockholders when the portfolio return is positive and decreases when the portfolio return is negative. Actual returns may be greater or less than those appearing in the table.

 

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Assumed return on portfolio (net of expenses)(1)		-10%				-5%				0%				5%				10%
Corresponding return to common stockholders(2)			-20.0	%			-11.0	%			-2.0	%			7.0	%			16.0	%

 

(1)		The assumed portfolio return is required by regulation of the SEC and is not a prediction of, and does not represent, our projected or actual performance.
(2)		In order to compute the “corresponding return to common stockholders,” the “assumed return on portfolio” is multiplied by the total value of our assets at the beginning of the period to obtain an assumed return to us. From this amount, all interest expense expected to be accrued during the period is subtracted to determine the return available to stockholders. The return available to stockholders is then divided by the total value of our net assets as of the beginning of the period to determine the “corresponding return to common stockholders.”

We will be exposed to risks associated with changes in interest rates that may materially adversely affect our cost of capital and net investment income.

Since we will borrow money to make investments, our net investment income will depend, in part, upon the difference between the rate at which we borrow funds and the rate at which we invest those funds. As a result, we can offer no assurance that a significant change in market interest rates will not have a material adverse effect on our net investment income. In periods of rising interest rates, our cost of funds will increase, which could materially reduce our net investment income. We may use interest rate risk management techniques, such as total return swaps and interest rate swaps, in an effort to limit our exposure to interest rate fluctuations. These techniques may include various interest rate hedging activities to the extent permitted by the 1940 Act. These activities may limit our ability to participate in the benefits of lower interest rates with respect to the hedged portfolio. Adverse developments resulting from changes in interest rates or hedging transactions could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. Also, we have limited experience in entering into hedging transactions, and we will initially have to purchase or develop such expertise.

A rise in the general level of interest rates can be expected to lead to higher interest rates applicable to our debt investments, particularly since we intend to invest in Floating Rate Loans. Accordingly, an increase in interest rates would make it easier for us to meet or exceed the incentive fee hurdle and may result in a substantial increase of the amount of incentive fees payable to the Investment Adviser with respect to Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income.

General interest rate fluctuations may have a substantial negative impact on our investments, the value of our common stock and our rate of return on invested capital. A reduction in the interest rates on new investments relative to interest rates on current investments could also have a material adverse impact on our net interest income. An increase in interest rates could decrease the value of any investments we will hold which earn fixed interest rates and will increase our interest expense on any variable rate borrowings, thereby decreasing our net income. Also, an increase in interest rates available to investors could make investment in our common stock less attractive if we are not able to increase our dividend rate, which could materially reduce the value of our common stock.

We may in the future determine to fund a portion of our investments with preferred stock, which would magnify the potential for loss and the risks of investing in us in the same way as our borrowings.

Preferred stock, which is another form of leverage, has similar risks to our common stockholders as borrowings because the dividends on any preferred stock we issue must be cumulative. If we issue preferred securities, they would rank “senior” to common stock in our capital structure. Payment of dividends on, and repayment of the liquidation preference of, such preferred stock would typically take preference over any dividends or other payments to our common stockholders. Also, preferred stockholders are not, typically, subject to any of our expenses or losses and are not entitled to participate in any income or appreciation in excess of their stated preference. Furthermore, preferred stockholders would have separate voting rights and may have rights, preferences or privileges more favorable than those of our common stock. Also, the issuance of preferred securities could have the effect of delaying, deferring or preventing a transaction or a change of control that might involve a premium price for our common stockholders or otherwise be in your best interest.

We may in the future determine to fund a portion of our investments with debt securities, which would magnify the potential for loss and the risks of investing in us in the same way as our borrowings.

As a result of an issuance of debt securities, we would be exposed to typical risks associated with leverage, including an increased risk of loss and an increase in expenses, which will ultimately be borne by our common stockholders. Payment of interest on such debt securities must take preference over any other dividends or other payments to our common stockholders. If we issue debt securities, it is likely that such securities will be governed by an indenture or other instrument containing covenants restricting our operating flexibility. In addition, such securities may be rated by rating agencies, and in obtaining a rating for such securities, we may be required to abide by operating and investment guidelines that could further restrict our operating flexibility. Furthermore, any amounts that we use to service our indebtedness would not be available for distributions to our common stockholders.

 

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If we issue preferred stock and/or debt securities, the net asset value and market value of our common stock may become more volatile.

We cannot assure you that the issuance of preferred stock and/or debt securities would result in a higher yield or return to the holders of our common stock. The issuance of preferred stock and/or debt securities would likely cause the net asset value and market value of our common stock to become more volatile. If the dividend rate on the preferred stock, or the interest rate on the debt securities, were to approach the net rate of return on our investment portfolio, the benefit of leverage to the holders of our common stock would be reduced. If the dividend rate on the preferred stock, or the interest rate on the debt securities, were to exceed the net rate of return on our portfolio, the use of leverage would result in a lower rate of return to the holders of common stock than if we had not issued the preferred stock or debt securities. Any decline in the net asset value of our investment would be borne entirely by the holders of our common stock. Therefore, if the market value of our portfolio were to decline, the leverage would result in a greater decrease in net asset value to the holders of our common stock than if we were not leveraged through the issuance of preferred stock. This decline in net asset value would also tend to cause a greater decline in the market price for our common stock.

There is also a risk that, in the event of a sharp decline in the value of our net assets, we would be in danger of failing to maintain required asset coverage ratios which may be required by the 1940 Act and the terms of our preferred stock and/or debt securities or of a downgrade in the ratings of the preferred stock and/or debt securities or our current investment income might not be sufficient to meet the dividend requirements on the preferred stock or the interest payments on the debt securities. In order to counteract such an event, we might need to liquidate investments in order to fund redemption of some or all of the preferred stock and/or debt securities, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition on results of operations. In addition, we would pay (and the holders of our common stock would bear) all costs and expenses relating to the issuance and ongoing maintenance of the preferred stock and/or debt securities. Holders of preferred stock and/or debt securities may have different interests than holders of common stock and may at times have disproportionate influence over our affairs.

Holders of any preferred stock that we may issue will have the right to elect members of the board of directors and have class voting rights on certain matters.

The 1940 Act requires that holders of shares of preferred stock must be entitled as a class to elect two directors at all times and to elect a majority of the directors if dividends on such preferred stock are in arrears by two years or more, until such arrearage is eliminated. In addition, under the 1940 Act certain matters require the separate vote of the holders of any issued and outstanding preferred stock, including changes in fundamental investment restrictions and conversion to open-end status and, accordingly, preferred stockholders could veto any such changes. Restrictions imposed on the declarations and payment of dividends or other distributions to the holders of our common stock and preferred stock, both by the 1940 Act and by requirements imposed by rating agencies, might impair our ability to maintain our qualification as a RIC for U.S. federal income tax purposes, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations.

 

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We may experience fluctuations in our quarterly results.

We could experience fluctuations in our quarterly operating results due to a number of factors, including the interest rate payable on the Floating Rate Loans we acquire, the default rate on such securities, the level of our expenses, variations in, and the timing of the recognition of, realized and unrealized gains or losses, the degree to which we encounter competition in our markets and general economic conditions. As a result of these factors, results for any period should not be relied upon as being indicative of performance in future periods.

Changes in laws or regulations governing our operations may materially adversely affect our business.

We and our portfolio companies will be subject to regulation by laws at the local, state and federal levels. These laws and regulations, as well as their interpretation, may be changed from time to time. Accordingly, any change in these laws or regulations could have a material adverse effect on our business. See “Regulation” for more information.

Our board of directors may change our investment objectives, operating policies and strategies without prior notice or stockholder approval.

Our board of directors has the authority to modify or waive certain of our operating policies and strategies without prior notice and without stockholder approval (except as required by the 1940 Act). However, absent stockholder approval, we may not change the nature of our business so as to cease to be, or withdraw our election as, a business development company. We cannot predict the effect any changes to our current operating policies and strategies would have on our business, operating results and value of our stock. Nevertheless, the effects may materially adversely affect our business and impact our ability to make distributions.

 

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RISKS RELATING TO THE ILLIQUID NATURE OF OUR PORTFOLIO ASSETS

We intend to invest in illiquid assets, and our valuation procedures with respect to such assets may result in our recording values that are materially different than the values we ultimately receive upon disposition of such assets.

We expect that most, if not all, of our investments will be recorded using broker/dealers quotes or at fair value as determined in good faith by our board of directors. We expect that primarily most, if not all, of our investments (other than cash and cash equivalents) and, if we elect to fair value the Credit Facility, such borrowings, will be classified as Level 3 under ASC 820, Fair Value Measurements. This means that the portfolio valuations will be based on unobservable inputs and our own assumptions about how market participants would price the asset or liability. We expect that inputs into the determination of fair value of our portfolio investments and Credit Facility borrowings will require significant management judgment or estimation. Even if observable market data is available, such information may be the result of consensus pricing information or broker quotes, which include a disclaimer that the broker would not be held to such a price in an actual transaction. The non-binding nature of consensus pricing and/or quotes accompanied by such a disclaimer materially reduces the reliability of such information.

Determining fair value requires that judgment be applied to the specific facts and circumstances of each portfolio investment while employing a consistently applied valuation process for the types of investments we make. In determining fair value in good faith, we will generally obtain financial and other information from portfolio companies, which may represent unaudited, projected or pro forma financial information. Unlike banks, we will not be permitted to provide a general reserve for anticipated loan losses; we will instead be required by the 1940 Act to specifically fairly value each individual investment on a quarterly basis. We will record unrealized appreciation if we believe that the underlying portfolio company has appreciated in value. Likewise, we will record unrealized depreciation if we believe that the underlying portfolio company has depreciated in value. As a result, there will be uncertainty as to the value of our portfolio investments.

We will adjust the valuation of our portfolio quarterly to reflect our board of directors’ determination of the fair value of each investment in our portfolio. Any changes in fair value will be recorded in the statement of operations as net change in unrealized appreciation or depreciation.

Our board of directors expects to use the services of one or more nationally recognized independent valuation firms to aid it in determining the fair value of these securities. The factors that may be considered in fair value pricing of our investments include the nature and realizable value of any collateral, the portfolio company’s ability to make payments and its earnings and cash flows, the markets in which the portfolio company does business, comparison to publicly traded companies and other relevant factors. Because valuations may fluctuate over short periods of time and may be based on estimates, our determinations of fair value may differ materially from the values that would have been used if a ready market for these securities existed. Additionally, valuations of private securities and private companies are inherently uncertain. Our net asset value could be materially adversely affected if our determinations regarding the fair value of our investments were materially higher than the values that we ultimately realize upon the disposal of such securities.

The lack of liquidity in our investments may materially adversely affect our business.

We may acquire our investments directly from the issuer in privately negotiated transactions. Substantially all of these securities are subject to legal and other restrictions on resale or are otherwise less liquid than publicly traded securities. We may exit such investments when the portfolio company has a liquidity event such as a sale, refinancing or initial public offering of the company, but we are not required to do so.

The illiquidity of our investments may make it difficult or impossible for us to sell such investments if the need arises, particularly in light of recent market developments in which investor appetite for illiquid securities was substantially diminished. In addition, if we are required to liquidate all or a portion of our portfolio quickly, we may realize significantly less than the value at which we have previously recorded our investments, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. In addition, we may face other restrictions on our ability to liquidate an investment in a portfolio company to the extent that we have material non-public information regarding such portfolio company.

Securities purchased by us that are liquid at the time of purchase may subsequently become illiquid due to events relating to the issuer of the securities, market events, economic conditions or investor perceptions. Domestic and foreign markets are complex and interrelated, so that events in one sector of the world markets or economy, or in one geographical region, can reverberate and have materially negative consequences for other market, economic or regional sectors in a manner that may not be foreseen and which may materially harm our business.

A general disruption in the credit markets could materially damage our business.

We are susceptible to the risk of significant loss if we are forced to discount the value of our investments in order to provide liquidity to meet our liability maturities. Our borrowings under a credit facility would be collateralized by the assets in our investment portfolio. A general disruption in the credit markets could result in a diminished appetite for our securities. In addition,

 

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with respect to over-the-counter traded securities, the continued viability of any over-the-counter secondary market depends on the continued willingness of dealers and other participants to purchase the securities.

If the fair value of our assets declines substantially, we may fail to maintain the asset coverage ratios stipulated by the 1940 Act, which could, in turn, cause us to lose our status as a business development company and materially impair our business operations. Our liquidity could be impaired further by an inability to access the capital markets or to draw down on the Credit Facility. These situations may arise due to circumstances that we may be unable to control, such as a general disruption in the credit markets, a severe decline in the value of the U.S. dollar, a sharp economic downturn or an operational problem that affects third parties or us, and could materially damage our business.

RISKS RELATED TO OUR INVESTMENTS

Our investments in prospective portfolio companies may be risky, and you could lose all or part of your investment.

We intend to invest primarily in Floating Rate Loans of middle-market companies.

 

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Floating Rate Loans. The Floating Rate Loans we intend to invest in will usually be rated below investment grade or may also be unrated. Investments in Floating Rate Loans rated below investment grade are considered speculative because of the credit risk of their issuers. Such companies are more likely than investment grade issuers to default on their payments of interest and principal owed to us, and such defaults could reduce our net asset value and income distributions. An economic downturn would generally lead to a higher non-payment rate by portfolio companies, and a Floating Rate Loan may lose significant market value before a default occurs and we may experience losses due to the inherent illiquidity of the investments. Moreover, any specific collateral used to secure a Floating Rate Loan may decline in value or become illiquid, which would adversely affect the Floating Rate Loan’s value. Floating Rate Loans are subject to a number of risks described elsewhere in this prospectus, including liquidity risk and the risk of investing in below investment-grade, fixed income instruments.

Floating Rate Loans are subject to the risk of non-payment of scheduled interest or principal. Such non-payment would result in a reduction of income to us, a reduction in the value of the investment and a potential decrease in the net asset value of the Floating Rate Loan. There can be no assurance that the liquidation of any collateral securing a Floating Rate Loan would satisfy the borrower’s obligation in the event of non-payment of scheduled interest or principal payments, or that the collateral could be readily liquidated. In the event of bankruptcy or insolvency of a borrower, we could experience delays or limitations with respect to our ability to realize the benefits of the collateral securing a Floating Rate Loan. The collateral securing a Floating Rate Loan may lose all or substantially all of its value in the event of the bankruptcy or insolvency of a borrower. Some Floating Rate Loans are subject to the risk that a court, pursuant to fraudulent conveyance or other similar laws, could subordinate the rights in collateral of such Floating Rate Loans to presently existing or future indebtedness of the borrower or take other action detrimental to the holders of Floating Rate Loans including, in certain circumstances, invalidating such Floating Rate Loans or causing interest previously paid to be refunded to the borrower. Either such step could materially negatively affect our performance.

We may acquire Floating Rate Loans through assignments or participations of interests in a Floating Rate Loan. The purchaser of an assignment typically succeeds to all the rights and obligations of the assigning institution and becomes a lender under the credit agreement with respect to such debt obligation. However, the purchaser’s rights can be more restricted than those of the assigning institution, and we may not be able to unilaterally enforce all rights and remedies under an assigned debt obligation and with regard to any associated collateral. A participation typically results in a contractual relationship only with the institution participating out the interest and not directly with the borrower. Sellers of participations typically include banks, broker-dealers, other financial institutions and lending institutions. In purchasing participations, we generally will have no right to enforce compliance by the borrower with the terms of the loan agreement against the borrower, and we may not directly benefit from the collateral supporting the debt obligation in which we have purchased the participation. As a result, we will be exposed to the credit risk of both the borrower and the institution selling the participation. Further, in purchasing participations in lending syndicates, we will not be able to conduct the same level of due diligence on a borrower or the quality of the Floating Rate Loan with respect to which we are buying a participation as we would conduct if we were investing directly in the Floating Rate Loan. This difference may result in PennantPark Floating Rate Capital being exposed to

 

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greater credit or fraud risk with respect to such Floating Rate Loans than we expected when initially purchasing the participation.

In addition, investing in middle-market companies involves a number of significant risks, including but not limited to:

 

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companies may have limited financial resources and may be unable to meet their obligations under their debt securities that we hold, which may be accompanied by a deterioration in the value of any collateral and a reduction in the likelihood of us realizing any guarantees we may have obtained in connection with our investment;

 

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they typically have shorter operating histories, narrower product lines and smaller market shares than larger businesses, which tend to render them more vulnerable to competitors’ actions and changing market conditions, as well as general economic downturns;

 

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they are more likely to depend on the management talents and efforts of a small group of persons; therefore, the death, disability, resignation or termination of one or more of these persons could have a material adverse impact on our portfolio company and, in turn, on us;

 

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they generally have less predictable operating results, may from time to time be parties to litigation, may be engaged in rapidly changing businesses with products subject to a substantial risk of obsolescence, and may require substantial additional capital to support their operations, finance expansion or maintain their competitive position. In addition, our executive officers, directors and the Investment Adviser may, in the ordinary course of business, be named as defendants in litigation arising from our investments in the portfolio companies; and

 

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they may have difficulty accessing the capital markets to meet future capital needs, which may limit their ability to grow or to repay their outstanding indebtedness upon maturity.

We have not yet identified all of the portfolio companies we will invest in using the proceeds of this offering.

While the Investment Adviser’s investment team has identified an initial group of potential investments for our portfolio, we have not yet identified all of the additional potential investments for our portfolio that we will acquire with the proceeds of the offering. Additionally, the Investment Adviser will select our investments subsequent to the closing of this offering, and our stockholders will have no input with respect to such investment decisions. These factors increase the uncertainty, and thus the risk, of investing in our common stock. In addition, pending such investments, we will invest the net proceeds primarily in cash, cash equivalents, U.S. government securities and other high-quality investment grade investments that mature in one year or less from the date of investment. The income we earn on such temporary investments will generally be significantly less than what we would expect to receive from investments in the types of senior loans we intend to target for investment, and if we are not able to identify or gain access to suitable investments, our income may be limited.

Under the 1940 Act we will be allowed invest up to 30% of our assets in investments that are not qualifying assets for business development companies. If we do not invest a sufficient portion of our assets in qualifying assets, we could be precluded from investing in assets that we deem to be attractive.

As a business development company, we will not be allowed acquire any asset other than qualifying assets, as defined under the 1940 Act, unless at the time the acquisition is made such qualifying assets represent at least 70% of the value of our total assets. Qualifying assets include investments in U.S. operating companies whose securities are not listed on a national securities exchange and companies listed on a national securities exchange subject to a market capitalization limit of $250 million. Qualifying assets also include cash, cash items, government securities and high quality debt securities maturing in one year or less from the time of investment.

We believe that most of our Floating Rate Loan investments will constitute qualifying assets. However, we may be precluded from investing in what we believe are attractive investments if such investments are not qualifying assets for purposes of the 1940 Act. If we do not invest a sufficient portion of our assets in qualifying assets, we will be prohibited from making any additional investment that is not a qualifying asset and could be forced to forgo attractive investment opportunities. Similarly, these rules could prevent us from making follow-on investments in existing portfolio companies (which could result in the dilution of our position) or could require us to dispose of investments at inappropriate times in order to comply with the 1940 Act. If we need to dispose of such investments quickly, it would be difficult to dispose of such investments on favorable terms. For example, we may have difficulty in finding a buyer and, even if we do find a buyer, we may have to sell the investments at a substantial loss.

We are a non-diversified investment company within the meaning of the 1940 Act, and, therefore, we generally will not be limited with respect to the proportion of our assets that may be invested in securities of a single issuer.

We are classified as a non-diversified investment company within the meaning of the 1940 Act, which means that we will not be limited by the 1940 Act with respect to the proportion of our assets that we may invest in securities of a single issuer, excluding limitations on stakeholdings in investment companies. To the extent that we assume large positions in the securities of a small number of issuers, our net asset value may fluctuate to a greater extent than that of a diversified investment company as a result of changes in the financial condition or the market’s assessment of the issuer. We may also be more susceptible to any single economic or regulatory occurrence than a diversified investment company. Beyond our income tax diversification requirements, we do not have fixed guidelines for diversification, and our investments could be concentrated in relatively few portfolio companies.

Economic recessions or downturns could impair our portfolio companies and harm our operating results.

Many of our portfolio companies may be susceptible to economic slowdowns or recessions and may be unable to repay our loans during these periods. Therefore, our non-performing assets are likely to increase, and the value of our portfolio is likely to decrease during these periods. Adverse economic conditions also may decrease the value of collateral securing some of our loans and the value

 

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of our equity investments. Economic slowdowns or recessions could lead to financial losses in our portfolio and a material decrease in revenues, net income and assets. Unfavorable economic conditions also could increase our funding costs, limit our access to the capital markets or result in a decision by lenders not to extend credit to us. These events could prevent us from increasing investments and materially harm our operating results.

A portfolio company’s failure to satisfy financial or operating covenants imposed by us or other lenders could lead to defaults and potential termination of its loans and foreclosure on its secured assets, which could trigger cross-defaults under other agreements and jeopardize our portfolio company’s ability to meet its obligations under the debt securities that we hold. We may incur expenses to the extent necessary to seek recovery upon default or to negotiate new terms with a defaulting portfolio company. Depending on the facts and circumstances of our investments and the extent of our involvement in the management of a portfolio company, upon the bankruptcy of a portfolio company, a bankruptcy court may recharacterize our debt investments as equity investments and subordinate all or a portion of our claim to that of other creditors. This could occur regardless of how we may have structured our investment.

We may not realize gains from our equity investments.

When we invest in mezzanine loans or senior secured loans, we may also invest in the equity securities of the borrower or acquire warrants or other equity securities as well. In addition, we may invest directly in the equity securities of portfolio companies. Our goal is ultimately to dispose of such equity interests and realize gains upon our disposition of such interests. However, the equity interests we receive may not appreciate in value and, in fact, may decline in value. Accordingly, we may not be able to realize gains from our equity interests, and any gains that we do realize on the disposition of any equity interests may not be sufficient to offset any other losses we experience.

If we fail to make follow-on investments in our portfolio companies, this could materially impair the value of our portfolio.

Following an initial investment in a portfolio company, we may make additional investments in that portfolio company as “follow-on” investments, in order to:

 

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increase or maintain in whole or in part our equity ownership percentage;

 

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exercise warrants, options or convertible securities that were acquired in the original or subsequent financing; or

 

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attempt to preserve or enhance the value of our investment.

 

We have the discretion to make any follow-on investments, subject to the availability of capital resources. We may elect not to make follow-on investments or otherwise lack sufficient funds to make those investments. Any failure to make follow-on investments may, in some circumstances, jeopardize the continued viability of a portfolio company and our initial investment, or may result in a missed opportunity for us to increase our participation in a successful operation. Even if we have sufficient capital to make a desired follow-on investment, we may elect not to make a follow-on investment because we may not want to increase our concentration of risk, because we prefer other opportunities, or because we are inhibited by compliance with business development company requirements or the desire to maintain our tax status.

Because we will not generally hold controlling equity interests in our portfolio companies, we will not be in a position to exercise control over our portfolio companies or to prevent decisions by management of our portfolio companies that could materially decrease the value of our investments.

Because we will not, generally, have controlling equity positions in our portfolio companies, we will be subject to the risk that a portfolio company may make business decisions with which we disagree, and the stockholders and management of a portfolio company may take risks or otherwise act in ways that are adverse to our interests. Due to the lack of liquidity for the Floating Rate Loans that we expect to hold in our portfolio companies, we may not be able to dispose of our investments in the event we disagree with the actions of a portfolio company, and may therefore suffer a material decrease in the value of our investments.

An investment strategy focused primarily on privately held companies, including controlled equity interests, presents certain challenges, including the lack of available or comparable information about these companies, a dependence on the talents and efforts of only a few key portfolio company personnel and a greater vulnerability to economic downturns.

We intend to invest primarily in privately held companies. Generally, little public information exists about these companies, and we will rely on the ability of the Investment Adviser’s investment professionals to obtain adequate information to evaluate the potential returns from investing in these companies. If they are unable to uncover all material information about these companies, we may not make a fully informed investment decision, and we may lose value on our investments. Also, privately held companies frequently have less diverse product lines and smaller market presence than larger competitors. These factors could materially adversely affect our investment returns as compared to companies investing primarily in the securities of public companies.

The effect of global climate change may impact the operations of our portfolio companies.

There may be evidence of global climate change. Climate change creates physical and financial risk and some of our portfolio companies may be adversely affected by climate change. For example, the needs of customers of energy companies vary with weather conditions, primarily temperature and humidity. To the extent weather conditions are affected by climate change, energy use could increase or decrease depending on the duration and magnitude of any changes. Increases in the cost of energy could adversely affect the cost of operations of our portfolio companies if the use of energy products or services is material to their business. A decrease in energy use due to weather changes may affect some of our portfolio companies’ financial condition, through decreased revenues. Extreme weather conditions in general require more system backup, adding to costs, and can contribute to increased system stresses, including service interruptions.

Our portfolio companies may incur debt that ranks equally with, or senior to, our investments in such companies.

We intend to invest primarily in Floating Rate Loans issued by our portfolio companies. The portfolio companies usually will have, or may be permitted to incur, other debt that ranks equally with, or senior to, the Floating Rate Loans in which we invest. By their terms, such debt instruments may provide that the holders are entitled to receive payment of interest or principal on or before the dates on which we are entitled to receive payments in respect of the debt securities in which we invest. Also, in the event of insolvency, liquidation, dissolution, reorganization or bankruptcy of a portfolio company, holders of debt instruments ranking senior to our investment in that portfolio company would typically be entitled to receive payment in full before we receive any distribution in respect of our investment. After repaying such senior creditors, the portfolio company may not have any remaining assets to use for repaying its obligation to us. In the case of debt ranking equally with debt securities in which we invest, we would have to share on an

 

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equal basis any distributions with other creditors holding such debt in the event of an insolvency, liquidation, dissolution, reorganization or bankruptcy of the relevant portfolio company.

Our incentive fee may induce the Investment Adviser to make speculative investments.

The incentive fee payable by us to PennantPark Investment Advisers may create an incentive for PennantPark Investment Advisers to make investments on our behalf that are risky or more speculative than would be the case in the absence of such compensation arrangement. The incentive fee payable to the Investment Adviser is calculated based on a percentage of our return on invested capital. This may encourage the Investment Adviser to use leverage to increase the return on our investments. Under certain circumstances, the use of leverage may increase the likelihood of default, which would disfavor the holders of our common stock. In addition, the Investment Adviser will receive the incentive fee based, in part, upon net capital gains realized on our investments. Unlike that portion of the incentive fee based on income, there is no hurdle applicable to the portion of the incentive fee based on net capital gains. As a result, the Investment Adviser may have a tendency to invest more capital in investments that are likely to result in capital gains as compared to income producing securities. Such a practice could result in our investing in more speculative securities than would otherwise be the case, which could result in higher investment losses, particularly during economic downturns.

The part of our incentive fee payable by us to PennantPark Investment Advisers that relates to our investment income is computed and paid on income that may include interest that has been accrued but that has not yet been received in cash. If a portfolio company defaults on a loan structured to provide accrued interest, it is possible that the accrued interest previously used in the calculation of the incentive fee will become uncollectible. PennantPark Investment Advisers is not obligated to reimburse us for any such incentive fees even if we subsequently incur losses or never receive in cash the deferred income that was previously accrued. As a result, there is a risk that we will pay incentive fees with respect to income that we never receive in cash.

We may make investments that cause our stockholders to bear investment advisory fees and other expenses on such investments in addition to our management fees and expenses.

We may invest, to the extent permitted by law, in the securities and instruments of other investment companies and companies that would be investment companies but are excluded from the definition of investment company provided in Section 3(c) of the 1940 Act. To the extent we so invest, we will bear our ratable share of any such investment company’s expenses, including management and performance fees. We will also remain obligated to pay investment advisory fees, consisting of a base management fee and incentive fees, to PennantPark Investment Advisers with respect to investments in the securities and instruments of other investment companies under the Investment Management Agreement. With respect to any such investments, each of our stockholders will bear his or her share of the investment advisory fees of PennantPark Investment Advisers as well as indirectly bear the investment advisory fees and other expenses of any investment companies in which we invest.

We may be obligated to pay the Investment Adviser incentive compensation even if we incur a loss.

The Investment Adviser is entitled to incentive compensation for each fiscal quarter in an amount equal to a percentage of the excess of our income for that quarter minus our operating expenses for the quarter above a threshold return for that quarter. Our Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income for incentive compensation purposes excludes realized capital losses and unrealized capital depreciation that we may incur in the fiscal quarter, even if such capital losses result in a net loss on our statement of operations for that quarter. Thus, we may be required to pay the Investment Adviser incentive compensation for a fiscal quarter even if there is a decline in the value of our portfolio or we incur a net loss for that quarter.

Our investments in foreign securities may involve significant risks in addition to the risks inherent in U.S. investments.

Our investment strategy contemplates potential investments in debt securities of companies located outside of the United States. Investing in companies located outside of the United States may expose us to additional risks not typically associated with investing in U.S. companies. These risks include changes in exchange control regulations, political and social instability, expropriation, imposition of foreign taxes, less liquid markets and less available information than is generally the case in the United States, higher transaction costs, less government supervision of exchanges, brokers and issuers, less developed bankruptcy laws, difficulty in enforcing contractual obligations, lack of uniform accounting and auditing standards and greater price volatility.

Although most of our investments will be U.S. dollar-denominated, any investments denominated in a foreign currency will be subject to the risk that the value of a particular currency will change in relation to one or more other currencies. Among the factors that may affect currency values are trade balances, the level of short-term interest rates, differences in relative values of similar assets in different currencies, long-term opportunities for investment and capital appreciation, and political developments. We may employ hedging techniques to minimize these risks, but we can offer no assurance that we will, in fact, hedge currency risk or, that if we do, such strategies will be effective.

We may expose ourselves to risks if we engage in hedging transactions.

If we engage in hedging transactions, we may expose ourselves to risks associated with such transactions. We may borrow under a credit facility in currencies selected to minimize our foreign currency exposure or use instruments such as forward contracts, currency options and interest rate swaps, caps, collars and floors to seek to hedge against fluctuations in the relative values of our

 

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portfolio positions from changes in currency exchange rates and market interest rates. Hedging against a decline in the values of our portfolio positions does not eliminate the possibility of fluctuations in the values of such positions or prevent losses if the values of such positions decline. However, such hedging can establish other positions designed to gain from those same developments, thereby offsetting the decline in the value of such portfolio positions. Such hedging transactions may also limit the opportunity for gain if the values of the underlying portfolio positions should increase. Moreover, it may not be possible to hedge against an exchange rate or interest rate fluctuation that is so generally anticipated that we are not able to enter into a hedging transaction at an acceptable price.

While we may enter into such transactions to seek to reduce currency exchange rate and interest rate risks, unanticipated changes in currency exchange rates or interest rates may result in poorer overall investment performance than if we had not engaged in any such hedging transactions. In addition, the degree of correlation between price movements of the instruments used in a hedging strategy and price movements in the portfolio positions being hedged may vary. Moreover, for a variety of reasons, we may not seek to establish a perfect correlation between such hedging instruments and the portfolio holdings being hedged. Any such imperfect correlation may prevent us from achieving the intended hedge and expose us to risk of loss. In addition, it may not be possible to hedge fully or perfectly against currency fluctuations affecting the value of securities denominated in non-U.S. currencies because the value of those securities is likely to fluctuate as a result of factors not related to currency fluctuations.

Provisions of the Maryland General Corporation Law and of our charter and bylaws could deter takeover attempts and have an adverse impact on the price of our common stock.

The Maryland General Corporation Law, our charter and our bylaws contain provisions that may discourage, delay or make more difficult a change in control of PennantPark Floating Rate Capital or the removal of our directors. We are subject to the Maryland Business Combination Act, the application of which is subject to any applicable requirements of the 1940 Act. Our board of directors has adopted a resolution exempting from the Business Combination Act any business combination between us and any other person, subject to prior approval of such business combination by our board, including approval by a majority of our disinterested directors. If the resolution exempting business combinations is repealed or our board does not approve a business combination, the Business Combination Act may discourage third parties from trying to acquire control of us and increase the difficulty of consummating such an offer. Our bylaws exempt from the Maryland Control Share Acquisition Act acquisitions of our common stock by any person. If we amend our bylaws to repeal the exemption from the Control Share Acquisition Act, the Control Share Acquisition Act also may make it more difficult for a third party to obtain control of us and increase the difficulty of consummating such an offer.

We have also adopted other measures that may make it difficult for a third party to obtain control of us, including provisions of our charter classifying our board of directors in three classes serving staggered three-year terms, and provisions of our charter authorizing our board of directors to classify or reclassify shares of our stock in one or more classes or series, to cause the issuance of additional shares of our stock, and to amend our charter, without stockholder approval, to increase or decrease the number of shares of stock that we have authority to issue. These provisions, as well as other provisions of our charter and bylaws, may delay, defer or prevent a transaction or a change in control that might otherwise be in the best interests of our stockholders.

RISKS RELATING TO AN INVESTMENT IN OUR COMMON STOCK

We have no operating history.

We were formed in October 2010 and have not yet commenced investment operations. As a result of a lack of operating history, we are subject to many of the business risks and uncertainties associated with recently formed businesses, including the risk that we will not achieve our investment objective and that the value of your investment could decline substantially.

Because we intend to distribute substantially all of our income to our stockholders to maintain our status as a RIC, we will need to raise additional capital to finance our growth. If funds are not available to us, we may need to curtail new investments, and our common stock value could materially decline.

In order to satisfy the requirements applicable to a RIC, we intend to distribute to our stockholders substantially all of our net ordinary income and net capital gain income except for certain net long-term capital gains, some or all of which we may retain, pay applicable income taxes with respect thereto and elect to treat as deemed distributions to our stockholders. As a business development company, we generally will be required to meet a coverage ratio of total assets to total senior securities, which includes all of our borrowings and any preferred stock we may issue in the future, of at least 200% of indebtedness. This requirement limits the amount we may borrow. If the value of our assets declines, we may be unable to satisfy this test. If that happens, we may be required to sell a portion of our investments or sell additional common stock and, depending on the nature of our leverage, to repay a portion of our indebtedness at a time when such sales and repayments may be disadvantageous. In addition, the issuance of additional securities could dilute the percentage ownership of our current stockholders in us.

There is a risk that our stockholders may not receive distributions or that our distributions may not grow over time.

We intend to make distributions on a monthly basis to our stockholders out of assets legally available for distribution. We cannot assure you that we will achieve investment results that will allow us to make a specified level of cash distributions or year-to-year increases in cash distributions. In addition, due to the asset coverage test that will be applicable to us as a business development company, we may be limited in our ability to make distributions. Further, if more stockholders opt to receive cash dividends and other distributions rather than participate in our dividend reinvestment plan, we may be forced to liquidate some of our investments and raise cash in order to make distribution payments, which could materially harm our business. Finally, to the extent we make distributions to

 

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stockholders which include a return of capital, that portion of the distribution essentially constitutes a return of the stockholders’ investment. Although such return of capital may not be taxable, such distributions may increase an investor’s tax liability for capital gains upon the future sale of our common stock.

Investing in our shares may involve an above average degree of risk.

The investments we make in accordance with our investment objectives may result in a higher amount of risk and volatility than alternative investment options or loss of principal. Our investments in portfolio companies may be highly speculative and aggressive and, therefore, an investment in our shares may not be suitable for someone with lower risk tolerance.

There is a risk that our common stockholders may receive our stock as dividends, in which case they may be required to pay tax in excess of the cash they receive.

In January 2010, the Internal Revenue Service extended a revenue procedure that temporarily allows a RIC to distribute its own stock as a dividend for the purpose of fulfilling its distribution requirements. Pursuant to this revenue procedure, a RIC may treat a distribution of its own stock as a dividend if (1) the stock is publicly traded on an established securities market in the United States, (2) the distribution is declared with respect to a taxable year ending on or before December 31, 2011 and (3) each stockholder may elect to receive his or her entire distribution in either cash or stock of the RIC subject to a limitation on the aggregate amount of cash to be distributed to all stockholders, which must be at least 10% of the aggregate declared distribution. If too many stockholders elect to receive cash, each stockholder electing to receive cash will receive a pro rata amount of cash (with the balance of the distribution paid in stock). In no event will any stockholder electing to receive cash receive less than 10% of his or her entire distribution in cash. We currently do not intend to distribute stock as a dividend but reserve the right to do so.

If we distribute our common stock as a dividend of our taxable income, a shareholder could receive up to 90% of the amount of the dividend declared in shares of our common stock with the remaining amount in cash. The total dividend declared would be taxable income to a shareholder although he or she may only receive 10% of the dividend in cash to pay any taxes due on the dividend.

We may allocate the net proceeds from an offering in ways with which you may not agree.

We have significant flexibility in investing the net proceeds of an offering and may use the net proceeds from an offering in ways with which you may not agree or for purposes other than those contemplated at the time of the offering.

Our shares may trade at a substantial discount from net asset value and may continue to do so over the long term.

Shares of business development companies have frequently traded at a market price that is less than the net asset value that is attributable to those shares. The possibility that our shares of common stock will trade at a discount from net asset value over the long term is separate and distinct from the risk that our net asset value will decrease. It is not possible to predict whether our shares will trade at, above or below net asset value in the future. If our common stock trades below its net asset value, we will generally not be able to issue additional shares or sell our common stock at its market price without first obtaining the approval for such issuance from our stockholders and our independent directors. If additional funds are not available to us, we could be forced to curtail or cease our new lending and investment activities, and our net asset value could decrease and our level of distributions could be impacted.

The market price of our common stock may fluctuate significantly.

The market price and liquidity of the market for shares of our common stock may be significantly affected by numerous factors, some of which are beyond our control and may not be directly related to our operating performance. These factors include:

 

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significant volatility in the market price and trading volume of securities of business development companies or other companies in our sector, which are not necessarily related to the operating performance of these companies;

 

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changes in regulatory policies or tax guidelines, particularly with respect to RICs or business development companies;

 

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failure to obtain qualification as a RIC or any loss of RIC status;

 

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changes in earnings or variations in operating results;

 

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changes in the value of our portfolio of investments;

 

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any shortfall in revenue or net income or any increase in losses from levels expected by investors or securities analysts;

 

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the inability of the Investment Adviser to employ additional experienced investment professionals or the departure of any of the Investment Adviser’s key personnel;

 

•

operating performance of companies comparable to us;

 

•

general economic trends and other external factors; and

 

•

loss of a major funding source.

 

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We may be unable to invest the net proceeds raised from offerings on acceptable terms, which would harm our financial condition and operating results.

Until we identify new investment opportunities, we intend to either invest the net proceeds of future offerings in cash equivalents, U.S. government securities and other high-quality debt investments that mature in one year or less. We cannot assure you that we will be able to find enough appropriate investments that meet our investment criteria or that any investment we complete using the proceeds from an offering will produce a sufficient return.

Sales of substantial amounts of our securities may have a material adverse effect on the market price of our securities.

Sales of substantial amounts of our securities, or the availability of such securities for sale, could adversely affect the prevailing market prices for our securities. If this occurs and continues, it could materially impair our ability to raise additional capital through the sale of securities should we desire to do so.

We may obtain the approval of our stockholders to issue shares of our common stock at prices below the then current net asset value per share of our common stock. Any such issuance could materially dilute your interest in our common stock and reduce our net asset value per share.

Any decision to sell shares of our common stock below the then current net asset value per share of our common stock in one or more offerings is subject to the determination by our board of directors that such issuance and sale is in our and our stockholders’ best interests.

Any sale or other issuance of shares of our common stock at a price below net asset value per share will result in an immediate dilution to your interest in our common stock and a reduction of our net asset value per share. This dilution would occur as a result of a proportionately greater decrease in a stockholder’s interest in our earnings and assets and voting interest in us than the increase in our assets resulting from such issuance. Because the number of future shares of common stock that may be issued below our net asset value per share and the price and timing of such issuances are not currently known, we cannot predict the actual dilutive effect of any such issuance. We also cannot determine the resulting reduction in our net asset value per share of any such issuance at this time. We caution you that such effects may be material.

The Investment Adviser can resign upon 60 days’ notice, and we may not be able to find a suitable replacement within that time, resulting in a disruption in our operations that could materially adversely affect our financial condition, business and results of operations.

The Investment Adviser has the right, under the Investment Management Agreement, to resign at any time upon 60 days’ written notice, whether we have found a replacement or not. If the Investment Adviser resigns, we may not be able to find a new investment adviser or hire internal management with similar expertise and ability to provide the same or equivalent services on acceptable terms within 60 days, or at all. If we are unable to do so quickly, our operations are likely to experience a disruption, our financial condition, business and results of operations as well as our ability to pay distributions are likely to be adversely affected and the market price of our common stock may decline. In addition, the coordination of our internal management and investment activities is likely to suffer if we are unable to identify and reach an agreement with a single institution or group of executives having the expertise possessed by the Investment Adviser and its affiliates. Even if we are able to retain comparable management, whether internal or external, the integration of such management and their lack of familiarity with our investment objective may result in additional costs and time delays that may materially adversely affect our financial condition, business and results of operations.

We will incur significant costs as a result of being a publicly traded company.

As a publicly traded company, we will incur legal, accounting and other expenses, including costs associated with the periodic reporting requirements applicable to a company whose securities are registered under the Exchange Act, as well as additional corporate governance requirements, including requirements under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, and other rules implemented by the SEC and the listing standards of the NASDAQ.

 

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FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This prospectus contains statements that constitute forward-looking statements, regarding future events or our future performance or financial condition. These forward-looking statements are not historical facts, but rather are based on current expectations, estimates and projections about our industry, our beliefs and our assumptions. The forward-looking statements contained in this prospectus involve risks and uncertainties, including statements as to:

 

•

our future operating results;

 

•

our business prospects and the prospects of our prospective portfolio companies;

 

•

the impact of fluctuation in interest rates on our business;

 

•

the dependence of our future success on the general economy and its impact on the industries in which we invest;

 

•

the impact of a protracted decline in the liquidity of credit markets on our business;

 

•

the impact of investments that we expect to make;

 

•

our contractual arrangements and relationships with third parties;

 

•

the valuation of our investments in portfolio companies, particularly those having no liquid trading market;

 

•

the ability of our prospective portfolio companies to achieve their objectives;

 

•

our expected financings and investments;

 

•

the adequacy of our cash resources and working capital;

 

•

the timing of cash flows, if any, from the operations of our prospective portfolio companies; and

 

•

the ability of the Investment Adviser to locate suitable investments for us and to monitor and administer our investments.

We use words such as “anticipates,” “believes,” “expects,” “intends,” “seeks” and similar expressions to identify forward-looking statements. Undue influence should not be placed on the forward-looking statements as our actual results could differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements for any reason, including the factors set forth in “Risk Factors” and elsewhere in this prospectus.

We have based the forward-looking statements included in this prospectus on information available to us on the date of this prospectus, and we assume no obligation to update any such forward-looking statements. Although we undertake no obligation to revise or update any forward-looking statements in this prospectus, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, you are advised to consult any additional disclosures that we may make directly to you or through reports that we in the future may file with the SEC, including annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and current reports on Form 8-K.

You should understand that, under Sections 27A(b)(2)(B) of the Securities Act and Section 21E(b)(2)(B) of the Exchange Act, the “safe harbor” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 do not apply to statements made in connection with any offering of securities pursuant to this prospectus or in the periodic reports we file under the Exchange Act.

 

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USE OF PROCEEDS

We estimate that the net proceeds we will receive from the sale of 10,000,000 shares of our common stock in this offering will be approximately $141.5 million, or approximately $162.9 million if the underwriters fully exercise their over-allotment option, in each case assuming an initial public offering price of $15.00 per share after deducting the underwriting discounts and commissions of $7,500,000 payable by us ($8,625,000 if the underwriters fully exercise their over-allotment option) (excluding an additional sales load of $3,000,000 ($3,450,000 if the underwriters fully exercise their over-allotment option) that the Investment Adviser has agreed to pay to the underwriters) and estimated offering expenses of approximately $1,000,000 payable by us.

We plan to use the net proceeds of this offering for investments primarily in Floating Rate Loans in accordance with our investment objectives and strategies described in this prospectus and for general working capital purposes. We will also pay operating expenses, including management and administrative fees, and may pay other expenses such as due diligence expenses of potential new investments, from the net proceeds of this offering. We anticipate that substantially all of the net proceeds of this offering will be used for the above purposes within three to six months from the consummation of this offering, depending on the availability of appropriate investment opportunities consistent with our investment objectives and market conditions. We cannot assure you that we will achieve our targeted investment pace.

Pending such investments, we will invest the net proceeds primarily in cash, cash equivalents, U.S. government securities and other high-quality investments that mature in one year or less from the date of investment. The Investment Adviser has agreed to waive the portion of the base management fee payable on any net proceeds of this offering that have not yet been invested in portfolio investments, inclusive of any temporary investments in cash, cash equivalents, U.S. government securities and other high-quality investment grade debt investments that mature in 12 months or less from the date of investment. See “Regulation — Temporary Investments” for additional information about temporary investments we may make while waiting to make longer-term investments in pursuit of our investment objectives.

 

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CAPITALIZATION

The following table sets forth:

the actual capitalization of PennantPark Floating Rate Capital at March 4, 2011; and

the capitalization of PennantPark Floating Rate Capital as-adjusted to reflect the sale of 10,000,000 shares of our common stock in this offering at a public offering price of $15.00 per share, after deducting the underwriting discounts and commissions and estimated offering expenses of approximately $1,000,000 payable by us.

 

		As of March 4, 2011
		Actual				As-Adjusted(1)
Assets:
Cash and cash equivalents		$	10,000			$	141,510,000
Total assets		$	10,000			$	141,510,000
Net Assets:
Common stock, par value $0.001 per share; 100,000,000 shares authorized; 667 shares outstanding, actual; 10,000,667 shares outstanding, as adjusted		$	1			$	10,001
Paid-in capital in excess of par value		$	9,999			$	141,499,999
Net assets		$	10,000			$	141,510,000

 

(1)	Does not include the underwriters’ overallotment option of 1,500,000 shares of our common stock.

 

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DILUTION

The potential dilution to investors in this offering is represented by the difference between the offering price per share and the pro forma net asset value per share after this offering. Net asset value per share is determined by dividing our net asset value, which is our total tangible assets less total liabilities, by the number of outstanding shares of common stock.

As of March 28, 2011, our net asset value was $10,000, or approximately $15.00 per share. After giving effect to the sale of the shares to be sold in this offering, and the deduction of discounts and estimated expenses of this offering, our as-adjusted net asset value would be approximately $141.5 million, or $14.15 per share, representing an immediate dilution of $0.85 per share, or 5.67%, to shares sold in this offering. The following illustration assumes no exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option. If the underwriters’ over-allotment is exercised in full, there would be an immediate dilution to the net asset value of $0.84 per share, or 5.58%, to the shares sold in this offering.

The following table illustrates the dilution to the shares on a per share basis:

 

Assumed initial public offering price per share		$	15.00
March 28, 2011 net asset value per share immediately prior to this offering		$	15.00
As-adjusted net asset value per share immediately after this offering		$	14.15
Dilution per share to stockholders participating in this offering (without exercise of the over-allotment option)		$	0.85

 

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DISCUSSION OF MANAGEMENT’S EXPECTED OPERATING PLANS

The following discussion and other parts of this prospectus contain forward-looking information that involves risks and uncertainties. Our actual results could differ materially from those anticipated by such forward-looking information due to factors discussed under “Risk Factors” appearing elsewhere in the prospectus.

Overview

We are a newly organized externally managed finance company. We were formed on October 28, 2010 as a Maryland corporation structured as an externally managed, non-diversified closed-end management investment company. We intend to elect to be treated as a business development company under the 1940 Act. In addition, for tax purposes we intend to elect to be treated, and intend to qualify annually, as a RIC under Subchapter M of the Code, commencing with our first taxable year ending after completion of this offering.

Our investment objective is to seek high current income. We will seek to achieve our investment objective by investing primarily in Floating Rate Loans made to private middle-market companies whose debt is rated below investment grade. We may also invest in thinly traded or small market-cap public middle-market U.S. companies. Floating Rate Loans are typically rated below investment grade. Securities rated below investment grade are often referred to as “leveraged loans” or “high yield” securities or “junk bonds” and are often higher risk compared to debt instruments that are rated above investment grade and have speculative characteristics. However, when compared to junk bonds and other forms of non-investment grade debt, Floating Rate Loans typically have more robust capital-preserving qualities such as less credit risk and have historically had lower default rates than junk bonds. Floating Rate Loans are typically the most senior source of capital in a borrower’s capital structure and often have certain of the borrower’s assets pledged as collateral. Floating Rate Loans feature rates that reset regularly, maintaining a fixed spread over the London InterBank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”) or the prime rates of large money-center banks. Floating Rate Loans typically have terms of three to ten years. Floating Rate Loans are typically made to U.S. and, to a limited extent, non-U.S. corporations, partnerships and other business entities which operate in various industries and geographical regions. Under normal market conditions, we expect that at least 80% of the value of our Managed Assets, which means our net assets plus any borrowings for investment purposes, will be invested in Floating Rate Loans. We expect that senior secured loans will represent approximately 65% of our overall portfolio. We expect to invest up to 35% of our overall portfolio opportunistically in other types of investments, including second-lien, high yield, mezzanine and distressed debt securities and private equity investments.

We expect to invest in Floating Rate Loans made primarily to leveraged private middle-market companies. We may also invest in thinly traded or small market-cap public middle-market U.S. companies. Our investments will initially generally range between $2 million and $20 million on average, although we expect that this investment size will vary proportionately with the size of our capital base. In addition, we may invest a portion of our portfolio in other types of investments, which we refer to as opportunistic investments, which are not our primary focus but are intended to enhance our overall returns. These investments may include, but are not limited to, direct investments in public companies that are not thinly traded and securities of leveraged companies located in select countries outside of the United States.

We will be managed by PennantPark Investment Advisers. PennantPark Investment Administration will provide the administrative services necessary for us to operate. We believe that our ability to leverage the existing investment management and administrative support platforms of the Investment Adviser and Administrator, respectively, will enable us to operate more efficiently and with lower overhead costs than other newly-formed funds of comparable size.

The consummation of each investment will, however, depend upon obtaining mutually satisfactory pricing terms, the execution and delivery of final binding agreements and the completion of final due diligence. In addition, if we do not wish to make an investment, we will not be obligated to do so. Similarly, prospective portfolio companies are not obligated to obtain Floating Rate Loan financing from us. We can offer no assurance that in the course of completing the prospective investments the Investment Adviser’s team has identified for us, we will not discover facts that would cause us to change the terms and amounts of these investments or render these investments unattractive or that any of these investments will actually be made.

Revenues

We intend to generate revenue in the form of interest income on our portfolio investments and capital gains and distributions, if any, on our debt investments that we may acquire in portfolio companies. Our Floating Rate Loans typically will have a term of three to ten years and bear interest at a floating rate. Interest on debt investments is generally payable quarterly or semiannually. In some cases, some of our investments may provide for deferred interest payments or PIK. The principal amount of our debt investments and any accrued but unpaid interest generally will become due at the maturity date. We expect to originate portfolio investments to a greater extent over time and may generate revenue from origination or structuring fees. In addition, we may generate revenue in the form of commitment or diligence fees, fees for providing managerial assistance and possibly consulting fees. Loan origination fees, OID and market discount or premium are capitalized, and we will accrete or amortize such amounts as

 

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income. We will record prepayment premiums on loans and debt securities as income. Dividend income, if any, will be recognized on an accrual basis on the ex-dividend date to the extent that we expect to collect such amounts.

Expenses

Our primary operating expenses will include the payment of management fees to the Investment Adviser, our allocable portion of overhead under the Administration Agreement and other operating costs as detailed below. Our management fee will compensate the Investment Adviser for its work in identifying, evaluating, negotiating, consummating and monitoring our investments. Additionally, we would pay interest expense on any outstanding debt we may accrue under a credit facility. We will bear all other direct or indirect costs and expenses of our operations and transactions, including:

 

•

the cost of calculating our net asset value, including the cost of any third-party valuation services;

 

•

the cost of effecting sales and repurchases of shares of our common stock and other securities;

 

•

fees payable to third parties relating to, or associated with, making investments, including fees and expenses associated with performing due diligence and reviews of prospective investments or complementary businesses;

 

•

expenses incurred by the Investment Adviser in performing due diligence and reviews of investments;

 

•

transfer agent and custodial fees;

 

•

fees and expenses associated with marketing efforts;

 

•

federal and state registration fees and any stock exchange listing fees;

 

•

federal, state and local taxes;

 

•

independent directors’ fees and expenses;

 

•

brokerage commissions;

 

•

fidelity bond, directors and officers/errors and omissions liability insurance and other insurance premiums;

 

•

direct costs such as printing, mailing, long distance telephone and staff;

 

•

fees and expenses associated with independent audits and outside legal costs;

 

•

costs associated with our reporting and compliance obligations under the 1940 Act and applicable federal and state securities laws; and

 

•

all other expenses incurred by either the Administrator or us in connection with administering our business, including payments under the Administration Agreement that will be based upon our allocable portion of overhead, and other expenses incurred by the Administrator in performing its obligations under the Administration Agreement, including rent and our allocable portion of the costs of compensation and related expenses of our chief compliance officer, chief financial officer and their respective staffs.

During periods of asset growth, we expect our general and administrative expenses to be relatively stable or decline as a percentage of total assets and increase during periods of asset declines. Incentive fees, interest expense and costs relating to future offerings of securities would be additive to the expenses described above.

Hedging

We may enter into interest rate hedging agreements. To the extent that any of our investments are denominated in a currency other than U.S. dollars, we may enter into currency hedging contracts to reduce our exposure to fluctuations in currency exchange rates. Such hedging activities, which will be subject to compliance with applicable legal requirements, may include the use of futures, options, swaps and forward contracts. Costs incurred in entering into such contracts or in settling them will be borne by us.

Critical Accounting Policies

This discussion of our expected operating plans is based upon our expected financial statements, which will be prepared in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles, or “GAAP.” The preparation of these financial statements will require management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenues and expenses. Changes in the economic environment, financial markets and any other parameters used in determining such estimates could cause actual results to differ. In addition to the discussion below, we will describe our critical accounting policies in the notes to our future financial statements.

 

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Valuation of Portfolio Investments

Our investments will generally consist of illiquid securities including Floating Rate Loans and, to a lesser extent, equity investments of middle-market companies. Our board of directors will generally use market quotations to assess the value of our investments for which market quotations are readily available. We will obtain these market values from independent pricing services or at the bid prices obtained from at least two broker/dealers if available, otherwise by a principal market maker or a primary market dealer. If our board of directors has a bona fide reason to believe any such market quote does not reflect the fair value of an investment, it may independently value such investments by using the valuation procedure that it uses with respect to assets for which market quotations are not readily available. First lien secured debt, subordinated debt and other debt investments with maturities greater than 60 days will generally be valued by an independent pricing service or at the bid prices from at least two broker/dealers (if available, otherwise by a principal market maker or a primary market dealer). Investments, of sufficient credit quality, purchased within 60 days of maturity will be valued at cost plus accreted discount, or minus amortized premium, which approximates value.

We expect that there will not be readily available market values for most, if not all, of the investments will be in our portfolio, and we value such investments at fair value as determined in good faith by or under the direction of our board of directors using a documented valuation policy, described herein, and a consistently applied valuation process. With respect to investments for which there is no readily available market value, the factors that our board of directors may take into account in pricing our investments at fair value include, as relevant, the nature and realizable value of any collateral, the portfolio company’s ability to make payments and its earnings and discounted cash flow, the markets in which the portfolio company does business, comparison to publicly traded securities and other relevant factors. When an external event such as a purchase transaction, public offering or subsequent equity sale occurs, we consider the pricing indicated by the external event to corroborate or revise our valuation. Due to the inherent uncertainty of determining the fair value of investments that do not have a readily available market value, the fair value of our investments may differ significantly from the values that would have been used had a readily available market value existed for such investments, and the differences could be material.

With respect to investments for which market quotations are not readily available, or for which market quotations are deemed not reflective of the fair value, our board of directors will undertake a multi-step valuation process each quarter, as described below:

 

1.

Our quarterly valuation process will begin with each portfolio company or investment being initially valued by the investment professionals of the Investment Adviser responsible for the portfolio investment;

 

2.

Preliminary valuation conclusions will then be documented and discussed with the management of the Investment Adviser;

 

3.

Our board of directors will also engage independent valuation firms to conduct independent appraisals of our investments for which market quotations are not readily available or are readily available but deemed not reflective of the fair value of the investment. The independent valuation firms will review management’s preliminary valuations in light of their own independent assessment and also in light of any market quotations obtained from an independent pricing service, broker, dealer or market maker;

 

4.

The audit committee of our board of directors will review the preliminary valuations of the Investment Adviser and that of the independent valuation firms and respond and supplement the valuation recommendations of the independent valuation firms to reflect any comments; and

 

5.

Our board of directors will discuss these valuations and determine the fair value of each investment in our portfolio in good faith based on the input of the Investment Adviser, the respective independent valuation firms and the audit committee.

Fair Value Measurements, as defined under ASC 820, is the price that we would receive upon selling an investment or pay to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction to a market participant in the principal or

 

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most advantageous market for the investment or liability. ASC 820 emphasizes that valuation techniques maximize the use of observable market inputs and minimize the use of unobservable inputs. Inputs refer broadly to the assumptions that market participants would use in pricing an asset or liability, including assumptions about risk. Inputs may be observable or unobservable. Observable inputs are inputs that reflect the assumptions market participants would use in pricing an asset or liability developed based on market data obtained from sources independent of PennantPark Floating Rate Capital. Unobservable inputs are inputs that reflect the assumptions market participants would use in pricing an asset or liability developed based on the best information available at the time.

ASC 820 classifies the inputs used to measure these fair values into the following hierarchies:

Level 1: Inputs that are quoted prices (unadjusted) in active markets for identical assets or liabilities, accessible by us at the measurement date.

Level 2: Inputs that are quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities in active markets, or that are quoted prices for identical or similar assets or liabilities in markets that are not active and inputs that are observable for the asset or liability, either directly or indirectly, for substantially the full term, if applicable, of the financial instrument.

Level 3: Inputs that are unobservable for an asset or liability because they are based on our own assumptions about how market participants would price the asset or liability.

A financial instrument’s categorization within the valuation hierarchy is based upon the lowest level of input that is significant to the fair value measurement. Generally, most of our investments will be classified as Level 3.

The inputs into the determination of fair value may require significant management judgment or estimation. Even if observable market data is available, such information may be the result of consensus pricing information or broker quotes which include a disclaimer that the broker would not be held to such a price in an actual transaction. The non-binding nature of consensus pricing and/or quotes accompanied by such a disclaimer would result in classification as Level 3 information, assuming no additional corroborating evidence was available.

A review of fair value hierarchy classifications will be conducted on a quarterly basis. Changes in the observability of valuation inputs may result in a reclassification for certain financial assets or liabilities. Reclassifications impacting Level 3 of the fair value hierarchy will be reported as transfers in or out of the Level 3 category as of the end of the quarter in which the reclassifications occur.

In addition to using the above inputs in cash and cash equivalents, and investments valuations, PennantPark Floating Rate Capital will employ the valuation policy approved by our board of directors that is consistent with ASC 820. Consistent with our valuation policy, PennantPark Floating Rate Capital will evaluate the source of inputs, including any markets in which our investments are trading, in determining fair value.

Our investments will generally be structured as debt and equity investments in the form of senior secured loans, mezzanine debt and equity co-investments. The transaction price, excluding transaction costs, will typically be the best estimate of fair value at inception. When evidence supports a subsequent change to the carrying value from the original transaction price, adjustments will be made to reflect the expected exit values. Ongoing reviews by the Investment Adviser and independent valuation firms will be based on an assessment of each underlying investment, incorporating valuations that consider the evaluation of financing and sale transactions with third parties, expected cash flows and market-based information, including comparable transactions and performance multiples, among other factors. These non-public investments will be included in Level 3 of the fair value hierarchy.

 

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Revenue Recognition

We will record interest income on an accrual basis to the extent that we expect to collect such amounts. For Floating Rate Loans with contractual PIK interest, which represents contractual interest accrued and added to the loan balance that generally becomes due at maturity, we will generally not accrue PIK interest if the portfolio company valuation indicates that such PIK interest is not collectible. We will not accrue as a receivable interest on our investments if we determine that it is probable that we will not be able to collect such interest. Loan origination fees, OID, market discount or premium and deferred financing costs on our debt will be capitalized, and we then amortize such amounts as interest income or expense as applicable. We will record prepayment premiums on our investments as income. Dividend income, if any, will be recognized on an accrual basis on the ex-dividend date to the extent that we expect to collect such amounts.

Net Realized Gains or Losses and Net Change in Unrealized Appreciation or Depreciation

We will measure realized gains or losses by the difference between the net proceeds from the repayment or sale and the amortized cost basis of the investment, using the specific identification method, without regard to unrealized appreciation or depreciation previously recognized, but considering unamortized upfront fees and prepayment penalties. Net change in unrealized appreciation or depreciation reflects the change in portfolio investment values during the reporting period, including any reversal of previously recorded unrealized appreciation or depreciation, when gains or losses are realized.

Payment-in-Kind Interest or PIK

We may have investments in our portfolio which contain a PIK interest provision. PIK interest will be added to the principal balance of the investment and recorded as income. For us to obtain and maintain our status as a RIC, substantially all of this income must be paid out to stockholders in the form of dividends, even though we have not collected any cash with respect to PIK securities.

Federal Income Taxes

We intend to operate so as to qualify to obtain and maintain annually our election to be taxed as a RIC under Subchapter M of the Code. If we so qualify, we will not be subject to federal income tax on the portion of our taxable income and gains distributed to stockholders. To qualify as a RIC, we are required to distribute at least 90% of our investment company taxable income as defined by the Code. Although not required for us to maintain our RIC tax status, we must also distribute an amount at least equal to the sum of

 

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98% of our ordinary income (during each calendar year) plus 98.2% of our net capital gains (during each 12 month period ending on October 31) to avoid a 4% excise tax.

Because federal income tax regulations differ from GAAP, distributions in accordance with tax regulations may differ from net investment income and realized gains recognized for financial reporting purposes. Differences may be permanent or temporary. Permanent differences will be reclassified among capital accounts in our future financial statements to reflect their tax character. Temporary differences arise when certain items of income, expense, gain or loss are recognized at some time in the future. Differences in classification may also result from the treatment of short-term gains as ordinary income for tax purposes.

Financial Condition, Liquidity and Capital Resources

We will generate cash primarily from the net proceeds of this offering and any future offerings of securities and cash flows from operations, including interest earned from the temporary investment of cash in U.S. government securities and other high-quality debt investments that mature in one year or less. In the future, we may obtain borrowings from banks and issuances of senior securities. We may also borrow funds subsequent to this offering, including before we have fully invested the proceeds of this offering, to the extent we determine that additional capital would allow us to take advantage of additional investment opportunities, if the market for debt financing presents attractively priced debt financing opportunities, or if our board of directors determines that leveraging our portfolio would be in the best interest of us and our stockholders, though we have not decided the extent to which we will finance portfolio investment using debt. See “Material U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations.” In the future, we may also securitize a portion of our investments. Our primary use of funds will be investments in portfolio companies and repayment of amounts owing to the advances under any borrowings we may obtain in the future, cash distributions to holders of our common stock and the payment of operating expenses, including debt service if we borrow additional amounts after completion of this offering to fund our investments. Immediately after this offering and the consummation of the related transactions, we expect to have cash resources of approximately $141.5 million or $162.9 million if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is fully exercised and no indebtedness. This amount does not take into account proceeds, if any, from the exercise of the underwriters’ overallotment option. See “Use of Proceeds.”

Contractual Obligations

We will enter into certain contracts under which we will have material future commitments. Under the Investment Management Agreement, PennantPark Investment Advisers will serve as our investment adviser in accordance with the terms of the Investment Management Agreement. Payments under the Investment Management Agreement in each reporting period will be equal to (1) a management fee equal to 1% of the value of our gross assets and (2) an incentive fee based on our performance. See “Certain Relationships and Transactions—Investment Management Agreement.”

Under the Administration Agreement, PennantPark Investment Administration will furnish us with office facilities and administrative services necessary to conduct our day-to-day operations. If requested to provide managerial assistance to our portfolio companies, we or PennantPark Investment Administration will be paid an additional amount based on the services provided, which amount will not in any case exceed the amount we receive from the portfolio companies for such services. Payment under the Administration Agreement is based upon our allocable portion of the Administrator’s overhead in performing its obligations under the Administration Agreement, including rent, technology systems, insurance and our allocable portion of the costs of our chief compliance officer, chief financial officer and their respective staffs. See “Certain Relationships and Transactions—Administration Agreement.”

The Investment Adviser has agreed to pay to the underwriters an additional 2% sales load, or $3,000,000 ($3,450,000 if the underwriters exercise their overallotment option in full) in the aggregate, with respect to this offering of shares of our common stock. This amount will accrue interest, and we will be obligated to repay this advance under certain circumstances. See “Obligations and Indebtedness.”

If any of our contractual obligations discussed above are terminated, our costs under new agreements that we enter into may increase. In addition, we will likely incur significant time and expense in locating alternative parties to provide the services we expect to receive under the Investment Management Agreement and the Administration Agreement. Any new Investment Management Agreement would also be subject to approval by our stockholders.

Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements

We currently engage in no off-balance sheet arrangements, including any risk management of commodity pricing or other hedging practices.

 

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OBLIGATIONS AND INDEBTEDNESS

The Investment Adviser has agreed to pay to the underwriters an additional 2% sales load, or $3,000,000 ($3,450,000 if the underwriters exercise their overallotment option in full) in the aggregate, with respect to this offering of shares of our common stock. We (and indirectly our stockholders) will be obligated to repay this amount, together with accrued interest on such amount (a) if during any four calendar quarter-period ending on or after the one year anniversary of the closing of the offering, our Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income equals or exceeds 1.75% (7.0% annualized) of our net assets at the beginning of such period (as adjusted for any issuances or repurchases of shares of our common stock) or (b) upon our liquidation. If one or more of these events does not occur on or before April     , 2015, we will not be obligated to repay this amount. If we are then permitted to do so, we will repay such amount and any interest on such amount through the issuance of shares of our common stock to the Investment Adviser. If we cannot then issue such shares pursuant to the 1940 Act or otherwise, we will pay such amount to the Investment Adviser in cash, and the Investment Adviser has agreed to use such payment to purchase shares of our common stock in the secondary market.

 

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DISTRIBUTIONS

Subsequent to the completion of this offering, and to the extent we have income available, we intend to make monthly distributions to our stockholders. Our monthly distributions, if any, will be determined by our board of directors. Any distributions to our stockholders will be declared out of assets legally available for distribution.

We intend to elect to be treated, and intend to qualify annually thereafter, as a RIC under the Code, beginning with our first taxable year ending after completion of this offering. To obtain and maintain RIC tax treatment, we must distribute at least 90% of our net ordinary income and net short-term capital gains in excess of our net long-term capital losses, if any. In order to avoid certain excise taxes imposed on RICs, we currently intend to distribute during each calendar year an amount at least equal to the sum of: (a) 98% of our net ordinary income for such calendar year; (b) 98.2% of our net capital gains in excess of capital losses for the one-year period ending on October 31 of the calendar year; and (c) any net ordinary income and net capital gains for preceding years that were not distributed during such years and on which we previously paid no U.S. federal income tax.

We currently intend to distribute net capital gains (i.e., net long-term capital gains in excess of net short-term capital losses), if any, at least annually out of the assets legally available for such distributions. However, we may decide in the future to retain such capital gains for investment and elect to treat such gains as deemed distributions to you. If this happens, you will be treated for U.S. federal income tax purposes as if you had received an actual distribution of the capital gains that we retain and you had reinvested the net after tax proceeds in us. In this situation, you would be eligible to claim a tax credit (or, in certain circumstances, a tax refund) equal to your allocable share of the tax we paid on the capital gains deemed distributed to you. See “Material U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations.” We cannot assure you that we will achieve results that will permit us to pay any cash distributions, and, if we issue senior securities, we will be prohibited from making distributions if doing so would cause us to fail to maintain the asset coverage ratios stipulated by the 1940 Act or if such distributions are limited by the terms of any of our borrowings.

Unless you elect to receive your dividends in cash, we intend to make such distributions in additional shares of our common stock under our dividend reinvestment plan. Although distributions paid in the form of additional shares of our common stock will generally be subject to U.S. federal, state and local taxes in the same manner as cash distributions, investors participating in our dividend reinvestment plan will not receive any corresponding cash distributions with which to pay any such applicable taxes. If you hold shares of our common stock in the name of a broker or financial intermediary, you should contact such broker or financial intermediary regarding your election to receive distributions in cash in lieu of shares of our common stock. Any dividends reinvested through the issuance of shares through our dividend reinvestment plan will increase our assets on which the base management fee and the incentive fee are determined and paid to PennantPark Investment Advisers. See “Dividend Reinvestment Plan.”

 

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BUSINESS

PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd.

PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd. is a newly organized, externally managed, closed-end, non-diversified management investment company that intends to file an election to be treated as a business development company under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, or the “1940 Act.” In addition, for tax purposes we intend to elect to be treated, and intend to qualify annually, as a RIC under Subchapter M of the Code, commencing with our first taxable year ending after completion of this offering.

Our investment objective is to seek high current income. We can offer no assurance that we will achieve our investment objectives or be able to structure our investment portfolio as anticipated.

We believe that Floating Rate Loans to private middle-market companies offer attractive risk adjusted returns due to a limited amount of capital available for such companies and the potential for rising rates. In this prospectus, we use the term “middle-market” to refer to companies with annual revenues between $50 million and $1 billion. Floating Rate Loans will typically pay interest at rates which are determined periodically on the basis of a floating base lending rate such as LIBOR, plus a spread over it. We will seek to achieve our investment objectives by investing primarily in Floating Rate Loans and other instruments made to middle-market companies whose debt is rated below investment grade. We may also invest in thinly traded or small market-cap public middle-market U.S. companies. Under normal market conditions, we expect that at least 80% of the value of our Managed Assets will be invested in Floating Rate Loans. We expect that senior secured loans will represent at least 65% of our overall portolio. We expect to invest up to 35% of our overall portfolio opportunistically in other types of investments, including second-lien, high yield, mezzanine and distressed debt securities and private equity investments. In focusing on Floating Rate Loans, our primary investment focus differs from that of PennantPark Investment Corporation, a business development company for which the Investment Adviser also acts as investment adviser, although there may be overlap in terms of targeted investments for us and such other entity. Floating Rate Loans are typically made to U.S. and, to a limited extent, non-U.S. corporations, partnerships and other business entities which operate in various industries and geographical regions. Portfolio Companies may obtain Floating Rate Loans to refinance existing debt and for acquisitions, dividends and leveraged buyouts as well as for general corporate purposes.

In addition to the types of securities and investments listed above, we also may invest in: (1) loan interests and corporate bonds that are not secured by any collateral interest in the assets or securities of the borrower; (2) other income producing securities (including U.S. Government debt securities and investment and non-investment grade, subordinated and unsubordinated corporate debt securities); (3) rights, warrants and equity securities issued by a borrower or its affiliates as part of a package of investments in the borrower or its affiliates; and (4) structured products. We may also invest in CLOs or collateralized debt obligations, or “CDOs” (including synthetic CLOs or CDOs), asset-backed securities, repurchase agreements, reverse repurchase agreements, cash and cash equivalents, swaps options, futures contracts, or other derivatives or financial instruments (including credit-linked notes, commodity-linked notes, indexed and inverse floating rate securities, convertible instruments and preferred stocks), shares of money market mutual funds or other investment companies or other pooled investment vehicles. We may also seek to gain exposure to Floating Rate Loans by investing in swaps, including single-name credit default swaps, single-name loan credit default swaps and total return swaps and other similar transactions.

We expect to use derivative instruments, if at all, generally to hedge our exposure (i.e., limit downside risk) through the use of interest rate swaps, currency swaps and credit default swaps. We may also use options, futures and forward contracts or options on futures contracts for the same purpose. Likewise, we may make judicious use of these instruments, as well as investments in collateralized debt and loan obligations and total return swaps, to obtain exposure to classes of assets which may not be easily obtained through direct market purchases of the underlying instruments, as well as to boost expected returns on investments in specific asset classes. In addition, we may from time to time enter into total return swaps, securitization transactions and other forms of derivative securities to finance its operations.

In seeking to achieve our investment objectives, the Investment Adviser intends to construct and actively manage a portfolio of Floating Rate Loans and other investments utilizing the strategies discussed below. The Investment Adviser will seek to utilize a disciplined approach to its credit analysis and investment selection process. The criteria used by the Investment Adviser in credit selection may include an evaluation of whether a Floating Rate Loan is adequately collateralized or over-collateralized and whether it is covered by sufficient earnings and cash flow to service a borrower’s indebtedness on a timely basis. The Investment Adviser expects to gain exposure to portfolio companies across a broad range of industries and of varying characteristics and return profiles.

 

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Our Investment Adviser and Administrator

We intend to utilize the investing experience and contacts of the Investment Adviser to develop what we believe will be an attractive and diversified portfolio. The senior investment professionals of the Investment Adviser have worked together for many years, and average over 20 years of experience in the mezzanine lending, leveraged finance, distressed debt and private equity businesses. In addition, the Investment Adviser’s senior investment professionals have been involved in originating, structuring, negotiating, managing and monitoring investments in each of these businesses across economic and market cycles. We believe this experience and history has resulted in a strong reputation with financial sponsors, management teams, investment bankers, attorneys and accountants, which will provide us with access to substantial investment opportunities across the capital markets. The Investment Adviser has a rigorous investment approach, which is based upon intensive financial analysis with a focus on capital preservation, diversification and active management.

The Administrator has experienced professionals with substantial backgrounds in finance and administration of registered investment companies and BDCs. In addition to furnishing us with clerical, bookkeeping and record keeping services, the Administrator will also oversee our financial records as well as the preparation of our reports to stockholders and reports filed with the SEC. The Administrator will oversee the determination and publication of our net asset value, oversee the preparation and filing of our tax returns, and monitor the payment of our expenses as well as the performance of administrative and professional services rendered to us by others. Furthermore, the Administrator will provide, on our behalf, managerial assistance to those portfolio companies to which we are required to offer such assistance. See “Risk Factors—Risks Relating to our Business and Structure.”

Our executive officers and directors, as well as the current and future senior professionals of the Investment Adviser and Administrator, may serve as officers, directors or principals of entities that operate in the same or a related line of business as we do. Currently, the executive officers and directors, as well as the current senior professionals of the Investment Adviser and Administrator, serve as officers and directors of PennantPark Investment Corporation, a publicly-traded BDC. Accordingly, they may have obligations to investors in those entities, including to investors of PennantPark Investment Corporation, the fulfillment of which obligations might not be in the best interest of us or our stockholders. In addition, we note that any affiliated investment vehicle currently existing, or formed in the future, and managed by the Investment Adviser and or its affiliates may, notwithstanding different stated investment objectives, may have overlapping investment objectives with our own and, accordingly, may invest in asset classes similar to those targeted by us. As a result, the Investment Adviser may face conflicts in allocating investment opportunities among us and such other entities. Although the Investment Adviser will endeavor to allocate investment opportunities in a fair and equitable manner, it is possible that, in the future, we may not be given the opportunity to participate in investments made by investment funds managed by the Investment Adviser or its affiliates. In any such case, when the Investment Adviser identifies an investment, it will be forced to choose which investment fund should receive the allocation.

We may co-invest on a concurrent basis with PennantPark Investment Corporation, and any other affiliates that the Investment Adviser forms in the future, subject to compliance with applicable regulations and regulatory guidance and our allocation procedures. In certain circumstances, negotiated co-investments may be made only if we receive an order from the SEC permitting us to do so. There can be no assurance that any such order will be obtained.

Market Opportunity

We believe that the limited amount of capital available to the middle-market companies, coupled with the desire of these companies for flexible sources of capital, creates an attractive investment environment for PennantPark Floating Rate Capital.

We believe middle-market companies have faced increasing difficulty in raising debt through the capital markets. While many middle-market companies formerly were able to raise funds by issuing high-yield bonds, we believe this approach to financing has become more difficult as institutional investors have sought to invest in larger, more liquid offerings. We believe this has made it harder for middle-market companies to raise funds by issuing high-yield bonds.

We believe middle-market companies have faced difficulty raising debt in private markets. Banks, finance companies, hedge funds and CLO funds have withdrawn capital from the middle-market resulting in opportunities for alternative funding sources.

We believe that the current credit market dislocation for middle-market companies improves the risk-adjusted returns of our investments. In the current credit environment, market participants have reduced lending to middle-market and non-investment grade borrowers. As a result, we believe there is less competition in our market, more conservative capital structures, higher yields and stronger covenants.

We believe there is a large pool of uninvested private equity capital likely to seek to combine their capital with sources of debt capital to complete private investments. We expect that private equity firms will continue to be active investors in middle-market companies. These private equity funds generally seek to leverage their investments by combining their capital with Floating Rate Loans provided by other sources, and we believe that our capital is well-positioned to partner with such equity investors. We expect such activity to be funded by the substantial amounts of private equity capital that have been raised in recent years.

We believe there is substantial supply of opportunities resulting from refinancing. A high volume of financings were completed between the years 2004 and 2007, which will come due in the next few years. We believe this supply of opportunities coupled with a lack of demand offers attractive risk-adjusted returns to investors.

Competitive Advantages

We believe that we have the following competitive advantages over other capital providers to middle-market companies:

Experienced Management Team

The senior professionals of the Investment Adviser have worked together for many years and average over 20 years of experience in mezzanine lending, leveraged finance, distressed debt and private equity businesses. The senior professionals have been involved in originating, structuring, negotiating, managing and monitoring investments in each of these businesses across economic and market cycles. We believe this extensive experience and history has resulted in a strong reputation across the capital markets.

Disciplined Investment Approach with Strong Value Orientation

We will employ a disciplined approach in selecting investments that meet the long-standing, consistent, value-oriented investment criteria employed by the Investment Adviser. Our value-oriented investment philosophy focuses on preserving capital and ensuring that our investments have an appropriate return profile in relation to risk. When market conditions make it difficult for us to invest

 

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according to our criteria, we will be highly selective in deploying our capital. We believe our approach will enable us to build an attractive investment portfolio that meets our return and value criteria over the long-term.

We believe it is critical to conduct extensive due diligence on investment targets. In evaluating new investments we, through the Investment Adviser, will conduct a rigorous due diligence process that draws from the Investment Adviser’s experience, industry expertise and network of contacts. Among other things, our due diligence is designed to ensure that each prospective portfolio company will be able to meet its debt service obligations. See “Business – Investment Selection Criteria” for more information.

In addition to engaging in extensive due diligence, the Investment Adviser will seek to reduce risk by focusing on businesses with:

 

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strong competitive positions;

 

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positive cash flow that is steady and stable;

 

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experienced management teams with strong track records;

 

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potential for growth and viable exit strategies; and

 

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capital structures offering appropriate risk-adjusted terms and covenants.

Ability to Source and Evaluate Transactions through the Investment Adviser’s Research Capability and Established Network

The management team of the Investment Adviser has long-term relationships with financial sponsors, management consultants and management teams that we believe will enable us to evaluate investment opportunities effectively in numerous industries, as well as provide us access to substantial information concerning those industries. We will identify potential investments both through active origination and through dialogue with numerous financial sponsors, management teams, members of the financial community and corporate partners with whom the professionals of the Investment Adviser have long-term relationships.

Flexible Transaction Structuring

We intend to be flexible in structuring investments and tailoring investments to meet the needs of a company while also generating attractive risk-adjusted returns. We can invest in any part of a capital structure and the Investment Adviser has extensive experience in a wide variety of securities for leveraged companies throughout economic and market cycles.

The Investment Adviser will seek to minimize the risk of capital loss without foregoing potential for capital appreciation. In making investment decisions, we will seek to invest in companies that we believe can generate positive risk-adjusted returns.

We believe that the in-depth coverage and experience of the Investment Adviser will enable us to invest throughout various stages of the economic and market cycles and provide us with ongoing market insights in addition to a significant investment sourcing engine.

Longer Investment Horizon with Attractive Publicly Traded Model

Unlike private equity and venture capital funds, we are not subject to standard periodic capital return requirements. Such requirements typically stipulate that funds raised by a private equity or venture capital fund, together with any capital gains on such invested funds, can only be invested once and must be returned to investors after a pre-agreed time period. We believe that our flexibility to make investments with a long-term view and without the capital return requirements of traditional private investment vehicles will enable us to generate attractive returns on invested capital and to be a better long-term partner for our portfolio companies.

Competition

Our primary competitors provide financing to middle-market companies and include other business development companies and closed-end funds, commercial and investment banks, commercial finance companies and, to the extent they provide an alternative form of financing, private equity funds. Additionally, alternative investment vehicles, such as hedge funds, frequently invest in middle-market companies. As a result, competition for investment opportunities at middle-market companies can be intense. However, we believe that there has been a reduction in the amount of debt capital available since the downturn in the credit markets, which began in mid-2007. We believe this has resulted in a less competitive environment for making new investments.

Many of our competitors are substantially larger and have considerably greater financial, technical and marketing resources than we do. For example, we believe some competitors have a lower cost of funds and access to funding sources that are not available to us. In addition, some of our competitors have higher risk tolerances or different risk assessments, which could allow them to consider a wider variety of investments and establish more relationships than us. Furthermore, many of our competitors are not subject to the regulatory restrictions that the 1940 Act will impose on us as a business development company.

For additional information concerning the competitive risks we face, please see “Risk Factors—Risks Relating to our Business and Structure—We will operate in a highly competitive market for investment opportunities.”

 

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Leverage

We currently anticipate utilizing leverage. We have received a commitment to arrange the Credit Facility, which is expected to become effective shortly after this offering is completed. We intend to use borrowings under the Credit Facility to invest in portfolio companies. The Credit Facility is expected to initially provide us up to $200.0 million in available borrowings and is expected to expire in 2016. The Credit Facility is expected to include an accordion feature whereby we will be allowed to increase the amount of the Credit Facility up to $600.0 million. The base lending rate for borrowings under the Credit Facility is expected to be LIBOR plus (i) 2.25% while the Credit Facility is in its revolving period and (ii) 4.25% thereafter. We may also issue preferred stock and/or notes, enter into total return swaps, or other derivatives and borrow funds from banks and other financial institutions.

All costs and expenses related to any form of leverage will be borne entirely by our common stockholders. The use of debt to leverage common stock can create risks. Increases or decreases in the value of our portfolio will be magnified if we use leverage. Changes in the value of the portfolio, including securities bought with the proceeds of leverage, will be borne entirely by the holders of common stock. During periods when we use leverage, the fees paid to the Investment Adviser for advisory services will be higher than if we did not use leverage because the fees paid will be calculated on the basis of our Managed Assets, which include assets purchased using leverage. As such, the Investment Adviser may have a financial incentive to increase the use of leverage, which constitutes an inherent conflict of interest. In addition, the fees we pay to the Investment Adviser will be borne exclusively by our common stockholders. It is expected that preferred stockholders, noteholders and any lenders will not bear any of our expenses. Our leveraging strategy, if utilized, may not be successful.

We expect that under the Credit Facility, we would be entitled to borrow an amount, initially up to $200.0 million, equal to approximately 50% of the company’s Managed Assets less any amounts of existing leverage, including from the issuance of preferred stock and/or notes. Any such borrowings would constitute financial leverage.

Investment Policy Overview

We will seek to create a diversified portfolio primarily of Floating Rate Loans, by initially targeting an investment size of $2 to $20 million, on average, in Floating Rate Loans of middle-market companies. We expect this investment size to vary proportionately with the size of our capital base. The companies in which we invest will typically be highly leveraged, and, in most cases, not rated by national rating agencies. If such companies were rated, we believe that they would typically receive a rating below investment grade (between BB and CCC under the Standard & Poor’s system) from the national rating agencies. In addition, we expect our debt investments to range in maturity from three to ten years.

Over time, we expect that our portfolio will continue to consist primarily of Floating Rate Loans in qualifying assets such as private or thinly traded or small market-cap, public middle-market U.S. companies. In addition, we may invest up to 30% of our portfolio in non-qualifying assets. See “Regulation—Qualifying Assets” for more information. These non-qualifying assets may include investments in public companies whose securities are not thinly traded or do not have a market capitalization of less than $250 million, securities of middle-market companies located outside of the United States and investment companies as defined in the 1940 Act. Moreover, we may acquire investments in the secondary market. See “– Investment selection criteria” for more information.

Our board of directors has the authority to modify or waive certain of our operating policies and strategies without prior notice and without stockholder approval (except as required by the 1940 Act). However, absent stockholder approval, we may not change the nature of our business so as to cease to be, or withdraw our election as, a business development company. We cannot predict the effect any changes to our current operating policies and strategies would have on our business, operating results and value of our stock. Nevertheless, the effects may adversely affect our business and impact our ability to make distributions.

Investment Selection Criteria

We are committed to a value oriented philosophy used by the investment professionals who manage our portfolio and will seek to minimize the risk of capital loss without foregoing potential for capital appreciation.

We have identified several criteria, discussed below, that we believe are important in identifying and investing in prospective portfolio companies. These criteria provide general guidelines for our investment decisions. However, we caution that not all of these criteria will be met by each prospective portfolio company in which we choose to invest.

Generally, we will seek to use our experience and access to market information to identify investment candidates and to structure investments quickly and effectively.

Leading, defensible market positions

The Investment Adviser intends to invest in portfolio companies that it believes have developed strong positions within their markets and exhibit the potential to maintain sufficient cash flows and profitability to service their obligations in a range of economic environments. The Investment Adviser will seek portfolio companies that it believes possess advantages in scale, scope, customer loyalty, product pricing or product quality as compared to their competitors.

Investing in stable borrowers with positive cash flow

 

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The Investment Adviser intends to invest in portfolio companies believed to be stable and well established, with strong cash flows and profitability. The Investment Adviser believes these attributes indicate portfolio companies that may be well-positioned to maintain consistent cash flow to service and repay their liabilities and maintain growth in their businesses or their relative market share. The Investment Adviser currently does not expect to invest significantly in start-up companies, companies in turnaround situations or companies with speculative business plans, although we are permitted to do so.

Proven management teams

The Investment Adviser intends to focus on investments in which the portfolio company has an experienced management team with an established track record of success. The Investment Adviser typically will require that portfolio companies have in place proper incentives to align management’s goals with our goals.

Private equity sponsorship

The Investment Adviser may seek to cause us to participate in transactions sponsored by what it believes to be high-quality private equity firms. The Investment Adviser believes that a private equity sponsor’s willingness to invest significant equity capital in a company is an implicit endorsement of the quality of that company. Further, private equity sponsors of portfolio companies financial or with significant investments at risk may have an ability, and a strong incentive, to contribute additional capital in difficult economic times should financial or operational issues arise so as to maintain their ownership position.

Investments in different borrowers and industries

The Investment Adviser will seek to invest our assets broadly among portfolio companies and across industries. The Investment Adviser believes that this diversified approach may reduce the risk that a downturn in any one company or industry will have a disproportionate impact on the value of our portfolio.

Viable exit strategy

We will seek to invest in portfolio companies that we believe will provide a steady stream of cash flow to repay our loans and reinvest in their respective businesses. We expect that such internally generated cash flow, leading to the payment of interest on, and the repayment of the principal of, our investments in portfolio companies to be a key means by which we will exit from our investments over time. In addition, we will also seek to invest in portfolio companies whose business models and expected future cash flows offer attractive exit possibilities. These companies include candidates for strategic acquisition by other industry participants and companies that may repay our investments through an initial public offering of common stock or other capital market transaction.

Due diligence

We believe it is critical to conduct extensive due diligence on investment targets and in evaluating new investments. The Investment Adviser will conduct a rigorous due diligence process that is applied to prospective portfolio companies and draws from the Investment Adviser’s experience, industry expertise and network of contacts. In conducting due diligence, the Investment Adviser will use information provided by companies, financial sponsors and publicly available information as well as information from relationships with former and current management teams, consultants, competitors and investment bankers.

Our due diligence typically will include:

 

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a review of historical and prospective financial information;

 

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on-site visits;

 

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interviews with management, employees, customers and vendors of the potential portfolio company;

 

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a review of loan documents;

 

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background checks; and

 

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research relating to the company’s management, industry, markets, products and services and competitors.

Upon the completion of due diligence and a decision to proceed with an investment in a company, the team leading the investment will present the investment opportunity to the Investment Adviser’s investment committee. This committee will determine whether to pursue the potential investment. All new investments are required to be reviewed by the investment committee of our Investment Adviser. The members of the investment committee receive no compensation from us. These members are employees of the Investment Adviser and receive compensation from the Investment Adviser.

Additional due diligence with respect to any investment may be conducted on our behalf by attorneys and independent auditors prior to the closing of the investment, as well as other outside advisers, as appropriate.

The Investment Adviser intends to monitor credit risk of each portfolio company regularly and periodically with a goal toward identifying early, and selling, Floating Rate Loans and other investments with potential credit problems. This monitoring process may include reviewing:(1) a

 

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portfolio company’s financial resources and operating history; (2) comparing a portfolio company’s current operating results with the Investment Adviser’s initial thesis for the investment and its expectations for the performance of the investment; (3) a portfolio company’s sensitivity to economic conditions; (4) the performance of a portfolio company’s management; (5) a portfolio company’s debt maturities and borrowing requirements; (6) a portfolio company’s interest and asset coverage; and (7) the relative value of an investment based on a portfolio company’s anticipated cash flow.

Under normal market conditions, we expect that at least 80% of our Managed Assets will be invested in Floating Rate Loans. This policy is not fundamental and may be changed by our board of directors with at least 60 days’ prior written notice provided to stockholders. In this prospectus, “Managed Assets” means net assets plus any borrowings for investment purposes to the extent such a change would not affect our ability to maintain our election as a business development company.

The Investment Adviser will seek to achieve our investment objective through a disciplined approach to the selection of credit investments and its evaluation of portfolio companies. The Investment Adviser also expects to gain exposure to portfolio companies across a broad range of industries and of varying operating and financial characteristics and return profiles, as well as active management of such investments in light of economic developments and trends. However, we are classified as “non-diversified” under the 1940 Act, and our investment portfolio may be more concentrated than the portfolios of other issuers. We may take certain actions if short-term interest rates increase or market conditions otherwise change (or if we anticipate such an increase or change) and our use of leverage, if any, begins (or is expected) to adversely affect our common stockholders. To offset any potentially negative impact of leverage on common stockholders, we may shorten the average maturity of our investment portfolio (by investing in short-term securities) or may reduce our indebtedness or unwind other leveraged transactions. We may also attempt to reduce our use of leverage by redeeming or otherwise purchasing outstanding preferred stock or debt securities, if any.

While our investment objective is to seek high current income through investments in Floating Rate Loans, we may invest up to 35% of the portfolio in opportunistic investments. These investments may include investments in high-yield bonds, distressed debt, private equity or securities of public companies and securities of companies located outside of the United States. We expect that these public foreign companies generally will have debt securities that are non-investment grade.

Investment structure

Once we determine that a prospective portfolio company is suitable for investment, we will work with the management of that company and its other capital providers, including senior, junior and equity capital providers, to structure an investment. We will negotiate among these parties to agree on how our investment is structured relative to the other capital in the portfolio company’s capital structure.

We expect our Floating Rate Loans to have terms of three to ten years. We may obtain security interests in the assets of our portfolio companies that will serve as collateral in support of the repayment of these loans. This collateral may take the form of first or second priority liens on the assets of a portfolio company.

Certain Floating Rate Loans may have interest-only payments in the early years, payable in cash or PIK interest, with amortization of principal deferred to later years. In some cases, we may enter into mezzanine debt that, by its terms, converts into equity or additional debt securities or defers payments of interest for the first few years after our investment. Also, in some cases our mezzanine debt may be collateralized by a subordinated lien on some or all of the assets of the borrower.

In the case of our Floating Rate Loans, we will seek to tailor the terms of the investment to the facts and circumstances of the transaction and the prospective portfolio company, negotiating a structure that protects our rights and manages our risk while creating incentives for the portfolio company to achieve its business plan and improve its profitability. For example, in addition to seeking a senior position in the capital structure of our portfolio companies, we will seek to limit the downside potential of our investments by:

 

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requiring a total return on our investments (including both interest and potential equity appreciation) that compensates us for credit risk;

 

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incorporating “put” rights and call protection into the investment structure; and

 

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negotiating covenants in connection with our investments that afford our portfolio companies as much flexibility in managing their businesses as possible, consistent with preservation of our capital. Such restrictions may include affirmative and negative covenants, default penalties, lien protection, change of control provisions and board rights, including either observation or participation rights.

 

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Our investments may include equity features, such as direct investments in the equity securities of borrowers or warrants or options to buy a minority interest in a portfolio company. Any warrants we may receive with our Floating Rate Loans generally will require only a nominal cost to exercise, so as a portfolio company appreciates in value, we may achieve additional investment return from these equity investments. We may structure the warrants to provide provisions protecting our rights as a minority-interest holder, as well as puts, or rights to sell such securities back to the company, upon the occurrence of specified events. In many cases, we may also obtain registration rights in connection with these equity investments, which may include demand and “piggyback” registration rights.

We expect to hold most of our investments to maturity or repayment, but may sell certain investments earlier if a liquidity event takes place, such as the sale or refinancing of a portfolio company. We also may turn over investments to better position the portfolio in light of market conditions.

Ongoing relationships with portfolio companies

Monitoring

The Investment Adviser will monitor our portfolio companies on an ongoing basis. The Investment Adviser will monitor the financial trends of each portfolio company to determine if they are meeting their respective business plans and to assess the appropriate course of action for each company.

The Investment Adviser has several methods of evaluating and monitoring the performance and fair value of our investments, which may include the following:

 

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Assessment of success in adhering to the portfolio company’s business plan and compliance with covenants;

 

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Periodic or regular contact with portfolio company management and, if appropriate, the financial or strategic sponsor, to discuss financial position, requirement and accomplishments;

 

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Comparisons to other PennantPark Floating Rate Capital portfolio companies in the industry, if any;

 

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Attendance at and participation in board meetings or presentations by portfolio companies; and

 

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Review of monthly and quarterly financial statements and financial projections of portfolio companies.

Valuation of Portfolio Investments

Our investments will generally consist of illiquid securities, including Floating Rate Loans and, to a lesser extent, equity investments of middle-market companies. Our board of directors will generally use market quotations to assess the value of our investments for which market quotations are readily available. We will obtain these market values from independent pricing services or at the bid prices obtained from at least two broker/dealers (if available, otherwise by a principal market maker or a primary market dealer). If our board of directors has a bona fide reason to believe any such market quote does not reflect the fair value of an investment, it may independently value such investments by using the valuation procedure that it will use with respect to assets for which market quotations are not readily available. First lien secured debt, subordinated debt and other debt investments with maturities greater than 60 days generally will be valued by an independent pricing service or at the bid prices from at least two broker/dealers (if available, otherwise by a principal market maker or a primary market dealer). Investments, of sufficient credit quality, purchased within 60 days of maturity will be valued at cost plus accreted discount, or minus amortized premium, which approximates value.

We expect that there will not be readily available market values for most, if not all, of the investments which will be in our portfolio, and we will value such investments at fair value as determined in good faith by or under the direction of our board of directors using a documented valuation policy, described herein, and a consistently applied valuation process. With respect to investments for which there is no readily available market value, the factors that our board of directors may take into account in pricing our investments at fair value will include, as relevant, the nature and realizable value of any collateral, the portfolio company’s ability to make payments and its earnings and discounted cash flow, the markets in which the portfolio company does business, comparison to publicly traded securities and other relevant factors. When an external event such as a purchase transaction, public offering or subsequent equity sale occurs, we will consider the pricing indicated by the external event to corroborate or revise our valuation. Due to the inherent uncertainty of determining the fair value of investments that do not have a readily available market value, the fair value of our investments may differ significantly from the values that would have been used had a readily available market value existed for such investments, and the differences could be material.

With respect to investments for which market quotations are not readily available, or for which market quotations are deemed not reflective of the fair value, our board of directors will undertake a multi-step valuation process each quarter, as described below:

 

1.

Our quarterly valuation process will begin with each portfolio company or investment being initially valued by the investment professionals of the Investment Adviser responsible for the portfolio investment;

 

2.

Preliminary valuation conclusions will then be documented and discussed with the management of the Investment Adviser;

 

3.

Our board of directors also will engage independent valuation firms to conduct independent appraisals of our investments for which market quotations are not readily available or are readily available but deemed not reflective of the fair value of the investment. The independent valuation firms will review management’s preliminary valuations in light of their own independent assessment and also in light of any market quotations obtained from an independent pricing service, broker, dealer or market maker;

 

4.

The audit committee of our board of directors will review the preliminary valuations of the Investment Adviser and that of the independent valuation firms and respond and supplement the valuation recommendations of the independent valuation firms to reflect any comments; and

 

5.

Our board of directors will discuss these valuations and determine the fair value of each investment in our portfolio in good faith based on the input of the Investment Adviser, the respective independent valuation firms and the audit committee.

Fair Value Measurements, as defined under ASC 820, is the price that we would receive upon selling an investment or pay to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction to a market participant in the principal or

 

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most advantageous market for the investment or liability. ASC 820 emphasizes that valuation techniques maximize the use of observable market inputs and minimize the use of unobservable inputs. Inputs refer broadly to the assumptions that market participants would use in pricing an asset or liability, including assumptions about risk. Inputs may be observable or unobservable. Observable inputs are inputs that reflect the assumptions market participants would use in pricing an asset or liability developed based on market data obtained from sources independent of PennantPark Floating Rate Capital. Unobservable inputs are inputs that reflect the assumptions market participants would use in pricing an asset or liability developed based on the best information available at the time.

ASC 820 classifies the inputs used to measure these fair values into the following hierarchies:

Level 1: Inputs that are quoted prices (unadjusted) in active markets for identical assets or liabilities, accessible by us at the measurement date.

Level 2: Inputs that are quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities in active markets, or that are quoted prices for identical or similar assets or liabilities in markets that are not active and inputs that are observable for the asset or liability, either directly or indirectly, for substantially the full term, if applicable, of the financial instrument.

Level 3: Inputs that are unobservable for an asset or liability because they are based on our own assumptions about how market participants would price the asset or liability.

A financial instrument’s categorization within the valuation hierarchy will be based upon the lowest level of input that is significant to the fair value measurement. Generally, most of our investments will be classified as Level 3.

The inputs into the determination of fair value may require significant management judgment or estimation. Even if observable market data is available, such information may be the result of consensus pricing information or broker quotes which include a disclaimer that the broker would not be held to such a price in an actual transaction. The non-binding nature of consensus pricing and/or quotes accompanied by disclaimer would result in classification as Level 3 information, assuming no additional corroborating evidence was available.

A review of fair value hierarchy classifications will be conducted on a quarterly basis. Changes in the observability of valuation inputs may result in a reclassification for certain financial assets or liabilities. Reclassifications impacting Level 3 of the fair value hierarchy will be reported as transfers in or out of the Level 3 category as of the end of the quarter in which the reclassifications occur.

In addition to using the above inputs in cash and cash equivalents, and investments valuations, PennantPark Floating Rate Capital will employ the valuation policy approved by our board of directors that is consistent with ASC 820. Consistent with our valuation policy, PennantPark Floating Rate Capital will evaluate the source of inputs, including any markets in which its investments are trading, in determining fair value.

Our investments will generally be structured as debt and equity investments in the form of senior secured loans, mezzanine debt and equity co-investments. The transaction price, excluding transaction costs, will typically be the best estimate of fair value at inception. When evidence supports a subsequent change to the carrying value from the original transaction price adjustments will be made to reflect the expected exit values. Ongoing reviews by the Investment Adviser and independent valuation firms will be based on an assessment of each underlying investment, incorporating valuations that consider the evaluation of financing and sale transactions with third parties, expected cash flows and market-based information including comparable transactions and performance multiples, among other factors. These non-public investments will be included in Level 3 of the fair value hierarchy.

Managerial assistance

We will offer managerial assistance to our portfolio companies. As a business development company, we will be required to make available such managerial assistance within the meaning of section 55 of the 1940 Act. See “Regulation” for more information.

Staffing

We do not currently have any employees. Our day-to-day investment operations will be managed by the Investment Adviser. The Investment Adviser and Administrator have hired and expect to continue to hire professionals with skills applicable to our business plan, including experience in middle-market investing, leveraged finance and capital markets.

 

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Properties

We do not own any real estate or other physical properties materially important to our operation. Our principal executive offices are located in at 590 Madison Avenue, 15^th Floor, New York, NY 10022. The Administrator furnishes us office space and we reimburse it for such costs on an allocated basis.

Legal Proceedings

None of us, the Investment Adviser or Administrator is currently subject to any material legal proceedings, nor, to our knowledge, is any material legal proceeding threatened against us, or against the Investment Adviser or Administrator. From time to time, we, the Investment Adviser or Administrator, may be a party to certain legal proceedings in the ordinary course of business, including proceedings relating to the enforcement of our rights under contracts with our portfolio companies. While the outcome of these legal proceedings cannot be predicted with certainty, we do not expect that these proceedings will have a material effect upon our financial condition or results of operations.

Our Portfolio

Our principal investment focus is to invest in Floating Rate Loans. We will generally seek to target companies that generate positive cash flows from the broad variety of industries in which the Investment Adviser has direct expertise. We may invest in other industries if we are presented with attractive opportunities. The following is a list of the industries in which we may invest:

 

•      Aerospace and Defense		•      Environmental Services
•      Auto Sector		•      Financial Services
•      Broadcasting and Entertainment		•      Grocery
•      Business Services		•      Education and Childcare
•      Buildings and Real Estate		•      Home & Office Furnishings, Housewares & Durable Consumer Products
•      Cable Television		•      Hotels, Motels, Inns and Gaming
•      Cargo Transportation		•      Insurance
•      Chemicals, Plastics and Rubber		•      Leisure, Amusement, Motion Picture, Entertainment
•      Communications		•      Logistics
•      Consumer Products		•      Manufacturing / Basic Industries
•      Containers Packaging & Glass		•      Media
•      Distribution		•      Oil and Gas
•      Diversified/Conglomerate Services		•      Other Media
•      Diversified/Conglomerate Manufacturing		•      Printing and Publishing
•      Education		•      Telecommunications
•      Energy / Utilities		•      Retail Store

 

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MANAGEMENT

Board of Directors

Our board of directors is responsible for the overall supervision of our operations and will perform the various duties imposed on the directors of investment companies by the 1940 Act and applicable Maryland law.

Biographical Information. Certain biographical and other information relating to our directors is set out below, including their ages, their principal occupations for at least the last five years, the length of time served, and other public directorships, including both public operating companies and registered funds.

 

Name, Address(1) and Age of Director		Position(s) Held with the Company		Term of Office and Length of Time Served		Principal Occupation(s) During Past Five Years		Other Directorships
Interested Director Arthur H. Penn (47)(2)		Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board of Directors		Director since October 2010; Term Expires 2014		Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of PennantPark Investment Corporation since its inception in 2007. Mr. Penn also is the founder and Managing Member of PennantPark Investment Advisers, LLC. Before founding PennantPark, Mr. Penn was the co-founder of Apollo Investment Management, where he was a Managing Partner from 2004 to 2007. He also served as Chief Operating Officer of Apollo Investment Corporation from inception in 2004 to 2006 and served as President and Chief Operating Officer in 2006. He formerly was a Managing Partner of Apollo Value Fund L.P. (formerly Apollo Distressed Investment Fund, L.P.) from 2003 to 2006.

 

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Name, Address(1) and Age of Director		Position(s) Held with the Company		Term of Office and Length of Time Served		Principal Occupation(s) During Past Five Years		Other Directorships
Independent Directors Marshall Brozost (43)		Director		Director since October 2010; Term Expires 2012		Director of PennantPark Investment Corporation. A Partner at the international law firm of Dewey & LeBoeuf LLP since 2007, where he practices in the real estate and private equity groups. Prior to his tenure at Dewey & LeBoeuf LLP, which began in 2005, Mr. Brozost practiced law at O’Melveny & Myers LLP and at Solomon & Weinberg LLP from 2001 to 2005.
Samuel L. Katz (45)		Director		Director since October 2010; Term Expires 2012		Director of PennantPark Investment Corporation. The Managing Partner since 2007 of TZP Group LLC, a private equity fund. Before joining TZP Group, Mr. Katz was Chief Executive Officer of MacAndrews & Forbes Acquisition Holdings, Inc. from 2006 to 2007. Prior to that position, Mr. Katz was Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Cendant Travel Distribution Services Division from 2001 to 2005.
Adam K. Bernstein (47)		Director		Director since October 2010; Term Expires 2013		Director of PennantPark Investment Corporation. President of The Bernstein Companies, a Washington, D.C.-based real estate firm that he joined in 1986. Mr. Bernstein also serves as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Consortium Atlantic Realty Trust, Inc., a private real estate investment trust operating in the Mid-Atlantic region since its formation in 2000.

 

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Name, Address(1) and Age of Director		Position(s) Held with the Company		Term of Office and Length of Time Served		Principal Occupation(s) During Past Five Years		Other Directorships
Jeffrey Flug (48)		Director		Director since October 2010; Term Expires 2013		Director of PennantPark Investment Corporation. Since 2009, Mr. Flug has held a variety of senior positions, including, most recently, President of Union Square Hospitality Group, an exclusive chain of restaurants. Mr. Flug also has served as Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director from 2006 to 2008 of Millennium Promise Alliance, Inc., a non-profit organization whose mission is to eradicate extreme global poverty. From 2000 to 2006 Mr. Flug was a Managing Director and Head of North American Institutional Sales at JP Morgan’s Investment Bank.

 

(1)	The address of each Director is c/o PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd., 590 Madison Avenue, 15th Floor, New York, New York 10022.

(2)	Mr. Penn is an interested director due to his positions as an officer of PennantPark Floating Rate Capital and of PennantPark Investment Advisers, LLC.

Biographical Information of our Executive Officers. Certain biographical and other information relating to the executive officers of the company is set out below:

 

Name, Address(1) and Age of Officer		Position(s) Held with the Company		Term of Office and Length of Time Served		Principal Occupation(s) During Past Five Years
Arthur H. Penn (47)		Chief Executive Officer		Since October 2010		See above.
Aviv Efrat (46)		Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer		Since October 2010		Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer of PennantPark Investment Corporation since inception in 2007. Managing Director of PennantPark Investment Administration, LLC since inception in 2007. A Director at BlackRock, Inc. from 1997 to 2007 where he was responsible for a variety of administrative, operational, and financial aspects of closed-end and open-end registered investment companies.

 

(1)	The address of each officer is c/o PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd., 590 Madison Avenue, 15th Floor, New York, New York 10022.

 

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As of the date of this prospectus, none of our Directors and officers owned any of our outstanding shares. As of the date of this prospectus, none of our Independent Directors or their immediate family members owned beneficially or of record any securities in the Investment Adviser, and none of the Directors owned directly or indirectly any securities in any of the Underwriters.

Compensation of Directors. Each Independent Director receives an annual payment of $50,000 for services performed on behalf of us as a director. The Independent Directors also receive $1,250 plus reimbursement of reasonable out-of-pocket expenses incurred in connection with attending each board meeting and receive $500 plus reimbursement of reasonable out-of-pocket expenses incurred in connection with attending each committee meeting (unless combined with a board meeting). In addition, each Co-Chairman of the Audit Committee receives an annual fee of $3,750 and each Co-Chairman of any other committee receives an annual fee of $1,250 for his additional services in these capacities. Also, we have purchased directors’ and officers’ liability insurance on behalf of our directors and officers. Independent Directors have the option to receive their directors’ fees paid in shares of our common stock issued at a price per share equal to the greater of net asset value or the market price at the time of payment. No compensation is expected to be paid to directors who are “interested persons.”

Corporate Governance

We believe that maintaining the highest standards of corporate governance is a crucial part of our business, and we are committed to having in place the necessary controls and procedures designed to ensure compliance with applicable laws, rules and regulations, as well as our own ethical standards of conduct.

Director Independence

NASDAQ corporate governance rules require listed companies to have a board of directors with at least a majority of independent directors. Under NASDAQ corporate governance rules, in order for a director to be deemed independent, our board of directors must determine that the individual does not have a relationship that would interfere with the director’s exercise of independent judgment in carrying out his or her responsibilities. On an annual basis, each member of our board of directors will be required to complete an independence questionnaire designed to provide information to assist our board of directors in determining whether the director is independent under NASDAQ corporate governance rules, the 1940 Act and our corporate governance guidelines. Our board of directors has determined that each of our directors, other than Mr. Penn, is independent under the listing standards of the NASDAQ and the 1940 Act. Our governance guidelines require any director who has previously been determined to be independent to inform the Chairman of our board of directors, the Chairman of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee and our Corporate Secretary of any change in circumstance that may cause his or her status as an independent director to change. Our board of directors limits membership on the Audit Committee and the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee to independent directors.

Board of Directors’ Oversight Role in Management

Our board of directors will perform its risk oversight function primarily through (1) its two standing committees, which report to the entire board of directors and are comprised solely of independent directors and (2) monitoring by our Chief Compliance Officer in accordance with our compliance policies and procedures.

As described below in more detail under “Audit Committee” and “Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee,” the Audit Committee and the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee will assist our board of directors in fulfilling its risk oversight responsibilities. The Audit Committee’s risk oversight responsibilities include overseeing our accounting and financial reporting processes, including the annual audit of our financial statements, our systems of internal controls regarding finance and accounting, and pre-approving the independent accountants’ engagement to render audit and/or

 

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permissible non-audit services; and evaluating the qualifications, performance and independence of the independent accountants. The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee’s risk oversight responsibilities include selecting, researching and nominating directors for election by our common stockholders, developing and recommending to our board of directors a set of corporate governance principles and overseeing the evaluation of our board of directors and our management. Both the Audit Committee and the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee consist solely of independent directors.

Our board of directors will also perform its risk oversight responsibilities with the assistance of the Chief Compliance Officer. Our Chief Compliance Officer will prepare a written report annually discussing the adequacy and effectiveness of our compliance policies and procedures and certain of our service providers. The Chief Compliance Officer’s report, which will be reviewed by our board of directors, will address at a minimum (1) the operation of our compliance policies and procedures and certain of our service providers since the last report; (2) any material changes to such policies and procedures since the last report; (3) any recommendations for material changes to such policies and procedures as a result of the Chief Compliance Officer’s annual review; and (4) any compliance matter that has occurred since the date of the last report about which our board of directors would reasonably need to know to oversee our compliance activities and risks. In addition, the Chief Compliance Officer will meet separately in executive session with our independent directors at least once each year.

We believe that our board of director’s role in risk oversight will be effective and appropriate given the extensive regulation to which we will be subject as a closed-end management investment company. Specifically, as a closed-end management investment company, we must comply with certain regulatory requirements that control the levels of risk in our business and operations. In addition, we intend to elect to be treated, and intend to qualify annually, as a RIC under Subchapter M of the Code, commencing with our first taxable year ending after completion of this offering. As a RIC we must meet certain income source, asset diversification and annual distribution requirements.

We believe that the extent of our board of director’s and its committees’ roles in risk oversight will complement our board of director’s leadership structure. Because they are comprised solely of independent directors, the Audit Committee and the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee are able to exercise their oversight responsibilities without any conflict of interest that might discourage critical questioning and review. Through regular executive session meetings with our independent auditors, Chief Compliance Officer and Chief Executive Officer, the independent directors will establish direct communication and oversight channels that our board of directors believes will foster open communication and early detection of issues of concern.

We believe that our board of director’s role in risk oversight must be evaluated on a case by case basis and that the current configuration and allocation of responsibilities among our board of directors and its committees with respect to the oversight of risk is appropriate. However, our board of directors and its committees will continually re-examine the manner in which they administer their respective risk oversight functions, including through formal annual assessments of performance, to ensure that they meet our needs.

Board of Directors Composition and Leadership Structure.

The 1940 Act will require that at least a majority of our directors not be “interested persons” (as defined in the 1940 Act) of us. Currently, four of our five directors are independent directors; however the Chairman of our board of directors is an interested person of us. The independent directors believe that the combined position of Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of our board of directors will result in greater efficiencies in managing us by eliminating the need to transfer substantial information quickly and repeatedly between a separate Chief Executive Officer and Chairman, and the ability to capitalize on the specialized knowledge acquired from the duties of these roles. Our board of directors has not identified a lead independent director; however, it has determined that its leadership structure, in which 80% of the directors are independent directors and, as such are not affiliated with the Investment Adviser or the Administrator, is appropriate in light of the services that the Investment Adviser and the Administrator will provide to us and the potential conflicts of interest that could arise from these relationships.

Information About Each Director’s Experience, Qualifications, Attributes or Skills.

Below is additional information about each director (supplementing the information provided in the table above) that describes some of the specific experiences, qualifications, attributes and/or skills that each director possesses, and which our board of directors believes has prepared each director to be an effective board member. Our board of directors believes that the significance of each director’s experience, qualifications, attributes and/or skills is an individual matter (meaning that experience that is important for one director may not have the same value for another) and that these factors are best evaluated at the board level, with no single director, or particular factor, being indicative of board effectiveness. However, our board of directors believes that directors need to have the ability to review, evaluate, question and discuss critical information provided to them, and to interact effectively with our management, service providers and counsel, in order to exercise effective business judgment in the performance of their duties. Our board of directors believes that its members satisfy this standard. Experience relevant to having this ability may be achieved through a director’s educational background, business, professional training or practice (e.g., finance, accounting or law); public service or academic positions, experience from service as a board member (including on our board of directors) or as an executive of investment funds, public companies or significant private or not-for-profit entities or other organizations, and/or other life experiences. To assist

 

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them in evaluating matters under federal and state law, the independent directors will be counseled by their own independent legal counsel, who will participate in board of directors meetings and interacts with the Investment Adviser, and also may benefit from information provided by our counsel. Both independent directors’ counsel and our counsel have significant experience advising funds and fund board members. Our board of directors and its committees will have the ability to engage other experts as appropriate. Our board of directors will evaluate its performance on an annual basis.

Role of the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

As Chairman of our board of directors and Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Penn will assume a leading role in strategic planning and executing our initiatives. Mr. Penn will also manage our day-to-day operations, with the support of the other investment professionals and officers. As Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Penn will have general responsibility for the implementation of our policies, as determined by our board of directors, and for the management of our business and affairs.

Experience, Qualifications, Attributes and/or Skills that Led to the Board’s Conclusion that such Members Should Serve as Directors of the Company

Our board of directors believes that, collectively, the directors have balanced and diverse experience, qualifications, attributes and skills, which will allow our board of directors to operate effectively in governing us and protecting the interests of our stockholders. Below is a description of the various experiences, qualifications, attributes and/or skills with respect to each director considered by our board of directors.

Arthur H. Penn

Our board of directors will benefit from Mr. Penn’s business leadership and experience and knowledge of senior loan, mezzanine lending, leveraged finance, distressed debt and private equity businesses, as well as a diverse knowledge of management practices. Mr. Penn is our Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer and the Managing Member of PennantPark Investment Advisers, LLC and PennantPark Investment Administration, LLC. Mr. Penn co-founded Apollo Investment Management in 2004, where he was a Managing Partner from 2004 to 2006. He also served as President and Chief Operating Officer of Apollo Investment Corporation from its inception in 2004 to 2006, and served as President and Chief Operating Officer of that company in 2006. Mr. Penn was a Managing Partner of Apollo Value Fund L.P. (formerly Apollo Distressed Investment Fund, L.P.) from 2003 through 2006. From 2002 to 2003, prior to joining Apollo, Mr. Penn was a Managing Director of CDC-IXIS Capital Markets. Mr. Penn served as Global Head of Leveraged Finance at UBS Warburg LLC (now UBS Investment Bank) from 1999 through 2001. Prior to joining UBS Warburg, Mr. Penn was Global Head of Fixed Income Capital Markets for BT Securities and BT Alex Brown Incorporated from 1994 to 1999. In these capacities, Mr. Penn oversaw groups responsible for more than 200 high-yield and leveraged bank financings aggregating over $34 billion in capital raised. From 1992 to 1994, Mr. Penn served as Head of High Yield Capital Markets at Lehman Brothers. Mr. Penn’s longstanding service as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of PennantPark Investment Corp. and Managing Member of PennantPark Investment Advisers, LLC and PennantPark Investment Administration, LLC provide him with a specific and valuable understanding of us, our operations, and the business and regulatory issues facing us.

Adam K. Bernstein

Mr. Bernstein brings to our board of directors 25 years of experience in leading a real estate development, investment and management business in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. Mr. Bernstein affords our board of directors his vast experience in the area of strategic and financial planning and capital and risk management. Mr. Bernstein is President of The Bernstein Companies, a Washington D.C.—based real estate firm which he joined in 1986. Mr. Bernstein also serves as the President and Chief Executive Officer of Consortium Atlantic Realty Trust, Inc., a private real estate investment trust operating in the Mid-Atlantic region since its formation in 2000. Mr. Bernstein also is the President of the Mid-Atlantic Regional Advisory Board of the University of Pennsylvania.

Marshall Brozost

Mr. Brozost brings 17 years of experience in the areas of finance, private equity, mergers and acquisitions and restructurings. Since 2007, Mr. Brozost has been Partner at the international law firm of Dewey & LeBoeuf LLP, where he practices in the real estate and private equity groups. Prior to his tenure at Dewey & LeBoeuf LLP, which began in 2005, Mr. Brozost practiced law at O’Melveny & Myers LLP from 2001 to 2004 and Solomon & Weinberg LLP from 2004 to 2005. Mr. Brozost also served as a vice president of Nomura Asset Capital Corporation from 1997 through 2000.

Jeffrey Flug

Mr. Flug brings to our board of directors expertise in fixed income, investment banking, accounting and business operations. Since 2009, Mr. Flug has held a variety of senior positions including, most recently, the President of Union Square Hospitality Group, LLC, an exclusive chain of restaurants. Mr. Flug was Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director of Millennium Promise Alliance, Inc. from 2006 to 2008. Millennium Promise is a non-profit organization whose mission is to eradicate extreme global poverty. Mr. Flug was Managing Director and Head of North American Institutional Sales at JP Morgan’s Investment Bank from 2000 to 2006. From 1988 to 2000, Mr. Flug was Managing Director for Goldman Sachs & Co. in its Fixed Income Division.

 

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Samuel L Katz

Mr. Katz brings to our board of directors a diverse knowledge of business and finance as a result of his career over the past 25 years. Mr. Katz is the Managing Partner of TZP Group, LLP a private equity fund he formed in 2007. Prior to joining TZP Group, he was CEO of MacAndrews & Forbes Acquisition Holdings, Inc. from 2006 through 2007. From 1996 through 2005, Mr. Katz held a variety of senior positions at Cendant Corporation including, most recently, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Cendant Travel Distribution Services Division from 2001 to 2005. From 1992 to 1995, Mr. Katz invested in private and public equity as Co-Chairman of Saber Capital, Inc. and Vice President of Dickstein Partners Inc. From 1988 to 1992, he was an Associate and Vice President at The Blackstone Group, where he worked on numerous private equity transactions, including the initial LBOs of several hotel franchise brands, which created the predecessor to Cendant Corporation. From 1986 to 1988, Mr. Katz was a Financial Analyst at Drexel Burnham Lambert.

Executive Officer and Officer who are not Directors

Aviv Efrat

Mr. Efrat became PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd.’s Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer in October 2010. Mr. Efrat is also a Managing Director of PennantPark Investment Administration, LLC and the Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer of PennantPark Investment Corp. Mr. Efrat was a Director at BlackRock, Inc., where he was responsible for a variety of administrative, operational, and financial aspects of closed-end and open-end registered investment companies from 1997 to 2007. From 1994 to 1997, Mr. Efrat was in the Investment Companies Business Unit at Deloitte & Touche LLP. He is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the New York State Society of Certified Public Accountants.

Guy F. Talarico

Mr. Talarico became PennantPark Floating Rate Capital’s Chief Compliance Officer in 2011. Mr. Talarico has served as Chief Compliance Officer for investment advisers, private funds and investment companies since 2004. From 2001 to 2004 Mr. Talarico was Senior Director at Investors Bank & Trust Company where he was servicing investment advisers, mutual funds and institutions. From 1986 to 2001, Mr. Talarico was a division executive with JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., servicing equity and fixed-income portfolio management, money market trading and custody functions, as well as overseeing compliance. Mr. Talarico has been admitted to practice law in the States of New Jersey and New York.

Committees of the Board of Directors

Our board of directors has established an Audit Committee and a Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee. We will require each director to make a diligent effort to attend all board and committee meetings, and encourage directors to attend our Annual Meeting of Stockholders.

Audit Committee

The members of the Audit Committee are Messrs. Bernstein, Brozost, Flug and Katz, each of whom is independent for purposes of the 1940 Act and the NASDAQ corporate governance rules. Messrs. Flug and Katz serve as Co-Chairmen of the Audit Committee. The Audit Committee operates pursuant to an Audit Committee Charter approved by our board of directors. Our charter sets forth the responsibilities of the Audit Committee, which include selecting or retaining each year an independent registered public accounting firm (the “auditors”) to audit our accounts and records, reviewing and discussing with management and the auditors our annual audited financial statements, including disclosures made in management’s discussion and analysis of financial condition and results of operations, and recommending to our board of directors whether the audited financial statements should be included in our annual report; reviewing and discussing with management and the independent auditors our financial statements prior to the filings; pre-approving the auditors’ engagement to render audit and/or permissible non-audit services; and evaluating the qualifications, performance and independence of the auditors. The Audit Committee is also responsible for aiding our board of directors in fair value pricing of debt and equity securities. Our board of directors and Audit Committee will use the services of nationally recognized independent valuation firms to help them determine the fair value of certain securities. Our board of directors has determined that each of Messrs. Flug and Katz is an “audit committee financial expert” as that term is defined under Item 407 of Regulation S-K under the Exchange Act.

Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee

The members of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee are Messrs. Bernstein, Brozost, Flug and Katz, each of whom is independent for purposes of the 1940 Act and the NASDAQ corporate governance rules. Messrs. Bernstein and Brozost serve as co-chairmen of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee. The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee is responsible for selecting, researching and nominating directors for election by our stockholders, selecting nominees to fill vacancies on our board of directors or a committee of our board of directors, developing and recommending to our board of directors a set of corporate governance principles and overseeing the evaluation of our board of directors and our management.

The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee will consider our stockholders’ recommendations for possible nominees for election as directors when such recommendations are submitted in accordance with our bylaws, the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee Charter and any applicable law, rule or regulation regarding director nominations. Nominations should be sent to Thomas Friedmann, Secretary, c/o PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd., 590 Madison Avenue, 15th Floor, New York, New York 10022. When submitting a nomination to us for consideration, a stockholder must provide all information that would be required under applicable SEC rules to be disclosed in connection with election of a director, including the following minimum information for each director nominee: full name, age and address; principal occupation during the past five years; directorships on publicly held companies and investment companies during the past five years; number of shares of our common stock owned, if any; and a written consent of the individual to stand for election if nominated by our board of directors and to serve if elected by the stockholders.

Criteria considered by the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee in evaluating the qualifications of individuals for election as members of our board of directors will include compliance with the independence and other applicable requirements of the NASDAQ corporate governance rules and the 1940 Act, and all other applicable laws, rules, regulations and listing standards; the criteria, policies and principles set forth in the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee Charter; and the ability to contribute to our effective management, taking into account our needs and such factors as the individual’s experience, perspective, skills and knowledge of the industry in which we operate. The Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee has not adopted a formal policy with regard to the consideration of diversity in identifying individuals for election as

 

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members of our board of directors, but the Committee will consider such factors as it may deem are in our best interests and those of our stockholders. Those factors may include a person’s differences of viewpoint, professional experience, education and skills, as well as his or her race, gender and national origin. In addition, as part of our board of director’s annual-self assessment, the members of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee will evaluate the membership of our board of directors and whether our board of directors maintains satisfactory policies regarding membership selection.

Portfolio Managers, or Senior Investment Professionals, Biographical Information.

The Investment Adviser has three experienced senior investment professionals in addition to Mr. Penn. These senior investment professionals of the Investment Adviser have worked together for many years, and average over 20 years of experience in the mezzanine lending, leveraged finance, distressed debt and private equity businesses. In addition, our senior investment professionals have been involved in originating, structuring, negotiating, managing and monitoring investments in each of these businesses across economic and market cycles. We believe this experience and history has resulted in a strong reputation with financial sponsors, management teams, investment bankers, attorneys and accountants, which will provide us with access to substantial investment opportunities across the capital markets. Below is a summary of their biographical information.

Salvatore Giannetti III joined PennantPark Investment Advisers in February 2007. Mr. Giannetti was most recently Partner in the private equity firm Wilton Ivy Partners since 2004. He was a Managing Director at UBS Securities LLC in its Financial Sponsors and Leveraged Finance Group from 2000 to 2001. From 1997 to 2000, Mr. Giannetti was a Managing Director in the Investment Banking Division at Deutsche Bank (joining BT Securities and BT Alex Brown Inc.). From 1986 to 1997, Mr. Giannetti worked in the Investment Banking, Syndicated Loan & Private Equity groups at Chase Securities Inc. and its predecessor firms, Chemical Securities and Manufacturers Hanover.

P. Whitridge Williams, Jr. joined PennantPark Investment Advisers in March 2007. Mr. Williams was most recently a Managing Director in the Financial Sponsors and Leveraged Finance Group at UBS Securities LLC. Mr. Williams worked at UBS and predecessor firms, including Dillon Read and Co. Inc. from 1996 to 2007. During Mr. Williams’ tenure at UBS, he spent four years as a senior member of the Telecom, Media and Technology Group.

Jose A. Briones joined PennantPark Investment Advisers in December 2009. Mr. Briones was most recently a Partner of Apollo Investment Management, L.P. and a member of its investment committee since 2006. He was a Managing Director with UBS Securities LLC in the Financial Sponsors and Leveraged Finance Group from 2001 to 2006. Prior to joining UBS he was a Vice President with JP Morgan in the Global Leveraged Finance Group from 1999 to 2001. From 1992 to 1999, Mr. Briones was a Vice President at BT Securities and BT Alex Brown Inc. in the Corporate Finance Department.

In addition to managing our investments, as of December 31, 2010, our portfolio managers also managed investments on behalf of the following entities:

 

Name		Entity		Investment Focus		Gross Assets(1)
PennantPark Investment Corporation		Business development company		Primarily mezzanine debt and equity investments in middle-market leveraged companies		$	717

 

(1)	Gross assets are calculated as of December 31, 2010, and are rounded to the nearest million.

The table below shows the dollar range of shares of common stock we estimate will be beneficially owned by each of our portfolio managers and each of our officers subsequent to completion of this offering.

 

Name of Portfolio Manager		Dollar Range of Equity Securities in PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd.(1)
Arthur H. Penn			$1 – $10,000
Salvatore Giannetti III			None
P. Whitridge Williams, Jr.			None
Jose A. Briones			None
Name of officer
Aviv Efrat			None
Guy F. Talarico			None

 

 

(1)	Dollar ranges are as follows: None, $1-$10,000, $10,001-$50,000, $50,001-$100,000, $100,001-$500,000, $500,001-$1,000,000, or Over $1,000,000.

Communication with our Board of Directors

Stockholders with questions about us are encouraged to contact our Investor Relations Department at 590 Madison Avenue, 15th Floor, New York, New York 10022 or by visiting the investor relations web page on our website at www.pennantpark.com. However, if stockholders believe that their questions have not been addressed, they may communicate with our board of directors by sending their communications to: Thomas Friedmann, Secretary, c/o PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd., 590 Madison Avenue, 15th Floor, New York, New York 10022. All stockholder communications received in this manner will be delivered to one or more members of our board of directors.

CONTROL PERSONS AND PRINCIPAL STOCKHOLDERS

Immediately prior to the completion of this offering, there will be 667 shares of common stock outstanding and one stockholder of record. At that time, we will have no other shares of capital stock outstanding. The following table sets out certain ownership information with respect to our common stock for those persons who directly or indirectly own, control or hold with the power to vote 5% or more of our outstanding common stock and all officers and directors as a group.

 

		Type of Ownership				Immediately Prior to This Offering								Immediately After This Offering(1)
Name						Shares Owned				Percentage				Shares Owned				Percentage
PennantPark Investment Advisers LLC(2)			Direct				667				100	%			667				*
Arthur H. Penn(3)			Indirect				667				100	%			667				*
All officers and directors as a group(4)			Indirect				667				100	%			667				*

 

 

(1)	Does not reflect shares of common stock reserved for issuance upon exercise of the underwriters’ overallotment option.

(2)	The address for PennantPark Investment Advisers LLC is 590 Madison Avenue, 15th Floor, New York, NY 10022.

(3)	Mr. Penn is the managing member of PennantPark Investment Advisers, LLC and may therefore be deemed to beneficially own the 667 shares owned by PennantPark Investment Advisers LLC.

(4)	The address for all officers and directors is 590 Madison Avenue, 15th Floor, New York, NY 10022.

*	Less than 1%

The following table sets forth the dollar range of our equity securities we expect will be beneficially owned by each of our Directors immediately after this offering.

Name of Director						Dollar Range of Equity Securities in PennantPark Floating Rate Capital (1)
Interested Director
Arthur H. Penn							$1 – $10,000
Independent Directors
Adam K. Bernstein							None
Marshall Brozost							None
Jeffrey Flug							None
Samuel L. Katz							None

 

(1)	Dollar ranges are as follows: None, $1-$10,000, $10,001-$50,000, $50,001-$100,000, or Over $100,000.

CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND TRANSACTIONS

Investment Management Agreement

We will enter into the Investment Management Agreement with the Investment Adviser under which the Investment Adviser, subject to the overall supervision of our board of directors, will manage the day-to-day operations of and provides investment advisory services to us. Under the terms of the Investment Management Agreement, the Investment Adviser will:

 

•

determines the composition of our portfolio, the nature and timing of the changes to our portfolio and the manner of implementing such changes;

 

•

identify, evaluate and negotiate the structure of the investments we will make (including performing due diligence on our prospective portfolio companies); and

 

•

close and monitor the investments we will make.

The Investment Adviser’s services under the Investment Management Agreement are not exclusive, and it is free to furnish similar services, without the prior approval of our stockholders or our board of directors, to other entities so long as its services to us are not impaired. Our board of directors will monitor any potential conflicts that may arise upon such a development. For providing these services, the Investment Adviser will receive a fee from us, consisting of two components—a base management fee and an incentive fee, which we refer to collectively as the “Management Fees.”

 

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Investment Advisory Fees

 

Pursuant to the Investment Management Agreement, we will agree to pay PennantPark Investment Advisers a fee for investment advisory and management services consisting of two components — a base management fee and an incentive fee.

The base management fee will be calculated at an annual rate of 1.00% of our gross assets. PennantPark Investment Advisers, however, has agreed to waive the portion of the base management fee payable on any net proceeds of this offering that have not yet been invested in portfolio investments, exclusive of any temporary investments in cash, cash equivalents, U.S. government securities and other high-quality investment grade debt investments that mature in 12 months or less from the date of investment. For services rendered under the Investment Management Agreement, the base management fee will be payable quarterly in arrears. The base management fee will be calculated based on the average value of our gross assets at the end of the two most recently completed calendar quarters, and appropriately adjusted for any share issuances or repurchases during the current calendar quarter. Base management fees for any partial month or quarter will be appropriately pro-rated.

The incentive fee will have two parts, as follows: one part will be calculated and payable quarterly in arrears based on our Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income for the immediately preceding calendar quarter. For this purpose, Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income means interest income, dividend income and any other income (including any other fees (other than fees for providing managerial assistance), such as commitment, origination, structuring, diligence and consulting fees or other fees that we receive from portfolio companies) accrued during the calendar quarter, minus our operating expenses for the quarter (including the base management fee, expenses payable under the Administration Agreement to the Administrator, and any interest expense and dividends paid on any issued and outstanding preferred stock, but excluding the incentive fee). Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income includes, in the case of investments with a deferred interest feature (such as original issue discount, debt instruments with pay in kind interest and zero coupon securities), accrued income that we have not yet received in cash. Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income does not include any realized capital gains, computed net of all realized capital losses or unrealized capital appreciation or depreciation. Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income, expressed as a rate of return on the value of our net assets at the end of the immediately preceding calendar quarter, will be compared to a hurdle of 1.75% per quarter (7.00% annualized). Our net investment income used to calculate this part of the incentive fee is also included in the amount of our gross assets used to calculate the 1.00% base management fee. We will pay PennantPark Investment Advisers an incentive fee with respect to our Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income in each calendar quarter as follows:

 

•

no incentive fee in any calendar quarter in which our Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income does not exceed the hurdle of 1.75%;

 

•

50% of our Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income with respect to that portion of such Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income, if any, that exceeds the hurdle but is less than 2.9167% in any calendar quarter (11.67% annualized). We refer to this portion of our Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income (which exceeds the hurdle but is less than 2.9167%) as the “catch-up.” The “catch-up” is meant to provide the Investment Adviser with approximately 20% of our Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income as if a hurdle did not apply if this net investment income exceeds 2.9167% in any calendar quarter; and

 

•

20% of the amount of our Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income, if any, that exceeds 2.9167% in any calendar quarter (11.67% annualized) will be payable to PennantPark Investment Advisers (once the hurdle is reached and the catch-up is achieved, 20% of all Pre-Incentive Fee Investment Income thereafter is allocated to PennantPark Investment Advisers).

 

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The following is a graphical representation of the calculation of the income-related portion of the incentive fee:

Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income

(expressed as a percentage of the value of net assets)

Percentage of Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income

allocated to PennantPark Investment Advisers

These calculations will be appropriately pro-rated for any period of less than three months and adjusted for any share issuances or repurchases during the relevant quarter. You should be aware that a rise in the general level of interest rates can be expected to lead to higher interest rates applicable to our debt investments. Accordingly, an increase in interest rates would make it easier for us to meet or exceed the incentive fee hurdle rate and may result in a substantial increase of the amount of incentive fees payable to the Investment Adviser with respect to Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income.

The second part of the incentive fee will be determined and payable in arrears as of the end of each calendar year (or upon termination of the Investment Management Agreement, as of the termination date), and equals 20% of our realized capital gains, if any, on a cumulative basis from inception through the end of each calendar year, computed net of all realized capital losses and net unrealized capital depreciation on a cumulative basis, less the aggregate amount of any previously paid capital gain incentive fees with respect to each of the investments in our portfolio, provided that, the incentive fee determined as of December 31, 2011 will be calculated for a period of shorter than twelve calendar months to take into account any realized capital gains computed net of all realized capital losses and unrealized capital depreciation from the inception of PennantPark Floating Rate Capital.

Examples of Quarterly Incentive Fee Calculation

Example 1: Income Related Portion of Incentive Fee (*):

Alternative 1

Assumptions

Investment income (including interest, dividends, fees, etc.) = 1.25%

Hurdle rate (1) = 1.75%

Management fee (2) = 0.25%

Other expenses (legal, accounting, custodian, transfer agent, etc.) (3) = 0.20%

Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income

(investment income – (management fee + other expenses)) = 0.80%

Pre-Incentive Net Investment Income does not exceed hurdle rate, therefore there is no incentive fee.

Alternative 2

Assumptions

Investment income (including interest, dividends, fees, etc.) = 2.70%

Hurdle rate (1) = 1.75%

Management fee (2) = 0.25%

Other expenses (legal, accounting, custodian, transfer agent, etc.) (3) = 0.20%

Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income

(investment income – (management fee + other expenses)) = 2.25%

Incentive fee = 50% × Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income, subject to the “catch-up” (4)

= 50% × (2.25% – 1.75%)

= 0.25%

 

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Alternative 3

Assumptions

Investment income (including interest, dividends, fees, etc.) = 4.00%

Hurdle rate (1) = 1.75%

Management fee (2) = 0.25%

Other expenses (legal, accounting, custodian, transfer agent, etc.) (3) = 0.20%

Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income

(investment income – (management fee + other expenses)) = 3.55%

Incentive fee = 20% × Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income, subject to “catch-up” (4)

Incentive fee = 50% × “catch-up” + (20% × (Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income – 2.9167%))

Catch-up = 2.9167% – 1.75%

= 1.1667%

Incentive fee = (50% × 1.1667%) + (20% × (3.55% – 2.9167%))

= 0.58334% + (20% × 0.6333%)

= 0.58334% + 0.12667%

= 0.71001%

 

(*)	The hypothetical amount of Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income shown is based on a percentage of total net assets.

(1)	Represents 7.00% annualized hurdle rate.

(2)	Represents 1.00% annualized management fee.

(3)	Excludes organizational and offering expenses.

(4)	The “catch-up” provision is intended to provide the Investment Adviser with an incentive fee of approximately 20% on all of our Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income as if a hurdle rate did not apply when our net investment income exceeds 2.9167% in any calendar quarter.

Example 2: Capital Gains Portion of Incentive Fee:

Alternative 1:

Assumptions

 

•

Year 1: $20 million investment made in Company A (“Investment A”), and $30 million investment made in Company B (“Investment B”)

 

•

Year 2: Investment A sold for $50 million and fair market value (“FMV”) of Investment B determined to be $32 million

 

•

Year 3: FMV of Investment B determined to be $25 million

 

•

Year 4: Investment B sold for $31 million

The capital gains portion of the incentive fee, if any, would be:

 

•

Year 1: None

 

•

Year 2: $6 million capital gains incentive fee

 

•

$30 million realized capital gains on sale of Investment A multiplied by 20%

 

•

Year 3: None

$5 million cumulative fee (20% multiplied by $25 million ($30 million cumulative capital gains less $5 million cumulative capital depreciation)) less $6 million (previous capital gains fee paid in Year 2)

 

•

Year 4: $200,000 capital gains incentive fee

$6.2 million cumulative fee ($31 million cumulative realized capital gains multiplied by 20%) less $6 million (previous capital gains fee paid in Year 2)

 

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Alternative 2

Assumptions

 

•

Year 1: $20 million investment made in Company A (“Investment A”), $30 million investment made in Company B (“Investment B”) and $25 million investment made in Company C (“Investment C”)

 

•

Year 2: Investment A sold for $50 million, FMV of Investment B determined to be $25 million and FMV of Investment C determined to be $25 million

 

•

Year 3: FMV of Investment B determined to be $27 million and Investment C sold for $30 million

 

•

Year 4: FMV of Investment B determined to be $35 million

 

•

Year 5: Investment B sold for $20 million

The capital gains portion of the incentive fee, if any, would be:

 

•

Year 1: None

 

•

Year 2: $5 million capital gains incentive fee

 

•

20% multiplied by $25 million ($30 million realized capital gains on sale of Investment A less $5 million unrealized capital depreciation on Investment B)

 

•

Year 3: $1.4 million capital gains incentive fee(1)

$6.4 million cumulative fee (20% multiplied by $32 million ($35 million cumulative realized capital gains less $3 million unrealized capital depreciation)) less $5 million (previous capital gains fee paid in Year 2)

 

•

Year 4: None

 

•

Year 5: None

$5 million cumulative fee (20% multiplied by $25 million ($35 million cumulative realized capital gains less $10 million realized capital losses)) less $6.4 million (previous cumulative capital gains fee paid in Year 2 and Year 3)

 

(1)

As illustrated in Year 3 of Alternative 1 above, if PennantPark Floating Rate Capital were to be wound up on a date other than December 31 of any year, PennantPark Floating Rate Capital may have paid aggregate capital gain incentive fees that are more than the amount of such fees that would be payable if PennantPark Floating Rate Capital had been wound up on December 31 of such year.

 

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Duration and Termination

The Investment Management Agreement was approved by our board of directors, including a majority of our directors who are not interested persons of us, on March 10, 2011 and is scheduled to be executed on the date of this prospectus. Unless terminated earlier as described below, the Investment Management Agreement will continue in effect for a period of two years from its execution date. It will remain in effect from year to year thereafter if approved annually by our board of directors, or by the affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of our outstanding voting securities, including, in either case, approval by a majority of our directors who are not interested persons. The Investment Management Agreement will automatically terminate in the event of its assignment. The Investment Management Agreement may be terminated by either party without penalty upon 60 days’ written notice to the other. See “Risk factors—Risks relating to our business and structure—We are dependent upon the Investment Adviser’s key personnel for our future success, and if the Investment Adviser is unable to hire and retain qualified personnel or if we lose any member of our management team, our ability to achieve our investment objectives could be significantly harmed.”

Organization of the Investment Adviser

PennantPark Investment Advisers is a registered investment adviser under the Advisers Act of 1940. The principal executive office of PennantPark Investment Advisers is located at 590 Madison Avenue, 15th Floor, New York, NY 10022.

Administration Agreement

Pursuant to the Administration Agreement, the Administrator will furnish us with office facilities, equipment and clerical, bookkeeping and record keeping services at such facilities. Under the Administration Agreement, the Administrator will perform, or oversees the performance of, our required administrative services, which include, among other things, being responsible for the financial records which we are required to maintain and preparing reports to our stockholders and reports filed with the SEC. In addition, the Administrator will assist us in determining and publishing our net asset value, oversee the preparation and filing of our tax returns and the printing and dissemination of reports to our stockholders, and generally oversee the payment of our expenses and the

 

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performance of administrative and professional services rendered to us by others. Payments under the Administration Agreement will be equal to an amount based upon our allocable portion of the Administrator’s overhead in performing its obligations under the Administration Agreement, including rent and our allocable portion of the cost of compensation and related expenses of our Chief Compliance Officer and Chief Financial Officer and their respective staffs. Under the Administration Agreement, the Administrator will offer, on our behalf, managerial assistance to those portfolio companies to which we are required to offer such assistance. To the extent that the Administrator outsources any of its functions, we will pay the fees associated with such functions on a direct basis without profit to the Administrator.

Duration and Termination

The Administration Agreement was approved by our board of directors, including a majority of our directors who are not interested persons of PennantPark Investment, on March 10, 2011 and is scheduled to be executed on the date of this prospectus. Unless terminated earlier as described below, the Administration Agreement will continue in effect for a period of two years from its execution date. It will remain in effect if approved annually by our board of directors, including approval by a majority of our directors who are not interested persons. The Administration Agreement may not be assigned by either party without the consent of the other party. The Administration Agreement may be terminated by either party without penalty upon 60 days’ written notice to the other.

Indemnification

The Investment Management Agreement and Administration Agreement provide that, absent willful misfeasance, bad faith or gross negligence in the performance of their duties or by reason of the reckless disregard of their duties and obligations, PennantPark Investment Advisers and PennantPark Investment Administration and their officers, manager, partners, agents, employees, controlling persons, members and any other person or entity affiliated with them are entitled to indemnification from us for any damages, liabilities, costs and expenses (including reasonable attorneys’ fees and amounts reasonably paid in settlement) arising from the rendering of PennantPark Investment Advisers’ and PennantPark Investment Administration’s services under the Investment Management Agreement or Administration Agreement or otherwise as Investment Adviser or Administrator for us.

License Agreement

We have entered into a license agreement with PennantPark Investment Advisers pursuant to which PennantPark Investment Advisers has granted us a royalty-free, non-exclusive license to use the name “PennantPark.” The License Agreement will expire (i) upon expiration or termination of the Investment Management Agreement, (ii) if the Investment Adviser ceases to serve as our investment adviser, (iii) by either party upon sixty days’ written notice or (iv) by the Investment Adviser at any time in the event we assign or attempt to assign or sublicense the License Agreement or any of our rights or duties thereunder without the prior written consent of the Investment Adviser. Other than with respect to this limited license, we have no legal right to the “PennantPark” name.

Sales load advance

The Investment Adviser has agreed to pay to the underwriters an additional 2% sales load, or $3,000,000 ($3,450,000 if the underwriters exercise their overallotment option in full) in the aggregate, with respect to this offering of shares of our common stock. We (and indirectly our stockholders) will be obligated to repay this amount, together with accrued interest on such amount (a) if during any four calendar quarter-period ending on or after the one year anniversary of the closing of the offering, our Pre-Incentive Fee Net Investment Income equals or exceeds 1.75% (7.0% annualized) of our net assets at the beginning of such period (as adjusted for any issuances or repurchases of shares of our common stock) or (b) upon our liquidation. If we are then permitted to do so, we will repay such amount and any interest on such amount through the issuance of shares of our common stock to the Investment Adviser. If we cannot then issue such shares under the 1940 Act or otherwise, we will pay such amount to the Investment Adviser in cash, and the Investment Adviser has agreed to use such payment to purchase shares of our common stock in the secondary market.

 

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DETERMINATION OF NET ASSET VALUE

Our investments will generally consist of illiquid securities including Floating Rate Loans and, to a lesser extent equity investments in middle-market companies. The net asset value per share of our outstanding shares of common stock will be determined quarterly by dividing the value of total assets minus liabilities by the total number of shares outstanding.

As a business development company, we will generally invest in illiquid securities, including debt and equity investments of middle-market companies. All of our investments will be recorded using broker/dealers quotes or using fair value as determined in good faith by our board of directors in consultation with our independent third party valuation firms. Our board of directors will generally use market quotations to assess the value of our investments for which market quotations are readily available. We will obtain these market values from an independent pricing service or at the bid prices, if available, obtained from at least two broker/dealers, or by a principal market maker or a primary market dealer. If our board of directors has a bona fide reason to believe any such market quote does not reflect the fair value of an investment, it may independently value such investments by using the valuation procedure that it will use with respect to assets for which market quotations are not readily available. Debt and equity investments that are not publicly traded or whose market prices are not readily available will be valued at fair value as determined in good faith by or under the direction of our board of directors. Such determination of fair values will involve subjective judgments and estimates. Investments, of sufficient credit quality, purchased within 60 days of maturity will be valued at cost plus accreted discount, or minus amortized premium, which approximates value. With respect to unquoted securities, our board of directors, in consultation with independent third party valuation firms, will value each investment considering, among other measures, discounted cash flow models, comparisons of financial ratios of peer companies that are public and other factors.

 

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Determinations In Connection With Offerings

In connection with each offering of shares of our common stock, our board of directors or a committee thereof will be required to make the determination that we are not selling shares of our common stock at a price below net asset value of our common stock at the time at which the sale is made unless we receive the consent of the majority of our common stockholders to do so, and our board of directors decides that such an offering is in the best interests of our common stockholders. Our board of directors will consider the following factors, among others, in making such determination:

 

•

the net asset value of our common stock disclosed in the most recent periodic report that we filed with the SEC;

 

•

our management’s assessment of whether any change in the net asset value of our common stock has occurred (including through the realization of gains on the sale of our portfolio securities) during the period beginning on the date of the most recent public filing with the SEC that discloses the net asset value of our common stock and ending two days prior to the date of the sale of our common stock; and

 

•

the magnitude of the difference between the offering price of the shares of our common stock in the proposed offering and management’s assessment of any change in the net asset value of our common stock during the period discussed above.

Importantly, this determination will not necessarily require that we calculate the net asset value of our common stock in connection with each offering of shares of our common stock, but instead it will involve the determination by our board of directors or a committee thereof that we are not selling shares of our common stock at a price below the then current net asset value of our common stock at the time at which the sale is made or otherwise in violation of the 1940 Act. However, if we receive the consent of a majority of our common stockholders to issue shares of our common stock at a price below our then current net asset value and our board of directors decides that such an offering is in the best interest of our common stockholders, we may undertake such an offering.

To the extent that the above procedures result in even a remote possibility that we may (i) in the absence of stockholder approval issue shares of our common stock at a price below the then current net asset value of our common stock at the time at which the sale is made or (ii) trigger our undertaking to suspend the offering of shares of our common stock pursuant to this prospectus if the net asset value fluctuates by certain amounts in certain circumstances until the prospectus is amended, our board of directors or a

 

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committee thereof will elect, in the case of clause (i) above, either to postpone the offering until such time that there is no longer the possibility of the occurrence of such event or to undertake to determine our net asset value within two days prior to any such sale to ensure that such sale will not be below our then current net asset value, and, in the case of clause (ii) above, to comply with such undertaking or to undertake to determine our net asset value to ensure that such undertaking has not been triggered.

These processes and procedures are part of our compliance policies and procedures. Records will be made contemporaneously with all determinations of our board of directors described in this section, and we will maintain these records with other records that we are required to maintain under the 1940 Act.

 

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DIVIDEND REINVESTMENT PLAN

We have adopted a dividend reinvestment plan that provides for reinvestment of dividend distributions on behalf of stockholders, unless a stockholder elects to receive cash as provided below. As a result, if our board of directors authorizes, and we declare, a cash dividend, then stockholders who have not “opted out” of the dividend reinvestment plan will have their cash dividends automatically reinvested in additional shares of common stock, rather than receiving the cash dividends.

No action is required on the part of a registered stockholder to have the stockholder’s cash dividend reinvested in shares of common stock. A registered stockholder may elect to receive a dividend in cash by notifying American Stock Transfer and Trust Company, the plan administrator and transfer agent and registrar, in writing so that the notice is received by the plan administrator no later than the record date for distribution to stockholders. The plan administrator will set up an account for shares acquired through the plan for each stockholder who has not elected to receive dividends in cash.

Those stockholders whose shares are held by a broker or other financial intermediary may receive dividends in cash by notifying their broker or other financial intermediary of their election.

Generally, we intend to issue new shares to implement the plan, subject to the provisions of the 1940 Act. We reserve the right to purchase shares in the open market in connection with the implementation of the plan. The number of shares to be issued to a stockholders will be determined by dividing the total dollar amount of the dividend payable to the stockholder by the market price per share of common stock at the close of regular trading on NASDAQ Global Select Market on the valuation date for such distribution. Market price per share on that date will be the closing price for the shares on NASDAQ Global Select Market or, if no sale is reported for such day, at the average of the reported bid and asked prices. The number of shares of common stock to be outstanding after giving effect to payment of the dividend cannot be established until the value per share at which additional shares will be issued has been determined and elections of stockholders have been tabulated.

Except as described below, the plan administrator’s fees under the plan will be paid by us. If a participant elects by written notice to the plan administrator to have the plan administrator sell part or all of the shares held by the plan administrator in the participant’s account and remit the proceeds to the participant, the plan administrator is authorized to deduct a $15.00 transaction fee plus a $0.10 per share brokerage commission from the proceeds.

Stockholders who receive dividends in the form of stock are subject to the same federal, state and local tax consequences as are stockholders who elect to receive their dividends in cash. A stockholder’s basis for determining gain or loss upon the sale of stock received in a dividend will be equal to the total dollar amount of the distribution payable to the stockholder. Any stock received in a

 

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dividend will have a new holding period for tax purposes commencing on the day following the day on which the shares are credited to the U.S. stockholder’s account.

Participants may terminate their accounts under the plan by notifying the plan administrator via its website at www.amstock.com, or by filling out the transaction request form located at the bottom of their statement and sending it to the plan administrator.

DESCRIPTION OF OUR CAPITAL STOCK

The following description is based on relevant portions of the Maryland General Corporation Law and on our charter and bylaws. This summary is not necessarily complete, and we refer you to the Maryland General Corporation Law and our charter and bylaws for a more detailed description of the provisions summarized below.

Capital Stock

On March 28, 2011 our authorized capital stock consisted of 100,000,000 shares of stock, par value $0.001 per share, all of which were classified as common stock. We intend to list our common stock on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the ticker symbol “PFLT”. On that date there were no outstanding options or warrants to purchase our capital stock. No stock has been authorized for issuance under any equity compensation plans. Under Maryland law, our stockholders generally are not personally liable for our debts or obligations.

As of March 28, 2011, we had 1 stockholder of record.

The following are our outstanding classes of securities as of March 28, 2011:

 

Title of Class

Amount of Shares Authorized

Amount of Shares Held by Us for Our Account

Amount  of Shares Outstanding as of March 28, 2011

Common Stock

100,000,000 Shares

None

667 Shares

Under our charter, our board of directors is authorized to classify and reclassify any unissued shares of stock into other classes or series of stock and authorize the issuance of shares of stock without obtaining stockholder approval. As permitted by the Maryland General Corporation Law, our charter provides that our board of directors, without any action by our stockholders, may amend the charter from time to time to increase or decrease the aggregate number of shares of stock or the number of shares of stock of any class or series that we have authority to issue.

Common Stock

All shares of our common stock have equal rights as to earnings, assets, distributions and voting and, when they are issued, will be duly authorized, validly issued, fully paid and nonassessable. Distributions may be paid to the holders of our common stock if, as and when authorized by our board of directors and declared by us out of funds legally available for payment. Shares of our common stock have no preemptive, exchange, conversion or redemption rights and are freely transferable, except where their transfer is restricted by federal and state securities laws or by contract. In the event of a liquidation, dissolution or winding up of us, each share of our common stock would be entitled to share ratably in all of our assets that are legally available for distribution after we pay all debts and other liabilities and subject to any preferential rights of holders of our preferred stock, if any preferred stock is outstanding at such time. Each share of our common stock is entitled to one vote on all matters submitted to a vote of stockholders, including the election of directors. Except as provided with respect to any other class or series of stock, the holders of our common stock will possess exclusive voting power. There is no cumulative voting in the election of directors, which means that holders of a majority of the outstanding shares of common stock can elect all of our directors, and holders of less than a majority of such shares will be unable to elect any director.

Limitation on Liability of Directors and Officers; Indemnification and Advance of Expenses

Maryland law permits a Maryland corporation to include in its charter a provision limiting the liability of its directors and officers to the corporation and its stockholders for money damages except for liability resulting from (1) actual receipt of an improper

 

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benefit or profit in money, property or services or (2) active and deliberate dishonesty established by a final judgment as being material to the cause of action. Our charter contains such a provision which eliminates directors’ and officers’ liability to the maximum extent permitted by Maryland law, subject to the requirements of the 1940 Act.

Our charter authorizes us and our bylaws obligate us, to the maximum extent permitted by Maryland law and subject to the requirements of the 1940 Act, to indemnify any present or former director or officer or any individual who, while a director and at our request, serves or has served another corporation, real estate investment trust, partnership, joint venture, trust, employee benefit plan, or other enterprise as a director, officer, partner or trustee, from and against any claim or liability to which that person may become subject or which that person may incur by reason of his or her service in any such capacity and to pay or reimburse their reasonable expenses in advance of final disposition of a proceeding. Our directors’ and officers’ rights to indemnification and advancement of expenses provided by our charter and bylaws vest immediately upon election of a director or officer.

Our charter and bylaws also permit us to indemnify and advance expenses to any person who served a predecessor of us in any of the capacities described above and any of our employees or agents or any employees or agents of our predecessor. In accordance with the 1940 Act, we will not indemnify any person for any liability to which such person would be subject by reason of such person’s willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence or reckless disregard of the duties involved in the conduct of his or her office.

Maryland law requires a corporation (unless its charter provides otherwise, which our charter does not) to indemnify a director or officer who has been successful, on the merits or otherwise, in the defense of any proceeding to which he or she is made, or threatened to be made, a party by reason of his or her service in that capacity. Maryland law permits a corporation to indemnify its present and former directors and officers, among others, against judgments, penalties, fines, settlements and reasonable expenses actually incurred by them in connection with any proceeding to which they may be made, or threatened to be made, a party by reason of their service in those or other capacities unless it is established that (a) the act or omission of the director or officer was material to the matter giving rise to the proceeding and (1) was committed in bad faith or (2) was the result of active and deliberate dishonesty, (b) the director or officer actually received an improper personal benefit in money, property or services or (c) in the case of any criminal proceeding, the director or officer had reasonable cause to believe that the act or omission was unlawful. However, under Maryland law, a Maryland corporation may not indemnify for an adverse judgment in a suit by or in the right of the corporation or for a judgment of liability on the basis that a personal benefit was improperly received unless, in either case, a court orders indemnification, and then only for expenses. In addition, Maryland law permits a corporation to advance reasonable expenses to a director or officer upon the corporation’s receipt of (a) a written affirmation by the director or officer of his or her good faith belief that he or she has met the standard of conduct necessary for indemnification by such corporation and (b) a written undertaking by him or her or on his or her behalf to repay the amount paid or reimbursed by such corporation if it is ultimately determined that the standard of conduct was not met.

Provisions of the Maryland General Corporation Law and our Charter and Bylaws

The Maryland General Corporation Law and our charter and bylaws contain provisions that could make it more difficult for a potential acquirer to acquire us by means of a tender offer, proxy contest or otherwise. These provisions are expected to discourage certain coercive takeover practices and inadequate takeover bids and to encourage persons seeking to acquire control of us to negotiate first with our board of directors. We believe that the benefits of these provisions outweigh the potential disadvantages of discouraging any such acquisition proposals because the negotiation of such proposals may improve their terms.

Classified board of directors

Our board of directors is divided into three classes of directors serving staggered three-year terms. The terms of the first, second and third classes will expire in 2012, 2013 and 2014, respectively, and in each case, those directors will serve until their successors are duly elected and qualified. At each annual meeting of our stockholders, the successors to the class of directors whose terms expire at such meeting will be elected to hold office for a term expiring at the annual meeting of stockholders held in the third year following the year of their election. Each director will hold office for the term to which he or she is elected and until his or her successor is duly elected and qualified. A classified board may render a change in control of us or removal of our incumbent management more difficult. We believe, however, that the longer time required to elect a majority of a classified board of directors will help to ensure the continuity and stability of our management and policies.

Election of directors

Our charter and bylaws provide that the affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of the outstanding shares of stock entitled to vote in the election of directors will be required to elect a director. Pursuant to the charter, our board of directors may amend the bylaws to alter the vote required to elect directors.

 

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Number of directors; vacancies; removal

Our charter provides that the number of directors will be set only by our board of directors in accordance with our bylaws. Our bylaws provide that a majority of our entire board of directors may at any time increase or decrease the number of directors. However, unless our bylaws are amended, the number of directors may never be less than the minimum number required by the Maryland General Corporation Law nor more than fifteen. We have elected to be subject to the provision of Subtitle 8 of Title 3 of the Maryland General Corporation Law regarding the filling of vacancies on our board of directors. Accordingly, at such time as we have three independent directors and our common stock is registered under the Exchange Act, except as may be provided by our board of directors in setting the terms of any class or series of preferred stock, any and all vacancies on our board of directors may be filled only by the affirmative vote of a majority of the remaining directors in office, even if the remaining directors do not constitute a quorum, and any director elected to fill a vacancy will serve for the remainder of the full term of the directorship in which the vacancy occurred and until a successor is elected and qualifies, subject to any applicable requirements of the 1940 Act. Our charter provides that a director may be removed only for cause, as defined in our charter, and then only by the affirmative vote of at least two-thirds of the votes entitled to be cast in the election of directors.

Action by stockholders

Under the Maryland General Corporation Law, stockholder action can be taken only at an annual or special meeting of stockholders or by unanimous written consent in lieu of a meeting unless the charter provides for stockholder action by less than unanimous consent (which our charter does not). These provisions may have the effect of delaying consideration of a stockholder proposal until the next annual meeting.

Calling of special meetings of stockholders

Our bylaws provide that special meetings of stockholders may be called by our board of directors, the chairman of the board, president or chief executive officer. Additionally, our bylaws provide that, subject to the satisfaction of certain procedural and informational requirements by the stockholders requesting the meeting, a special meeting of stockholders will be called by the secretary of the corporation upon the written request of stockholders entitled to cast not less than a majority of all the votes entitled to be cast at such meeting.

Approval of extraordinary corporate action; amendment of charter and bylaws

Under Maryland law, a Maryland corporation generally cannot dissolve, amend its charter, merge, sell all or substantially all of its assets, engage in a share exchange or engage in similar transactions outside the ordinary course of business, unless approved by the affirmative vote of stockholders of at least two-thirds of the votes entitled to be cast on the matter. However, a Maryland corporation may provide in its charter for approval of these matters by a lesser percentage, but not less than a majority of all of the votes entitled to be cast on the matter. Our charter generally provides for approval of charter amendments and extraordinary transactions by the stockholders of at least a majority of the votes entitled to be cast on the matter. Our charter also provides that certain charter amendments and any proposal for our conversion, whether by merger or otherwise, from a closed-end company to an open-end company or any proposal for our liquidation or dissolution requires the approval of the stockholders of at least 80 percent of the votes entitled to be cast on such matter. However, if such amendment or proposal is approved by at

 

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least two-thirds of our continuing directors (in addition to approval by our board of directors), such amendment or proposal may be approved by a majority of the votes entitled to be cast on such a matter. The “continuing directors” are defined in our charter as our current directors as well as those directors whose nomination for election by the stockholders or whose election by the directors to fill vacancies is approved by a majority of the continuing directors then on our board of directors. Our charter and bylaws provide that our board of directors will have the exclusive power to adopt, alter or repeal any provision of our bylaws and to make new bylaws.

No appraisal rights

Except with respect to appraisal rights arising in connection with the Maryland Control Share Acquisition Act discussed below, as permitted by the Maryland General Corporation Law, our charter provides that stockholders will not be entitled to exercise appraisal rights.

Control share acquisitions

The Control Share Acquisition Act provides that control shares of a Maryland corporation acquired in a control share acquisition have no voting rights except to the extent approved by the affirmative vote of holders of two-thirds of the votes entitled to be cast on the matter. Shares owned by the acquirer, by officers or by directors who are employees of the corporation are excluded from shares entitled to vote on the matter. Control shares are voting shares of stock which, if aggregated with all other shares of stock owned by the acquirer or in respect of which the acquirer is able to exercise or direct the exercise of voting power (except solely by virtue of a revocable proxy), would entitle the acquirer to exercise voting power in electing directors within one of the following ranges of voting power:

 

•

one-tenth or more but less than one-third;

 

•

one-third or more but less than a majority; or

 

•

a majority or more of all voting power.

The requisite stockholder approval must be obtained each time an acquirer crosses one of the thresholds of voting power set forth above. Control shares do not include shares the acquiring person is then entitled to vote as a result of having previously obtained stockholder approval. A control share acquisition means the acquisition of control shares, subject to certain exceptions. A person who has made or proposes to make a control share acquisition may compel the board of directors of the corporation to call a special meeting of stockholders to be held within 50 days of demand to consider the voting rights of the shares. The right to compel the calling of a special meeting is subject to the satisfaction of certain conditions, including an undertaking to pay the expenses of the meeting. If no request for a meeting is made, the corporation may itself present the question at any stockholders’ meeting.

If voting rights are not approved at the meeting or if the acquiring person does not deliver an acquiring person statement as required by the statute, then the corporation may redeem for fair value any or all of the control shares, except those for which voting rights have previously been approved. The right of the corporation to redeem control shares is subject to certain conditions and limitations including, as provided in our bylaws, compliance with the 1940 Act. Fair value is determined, without regard to the absence of voting rights for the control shares, as of the date of the last control share acquisition by the acquirer or of any meeting of stockholders at which the voting rights of the shares are considered and not approved. If voting rights for control shares are approved at a stockholders meeting and the acquirer becomes entitled to vote a majority of the shares entitled to vote, all other stockholders may exercise appraisal rights. The fair value of the shares as determined for purposes of appraisal rights may not be less than the highest price per share paid by the acquirer in the control share acquisition.

The Control Share Acquisition Act does not apply (a) to shares acquired in a merger, consolidation or share exchange if the corporation is a party to the transaction or (b) to acquisitions approved or exempted by the charter or bylaws of the corporation.

Our bylaws contain a provision exempting from the Control Share Acquisition Act any and all acquisitions by any person of our shares of stock. There can be no assurance that such provision will not be amended or eliminated at any time in the future. However, we will amend our bylaws to be subject to the Control Share Acquisition Act only if our board of directors determines that it would be in our best interests based on our determination that our being subject to the Control Share Acquisition Act does not conflict with the 1940 Act.

Business combinations

Under Maryland law, “business combinations” between a Maryland corporation and an interested stockholder or an affiliate of an interested stockholder are prohibited for five years after the most recent date on which the interested stockholder becomes an interested stockholder. These business combinations include a merger, consolidation, share exchange or, in circumstances specified in the statute, an asset transfer or issuance or reclassification of equity securities. An interested stockholder is defined as:

 

•

any person who beneficially owns 10% or more of the voting power of the corporation’s shares; or

 

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•

an affiliate or associate of the corporation who, at any time within the two-year period prior to the date in question, was the beneficial owner of 10% or more of the voting power of the then outstanding voting stock of the corporation.

A person is not an interested stockholder under this statute if the board of directors approved in advance the transaction by which he otherwise would have become an interested stockholder. However, in approving a transaction, the board of directors may provide that its approval is subject to compliance, at or after the time of approval, with any terms and conditions determined by the board.

After the five-year prohibition, any such business combination must be recommended by the board of directors of the corporation and approved by the affirmative vote of at least:

 

•

80% of the votes entitled to be cast by holders of outstanding shares of voting stock of the corporation; and

 

•

two-thirds of the votes entitled to be cast by holders of voting stock of the corporation other than shares held by the interested stockholder with whom or with whose affiliate the business combination is to be effected or held by an affiliate or associate of the interested stockholder.

These super-majority vote requirements do not apply if the corporation’s common stockholders receive a minimum price, as defined under Maryland law, for their shares in the form of cash or other consideration in the same form as previously paid by the interested stockholder for its shares. The statute provides various exemptions from its provisions, including for business combinations that are exempted by the board of directors before the time that the interested stockholder becomes an interested stockholder. Our board of directors has adopted a resolution that any business combination between us and any other person is exempted from the provisions of the Business Combination Act, provided that the business combination is first approved by our board of directors, including a majority of the directors who are not interested persons as defined in the 1940 Act. This resolution, however, may be altered or repealed in whole or in part at any time. If this resolution is repealed, or our board of directors does not otherwise approve a business combination, the statute may discourage others from trying to acquire control of us and increase the difficulty of consummating any offer.

Conflict with 1940 Act

Our bylaws will provide that, if and to the extent that any provision of the Maryland General Corporation Law, including the Control Share Acquisition Act (if we amend our bylaws to be subject to such Act) and the Business Combination Act, or any provision of our charter or bylaws conflicts with any provision of the 1940 Act, the applicable provision of the 1940 Act will control.

 

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REGULATION

We intend to elect to be treated as a business development company under the 1940 Act, and we intend to elect to be treated, and intend to qualify annually, as a RIC under Subchapter M of the Code, commencing with our first taxable year ending after completion of this offering. The 1940 Act contains prohibitions and restrictions relating to transactions between business development companies and their affiliates (including any investment advisers or sub-advisers), principal underwriters and affiliates of those affiliates or underwriters and requires that a majority of the directors be persons other than “interested persons,” as that term is defined in the 1940 Act. In addition, the 1940 Act provides that we may not change the nature of our business so as to cease to be, or to withdraw our election as, a business development company unless approved by a majority of our outstanding voting securities.

We may invest up to 100% of our assets in securities acquired directly from issuers in privately negotiated transactions. With respect to such securities, we may, for the purpose of public resale, be deemed an “underwriter” as that term is defined in the Securities Act. We may purchase or otherwise receive warrants to purchase the common stock of our portfolio companies in connection with acquisition financing or other investment. Similarly, in connection with an acquisition, we may acquire rights to require the issuers of acquired securities or their affiliates to repurchase them under certain circumstances. We also do not intend to acquire securities issued by any investment company that exceed the limits imposed by the 1940 Act. Under these limits, we generally cannot acquire more than 3% of the voting stock of any investment company, invest more than 5% of the value of our total assets in the securities of one investment company or invest more than 10% of the value of our total assets in the securities of more than one investment company. With regard to that portion of our portfolio invested in securities issued by investment companies, it should be noted that such investments might subject our stockholders to additional expenses. We may enter into hedging transactions to manage the risks associated with interest rate fluctuations. None of these policies are fundamental and may be changed without stockholder approval.

Qualifying Assets

Under the 1940 Act, a business development company may not acquire any asset other than assets of the type listed in Section 55(a) of the 1940 Act, which are referred to as qualifying assets, unless, at the time the acquisition is made, qualifying assets represent at least 70% of the company’s total assets. The principal categories of qualifying assets relevant to our business are the following:

 

(1)

Securities purchased in transactions not involving any public offering from the issuer of such securities, which issuer (subject to certain limited exceptions) is an eligible portfolio company, or from any person who is, or has been during the preceding 13 months, an affiliated person of an eligible portfolio company, or from any other person, subject to such rules as may be prescribed by the SEC. An eligible portfolio company is defined under the 1940 Act to include any issuer which:

 

(a)

is organized under the laws of, and has its principal place of business in, the United States;

 

(b)

is not an investment company (other than a small business investment company wholly owned by the business development company) or a company that would be an investment company but is excluded from the definition of an investment company by Section 3(c) of the 1940 Act; and

 

(c)

does not have any class of securities listed on a national securities exchange; has any class of securities listed on a national securities exchange subject to a market capitalization maximum of $250.0 million; or is controlled by us which has an affiliated person who is a director of such portfolio company.

 

(2)

Securities of any eligible portfolio company which we control.

 

(3)

Securities purchased in a private transaction from a U.S. operating company or from an affiliated person of the issuer, or in transactions incidental thereto, if such issuer is in bankruptcy and subject to reorganization or if the issuer, immediately prior to the purchase of its securities was unable to meet its obligations as they came due without material assistance other than conventional lending or financing arrangements.

 

(4)

Securities of an eligible portfolio company purchased from any person in a private transaction if there is no ready market for such securities and we already own 60% of the outstanding equity of the eligible portfolio company.

 

(5)

Securities received in exchange for or distributed on or with respect to securities described in (1) through (4) above, or pursuant to the exercise of warrants or rights relating to such securities.

 

(6)

Cash, cash equivalents, U.S. Government securities or high-quality debt securities maturing in one year or less from the time of investment.

In addition, a business development company must have been organized and have its principal place of business in the United States and must be operated for the purpose of making investments in the types of securities described in (1), (2) or (3) above.

 

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Managerial Assistance to Portfolio Companies

As a business development company, we are required to make available managerial assistance to our portfolio companies that constitute a qualifying asset within the meaning of Section 55 of the 1940 Act. However, if a business development company purchases securities in conjunction with one or more other persons acting together, one of the other persons in the group may make available such managerial assistance. Making available managerial assistance means any arrangement whereby the business development company, through its directors, officers or employees, offers to provide, and, if accepted, does provide, significant guidance and counsel concerning the management, operations or business objectives and policies of a portfolio company. The Administrator may provide such assistance on our behalf to portfolio companies that request such assistance.

Temporary Investments

Pending investments in other types of “qualifying assets,” as described above, may consist of cash, cash equivalents, U.S. government securities or high-quality investment grade debt securities maturing in one year or less from the time of investment, which we refer to, collectively, as temporary investments, so that 70% of our assets are qualifying assets. The income we earn on such temporary investments will generally be significantly less than what we would expect to receive from investments in the types of Floating Rate Loans we intend to target for investment. We may invest in U.S. Treasury bills or in repurchase agreements, provided that such agreements are fully collateralized by cash or securities issued by the U.S. government or its agencies. A repurchase agreement involves the purchase by an investor, such as us, of a specified security and the simultaneous agreement by the seller to repurchase it at an agreed-upon future date and at a price which is greater than the purchase price by an amount that reflects an agreed-upon interest rate. There is no percentage restriction on the proportion of our assets that may be invested in such repurchase agreements. However, if more than 25% of our total assets constitute repurchase agreements from a single counterparty, we would not meet the Diversification Tests, as defined later in this prospectus, in order to qualify as a RIC for federal income tax purposes. Thus, we do not intend to enter into repurchase agreements with a single counterparty in excess of this limit. The Investment Adviser will monitor the creditworthiness of the counterparties with which we enter into repurchase agreement transactions.

Senior Securities

We are permitted, under specified conditions, to issue multiple classes of indebtedness and one class of stock senior to our common stock if our asset coverage, as defined in the 1940 Act, is at least equal to 200% immediately after each such issuance. In addition, while any senior securities remain outstanding, we must make provisions to prohibit any distribution to our stockholders or the repurchase of such securities or shares unless we meet the applicable asset coverage ratios at the time of the distribution or repurchase. We may also borrow amounts up to 5% of the value of our total assets for temporary or emergency purposes without regard to asset coverage. See “Risk Factors—Risks relating to our business and structure—Regulations governing our operation as a business development company will affect our ability to, and the way in which we, raise additional capital” for more information.

Joint Code of Ethics and Code of Conduct

Our board of directors has adopted a code of ethics pursuant to Rule 17j-1 under the 1940 Act and has also approved the Investment Adviser’s code of ethics that was adopted by it in accordance with Rule 17j-1 and Rule 204A-1 under the Advisers Act. These codes of ethics establish procedures for personal investments and restrict certain personal securities transactions. Personnel subject to the codes may invest in securities for their personal investment accounts, including securities that may be purchased or held by us, so long as such investments are made in accordance with the code’s requirements.

Our board of directors has also adopted a code of conduct pursuant to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and the NASDAQ listing standards. The code of conduct establishes procedures for the purpose of promoting honest and ethical conduct and compliance with applicable laws and governmental rules and regulations.

The codes of ethics and conduct will be available for viewing and copying at the SEC’s Public Reference Room in Washington, D.C. Information about the SEC’s Public Reference Room may be obtained by calling the SEC at 1-800-SEC-0330. In the future, the codes of ethics and conduct also may be available on the EDGAR Database on the SEC’s website, http://www.sec.gov, or be obtained, after paying a duplicating fee, by electronic request to publicinfo@sec.gov, or by writing to: SEC’s Public Reference Section, 100 F Street, N.E., Washington, D.C. 20549-0102.

Proxy Voting Policies and Procedures

We have delegated our proxy voting responsibility to the Investment Adviser. The Proxy Voting Policies and Procedures of the Investment Adviser are set forth below. The guidelines are reviewed periodically by the Investment Adviser and our non-interested directors, and, accordingly, are subject to change. For purposes of these Proxy Voting Policies and Procedures described below, “we”, “our” and “us” refers to our Investment Adviser.

Introduction

As an Investment Adviser registered under the Advisers Act, we have a fiduciary duty to act solely in the best interests of our clients. As part of this duty, we recognize that we must vote client securities in a timely manner free of conflicts of interest and in the best interests of our clients.

 

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These policies and procedures for voting proxies for our investment advisory clients are intended to comply with Section 206 of, and Rule 206(4)-6 under, the Advisers Act.

Proxy Policies

We vote proxies relating to our portfolio securities in what we perceive to be the best interest of our clients’ stockholders. We review on a case-by-case basis each proposal submitted to a shareholder vote to determine its impact on the portfolio securities held by our clients. Although we will generally vote against proposals that may have a negative impact on our clients’ portfolio securities, we may vote for such a proposal if there exists compelling long-term reasons to do so.

Our proxy voting decisions are made by the senior officers who are responsible for monitoring the investments our clients. To ensure that our vote is not the product of a conflict of interest, we require that: (1) anyone involved in the decision making process disclose to our Chief Compliance Officer any potential conflict that he or she is aware of and any contact that he or she has had with any interested party regarding a proxy vote; and (2) employees involved in the decision making process or vote administration are prohibited from revealing how we intend to vote on a proposal in order to reduce any attempted influence from interested parties.

Proxy Voting Records

You may obtain information about how we voted proxies by making a written request for proxy voting information to: Aviv Efrat, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer, 590 Madison Avenue, 15th Floor, New York, New York 10022.

Privacy Protection Principles

We are committed to maintaining the privacy of our stockholders and to safeguarding their non-public personal information. The following information is provided to help you understand what personal information we collect, how we protect that information and why, in certain cases, we may share information with select other parties.

Generally, we do not receive any non-public personal information relating to our stockholders, although certain non-public personal information of our stockholders may become available to us. We do not disclose any non-public personal information about our stockholders or former stockholders to anyone, except as permitted by law or as is necessary in order to service stockholder accounts (for example, to a transfer agent or third party administrator).

We restrict access to non-public personal information about our stockholders to employees of the Investment Adviser and its affiliates with a legitimate business need for the information. We maintain physical, electronic and procedural safeguards designed to protect the non-public personal information of our stockholders.

Our privacy protection policies are available, free of charge, on our website at www.pennantpark.com. In addition, the privacy policy will be available on the EDGAR Database on the SEC’s Internet site at www.sec.gov, in the future as an exhibit to the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part. In the future, you may also obtain copies of our privacy policy, after paying a duplicating fee, by electronic request at the following email address: publicinfo@sec.gov, or by writing the SEC’s Public Reference Section, 100 F Street, N.E., Washington, D.C. 20549.

Other

We may also be prohibited under the 1940 Act from knowingly participating in certain transactions with our affiliates without the prior approval of our board of independent directors and, in some cases, prior approval by the SEC.

We will be periodically examined by the SEC for compliance with the 1940 Act.

We are required by law to provide and maintain a bond issued by a reputable fidelity insurance company to protect us against larceny and embezzlement. Furthermore, as a business development company, we are prohibited from protecting any director or officer against any liability to PennantPark Floating Rate Capital or our stockholders arising from willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence or reckless disregard of the duties involved in the conduct of such person’s office.

We and PennantPark Investment Advisers have each adopted and implemented written policies and procedures reasonably designed to prevent violation of the federal securities laws. We review these policies and procedures annually for their adequacy and the effectiveness of their implementation. Our chief compliance officer is responsible for administering such policies and procedures.

Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002

The Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 imposes several regulatory requirements on publicly held companies and their insiders. Many of these requirements affect us. For example:

 

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pursuant to Rule 13a-14 of the Exchange Act, our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer must certify the accuracy of the consolidated financial statements contained in our periodic reports;

 

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pursuant to Item 307 of Regulation S-K, our periodic reports must disclose our conclusions about the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures;

 

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pursuant to Rule 13a-15 of the Exchange Act, our management must prepare an annual report regarding its assessment of our internal controls over financial reporting, which must be audited by our independent registered public accounting firm; and

 

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pursuant to Item 308 of Regulation S-K and Rule 13a-15 of the 1934 Act, our periodic reports must disclose whether there were significant changes in our internal controls over financial reporting or in other factors that could significantly affect these controls subsequent to the date of their evaluation, including any corrective actions with regard to significant deficiencies and material weaknesses.

The Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires us to review our current policies and procedures to determine whether we comply with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and the regulations promulgated thereunder. We will continue to monitor our compliance with all regulations that are adopted under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and will take actions necessary to ensure that we are in compliance with that act.

 

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BROKERAGE ALLOCATIONS AND OTHER PRACTICES

Since we will generally acquire and dispose of our investments in privately negotiated transactions, we will infrequently use brokers in the normal course of our business. Subject to policies established by our board of directors, the Investment Adviser is primarily responsible for the execution of the publicly traded securities portion of our portfolio transactions and the allocation of brokerage commissions. The Investment Adviser does not expect to execute transactions through any particular broker or dealer, but will seek to obtain the best net results for PennantPark Floating Rate Capital, taking into account such factors as price (including the applicable brokerage commission or dealer spread), size of order, difficulty of execution, and operational facilities of the brokerage firm and the firm’s risk and skill in positioning blocks of securities. While the Investment Adviser will generally seek reasonably competitive trade execution costs, PennantPark Floating Rate Capital will not necessarily pay the lowest spread or commission available. Subject to applicable legal requirements, the Investment Adviser may select a broker based partly upon brokerage or research services provided to the Investment Adviser and PennantPark Floating Rate Capital and any other clients. In return for such services, we may pay a higher commission than other brokers would charge if the Investment Adviser determines in good faith that such commission is reasonable in relation to the services provided.

Securities may be held by, or be appropriate investments for, us as well as other funds or investment advisory clients of the Investment Adviser or its affiliates. Because of different investment objectives or other factors, a particular security may be bought for one or more clients of the Investment Adviser or its affiliates when one or more clients of the Investment Adviser or its affiliates are selling the same security. If purchases or sales of securities arise for consideration at or about the same time that would involve us or other clients or funds for which the Investment Adviser or its affiliates act as investment advisers, transactions in such securities will be made, insofar as feasible, for the respective funds and clients in a manner deemed equitable to all. To the extent that transactions on behalf of more than one client of the Investment Adviser or its affiliates during the same period may increase the demand for securities being purchased or the supply of securities being sold, there may be an adverse effect on price.

 

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MATERIAL U.S. FEDERAL INCOME TAX CONSIDERATIONS

The following discussion is a general summary of the material U.S. federal income tax considerations applicable to us and to an investment in our common stock. This summary does not purport to be a complete description of the income tax considerations applicable to an investment in our common stock. For example, we have not described tax consequences that we assume to be generally known by investors or certain considerations that may be relevant to certain types of holders subject to special treatment under U.S. federal income tax laws, including stockholders subject to the alternative minimum tax, tax-exempt organizations, insurance companies, dealers in securities, pension plans and trusts, and financial institutions. This summary assumes that investors hold our common stock as capital assets (within the meaning of the Code). The discussion is based upon the Code, Treasury regulations, and administrative and judicial interpretations, each as of the date of this prospectus and all of which are subject to change, possibly retroactively, which could affect the continuing validity of this discussion. We have not sought and will not seek any ruling from the Internal Revenue Service regarding this offering. This summary does not discuss any aspects of U.S. estate or gift tax or foreign, state or local tax. It does not discuss the special treatment under U.S. federal income tax laws that could result if we invested in tax-exempt securities or certain other investment assets.

A “U.S. stockholder” generally is a beneficial owner of shares of our common stock that is for U.S. federal income tax purposes:

 

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a citizen or individual resident of the United States;

 

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a corporation, or other entity treated as a corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes, created or organized in or under the laws of the United States or any state thereof or the District of Columbia; or

 

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A “Non-U.S. stockholder” is a beneficial owner of shares of our common stock that is neither a U.S. stockholder nor a partnership for U.S. federal income tax purposes.

If a partnership (including an entity treated as a partnership for U.S. federal income tax purposes) holds shares of our common stock, the tax treatment of a partner in the partnership will generally depend upon the status of the partner, the activities of the partnership and certain determinations made at the partnership level. A prospective stockholder that is a partnership and a partner in such partnership should consult their tax advisors with respect to the purchase, ownership and disposition of shares of our common stock.

Tax matters are very complicated and the tax consequences to an investor of an investment in our shares will depend on the facts of his, her or its particular situation. We encourage investors to consult their own tax advisors regarding the specific consequences of such an investment, including tax reporting requirements, the applicability of federal, state, local and foreign tax laws, eligibility for the benefits of any applicable tax treaty and the effect of any possible changes in the tax laws.

Election to be Taxed as a RIC

We intend to elect to be treated, and intend to qualify annually, as a RIC under Subchapter M of the Code, commencing with our first taxable year ending after completion of this offering. To qualify and maintain RIC tax benefits, we must, among other requirements, meet certain source-of-income and quarterly asset diversification requirements (as described below). We also must annually distribute dividends of at least 90% of the sum of our ordinary income plus realized net short-term capital gains in excess of realized net long-term capital losses out of the assets legally available for distribution (the “Annual Distribution Requirement”). Although not required for us to maintain our RIC tax status, in order to preclude the imposition of a 4% nondeductible federal excise tax imposed on RICs, we currently intend to distribute during each calendar year an amount at least equal to the sum of (1) 98% of our ordinary income for the calendar year, (2) 98.2% of our realized net capital gains for the one-year period ending on October 31 of the calendar year and (3) any ordinary income and net capital gains for preceding years that were not distributed during such years (the “Excise Tax Avoidance Requirement”). In addition, we currently intend to distribute realized net capital gains (i.e., net long-term capital gains in excess of short-term capital losses), if any, at least annually, out of the assets legally available for such distributions.

In order to qualify as a RIC for federal income tax purposes, we must:

maintain an election to be treated as a business development company under the 1940 Act at all times during each taxable year;

derive in each taxable year at least 90% of our gross income from distributions, interest, payments with respect to certain securities loans, gains from the sale of stock or other securities, net income from certain qualified publicly traded partnerships or other income derived with respect to our business of investing in such stock or securities (the “90% Income Test”); and

diversify our holdings so that at the end of each quarter of the taxable year:

 

•

at least 50% of the value of our assets consists of cash, cash equivalents, U.S. Government securities, securities of other RICs, and other securities if such other securities of any one issuer neither represents more than 5% of the value of our assets nor more than 10% of the outstanding voting securities of the issuer; and

 

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no more than 25% of the value of our assets is invested in the securities, other than U.S. Government securities or securities of other RICs, of one issuer or of two or more issuers that are controlled, as determined under applicable tax rules, by us and that are engaged in the same or similar or related trades or businesses or in certain qualified publicly traded partnerships (the “Diversification Tests”).

Taxation as a RIC

If we qualify as a RIC, and satisfy the Annual Distribution Requirement, then we will not be subject to federal income tax on the portion of our investment company taxable income and net capital gain (i.e., realized net long-term capital gains in excess of

 

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realized net short-term capital losses) we distribute to stockholders. We will be subject to U.S. federal income tax at the regular corporate rates on any income or capital gain not distributed (or deemed distributed) to our stockholders.

We may be required to recognize taxable income in circumstances in which we do not receive cash. For example, if we hold debt obligations that are treated under applicable tax rules as having original issue discount (such as debt instruments with pay in kind interest or, in certain cases, increasing interest rates or issued with warrants), we must include in income each year a portion of the original issue discount that accrues over the life of the obligation, regardless of whether cash representing such income is received by us in the same taxable year. Because any original issue discount accrued will be included in our investment company taxable income for the year of accrual, we may be required to make a distribution to our stockholders in order to satisfy the Annual Distribution Requirement, even though we will not have received any corresponding cash amount.

Although we do not presently expect to do so, we are authorized to borrow funds and to sell assets in order to satisfy distribution requirements. However, under the 1940 Act, we are not permitted to make distributions to our stockholders while our debt obligations and other senior securities are outstanding unless certain “asset coverage” tests are met. Moreover, our ability to dispose of assets to meet our distribution requirements may be limited by (1) the illiquid nature of our portfolio and/or (2) other requirements relating to our status as a RIC, including the Diversification Tests. If we dispose of assets in order to meet the Annual Distribution Requirement or the Excise Tax Avoidance Requirement, we may make such dispositions at times that, from an investment standpoint, are not advantageous.

In January 2010, the Internal Revenue Service extended a revenue procedure that temporarily allows a RIC to distribute its own stock as a dividend for the purpose of fulfilling its distribution requirements. Pursuant to this revenue procedure, a RIC may treat a distribution of its own stock as a dividend if (1) the stock is publicly traded on an established securities market, (2) the distribution is declared with respect to a taxable year ending on or before December 31, 2011 and (3) each shareholder may elect to receive his or her entire distribution in either cash or stock of the RIC subject to a limitation on the aggregate amount of cash to be distributed to all shareholders, which must be at least 10% of the aggregate declared distribution. If too many shareholders elect to receive cash, each shareholder electing to receive cash will receive a pro rata amount of cash (with the balance of the distribution paid in stock). In no event will any shareholder electing to receive cash receive less than 10% of his or her entire distribution in cash. Taxable stockholders receiving such dividends will be required to include the full amount of the dividend as ordinary income (or as long-term capital gain to the extent such distribution is properly designated as a capital gain dividend) to the extent of our current and accumulated earnings and profits. In situations where this revenue procedure is not applicable, the IRS has also issued private letter rulings on cash/stock dividends paid by RICs and real estate investment trusts using a 20% cash standard (instead of the 10% cash standard of the revenue procedure) if certain requirements are satisfied. As a result, a U.S. stockholder may be required to pay tax with respect to such dividends in excess of any cash received. If a U.S. stockholder sells the stock it receives as a dividend in order to pay this tax, the sales proceeds may be less than the amount included in income with respect to the dividend, depending on the market price of our stock at the time of sale. We currently do not intend to distribute stock as a dividend but reserve the right to do so.

Failure to Qualify as a RIC

If we fail to satisfy the 90% Income Test or the Diversification Tests for any taxable year or quarter of such taxable year, we may nevertheless continue to qualify as a RIC for such year if certain relief provisions of the Code apply (which may, among other things, require us to pay certain corporate-level federal taxes or to dispose of certain assets). If we fail to qualify for treatment as a RIC in any taxable year and such relief provisions do not apply to us, we will be subject to tax in that year on all of our taxable income, regardless of whether we make any distributions to our stockholders. In that case, all of our income will be subject to corporate-level federal income tax, reducing the amount available to be distributed to our stockholders. In contrast, assuming we qualify as a RIC, our corporate-level federal income tax should be substantially reduced or eliminated. See “Election to be Taxed as a RIC” above for more information.

If we are unable to obtain and maintain our status as a RIC, we would be subject to tax on all of our taxable income at regular corporate rates. We would not be able to deduct distributions to stockholders, nor would they be required to be made. Distributions would generally be taxable to our stockholders as ordinary dividends to the extent of our current and accumulated earnings and profits, and, subject to certain limitations under the Code, distributions made in taxable years beginning before January 1, 2013 would be eligible for the 15% maximum rate applicable to non-corporate U.S. stockholders. Subject to certain limitations under the Code, dividends paid by us to corporate distributees would be eligible for the dividends received deduction. Distributions in excess of our current and accumulated earnings and profits would be treated first as a return of capital to the extent of the stockholder’s tax basis in our common stock, and any remaining distributions would be treated as a capital gain.

To requalify as a RIC in a subsequent taxable year, we would be required to satisfy the RIC qualification requirements of the Code for that year and dispose of any earnings and profits from any year in which we failed to qualify as a RIC. Subject to a limited exception applicable to RICs that qualified as such under Subchapter M of the Code for at least one year prior to disqualification and that requalify as a RIC no later than the second year following the nonqualifying year, we could be subject to tax on any unrealized net built-in gains in the assets held by us during the period in which we failed to qualify as a RIC that are recognized within the subsequent 10 years, unless we made a special election to pay corporate-level tax on such built-in gain at the time of our requalification as a RIC.

The remainder of this discussion assumes that we qualify as a RIC and have satisfied the Annual Distribution Requirement.

Taxation of U.S. Stockholders

Distributions by us generally are taxable to U.S. stockholders as ordinary income or capital gains including distributions pursuant to a dividend reinvestment plan or where stockholders can elect to receive cash or stock. Distributions of our “investment company taxable income” (which is, generally, our ordinary income plus realized net short-term capital gains in excess of realized net long-term capital losses) will be taxable as ordinary income to U.S. stockholders to the extent of our current or accumulated earnings and profits, whether paid in cash or reinvested in additional common stock. To the extent such distributions paid by us to non-corporate stockholders (including individuals) are attributable to dividends from U.S. corporations and certain qualified foreign corporations, such distributions generally will be eligible for a reduced tax rate for taxable years beginning before 2013 (but not for taxable years beginning thereafter unless the relevant provisions are extended by legislation), if certain holding period requirements are satisfied. In this regard, it is anticipated that distributions paid by us will generally not be attributable to dividends and, therefore, generally will not qualify for the reduced maximum rate. Distributions of our net capital gains (which is generally our realized net

 

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long-term capital gains in excess of realized net short-term capital losses) properly reported by us as “capital gain distributions” in written statements furnished to our stockholders will be taxable to a U.S. stockholder as long-term capital gains at a reduced rate in the case of individuals, trusts or estates, regardless of the U.S. stockholder’s holding period for his, her or its common stock and regardless of whether paid in cash or reinvested in additional common stock. Distributions in excess of our earnings and profits first will reduce a U.S. stockholder’s adjusted tax basis in such stockholder’s common stock and, after the adjusted basis is reduced to zero, will constitute capital gains to such U.S. stockholder.

Although we currently intend to distribute any long-term capital gains at least annually, we may in the future decide to retain some or all of our long-term capital gains, but designate the retained amount as a “deemed distribution.” In that case, among other consequences, we will pay tax on the retained amount, each U.S. stockholder will be required to include his, her or its share of the deemed distribution in income as if it had been actually distributed to the U.S. stockholder, and the U.S. stockholder will be entitled to claim a credit equal to his, her or its allocable share of the tax paid thereon by us. The amount of the deemed distribution net of such tax will be added to the U.S. stockholder’s tax basis for his, her or its common stock. Since we expect to pay tax on any retained capital gains at our regular corporate tax rate, and since that rate is in excess of the maximum rate currently payable by individuals on long-term capital gains, the amount of tax that individual stockholders will be treated as having paid and for which they will receive a credit will exceed the tax they owe on the retained net capital gain. Such excess generally may be claimed as a credit against the U.S. stockholder’s other federal income tax obligations or may be refunded to the extent it exceeds a stockholder’s liability for federal income tax. A stockholder that is not subject to federal income tax or otherwise required to file a federal income tax return would be required to file a federal income tax return on the appropriate form in order to claim a refund for the taxes we paid. In order to use the deemed distribution approach, we must provide written notice to our stockholders prior to the expiration of 60 days after the close of the relevant taxable year. We cannot treat any of our investment company taxable income as a “deemed distribution.”

For purposes of determining (1) whether the Annual Distribution Requirement is satisfied for any year and (2) the amount of capital gain distributions paid for that year, we may, under certain circumstances, elect to treat a distribution that is paid during the following taxable year as if it had been paid during the taxable year in question. If we make such an election, the U.S. stockholder will still be treated as receiving the distribution in the taxable year in which the distribution is made. However, any distribution declared by us in October, November or December of any calendar year, payable to stockholders of record on a specified date in such a month and actually paid during January of the following year, will be treated as if it had been received by our U.S. stockholders on December 31 of the year in which the distribution was declared.

If an investor purchases shares of our common stock shortly before the record date of a distribution, the price of the shares will include the value of the distribution and the investor will be subject to tax on the distribution even though economically it represents a return of his, her or its investment.

Under the dividend reinvestment plan, if a U.S. stockholder owns shares of our common stock registered in the U.S. stockholder’s own name, the U.S. stockholder will have all cash distributions automatically reinvested in additional shares of our common stock unless the U.S. stockholder opts out of the dividend reinvestment plan by delivering a written notice to the plan administrator so that the plan administrator receives the notice not less than 10 days prior to the record date of the next dividend or distribution. See “Dividend Reinvestment Plan”. Any distributions reinvested under the plan will nevertheless remain taxable to the U.S. stockholder. The U.S. stockholder will have an adjusted tax basis in the additional shares of our common stock purchased through the plan equal to the amount of the reinvested distribution. The additional shares will have a new holding period commencing on the day following the day on which the shares are credited to the U.S. stockholder’s account.

A stockholder generally will recognize taxable gain or loss if the stockholder sells or otherwise disposes of his, her or its shares of our common stock. Any gain arising from such sale or disposition generally will be treated as capital gain or loss if the stockholder has held his, her or its shares for more than one year. Otherwise, it would be classified as short-term capital gain or loss. However, any capital loss arising from the sale or disposition of shares of our common stock held for six months or less will be treated as long-term capital loss to the extent of the amount of capital gain distributions received or undistributed capital gain deemed received, with respect to such shares. In addition, all or a portion of any loss recognized upon a disposition of shares of our common stock may be disallowed if other shares of our common stock are purchased (whether through reinvestment of dividends or other distributions or otherwise) within 30 days before or after the disposition.

In general, individual U.S. stockholders currently are subject to a maximum federal income tax rate of 15% on their net capital gain (through 2012), i.e., the excess of realized net long-term capital gain over realized net short-term capital loss for a taxable year, including a long-term capital gain derived from an investment in our shares. Such rate is lower than the maximum rate on ordinary income currently payable by individuals. Corporate U.S. stockholders currently are subject to federal income tax on net capital gain at the maximum 35% rate also applied to ordinary income. Non-corporate stockholders with net capital losses for a year (i.e., capital losses in excess of capital gains) generally may deduct up to $3,000 of such losses against their ordinary income each year; any net capital losses of a non-corporate stockholder in excess of $3,000 generally may be carried forward and used in subsequent years as provided in the Code. Corporate stockholders generally may not deduct any net capital losses for a year, but may carryback such losses for three years or carry forward such losses for five years. For taxable years beginning after December 31, 2012, individuals with income in excess of $200,000 ($250,000 in the case of married individuals filing jointly) and certain estates and trusts are subject to an additional 3.8% tax on their “net investment income”, which generally includes net income from interest, dividends, annuities, royalties and rents, and net capital gains (other than certain amounts earned from trades or businesses). U.S. stockholders should consult their own tax advisors concerning the imposition of this tax.

Under applicable Treasury regulations, if a U.S. stockholder recognizes a loss with respect to our common stock of $2 million or more for a non-corporate U.S. stockholder or $10 million or more for a corporate U.S. stockholder in any single taxable year (or a greater loss over a combination of years), the U.S. stockholder must file with the IRS a disclosure statement on Form 8886. Direct U.S. stockholders of portfolio securities are in many cases excepted from this reporting requirement, but under current guidance, U.S. stockholders of a RIC are not excepted. Future guidance may extend the current exception from this reporting requirement to U.S. stockholders of most or all RICs. The fact that a loss is reportable under these regulations does not affect the legal determination of whether the taxpayer’s treatment of the loss is proper. U.S. stockholders should consult their own tax advisers to determine the applicability of these regulations in light of their individual circumstances.

We will send to each of our U.S. stockholders, as promptly as possible after the end of each calendar year, a notice detailing, on a per share and per distribution basis, the amounts includible in such U.S. stockholder’s taxable income for such year as ordinary income and as long-term capital gain. In addition, the federal tax status of each year’s distributions generally will be reported to the Internal Revenue Service (including the amount of distributions, if any, eligible for the 15% maximum rate). Distributions may also be subject to additional state, local and foreign taxes depending on a U.S. stockholder’s particular situation. Distributions distributed by us generally will not be eligible for the distributions-received deduction or the preferential rate applicable to qualifying distributions.

 

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U.S. stockholders may be subject to federal income tax withholding (“backup withholding”) currently at a rate of 28% (until 2013 when a higher rate may apply) from all taxable distributions to any non-corporate U.S. stockholder (1) who fails to furnish a correct taxpayer identification number or a certificate that such stockholder is exempt from backup withholding, or (2) with respect to whom the IRS notifies a withholding agent that such stockholder has failed to properly report certain interest and distribution income to the IRS and to respond to notices to that effect. An individual’s taxpayer identification number is his or her social security number. Any amount withheld under backup withholding is allowed as a credit against the U.S. stockholder’s federal income tax liability and may entitle such stockholder to a refund, provided that proper information is timely provided to the IRS.

Taxation of Non-U.S. Stockholders

Whether an investment in the shares is appropriate for a Non-U.S. stockholder will depend upon that person’s particular circumstances. An investment in the shares by a Non-U.S. stockholder may have adverse tax consequences. Non-U.S. stockholders should consult their tax advisers before investing in our common stock.

Distributions of our “investment company taxable income” to Non-U.S. stockholders (including interest income and net short-term capital gain) are expected, except as provided below, to be subject to withholding of federal tax at a 30% rate (or lower rate provided by an applicable treaty) to the extent of our current and accumulated earnings and profits. If the distributions are effectively connected with a U.S. trade or business of the Non-U.S. stockholder, and, if an income tax treaty applies, attributable to a permanent establishment of the Non-U.S. stockholder in the United States, the distributions will be subject to federal income tax at the rates applicable to U.S. persons. In that case, a withholding agent will not be required to withhold federal tax if the Non-U.S. stockholder complies with applicable certification and disclosure requirements. Special certification requirements apply to a Non-U.S. stockholder that is a foreign partnership or a foreign trust, and such entities are urged to consult their own tax advisors.

However, dividends with respect to any taxable year beginning on or before December 31, 2011 will not be subject to withholding of federal income tax to the extent the dividends are reported by us as ‘‘interest-related dividends’’ or ‘‘short-term capital gain dividends’’ in written statements furnished to our stockholders. Under this exemption, interest-related dividends and short-term capital gain dividends generally represent distributions of interest or short-term capital gains that would not have been subject to withholding of federal income tax at the source if they had been received directly by a non-U.S. person, and that satisfy certain other requirements. No assurance can be given as to whether any of our distributions will be eligible for this exemption from withholding tax or, if eligible, will be reported as such by us. In addition, no assurance can be given as to whether this exemption will be extended for taxable years after 2011.

Except as provided below, actual or deemed distributions of our net long-term capital gains to a Non-U.S. stockholder, and gains realized by a Non-U.S. stockholder upon the sale of our common stock, will not be subject to federal income or withholding tax unless (i) the distributions or gains, as the case may be, are effectively connected with a U.S. trade or business of the Non-U.S. stockholder and, if an income tax treaty applies, are attributable to a permanent establishment maintained by the Non-U.S. stockholder in the United States or (ii) the Non-U.S. stockholder is an individual who is present for more than 182 days in the United States and meets certain other conditions.

After December 31, 2012, withholding at a rate of 30% on dividends in respect of, and gross proceeds from the sale of, our common stock held by or through certain foreign financial institutions (including investment funds) will be required, unless such institution enters into an agreement with the Secretary of the Treasury to report, on an annual basis, information with respect to shares in, and accounts maintained by, the institution to the extent such shares or accounts are held by certain United States persons or by certain non-U.S. entities that are wholly or partially owned by United States persons. Accordingly, the entity through which our common stock is held will affect the determination of whether such withholding is required. Similarly, dividends in respect of, and gross proceeds from the sale of, our common stock held by an investor that is a non-financial non-U.S. entity will be subject to withholding at a rate of 30%, unless such entity either (i) certifies to us that such entity does not have any “substantial United States owners” or (ii) provides certain information regarding the entity’s “substantial United States owners,” which we will in turn provide to the Secretary of the Treasury. Non-U.S. stockholders are encouraged to consult with their tax advisers regarding the possible implications of these requirements on their investment in our common stock.

If we distribute our net capital gains in the form of deemed rather than actual distributions (which we may do in the future), a Non-U.S. stockholder will be entitled to a federal income tax credit or tax refund equal to the stockholder’s allocable share of the tax we pay on the capital gains deemed to have been distributed. In order to obtain the refund, the Non-U.S. stockholder must obtain a U.S. taxpayer identification number and file a federal income tax return even if the Non-U.S. stockholder would not otherwise be required to obtain a U.S. taxpayer identification number or file a federal income tax return. For a corporate Non-U.S. stockholder, distributions (both actual and deemed), and gains realized upon the sale of our common stock that are effectively connected with a U.S. trade or business may, under certain circumstances, be subject to an additional “branch profits tax” at a 30% rate (or at a lower rate if provided for by an applicable treaty). Accordingly, investment in the shares may not be appropriate for a Non-U.S. stockholder.

Under our dividend reinvestment plan, if a Non-U.S. stockholder owns shares of our common stock registered in the non-U.S. shareholder’s own name, the Non-U.S. shareholder will have all cash distributions automatically reinvested in additional shares of our common stock unless it opts out of the dividend reinvestment plan by delivering a written notice to the plan administrator so that the plan administrator receives the notice not less than 10 days prior to the record date of the next dividend or distribution. See “Dividend Reinvestment Plan”. If the distribution is a distribution of our investment company taxable income, is not designated by us as a short-term capital gain dividend or interest-related dividend, if applicable, and is not effectively connected with a U.S. trade or business of the Non-U.S. stockholder (or, if required by an applicable income tax treaty, is not attributable to a U.S. permanent establishment of the non-U.S. stockholder), the amount distributed (to the extent of our current or accumulated earnings and profits) will be subject to withholding of federal income tax at a 30% rate (or lower rate provided by an applicable income tax treaty) and only the net after-tax amount will be reinvested in our common stock. If the distribution is effectively connected with a U.S. trade or business of the Non-U.S. stockholder (and, if required by an applicable income tax treaty, is attributable to a U.S. permanent establishment), the full amount of the distribution generally will be reinvested in our common stock and will nevertheless be subject to federal income tax at the ordinary income rates applicable to U.S. persons. The Non-U.S. stockholder will have an adjusted tax basis in the additional shares of our common stock equal to the amount of the reinvested distribution. The additional shares will have a new holding period commencing on the day following the day on which the shares are credited to the Non-U.S. stockholder’s account.

A Non-U.S. stockholder who is a non-resident alien individual, and who is otherwise subject to withholding of federal income tax, may be subject to information reporting and backup withholding of federal income tax on distributions unless the Non-U.S. stockholder provides us or the distribution paying agent with an IRS Form W-8BEN (or an acceptable substitute form) or otherwise meets documentary evidence requirements for establishing that it is a Non-U.S. stockholder or otherwise establishes an exemption from backup withholding.

Non-U.S. persons should consult their own tax advisors with respect to the U.S. federal income tax and withholding tax, and state, local and foreign tax consequences of an investment in the shares.

 

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UNDERWRITING

Under the terms and subject to the conditions contained in the underwriting agreement dated the date of this prospectus, the underwriters named below, for whom Morgan Stanley & Co. Incorporated, SunTrust Robinson Humphrey, Inc. and UBS Securities LLC are acting as representatives and as joint book-running managers of this offering, have severally agreed to purchase, and we have agreed to sell to them, severally, the number of shares of common stock indicated below:

 

Name		Number of Shares
Morgan Stanley & Co. Incorporated
SunTrust Robinson Humphrey, Inc.
UBS Securities LLC
Total			10,000,000

The underwriters and the representatives are collectively referred to as the “Underwriters” and the “Representatives,” respectively. The Underwriters are offering the shares of common stock subject to their acceptance of the shares from us and subject to prior sale. The underwriting agreement provides that the obligations of the several Underwriters to pay for and accept delivery of the shares of our common stock offered by this prospectus are subject to the approval of legal matters by their counsel and to certain other conditions. The Underwriters are obligated to take and pay for all of the shares of common stock offered by this prospectus if any such shares are taken. However, the Underwriters are not required to take or pay for the shares covered by the Underwriters’ over-allotment option described below.

The Underwriters initially propose to offer part of the shares of common stock directly to the public at the public offering price listed on the cover page of this prospectus and part to certain dealers at a price that represents a concession not in excess of $             a share under the public offering price. Any Underwriter may allow, and such dealers may reallow, a concession not in excess of $             a share to other underwriters or to certain dealers. After the initial offering of the shares of common stock, the offering price and other selling terms may from time to time be varied by the Representatives.

The Underwriters have been granted an option, exercisable for 30 days from the date of this prospectus, to purchase up to an aggregate of 1,500,000 additional shares of our common stock at the public offering price listed on the cover page of this prospectus, less underwriting discounts and commissions. The Underwriters may exercise this option solely for the purpose of covering over-allotments, if any, made in connection with the offering of the shares of our common stock offered by this prospectus. To the extent the option is exercised, each Underwriter will become obligated, subject to limited conditions, to purchase approximately the same percentage of the additional shares of our common stock as the number listed next to the Underwriter’s name in the preceding table bears to the total number of shares of our common stock listed next to the names of all Underwriters in the preceding table.

The following table shows the public offering price, underwriting discount and proceeds before expenses to us and the selling stockholder including the amount that the Investment Adviser has agreed to pay to the underwriters as an additional sales load. The information assumes either no exercise or full exercise by the Underwriters of their over-allotment option.

 

Per Share

Without Option

With Option

Public offering price

$

$

$

Underwriting discounts and commissions (Sales load)

Proceeds, before expenses, to PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd.

We estimate that the total expenses of this offering, excluding sales load (underwriting discounts and commissions), will be approximately $1,000,000.

The Underwriters have informed us that they do not intend sales to discretionary accounts to exceed five percent of the total number of shares of our common stock offered by them.

 

We intend to apply to have our common stock approved for listing on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol “PFLT.”

We have agreed, with exceptions, not to sell or transfer any common stock for 180 days after the date of this prospectus without first obtaining the written consent of the Representatives.

Our executive officers and directors, PennantPark Investment Advisers, LLC, and Pennant Park Investment Administration, LLC have agreed, with exceptions, not to sell or transfer any common stock for 180 days after the date of this prospectus supplement without first obtaining the written consent of the Representatives. Specifically, we and these other individuals and entities have agreed not to directly or indirectly:

 

•

offer, pledge, sell or contract to sell any common stock;

 

•

sell any option or contract to purchase any common stock;

 

•

purchase any option or contract to sell any common stock;

 

•

grant any option, right or warrant for the sale of any common stock;

 

•

lend or otherwise dispose of or transfer any common stock;

 

•

request or demand that we file a registration statement related to the common stock; or

 

•

enter into any swap or other agreement that transfers, in whole or in part, the economic consequence of ownership of any common stock whether any such swap or transaction is to be settled by delivery of shares or other securities, in cash or otherwise.

This lockup provision applies to common stock and to securities convertible into or exchangeable or exercisable for or repayable with common stock. It also applies to common stock owned now or acquired later by the person executing the agreement or for which the person executing the agreement later acquires the power of disposition.

In order to facilitate the offering of our common stock, the Underwriters may engage in transactions that stabilize, maintain or otherwise affect the price of our common stock. Specifically, the Underwriters may sell more shares than they are obligated to purchase under the underwriting agreement, creating a short position in our common stock for their own account. A short sale is covered if the short position is no greater than the number of shares available for purchase by the Underwriters under the over-allotment option. The Underwriters can close out a covered short sale by exercising the over-allotment option or purchasing shares in the open market. In determining the source of shares to close out a covered short sale, the Underwriters will consider, among other things, the open market price of shares compared to the price available under the over-allotment option. The Underwriters may also sell shares in excess of the over-allotment option, creating a naked short position. The Underwriters must close out any naked short position by purchasing shares in the open market. A naked short position is more likely to be created if the Underwriters are concerned that there may be downward pressure on the price of our common stock in the open market after pricing that could adversely affect investors who purchase in the offering. In addition, in order to cover any over-allotments or to stabilize the price of our common stock, the Underwriters may bid for, and purchase, shares of our common stock in the open market. Finally, the underwriting syndicate may also reclaim selling concessions allowed to an Underwriter or a dealer for distributing our common stock in the offering, if the syndicate repurchases previously distributed shares of our common stock to cover syndicate short positions or to stabilize the price of the common stock. Any of these activities may stabilize or maintain the market price of our common stock above independent market levels. The Underwriters are not required to engage in these activities, and may end any of these activities at any time.

We and the Investment Adviser have agreed to indemnify the Underwriters against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act, or to contribute to payments the Underwriters may be required to make in respect of those liabilities.

The Underwriters and their affiliates have provided in the past to us and may provide from time to time in the future in the ordinary course of their business certain commercial banking, financial advisory, investment banking and other services to PennantPark Floating Rate Capital and its affiliates and managed funds or our portfolio companies for which they have received or will be entitled to receive separate fees. In particular, the Underwriters or their affiliates may execute transactions with PennantPark Floating Rate Capital or on behalf of PennantPark Floating Rate Capital or any of our portfolio companies, affiliates and/or managed funds. In addition, the Underwriters or their affiliates may act as arrangers, underwriters or placement agents for companies whose securities are sold to or whose loans are syndicated to PennantPark Floating Rate Capital and its affiliates and managed funds. An affiliate of SunTrust Robinson Humphrey, Inc. has committed to be a lender under the Credit Facility.

The principal business addresses of the underwriters are: Morgan Stanley & Co. Incorporated is 1585 Broadway, New York, NY 10036; SunTrust Robinson Humphrey, Inc. is 3333 Peachtree Road, NE, Atlanta, GA 30326; UBS Securities LLC is 299 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10171.

European Economic Area

In relation to each member state of the European Economic Area that has implemented the Prospectus Directive (each, a relevant member state), with effect from and including the date on which the Prospectus Directive is implemented in that relevant member state (the relevant implementation date), an offer of warrants and shares of common stock described in this prospectus may not be made to the public in that relevant member state prior to the publication of a prospectus in relation to the shares of common stock that has been approved by the competent authority in that relevant member state or, where appropriate, approved in another relevant member state and notified to the competent authority in that relevant member state, all in accordance with the Prospectus Directive, except that, with effect from and including the relevant implementation date, an offer of warrants may be made to the public in that relevant member state at any time:

 

•

to any legal entity which is a qualified investor as defined in the Prospectus Directive;

 

•

to fewer than 100 or, if the Relevant Member State has implemented the relevant provision of the 2010 PD Amending Directive, 150, natural or legal persons (other than qualified investors as defined in the Prospectus Directive), as permitted under the Prospectus Directive, subject to obtaining the prior consent of the relevant Manager or Managers nominated by the Issuer for any such offer; or

 

•

in any other circumstances falling within Article 3(2) of the Prospectus Directive.

 

For purposes of this provision, the expression an “offer of shares to the public” in any relevant member state means the communication in any form and by any means of sufficient information on the terms of the offer and the shares to be offered so as to enable an investor to decide to purchase the shares, as the expression may be varied in that member state by any measure implementing the Prospectus Directive in that member state, and the expression “Prospectus Directive” means Directive 2003/71/EC (and amendments thereto, including the 2010 PD Amending Directive, to the extent implemented in the Relevant Member State), and includes any relevant implementing measure in each relevant member state and the expression 2010 PD Amending Directive means Directive 2010/73/EU.

This EEA selling restriction is in addition to any other selling restrictions set out in this Prospectus.

United Kingdom

This prospectus is only being distributed to, and is only directed at, persons in the United Kingdom that are (i) investment professionals falling within Article 19(5) of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Financial Promotion) Order 2005 (the “Order”) or (ii) high net worth entities, and other persons to whom it may lawfully be communicated, falling within Article 49(2)(a) to (d) of the Order (each such person being referred to as a “relevant person”). The shares of common stock are only available to, and any invitation, offer or agreement to subscribe, purchase or otherwise acquire such shares of common stock will be engaged in only with, relevant persons.

Switzerland

This prospectus does not constitute an issue prospectus pursuant to Article 652a or Article 1156 of the Swiss Code of Obligations (“CO”) and the shares will not be listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange. Therefore, this prospectus may not comply with the disclosure standards of the CO and/or the listing rules (including any prospectus schemes) of the SIX Swiss Exchange. Accordingly, the shares may not be offered to the public in or from Switzerland, but only to a selected and limited circle of investors, which do not subscribe to the shares with a view to distribution.

Australia

This prospectus is not a formal disclosure document and has not been, nor will be, lodged with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission. It does not purport to contain all information that an investor or their professional advisers would expect to find in a prospectus or other disclosure document (as defined in the Corporations Act 2001 (Australia)) for the purposes of Part 6D.2 of the Corporations Act 2001 (Australia) or in a product disclosure statement for the purposes of Part 7.9 of the Corporations Act 2001 (Australia), in either case, in relation to the securities.

The securities are not being offered in Australia to “retail clients” as defined in sections 761G and 761GA of the Corporations Act 2001 (Australia). This offering is being made in Australia solely to “wholesale clients” for the purposes of section 761G of the Corporations Act 2001 (Australia) and, as such, no prospectus, product disclosure statement or other disclosure document in relation to the securities has been, or will be, prepared.

This prospectus does not constitute an offer in Australia other than to wholesale clients. By submitting an application for our securities, you represent and warrant to us that you are a wholesale client for the purposes of section 761G of the Corporations Act 2001 (Australia). If any recipient of this prospectus is not a wholesale client, no offer of, or invitation to apply for, our securities shall be deemed to be made to such recipient and no applications for our securities will be accepted from such recipient. Any offer to a recipient in Australia, and any agreement arising from acceptance of such offer, is personal and may only be accepted by the recipient. In addition, by applying for our securities you undertake to us that, for a period of 12 months from the date of issue of the securities, you will not transfer any interest in the securities to any person in Australia other than to a wholesale client.

Hong Kong

Our securities may not be offered or sold in Hong Kong, by means of this prospectus or any document other than (i) to “professional investors” within the meaning of the Securities and Futures Ordinance (Cap.571, Laws of Hong Kong) and any rules made thereunder, or (ii) in circumstances which do not constitute an offer to the public within the meaning of the Companies Ordinance (Cap.32, Laws of Hong Kong), or (iii) in other circumstances which do not result in the document being a “prospectus” within the meaning of the Companies Ordinance (Cap.32, Laws of Hong Kong). No advertisement, invitation or document relating to our securities may be issued or may be in the possession of any person for the purpose of issue (in each case whether in Hong Kong or elsewhere) which is directed at, or the contents of which are likely to be accessed or read by, the public in Hong Kong (except if permitted to do so under the securities laws of Hong Kong) other than with respect to the securities which are or are intended to be disposed of only to persons outside Hong Kong or only to “professional investors” within the meaning of the Securities and Futures Ordinance (Cap. 571, Laws of Hong Kong) and any rules made thereunder

Japan

Our securities have not been and will not be registered under the Financial Instruments and Exchange Law of Japan (the Financial Instruments and Exchange Law) and our securities will not be offered or sold, directly or indirectly, in Japan, or to, or for the benefit of, any resident of Japan (which term as used herein means any person resident in Japan, including any corporation or other entity organized under the laws of Japan), or to others for re-offering or resale, directly or indirectly, in Japan, or to a resident of Japan, except pursuant to an exemption from the registration requirements of, and otherwise in compliance with, the Financial Instruments and Exchange Law and any other applicable laws, regulations and ministerial guidelines of Japan.

Singapore

This document has not been registered as a prospectus with the Monetary Authority of Singapore and in Singapore, the offer and sale of our securities is made pursuant to exemptions provided in sections 274 and 275 of the Securities and Futures Act, Chapter 289 of Singapore (“SFA”). Accordingly, this prospectus and any other document or material in connection with the offer or sale, or invitation for subscription or purchase, of our securities may not be circulated or distributed, nor may our securities be offered or sold, or be made the subject of an invitation for subscription or purchase, whether directly or indirectly, to persons in Singapore other than (i) to an institutional investor as defined in Section 4A of the SFA pursuant to Section 274 of the SFA, (ii) to a relevant person as defined in section 275(2) of the SFA pursuant to Section 275(1) of the SFA, or any person pursuant to Section 275(1A) of the SFA, and in accordance with the conditions specified in Section 275 of the SFA or (iii) otherwise pursuant to, and in accordance with the conditions of, any other applicable provision of the SFA, in each case subject to compliance with the conditions (if any) set forth in the SFA. Moreover, this document is not a prospectus as defined in the SFA. Accordingly, statutory liability under the SFA in relation to the content of prospectuses would not apply. Prospective investors in Singapore should consider carefully whether an investment in our securities is suitable for them.

Where our securities are subscribed or purchased under Section 275 of the SFA by a relevant person which is:

(a) by a corporation (which is not an accredited investor as defined in Section 4A of the SFA) the sole business of which is to hold investments and the entire share capital of which is owned by one or more individuals, each of whom is an accredited investor; or

(b) for a trust (where the trustee is not an accredited investor) whose sole purpose is to hold investments and each beneficiary of the trust is an individual who is an accredited investor,

shares of that corporation or the beneficiaries’ rights and interest (howsoever described) in that trust shall not be transferable for six months after that corporation or that trust has acquired the shares under Section 275 of the SFA, except:

(1) to an institutional investor (for corporations under Section 274 of the SFA) or to a relevant person defined in Section 275(2) of the SFA, or any person pursuant to an offer that is made on terms that such shares of that corporation or such rights and interest in that trust are acquired at a consideration of not less than $200,000 (or its equivalent in a foreign currency) for each transaction, whether such amount is to be paid for in cash or by exchange of securities or other assets, and further for corporations, in accordance with the conditions, specified in Section 275 of the SFA;

(2) where no consideration is given for the transfer; or

(3) where the transfer is by operation of law.

In addition, investors in Singapore should note that the securities acquired by them are subject to resale and transfer restrictions specified under Section 276 of the SFA, and they, therefore, should seek their own legal advice before effecting any resale or transfer of their securities.

Pricing of the Offering

Prior to this offering, there has been no public market for the shares of our common stock. The initial public offering price will be determined by negotiations between us and the Representatives. Among the factors to be considered in determining the initial public offering price will be our future prospects and our industry in general, sales, earnings and certain other financial and operating information in recent periods, and the price-earnings ratios, market prices of securities and financial and operating information of companies engaged in activities similar to ours.

 

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CUSTODIAN AND TRANSFER AGENT

The custodian of the assets of the company will be The Bank of New York Mellon located at One Wall Street, New York, NY 10286. The custodian will perform custodial, fund accounting and portfolio accounting services. American Stock Transfer & Trust Company located at 59 Maiden Lane, New York, NY 10038, will serve as the company’s transfer agent and dividend paying agent with respect to the common shares.

LEGAL OPINIONS

Certain legal matters in connection with the common shares will be passed upon for the company by Dechert LLP, Washington, D.C. and for the Underwriters by Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP, New York, NY. Dechert LLP and Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson LLP may rely as to certain matters of Maryland law on the opinion of Venable LLP, Baltimore, Maryland.

FISCAL YEAR

For accounting purposes, our fiscal year is the 12-month period ending on September 30. For tax purposes, we have adopted the 12-month period ending September 30 of each year as our taxable year.

INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM

We have selected KPMG LLP as our independent registered public accounting firm. KPMG LLP’s principal business address is located at 345 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10154.

AVAILABLE INFORMATION

We have filed with the SEC a registration statement on Form N-2, together with all amendments and related exhibits, under the Securities Act, with respect to our shares of common stock offered by this prospectus. The registration statement contains additional information about us and our shares of common stock being offered by this prospectus.

Upon completion of this offering, we will file with or submit to the SEC annual, quarterly and current periodic reports, proxy statements and other information meeting the informational requirements of the Exchange Act. You may inspect and copy these reports, proxy statements and other information, as well as the registration statement and related exhibits and schedules, at the Public Reference Room of the SEC at 100 F Street, NE, Washington, D.C. 20549. You may obtain information on the operation of the Public Reference Room by calling the SEC at (800) SEC-0330. The SEC maintains an Internet site that contains reports, proxy and information statements and other information filed electronically by us with the SEC which are available on the SEC’s website at http://www.sec.gov. Copies of these reports, proxy and information statements and other information may be obtained, after paying a duplicating fee, by electronic request at the following e-mail address: publicinfo@sec.gov, or by writing the SEC’s Public Reference Section, Washington, D.C. 20549. This information will also be available free of charge by contacting us at PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd., 590 Madison Avenue, 15th Floor, New York, NY 10022, by telephone at (212) 905-1000, or on our website at http://www.pennantpark.com.

 

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INDEX TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

 

		Page
Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm			F-2
Balance Sheet as of March 4, 2011			F-3
Notes to Balance Sheet			F-4

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Table of Contents

Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

The Board of Directors and Shareholder of

PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd.:

We have audited the accompanying balance sheet of PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd. (a development stage company) as of March 4, 2011. This financial statement is the responsibility of PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd.’s management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on this financial statement based on our audit.

We conducted our audit in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States). Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the balance sheet is free of material misstatement. An audit includes examining, on a test basis, evidence supporting the amounts and disclosures in the balance sheet. An audit also includes assessing the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall balance sheet presentation. We believe that our audit of the balance sheet provides a reasonable basis for our opinion.

In our opinion, the balance sheet referred to above presents fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd. (a development stage company) as of March 4, 2011, in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles.

/s/ KPMG LLP

New York, New York

March 11, 2011

 

F-2

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PENNANTPARK FLOATING RATE CAPITAL LTD.

(A DEVELOPMENT STAGE COMPANY)

BALANCE SHEET

		As of March 4, 2011
Assets:
Cash		$	10,000
Total Assets		$	10,000
Commitments and Contingencies (Note 3)
Net Assets:
Common stock, par value $0.001 per share; 100,000,000 shares authorized; 667 shares issued and outstanding			1
Paid-in capital in excess of par value			9,999
Total Net Assets		$	10,000
Net Asset Value Per Share		$	15.00

SEE NOTES TO BALANCE SHEET.

 

F-3

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PENNANTPARK FLOATING RATE CAPITAL LTD.

(A DEVELOPMENT STAGE COMPANY)

NOTES TO BALANCE SHEET

In this Balance Sheet, except where the context suggests otherwise, the terms “we,” “us,” “our,” “Company” or “PennantPark Floating Rate Capital” refers to PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd.

Note 1. Organization

PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd. was formed on October 28, 2010 as a Maryland corporation structured as an externally managed, non-diversified closed-end management investment company. PennantPark Floating Rate Capital intends to elect to be treated as a business development company under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, (the “1940 Act”), prior to pricing of its initial public offering. PennantPark Floating Rate Capital will be managed by PennantPark Investment Advisers, LLC (the “Investment Advisers”). PennantPark Investment Administration, LLC (the “Administrator”) will provide the administrative services necessary for us to operate. The Company has had no operations other than a sale of 667 shares of common stock for $10,000 ($15.00 per share). All of the outstanding shares of PennantPark Floating Rate Capital common stock are owned by PennantPark Investment Advisers, LLC.

Our primary investment objective is to maximize current income consistent with the preservation of capital. We will seek to achieve our investment objectives by investing primarily in floating rate loans made to private middle-market companies whose debt is rated below investment grade. The Company may also invest in loans of portfolio companies that are thinly traded. Under normal market conditions, at least 80% of the value of our assets will be invested in floating rate loans and investments with similar economic characteristics. We expect that senior secured loans will represent at least 65% of our overall portfolio. We expect to invest the remaining approximately 35% of our overall portfolio opportunistically in other types of investments, including second-lien, high yield, mezzanine and distressed debt securities and private equity investments.

Note 2. Summary Significant Accounting Policies

Basis of Presentation

The accompanying balance sheet has been prepared on the accrual basis of accounting in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”).

Cash

Cash consists of demand deposits at a financial institution.

U.S. Federal Income Taxes

We intend to operate so as to qualify and elect to be tax as a regulated investment company (“RIC”) under Subchapter M of the Internal Revenue Code (“Code”). If we so qualify, we will not be subject to federal income tax on the portion of our taxable income and gains distributed to stockholders. To qualify as a RIC, we are required to distribute at least 90% of our investment company taxable income as defined by the Code. Although not required for us to maintain our RIC tax status, we must also distribute an amount at least equal to the sum of 98% of our ordinary income (during each calendar year) plus 98.2% of our net capital gains (during each 12 month period ending on October 31) to avoid a 4% excise tax.

 

F-4

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PENNANTPARK FLOATING RATE CAPITAL LTD.

(A DEVELOPMENT STAGE COMPANY)

NOTES TO BALANCE SHEET

Use of Estimates

The preparation of the balance sheet in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amount of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the balance sheet. Changes in the economic environment, financial markets and any other parameters used in determining these estimates could cause actual results to differ materially.

New Accounting Standards

Management does not believe any recently issued, but not yet effective, accounting standards, if currently adopted, would have a material effect on the accompanying balance sheet.

Note 3. Commitments and Contingencies

Initial organization and operating costs will be borne by the Company upon consummation of its proposed initial public offering. Should the Company not be successful in the initial public offering, initial organization and operating costs incurred will be borne by the Company’s Investment Adviser. As there has been no formal commitment of external capital as of the date of issuance of this balance sheet, no such costs have been recorded by the Company.

Note 4. Net Assets and Common Stock

The Company has an authorized 100,000,000 shares of its common stock with a par value of $0.001 per share.

Note 5. Subsequent Events

The Company considered events from March 5, 2011 to March 11, 2011 (the date of this report’s issuance) and has concluded that no subsequent events of a material effect have occurred from the date of the balance sheet through the date this report was issued.

Note 6. Indemnification

Under the Company’s organizational documents, its officers and directors are indemnified against certain liabilities arising out of the performance of their duties to the Company. In addition, in the normal course of business the Company enters into contracts that contain a variety of representations which provide general indemnifications. The Company’s maximum exposure under these agreements cannot be known; however, the Company expects any risk of loss to be remote.

 

F-5

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Through and including             , 2011 (the 25th day after the date of this prospectus), all dealers effecting transactions in these securities, whether or not participating in this offering, may be required to deliver a prospectus. This is in addition to the dealers’ obligation to deliver a prospectus when acting as underwriters and with respect to their unsold allotments or subscription.

10,000,000 Shares

PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd.

Common Stock

 

 

PRELIMINARY PROSPECTUS

                    , 2011

 

 

Morgan Stanley

SunTrust Robinson Humphrey

UBS Investment Bank

 

 

 

 

 

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PART C

OTHER INFORMATION

 

Item 25.

Financial Statements and Exhibits

(1) Financial Statements

Statement of assets and liabilities, dated as of March 4, 2001.

(2) Exhibits

 

(a)		Articles of Amendment and Restatement.(1)
(b)		Amended and Restated Bylaws.(1)
(c)		Not Applicable.
(d)		Form of Stock Certificate.(2)
(e)		Form of Dividend Reinvestment Plan.(1)
(f)		Not Applicable.
(g)		Form of Investment Management Agreement between the Registrant and PennantPark Investment Advisers, LLC (the “Investment Adviser”).(1)
(h)(1)		Form of Underwriting Agreement.(2)
(i)		Not Applicable.
(j)		Form of Custodian Agreement.(1)
(k)(1)		Form of Certificate of Appointment of Transfer Agent.(1)
(k)(2)		Form of Administration Agreement between Registrant and PennantPark Administration, LLC.(1)
(k)(3)		Form of License Agreement between the Registrant and the Investment Adviser.(1)
(k)(4)		Form of Sub-Administrative and Accounting Services Agreement.(1)
(l)(1)		Opinion and Consent of Maryland Counsel.(2)
(m)		Not Applicable.
(n)		Consent of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm.(1)
(o)		Not Applicable.
(p)		Not Applicable.
(q)		Not Applicable.
(r)(1)		Joint Code of Ethics of PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd. and the Investment Adviser.(1)

 

(1)	Filed herein

(2)	To be filed by amendment

 

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Item 26.

Marketing Arrangements

Please refer to Item 25(2)(h)(1).

 

C-2

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Item 27.

Other Expenses of Issuance and Distribution

 

Securities and Exchange Commission registration fee		$	20,027
NASDAQ listing fees			125,000
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority fees			17,750
Printing expenses			210,000
Accounting fees and expenses			60,000
Legal fees and expenses			450,000
Miscellaneous			117,223
Total			1,000,000

 

Item 28.

Persons Controlled by or Under Common Control with Registrant

Immediately prior to this offering, PennantPark Investment Advisers, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company, will own shares of the Registrant, representing 100% of the common stock outstanding. Following the completion of this offering, PennantPark Investment Advisers, LLC’s share ownership is expected to represent less than 1% of the common stock outstanding.

 

Item 29.

Number of Holders of Securities

The following table sets forth the approximate number of record holders of the Registrant’s common stock at March 28, 2011.

 

Title of Class		Number of Record Holders
Common shares, par value $0.001 per share			1

 

Item 30.

Indemnification

Maryland law permits a Maryland corporation to include in its charter a provision limiting the liability of its directors and officers to the corporation and its stockholders for money damages except for liability resulting from (a) actual receipt of an improper benefit or profit in money, property or services or (b) active and deliberate dishonesty established by a final judgment as being material to the cause of action. The Registrant’s charter contains such a provision which eliminates directors’ and officers’ liability to the maximum extent permitted by Maryland law, subject to the requirements of the 1940 Act.

The Registrant’s charter and bylaws require the Registrant, to the maximum extent permitted by Maryland law and subject to the requirements of the 1940 Act, to indemnify any present or former director or officer or any individual who, while a director and at the Registrant’s request, serves or has served another corporation, real estate investment trust, partnership, joint venture, trust, employee benefit plan or other enterprise as a director, officer, partner or trustee and who is made a party to the proceeding by reason of his or her service in that capacity from and against any claim or liability to which that person may become subject or which that person may incur by reason of his or her status as a present or former director or officer and to pay or reimburse their reasonable expenses in advance of final disposition of a proceeding. The rights to indemnification and advance of expenses provided by the charter and bylaws vest immediately upon election of a director or officer. The charter and bylaws also permit the Registrant to indemnify and advance expenses to any person who served a predecessor of the Registrant in any of the capacities described above and any of the Registrant’s employees or agents or any employees or agents of the Registrant’s predecessor. In accordance with the 1940 Act, the Registrant will not indemnify any person for any liability to which such person would be subject by reason of such person’s willful misfeasance, bad faith, gross negligence or reckless disregard of the duties involved in the conduct of his office.

Maryland law requires a corporation (unless its charter provides otherwise, which the Registrant’s charter does not) to indemnify a director or officer who has been successful, on the merits or otherwise, in the defense of any

 

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proceeding to which he or she is made a party by reason of his or her service in that capacity. Maryland law permits a corporation to indemnify its present and former directors and officers, among others, against judgments, penalties, fines, settlements and reasonable expenses actually incurred by them in connection with any proceeding to which they may be made a party by reason of their service in those or other capacities unless it is established that (a) the act or omission of the director or officer was material to the matter giving rise to the proceeding and (1) was committed in bad faith or (2) was the result of active and deliberate dishonesty, (b) the director or officer actually received an improper personal benefit in money, property or services or (c) in the case of any criminal proceeding, the director or officer had reasonable cause to believe the act or omission was unlawful. In addition, Maryland law permits a corporation to advance reasonable expenses to a director or officer upon the corporation’s receipt of (a) a written affirmation by the director or officer of his or her good faith belief that he or she has met the standard of conduct necessary for indemnification by the corporation and (b) a written undertaking by him or her or on his or her behalf to repay the amount paid or reimbursed by the corporation if it is ultimately determined that the standard of conduct was not met.

Insofar as indemnification for liability arising under the Securities Act may be permitted to directors, officers and controlling persons of the Registrant pursuant to the foregoing provisions or otherwise, the Registrant has been advised that in the opinion of the Securities and Exchange Commission such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and is, therefore, unenforceable. In the event that a claim for indemnification against such liabilities (other than the payment by the Registrant of expenses incurred or paid by a director, officer or controlling person of the Registrant in the successful defense of any action, suit or proceeding) is asserted by such director, officer or controlling person in connection with the securities being registered, the Registrant will, unless in the opinion of its counsel the matter has been settled by controlling precedent, submit to a court of appropriate jurisdiction the question whether such indemnification by it is against public policy as expressed in the Act and will be governed by the final adjudication of such issue.

The Investment Management Agreement provides that PennantPark Investment Advisers, LLC and its officers, managers, partners, agents, employees, controlling persons, members and any other person of entity affiliated with the Investment Adviser are entitled to indemnification from us for any damages, liabilities, costs and expenses (including reasonable attorneys’ fees and amounts reasonably paid in settlement) incurred by them in or by reason of any pending, threatened or completed action, suit, investigation or other proceedings arising out of or otherwise based on the performance of any of PennantPark Investment Advisers, LLC’s duties or obligations under the Investment Management Agreement or otherwise as our investment adviser to the extent such damages, liabilities, costs and expenses do not arise by reason of willful misfeasance, bad faith, or gross negligence in PennantPark Investment Advisers, LLC’s performance of such duties or obligations, or PennantPark Investment Advisers, LLC’s reckless disregard of such duties or obligations.

Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act may be permitted to our directors, officers and controlling persons pursuant to the provisions described above, or otherwise, we have been advised that in the opinion of the SEC such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and is, therefore, unenforceable. In the event that a claim for indemnification against such liabilities (other than the payment by us of expenses incurred or paid by a director, officer or controlling person in the successful defense of an action, suit or proceeding) is asserted by a director, officer or controlling person in connection with the securities being registered, we will, unless in the opinion of our counsel the matter has been settled by controlling precedent, submit to a court of appropriate jurisdiction the question whether such indemnification by us is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and will be governed by the final adjudication of the court of the issue.

 

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Item 31.

Business and Other Connections of Adviser

A description of the business of the Investment Adviser is set out in the sections entitled “Management” and “Certain Relationships and Transactions” in the prospectus which forms a part of this registration statement. A description of any other business, profession, vocation, or employment of a substantial nature in which each managing director, executive officer or investment professional of the Investment Adviser, is or has been, at any time during the past two fiscal years, engaged in for his or her own account or in the capacity of director, officer, employee, partner or trustee, is set out below:

Additional Information regarding PennantPark Investment Advisers LLC and its officers and directors is set forth in its Form ADV, as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC File No. 801-67622) under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as amended, and is incorporated herein by reference.

 

Item 32.

Locations of Accounts and Records

All accounts, books and other documents required to be maintained by Section 31(a) of the Investment company Act of 1940, and the rules thereunder are maintained at the offices of:

 

(1)

the Registrant, PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd., 590 Madison Avenue, 15th Floor, New York, New York 10022;

 

(2)

the Transfer Agent, American Stock Transfer & Trust Company, 59 Maiden Lane, New York, NY 10038;

 

(3)

the Custodian, The Bank of New York Mellon, One Wall Street, New York, New York 10286; and

 

(4)

the Investment Adviser, PennantPark Investment Advisers, LLC, 590 Madison Avenue, 15th Floor, New York, New York 10022.

 

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Item 33.

Management Services

Not applicable.

 

Item 34.

Undertakings

 

1.

The Registrant undertakes to suspend the offering of shares until the prospectus is amended if (1) subsequent to the effective date of its registration statement, the net asset value declines more than ten percent from its net asset value as of the effective date of the registration statement; or (2) the net asset value increases to an amount greater than the net proceeds as stated in the prospectus.

 

2.	The Registrant undertakes that:

 

(a)

For the purpose of determining any liability under the Securities Act, the information omitted from the form of prospectus filed as part of this registration statement in reliance upon Rule 430A and contained in a form of prospectus filed by the Registrant pursuant to Rule 497(h) under the Securities Act of 1933 shall be deemed to be part of this registration statement as of the time it was declared effective.

 

(b)

For the purpose of determining any liability under the Securities Act of 1933, each post-effective amendment that contains a form of prospectus shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof.

 

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SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), and the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”), the Registrant has duly caused this Registration Statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, in The City of New York, State of New York on the 28^th day of March, 2011.

 

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act, this Registration Statement has been signed by the following persons in the capacities and on the dates indicated.

 

Signature		Title		Date
/s/ Arthur H. Penn
(Arthur H. Penn)		Chief Executive Officer and Director (Principal Executive Officer)		March 28, 2011
/s/ Aviv Efrat
(Aviv Efrat)		Treasurer (Principal Financial Officer)		March 28, 2011
*
(Jeffrey Flug)		Director		March 28, 2011
*
(Marshall Brozost)		Director		March 28, 2011
*
(Samuel L. Katz)		Director		March 28, 2011

 

*	Signed by Aviv Efrat on behalf of those identified pursuant to his designation as an attorney-in-fact signed by each on December 16, 2010

 

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Exhibit (a)

PENNANTPARK SENIOR FLOATING RATE FUND INC.

ARTICLES OF AMENDMENT AND RESTATEMENT

FIRST: PennantPark Senior Floating Rate Fund Inc., a Maryland corporation (the “Corporation”), desires to amend and restate its charter as currently in effect and as hereinafter amended.

SECOND: The following provisions are all the provisions of the charter currently in effect and as hereinafter amended:

ARTICLE I.

NAME

The name of the corporation (which is hereinafter called the “Corporation”) is:

PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd.

ARTICLE II.

PURPOSE

The purposes for which the Corporation is formed are to conduct and carry on the business of a business development company, subject to making and maintaining an election to be treated as a business development company under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”), and to engage in any lawful act or activity for which corporations may be organized under the general laws of the State of Maryland as now or hereafter in force.

ARTICLE III.

PRINCIPAL OFFICE IN STATE AND RESIDENT AGENT

The address of the principal office of the Corporation in the State of Maryland is c/o The Corporation Trust Incorporated, 351 West Camden Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21201.

The name and address of the resident agent of the Corporation are The Corporation Trust Incorporated, 351 West Camden Street, Baltimore, Maryland 21201. The resident agent is a Maryland corporation.

ARTICLE IV.

PROVISIONS FOR DEFINING, LIMITING

AND REGULATING CERTAIN POWERS OF THE CORPORATION AND OF THE

STOCKHOLDERS AND DIRECTORS

Section 4.1. Number, Classification and Election of Directors. The business and affairs of the Corporation shall be managed under the direction of the Board of Directors. The

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number of directors of the Corporation is five, which number may be increased or decreased only by the Board of Directors pursuant to the Bylaws, but shall never be less than the minimum number required by the Maryland General Corporation Law (the “MGCL”). The names of the directors who shall serve until the first annual meeting of stockholders and until their successors are duly elected and qualify are:

Arthur H. Penn

Adam K. Bernstein

Marshall Brozost

Jeffrey Flug

Samuel L. Katz

These directors may increase the number of directors and may fill any vacancy, whether resulting from an increase in the number of directors or otherwise, on the Board of Directors occurring before the first annual meeting of stockholders in the manner provided in the Bylaws.

The Corporation elects, at such time as it becomes eligible to make the election provided for under Section 3-802(b) of the MGCL, that, subject to applicable requirements of the 1940 Act and except as may be provided by the Board of Directors in setting the terms of any class or series of Preferred Stock (as hereinafter defined), any and all vacancies on the Board of Directors may be filled only by the affirmative vote of a majority of the remaining directors in office, even if the remaining directors do not constitute a quorum, and any director elected to fill a vacancy shall serve for the remainder of the full term of the directorship in which such vacancy occurred and until a successor is duly elected and qualifies.

On the first date on which the Corporation shall have more than one stockholder of record, the directors (other than any director elected solely by holders of one or more classes or series of Preferred Stock in connection with dividend arrearages) shall be classified, with respect to the terms for which they severally hold office, into three classes, as nearly equal in number as possible as determined by the Board of Directors, one class to hold office initially for a term expiring at the next succeeding annual meeting of stockholders, another class to hold office initially for a term expiring at the second succeeding annual meeting of stockholders and another class to hold office initially for a term expiring at the third succeeding annual meeting of stockholders, with the members of each class to hold office until their successors are duly elected and qualify. At each annual meeting of the stockholders, the successors to the class of directors whose term expires at such meeting shall be elected to hold office for a term expiring at the annual meeting of stockholders held in the third year following the year of their election and until their successors are duly elected and qualify.

Section 4.2. Extraordinary Actions. Except as specifically provided in Section 4.9 (relating to removal of directors), and in Section 6.2 (relating to certain actions and certain amendments to the charter), notwithstanding any provision of law permitting or requiring any action to be taken or approved by the affirmative vote of the holders of shares entitled to cast a greater number of votes, any such action shall be effective and valid if declared advisable by the

 

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Board of Directors and taken or approved by the affirmative vote of holders of shares entitled to cast a majority of all the votes entitled to be cast on the matter.

Section 4.3. Election of Directors. Except as otherwise provided in the Bylaws of the Corporation, each director shall be elected by the affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of the shares of stock outstanding and entitled to vote thereon.

Section 4.4. Quorum. The presence in person or by proxy of the holders of shares of stock of the Corporation entitled to cast a majority of the votes entitled to be cast (without regard to class) shall constitute a quorum at any meeting of stockholders, except with respect to any such matter that, under applicable statutes or regulatory requirements, requires approval by a separate vote of one or more classes of stock, in which case the presence in person or by proxy of the holders of shares entitled to cast a majority of the votes entitled to be cast by each such class on such a matter shall constitute a quorum. To the extent permitted by Maryland law as in effect from time to time, the foregoing quorum provision may be changed by the Bylaws.

Section 4.5. Authorization by Board of Stock Issuance. The Board of Directors may authorize the issuance from time to time of shares of stock of the Corporation of any class or series, whether now or hereafter authorized, or securities or rights convertible into shares of its stock of any class or series, whether now or hereafter authorized, for such consideration as the Board of Directors may deem advisable (or without consideration in the case of a stock split or stock dividend), subject to such restrictions or limitations, if any, as may be set forth in the charter or the bylaws.

Section 4.6. Preemptive Rights. Except as may be provided by the Board of Directors in setting the terms of classified or reclassified shares of stock pursuant to Section 5.4 or as may otherwise be provided by contract, no holder of shares of stock of the Corporation shall, as such holder, have any preemptive right to purchase or subscribe for any additional shares of stock of the Corporation or any other security of the Corporation which it may issue or sell.

Section 4.7. Appraisal Rights. No holder of stock of the Corporation shall be entitled to exercise the rights of an objecting stockholder under Title 3, Subtitle 2 of the MGCL or any successor statute unless the Board of Directors, upon the affirmative vote of a majority of the entire Board of Directors, shall determine that such rights apply, with respect to all or any classes or series of stock, to a particular transaction or all transactions occurring after the date of such determination in connection with which holders of such shares would otherwise be entitled to exercise such rights.

Section 4.8. Determinations by Board. The determination as to any of the following matters, made in good faith by or pursuant to the direction of the Board of Directors consistent with the charter and in the absence of actual receipt of an improper benefit in money, property or services or active and deliberate dishonesty established by a court, shall be final and conclusive and shall be binding upon the Corporation and every holder of shares of its stock: the amount of the net income of the Corporation for any period and the amount of assets at any time legally available for the payment of dividends, redemption of its stock or the payment of other distributions on its stock; the amount of paid-in surplus, net assets, other surplus, annual or other net profit, net assets in excess of capital, undivided profits or excess of profits over losses on

 

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sales of assets; the amount, purpose, time of creation, increase or decrease, alteration or cancellation of any reserves or charges and the propriety thereof (whether or not any obligation or liability for which such reserves or charges shall have been created shall have been paid or discharged); the fair value, or any sale, bid or asked price to be applied in determining the fair value, of any asset owned or held by the Corporation; any matter relating to the acquisition, holding and disposition of any assets by the Corporation; or any other matter relating to the business and affairs of the Corporation or required by the charter to be determined by the Board of Directors.

Section 4.9. Removal of Directors. Subject to the rights of holders of one or more classes or series of Preferred Stock to elect or remove one or more directors, any director, or the entire Board of Directors, may be removed from office at any time only for cause and only by the affirmative vote of at least two-thirds of the votes entitled to be cast generally in the election of directors. For the purpose of this paragraph, “cause” shall mean, with respect to any particular director, conviction of a felony or a final judgment of a court of competent jurisdiction holding that such director caused demonstrable, material harm to the Corporation through bad faith or active and deliberate dishonesty.

ARTICLE V.

STOCK

Section 5.1. Authorized Shares. The Corporation has authority to issue 100 million shares of stock, initially consisting of 100 million shares of Common Stock, $.001 par value per share (“Common Stock”). The aggregate par value of all authorized shares of stock having par value is $100,000. If shares of one class of stock are classified or reclassified into shares of another class of stock pursuant to this Article V, the number of authorized shares of the former class shall be automatically decreased and the number of shares of the latter class shall be automatically increased, in each case by the number of shares so classified or reclassified, so that the aggregate number of shares of stock of all classes that the Corporation has authority to issue shall not be more than the total number of shares of stock set forth in the first sentence of this paragraph. A majority of the entire Board of Directors, without any action by the stockholders of the Corporation, may amend the charter from time to time to increase or decrease the aggregate number of shares of stock or the number of shares of stock of any class or series that the Corporation has authority to issue.

Section 5.2. Common Stock. Each share of Common Stock shall entitle the holder thereof to one vote. The Board of Directors may reclassify any unissued shares of Common Stock from time to time in one or more classes or series of stock.

Section 5.3. Preferred Stock. The Board of Directors may classify any unissued shares of stock and reclassify any previously classified but unissued shares of stock of any class or series from time to time, in one or more classes or series of preferred stock (“Preferred Stock”).

Section 5.4. Classified or Reclassified Shares. Prior to issuance of classified or reclassified shares of any class or series, the Board of Directors by resolution shall: (a) designate that class or series to distinguish it from all other classes and series of stock of the Corporation;

 

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(b) specify the number of shares to be included in the class or series; (c) set or change, subject to the express terms of any class or series of stock of the Corporation outstanding at the time, the preferences, conversion or other rights, voting powers, restrictions, limitations as to dividends or other distributions, qualifications and terms and conditions of redemption for each class or series; and (d) cause the Corporation to file articles supplementary with the State Department of Assessments and Taxation of Maryland (“SDAT”). Any of the terms of any class or series of stock set or changed pursuant to clause (c) of this Section 5.4 may be made dependent upon facts or events ascertainable outside the charter (including determinations by the Board of Directors or other facts or events within the control of the Corporation) and may vary among holders thereof, provided that the manner in which such facts, events or variations shall operate upon the terms of such class or series of stock is clearly and expressly set forth in the articles supplementary filed with the SDAT.

Section 5.5. Inspection of Books and Records. A stockholder that is otherwise eligible under applicable law to inspect the Corporation’s books of account, stock ledger, or other specified documents of the Corporation shall have no right to make such inspection if the Board of Directors determines that such stockholder has an improper purpose for requesting such inspection.

Section 5.6. Charter and Bylaws. All persons who shall acquire stock in the Corporation shall acquire the same subject to the provisions of the charter and the bylaws. The Board of Directors of the Corporation shall have the exclusive power to make, alter, amend or repeal the bylaws.

ARTICLE VI.

AMENDMENTS; CERTAIN EXTRAORDINARY TRANSACTIONS

Section 6.1. Amendments Generally. The Corporation reserves the right from time to time to make any amendment to its charter, now or hereafter authorized by law, including any amendment altering the terms or contract rights, as expressly set forth in the charter, of any shares of outstanding stock. All rights and powers conferred by the charter on stockholders, directors and officers are granted subject to this reservation.

Section 6.2. Approval of Certain Extraordinary Actions and Charter Amendments.

(a) Required Votes. The affirmative vote of the holders of shares entitled to cast at least 80 percent of the votes entitled to be cast on the matter, each voting as a separate class, shall be necessary to effect:

(i) Any amendment to the charter of the Corporation to make the Corporation’s Common Stock a “redeemable security” or to convert the Corporation, whether by merger or otherwise, from a “closed-end company” to an “open-end company” (as such terms are defined in the 1940 Act);

(ii) The liquidation or dissolution of the Corporation and any amendment to the charter of the Corporation to effect any such liquidation or dissolution; and

 

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(iii) Any amendment to Section 4.1, Section 4.2, Section 4.9, Section 6.1 or this Section 6.2;

provided, however, that, if the Continuing Directors (as defined herein), by a vote of at least two-thirds of such Continuing Directors, in addition to approval by the Board of Directors, approve such proposal or amendment, the affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of the votes entitled to be cast shall be required to approve such matter.

(b) Continuing Directors. “Continuing Directors” means (i) the directors identified in Section 4.1, (ii) the directors whose nomination for election by the stockholders or whose election by the directors to fill vacancies is approved by a majority of the directors identified in Section 4.1, who are on the Board of Directors at the time of the nomination or election , as applicable, or (iii) any successor directors whose nomination for election by the stockholders or whose election by the directors to fill vacancies is approved by a majority of the Continuing Directors or successor Continuing Directors, who are on the Board of Directors at the time of the nomination or election, as applicable.

ARTICLE VII.

LIMITATION OF LIABILITY; INDEMNIFICATION AND ADVANCE OF EXPENSES

Section 7.1. Limitation of Liability. To the maximum extent that Maryland law in effect from time to time permits limitation of the liability of directors and officers of a corporation, no present or former director or officer of the Corporation shall be liable to the Corporation or its stockholders for money damages.

Section 7.2. Indemnification and Advance of Expenses. The Corporation shall have the power, to the maximum extent permitted by Maryland law in effect from time to time, to obligate itself to indemnify, and to pay or reimburse reasonable expenses in advance of final disposition of a proceeding to, (a) any individual who is a present or former director or officer of the Corporation or (b) any individual who, while a director or officer of the Corporation and at the request of the Corporation, serves or has served as a director, officer, partner or trustee of another corporation, real estate investment trust, partnership, joint venture, trust, employee benefit plan or any other enterprise from and against any claim or liability to which such person may become subject or which such person may incur by reason of his status as a present or former director or officer of the Corporation. The Corporation shall have the power, with the approval of the Board of Directors, to provide such indemnification and advancement of expenses to a person who served a predecessor of the Corporation in any of the capacities described in (a) or (b) above and to any employee or agent of the Corporation or a predecessor of the Corporation.

Section 7.3. 1940 Act. The provisions of this Article VII shall be subject to the limitations of the 1940 Act.

Section 7.4. Amendment or Repeal. Neither the amendment nor repeal of this Article VII, nor the adoption or amendment of any other provision of the charter or bylaws inconsistent with this Article VII, shall apply to or affect in any respect the applicability of the preceding this

 

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Article VII with respect to any act or failure to act which occurred prior to such amendment, repeal or adoption.

THIRD: The amendment to and restatement of the charter as hereinabove set forth have been duly advised by the Board of Directors and approved by the stockholders of the Corporation as required by law.

FOURTH: The current address of the principal office of the Corporation is as set forth in Article III of the foregoing amendment and restatement of the charter.

FIFTH: The name and address of the Corporation’s current resident agent is as set forth in Article III of the foregoing amendment and restatement of the charter.

SIXTH: The number of directors of the Corporation and the names of those currently in office are as set forth in Article IV of the foregoing amendment and restatement of the charter.

SEVENTH: The total number of shares of stock which the Corporation had authority to issue immediately prior to this amendment and restatement was 1,000,000, consisting of 1,000,000 shares of Common Stock, $.001 par value per share. The aggregate par value of all shares of stock having par value was $1,000.

EIGHTH: The total number of shares of stock which the Corporation has authority to issue pursuant to the foregoing amendment and restatement of the charter is 100 million shares of Common Stock, $.001 par value per share. The aggregate par value of all authorized shares of stock having par value is $100,000.

NINTH: The undersigned Chief Executive Officer acknowledges these Articles of Amendment and Restatement to be the corporate act of the Corporation and, as to all matters or facts required to be verified under oath, the undersigned Chief Executive Officer acknowledges that, to the best of his knowledge, information and belief, these matters and facts are true in all material respects and that this statement is made under the penalties for perjury.

[SIGNATURE PAGE FOLLOWS]

 

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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Corporation has caused these Articles of Amendment and Restatement to be signed in its name and on its behalf by its Chief Executive Officer and attested to by its Secretary on this 21^st day of March, 2011.

 

ATTEST:				PENNANTPARK SENIOR FLOATING RATE FUND INC.
/s/ Thomas J. Friedmann				/s/ Arthur H. Penn		(SEAL)
Thomas J. Friedmann Secretary				Arthur H. Penn Chief Executive Officer

Exhibit (b)

PENNANTPARK FLOATING RATE CAPITAL LTD.

AMENDED AND RESTATED BYLAWS

ARTICLE I

OFFICES

Section 1. PRINCIPAL OFFICE. The principal office of the Corporation in the State of Maryland shall be located at such place as the Board of Directors may designate.

Section 2. ADDITIONAL OFFICES. The Corporation may have additional offices, including a principal executive office, at such places as the Board of Directors may from time to time determine or the business of the Corporation may require.

ARTICLE II

MEETINGS OF STOCKHOLDERS

Section 1. PLACE. All meetings of stockholders shall be held at the principal executive office of the Corporation or at such other place as shall be set by the Board of Directors and stated in the notice of the meeting.

Section 2. ANNUAL MEETING. An annual meeting of the stockholders for the election of directors and the transaction of any business within the powers of the Corporation shall be held on a date and at the time set by the Board of Directors.

Section 3. SPECIAL MEETINGS. The chairman of the board, president, chief executive officer or Board of Directors may call a special meeting of the stockholders. A special meeting of stockholders shall also be called by the secretary of the Corporation upon the written request of stockholders entitled to cast not less than a majority of all the votes entitled to be cast at such meeting. Such request shall state the purpose of such meeting and the matters proposed to be acted on at such meeting. The secretary shall inform such stockholders of the reasonably estimated cost of preparing and mailing notice of the meeting and, upon payment to the Corporation by such stockholders of such costs, the secretary shall give notice to each stockholder entitled to notice of the meeting.

Section 4. NOTICE. Not less than 10 days nor more than 90 days before each meeting of stockholders, the secretary shall give to each stockholder entitled to vote at such meeting and to each stockholder not entitled to vote who is entitled to notice of the meeting written or printed notice stating the time and place of the meeting and, in the case of a special meeting or as otherwise may be required by any statute, the purpose for which the meeting is called, either by mail, by presenting it to such stockholder personally, by leaving it at the stockholder’s residence or usual place of business or by any other means permitted by Maryland law. If mailed, such notice shall be deemed to be given when deposited in the United States mail

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addressed to the stockholder at the stockholder’s address as it appears on the records of the Corporation, with postage thereon prepaid.

Any business of the Corporation may be transacted at an annual meeting of stockholders without being specifically designated in the notice, except such business as is required by any statute to be stated in such notice. No business shall be transacted at a special meeting of stockholders except as specifically designated in the notice.

Section 5. ORGANIZATION AND CONDUCT. Every meeting of stockholders shall be conducted by an individual appointed by the Board of Directors to be chairman of the meeting or, in the absence of such appointment, by the chairman of the Board of Directors or, in the case of a vacancy in the office or absence of the chairman of the board, by one of the following officers present at the meeting: the vice chairman of the board, if there be one, the president, the vice presidents in their order of rank and seniority, or, in the absence of such officers, a chairman chosen by the stockholders by the vote of a majority of the votes cast by stockholders present in person or by proxy. The secretary, or, in the secretary’s absence, an assistant secretary, or in the absence of both the secretary and assistant secretaries, a person appointed by the Board of Directors or, in the absence of such appointment, a person appointed by the chairman of the meeting shall act as secretary. In the event that the secretary presides at a meeting of the stockholders, an assistant secretary, or in the absence of assistant secretaries, an individual appointed by the Board of Directors or the chairman of the meeting, shall record the minutes of the meeting. The order of business and all other matters of procedure at any meeting of stockholders shall be determined by the chairman of the meeting. The chairman of the meeting may prescribe such rules, regulations and procedures and take such action as, in the discretion of such chairman, are appropriate for the proper conduct of the meeting, including, without limitation, (a) restricting admission to the time set for the commencement of the meeting; (b) limiting attendance at the meeting to stockholders of record of the Corporation, their duly authorized proxies and other such individuals as the chairman of the meeting may determine; (c) limiting participation at the meeting on any matter to stockholders of record of the Corporation entitled to vote on such matter, their duly authorized proxies and other such individuals as the chairman of the meeting may determine; (d) limiting the time allotted to questions or comments by participants; (e) maintaining order and security at the meeting; (f) removing any stockholder or any other individual who refuses to comply with meeting procedures, rules or guidelines as set forth by the chairman of the meeting; and (g) recessing or adjourning the meeting to a later date and time and place announced at the meeting. Unless otherwise determined by the chairman of the meeting, meetings of stockholders shall not be required to be held in accordance with the rules of parliamentary procedure.

Section 6. QUORUM. At any meeting of stockholders, the presence in person or by proxy of stockholders entitled to cast a majority of all the votes entitled to be cast at such meeting shall constitute a quorum; but this section shall not affect any requirement under any statute or the charter of the Corporation for the vote necessary for the adoption of any measure. If, however, such quorum shall not be present at any meeting of the stockholders, the chairman of the meeting or the stockholders entitled to vote at such meeting, present in person or by proxy, shall have the power to adjourn the meeting from time to time to a date not more than 120 days after the original record date without notice other than announcement at the meeting.

 

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At such adjourned meeting at which a quorum shall be present, any business may be transacted which might have been transacted at the meeting as originally notified.

The stockholders present either in person or by proxy, at a meeting which has been duly called and convened, may continue to transact business until adjournment, notwithstanding the withdrawal of enough stockholders to leave less than a quorum.

Section 7. VOTING. A plurality of all the votes cast at a meeting of stockholders duly called and at which a quorum is present shall be sufficient to elect a director. Each share may be voted for as many individuals as there are directors to be elected and for whose election the share is entitled to be voted. A majority of the votes cast at a meeting of stockholders duly called and at which a quorum is present shall be sufficient to approve any other matter which may properly come before the meeting, unless more than a majority of the votes cast is required by statute or by the charter of the Corporation. Unless otherwise provided in the charter, each outstanding share, regardless of class, shall be entitled to one vote on each matter submitted to a vote at a meeting of stockholders.

Section 8. PROXIES. A stockholder may cast the votes entitled to be cast by the shares of stock owned of record by the stockholder in person or by proxy executed by the stockholder or by the stockholder’s duly authorized agent in any manner permitted by law. Such proxy or evidence of authorization of such proxy shall be filed with the secretary of the Corporation before or at the meeting. No proxy shall be valid more than eleven months after its date unless otherwise provided in the proxy.

Section 9. VOTING OF STOCK BY CERTAIN HOLDERS. Stock of the Corporation registered in the name of a corporation, partnership, trust or other entity, if entitled to be voted, may be voted by the president or a vice president, a general partner or trustee thereof, as the case may be, or a proxy appointed by any of the foregoing individuals, unless some other person who has been appointed to vote such stock pursuant to a bylaw or a resolution of the governing body of such corporation or other entity or agreement of the partners of a partnership presents a certified copy of such bylaw, resolution or agreement, in which case such person may vote such stock. Any director or other fiduciary may vote stock registered in his or her name as such fiduciary, either in person or by proxy.

Shares of stock of the Corporation directly or indirectly owned by it shall not be voted at any meeting and shall not be counted in determining the total number of outstanding shares entitled to be voted at any given time, unless they are held by it in a fiduciary capacity, in which case they may be voted and shall be counted in determining the total number of outstanding shares at any given time.

The Board of Directors may adopt by resolution a procedure by which a stockholder may certify in writing to the Corporation that any shares of stock registered in the name of the stockholder are held for the account of a specified person other than the stockholder. The resolution shall set forth the class of stockholders who may make the certification, the purpose for which the certification may be made, the form of certification and the information to be contained in it; if the certification is with respect to a record date or closing of the stock

 

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transfer books, the time after the record date or closing of the stock transfer books within which the certification must be received by the Corporation; and any other provisions with respect to the procedure which the Board of Directors considers necessary or desirable. On receipt of such certification, the person specified in the certification shall be regarded as, for the purposes set forth in the certification, the stockholder of record of the specified stock in place of the stockholder who makes the certification.

Section 10. INSPECTORS. The Board of Directors, in advance of any meeting, may, but need not, appoint one or more individual inspectors or one or more entities that designate individuals as inspectors to act at the meeting or any adjournment thereof. If an inspector or inspectors are not appointed, the person presiding at the meeting may, but need not, appoint one or more inspectors. In case any person who may be appointed as an inspector fails to appear or act, the vacancy may be filled by appointment made by the Board of Directors in advance of the meeting or at the meeting by the chairman of the meeting. The inspectors, if any, shall determine the number of shares outstanding and the voting power of each, the shares represented at the meeting, the existence of a quorum, the validity and effect of proxies, and shall receive votes, ballots or consents, hear and determine all challenges and questions arising in connection with the right to vote, count and tabulate all votes, ballots or consents, determine the result, and do such acts as are proper to conduct the election or vote with fairness to all stockholders. Each such report shall be in writing and signed by him or her or by a majority of them if there is more than one inspector acting at such meeting. If there is more than one inspector, the report of a majority shall be the report of the inspectors. The report of the inspector or inspectors on the number of shares represented at the meeting and the results of the voting shall be prima facie evidence thereof.

Section 11. VOTING BY BALLOT. Voting on any question or in any election may be viva voce unless the presiding officer shall order or any stockholder shall demand that voting be by ballot.

Section 12. EXEMPTION FROM CONTROL SHARE ACQUISITION ACT. Notwithstanding any other provision of these Bylaws, Subtitle 7 of Title 3 of the Maryland General Corporation Law, or any successor statute (the “MGCL”), shall not apply to any acquisition by any person of shares of stock of the Corporation. This section may be repealed, in whole or in part, at any time, whether before or after an acquisition of control shares and, upon such repeal, may, to the extent provided by any successor bylaw, apply to any prior or subsequent control share acquisition.

ARTICLE III

DIRECTORS

Section 1. GENERAL POWERS. The business and affairs of the Corporation shall be managed under the direction of its Board of Directors.

Section 2. NUMBER, TENURE AND QUALIFICATIONS. At any regular meeting or at any special meeting called for that purpose, a majority of the entire Board of

 

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Directors may establish, increase or decrease the number of directors, provided that the number thereof shall never be less than the minimum number required by the MGCL, nor more than 15, and further provided that the tenure of office of a director shall not be affected by any decrease in the number of directors.

Section 3. ANNUAL AND REGULAR MEETINGS. An annual meeting of the Board of Directors shall be held immediately after and at the same place as the annual meeting of stockholders, no notice other than this Bylaw being necessary. In the event such meeting is not so held, the meeting may be held at such time and place as shall be specified in a notice given as hereinafter provided for special meetings of the Board of Directors.

Section 4. SPECIAL MEETINGS. Special meetings of the Board of Directors may be called by or at the request of the chairman of the board, the chief executive officer, the president or by a majority of the directors then in office. The person or persons authorized to call special meetings of the Board of Directors may fix any place as the place for holding any special meeting of the Board of Directors called by them. The Board of Directors may provide, by resolution, the time and place for the holding of special meetings of the Board of Directors without other notice than such resolution.

Section 5. NOTICE. Notice of any special meeting of the Board of Directors shall be delivered personally or by telephone, electronic mail, facsimile transmission, United States mail or courier to each director at his or her business or residence address. Notice by personal delivery, telephone, electronic mail or facsimile transmission shall be given at least 24 hours prior to the meeting. Notice by United States mail shall be given at least three days prior to the meeting. Notice by courier shall be given at least two days prior to the meeting. Telephone notice shall be deemed to be given when the director or his or her agent is personally given such notice in a telephone call to which the director or his or her agent is a party. Electronic mail notice shall be deemed to be given upon transmission of the message to the electronic mail address given to the Corporation by the director. Facsimile transmission notice shall be deemed to be given upon completion of the transmission of the message to the number given to the Corporation by the director and receipt of a completed answer-back indicating receipt. Notice by United States mail shall be deemed to be given when deposited in the United States mail properly addressed, with postage thereon prepaid. Notice by courier shall be deemed to be given when deposited with or delivered to a courier properly addressed. Neither the business to be transacted at, nor the purpose of, any annual, regular or special meeting of the Board of Directors need be stated in the notice, unless specifically required by statute or these bylaws.

Section 6. QUORUM. A majority of the directors shall constitute a quorum for transaction of business at any meeting of the Board of Directors, provided that, if less than a majority of such directors are present at said meeting, a majority of the directors present may adjourn the meeting from time to time without further notice, and provided further that if, pursuant to the charter of the Corporation or these Bylaws, the vote of a majority of a particular group of directors is required for action, a quorum must also include a majority of such group.

 

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The directors present at a meeting which has been duly called and convened may continue to transact business until adjournment, notwithstanding the withdrawal of enough directors to leave less than a quorum.

Section 7. VOTING. The action of the majority of the directors present at a meeting at which a quorum is present shall be the action of the Board of Directors, unless the concurrence of a greater proportion is required for such action by applicable statute or the charter. If enough directors have withdrawn from a meeting to leave less than a quorum but the meeting is not adjourned, the action of the majority of that number of directors necessary to constitute a quorum at such meeting shall be the action of the Board of Directors, unless the concurrence of a greater proportion is required for such action by applicable statute or the charter.

Section 8. ORGANIZATION. At each meeting of the Board of Directors, the chairman of the board or, in the absence of the chairman, the vice chairman of the board, if any, shall act as chairman. In the absence of both the chairman and vice chairman of the board, the chief executive officer or in the absence of the chief executive officer, the president or in the absence of the president, a director chosen by a majority of the directors present, shall act as chairman. The secretary or, in his or her absence, an assistant secretary of the Corporation, or in the absence of the secretary and all assistant secretaries, a person appointed by the chairman, shall act as secretary of the meeting.

Section 9. TELEPHONE MEETINGS. Directors may participate in a meeting by means of a conference telephone or similar communications equipment if all persons participating in the meeting can hear each other at the same time. Participation in a meeting by these means shall constitute presence in person at the meeting.

Section 10. CONSENT BY DIRECTORS. Any action required or permitted to be taken at any meeting of the Board of Directors may be taken without a meeting, if a consent to such action is given in writing or by electronic transmission by each director and is filed with the minutes of proceedings of the Board of Directors.

Section 11. VACANCIES. If for any reason any or all the directors cease to be directors, such event shall not terminate the Corporation or affect these Bylaws or the powers of the remaining directors hereunder. Any vacancy on the Board of Directors for any cause other than an increase in the number of directors shall be filled by a majority of the remaining directors, even if such majority is less than a quorum. Any vacancy in the number of directors created by an increase in the number of directors may be filled by a majority vote of the entire Board of Directors. Any individual so elected as director shall serve until the next annual meeting of stockholders and until his or her successor is elected and qualifies.

Section 12. COMPENSATION. Directors shall not receive any stated salary for their services as directors but, by resolution of the Board of Directors, may receive compensation per year and/or per meeting and/or per visit to real property or other facilities owned or leased by the Corporation and for any service or activity they performed or engaged in as directors. Directors may be reimbursed for expenses of attendance, if any, at each annual,

 

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regular or special meeting of the Board of Directors or of any committee thereof and for their expenses, if any, in connection with each property visit and any other service or activity they performed or engaged in as directors; but nothing herein contained shall be construed to preclude any directors from serving the Corporation in any other capacity and receiving compensation therefor.

Section 13. LOSS OF DEPOSITS. No director shall be liable for any loss which may occur by reason of the failure of the bank, trust company, savings and loan association, or other institution with whom moneys or stock have been deposited.

Section 14. SURETY BONDS. Unless required by law, no director shall be obligated to give any bond or surety or other security for the performance of any of his or her duties.

Section 15. RELIANCE. Each director, officer, employee and agent of the Corporation shall, in the performance of his or her duties with respect to the Corporation, be fully justified and protected with regard to any act or failure to act in reliance in good faith upon the books of account or other records of the Corporation, upon an opinion of counsel or upon reports made to the Corporation by any of its officers or employees or by the adviser, accountants, appraisers or other experts or consultants selected by the Board of Directors or officers of the Corporation, regardless of whether such counsel or expert may also be a director.

Section 16. CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD. The Board of Directors shall designate a chairman of the board, who shall not, solely by reason of such designation, be an officer of the Corporation. The chairman of the board shall preside over the meetings of the Board of Directors and of the stockholders at which he shall be present. The chairman of the board shall perform such other duties as may be assigned to him or her by the Board of Directors.

ARTICLE IV

COMMITTEES

Section 1. NUMBER, TENURE AND QUALIFICATIONS. The Board of Directors may appoint from among its members an Executive Committee, an Audit Committee, a Compensation Committee and other committees, composed of one or more directors, to serve at the pleasure of the Board of Directors.

Section 2. POWERS. The Board of Directors may delegate to committees appointed under Section 1 of this Article any of the powers of the Board of Directors, except as prohibited by law.

Section 3. MEETINGS. Notice of committee meetings shall be given in the same manner as notice for special meetings of the Board of Directors. A majority of the members of the committee shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business at any

 

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meeting of the committee. The act of a majority of the committee members present at a meeting shall be the act of such committee. The Board of Directors may designate a chairman of any committee, and such chairman or, in the absence of a chairman, any two members of any committee (if there are at least two members of the committee) may fix the time and place of its meeting unless the Board shall otherwise provide. In the absence of any member of any such committee, the members thereof present at any meeting, whether or not they constitute a quorum, may appoint another director to act in the place of such absent member. Each committee shall keep minutes of its proceedings.

Section 4. TELEPHONE MEETINGS. Members of a committee of the Board of Directors may participate in a meeting by means of a conference telephone or similar communications equipment if all persons participating in the meeting can hear each other at the same time. Participation in a meeting by these means shall constitute presence in person at the meeting.

Section 5. CONSENT BY COMMITTEES. Any action required or permitted to be taken at any meeting of a committee of the Board of Directors may be taken without a meeting, if a consent to such action is given in writing or by electronic transmission by each member of the committee and such consent is filed with the minutes of proceedings of such committee.

Section 6. VACANCIES. Subject to the provisions hereof, the Board of Directors shall have the power at any time to change the membership of any committee, to fill all vacancies, to designate alternate members to replace any absent or disqualified member or to dissolve any such committee.

ARTICLE V

OFFICERS

Section 1. GENERAL PROVISIONS. The officers of the Corporation shall include a president, a secretary and a treasurer and may include a chief executive officer, one or more vice presidents, a chief operating officer, a chief financial officer, one or more assistant secretaries and one or more assistant treasurers. In addition, the Board of Directors may from time to time elect such other officers with such powers and duties as they shall deem necessary or desirable. The officers of the Corporation shall be elected annually by the Board of Directors, except that the chief executive officer or president may from time to time appoint one or more vice presidents, assistant secretaries and assistant treasurers or other officers. Each officer shall hold office until his or her successor is elected and qualifies or until his or her death, or his or her resignation or removal in the manner hereinafter provided. Any two or more offices except president and vice president may be held by the same person. Election of an officer or agent shall not of itself create contract rights between the Corporation and such officer or agent.

Section 2. REMOVAL AND RESIGNATION. Any officer or agent of the Corporation may be removed, with or without cause, by the Board of Directors if in its judgment the best interests of the Corporation would be served thereby, but such removal shall be without

 

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prejudice to the contract rights, if any, of the person so removed. Any officer of the Corporation may resign at any time by giving written notice of his or her resignation to the Board of Directors, the chairman of the board, the president or the secretary. Any resignation shall take effect immediately upon its receipt or at such later time specified in the notice of resignation. The acceptance of a resignation shall not be necessary to make it effective unless otherwise stated in the resignation. Such resignation shall be without prejudice to the contract rights, if any, of the Corporation.

Section 3. VACANCIES. A vacancy in any office may be filled by the Board of Directors for the balance of the term.

Section 4. CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER. The Board of Directors may designate a chief executive officer. The chief executive officer shall have general responsibility for implementation of the policies of the Corporation, as determined by the Board of Directors, and for the management of the business and affairs of the Corporation.

Section 5. CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER. The Board of Directors may designate a chief operating officer. The chief operating officer shall have the responsibilities and duties as set forth by the Board of Directors or the chief executive officer.

Section 6. CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER. The Board of Directors may designate a chief financial officer. The chief financial officer shall have the responsibilities and duties as set forth by the Board of Directors or the chief executive officer.

Section 7. PRESIDENT. In the absence of a chief executive officer, the president shall in general supervise and control all of the business and affairs of the Corporation. In the absence of a designation of a chief operating officer by the Board of Directors, the president shall be the chief operating officer. He may execute any deed, mortgage, bond, contract or other instrument, except in cases where the execution thereof shall be expressly delegated by the Board of Directors or by these bylaws to some other officer or agent of the Corporation or shall be required by law to be otherwise executed; and in general shall perform all duties incident to the office of president and such other duties as may be prescribed by the Board of Directors from time to time.

Section 8. VICE PRESIDENTS. In the absence of the president or in the event of a vacancy in such office, the vice president (or in the event there be more than one vice president, the vice presidents in the order designated at the time of their election or, in the absence of any designation, then in the order of their election) shall perform the duties of the president and when so acting shall have all the powers of and be subject to all the restrictions upon the president; and shall perform such other duties as from time to time may be assigned to such vice president by the president or by the Board of Directors. The Board of Directors may designate one or more vice presidents as executive vice president or as vice president for particular areas of responsibility.

Section 9. SECRETARY. The secretary shall (a) keep the minutes of the proceedings of the stockholders, the Board of Directors and committees of the Board of

 

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Directors in one or more books provided for that purpose; (b) see that all notices are duly given in accordance with the provisions of these bylaws or as required by law; (c) be custodian of the corporate records and of the seal of the Corporation; (d) keep a register of the post office address of each stockholder which shall be furnished to the secretary by such stockholder; (e) have general charge of the stock transfer books of the Corporation; and (f) in general perform such other duties as from time to time may be assigned to him by the chief executive officer, the president or by the Board of Directors.

Section 10. TREASURER. The treasurer shall keep full and accurate accounts of receipts and disbursements in books belonging to the Corporation and shall deposit all moneys and other valuable effects in the name and to the credit of the Corporation in such depositories as may be designated by the Board of Directors. In the absence of a designation of a chief financial officer by the Board of Directors, the treasurer shall be the chief financial officer of the Corporation.

The treasurer shall disburse the funds of the Corporation as may be ordered by the Board of Directors, taking proper vouchers for such disbursements, and shall render to the president and Board of Directors, at the regular meetings of the Board of Directors or whenever it may so require, an account of all his or her transactions as treasurer and of the financial condition of the Corporation.

Section 11. ASSISTANT SECRETARIES AND ASSISTANT TREASURERS. The assistant secretaries and assistant treasurers, in general, shall perform such duties as shall be assigned to them by the secretary or treasurer, respectively, or by the president or the Board of Directors. The assistant treasurers shall, if required by the Board of Directors, give bonds for the faithful performance of their duties in such sums and with such surety or sureties as shall be satisfactory to the Board of Directors.

Section 12. SALARIES. The salaries and other compensation of the officers shall be fixed from time to time by the Board of Directors and no officer shall be prevented from receiving such salary or other compensation by reason of the fact that he is also a director.

ARTICLE VI

CONTRACTS, LOANS, CHECKS AND DEPOSITS

Section 1. CONTRACTS. The Board of Directors may authorize any officer or agent to enter into any contract or to execute and deliver any instrument in the name of and on behalf of the Corporation and such authority may be general or confined to specific instances. Any agreement, deed, mortgage, lease or other document shall be valid and binding upon the Corporation when authorized or ratified by action of the Board of Directors and executed by an authorized person.

Section 2. CHECKS AND DRAFTS. All checks, drafts or other orders for the payment of money, notes or other evidences of indebtedness issued in the name of the

 

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Corporation shall be signed by such officer or agent of the Corporation in such manner as shall from time to time be determined by the Board of Directors.

Section 3. DEPOSITS. All funds of the Corporation not otherwise employed shall be deposited from time to time to the credit of the Corporation in such banks, trust companies or other depositories as the Board of Directors may designate.

ARTICLE VII

STOCK

Section 1. CERTIFICATES; REQUIRED INFORMATION. Except as may be otherwise provided by the Board of Directors, stockholders of the Corporation are not entitled to certificates representing the shares of stock held by them. In the event that the Corporation issues shares of stock represented by certificates, such certificates shall be signed by the officers of the Corporation in the manner permitted by the MGCL and contain the statements and information required by the MGCL. There shall be no differences in the rights and obligations of stockholders based on whether or not their shares are represented by certificates.

Section 2. TRANSFERS WHEN CERTIFICATES ISSUED. Subject to any determination of the Board of Directors pursuant to Section 1 of this Article, upon surrender to the Corporation or the transfer agent of the Corporation of a stock certificate duly endorsed or accompanied by proper evidence of succession, assignment or authority to transfer, the Corporation shall issue a new certificate to the person entitled thereto, cancel the old certificate and record the transaction upon its books.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, transfers of shares of any class of stock will be subject in all respects to the charter of the Corporation and all of the terms and conditions contained therein.

Section 3. REPLACEMENT CERTIFICATE. Subject to any determination of the Board of Directors pursuant to Section 1 of this Article, any officer designated by the Board of Directors may direct a new certificate to be issued in place of any certificate previously issued by the Corporation alleged to have been lost, stolen or destroyed upon the making of an affidavit of that fact by the person claiming the certificate to be lost, stolen or destroyed. When authorizing the issuance of a new certificate, an officer designated by the Board of Directors may, in his or her discretion and as a condition precedent to the issuance thereof, require the owner of such lost, stolen or destroyed certificate or the owner’s legal representative to advertise the same in such manner as he shall require and/or to give bond, with sufficient surety, to the Corporation to indemnify it against any loss or claim which may arise as a result of the issuance of a new certificate.

Section 4. FIXING OF RECORD DATE. The Board of Directors may set, in advance, a record date for the purpose of determining stockholders entitled to notice of or to vote at any meeting of stockholders or determining stockholders entitled to receive payment of any dividend or the allotment of any other rights, or in order to make a determination of stockholders

 

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for any other proper purpose. Such date, in any case, shall not be prior to the close of business on the day the record date is fixed and shall be not more than 90 days and, in the case of a meeting of stockholders, not less than ten days, before the date on which the meeting or particular action requiring such determination of stockholders of record is to be held or taken.

If no record date is fixed, (a) the record date for the determination of stockholders entitled to notice of or to vote at a meeting of stockholders shall be at the close of business on the day on which the notice of meeting is mailed or the 30th day before the meeting, whichever is the closer date to the meeting; and (b) the record date for the determination of stockholders entitled to receive payment of a dividend or an allotment of any other rights shall be the close of business on the day on which the resolution of the directors, declaring the dividend or allotment of rights, is adopted.

When a determination of stockholders entitled to vote at any meeting of stockholders has been made as provided in this section, such determination shall apply to any adjournment thereof, except when the meeting is adjourned to a date more than 120 days after the record date fixed for the original meeting, in which case a new record date shall be determined as set forth herein.

Section 5. STOCK LEDGER. The Corporation shall maintain at its principal office or at the office of its counsel, accountants or transfer agent, an original or duplicate share ledger containing the name and address of each stockholder and the number of shares of each class held by such stockholder.

Section 6. FRACTIONAL STOCK; ISSUANCE OF UNITS. The Board of Directors may issue fractional stock or provide for the issuance of scrip, all on such terms and under such conditions as they may determine. Notwithstanding any other provision of the charter or these bylaws, the Board of Directors may issue units consisting of different securities of the Corporation. Any security issued in a unit shall have the same characteristics as any identical securities issued by the Corporation, except that the Board of Directors may provide that for a specified period securities of the Corporation issued in such unit may be transferred on the books of the Corporation only in such unit.

ARTICLE VIII

ACCOUNTING YEAR

The Board of Directors shall have the power, from time to time, to fix the fiscal year of the Corporation by a duly adopted resolution.

 

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ARTICLE IX

DISTRIBUTIONS

Section 1. AUTHORIZATION. Dividends and other distributions upon the stock of the Corporation may be authorized by the Board of Directors, subject to the provisions of law and the charter of the Corporation. Dividends and other distributions may be paid in cash, property or stock of the Corporation, subject to the provisions of law and the charter.

Section 2. CONTINGENCIES. Before payment of any dividends or other distributions, there may be set aside out of any assets of the Corporation available for dividends or other distributions such sum or sums as the Board of Directors may from time to time, in its absolute discretion, think proper as a reserve fund for contingencies, for equalizing dividends or other distributions, for repairing or maintaining any property of the Corporation or for such other purpose as the Board of Directors shall determine to be in the best interest of the Corporation, and the Board of Directors may modify or abolish any such reserve.

ARTICLE X

INVESTMENT POLICY

Subject to applicable law and the provisions of the charter of the Corporation, the Board of Directors may from time to time adopt, amend, revise or terminate any policy or policies with respect to investments by the Corporation as it shall deem appropriate in its sole discretion.

ARTICLE XI

SEAL

Section 1. SEAL. The Board of Directors may authorize the adoption of a seal by the Corporation. The seal shall contain the name of the Corporation and the year of its incorporation and the words “Incorporated Maryland.” The Board of Directors may authorize one or more duplicate seals and provide for the custody thereof.

Section 2. AFFIXING SEAL. Whenever the Corporation is permitted or required to affix its seal to a document, it shall be sufficient to meet the requirements of any law, rule or regulation relating to a seal to place the word “(SEAL)” adjacent to the signature of the person authorized to execute the document on behalf of the Corporation.

 

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ARTICLE XII

INDEMNIFICATION AND ADVANCE OF EXPENSES

To the maximum extent permitted by Maryland law in effect from time to time, the Corporation shall indemnify and, without requiring a preliminary determination of the ultimate entitlement to indemnification, shall pay or reimburse reasonable expenses in advance of final disposition of a proceeding to (a) any individual who is a present or former director or officer of the Corporation and who is made a party to the proceeding by reason of his or her service in that capacity or (b) any individual who, while a director of the Corporation and at the request of the Corporation, serves or has served as a director, officer, partner or trustee of such corporation, real estate investment trust, partnership, joint venture, trust, employee benefit plan or other enterprise and who is made a party to the proceeding by reason of his or her service in that capacity. The rights to indemnification and advance of expenses provided by the charter of the Corporation and these bylaws shall vest immediately upon the election of a director or officer. The Corporation may, with the approval of its Board of Directors, provide such indemnification and advance for expenses to a person who served a predecessor of the Corporation in any of the capacities described in (a) or (b) above and to any employee or agent of the Corporation or a predecessor of the Corporation. Any indemnification or advance of expenses made pursuant to this Article XII shall be subject to applicable requirements of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended.

Neither the amendment nor repeal of this Article, nor the adoption or amendment of any other provision of the bylaws or charter of the Corporation inconsistent with this Article, shall apply to or affect in any respect the applicability of the preceding paragraph with respect to any act or failure to act which occurred prior to such amendment, repeal or adoption.

ARTICLE XIII

WAIVER OF NOTICE

Whenever any notice is required to be given pursuant to the charter of the Corporation or these bylaws or pursuant to applicable law, a waiver thereof in writing, signed by the person or persons entitled to such notice, whether before or after the time stated therein, shall be deemed equivalent to the giving of such notice. Neither the business to be transacted at nor the purpose of any meeting need be set forth in the waiver of notice, unless specifically required by statute. The attendance of any person at any meeting shall constitute a waiver of notice of such meeting, except where such person attends a meeting for the express purpose of objecting to the transaction of any business on the ground that the meeting is not lawfully called or convened.

 

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ARTICLE XIV

AMENDMENT OF BYLAWS

The Board of Directors shall have the exclusive power, at any time, to adopt, alter or repeal any provision of these bylaws and to make new bylaws.

 

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Exhibit (e)

DIVIDEND REINVESTMENT PLAN

OF

PENNANTPARK FLOATING RATE CAPITAL LTD.

PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd., a Maryland corporation (the “Corporation”), hereby adopts the following plan (the “Plan”) with respect to distributions declared by its Board of Directors on shares of its common stock, $.001 par value per share (“Common Stock”):

1. Unless a stockholder specifically elects to receive cash as set forth below, all distributions hereafter declared by the Board of Directors, net of any applicable withholding tax, shall be payable in shares of the Common Stock of the Corporation, and no action shall be required on such stockholder’s part to receive a distribution in stock.

2. Such distributions shall be payable on such date or dates as may be fixed from time to time by the Board of Directors to stockholders of record at the close of business on the record date established by the Board of Directors for the distribution involved.

3. With respect to each distribution pursuant to this Plan, the Board of Directors reserves the right, subject to the provisions of the Investment Company Act of 1940, to determine whether to issue newly-issued shares of its Common Stock or to make open market purchases of its shares for the account of Plan Participants (as hereinafter defined). However, if no determination is made otherwise, in the event the market price of the Corporation’s Common Stock without regard to any applicable brokerage commission is equal to or exceeds the net asset value per share on the valuation date fixed by the Board of Directors for such distribution (“Valuation Date”), the Corporation will use newly-issued shares of its Common Stock valued at the then current market price. If no determination is made otherwise, in the event the net asset value per share of the Common Stock on the Valuation Date exceeds the market price of the Common Stock at such time without regard to any applicable brokerage commission, the Plan Administrator will purchase shares in the open market for the account of Participants. The market price per share of the Corporation’s Common Stock on a particular date shall be the closing price for such shares on the NASDAQ Global Market or NASDAQ Global Select Market on such date or, if no sale is reported for such date, at the average of their reported bid and asked prices. The net asset value per share of the Corporation’s Common Stock on a particular date shall be as determined by or on behalf of the Corporation.

4. The Plan Administrator will set up an account for shares acquired pursuant to the Plan for each stockholder who has not so elected to receive distributions in cash (each a “Participant”). The Plan Administrator may hold each Participant’s shares, together with the shares of other Participants, in non-certificated form in the Plan Administrator’s name or that of its nominee. Upon request by a Participant, received in writing no later than three days prior to the record date, the Plan Administrator will, instead of crediting shares to and/or carrying shares in a Participant’s account, issue a certificate registered in the Participant’s name for the number of whole shares payable to the Participant and a check for any fractional share. The Plan Administrator is authorized to deduct a transaction fee plus a per share brokerage commission at prevailing market rates from the proceeds of the sale of any fractional share.

5. The Plan Administrator will confirm to each Participant each acquisition made pursuant to the Plan as soon as practicable but not later than 30 business days after the payable date. Although each Participant may from time to time have an undivided fractional interest (computed to three decimal places) in a share of Common Stock of the Corporation, no certificates for a fractional share

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will be issued. However, distributions on fractional shares will be credited to each Participant’s account. In the event of termination of a Participant’s account under the Plan, the Plan Administrator will adjust for any such undivided fractional interest in cash at the market value of the Corporation’s shares at the time of termination.

6. The Plan Administrator will forward to each Participant any Corporation related proxy solicitation materials and each Corporation report or other communication to stockholders, and will vote any shares held by it under the Plan in accordance with the instructions set forth on proxies returned by Participants to the Corporation.

7. In the event that the Corporation makes available to its stockholders rights to purchase additional shares or other securities, the shares held by the Plan Administrator for each Participant under the Plan will be added to any other shares held by the Participant in certificated form in calculating the number of rights to be issued to the Participant. Transaction processing may be either curtailed or suspended until the completion of any stock dividend, stock split or corporate action.

8. The Plan Administrator’s service fee, if any, and expenses for administering the Plan will be paid for by the Corporation. However, each Participant will pay a pro rata share of brokerage commissions incurred with respect to the Plan Administrator’s open market purchases in connection with the reinvestment of distributions.

9. Each Participant may terminate his or its account under the Plan by so notifying the Plan Administrator via the Plan Administrator’s website at www.amstock.com, by filling out the transaction request form located at the bottom of the Participant’s Statement and sending it to American Stock Transfer & Trust Company, PO Box 922, Wall Street Station, New York, NY 10269-0560 or by calling the Plan Administrator’s Interactive Voice Response System at 1-888-777-0324. Such termination will be effective immediately if the Participant’s notice is received by the Plan Administrator at least three days prior to any distribution record date; otherwise, such termination will be effective only with respect to any subsequent distribution. The Plan may be terminated or amended by the Corporation upon notice in writing mailed to each Participant at least 30 days prior to any record date for the payment of any distribution by the Corporation. Upon any termination, the Plan Administrator will cause a certificate or certificates to be issued for the full shares held for the Participant under the Plan and a cash adjustment for any fractional share to be delivered to the Participant without charge to the Participant. If a Participant elects by his or its written notice to the Plan Administrator in advance of termination to have the Plan Administrator sell part or all of his or its shares and remit the proceeds to the Participant, the Plan Administrator is authorized to deduct a transaction fee plus a per share brokerage commission at prevailing market rates from the proceeds.

10. These terms and conditions may be amended or supplemented by the Corporation at any time but, except when necessary or appropriate to comply with applicable law or the rules or policies of the Securities and Exchange Commission or any other regulatory authority, only by mailing to each Participant appropriate written notice at least 30 days prior to the effective date thereof. The amendment or supplement shall be deemed to be accepted by each Participant unless, prior to the effective date thereof, the Plan Administrator receives written notice of the termination of his or its account under the Plan. Any such amendment may include an appointment by the Plan Administrator in its place and stead of a successor agent under these terms and conditions, with full power and authority to perform all or any of the acts to be performed by the Plan Administrator under these terms and conditions. Upon any such appointment of any agent for the purpose of

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receiving distributions, the Corporation will be authorized to pay to such successor agent, for each Participant’s account, all distributions payable on shares of the Corporation held in the Participant’s name or under the Plan for retention or application by such successor agent as provided in these terms and conditions.

11. The Plan Administrator will at all times act in good faith and use its best efforts within reasonable limits to ensure its full and timely performance of all services to be performed by it with respect to purchases and sales of the Corporation’s Common Stock under this Plan and to comply with applicable law, but assumes no responsibility and shall not be liable for loss or damage due to errors unless such error is caused by the Plan Administrator’s negligence, bad faith, or willful misconduct or that of its employees or agents.

12. These terms and conditions shall be governed by the laws of the State of New York.

March 10, 2011

Exhibit (g)

INVESTMENT ADVISORY MANAGEMENT AGREEMENT

BETWEEN

PENNANTPARK FLOATING RATE CAPITAL LTD.

AND

PENNANTPARK INVESTMENT ADVISERS, LLC

AGREEMENT (this “Agreement”) made this [    ]^th day of [March], 2011, by and between PENNANTPARK FLOATING RATE CAPITAL LTD., a Maryland corporation (the “Corporation”), and PENNANTPARK INVESTMENT ADVISERS, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company (the “Adviser”).

WHEREAS, the Corporation is a newly organized corporation that will operate as a closed-end management investment company;

WHEREAS, the Corporation has filed a registration statement on Form N-2 (the “Registration Statement”) to register shares of its common stock for issuance in an initial public offering (the “Offering”);

WHEREAS, prior to the effectiveness of the Registration Statement, the Corporation intends to file an election to be treated as a business development company under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”); and

WHEREAS, the Corporation desires to retain the Adviser to furnish investment advisory services to the Corporation prior to the Offering on the terms and conditions hereinafter set forth, and the Adviser wishes to be retained to provide such services.

NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the premises and for other good and valuable consideration, the parties hereby agree as follows:

 

1.

Duties of the Adviser.

(a) The Corporation hereby employs the Adviser to act as the investment adviser to the Corporation and to manage the investment and reinvestment of the assets of the Corporation, subject to the supervision of the Board of Directors of the Corporation, for the period and upon the terms herein set forth, (i) in accordance with the investment objective, policies and restrictions that are set forth in the Registration Statement, dated [            ], 2011, as the same may be amended from time to time, (ii) in accordance with the 1940 Act and (iii) during the term of this Agreement in accordance with all other applicable federal and state laws, rules and regulations, and the Corporation’s charter and by-laws. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the Adviser shall, during the term and subject to the provisions of this Agreement, (i) determine the composition of the portfolio of the Corporation, the nature and timing of the

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changes therein and the manner of implementing such changes; (ii) identify, evaluate and negotiate the structure of the investments made by the Corporation; (iii) close and monitor the Corporation’s investments; determine the securities and other assets that the Corporation will purchase, retain, or sell; perform due diligence on prospective portfolio companies; and (vi) provide the Corporation with such other investment advisory, research and related services as the Corporation may, from time to time, reasonably require for the investment of its funds. The Adviser shall have the power and authority on behalf of the Corporation to effectuate its investment decisions for the Corporation, including the execution and delivery of all documents relating to the Corporation’s investments and the placing of orders for other purchase or sale transactions on behalf of the Corporation. In the event that the Corporation determines to acquire debt financing, the Adviser will arrange for such financing on the Corporation’s behalf, subject to the oversight and approval of the Corporation’s Board of Directors. If it is necessary for the Adviser to make investments on behalf of the Corporation through a special purpose vehicle, the Adviser shall have authority to create or arrange for the creation of such special purpose vehicle and to make such investments through such special purpose vehicle in accordance with the 1940 Act.

(b) The Adviser hereby accepts such employment and agrees during the term hereof to render the services described herein for the compensation provided herein.

(c) Subject to the requirements of the 1940 Act, the Adviser is hereby authorized to enter into one or more sub-advisory agreements with other investment advisers (each, a “Sub-Adviser”) pursuant to which the Adviser may obtain the services of the Sub-Adviser(s) to assist the Adviser in fulfilling its responsibilities hereunder. Specifically, the Adviser may retain a Sub-Adviser to recommend specific securities or other investments based upon the Corporation’s investment objective and policies, and work, along with the Adviser, in structuring, negotiating, arranging or effecting the acquisition or disposition of such investments and monitoring investments on behalf of the Corporation, subject to the oversight of the Adviser and the Corporation. The Adviser, and not the Corporation, shall be responsible for any compensation payable to any Sub-Adviser. Any sub-advisory agreement entered into by the Adviser shall be in accordance with the requirements of the 1940 Act and other applicable federal and state law.

(d) The Adviser shall for all purposes herein provided be deemed to be an independent contractor and, except as expressly provided or authorized herein, shall have no authority to act for or represent the Corporation in any way or otherwise be deemed an agent of the Corporation.

(e) The Adviser shall keep and preserve, in the manner and for the period that would be applicable to investment companies registered under the 1940 Act any books and records relevant to the provision of its investment advisory services to the Corporation and shall specifically maintain all books and records with respect to the Corporation’s portfolio transactions and shall render to the Corporation’s Board of Directors such periodic and special reports as the Board may reasonably request. The Adviser agrees that all records that it maintains for the Corporation are the property of the Corporation and will surrender promptly to

 

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the Corporation any such records upon the Corporation’s request, provided that the Adviser may retain a copy of such records.

2. Corporation’s Responsibilities and Expenses Payable by the Corporation. All investment professionals of the Adviser and their respective staffs, when and to the extent engaged in providing investment advisory and management services hereunder, and the compensation and routine overhead expenses of such personnel allocable to such services, will be provided and paid for by the Adviser and not by the Corporation. The Corporation will bear all other costs and expenses of its operations and transactions, including (without limitation) those relating to: organization and offering; calculating the Corporation’s net asset value (including the cost and expenses of any independent valuation firm); expenses incurred by the Adviser payable to third parties, including agents, consultants or other advisors, in monitoring financial and legal affairs for the Corporation and in monitoring the Corporation’s investments and performing due diligence (including related legal expenses) on its prospective portfolio companies; interest payable on debt, if any, incurred to finance the Corporation’s investments and expenses related to unsuccessful portfolio acquisition efforts; offerings of the Corporation’s common stock and other securities; investment advisory and management fees; administration fees payable under the Administration Agreement (the “Administration Agreement”) between the Corporation and PennantPark Investment Advisers, LLC (the “Administrator”), the Corporation’s administrator; fees payable to third parties, including agents, consultants or other advisors, relating to, or associated with, evaluating and making investments, including costs associated with meeting potential financial sponsors; transfer agent and custodial fees; federal and state registration fees; all costs of registration and listing the Corporation’s shares on any securities exchange; federal, state and local taxes; independent directors’ fees and expenses; costs of preparing and filing reports or other documents required by the Securities and Exchange Commission; costs of any reports, proxy statements or other notices to stockholders, including printing costs; costs associated with individual or group stockholders; the Corporation’s allocable portion of the fidelity bond, directors and officers/errors and omissions liability insurance, and any other insurance premiums; direct costs and expenses of administration, including printing, mailing, long distance telephone, copying, secretarial and other staff, independent auditors and outside legal costs; and all other expenses incurred by the Corporation or the Administrator in connection with administering the Corporation’s business, including payments under the Administration Agreement between the Corporation and the Administrator based upon the Corporation’s allocable portion of the Administrator’s overhead in performing its obligations under the Administration Agreement, including rent and the allocable portion of the cost of the Corporation’s chief compliance officer and chief financial officer and their respective staffs.

3. Compensation of the Adviser. The Corporation agrees to pay, and the Adviser agrees to accept, as compensation for the services provided by the Adviser hereunder, a base management fee (“Base Management Fee”) and an incentive fee (“Incentive Fee”) as hereinafter set forth. The Corporation shall make any payments due hereunder to the Adviser or to the Adviser’s designee as the Adviser may otherwise direct. To the extent permitted by applicable

 

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law, the Adviser may elect, or adopt a deferred compensation plan pursuant to which it may elect, to defer all or a portion of its fees hereunder for a specified period of time.

(a) The Base Management Fee shall be calculated at an annual rate of 1.00% of the Corporation’s gross assets. For services rendered under this Agreement, the Base Management Fee will be payable quarterly in arrears. For the first calendar quarter of the Corporation’s operations, the Base Management Fee will be calculated based on the initial value of the Corporation’s gross assets. Subsequently, the Base Management Fee will be calculated based on the average value of the Corporation’s gross assets at the end of the two most recently completed calendar quarters, and appropriately adjusted for any share issuances or repurchases during the current calendar quarter. Base Management Fees for any partial month or quarter will be appropriately pro rated.

(b) The Incentive Fee shall consist of two parts, as follows:

 

(i)

One part will be calculated and payable quarterly in arrears based on the pre-Incentive Fee net investment income for the immediately preceding calendar quarter. For this purpose, pre-Incentive Fee net investment income means interest income, dividend income and any other income (including any other fees (other than fees for providing managerial assistance), such as commitment, origination, structuring, diligence and consulting fees and fees for providing significant managerial assistance or other fees that the Corporation receives from portfolio companies) accrued by the Corporation during the calendar quarter, minus the Corporation’s operating expenses for the quarter (including the Base Management Fee, expenses payable under the Corporation’s Administration Agreement to the Administrator, and any interest expense and dividends paid on any issued and outstanding preferred stock, but excluding the Incentive Fee). Pre-Incentive Fee net investment income includes, in the case of investments with a deferred interest feature (such as original issue discount, debt instruments with pay in kind interest and zero coupon securities), accrued income that we have not yet received in cash. Pre-Incentive Fee net investment income does not include any realized capital gains, realized capital losses or unrealized capital appreciation or depreciation. Pre-Incentive Fee net investment income, expressed as a rate of return on the value of the Corporation’s net assets at the end of the immediately preceding calendar quarter, will be compared to a “hurdle rate” of 1.75% per quarter (7.00% annualized). The Corporation’s net investment income used to calculate this part of the Incentive Fee is also included in the amount of its gross assets used to calculate the 1.00% Base Management Fee. The Corporation will pay the Adviser an Incentive Fee with respect to the Corporation’s pre-Incentive Fee net investment income in each calendar quarter as follows: (1) no Incentive Fee in any calendar quarter in which the Corporation’s pre-Incentive Fee net investment

 

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income does not exceed the hurdle rate of 1.75%; (2) 50% of the Corporation’s pre-Incentive Fee net investment income with respect to that portion of such pre-Incentive Fee net investment income, if any, that exceeds the hurdle rate but is less than 2.9167% in any calendar quarter (11.67% annualized); this portion of the pre-Incentive Fee net investment income (which exceeds the hurdle but is less than 2.9167%) is referred to herein as the “catch-up.” The “catch-up” is meant to provide the Adviser with approximately 20% of the Corporation’s pre-Incentive Fee net investment income as if a hurdle did not apply if this net investment income exceeds 2.9167% in any calendar quarter; and (3) 20% of the amount of the Corporation’s pre-Incentive Fee net investment income, if any, that exceeds 2.9167% in any calendar quarter (11.67% annualized) payable to the Adviser (once the hurdle is reached and the catch-up is achieved, 20% of all pre-Incentive Fee investment income thereafter is allocated to the Adviser). These calculations will be appropriately pro rated for any period of less than three months and adjusted for any share issuances or repurchases during the relevant quarter.

 

(ii)

The second part of the Incentive Fee (the “Capital Gains Fee”) will be determined and payable in arrears as of the end of each calendar year (or upon termination of this Agreement as set forth below), commencing with December 31, 2011, and will equal 20.0% of the Corporation’s realized capital gains, if any, on a cumulative basis from inception through the end of each calendar year, computed net of all realized capital losses and net unrealized capital depreciation on a cumulative basis, less the aggregate amount of any previously paid capital gain Incentive Fees, with respect to each of the investments in the Corporation’s portfolio; provided that the Incentive Fee determined as of December 31, 2011 will be calculated for a period of shorter than twelve calendar months to take into account any realized capital gains computed net of all realized capital losses and unrealized capital depreciation from inception. In the event that this Agreement shall terminate as of a date that is not a calendar year end, the termination date shall be treated as though it were a calendar year end for purposes of calculating and paying a Capital Gains Fee.

4. Covenants of the Adviser. The Adviser covenants that it is registered as an investment adviser under the Advisers Act. The Adviser agrees that its activities will at all times be in compliance in all material respects with all applicable federal and state laws governing its operations and investments.

5. Excess Brokerage Commissions. The Adviser is hereby authorized, to the fullest extent now or hereafter permitted by law, to cause the Corporation to pay a member of a national securities exchange, broker or dealer an amount of commission for effecting a securities transaction in excess of the amount of commission another member of such exchange, broker or

 

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dealer would have charged for effecting that transaction, if the Adviser determines in good faith, taking into account such factors as price (including the applicable brokerage commission or dealer spread), size of order, difficulty of execution, and operational facilities of the firm and the firm’s risk and skill in positioning blocks of securities, that such amount of commission is reasonable in relation to the value of the brokerage and/or research services provided by such member, broker or dealer, viewed in terms of either that particular transaction or its overall responsibilities with respect to the Corporation’s portfolio, and constitutes the best net results for the Corporation.

6. Limitations on the Employment of the Adviser. The services of the Adviser to the Corporation are not exclusive, and the Adviser may engage in any other business or render similar or different services to others including, without limitation, the direct or indirect sponsorship or management of other investment based accounts or commingled pools of capital, however structured, having investment objectives similar to those of the Corporation, so long as its services to the Corporation hereunder are not impaired thereby, and nothing in this Agreement shall limit or restrict the right of any manager, partner, officer or employee of the Adviser to engage in any other business or to devote his or her time and attention in part to any other business, whether of a similar or dissimilar nature, or to receive any fees or compensation in connection therewith (including fees for serving as a director of, or providing consulting services to, one or more of the Corporation’s portfolio companies, subject to applicable law). So long as this Agreement or any extension, renewal or amendment remains in effect, the Adviser shall be the only investment adviser for the Corporation, subject to the Adviser’s right to enter into sub-advisory agreements. The Adviser assumes no responsibility under this Agreement other than to render the services called for hereunder. It is understood that directors, officers, employees and stockholders of the Corporation are or may become interested in the Adviser and its affiliates, as directors, officers, employees, partners, stockholders, members, managers or otherwise, and that the Adviser and directors, officers, employees, partners, stockholders, members and managers of the Adviser and its affiliates are or may become similarly interested in the Corporation as stockholders or otherwise.

7. Responsibility of Dual Directors, Officers and/or Employees. If any person who is a manager, partner, officer or employee of the Adviser or the Administrator is or becomes a director, officer and/or employee of the Corporation and acts as such in any business of the Corporation, then such manager, partner, officer and/or employee of the Adviser or the Administrator shall be deemed to be acting in such capacity solely for the Corporation, and not as a manager, partner, officer or employee of the Adviser or the Administrator or under the control or direction of the Adviser or the Administrator, even if paid by the Adviser or the Administrator.

8. Limitation of Liability of the Adviser; Indemnification. The Adviser (and its officers, managers, partners, agents, employees, controlling persons, members and any other person or entity affiliated with the Adviser, including without limitation its general partner and the Administrator) shall not be liable to the Corporation for any action taken or omitted to be taken by the Adviser in connection with the performance of any of its duties or obligations under

 

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this Agreement or otherwise as an investment adviser of the Corporation, except to the extent specified in Section 36(b) of the 1940 Act concerning loss resulting from a breach of fiduciary duty (as the same is finally determined by judicial proceedings) with respect to the receipt of compensation for services, and the Corporation shall indemnify, defend and protect the Adviser (and its officers, managers, partners, agents, employees, controlling persons, members and any other person or entity affiliated with the Adviser, including without limitation its general partner and the Administrator, each of whom shall be deemed a third party beneficiary hereof, collectively, the “Indemnified Parties”) and hold them harmless from and against all damages, liabilities, costs and expenses (including reasonable attorneys’ fees and amounts reasonably paid in settlement) incurred by the Indemnified Parties in or by reason of any pending, threatened or completed action, suit, investigation or other proceeding (including an action or suit by or in the right of the Corporation or its security holders) arising out of or otherwise based upon the performance of any of the Adviser’s duties or obligations under this Agreement or otherwise as an investment adviser of the Corporation. Notwithstanding the preceding sentence of this Paragraph 8 to the contrary, nothing contained herein shall protect or be deemed to protect the Indemnified Parties against or entitle or be deemed to entitle the Indemnified Parties to indemnification in respect of, any liability to the Corporation or its security holders to which the Indemnified Parties would otherwise be subject by reason of willful misfeasance, bad faith or gross negligence in the performance of the Adviser’s duties or by reason of the reckless disregard of the Adviser’s duties and obligations under this Agreement (as the same shall be determined in accordance with the 1940 Act and any interpretations or guidance by the Securities and Exchange Commission or its staff thereunder).

9. Effectiveness, Duration and Termination of Agreement. This Agreement shall become effective as of the first date above written. This Agreement shall remain in effect for two years, and thereafter shall continue automatically for successive annual periods, provided that such continuance is specifically approved at least annually by (a) the vote of the Corporation’s Board of Directors, or by the vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Corporation and (b) the vote of a majority of the Corporation’s directors who are not parties to this Agreement or “interested persons” (as such term is defined in Section 2(a)(19) of the 1940 Act) of any such party, in accordance with the requirements of the 1940 Act. This Agreement may be terminated at any time, without the payment of any penalty, upon 60 days’ written notice, by the vote of a majority of the outstanding voting securities of the Corporation, or by the vote of the Corporation’s Directors or by the Adviser. This Agreement will automatically terminate in the event of its “assignment” (as such term is defined for purposes of Section 15(a)(4) of the 1940 Act). The provisions of Paragraph 8 of this Agreement shall remain in full force and effect, and the Adviser shall remain entitled to the benefits thereof, notwithstanding any termination of this Agreement. Further, notwithstanding the termination or expiration of this Agreement as aforesaid, the Adviser shall be entitled to any amounts owed under Section 3 through the date of termination or expiration and Section 8 shall continue in force and effect and apply to the Adviser and its representatives as and to the extent applicable.

10. Notices. Any notice under this Agreement shall be given in writing, addressed and delivered or mailed, postage prepaid, to the other party at its principal office.

 

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11. Amendments. This Agreement may be amended by mutual consent, but the consent of the Corporation must be obtained in conformity with the requirements of the 1940 Act.

12. Entire Agreement; Governing Law. This Agreement contains the entire agreement of the parties and supersedes all prior agreements, understandings and arrangements with respect to the subject matter hereof. This Agreement shall be construed in accordance with the laws of the State of New York and the applicable provisions of the 1940 Act. To the extent the applicable laws of the State of New York, or any of the provisions herein, conflict with the provisions of the 1940 Act, the latter shall control.

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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have caused this Agreement to be duly executed on the date above written.

 

 

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		Exhibit (j)

CUSTODY AGREEMENT

AGREEMENT, dated as of March 3, 2011, between Pennantpark Floating Rate Capital Ltd. (the “Fund”) and The Bank of New York Mellon, a New York corporation authorized to do a banking business having its principal office and place of business at One Wall Street, New York, New York 10286 (“Custodian”).

W I T N E S S E T H:

that for and in consideration of the mutual promises hereinafter set forth the Fund and Custodian agree as follows:

ARTICLE I

DEFINITIONS

Whenever used in this Agreement, the following words shall have the meanings set forth below:

1. “Authorized Person” shall be any person, whether or not an officer or employee of the Fund, duly authorized by the Fund’s board to execute any Certificate or to give any Oral Instruction with respect to one or more Accounts, such persons to be designated in a Certificate annexed hereto as Schedule I hereto or such other Certificate as may be received by Custodian from time to time.

2. “BNY Affiliate” shall mean any office, branch or subsidiary of The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation.

3. “Book-Entry System” shall mean the Federal Reserve/Treasury book-entry system for receiving and delivering securities, its successors and nominees.

4. “Business Day” shall mean any day on which Custodian and relevant Depositories are open for business.

5. “Certificate” shall mean any notice, instruction, or other instrument in writing, authorized or required by this Agreement to be given to Custodian, which is actually received by Custodian by letter or facsimile transmission and signed on behalf of the Fund by an Authorized Person or a person reasonably believed by Custodian to be an Authorized Person.

6. “Composite Currency Unit” shall mean the Euro or any other composite currency unit consisting of the aggregate of specified amounts of specified currencies, as such unit may be constituted from time to time.

7. “Depository” shall include (a) the Book-Entry System, (b) the Depository Trust Company, (c) any other clearing agency or securities depository registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission identified to the Fund from time to time, and (d) the respective successors and nominees of the foregoing.

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8. “Foreign Depository” shall mean (a) Euroclear, (b) Clearstream Banking, societe anonyme, (c) each Eligible Securities Depository as defined in Rule 17f-7 under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, identified to the Fund from time to time, and (d) the respective successors and nominees of the foregoing.

9. “Hedge Fund Investments” shall mean investments by any Customer in hedge funds, mutual funds and other investment or collective investment vehicles.

10. “Instructions” shall mean communications actually received by Custodian by S.W.I.F.T., tested telex, letter, facsimile transmission, or other method or system specified by Custodian as available for use in connection with the services hereunder.

11. “Oral Instructions” shall mean verbal instructions received by Custodian from an Authorized Person or from a person reasonably believed by Custodian to be an Authorized Person.

12. “Series” shall mean the various portfolios, if any, of the Fund listed on Schedule II hereto, and if none are listed references to Series shall be references to the Fund.

13. “Securities” shall include, without limitation, any common stock and other equity securities, bonds, debentures and other debt securities, notes, loans, mortgages or other obligations, and any instruments representing rights to receive, purchase, or subscribe for the same, or representing any other rights or interests therein (whether represented by a certificate or held in a Depository or by a Subcustodian).

14. “Subcustodian” shall mean a bank (including any branch thereof) or other financial institution (other than a Foreign Depository) located outside the U.S. which is utilized by Custodian in connection with the purchase, sale or custody of Securities hereunder and identified to the Fund from time to time, and their respective successors and nominees.

ARTICLE II

APPOINTMENT OF CUSTODIAN; ACCOUNTS;

REPRESENTATIONS, WARRANTIES, AND COVENANTS

1.(a) The Fund hereby appoints Custodian as custodian of all Securities and cash at any time delivered to Custodian during the term of this Agreement, and authorizes Custodian to hold Securities in registered form in its name or the name of its nominees. Custodian hereby accepts such appointment and agrees to establish and maintain one or more securities accounts and cash accounts for each Series in which Custodian will hold Securities and cash as provided herein. Custodian shall maintain books and records segregating the assets of each Series from the assets of any other Series. Such accounts (each, an “Account”; collectively, the “Accounts”) shall be in the name of the Fund.

(b) Custodian may from time to time establish on its books and records such sub-accounts within each Account as the Fund and Custodian may agree upon (each a “Special Account”), and Custodian shall reflect therein such assets as the Fund may specify in a Certificate or Instructions.

 

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(c) Custodian may from time to time establish pursuant to a written agreement with and for the benefit of a broker, dealer, future commission merchant or other third party identified in a Certificate or Instructions such accounts on such terms and conditions as the Fund and Custodian shall agree, and Custodian shall transfer to such account such Securities and money as the Fund may specify in a Certificate or Instructions.

2. The Fund hereby represents and warrants, which representations and warranties shall be continuing and shall be deemed to be reaffirmed upon each delivery of a Certificate or each giving of Oral Instructions or Instructions by the Fund, that:

(a) It is duly organized and existing under the laws of the jurisdiction of its organization, with full power to carry on its business as now conducted, to enter into this Agreement, and to perform its obligations hereunder;

(b) This Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Fund, approved by a resolution of its board, constitutes a valid and legally binding obligation of the Fund, enforceable in accordance with its terms, and there is no statute, regulation, rule, order or judgment binding on it, and no provision of its charter or by-laws, nor of any mortgage, indenture, credit agreement or other contract binding on it or affecting its property, which would prohibit its execution or performance of this Agreement;

(c) It is conducting its business in substantial compliance with all applicable laws and requirements, both state and federal, and has obtained all regulatory licenses, approvals and consents necessary to carry on its business as now conducted;

(d) It will not use the services provided by Custodian hereunder in any manner that is, or will result in, a violation of any law, rule or regulation applicable to the Fund;

(e) Its board or its foreign custody manager, as defined in Rule 17f-5 under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “‘40 Act”), has determined that use of each Subcustodian (including any Replacement Custodian) which Custodian is authorized to utilize in accordance with Section 1(a) of Article III hereof satisfies the applicable requirements of the ‘40 Act and Rule 17f-5 thereunder;

(f) The Fund or its investment adviser has determined that the custody arrangements of each Foreign Depository provide reasonable safeguards against the custody risks associated with maintaining assets with such Foreign Depository within the meaning of Rule 17f-7 under the ‘40 Act;

(g) It is fully informed of the protections and risks associated with various methods of transmitting Instructions and Oral Instructions and delivering Certificates to Custodian, shall, and shall cause each Authorized Person, to safeguard and treat with extreme care any user and authorization codes, passwords and/or authentication keys, understands that there may be more secure methods of transmitting or delivering the same than the methods selected by the Fund, agrees that the security procedures (if any) to be followed in connection therewith provide a commercially reasonable degree of protection in light of its particular needs and circumstances, and acknowledges and agrees that Instructions need not be reviewed by

 

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Custodian, may conclusively be presumed by Custodian to have been given by person(s) duly authorized, and may be acted upon as given;

(h) It shall manage its borrowings, including, without limitation, any advance or overdraft (including any day-light overdraft) in the Accounts, so that the aggregate of its total borrowings for each Series does not exceed the amount such Series is permitted to borrow under the ‘40 Act;

(i) Its transmission or giving of, and Custodian acting upon and in reliance on, Certificates, Instructions, or Oral Instructions pursuant to this Agreement shall at all times comply with the ‘40 Act;

(j) It shall impose and maintain restrictions on the destinations to which cash may be disbursed by Instructions to ensure that each disbursement is for a proper purpose;

(k)(i) it has established and presently maintains policies and procedures requiring it to obtain and verify information about the identity of its customers and which are reasonably designed to ensure that it is not being used as a conduit for money laundering or other illicit purposes; and

(ii) it has verified the identity of each such third party and made reasonable inquiries regarding the source of funds credited to such Account, and to the best of its knowledge, no transaction through any Account is prohibited by applicable law, regulation or rule; and

(l) It has the right to make the pledge and grant the security interest and security entitlement to Custodian contained in Section 1 of Article V hereof, free of any right of redemption or prior claim of any other person or entity, such pledge and such grants shall have a first priority subject to no setoffs, counterclaims, or other liens or grants prior to or on a parity therewith, and it shall take such additional steps as Custodian may require to assure such priority.

3. The Custodian hereby represents and warrants, which representations and warranties shall be continuing and shall be deemed to be reaffirmed upon each receipt of a Certificate or of Oral Instructions or Instruction by the Fund, that:

(a) It is duly organized and existing under the laws of the jurisdiction of its organization, with full power to carry on its business as now conducted, to enter into this Agreement, and to perform its obligations hereunder;

(b) This Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Custodian, constitutes a valid and legally binding obligation of Custodian, enforceable in accordance with its terms;;

(c) It is conducting its business in substantial compliance with all applicable laws and requirements, both state and federal, and has obtained all regulatory licenses, approvals and consents necessary to carry on its business as now conducted; and

 

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(d) It has at least the minimum qualifications required by Section 17(f)(1) of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “40 Act”), to act as custodian of the portfolio securities and cash of the Fund, and has indicated its willingness to so act, subject to the terms and conditions of this agreement.

4. The Fund hereby covenants that it shall from time to time complete and execute and deliver to Custodian upon Custodian’s request a Form FR U-1 (or successor form) whenever the Fund borrows from Custodian any money to be used for the purchase or carrying of margin stock as defined in Federal Reserve Regulation U.

ARTICLE III

CUSTODY AND RELATED SERVICES

1. (a) Subject to the terms hereof, the Fund hereby authorizes Custodian to hold any Securities received by it from time to time for the Fund’s account. Custodian shall be entitled to utilize, subject to subsection (c) of this Section 1, Depositories, Subcustodians, and, subject to subsection (d) of this Section 1, Foreign Depositories, to the extent possible in connection with its performance hereunder. Securities and cash held in a Depository or Foreign Depository will be held subject to the rules, terms and conditions of such entity. Securities and cash held through Subcustodians shall be held subject to the terms and conditions of Custodian’s agreements with such Subcustodians. Subcustodians may be authorized to hold Securities in Foreign Depositories in which such Subcustodians participate. Unless otherwise required by local law or practice or a particular subcustodian agreement, Securities deposited with a Subcustodian, a Depository or a Foreign Depository will be held in a commingled account, in the name of Custodian, holding only Securities held by Custodian as custodian for its customers. Custodian shall identify on its books and records the Securities and cash belonging to the Fund, whether held directly or indirectly through Depositories, Foreign Depositories, or Subcustodians. Custodian shall, directly or indirectly through Subcustodians, Depositories, or Foreign Depositories, endeavor, to the extent feasible, to hold Securities in the country or other jurisdiction in which the principal trading market for such Securities is located, where such Securities are to be presented for cancellation and/or payment and/or registration, or where such Securities are acquired. Custodian at any time may cease utilizing any Subcustodian and/or may replace a Subcustodian with a different Subcustodian (the “Replacement Subcustodian”). In the event Custodian selects a Replacement Subcustodian, Custodian shall not utilize such Replacement Subcustodian until after the Fund’s board or foreign custody manager has determined that utilization of such Replacement Subcustodian satisfies the requirements of the ‘40 Act and Rule 17f-5 thereunder.

(b) Unless Custodian has received a Certificate or Instructions to the contrary, Custodian shall hold Securities indirectly through a Subcustodian only if (i) the Securities are not subject to any right, charge, security interest, lien or claim of any kind in favor of such Subcustodian or its creditors or operators, including a receiver or trustee in bankruptcy or similar authority, except for a claim of payment for the safe custody or administration of Securities on behalf of the Fund by such Subcustodian, and (ii) beneficial ownership of the Securities is freely transferable without the payment of money or value other than for safe custody or administration.

 

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(c) With respect to each Depository, Custodian (i) shall exercise due care in accordance with reasonable commercial standards in discharging its duties as a securities intermediary to obtain and thereafter maintain Securities or financial assets deposited or held in such Depository, and (ii) will provide, promptly upon request by the Fund, such reports as are available concerning the internal accounting controls and financial strength of Custodian.

(d) With respect to each Foreign Depository, Custodian shall exercise reasonable care, prudence, and diligence (i) to provide the Fund with an analysis of the custody risks associated with maintaining assets with the Foreign Depository, and (ii) to monitor such custody risks on a continuing basis and promptly notify the Fund of any material change in such risks. The Fund acknowledges and agrees that such analysis and monitoring shall be made on the basis of, and limited by, information gathered from Subcustodians or through publicly available information otherwise obtained by Custodian, and shall not include any evaluation of Country Risks. As used herein the term “Country Risks” shall mean with respect to any Foreign Depository: (a) the financial infrastructure of the country in which it is organized, (b) such country’s prevailing custody and settlement practices, (c) nationalization, expropriation or other governmental actions, (d) such country’s regulation of the banking or securities industry, (e) currency controls, restrictions, devaluations or fluctuations, and (f) market conditions which affect the order execution of securities transactions or affect the value of securities.

2. Custodian shall furnish the Fund with an advice of daily transactions (including a confirmation of each transfer of Securities) and a monthly summary of all transfers to or from the Accounts.

3. With respect to all Securities held hereunder, Custodian shall, unless otherwise instructed to the contrary:

(a) Receive all income and other payments and advise the Fund as promptly as practicable of any such amounts due but not paid;

(b) Present for payment and receive the amount paid upon all Securities which may mature and advise the Fund as promptly as practicable of any such amounts due but not paid;

(c) Forward to the Fund copies of all information or documents that it may actually receive from an issuer of Securities which, in the opinion of Custodian, are intended for the beneficial owner of Securities;

(d) Execute, as custodian, any certificates of ownership, affidavits, declarations or other certificates under any tax laws now or hereafter in effect in connection with the collection of bond and note coupons;

(e) Hold directly or through a Depository, a Foreign Depository, or a Subcustodian all rights and similar Securities issued with respect to any Securities credited to an Account hereunder; and

(f) Endorse for collection checks, drafts or other negotiable instruments.

 

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4. (a) Custodian shall notify the Fund of rights or discretionary actions with respect to Securities held hereunder, and of the date or dates by when such rights must be exercised or such action must be taken, provided that Custodian has actually received, from the issuer or the relevant Depository (with respect to Securities issued in the United States) or from the relevant Subcustodian, Foreign Depository, or a nationally or internationally recognized bond or corporate action service to which Custodian subscribes, timely notice of such rights or discretionary corporate action or of the date or dates such rights must be exercised or such action must be taken. Absent actual receipt of such notice, Custodian shall have no liability for failing to so notify the Fund.

(b) Whenever Securities (including, but not limited to, warrants, options, tenders, options to tender or non-mandatory puts or calls) confer discretionary rights on the Fund or provide for discretionary action or alternative courses of action by the Fund, the Fund shall be responsible for making any decisions relating thereto and for directing Custodian to act. In order for Custodian to act, it must receive the Fund’s Certificate or Instructions at Custodian’s offices, addressed as Custodian may from time to time request, not later than noon (New York time) at least two (2) Business Days prior to the last scheduled date to act with respect to such Securities (or such earlier date or time as Custodian may specify to the Fund). Absent Custodian’s timely receipt of such Certificate or Instructions, Custodian shall not be liable for failure to take any action relating to or to exercise any rights conferred by such Securities.

5. All voting rights with respect to Securities, however registered, shall be exercised by the Fund or its designee. Custodian will make available to the Fund proxy voting services upon the request of, and for the jurisdictions selected by, the Fund in accordance with terms and conditions to be mutually agreed upon by Custodian and the Fund.

6. Custodian shall promptly advise the Fund upon Custodian’s actual receipt of notification of the partial redemption, partial payment or other action affecting less than all Securities of the relevant class. If Custodian, any Subcustodian, any Depository, or any Foreign Depository holds any Securities in which the Fund has an interest as part of a fungible mass, Custodian, such Subcustodian, Depository, or Foreign Depository may select the Securities to participate in such partial redemption, partial payment or other action in any non-discriminatory manner that it customarily uses to make such selection.

7. Custodian shall not under any circumstances accept bearer interest coupons which have been stripped from United States federal, state or local government or agency securities unless explicitly agreed to by Custodian in writing.

8. The Fund shall be liable for all taxes, assessments, duties and other governmental charges, including any interest or penalty with respect thereto (“Taxes”), with respect to any cash or Securities held on behalf of the Fund or any transaction related thereto. The Fund shall indemnify Custodian and each Subcustodian for the amount of any Tax that Custodian, any such Subcustodian or any other withholding agent is required under applicable laws (whether by assessment or otherwise) to pay on behalf of, or in respect of income earned by or payments or distributions made to or for the account of the Fund (including any payment of Tax required by reason of an earlier failure to withhold). Custodian shall, or shall instruct the applicable Subcustodian or other withholding agent to, withhold the amount of any Tax which is required to

 

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be withheld under applicable law upon collection of any dividend, interest or other distribution made with respect to any Security and any proceeds or income from the sale, loan or other transfer of any Security. In the event that Custodian or any Subcustodian is required under applicable law to pay any Tax on behalf of the Fund, Custodian is hereby authorized to withdraw cash from any cash account in the amount required to pay such Tax and to use such cash, or to remit such cash to the appropriate Subcustodian or other withholding agent, for the timely payment of such Tax in the manner required by applicable law. If the aggregate amount of cash in all cash accounts is not sufficient to pay such Tax, Custodian shall promptly notify the Fund of the additional amount of cash (in the appropriate currency) required, and the Fund shall directly deposit such additional amount in the appropriate cash account promptly after receipt of such notice, for use by Custodian as specified herein. In the event that Custodian reasonably believes that Fund is eligible, pursuant to applicable law or to the provisions of any tax treaty, for a reduced rate of, or exemption from, any Tax which is otherwise required to be withheld or paid on behalf of the Fund under any applicable law, Custodian shall, or shall instruct the applicable Subcustodian or withholding agent to, either withhold or pay such Tax at such reduced rate or refrain from withholding or paying such Tax, as appropriate; provided that Custodian shall have received from the Fund all documentary evidence of residence or other qualification for such reduced rate or exemption required to be received under such applicable law or treaty. In the event that Custodian reasonably believes that a reduced rate of, or exemption from, any Tax is obtainable only by means of an application for refund, Custodian and the applicable Subcustodian shall have no responsibility for the accuracy or validity of any forms or documentation provided by the Fund to Custodian hereunder. The Fund hereby agrees to indemnify and hold harmless Custodian and each Subcustodian in respect of any liability arising from any underwithholding or underpayment of any Tax which results from the inaccuracy or invalidity of any such forms or other documentation, and such obligation to indemnify shall be a continuing obligation of the Fund, its successors and assigns notwithstanding the termination of this Agreement.

9. (a) For the purpose of settling Securities and foreign exchange transactions, the Fund shall provide Custodian with sufficient immediately available funds for all transactions by such time and date as conditions in the relevant market dictate. As used herein, “sufficient immediately available funds” shall mean either (i) sufficient cash denominated in U.S. dollars to purchase the necessary foreign currency, or (ii) sufficient applicable foreign currency, to settle the transaction. Custodian shall provide the Fund with immediately available funds each day which result from the actual settlement of all sale transactions, based upon advices received by Custodian from Subcustodians, Depositories, and Foreign Depositories. Such funds shall be in U.S. dollars or such other currency as the Fund may specify to Custodian.

(b) Any foreign exchange transaction effected by Custodian in connection with this Agreement may be entered with Custodian or a BNY Affiliate acting as principal or otherwise through customary banking channels. The Fund may issue a standing Certificate or Instructions with respect to foreign exchange transactions, but Custodian may establish rules or limitations concerning any foreign exchange facility made available to the Fund. The Fund shall bear all risks of investing in Securities or holding cash denominated in a foreign currency.

10. Until such time as Custodian receives a certificate to the contrary with respect to a particular Security, Custodian may release the identity of the Fund to an issuer which requests

 

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such information pursuant to the Shareholder Communications Act of 1985 for the specific purpose of direct communications between such issuer and shareholder.

ARTICLE IV

PURCHASE, SALE AND REDEMPTION OF SECURITIES;

CREDITS TO ACCOUNT

1. (a) Promptly after each purchase or sale of Securities by the Fund, the Fund shall deliver to Custodian a Certificate or Instructions, or with respect to a purchase or sale of a Security generally required to be settled on the same day the purchase or sale is made, Oral Instructions specifying all information Custodian may reasonably request to settle such purchase or sale. Custodian shall account for all purchases and sales of Securities on the actual settlement date unless otherwise agreed by Custodian.

(b) With respect to purchases and redemptions of Hedge Fund Investments, upon the Written Instructions of an Authorized Person, Custodian (or its nominee) will as agent for the Fund subscribe for and redeem shares, units or other interests and complete, execute and submit all relevant subscription and redemption documentation required by the relevant issuer; provided that any Written Instructions given to Custodian hereunder shall be in accordance with Custodian’s procedures notified to the Customer from time to time; and provided further, that the applicable Fund’s delivery to Custodian of any such Written Instructions to purchase Hedge Fund Investments shall constitute the applicable Fund’s representation and warranty that the applicable Fund has reviewed and understands the terms of the relevant offering memorandum or subscription agreement (or similar document) and other document(s) related thereto and agreement to be bound by the terms and conditions thereof (including all representations and warranties to which the applicable Fund will be bound as beneficial owner of such Hedge Fund Investment).

2. The Fund understands that when Custodian is instructed to deliver Securities against payment, delivery of such Securities and receipt of payment therefor may not be completed simultaneously. Notwithstanding any provision in this Agreement to the contrary, settlements, payments and deliveries of Securities may be effected by Custodian or any Subcustodian in accordance with the customary or established securities trading or securities processing practices and procedures in the jurisdiction in which the transaction occurs, including, without limitation, delivery to a purchaser or dealer therefor (or agent) against receipt with the expectation of receiving later payment for such Securities. The Fund assumes full responsibility for all risks, including, without limitation, credit risks, involved in connection with such deliveries of Securities.

3. Custodian may, as a matter of bookkeeping convenience or by separate agreement with the Fund, credit the Account with the proceeds from the sale, redemption or other disposition of Securities or interest, dividends or other distributions payable on Securities prior to its actual receipt of final payment therefor. All such credits shall be conditional until Custodian’s actual receipt of final payment and may be reversed by Custodian to the extent that final payment is not received. Payment with respect to a transaction will not be “final” until Custodian shall have received immediately available funds which under applicable local law,

 

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rule and/or practice are irreversible and not subject to any security interest, levy or other encumbrance, and which are specifically applicable to such transaction.

ARTICLE V

OVERDRAFTS OR INDEBTEDNESS

1. If Custodian should in its sole discretion advance funds on behalf of any Series which results in an overdraft (including, without limitation, any day-light overdraft) because the money held by Custodian in an Account for such Series shall be insufficient to pay the total amount payable upon a purchase of Securities specifically allocated to such Series, as set forth in a Certificate, Instructions or Oral Instructions, or if an overdraft arises in the separate account of a Series for some other reason, including, without limitation, because of a reversal of a conditional credit or the purchase of any currency, or if the Fund is for any other reason indebted to Custodian with respect to a Series, including any indebtedness to The Bank of New York Mellon under the Fund’s Cash Management and Related Services Agreement (except a borrowing for investment or for temporary or emergency purposes using Securities as collateral pursuant to a separate agreement and subject to the provisions of Section 2 of this Article), such overdraft or indebtedness shall be deemed to be a loan made by Custodian to the Fund for such Series payable on demand and shall bear interest from the date incurred at a rate per annum ordinarily charged by Custodian to its institutional customers, as such rate may be adjusted from time to time. In addition, the Fund hereby agrees that Custodian shall to the maximum extent permitted by law have a continuing lien, security interest, and security entitlement in and to any property, including, without limitation, any investment property or any financial asset, of such Series at any time held by Custodian for the benefit of such Series or in which such Series may have an interest which is then in Custodian’s possession or control or in possession or control of any third party acting in Custodian’s behalf. The Fund authorizes Custodian, in its sole discretion, at any time to charge any such overdraft or indebtedness together with interest due thereon against any balance of account standing to such Series’ credit on Custodian’s books.

2. If the Fund borrows money from any bank (including Custodian if the borrowing is pursuant to a separate agreement) for investment or for temporary or emergency purposes using Securities held by Custodian hereunder as collateral for such borrowings, the Fund shall deliver to Custodian a Certificate specifying with respect to each such borrowing: (a) the Series to which such borrowing relates; (b) the name of the bank, (c) the amount of the borrowing, (d) the time and date, if known, on which the loan is to be entered into, (e) the total amount payable to the Fund on the borrowing date, (f) the Securities to be delivered as collateral for such loan, including the name of the issuer, the title and the number of shares or the principal amount of any particular Securities, and (g) a statement specifying whether such loan is for investment purposes or for temporary or emergency purposes and that such loan is in conformance with the ‘40 Act and the Fund’s prospectus. Custodian shall deliver on the borrowing date specified in a Certificate the specified collateral against payment by the lending bank of the total amount of the loan payable, provided that the same conforms to the total amount payable as set forth in the Certificate. Custodian may, at the option of the lending bank, keep such collateral in its possession, but such collateral shall be subject to all rights therein given the lending bank by virtue of any promissory note or loan agreement. Custodian shall deliver such Securities as additional collateral as may be specified in a Certificate to collateralize further any transaction described in this Section. The Fund shall cause all Securities released from collateral status to be

 

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returned directly to Custodian, and Custodian shall receive from time to time such return of collateral as may be tendered to it. In the event that the Fund fails to specify in a Certificate the Series, the name of the issuer, the title and number of shares or the principal amount of any particular Securities to be delivered as collateral by Custodian, Custodian shall not be under any obligation to deliver any Securities.

ARTICLE VI

SALE AND REDEMPTION OF SHARES

1. Whenever the Fund shall sell any shares issued by the Fund (“Shares”) it shall deliver to Custodian a Certificate or Instructions specifying the amount of money and/or Securities to be received by Custodian for the sale of such Shares and specifically allocated to an Account for such Series.

2. Upon receipt of such money, Custodian shall credit such money to an Account in the name of the Series for which such money was received.

3. Except as provided hereinafter, whenever the Fund desires Custodian to make payment out of the money held by Custodian hereunder in connection with a redemption of any Shares, it shall furnish to Custodian (a) a resolution of the Fund’s board directing the Fund’s transfer agent to redeem the Shares, and (b) a Certificate or Instructions specifying the total amount to be paid for such Shares. Custodian shall make payment of such total amount to the transfer agent specified in such Certificate or Instructions out of the money held in an Account of the appropriate Series.

ARTICLE VII

PAYMENT OF DIVIDENDS OR DISTRIBUTIONS

1. Whenever the Fund shall determine to pay a dividend or distribution on Shares it shall furnish to Custodian Instructions or a Certificate setting forth with respect to the Series specified therein the date of the declaration of such dividend or distribution, the total amount payable, and the payment date.

2. Upon the payment date specified in such Instructions or Certificate, Custodian shall pay out of the money held for the account of such Series the total amount payable to the dividend agent of the Fund specified therein.

ARTICLE VIII

CONCERNING CUSTODIAN

(a) Custodian shall exercise good faith in carrying out all of these duties and obligations. Except as otherwise expressly provided herein, Custodian shall not be liable for any costs, expenses, damages, liabilities or claims, including attorneys’ and accountants’ fees (collectively, “Losses”), incurred by or asserted against the Fund, except those Losses arising out of Custodian’s own negligence or willful misconduct. Custodian shall have no liability whatsoever for the action or inaction of any Depositories or of any Foreign Depositories, except in each case to the extent such action or inaction is a direct result of the Custodian’s failure to fulfill its duties hereunder. With respect to any Losses incurred by the Fund as a result of the acts or any failures

 

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to act by any Subcustodian (other than a BNY Affiliate), Custodian shall take appropriate action to recover such Losses from such Subcustodian; and Custodian’s sole responsibility and liability to the Fund shall be limited to amounts so received from such Subcustodian (exclusive of costs and expenses incurred by Custodian). In no event shall Custodian be liable to the Fund or any third party for special, indirect or consequential damages, or lost profits or loss of business, arising in connection with this Agreement, nor shall BNY or any Subcustodian be liable: (i) for acting in accordance with any Certificate or Oral Instructions actually received by Custodian and reasonably believed by Custodian to be given by an Authorized Person; (ii) for acting in accordance with Instructions without reviewing the same; (iii) for conclusively presuming that all Instructions are given only by person(s) duly authorized; (iv) for conclusively presuming that all disbursements of cash directed by the Fund, whether by a Certificate, an Oral Instruction, or an Instruction, are in accordance with Section 2(i) of Article II hereof; (v) for holding property in any particular country, including, but not limited to, Losses resulting from nationalization, expropriation or other governmental actions; regulation of the banking or securities industry; exchange or currency controls or restrictions, devaluations or fluctuations; availability of cash or Securities or market conditions which prevent the transfer of property or execution of Securities transactions or affect the value of property; (vi) for any Losses due to forces beyond the control of Custodian, including without limitation strikes, work stoppages, acts of war or terrorism, insurrection, revolution, nuclear or natural catastrophes or acts of God, or interruptions, loss or malfunctions of utilities, communications or computer (software and hardware) services; (vii) for the insolvency of any Subcustodian (other than a BNY Affiliate), any Depository, or, except to the extent such action or inaction is a direct result of the Custodian’s failure to fulfill its duties hereunder, any Foreign Depository; or (viii) for any Losses arising from the applicability of any law or regulation now or hereafter in effect, or from the occurrence of any event, including, without limitation, implementation or adoption of any rules or procedures of a Foreign Depository, which may affect, limit, prevent or impose costs or burdens on, the transferability, convertibility, or availability of any currency or Composite Currency Unit in any country or on the transfer of any Securities, and in no event shall Custodian be obligated to substitute another currency for a currency (including a currency that is a component of a Composite Currency Unit) whose transferability, convertibility or availability has been affected, limited, or prevented by such law, regulation or event, and to the extent that any such law, regulation or event imposes a cost or charge upon Custodian in relation to the transferability, convertibility, or availability of any cash currency or Composite Currency Unit, such cost or charge shall be for the account of the Fund, and Custodian may treat any account denominated in an affected currency as a group of separate accounts denominated in the relevant component currencies.

(b) Custodian may enter into subcontracts, agreements and understandings with any BNY Affiliate, whenever and on such terms and conditions as it deems necessary or appropriate to perform its services hereunder. No such subcontract, agreement or understanding shall discharge Custodian from its obligations hereunder.

The Fund agrees to indemnify Custodian and hold Custodian harmless from and against any and all Losses sustained or incurred by or asserted against Custodian by reason of or as a result of any action or inaction, or arising out of Custodian’s performance hereunder, including reasonable fees and expenses of counsel incurred by Custodian in a successful defense of claims by the Fund; provided however, that the Fund shall not indemnify Custodian for those Losses arising out of Custodian’s own negligence or willful misconduct or for any Losses which constitute

 

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indirect, special or consequential damages or lost profits or loss of business. This indemnity shall be a continuing obligation of the Fund, its their successors and assigns, notwithstanding the termination of this Agreement.

2. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, Custodian shall be under no obligation to inquire into, and shall not be liable for:

(a) Any Losses incurred by the Fund or any other person as a result of the receipt or acceptance of fraudulent, forged or invalid Securities, or Securities which are otherwise not freely transferable or deliverable without encumbrance in any relevant market;

(b) The validity of the issue of any Securities purchased, sold, or written by or for the Fund, the legality of the purchase, sale or writing thereof, or the propriety of the amount paid or received therefor;

(c) The legality of the sale or redemption of any Shares, or the propriety of the amount to be received or paid therefor;

(d) The legality of the declaration or payment of any dividend or distribution by the Fund;

(e) The legality of any borrowing by the Fund;

(f) The legality of any loan of portfolio Securities, nor shall Custodian be under any duty or obligation to see to it that any cash or collateral delivered to it by a broker, dealer or financial institution or held by it at any time as a result of such loan of portfolio Securities is adequate security for the Fund against any loss it might sustain as a result of such loan, which duty or obligation shall be the sole responsibility of the Fund. In addition, Custodian shall be under no duty or obligation to see that any broker, dealer or financial institution to which portfolio Securities of the Fund are lent makes payment to it of any dividends or interest which are payable to or for the account of the Fund during the period of such loan or at the termination of such loan, provided, however that Custodian shall promptly notify the Fund in the event that such dividends or interest are not paid and received when due;

(g) The sufficiency or value of any amounts of money and/or Securities held in any Special Account in connection with transactions by the Fund; whether any broker, dealer, futures commission merchant or clearing member makes payment to the Fund of any variation margin payment or similar payment which the Fund may be entitled to receive from such broker, dealer, futures commission merchant or clearing member, or whether any payment received by Custodian from any broker, dealer, futures commission merchant or clearing member is the amount the Fund is entitled to receive, or to notify the Fund of Custodian’s receipt or non-receipt of any such payment; or

(h) Whether any Securities at any time delivered to, or held by it or by any Subcustodian, for the account of the Fund and specifically allocated to a Series are such as properly may be held by the Fund or such Series under the provisions of its then current prospectus and statement of additional information, or to ascertain whether any transactions by

 

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the Fund, whether or not involving Custodian, are such transactions as may properly be engaged in by the Fund.

3. Custodian may, with respect to questions of law specifically regarding an Account, obtain the advice of counsel and shall be fully protected with respect to anything done or omitted by it in good faith in conformity with such advice.

4. Custodian shall be under no obligation to take action to collect any amount payable on Securities in default, or if payment is refused after due demand and presentment.

5. Custodian shall have no duty or responsibility to inquire into, make recommendations, supervise, or determine the suitability of any transactions affecting any Account.

6. The Fund shall pay to Custodian the fees and charges as may be specifically agreed upon from time to time and such other fees and charges at Custodian’s standard rates for such services as may be applicable. The Fund shall reimburse Custodian for all costs associated with the conversion of the Fund’s Securities hereunder and the transfer of Securities and records kept in connection with this Agreement. The Fund shall also reimburse Custodian for out-of-pocket expenses which are a normal incident of the services provided hereunder.

7. Custodian has the right to debit any cash account for any amount payable by the Fund in connection with any and all obligations of the Fund to Custodian. In addition to the rights of Custodian under applicable law and other agreements, at any time when the Fund shall not have honored any of its obligations to Custodian, Custodian shall have the right without notice to the Fund to retain or set-off, against such obligations of the Fund, any Securities or cash Custodian may directly or indirectly hold for the account of the Fund, and any obligations (whether matured or unmatured) that Custodian may have to the Fund in any currency or Composite Currency Unit. Any such asset of, or obligation to, the Fund may be transferred to Custodian in order to effect the above rights.

8. The Fund agrees to forward to Custodian a Certificate or Instructions confirming Oral Instructions by the close of business of the same day that such Oral Instructions are given to Custodian. The Fund agrees that the fact that such confirming Certificate or Instructions are not received or that a contrary Certificate or contrary Instructions are received by Custodian shall in no way affect the validity or enforceability of transactions authorized by such Oral Instructions and effected by Custodian. If the Fund elects to transmit Instructions through an on-line communications system offered by Custodian, the Fund’s use thereof shall be subject to the Terms and Conditions attached as Appendix I hereto. If Custodian receives Instructions which reasonably appear on their face to have been transmitted by an Authorized Person via (i) computer facsimile, email, the Internet or other insecure electronic method, or (ii) secure electronic transmission containing applicable authorization codes, passwords and/or authentication keys, the Fund understands and agrees that Custodian cannot determine the identity of the actual sender of such Instructions and that Custodian shall conclusively presume that such Written Instructions have been sent by an Authorized Person, and the Fund shall be responsible for ensuring that only Authorized Persons transmit such Instructions to Custodian. If the Fund elects (with Custodian’s prior consent) to transmit Instructions through an on-line

 

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communications service owned or operated by a third party, the Fund agrees that Custodian shall not be responsible or liable for the reliability or availability of any such service.

9. The books and records pertaining to the Fund which are in possession of Custodian shall be the property of the Fund. Such books and records shall be prepared and maintained as required by the ‘40 Act and the rules thereunder. The Fund, or its authorized representatives, shall have access to such books and records during Custodian’s normal business hours. Upon the reasonable request of the Fund, copies of any such books and records shall be provided by Custodian to the Fund or its authorized representative. Upon the reasonable request of the Fund, Custodian shall provide in hard copy or on computer disc any records included in any such delivery which are maintained by Custodian on a computer disc, or are similarly maintained.

10. It is understood that Custodian is authorized to supply any information regarding the Accounts which is required by any law, regulation or rule now or hereafter in effect. The Custodian shall provide the Fund with any report obtained by the Custodian on the system of internal accounting control of a Depository, and with such reports on its own system of internal accounting control as the Fund may reasonably request from time to time.

Upon reasonable request of the Fund, Custodian will provide a sub-certification to the Fund’s chief executive officer and/or chief financial officer in support of certain matters set forth in the certifications of the Fund’s chief executive officer and/or chief financial officer, which certifications are required by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 or any rules or regulations promulgated by the Securities and Exchange Commission thereunder; such sub-certifications to be in such form and relating to such matters as agreed between the Fund and the Custodian from time to time. Custodian shall be required to provide a sub-certification only during the term of this Agreement and only if it receives such cooperation as it may reasonably request to perform its investigations with respect to the sub-certification. For clarity, the sub-certification is not itself a certification under any regulatory requirement.

11. Custodian shall have no duties or responsibilities whatsoever except such duties and responsibilities as are specifically set forth in this Agreement, and no covenant or obligation shall be implied against Custodian in connection with this Agreement.

ARTICLE IX

TERMINATION

1. Either of the parties hereto may terminate this Agreement by giving to the other party a notice in writing specifying the date of such termination, which shall be not less than ninety (90) days after the date of giving of such notice. In the event such notice is given by the Fund, it shall be accompanied by a copy of a resolution of the board of the Fund, certified by the Secretary or any Assistant Secretary, electing to terminate this Agreement and designating a successor custodian or custodians, each of which shall be a bank or trust company eligible to serve as a custodian of a unit investment trust under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended. In the event such notice is given by Custodian, the Fund shall, on or before the termination date, deliver to Custodian a copy of a resolution of the board of the Fund, certified by the Secretary or any Assistant Secretary, designating a successor custodian or custodians. In the absence of such designation by the Fund, Custodian may designate a successor custodian

 

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which shall be a bank or trust company eligible to serve as custodian for a unit investment trust under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended. Upon the date set forth in such notice this Agreement shall terminate, and Custodian shall upon receipt of a notice of acceptance by the successor custodian on that date deliver directly to the successor custodian all Securities and money then owned by the Fund and held by it as Custodian, after deducting all fees, expenses and other amounts for the payment or reimbursement of which it shall then be entitled.

2. If a successor custodian is not designated by the Fund or Custodian in accordance with the preceding Section, the Fund shall upon the date specified in the notice of termination of this Agreement and upon the delivery by Custodian of all Securities (other than Securities which cannot be delivered to the Fund) and money then owned by the Fund be deemed to be its own custodian and Custodian shall thereby be relieved of all duties and responsibilities pursuant to this Agreement, other than the duty with respect to Securities which cannot be delivered to the Fund to hold such Securities hereunder in accordance with this Agreement.

ARTICLE X

MISCELLANEOUS

1. The Fund agrees to furnish to Custodian a new Certificate of Authorized Persons in the event of any change in the then present Authorized Persons. Until such new Certificate is received, Custodian shall be fully protected in acting upon Certificates or Oral Instructions of such present Authorized Persons.

2. Any notice or other instrument in writing, authorized or required by this Agreement to be given to Custodian, shall be sufficiently given if addressed to Custodian and received by it at its offices at One Wall Street, New York, New York 10286, or at such other place as Custodian may from time to time designate in writing.

3. Any notice or other instrument in writing, authorized or required by this Agreement to be given to the Fund shall be sufficiently given if addressed to the Fund and received by it at its offices at 590 Madision Avenue, 15^th Floor, New York, NY 10022, or at such other place as the Fund may from time to time designate in writing.

4. Each and every right granted to either party hereunder or under any other document delivered hereunder or in connection herewith, or allowed it by law or equity, shall be cumulative and may be exercised from time to time. No failure on the part of either party to exercise, and no delay in exercising, any right will operate as a waiver thereof, nor will any single or partial exercise by either party of any right preclude any other or future exercise thereof or the exercise of any other right.

5. In case any provision in or obligation under this Agreement shall be invalid, illegal or unenforceable in any exclusive jurisdiction, the validity, legality and enforceability of the remaining provisions shall not in any way be affected thereby. This Agreement may not be amended or modified in any manner except by a written agreement executed by both parties, except that any amendment to the Schedule I hereto need be signed only by the Fund and any amendment to Appendix I hereto need be signed only by Custodian. This Agreement shall extend to and shall be binding upon the parties hereto, and their respective successors and

 

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assigns; provided, however, that this Agreement shall not be assignable by either party without the written consent of the other.

6. This Agreement shall be construed in accordance with the substantive laws of the State of New York, without regard to conflicts of laws principles thereof. The Fund and Custodian hereby consent to the jurisdiction of a state or federal court situated in New York City, New York in connection with any dispute arising hereunder. The Fund hereby irrevocably waives, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, any objection which it may now or hereafter have to the laying of venue of any such proceeding brought in such a court and any claim that such proceeding brought in such a court has been brought in an inconvenient forum. The Fund and Custodian each hereby irrevocably waives any and all rights to trial by jury in any legal proceeding arising out of or relating to this Agreement.

7. The Fund hereby acknowledges that Custodian is subject to federal laws, including its Customer Identification Program (CIP) requirements under the USA PATRIOT Act and its implementing regulations, pursuant to which Custodian must obtain, verify and record information that allows Custodian to identify the Fund. Accordingly, prior to opening an Account hereunder Custodian will ask the Fund to provide certain information including, but not limited to, the Fund’s name, physical address, tax identification number and other information that will help Custodian to identify and verify the Fund’s identity such as organizational documents, certificate of good standing, license to do business, or other pertinent identifying information. The Fund agrees that Custodian cannot open an Account hereunder unless and until Custodian verifies the Fund’s identity in accordance with its CIP.

8. This Agreement may be executed in any number of counterparts, each of which shall be deemed to be an original, but such counterparts shall, together, constitute only one instrument.

 

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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Fund and Custodian have caused this Agreement to be executed by their respective officers, thereunto duly authorized, as of the day and year first above written.

 

 

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SCHEDULE I

CERTIFICATE OF AUTHORIZED PERSONS

(The Fund - Oral and Written Instructions)

The undersigned hereby certifies that he/she is the duly elected and acting                      of * (the “Fund”), and further certifies that the following officers or employees of the Fund have been duly authorized in conformity with the Fund’s Declaration of Trust and By-Laws to deliver Certificates and Oral Instructions to The Bank of New York Mellon (“Custodian”) pursuant to the Custody Agreement between the Fund and Custodian dated                     , and that the signatures appearing opposite their names are true and correct:

 

Name		Title		Signature
Name		Title		Signature
Name		Title		Signature
Name		Title		Signature
Name		Title		Signature
Name		Title		Signature
Name		Title		Signature

This certificate supersedes any certificate of Authorized Persons you may currently have on file.

 

[seal]		By:
				Title:
Date:

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SCHEDULE II

SERIES

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APPENDIX I

THE BANK OF NEW YORK MELLON

ON-LINE COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEM (THE “SYSTEM”)

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

1. License; Use. Upon delivery to an Authorized Person or a person reasonably believed by Custodian to be an Authorized Person, Fund of software enabling the Fund to obtain access to the System (the “Software”), Custodian grants to the Fund a personal, nontransferable and nonexclusive license to use the Software solely for the purpose of transmitting Written Instructions, receiving reports, making inquiries or otherwise communicating with Custodian in connection with the Account(s). The Fund shall use the Software solely for its own internal and proper business purposes and not in the operation of a service bureau. Except as set forth herein, no license or right of any kind is granted to the Fund with respect to the Software. The Fund acknowledges that Custodian and its suppliers retain and have title and exclusive proprietary rights to the Software, including any trade secrets or other ideas, concepts, know-how, methodologies, or information incorporated therein and the exclusive rights to any copyrights, trademarks and patents (including registrations and applications for registration of either), or other statutory or legal protections available in respect thereof. The Fund further acknowledges that all or a part of the Software may be copyrighted or trademarked (or a registration or claim made therefor) by Custodian or its suppliers. The Fund shall not take any action with respect to the Software inconsistent with the foregoing acknowledgments, nor shall the Fund attempt to decompile, reverse engineer or modify the Software. The Fund may not copy, sell, lease or provide, directly or indirectly, any of the Software or any portion thereof to any other person or entity without Custodian’s prior written consent. The Fund may not remove any statutory copyright notice or other notice included in the Software or on any media containing the Software. The Fund shall reproduce any such notice on any reproduction of the Software and shall add any statutory copyright notice or other notice to the Software or media upon Custodian’s request.

2. Equipment. The Fund shall obtain and maintain at its own cost and expense all equipment and services, including but not limited to communications services, necessary for it to utilize the Software and obtain access to the System, and Custodian shall not be responsible for the reliability or availability of any such equipment or services.

3. Proprietary Information. The Software, any data base and any proprietary data, processes, information and documentation made available to the Fund (other than which are or become part of the public domain or are legally required to be made available to the public) (collectively, the “Information”), are the exclusive and confidential property of Custodian or its suppliers. The Fund shall keep the Information

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confidential by using the same care and discretion that the Fund uses with respect to its own confidential property and trade secrets, but not less than reasonable care. Upon termination of the Agreement or the Software license granted herein for any reason, the Fund shall return to Custodian any and all copies of the Information which are in its possession or under its control.

4. Modifications. Custodian reserves the right to modify the Software from time to time and the Fund shall install new releases of the Software as Custodian may direct. The Fund agrees not to modify or attempt to modify the Software without Custodian’s prior written consent. The Fund acknowledges that any modifications to the Software, whether by the Fund or Custodian and whether with or without Custodian’s consent, shall become the property of Custodian.

5. NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES. CUSTODIAN AND ITS MANUFACTURERS AND SUPPLIERS MAKE NO WARRANTIES OR REPRESENTATIONS WITH RESPECT TO THE SOFTWARE, SERVICES OR ANY DATABASE, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN FACT OR IN LAW, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. THE FUND ACKNOWLEDGES THAT THE SOFTWARE, SERVICES AND ANY DATABASE ARE PROVIDED “AS IS.” IN NO EVENT SHALL CUSTODIAN OR ANY SUPPLIER BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES, WHETHER DIRECT, INDIRECT SPECIAL, OR CONSEQUENTIAL, WHICH THE FUND MAY INCUR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE, SERVICES OR ANY DATABASE, EVEN IF CUSTODIAN OR SUCH SUPPLIER HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. IN NO EVENT SHALL CUSTODIAN OR ANY SUPPLIER BE LIABLE FOR ACTS OF GOD, MACHINE OR COMPUTER BREAKDOWN OR MALFUNCTION, INTERRUPTION OR MALFUNCTION OF COMMUNICATION FACILITIES, LABOR DIFFICULTIES OR ANY OTHER SIMILAR OR DISSIMILAR CAUSE BEYOND THEIR REASONABLE CONTROL.

6. Security; Reliance; Unauthorized Use. The Fund will cause all persons utilizing the Software and System to treat all applicable user and authorization codes, passwords and authentication keys with extreme care, and it will establish internal control and safekeeping procedures to restrict the availability of the same to persons duly authorized to give Instructions. Custodian is hereby irrevocably authorized to act in accordance with and rely on Instructions received by it through the System. The Fund acknowledges that it is its sole responsibility to assure that only persons duly authorized use the System and that Custodian shall not be responsible nor liable for any unauthorized use thereof.

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7. System Acknowledgments. Custodian shall acknowledge through the System its receipt of each transmission communicated through the System, and in the absence of such acknowledgment Custodian shall not be liable for any failure to act in accordance with such transmission and the Fund may not claim that such transmission was received by Custodian.

8. EXPORT RESTRICTIONS. EXPORT OF THE SOFTWARE IS PROHIBITED BY UNITED STATES LAW. THE FUND MAY NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES RESELL, DIVERT, TRANSFER, TRANSSHIP OR OTHERWISE DISPOSE OF THE SOFTWARE (IN ANY FORM) IN OR TO ANY OTHER COUNTRY. IF CUSTODIAN DELIVERED THE SOFTWARE TO THE FUND OUTSIDE OF THE UNITED STATES, THE SOFTWARE WAS EXPORTED FROM THE UNITED STATES IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE EXPORTER ADMINISTRATION REGULATIONS. DIVERSION CONTRARY TO U.S. LAW IS PROHIBITED. The Fund hereby authorizes Custodian to report its name and address to government agencies to which Custodian is required to provide such information by law.

9. ENCRYPTION. The Fund acknowledges and agrees that encryption may not be available for every communication through the System, or for all data. The Fund agrees that Custodian may deactivate any encryption features at any time, without notice or liability to the Fund, for the purpose of maintaining, repairing or troubleshooting the System or the Software.

Exhibit (k)(1)

CERTIFICATE OF APPOINTMENT

of

AMERICAN STOCK TRANSFER

& TRUST COMPANY, LLC

as

x      TRANSFER AGENT                  ¨       REGISTRAR

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Exhibit (k)(2)

ADMINISTRATION AGREEMENT

AGREEMENT (this “Agreement”) made as of [            ], 2011 by and between PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd., a Maryland corporation (hereinafter referred to as the “Corporation”), and PennantPark Investment Administration, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company, (hereinafter referred to as the “Administrator”).

W I T N E S S E T H:

WHEREAS, the Corporation is a newly formed closed-end non-diversified management investment company that has filed a notice with the Securities and Exchange Commission that it intends to elect to treated as a business development company under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (hereinafter referred to as the “1940 Act”);

WHEREAS, the Corporation desires to retain the Administrator to provide administrative services to the Corporation in the manner and on the terms hereinafter set forth; and

WHEREAS, the Administrator is willing to provide administrative services to the Corporation on the terms and conditions hereafter set forth.

NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the premises and the covenants hereinafter contained and for other good and valuable consideration, the receipt and adequacy of which is hereby acknowledged, the Corporation and the Administrator hereby agree as follows:

 

1.	Duties of the Administrator

(a) Employment of Administrator. The Corporation hereby employs the Administrator to act as administrator of the Corporation, and to furnish, or arrange for others to furnish, the administrative services, personnel and facilities described below, subject to review by and the overall control of the Board of Directors of the Corporation, for the period and on the terms and conditions set forth in this Agreement. The Administrator hereby accepts such employment and agrees during such period to render, or arrange for the rendering of, such services and to assume the obligations herein set forth subject to the reimbursement of costs and expenses provided for below. The Administrator and such others shall for all purposes herein be deemed to be independent contractors and shall, unless otherwise expressly provided or authorized herein, have no authority to act for or represent the Corporation in any way or otherwise be deemed agents of the Corporation.

(b) Services. The Administrator shall perform (or oversee, or arrange for, the performance of) the administrative services necessary for the operation of the Corporation. Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, the Administrator shall provide the Corporation with office facilities, equipment, clerical, bookkeeping and record keeping services at such facilities and such other services as the Administrator, subject to review by the Board of Directors of the Corporation, shall from time to time determine to be necessary or useful to perform its obligations under this Agreement. The Administrator shall also, on behalf of the

 

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Corporation, conduct relations with custodians, depositories, transfer agents, dividend disbursing agents, other stockholder servicing agents, accountants, attorneys, underwriters, brokers and dealers, corporate fiduciaries, insurers, banks and such other persons in any such other capacity deemed to be necessary or desirable. The Administrator shall make reports to the Directors of its performance of obligations hereunder and furnish advice and recommendations with respect to such other aspects of the business and affairs of the Corporation as it shall determine to be desirable; provided that nothing herein shall be construed to require the Administrator to, and the Administrator shall not, provide any advice or recommendation relating to the securities and other assets that the Corporation should purchase, retain or sell or any other investment advisory services to the Corporation. The Administrator shall be responsible for the financial and other records that the Corporation is required to maintain and shall prepare reports to stockholders, and reports and other materials filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”). The Administrator will provide on the Corporation’s behalf significant managerial assistance to those portfolio companies to which the Corporation is required to provide such assistance. In addition, the Administrator will assist the Corporation in determining and publishing the Corporation’s net asset value, overseeing the preparation and filing of the Corporation’s tax returns, and the printing and dissemination of reports to stockholders of the Corporation, and generally overseeing the payment of the Corporation’s expenses and the performance of administrative and professional services rendered to the Corporation by others.

 

2.

Records

The Administrator agrees to maintain and keep all books, accounts and other records of the Corporation that relate to activities performed by the Administrator hereunder and, if required by the 1940 Act, will maintain and keep such books, accounts and records in accordance with that Act. In compliance with the requirements of Rule 31a-3 under the 1940 Act, the Administrator agrees that all records which it maintains for the Corporation shall at all times remain the property of the Corporation, shall be readily accessible during normal business hours, and shall be promptly surrendered upon the termination of the Agreement or otherwise on written request. The Administrator further agrees that all records which it maintains for the Corporation pursuant to Rule 31a-1 under the 1940 Act will be preserved for the periods prescribed by Rule 31a-2 under the 1940 Act unless any such records are earlier surrendered as provided above. Records shall be surrendered in usable machine-readable form. The Administrator shall have the right to retain copies of such records subject to observance of its confidentiality obligations under this Agreement.

 

3.	Confidentiality

The parties hereto agree that each shall treat confidentially the terms and conditions of this Agreement and all information provided by each party to the other regarding its business and operations. All confidential information provided by a party hereto, including nonpublic personal information pursuant to Regulation S-P of the SEC, shall be used by any other party hereto solely for the purpose of rendering services pursuant to this Agreement and, except as may be required in carrying out this Agreement, shall not be disclosed to any third party, without

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the prior consent of such providing party. The foregoing shall not be applicable to any information that is publicly available when provided or thereafter becomes publicly available other than through a breach of this Agreement, or that is required to be disclosed by any regulatory authority, any authority or legal counsel of the parties hereto, by judicial or administrative process or otherwise by applicable law or regulation.

 

4.	Compensation; Allocation of Costs and Expenses

In full consideration of the provision of the services of the Administrator, the Corporation shall reimburse the Administrator for the costs and expenses incurred by the Administrator in performing its obligations and providing personnel and facilities hereunder. If requested to perform significant managerial assistance to portfolio companies of the Corporation, the Administrator will be paid an additional amount based on the services provided, which shall not exceed the amount the Corporation receives from the portfolio companies for providing this assistance.

The Corporation will bear all costs and expenses that are incurred in its operation and transactions and not specifically assumed by the Corporation’s investment adviser (the “Adviser”), pursuant to that certain Investment Advisory Management Agreement, dated as of [            ], 2011 by and between the Corporation and the Adviser. Costs and expenses to be borne by the Corporation include, but are not limited to, those relating to: organization and offering; calculating the Corporation’s net asset value (including the cost and expenses of any independent valuation firm); expenses incurred by the Adviser payable to third parties, including agents, consultants or other advisors, in monitoring financial and legal affairs for the Corporation and in monitoring the Corporation’s investments and performing due diligence (including related legal expenses) on its prospective portfolio companies and expenses related to unsuccessful portfolio acquisition efforts; interest payable on debt, if any, incurred to finance the Corporation’s investments; offerings of the Corporation’s common stock and other securities; investment advisory and management fees; administration fees payable under this Agreement; fees payable to third parties, including agents, consultants or other advisors, relating to, or associated with, evaluating and making investments, including costs associated with meeting potential financial sponsors; transfer agent and custodial fees; federal and state registration fees; all costs of registration and listing the Corporation’s shares on any securities exchange; federal, state and local taxes; independent directors’ fees and expenses; costs of preparing and filing reports or other documents required by the SEC; costs of any reports, proxy statements or other notices to stockholders, including printing costs; costs associated with individual or groups of stockholders; the Corporation’s allocable portion of the fidelity bond, directors and officers/errors and omissions liability insurance, and any other insurance premiums; direct costs and expenses of administration, including printing, mailing, long distance telephone, copying, secretarial and other staff, independent auditors and outside legal costs; and all other expenses incurred by the Corporation or the Administrator in connection with administering the Corporation’s business, including payments under this Agreement based upon the Corporation’s allocable portion of the Administrator’s overhead in performing its obligations

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under this Agreement, including rent and the allocable portion of the cost of the Corporation’s chief compliance officer and chief financial officer and their respective staffs.

At its election, the Administrator may elect to receive payment under this Agreement in the form of a percentage of assets under management by the Corporation, rather than based on the sum of the actual expenses accrued. Such percentage shall be in an amount mutually agreed by the Administrator and the Corporation.

 

5.	Limitation of Liability of the Administrator; Indemnification

The Administrator (and its officers, managers, partners, agents, employees, controlling persons, members, and any other person or entity affiliated with the Administrator, including without limitation its sole member) shall not be liable to the Corporation for any action taken or omitted to be taken by the Administrator in connection with the performance of any of its duties or obligations under this Agreement or otherwise as administrator for the Corporation, and the Corporation shall indemnify, defend and protect the Administrator (and its officers, managers, partners, agents, employees, controlling persons, members, and any other person or entity affiliated with the Administrator, including without limitation the Adviser, each of whom shall be deemed a third party beneficiary hereof, collectively, the “Indemnified Parties”) and hold them harmless from and against all damages, liabilities, costs and expenses (including reasonable attorneys’ fees and amounts reasonably paid in settlement) incurred by the Indemnified Parties in or by reason of any pending, threatened or completed action, suit, investigation or other proceeding (including an action or suit by or in the right of the Corporation or its security holders) arising out of or otherwise based upon the performance of any of the Administrator’s duties or obligations under this Agreement or otherwise as administrator for the Corporation. Notwithstanding the preceding sentence of this Paragraph 5 to the contrary, nothing contained herein shall protect or be deemed to protect the Indemnified Parties against or entitle or be deemed to entitle the Indemnified Parties to indemnification in respect of, any liability to the Corporation or its security holders to which the Indemnified Parties would otherwise be subject by reason of willful misfeasance, bad faith or gross negligence in the performance of the Administrator’s duties or by reason of the reckless disregard of the Administrator’s duties and obligations under this Agreement (to the extent applicable, as the same shall be determined in accordance with the 1940 Act and any interpretations or guidance by the SEC or its staff thereunder).

 

6.	Activities of the Administrator

The services of the Administrator to the Corporation are not to be deemed to be exclusive, and the Administrator and each affiliate is free to render services to others. It is understood that directors, officers, employees and stockholders of the Corporation are or may become interested in the Administrator and its affiliates, as directors, officers, members, managers, employees, partners, stockholders or otherwise, and that the Administrator and directors, officers, members, managers, employees, partners and stockholders of the Administrator and its affiliates are or may become similarly interested in the Corporation as stockholders or otherwise.

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7.	Duration and Termination of this Agreement

This Agreement shall become effective as of the date hereof, and shall remain in force with respect to the Corporation for two years thereafter, and thereafter continue from year to year, but only so long as such continuance is specifically approved at least annually by (i) the Board of Directors of the Corporation and (ii) a majority of those directors who are not parties to this Agreement or “interested persons” (as defined in the 1940 Act) of any such party.

This Agreement may be terminated at any time, without the payment of any penalty, by vote of the directors of the Corporation, or by the Administrator, upon 60 days’ written notice to the other party. This Agreement may not be assigned by a party without the consent of the other party.

 

8.	Amendments of this Agreement

This Agreement may be amended pursuant to a written instrument by mutual consent of the parties.

 

9.	Governing Law

This Agreement shall be construed in accordance with laws of the State of New York and the applicable provisions of the 1940 Act, if any. To the extent that the applicable laws of the State of New York, or any of the provisions herein, conflict with the applicable provisions of the 1940 Act, if any, the latter shall control.

 

10.	Entire Agreement

This Agreement contains the entire agreement of the parties and supercedes all prior agreements, understandings and arrangements with respect to the subject matter hereof.

 

11.

Notices

Any notice under this Agreement shall be given in writing, addressed and delivered or mailed, postage prepaid, to the other party at its principal office.

[REMAINDER OF PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK]

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

 

 

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Exhibit (k)(3)

TRADEMARK LICENSE AGREEMENT

This TRADEMARK LICENSE AGREEMENT (this “Agreement”) is made and effective as of [            ], 2011 (the “Effective Date”), by and between PennantPark Investment Advisers, LLC a Delaware limited liability company (the “Licensor” or the “Adviser”), and PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd., a corporation organized under the laws of the State of Maryland (the “Corporation”) (each a “party,” and collectively, the “parties”).

RECITALS

WHEREAS, the Adviser is the owner of the trade name “PENNANTPARK” (the “Licensed Mark”) and has filed an application to register the mark in the United States of America (the “Territory”) for investment management, investment consultation and investment advisory services.

WHEREAS, the Corporation is a newly organized closed-end management investment company that has filed notice with the Securities and Exchange Commission that it intends to elect to be treated as a business development company under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”);

WHEREAS, the Corporation is entering into an investment advisory and management agreement with the Adviser (the “Advisory Agreement”), wherein the Corporation will engage the Adviser to act as the investment adviser to the Corporation; and

WHEREAS, the Corporation desires to use the Licensed Mark in connection with the operation of its business, and the Adviser is willing to permit the Corporation to use the Licensed Mark, subject to the terms and conditions of this Agreement.

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

ARTICLE 1.

LICENSE GRANT

1.1. License. Subject to the terms and conditions of this Agreement, the Adviser hereby grants to The Corporation, and The Corporation hereby accepts from the Adviser, a personal, non-exclusive, royalty-free right and license to use the Licensed Mark solely and exclusively as an element of Corporation’s own corporate name and in connection with marketing the investment management, investment consultation and investment advisory services that the Adviser may provide to Corporation. During the term of this Agreement, the Corporation shall use the Licensed Mark only to the extent permitted under this License, and except as provided above, neither the Corporation nor any affiliate, owner, director, officer, employee, or agent thereof shall otherwise use the Licensed Mark or any derivative thereof in the Territory without the prior express written consent of the Adviser in its sole and absolute

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discretion and shall not use the Licensed Mark for any purpose outside the Territory. All rights not expressly granted to the Corporation hereunder shall remain the exclusive property of the Adviser.

1.2. Licensor’s Use. Nothing in this Agreement shall preclude Licensor or any of its successors or assigns from using or permitting other entities to use the Licensed Mark, whether or not such entity directly or indirectly competes or conflicts with the Corporation’s business in any manner.

ARTICLE 2.

OWNERSHIP

2.1. Ownership. The Corporation acknowledges and agrees that the Adviser is the owner of all right, title, and interest in and to the Licensed Mark, and all such right, title and interest shall remain with the Adviser. The Corporation shall not contest, dispute, challenge, oppose or seek to cancel the Adviser’s right, title, and interest in and to the Licensed Mark. The Corporation shall not prosecute any application for registration of the Licensed Mark, or seek to register the Licensed Mark as a domain name or part of any domain name.

2.2. Goodwill. The Corporation acknowledges that the Corporation shall not acquire any right, title, or interest in the Licensed Mark by virtue of this Agreement other than the license granted hereunder, and disclaims any such right, title, interest, or ownership. All goodwill and reputation generated by the Corporation’s use of the Licensed Mark shall inure to the exclusive benefit of the Adviser. The Corporation shall not by any act or omission use the Licensed Mark in any manner that disparages or reflects adversely on the Adviser or its business or reputation. The Corporation shall not take any action that would interfere with or prejudice the Adviser’s ownership or registration of the Licensed Mark, the validity of the Licensed Mark or the validity of the license granted by this Agreement.

ARTICLE 3.

COMPLIANCE

3.1. Quality Control. In order to preserve the inherent value of the Licensed Mark, the Corporation agrees to use reasonable efforts to ensure that it maintains the quality of the Corporation’s business and the operation thereof equal to the standards prevailing in the operation of the Adviser’s and the Corporation’s business as of the date of this Agreement. The Adviser shall oversee the quality of the services provided under the Licensed Mark by virtue of its role as investment adviser to the Corporation, and shall approve, prior to their use, all prospectuses, advertisements, and other materials upon which the Corporation uses the Licensed Mark. The Corporation further agrees to use the Licensed Mark in accordance with such quality standards as may be reasonably established by Licensor and communicated to the Corporation from time to time in writing, or as may be agreed to by Licensor and the Corporation from time to time in writing.

 

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3.2. Compliance With Laws. The Corporation agrees that the business operated by it in connection with the Licensed Mark shall comply with all laws, rules, regulations and requirements of any governmental body in the Territory or elsewhere as may be applicable to the operation, advertising and promotion of the business and shall notify the Adviser of any action that must be taken by the Corporation to comply with such law, rules, regulations or requirements.

3.3. Notification of Infringement. Each party shall immediately notify the other party and provide to the other party all relevant background facts upon becoming aware of (a) any registrations of, or applications for registration of, marks in the Territory that do or may conflict with any Licensed Mark, and (b) any infringements, imitations, or illegal use or misuse of the Licensed Mark in the Territory. The Adviser shall have the exclusive right, but not the obligation, to prosecute, defend and/or settle in its sole discretion, all actions, proceedings and claims involving any Third Party Infringement or Third Party Claim, and to take any other action that it deems necessary or proper for the protection and preservation of its rights in the Licensed Mark. The Corporation shall cooperate with the Adviser in the prosecution, defense, or settlement of such actions, proceedings, or claims.

ARTICLE 4.

REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES

4.1. The Corporation acknowledges that the Adviser has applied for registration in the Territory of PENNANTPARK, that the Adviser’s application for registration has not yet been examined or approved for registration, and that the Corporation accepts this license on an “as is” basis. The Corporation acknowledges that the Adviser makes no explicit or implicit representation or warranty as to the registrability, validity, enforceability, or ownership of the Licensed Mark, or as to the Corporation’s ability to use the Licensed Mark without infringing or otherwise violating the rights of others, and the Adviser has no obligation to indemnify the Corporation with respect to any claims arising from the Corporation’s use of the Licensed Mark.

4.2. Mutual Representations. Each party hereby represents and warrants to the other party as follows:

(a) Due Authorization. Such party is a corporation duly incorporated and in good standing as of the Effective Date, and the execution, delivery and performance of this Agreement by such party have been duly authorized by all necessary action on the part of such party.

(b) Due Execution. This Agreement has been duly executed and delivered by such party and, with due authorization, execution and delivery by the other party, constitutes a legal, valid and binding obligation of such party, enforceable against such party in accordance with its terms.

(c) No Conflict. Such party’s execution, delivery and performance of this Agreement do not: (i) violate, conflict with or result in the breach of any provision of the

 

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charter or by-laws (or similar organizational documents) of such party; (ii) conflict with or violate any law or governmental order applicable to such party or any of its assets, properties or businesses; or (iii) conflict with, result in any breach of, constitute a default (or event which with the giving of notice or lapse of time, or both, would become a default) under, require any consent under, or give to others any rights of termination, amendment, acceleration, suspension, revocation or cancellation of any contract, agreement, lease, sublease, license, permit, franchise or other instrument or arrangement to which it is a party.

ARTICLE 5.

TERM AND TERMINATION

5.1. Term. This Agreement shall expire (a) upon expiration or termination of the Advisory Agreement; (b) if the Adviser ceases to serve as investment adviser to the Corporation; (c) by the Adviser or the Corporation upon sixty (60) days’ written notice to the other party, or (d) by the Adviser at any time in the event the Corporation assigns or attempts to assign or sublicense this Agreement or any of the Corporation’s rights or duties hereunder without the prior written consent of the Adviser.

5.2. Upon Termination. Upon expiration or termination of this Agreement, all rights granted to the Corporation under this Agreement with respect to the Licensed Mark shall cease, and the Corporation shall immediately discontinue all use of the Licensed Mark. The Corporation shall immediately change its corporate name by deleting the term “PENNANTPARK.” For twenty- four (24) months following termination of this Agreement, the Corporation shall specify on all public-facing materials in a prominent place and in prominent typeface that the Corporation is no longer operating under the Licensed Mark and is no longer associated with Licensor.

ARTICLE 6.

MISCELLANEOUS

6.1. Assignment. The Corporation will not sublicense, assign, pledge, grant or otherwise encumber or transfer to any third party all or any part of its rights or duties under this Agreement, in whole or in part, without the prior written consent from the Adviser, which consent the Adviser may grant or withhold in its sole and absolute discretion. Any purported transfer without such consent shall be void ab initio.

6.2. Independent Contractor. Except as expressly provided or authorized in the Advisory Agreement, neither party shall have, or shall represent that it has, any power, right or authority to bind the other party to any obligation or liability, or to assume or create any obligation or liability on behalf of the other party.

6.3. Notices. All notices, requests, claims, demands and other communications hereunder shall be in writing and shall be given or made (and shall be deemed to have been duly given or made upon receipt) by delivery in person, by overnight courier service (with signature

 

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required), by facsimile, or by registered or certified mail (postage prepaid, return receipt requested) to the respective parties at the following addresses:

 

If to the Adviser:		If to the Corporation:
PennantPark Investment Advisers, LLC 590 Madison Avenue, 15th Floor New York, NY 10022 Tel. No.: (212) 905-1000 Fax No.: (212 ) 905-1075 Attn: Chief Compliance Officer		PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd. 590 Madison Avenue, 15th Floor New York, NY 10022 Tel. No.: (212) 905-1000 Fax No.: (212 ) 905-1075 Attn: Chief Compliance Officer

6.4. Governing Law. This Agreement shall be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of the State of New York. The parties unconditionally and irrevocably consent to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts located in the State of New York and waive any objection with respect thereto, for the purpose of any action, suit or proceeding arising out of or relating to this Agreement or the transactions contemplated hereby.

6.5. Amendment. This Agreement may not be amended or modified except by an instrument in writing signed by each party hereto.

6.6. No Waiver. The failure of either party to enforce at any time for any period the provisions of or any rights deriving from this Agreement shall not be construed to be a waiver of such provisions or rights or the right of such party thereafter to enforce such provisions, and no waiver shall be binding unless executed in writing by all parties hereto.

6.7. Severability. If any term or other provision of this Agreement is invalid, illegal or incapable of being enforced by any law or public policy, all other terms 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 in order that the transactions contemplated hereby are consummated as originally contemplated to the greatest extent possible.

6.8. Headings. The descriptive headings contained in this Agreement are for convenience of reference only and shall not affect in any way the meaning or interpretation of this Agreement.

6.9. Counterparts. This Agreement may be executed in one or more counterparts, each of which when executed shall be deemed to be an original instrument and all of which taken together shall constitute one and the same agreement.

 

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6.10. Entire Agreement. This Agreement constitutes the entire agreement of the parties with respect to the subject matter hereof and supersedes all prior agreements and undertakings, both written and oral, between the parties with respect to such subject matter.

6.11. Third party Beneficiaries. Nothing in this Agreement, either express or implied, is intended to or shall confer upon any third party any legal or equitable right, benefit or remedy of any nature whatsoever under or by reason of this Agreement.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, each party has caused this Agreement to be executed as of the Effective Date by its duly authorized officer.

 

 

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Exhibit (k)(4)

SUB-ADMINISTRATIVE AND ACCOUNTING SERVICES AGREEMENT

AGREEMENT made as of             , 2011 by and between Pennantpark Administration, LLC (the “Administrator”), The Bank of New York Mellon, a corporation organized under the laws of the State of New York, through its Alternative Investment Services division, (“BNYM-AIS”) and PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd. (the “Fund”).

W I T N E S S E T H:

WHEREAS, the Fund is a closed-end investment company that intends to file an election to be treated as a business development company under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (the “1940 Act”);

WHEREAS, the Fund has engaged the Administrator to provide the Fund administrative services, as set forth in the Administration Services Agreement dated             , 2011; and

WHEREAS, the Administrator wishes to retain BNYM-AIS to provide the various administration services to the Fund described herein as a sub-administrator to the Fund, and BNYM-AIS is willing to provide such services, all as more fully set forth below;

NOW THEREFORE, in consideration of the mutual promises and agreements contained herein, the parties hereby agree as follows:

 

1.

Definitions.

Whenever used in this Agreement, unless the context otherwise requires, the following words shall have the meanings set forth below:

“Authorized Person” shall mean each person, whether or not an officer or employee of a Fund, duly authorized by the Board to give Instructions on behalf of such Fund as set forth in Exhibit A hereto. The persons set forth in Exhibit A may be changed only in a writing substantially in the form of Exhibit A actually received and acknowledged by BNYM-AIS.

“BNYM Affiliate” shall mean any office, branch, or subsidiary of The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation.

“Board” shall mean a Fund’s board of directors or general partner, as applicable.

“Confidential Information” shall have the meaning given in Section 5(aa) of this Agreement.

“Documents” shall mean the documents described in Exhibit B hereto.

“Interests” means the shares or units of beneficial interests of any series or class of the Fund.

“Instructions” shall mean written communications actually received by BNYM-AIS by S.W.I.F.T., tested telex, letter, facsimile transmission, or other method or system specified by

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BNYM-AIS as available for use in connection with the services hereunder, whether from a Subscriber or a Fund.

“Investment Advisor” shall mean the entity identified by the Fund to BNYM-AIS as the entity having investment responsibility with respect to the Fund.

“Net Assets” shall mean total assets less total liabilities, including unrealized profits and losses on open positions, accrued income and expense, calculated in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles as more fully described in the Fund Offering Materials.

“Offering Materials” shall mean the Fund effective prospectus used in connection with the offering of the Interests.

“Organizational Documents” shall mean a Fund’s certificate of incorporation, certificate of formation or organization, certificate of limited partnership, bylaws, limited partnership agreement, memorandum of association, limited liability company agreement, or similar documents of formation or organization, as applicable.

“Subscriber” shall mean a person or entity subscribing to purchase, or already owning, Interests.

 

2.

Appointment.

The Administrator hereby appoints BNYM-AIS for the term of this Agreement to perform the services described herein for the Fund. BNYM-AIS hereby accepts such appointment and agrees to perform the duties hereinafter set forth.

 

3.

Representations and Warranties.

The Fund and the Administrator each hereby represent and warrant to BNYM-AIS, which representations and warranties shall be deemed to be continuing, that:

(a) It is duly organized and existing under the laws of the jurisdiction of its organization, with full power to carry on its business as now conducted, to enter into this Agreement and to perform its obligations hereunder;

(b) This Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered in accordance with all requisite corporate or limited liability company action, as the case may be, and constitutes a valid and legally binding obligation of the Administrator and the Fund, enforceable in accordance with its terms;

(c) The Fund’s Investment Advisor is in good standing and qualified to do business in each jurisdiction in which the nature or conduct of its business requires such qualification. The Fund and its Investment Advisor are knowledgeable about securities and/or commodities trading, as applicable, and aware of the risk of substantial loss in such trading;

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(d) It is conducting its business in compliance with all applicable laws and regulations, has made and will continue to make all necessary filings including tax filings, and has obtained all regulatory licenses, approvals and consents necessary to carry on its business as now conducted; there is no statute, regulation, rule, order or judgment binding on it and no provision of its Organizational Documents nor of any mortgage, indenture, credit agreement or other contract binding on it or affecting its property that would prohibit its execution or performance of this Agreement; and

(e) Each person named on Exhibit A hereto is duly authorized by such Fund to be an Authorized Person hereunder.

 

4.

Certain Duties of the Fund.

(a) The Administrator shall be solely responsible for accurately and timely supplying BNYM-AIS with complete financial and other information relating to the Fund in order for BNYM-AIS to provide the services set forth on Schedule I.

(b) The Fund acknowledges that BNYM-AIS is not a public accounting or auditing firm, is not a fiduciary of a public accounting or auditing firm, and does not provide public accounting or auditing services or advice and will not be making any tax filings or doing any tax reporting on its behalf, other than those specifically agreed to hereunder.

(c) The Fund acknowledges that it may be considered a U.S. withholding agent and/or may be required to file information or other tax returns under the U.S. Internal Revenue Code and related regulations (“IRC and Regulations”). The Fund agrees that it or its designated agents are, and will continue to be, in compliance with all withholding and reporting required by the IRC and Regulations. Therefore, unless otherwise specified in a written agreement, BNYM-AIS and BNYM Affiliates will not be responsible for withholding or depositing taxes, nor will it/they be responsible for any related tax filings or information reporting, including but not limited to Forms 1099, 945, 1042S, 1042, 1065, 1065 K-1, 8804, 8805, 1120 or 1120F.

(d) The Fund, and not BNYM-AIS, shall bear and pay the expenses of all brokerage commissions, margins, option premiums, interest charges, floor commissions and fees, and other transaction costs and expenses charged and incurred by broker-dealers and/or futures commission merchants and their agents in connection with the services provided hereunder.

(e) The Fund shall provide BNYM-AIS with certified copies of all Organizational Documents of the Fund and all filings relating to the organization of the Fund (excluding any state blue sky or securities law filings) required to be filed by the Fund with an official body or office.

(f) The Administrator shall deliver, or cause to be delivered from time to time, to BNYM-AIS the Fund’s Documents and other materials used in the distribution of Interests and all amendments thereto, and of such resolutions, votes and other proceedings as may be necessary for BNYM-AIS to perform its duties hereunder. BNYM-AIS shall not be deemed to have notice of any information (other than information supplied by BNYM-AIS) contained in such Documents or materials until they are actually received by BNYM-AIS.

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(g) The Administrator and the Fund shall cause the Fund’s Authorized Persons, Investment Advisor, distributor, legal counsel, independent accountant, previous administrator (if any) and transfer agent (if other than BNYM-AIS) to cooperate with BNYM-AIS and to provide BNYM-AIS, upon request, with such information, documents and advice relating to such Fund as is within the possession or knowledge of such persons, in order to enable BNYM-AIS to perform its duties hereunder. In connection with its duties hereunder, BNYM-AIS shall be entitled to rely, and shall be held harmless by the Fund when acting in reliance upon, such information, advice or documents provided to BNYM-AIS by any of the aforementioned persons. BNYM-AIS shall not be liable for any loss, damage or expense resulting from or arising out of the failure of the Fund to cause any information, documents or advice to be provided to BNYM-AIS as provided herein. All fees or costs charged by such persons shall be borne by the Fund.

(h) The Fund and the Administrator shall promptly notify BNYM-AIS in writing of any and all legal proceedings or securities investigations filed or commenced against any Fund, the Investment Advisor, or the Board.

 

5.

Duties and Obligations of BNYM-AIS.

(a) Subject to the direction and control of the Administrator and the terms and conditions of this Agreement, including Schedule I, BNYM-AIS shall provide to the Fund the services set forth in Schedule I.

(b) Except to the extent otherwise indicated on Schedule I, BNYM-AIS shall not provide any services relating to the management, investment advisory or sub-advisory functions of the Fund, distribution of Interests, or services normally performed by the Fund’s respective counsel or independent auditors.

(c) Subject to the Administrator’s prior written consent (which shall not be unreasonably withheld), BNYM-AIS may delegate any of its duties and obligations hereunder to any delegee or agent whenever and on such terms and conditions as it deems necessary or appropriate. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Administrator consent shall not be required for any such delegation to any BNYM Affiliate notwithstanding the domicile of such BNYM Affiliate, but BNYM-AIS shall consult with the Fund prior to any such delegation where BNYM-AIS deems such consultation appropriate. BNYM-AIS shall not be liable for any loss, damage or expense incurred as a result of errors or omissions of any permitted delegee or agent; provided, that BNYM-AIS shall have selected such delegee or agent with reasonable care; provided, further, that BNYM-AIS shall be liable for the acts or omissions of any BNYM Affiliate to the same extent it would be liable under the terms hereof had it committed such act or omission and not delegated the same to such BNYM Affiliate.

(d) BNYM-AIS shall, as sub-agent for the Fund, maintain and keep current such books, accounts and other documents as it is required to maintain pursuant to Rule 31a-1 and of the 1940 Act, as such Rules may be amended in connection with services provided hereunder. Such books and records shall be prepared and maintained as required by the 1940 Act and other applicable securities laws, rules and regulations. Such books, accounts and other documents shall be made available upon reasonable request for inspection by officers, employees

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and auditors of the Fund and the Administrator during BNYM-AIS’s normal business hours. To the extent permitted by and consistent with applicable requirements of any laws, rules and regulations applicable to the Fund, the Administrator or BNYM-AIS, any such books or records may be maintained in the form of electronic media and stored on any magnetic disk or tape or similar recording method. Except as otherwise authorized by the Fund, the Administrator or their agents, all such records (other than those which are not of a material nature) shall be preserved by BNYM-AIS for a period of at least six (6) years, unless delivered to a duly appointed successor or to the Fund.

(e) All records maintained and preserved by BNYM-AIS in hard copy pursuant to this Agreement shall be and remain the property of the Fund and shall be surrendered to the Fund promptly upon request in the form in which such records have been maintained and preserved. Upon reasonable request of the Fund or the Administrator and payment of a fee specified by BNYM-AIS, BNYM-AIS shall provide in hard copy or electronic format any records included in any such delivery which are maintained by BNYM-AIS in the form of electronic media and stored on any magnetic disk or tape or similar recording method, and the Fund shall reimburse BNYM-AIS for its expenses incurred in providing such records.

(f) The Administrator shall furnish BNYM-AIS with any and all Instructions, explanations, information, specifications and documentation reasonably deemed necessary by BNYM-AIS in the performance of its duties hereunder, including the amounts or written formula for calculating the amounts and times of accrual of the Fund liabilities and expenses. BNYM-AIS shall not be required to include as the Fund liabilities and expenses, nor as a reduction of Net Assets, any accrual for any income taxes unless the Fund shall have specified to BNYM-AIS the precise amount of the same to be included in liabilities and expenses or used to reduce Net Assets. BNYM-AIS shall endeavor to determine the value of securities owned by the Fund in the manner described in the Offering Materials. At any time and from time to time, the Fund may, if consistent with and to the extent permitted by the Offering Materials, furnish BNYM-AIS with bid, offer, or market values of securities and instruct BNYM-AIS to use such information in its calculations hereunder. BNYM-AIS shall at no time be required or obligated to commence or maintain either any utilization of, or subscriptions to, any securities pricing or similar service or any arrangements with any brokers, dealers or market makers or specialists described in the Offering Materials.

(g) In the event BNYM-AIS’s computations hereunder rely, in whole or in part, upon information, including (i) bid, offer or market values of securities or other assets, or accruals of interest or earnings thereon, from a pricing or similar service utilized, or subscribed to, by BNYM-AIS which BNYM-AIS in its judgment deems reliable, or (ii) prices or values supplied by the Fund or by brokers, dealers, market makers, or specialists described in the Offering Materials, BNYM-AIS shall not be responsible for, under any duty to inquire into, or deemed to make any assurances with respect to, the accuracy or completeness of such information. BNYM-AIS shall not be required to inquire into any valuation of securities or other assets by the Fund or any third party described above, even though BNYM-AIS in performing services similar to the services provided pursuant to this Agreement for others may receive different valuations of the same or different securities of the same issuers. BNYM-AIS, in performing the services required of it under the terms of this Agreement, shall not be responsible

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for determining whether any interest accruable to the Fund is or will be actually paid, but will accrue such interest until otherwise instructed by the Fund.

(h) The method of valuation of securities and the method of computing the Net Assets shall be as set forth in the then currently effective Offering Materials of the Fund. To the extent the description of the valuation methodology of securities or computation of Net Assets as specified in the Fund’s then currently effective Offering Materials is at any time inconsistent with any applicable laws or regulations, the Administrator shall immediately so notify BNYM-AIS in writing and thereafter shall either furnish BNYM-AIS at all appropriate times with the values of such securities and Net Assets, or subject to the prior approval of BNYM-AIS, instruct BNYM-AIS in writing as to the appropriate valuation methodology to be employed by BNYM-AIS to compute Net Assets in a manner that the Administrator then represents in writing to be consistent with all applicable laws and regulations. The Administrator may also from time to time, subject to the prior approval of BNYM-AIS, instruct BNYM-AIS in writing to compute the value of the securities or Net Assets in a manner other than as specified in this Agreement. By giving such instruction, the Fund shall be deemed to have represented that such instruction is consistent with all applicable laws and regulations and the then currently effective Offering Materials.

(i) BNYM-AIS, in performing the services required of it under the terms of this Agreement, shall be entitled to rely fully on the accuracy and validity of any and all Instructions, explanations, information, specifications and documentation furnished to it on behalf of the Fund and shall have no duty or obligation to review the accuracy, validity or propriety of such Instructions, explanations, information, specifications or documentation, including the amounts or formula for calculating the amounts and times of accrual liabilities and expenses; and the amounts receivable and the amounts payable on the sale or purchase of securities.

(j) BNYM-AIS may apply to an Authorized Person of the Fund for Instructions with respect to any matter arising in connection with BNYM-AIS’s performance hereunder, and BNYM-AIS shall not be liable for any action taken or omitted to be taken by it in good faith without gross negligence or willful misconduct in accordance with such Instructions. Such application for Instructions may, at the option of BNYM-AIS, set forth in writing any action proposed to be taken or omitted to be taken by BNYM-AIS with respect to its duties or obligations under this Agreement and the date on and/or after which such action shall be taken. BNYM-AIS shall not be liable for any action taken or omitted to be taken in accordance with a proposal included in any such application on or after the date specified therein unless, prior to such date for taking or omitting to take any such action, BNYM-AIS has received Instructions from an Authorized Person in response to such application specifying the action to be taken or omitted.

(k) BNYM-AIS may consult with counsel to the Fund or its own counsel, at the Fund’s expense, and shall be fully protected with respect to anything done or omitted by it in good faith in accordance with the advice or opinion of such counsel.

(l) BNYM-AIS shall have no duties or responsibilities whatsoever including any custodial duties, except such duties and responsibilities as are specifically set forth in this

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Agreement, including Schedule I, or as are otherwise required of BNYM-AIS by laws or regulations applicable to BNYM-AIS, and no covenant or obligation shall be implied against BNYM-AIS in connection with this Agreement.

(m) BNYM-AIS agrees to treat as confidential information all accounting and Subscriber information and other business records of the Fund and the Administrator, including any information relating to any Fund investment, disclosed to BNYM-AIS in connection with its provision of services pursuant to the terms of this Agreement (all such information, the “Confidential Information”) and BNYM-AIS shall not disclose the Confidential Information to any other person, except to (i) its employees, BNYM Affiliates, delegees, agents and other service providers to the Fund as may be required in connection with BNYM-AIS’s provision of services hereunder, (ii) its and the Fund’s respective regulators, examiners, internal and external accountants, auditors, and counsel, or (iii) any other person when required by a court order or legal process, or whenever advised by its counsel that it would be liable for a failure to make such disclosure. BNYM-AIS shall instruct its employees, regulators, examiners, internal and external accountants, auditors, and counsel, and instruct any BNYM Affiliate, delegee or agent to instruct its employees, regulators, examiners, internal and external accountants, auditors, and counsel, who may be afforded access to Confidential Information of such obligations of confidentiality, and shall not use the Confidential Information for any purpose other than the provision of services hereunder. Confidential Information shall not include any information that (i) is or becomes public knowledge through no act or omission of the receiving person, (ii) is publicly disclosed by a Fund or any Subscriber, or (iii) is otherwise obtained from third parties not known by BNYM-AIS to be bound by a duty of confidentiality.

(n) BNYM-AIS will take reasonable precautions to ensure the security of Subscriber records and information, protect against any anticipated threats or hazards to the security or integrity of such records or information, and protect against unauthorized access to or use of such records or information that would result in substantial harm or inconvenience to any Subscriber and will maintain reasonable procedures to detect and respond to any internal or external security breaches. BNYM-AIS will monitor and review its procedures periodically and revise them, as necessary, to ensure they appropriately address any reasonably foreseeable risks.

(o) BNYM-AIS may utilize systems and/or software designed, and databases provided, by certain third parties, and shall not be liable for any loss, damage or expense that occur as a result of the failure of any such systems, software, and/or databases not caused by BNYM-AIS’s own bad faith, gross negligence or willful misconduct. In providing the services hereunder, BNYM-AIS is authorized to utilize any vendor (including pricing and valuation services) reasonably believed by BNYM-AIS to be reliable. BNYM-AIS shall not be liable for any loss, damage or expense incurred as a result of errors or omissions of any vendor utilized by BNYM-AIS hereunder, provided, that such vendor was selected with reasonable care. No such vendor shall be an agent or delegee of BNYM-AIS hereunder.

(p) BNYM-AIS shall make reasonable provisions for emergency use of electronic data processing equipment to the extent appropriate equipment is available and, in the event of equipment failures, BNYM-AIS shall, at no additional expense to the Fund, take reasonable steps to minimize service interruption. BNYM-AIS shall have no liability with respect to the loss of data or service caused by equipment failure, provided such loss or

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interruption is not caused by BNYM-AIS’s own bad faith, gross negligence or willful misconduct.

 

6.

Allocation of Expenses.

(a) Except as otherwise provided herein, all costs and expenses arising or incurred in connection with the performance of this Agreement shall be paid by the Fund, including but not limited to, organizational costs and costs of maintaining the Fund existence, taxes, interest, brokerage fees and commissions, insurance premiums, compensation and expenses of the Fund employees, legal, accounting and audit expenses, management, advisory, sub-advisory, administration and servicing fees, charges of custodians, transfer and disbursing agents, expenses (including clerical expenses) incident to the issuance, cancellation, repurchase or redemption of Interests, fees and expenses incident to the registration or qualification of the Interests under applicable securities laws, costs (including printing and mailing costs) of preparing and distributing Offering Materials, reports, notices and proxy material, if any, to the owners of Interests, all expenses incidental to holding annual or other meetings, if any, and extraordinary expenses as may arise, including litigation affecting the Fund and legal obligations relating thereto.

(b) BNYM-AIS shall be reimbursed for all reasonable out-of-pocket expenses (excluding telephone, facsimile, and photocopy expenses) incurred in connection with the performance of any administrative services required, as well as any fees, costs and expenses permitted to be procured for the Fund by BNYM-AIS pursuant to this Agreement. BNYM-AIS shall supply supporting expense documentation to the Administrator and the Fund if so requested and to the extent such documentation is available.

 

7.

Standard of Care; Indemnification.

(a) Except as otherwise provided herein, BNYM-AIS shall not be liable for any costs, expenses, damages, liabilities or claims (including attorneys’ and accountants’ fees) resulting from, arising out of, or in connection with its performance hereunder, except those costs, expenses, damages, liabilities or claims arising out of BNYM-AIS’s or any BNYM Affiliate’s own bad faith, grossnegligence or willful misconduct. In no event shall BNYM-AIS be liable to the Fund or any third party for special, indirect or consequential damages, or lost profits or loss of business, resulting from, arising out of, or in connection with its performance hereunder, even if previously informed of the possibility of such damages and regardless of the form of action.

(b) Without limiting the generality of the foregoing, BNYM-AIS shall not be responsible for any loss, damage or expense suffered by any Fund arising from any one or more of the following:

(i) Errors in records or Instructions, explanations, information, specifications or documentation of any kind, as the case may be, including any valuations or prices of securities or specification of Net Assets, supplied to BNYM-AIS by any third party described in Section 5 hereof or by, or on behalf of, a Fund;

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(ii) Any failure by BNYM-AIS to receive any instruction (whether oral, written or by email, facsimile or other electronic transmission), record, explanation, information, specifications or documentation, including any failure to actually receive any application or other document from a Subscriber. In this context, any application or other document shall not be deemed actually received by BNYM-AIS unless and until the Subscriber has received from BNYM-AIS a confirmation of receipt in writing in the form currently in use by BNYM-AIS for those types of confirmations;

(iii) Any improper use by a Fund or its agents, distributors or Investment Advisor of any valuations or computations supplied by BNYM-AIS in accordance with its standard of care under this Agreement; or

(iv) The method of valuation of the securities and the method of computing Net Assets, as set forth in the Offering Materials or as directed by a Fund, and if the Offering Materials so indicate, the value of Net Assets per Share.

(v) Any taxes, penalties or interest imposed upon BNYM-AIS with respect to the applicable Fund’s withholding, depositing and/or reporting obligations under the IRC and Regulations.

(c) Notwithstanding any other provision contained in this Agreement, BNYM-AIS shall have no duty or obligation with respect to, including any duty or obligation to determine, or advise or notify the Fund of: (i) the taxable nature of any distribution or amount received or deemed received by, or payable to, the Fund; (ii) the taxable nature or effect on the Fund or their Subscribers of any corporate actions, class actions, tax reclaims, tax refunds, or similar events; (iii) the taxable nature or taxable amount of any distribution or dividend paid, payable or deemed paid, by the Fund to their Subscribers; or (iv) the effect under any income tax laws of the Fund making or not making any distribution, dividend payment, or election with respect thereto.

(d) Actions taken or omitted in reliance on Instructions (whether oral, written or by email, facsimile or other electronic transmission), or upon any information, order, indenture, power of attorney, assignment, affidavit or other instrument reasonably believed by BNYM-AIS to be genuine or reasonably believed by BNYM-AIS to be from an Authorized Person, or upon the opinion of legal counsel for the Fund or its own counsel, shall be conclusively presumed to have been taken or omitted in good faith.

(e) The Fund shall indemnify and hold harmless BNYM-AIS and any BNYM Affiliate from and against any and all costs, expenses, damages, liabilities and claims (including claims asserted by any Fund), and reasonable attorneys’ and accountants’ fees relating thereto, which are sustained or incurred or which may be asserted against BNYM-AIS or any BNYM Affiliate, by reason of or as a result of any action taken or omitted to be taken by BNYM-AIS or any BNYM Affiliate hereunder without bad faith, gross negligence, or willful misconduct, or in reasonable reliance upon (i) any law, act, regulation or interpretation of the same even though the same may thereafter have been altered, changed, amended or repealed, (ii) the Offering Materials (excluding information provided by BNYM-AIS), (iii) any Instructions (whether oral, written or by email, facsimile or other electronic transmission) of a person reasonably believed to be an

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Authorized Person, or (iv) any opinion of legal counsel for the Fund or BNYM-AIS, or arising out of transactions or other activities of the Fund which occurred prior to the commencement of this Agreement; provided, that neither BNYM-AIS nor any BNYM Affiliate shall be entitled to indemnification hereunder for costs, expenses, damages, liabilities or claims arising out of its own gross negligence, bad faith or willful misconduct. This indemnity shall be a continuing obligation of the Fund and the Administrator, their successors and assigns, notwithstanding the termination of this Agreement.

 

8.

Compensation.

In consideration of the Services to be rendered to the Fund by BNYM-AIS under this Agreement, the Fund shall pay BNYM-AIS a fee in accordance with Exhibit C hereto.

 

9.

Term of Agreement.

(a) This Agreement shall be for an initial term ending on the first anniversary of the date first above written, and shall continue for successive one year periods thereafter, except that the term of this Agreement may at any time be terminated by either BNYM-AIS giving to the Fund, or the Fund giving to BNYM-AIS, a notice in writing specifying the date of such termination, which date shall be not less than 90 days after the date of the giving of such notice, and the term of this Agreement shall immediately terminate upon dissolution of the Fund. Upon termination, other than a termination by the Fund pursuant to the succeeding Section 9(b), the Fund shall pay to BNYM-AIS: (i) if terminated prior to the first anniversary of the date first above written, the total fees which would have been payable through such first anniversary if this Agreement were not terminated, and (ii) if terminated after the first anniversary, such compensation as may be due as of the date of such termination, and, in each case, the Fund shall reimburse BNYM-AIS for any disbursements and expenses made or incurred by BNYM-AIS and payable or reimbursable hereunder, including fees and compensation for work done or services provided by BNYM-AIS after the termination date.

(b) This Agreement may be terminated by the Fund at any time if BNYM-AIS (A) commits a material breach of its obligations under this Agreement and shall fail to cure such breach within 20 days of receipt of written notice served by the Fund specifying in reasonable detail the nature of such breach; (B) goes into liquidation or if a receiver is appointed for any of its assets; or (C) there is a petition of insolvency filed by or against it. This Agreement may be terminated by BNYM-AIS at any time if the Fund (A) commits a material breach of its obligations under this Agreement and shall fail to cure such breach within 20 days of receipt of written notice served by BNYM-AIS specifying in reasonable detail the nature of such breach; (B) goes into liquidation or if a receiver is appointed for any of its assets; or (C) there is a petition of insolvency filed by or against it.

(c) Upon termination and settlement of all amounts due under this Agreement, including unpaid compensation due pursuant to Section 8 and amounts due pursuant to Section

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9(b), BNYM-AIS shall, at the expense of the Fund, return to the Fund any Confidential Information provided by the Fund to BNYM-AIS pursuant to this Agreement.

 

10.

Force Majeure.

Neither BNYM-AIS nor any Fund shall be responsible or liable for any failure or delay in the performance of its obligations under this Agreement arising out of or caused, directly or indirectly, by circumstances beyond its reasonable control, including acts of God; acts of war or terrorism; earthquakes; fires; floods; wars; civil or military disturbances; sabotage; epidemics; riots; interruptions, loss or malfunctions of utilities, computer (hardware or software) or communications service; accidents; labor disputes; acts of civil or military authority or governmental actions; it being understood that the Fund or BNYM-AIS, as the case may be, shall use their best efforts to resume performance as soon as practicable under the circumstances. BNYM-AIS has a reasonably designed contingency plan which has provisions for emergency use of electronic data processing equipment to the extent appropriate equipment is available. In the event of equipment failures, BNYM-AIS shall, at no additional expense to the Fund, take reasonable steps to minimize service interruptions.

 

11.

Amendment.

This Agreement may not be amended or modified in any manner except by a written agreement executed by BNYM-AIS and the Fund.

 

12.

Assignment.

This Agreement shall extend to and shall be binding upon the parties hereto, and their respective successors and assigns; provided, however, that this Agreement shall not be assignable by the Fund or BNYM-AIS without the written consent of the other, which consent shall not be unreasonably withheld, provided that notwithstanding the foregoing, BNYM-AIS may assign all or any portion of this Agreement to any BNYM Affiliate.

 

13.

Governing Law; Consent to Jurisdiction.

This Agreement shall be construed in accordance with the laws of the State of New York, without regard to conflict of laws principles thereof. The Fund hereby consents to the jurisdiction of a court situated in the City and State of New York in connection with any dispute arising hereunder. THE PARTIES TO THIS AGREEMENT EACH HEREBY IRREVOCABLY WAIVE ANY AND ALL RIGHTS TO TRIAL BY JURY IN ANY LEGAL PROCEEDING ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THIS AGREEMENT. TO THE EXTENT THAT IN ANY JURISDICTION THE PARTIES TO THIS AGREEMENT MAY NOW OR HEREAFTER BE ENTITLED TO CLAIM, FOR ITSELF OR ITS ASSETS, IMMUNITY FROM SUIT, EXECUTION, ATTACHMENT (BEFORE OR AFTER JUDGMENT) OR OTHER LEGAL PROCESS, THE PARTIES TO THIS AGREEMENT IRREVOCABLY AGREE NOT TO CLAIM, AND THEY HEREBY WAIVE, SUCH IMMUNITY.

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14.

Severability.

In case any provision in or obligation under this Agreement shall be invalid, illegal or unenforceable in any jurisdiction, the validity, legality and enforceability of the remaining provisions or obligations shall not in any way be affected or impaired thereby, and if any provision is inapplicable to any person or circumstances, it shall nevertheless remain applicable to all other persons and circumstances; and in each case the invalid, illegal, unenforceable or inapplicable provision shall be substituted with a valid, legal, enforceable and applicable provision that meets the business intent of the parties hereto as closely as possible.

 

15.

No Waiver.

Each and every right granted to BNYM-AIS, the Administrator or the Fund hereunder or under any other document delivered hereunder or in connection herewith, or allowed it by law or equity, shall be cumulative and may be exercised from time to time. No failure on the part of BNYM-AIS, the Administrator or the Fund to exercise, and no delay in exercising, any right will operate as a waiver thereof, nor will any single or partial exercise by BNYM-AIS, the Administrator or the Fund of any right preclude any other or future exercise thereof or the exercise of any other right.

 

16.

Non-Exclusiveness.

No provision of this Agreement shall prevent BNYM-AIS from offering services similar or identical to those covered by this Agreement to any other corporations, associations or entities of any kind. Any and all operational procedures, techniques and devices developed by BNYM-AIS in connection with the performance of its duties and obligations under this Agreement, including those developed in conjunction with the Fund, shall be and remain the property of BNYM-AIS, and BNYM-AIS shall be free to employ such procedures, techniques and devices in connection with the performance of any other contract with any other person whether or not such contract is similar or identical to this Agreement.

 

17.

Liabilities of a Fund.

The liabilities of each Fund shall be limited such that the debts, liabilities, obligations and expenses incurred, contracted for or otherwise existing and relating to this Agreement with respect to a particular Fund shall be enforceable against the assets of that particular Fund only, and not against the assets of any other Fund.

 

18.

Administrative Staff.

The Fund hereby agrees, and agrees to cause their affiliated companies (including the Investment Advisor) to agree, to refrain from hiring any employees of BNYM-AIS during the term of this Agreement and for a period of one (1) year after the termination date of this Agreement. Should the Fund, or any of their affiliated companies (including the Investment Advisor), hire any such employee during the stated time period, the Fund, or any of their affiliated companies (including the Investment Advisor), hereby agree to compensate BNYM-AIS in an amount equivalent to the hired employee’s annual salary to cover the cost of recruiting, hiring, and training a replacement employee.

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19.

Notices, Electronic Communications.

(a) All notices required or permitted under this Agreement in writing shall be validly given or made in writing if (i) personally delivered, (ii) delivered and confirmed by facsimile, (iii) delivered by reputable overnight courier delivery service or (iv) deposited in the mail, first class, postage prepaid, certified or registered, return receipt requested as follows:

if to the Administrator or the Fund, at:

Attention: Aviv Efrat

PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd.

590 MADISON AVENUE

15TH FLOOR

NEW YORK NY 10022

With a copy to:

Attention:

if to BNYM-AIS, at:

The Bank of New York Mellon

101 Barclay Street, 20W

New York, N.Y. 10286

Attention: Ian Shaw

Facsimile: (203) 601-4629

or at such other place as may from time to time be designated in writing. Notices sent via mail shall be deemed given on the third business day following the day they are sent, notices sent via overnight carrier shall be deemed given on the business day following the day they are sent, notices delivered personally shall be deemed given on the day of confirmed receipt, and notices transmitted by facsimile transmission shall be deemed given on the date of transmission with confirmation of receipt.

(b) The Administrator and the Fund authorizes BNYM-AIS to (i) accept consents, approvals, waivers, requests, Instructions and other communications BNYM-AIS receives by email, facsimile or other electronic transmission as if those communications had been given personally in writing and signed by an Authorized Person; (ii) respond to consents, approvals, waivers, requests, Instructions and other communications BNYM-AIS receives from any Fund by means of email, facsimile or other electronic transmission; (iii) communicate with, and accept communications from, the Administrator, the Fund, its counsel, accountants, auditors, prime broker and other service providers, the Board and Subscribers by means of email, facsimile or other electronic transmission; and (iv) transmit and receive Confidential Information in connection with its performance hereunder by means of email, facsimile or other electronic transmission. If the Administrator elects to transmit Instructions through an on-line

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communication system offered by BNYM-AIS, its use thereof shall be subject to the Terms and Conditions attached hereto as Appendix I. BNYM-AIS shall not be liable to the Fund or any other person for any loss or damage suffered as a result of the Fund use of email, facsimile or other electronic transmission to communicate with BNYM-AIS, or the use of email, facsimile or other electronic transmission by BNYM-AIS to transmit Confidential Information or communicate with any Fund or any other person, including any loss or damage resulting from or arising out of loss of data or malfunction of equipment or communications services in connection with the transmission of such communications. In the event any Instructions are given, whether upon application of BNYM-AIS or otherwise, by means of email, facsimile or other electronic transmission, BNYM-AIS is authorized to, but is not obligated to, seek clarification of such Instructions by telephone call-back to an Authorized Person, and BNYM-AIS may rely upon the clarification of anyone purporting to be such Authorized Person. If BNYM-AIS considers that any email, facsimile or other electronic communication may conflict with any other Instructions from, or agreements with, any Fund, it may delay acting on such communication until clarification by telephone call-back to an Authorized Person. Any Instructions received from a Subscriber in the manner set forth in this paragraph shall not be deemed actually received by BNYM-AIS unless and until the Subscriber has received from BNYM-AIS a confirmation of receipt in writing in the form currently in use by BNYM-AIS for those types of confirmations.

 

20.

No Third Party Beneficiary.

The terms and provisions of this Agreement shall inure to the benefit of the parties and their respective successors and assigns, and is made solely and specifically for their benefit. No other person, including but not limited to Subscribers, shall have any rights, interest or claims hereunder or be entitled to any benefits under or on account of this Agreement as a third-party beneficiary or otherwise.

 

21.

Rules of Construction.

All articles or section titles or captions in this Agreement shall be for convenience only, shall not be deemed part of this Agreement and shall in no way define, limit, extend or describe the scope or intent of any provisions of this Agreement. Except as specifically provided otherwise, alphanumerical references to “Articles,” “Sections,” “Exhibits” and “Schedules” are to the respective articles and sections of, and exhibits and schedules to, this Agreement. Whenever the context may require, any pronoun used in this Agreement shall include the corresponding masculine, feminine or neuter forms, and the singular form of nouns, pronouns and verbs shall include the plural and vice versa. The Schedules and Exhibits attached hereto are hereby incorporated herein and made a part of this Agreement. Any reference in this Agreement to schedules and exhibits shall be deemed to be a reference to such schedules and exhibits as amended and in effect from time to time. Whenever the word “including” is used herein, it shall be construed to mean “including without limitation.”

 

22.

Counterparts.

This Agreement may be executed in any number of counterparts, each of which shall be deemed to be an original; but such counterparts together shall constitute only one instrument.

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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have caused the foregoing instrument to be executed by their duly authorized officers and their seals to be hereunto affixed, all as of the day and year first above written.

 

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APPENDIX I

ELECTRONIC SERVICES TERMS AND CONDITIONS

1. License; Use. (a) This Appendix I shall govern the Administrator’s and the Fund’s use of electronic communications, information delivery, portfolio management and banking services, that The Bank of New York Mellon and its affiliates (“BNYM”) may provide to Fund, such as The Bank of New York Mellon Inform ™ and The Bank of New York Mellon CA$H-Register Plus^®, and any computer software, proprietary data and documentation provided by BNYM to Fund in connection therewith (collectively, the “Electronic Services”). In the event of any conflict between the terms of this Appendix I and the main body of this Agreement with respect to Fund’s use of the Electronic Services, the terms of this Appendix I shall control.

(b) BNYM grants to the Administrator and the Fund a personal, nontransferable and nonexclusive license to use the Electronic Services to which the Fund subscribes solely for the purpose of transmitting instructions and information (“Written Instructions”), obtaining reports, analyses and statements and other information and data, making inquiries and otherwise communicating with BNYM in connection with the Fund’s relationship with BNYM. The Administrator and the Fund shall use the Electronic Services solely for its own internal and proper business purposes and not in the operation of a service bureau. Except as set forth herein, no license or right of any kind is granted to the Administrator or the Fund with respect to the Electronic Services. The Administrator and the Fund acknowledge that BNYM and its suppliers retain and have title and exclusive proprietary rights to the Electronic Services, including any trade secrets or other ideas, concepts, know-how, methodologies, and information incorporated therein and the exclusive rights to any copyrights, trade dress, look and feel, trademarks and patents (including registrations and applications for registration of either), and other legal protections available in respect thereof. The Administrator and the Fund further acknowledge that all or a part of the Electronic Services may be copyrighted or trademarked (or a registration or claim made therefor) by BNYM or its suppliers. The Administrator and the Fund shall not take any action with respect to the Electronic Services inconsistent with the foregoing acknowledgments, nor attempt to decompile, reverse engineer or modify the Electronic Services. The Administrator and the Fund may not copy, distribute, sell, lease or provide, directly or indirectly, the Electronic Services or any portion thereof to any other person or entity without BNYM’s prior written consent. The Fund may not, remove any statutory copyright notice or other notice included in the Electronic Services. The Fund shall reproduce any such notice on any reproduction of any portion of the Electronic Services and shall add any statutory copyright notice or other notice upon BNYM’s request.

(c) Portions of the Electronic Services may contain, deliver or rely on data supplied by third parties (“Third Party Data”), such as pricing data and indicative data, and services supplied by third parties (“Third Party Services”) such as analytic and accounting services. Third Party Data and Third Party Services supplied hereunder are obtained from sources that BNYM believes to be reliable but are provided without any independent investigation by BNYM. BNYM and its suppliers do not represent or warrant that the Third Party Data or Third Party Services are correct, complete or current. Third Party Data and Third Party Services are proprietary to their suppliers, are provided solely for Fund’s internal use, and may not be reused,

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disseminated or redistributed in any form. Fund shall not use any Third Party Data in any manner that would act as a substitute for obtaining a license for the data directly from the supplier. Third Party Data and Third Party Services should not be used in making any investment decision. BNYM AND ITS SUPPLIERS ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY RESULTS OBTAINED FROM THE USE OF OR RELIANCE UPON THIRD PARTY DATA OR THIRD PARTY SERVICES. BNYM’s suppliers of Third Party Data and Services are intended third party beneficiaries of this Section 1(c) and Section 5 below.

(d) Fund understands and agrees that any links in the Electronic Services to Internet sites may be to sites sponsored and maintained by third parties. BNYM make no guarantees, representations or warranties concerning the information contained in any third party site (including without limitation that such information is correct, current, complete or free of viruses or other contamination), or any products or services sold through third party sites. All such links to third party Internet sites are provided solely as a convenience to Fund and Fund accesses and uses such sites at its own risk. A link in the Electronic Services to a third party site does not constitute BNYM’s endorsement, authorisation or sponsorship of such site or any products and services available from such site.

2. Equipment. Fund shall obtain and maintain at its own cost and expense all equipment and services, including but not limited to communications services, necessary for it to utilize and obtain access to the Electronic Services, and BNYM shall not be responsible for the reliability or availability of any such equipment or services.

3. Proprietary Information. The Electronic Services, and any proprietary data (including Third Party Data), processes, software, information and documentation made available to Fund (other than which are or become part of the public domain or are legally required to be made available to the public) (collectively, the “Information”), are the exclusive and confidential property of BNYM or its suppliers. However, for the avoidance of doubt, reports generated by Fund containing information relating to its account(s) (except for Third Party Data contained therein) are not deemed to be within the meaning of the term “Information.” Fund shall keep the Information confidential by using the same care and discretion that Fund uses with respect to its own confidential property and trade secrets, but not less than reasonable care. Upon termination of the Agreement or the licenses granted herein for any reason, Fund shall return to BNYM any and all copies of the Information which are in its possession or under its control (except that Fund may retain reports containing Third Party Data, provided that such Third Party Data remains subject to the provisions of this Appendix). The provisions of this Section 3 shall not affect the copyright status of any of the Information which may be copyrighted and shall apply to all information whether or not copyrighted.

4. Modifications. BNYM reserves the right to modify the Electronic Services from time to time. Fund agrees not to modify or attempt to modify the Electronic Services without BNYM’s prior written consent. Fund acknowledges that any modifications to the Electronic Services, whether by Fund or BNYM and whether with or without BNYM’s consent, shall become the property of BNYM.

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5. NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES; LIMITATION OF LIABILITY. BNYM AND ITS MANUFACTURERS AND SUPPLIERS MAKE NO WARRANTIES OR REPRESENTATIONS WITH RESPECT TO THE ELECTRONIC SERVICES OR ANY THIRD PARTY DATA OR THIRD PARTY SERVICES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, IN FACT OR IN LAW, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, NON-INFRINGEMENT AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. FUND ACKNOWLEDGES THAT THE ELECTRONIC SERVICES, THIRD PARTY DATA AND THIRD PARTY SERVICES ARE PROVIDED “AS IS.” TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, IN NO EVENT SHALL BNYM OR ANY SUPPLIER BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES, WHETHER DIRECT, INDIRECT SPECIAL, OR CONSEQUENTIAL, WHICH FUND MAY INCUR IN CONNECTION WITH THE ELECTRONIC SERVICES, THIRD PARTY DATA OR THIRD PARTY SERVICES, EVEN IF BNYM OR SUCH SUPPLIER KNEW OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. IN NO EVENT SHALL BNYM OR ANY SUPPLIER BE LIABLE FOR ACTS OF GOD, MACHINE OR COMPUTER BREAKDOWN OR MALFUNCTION, INTERRUPTION OR MALFUNCTION OF COMMUNICATION FACILITIES, LABOR DIFFICULTIES OR ANY OTHER SIMILAR OR DISSIMILAR CAUSE BEYOND THEIR REASONABLE CONTROL.

6. Security; Reliance; Unauthorized Use; Funds Transfers. BNYM will establish security procedures to be followed in connection with the use of the Electronic Services, and Fund agrees to comply with the security procedures. Fund understands and agrees that the security procedures are intended to determine whether instructions received by BNYM through the Electronic Services are authorized but are not (unless otherwise specified in writing) intended to detect any errors contained in such instructions. Fund will cause all persons utilizing the Electronic Services to treat any user and authorization codes, passwords, authentication keys and other security devices with the highest degree of care and confidentiality. Upon termination of Fund’s use of the Electronic Services, Fund shall return to BNYM any security devices (e.g., token cards) provided by BNYM. BNYM is hereby irrevocably authorized to comply with and rely upon on Written Instructions and other communications, whether or not authorized, received by it through the Electronic Services. Fund acknowledges that it has sole responsibility for ensuring that only Authorized Persons use the Electronic Services and that to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law BNYM shall not be responsible nor liable for any unauthorized use thereof or for any losses sustained by Fund arising from or in connection with the use of the Electronic Services or BNYM’s reliance upon and compliance with Written Instructions and other communications received through the Electronic Services. With respect to instructions for a transfer of funds issued through the Electronic Services, when instructed to credit or pay a party by both name and a unique numeric or alpha-numeric identifier (e.g. ABA number or account number), the BNYM, its affiliates, and any other bank participating in the funds transfer, may rely solely on the unique identifier, even if it identifies a party different than the party named. Such reliance on a unique identifier shall apply to beneficiaries named in such instructions as well as any financial institution which is designated in such instructions to act as an intermediary in a funds transfer. It is understood and agreed that unless otherwise specifically provided herein, and to the extent permitted by applicable law, the parties hereto shall be bound by the rules of any funds transfer system utilized to effect a funds transfer hereunder.

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7. Acknowledgments. BNYM shall acknowledge through the Electronic Services its receipt of each Written Instruction communicated through the Electronic Services, and in the absence of such acknowledgment BNYM shall not be liable for any failure to act in accordance with such Written Instruction and Fund may not claim that such Written Instruction was received by BNYM. BNYM may in its discretion decline to act upon any instructions or communications that are insufficient or incomplete or are not received by BNYM in sufficient time for BNYM to act upon, or in accordance with such instructions or communications.

8. Viruses. Fund agrees to use reasonable efforts to prevent the transmission through the Electronic Services of any software or file which contains any viruses, worms, harmful component or corrupted data and agrees not to use any device, software, or routine to interfere or attempt to interfere with the proper working of the Electronic Services.

9. Encryption. Fund acknowledges and agrees that encryption may not be available for every communication through the Electronic Services, or for all data. Fund agrees that BNYM may deactivate any encryption features at any time, without notice or liability to Fund, for the purpose of maintaining, repairing or troubleshooting its systems.

10. On-Line Inquiry and Modification of Records. In connection with Fund’s use of the Electronic Services, BNYM may, at Fund’s request, permit Fund to enter data directly into a BNYM database for the purpose of modifying certain information maintained by BNYM’s systems, including, but not limited to, change of address information. To the extent that Fund is granted such access, Fund agrees to indemnify and hold BNYM harmless from all loss, liability, cost, damage and expense (including attorney’s fees and expenses) to which BNYM may be subjected or which may be incurred in connection with any claim which may arise out of or as a result of changes to BNYM database records initiated by Fund.

11. Agents. Fund may, on advance written notice to the BNYM, permit its agents and contractors (“Agents”) to access and use the Electronic Services on Fund’s behalf, except that the BNYM reserves the right to prohibit Fund’s use of any particular Agent for any reason. Fund shall require its Agent(s) to agree in writing to be bound by the terms of the Agreement, and Fund shall be liable and responsible for any act or omission of such Agent in the same manner, and to the same extent, as though such act or omission were that of Fund. Each submission of a Written Instruction or other communication by the Agent through the Electronic Services shall constitute a representation and warranty by the Fund that the Agent continues to be duly authorized by the Fund to so act on its behalf and the BNYM may rely on the representations and warranties made herein in complying with such Written Instruction or communication. Any Written Instruction or other communication through the Electronic Services by an Agent shall be deemed that of Fund, and Fund shall be bound thereby whether or not authorized. Fund may, subject to the terms of this Agreement and upon advance written notice to the Bank, provide a copy of the Electronic Service user manuals to its Agent if the Agent requires such copies to use the Electronic Services on Fund’s behalf. Upon cessation of any such Agent’s services, Fund shall promptly terminate such Agent’s access to the Electronic Services, retrieve from the Agent any copies of the manuals and destroy them, and retrieve from the Agent any token cards or other security devices provided by BNYM and return them to BNYM.

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EXHIBIT A

The following persons, whether or not an officer or employee of the Fund, are hereby designated Authorized Persons under the Administrative Services Agreement dated as of             , 200    , between the Fund and The Bank of New York Mellon

 

Name		Company		Signature		Phone No.

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EXHIBIT B

Documents

1. The Fund’s Organizational Documents and all amendments thereto.

2. The Fund Offering Materials.

3. Any investment advisory, custodian, prime brokerage or similar contract or agreement between any of the Fund and any other party, including any contract or agreement described in the Offering Materials.

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SCHEDULE I

SERVICES

Description of Sub-Administration Services on a Continuous Basis.

The Sub-Administrator will perform the following sub-administration services with respect to the Fund:

(i) Supply various normal and customary Fund statistical data as requested on an ongoing basis;

(ii) Prepare for execution the Fund’s Federal and state tax returns;

(iii) Assist the Fund during SEC audits, including provision of documents in the possession of the Sub-Administrator and on the SEC’s “document request” lists; and

(vi) Monitor the Fund’s status as a regulated investment company under Sub-chapter M of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended;

Description of Accounting Services on a Continuous Basis.

BNYM-AIS will perform the following accounting services with respect to the Fund:

(i) Journalize investment, capital share and income and expense activities;

(ii) Verify investment buy/sell trade tickets when received from the investment adviser for the Fund (the “Adviser”);

(iii) Maintain individual ledgers for investment securities;

(iv) Maintain historical tax lots for each security;

(v) Reconcile cash and investment balances with the Custodian, and provide the Adviser with the beginning cash balance available for investment purposes;

(vi) Prepare the financial data only for the Fund’s Form 10-K and 10-Q;

(vii) Update the cash availability as required by the Adviser;

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(viii) Calculate various contractual expenses (e.g. advisory and custody fees);

(ix) Monitor the expense accruals and notify an officer of the Fund of any proposed adjustments;

(x) Control all disbursements and authorize such disbursements upon Written Instructions;

(xi) Calculate capital gains and losses;

(xii) Determine net income;

(xiii) Obtain security market quotes from independent pricing services approved by the Adviser, or if such quotes are unavailable, then obtain such prices from the Adviser, and in either case calculate the market value of the Fund’s investments;

(xiv) Transmit or mail a copy of the daily portfolio valuation to the Adviser;

(xv) Compute net asset value; and

(xvi) As appropriate, compute yields, total return, expense ratios, portfolio turnover rate, and, if required, portfolio average dollar-weighted maturity.

BNYM-AIS will bear no responsibility for the Fund’s compliance with business development company requirements under the 1940 Act to the extent such requirements are in place of, in addition to, or different from those of registered investment companies that are not business development companies or except as otherwise agreed in writing.

Exhibit (n)

Consent of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

The Board of Directors

PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd.:

We consent to the use of our report, dated March 4, 2011, included herein and to the references to our firm under the headings “Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm” in the prospectus.

/s/ KPMG LP

New York, New York

March 28, 2011

Exhibit (r)(1)

JOINT CODE OF ETHICS

FOR

PENNANTPARK FLOATING RATE CAPITAL LTD.

PENNANTPARK INVESTMENT ADVISERS, LLC

Section I    Statement of General Fiduciary Principles

This Joint Code of Ethics (the “Code”) has been adopted by each of PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd. (the “Corporation”), and PennantPark Investment Advisers, LLC, the Corporation’s investment adviser (the “Adviser”), in compliance with Rule 17j-1 under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “1940 Act”) and Section 204A of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (the “Advisers Act”). The purpose of the Code is to establish standards and procedures for the detection and prevention of activities by which persons having knowledge of the investments and investment intentions of the Corporation may abuse their fiduciary duty to the Corporation, and otherwise to deal with the types of conflict of interest situations to which Rule 17j-1 is addressed. As it relates to Section 204A of the Advisers Act, the purpose of this Code is to establish procedures that, taking into consideration the nature of the Adviser’s business, are reasonably designed to prevent misuse of material non-public information in violation of the federal securities laws by persons associated with the Adviser.

The Code is based on the principle that the directors and officers of the Corporation, and the managers, partners, officers and employees of the Adviser, who provide services to the Corporation, owe a fiduciary duty to the Corporation to conduct their personal securities transactions in a manner that does not interfere with the Corporation’s transactions or otherwise take unfair advantage of their relationship with the Corporation. All directors, managers, partners, officers and employees of the Corporation, and the Adviser (“Covered Personnel”) are expected to adhere to this general principle as well as to comply with all of the specific provisions of this Code that are applicable to them. Any Covered Personnel who is affiliated with another entity that is a registered investment adviser is, in addition, expected to comply with the provisions of the code of ethics that has been adopted by such other investment adviser.

Technical compliance with the Code will not automatically insulate any Covered Personnel from scrutiny of transactions that show a pattern of compromise or abuse of the individual’s fiduciary duty to the Corporation. Accordingly, all Covered Personnel must seek to avoid any actual or potential conflicts between their personal interests and the interests of the Corporation and its shareholders. In sum, all Covered Personnel shall place the interests of the Corporation before their own personal interests.

All Covered Personnel must read and retain this Code.

Section II    Definitions

 

(A)

“Access Person” means any director, officer, general partner or Advisory Person (as defined below) of the Corporation or the Adviser.

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(B)

An “Advisory Person” of the Corporation or the Adviser means: (i) any employee of the Corporation or the Adviser, or any company in a Control (as defined below) relationship to the Corporation or the Adviser, who in connection with his or her regular functions or duties makes, participates in, or obtains information regarding the purchase or sale of any Covered Security (as defined below) by the Corporation, or whose functions relate to the making of any recommendation with respect to such purchases or sales; and (ii) any natural person in a Control relationship to the Corporation or the Adviser, who obtains information concerning recommendations made to the Corporation with regard to the purchase or sale of any Covered Security by the Corporation.

 

(C)

“Beneficial Ownership” is interpreted in the same manner as it would be under Rule 16a-1(a)(2) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the “1934 Act”) in determining whether a person is a beneficial owner of a security for purposes of Section 16 of the 1934 Act and the rules and regulations thereunder.

 

(D)

“Chief Compliance Officer” means the Chief Compliance Officer of the Corporation (who also may serve as the compliance officer of the Adviser and/or one or more affiliates of the Adviser). Corporation shall initially have no Chief Compliance Officer. Prior to the completion of the Corporation’s initial public offering, the Corporation will appoint a Chief Compliance Officer or appoint a company to act in that capacity.

 

(E)

“Control” shall have the same meaning as that set forth in Section 2(a)(9) of the 1940 Act.

 

(F)

“Covered Security” means a security as defined in Section 2(a)(36) of the 1940 Act, which includes: any note, stock, treasury stock, security future, bond, debenture, evidence of indebtedness, certificate of interest or participation in any profit-sharing agreement, collateral-trust certificate, pre-organization certificate or subscription, transferable share, investment contract, voting-trust certificate, certificate of deposit for a security, fractional undivided interest in oil, gas, or other mineral rights, any put, call, straddle, option, or privilege on any security (including a certificate of deposit) or on any group or index of securities (including any interest therein or based on the value thereof), or any put, call, straddle, option, or privilege entered into on a national securities exchange relating to foreign currency, or, in general, any interest or instrument commonly known as a “security,” or any certificate of interest or participation in, temporary or interim certificate for, receipt for, guarantee of, or warrant or right to subscribe to or purchase, any of the foregoing.

Except that “Covered Security” does not include: (i) direct obligations of the Government of the United States; (ii) bankers’ acceptances, bank certificates of deposit, commercial paper and high quality short-term debt instruments, including repurchase agreements; and (iii) shares issued by open-end investment companies

 

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registered under the 1940 Act. References to a Covered Security in this Code (e.g., a prohibition or requirement applicable to the purchase or sale of a Covered Security) shall be deemed to refer to and to include any warrant for, option in, or security immediately convertible into that Covered Security, and shall also include any instrument that has an investment return or value that is based, in whole or in part, on that Covered Security (collectively, “Derivatives”). Therefore, except as otherwise specifically provided by this Code: (i) any prohibition or requirement of this Code applicable to the purchase or sale of a Covered Security shall also be applicable to the purchase or sale of a Derivative relating to that Covered Security; and (ii) any prohibition or requirement of this Code applicable to the purchase or sale of a Derivative shall also be applicable to the purchase or sale of a Covered Security relating to that Derivative.

 

(G)

“Independent Director” means a director of the Corporation who is not an “interested person” of the Corporation within the meaning of Section 2(a)(19) of the 1940 Act.

 

(H)

“Initial Public Offering” means an offering of securities registered under the Securities Act of 1933 (the “1933 Act”), the issuer of which, immediately before the registration, was not subject to the reporting requirements of Sections 13 or 15(d) of the 1934 Act.

 

(I)

“Limited Offering” means an offering that is exempt from registration under the 1933 Act pursuant to Section 4(2) or Section 4(6) thereof or pursuant to Rule 504, Rule 505, or Rule 506 thereunder.

 

(J)

“Security Held or to be Acquired” by the Corporation means: (i) any Covered Security which, within the most recent 15 days: (A) is or has been held by the Corporation; or (B) is being or has been considered by the Corporation or the Adviser for purchase by the Corporation; and (ii) any option to purchase or sell, and any security convertible into or exchangeable for, a Covered Security described in Section II (K)(i).

 

(K)

“17j-1 Organization” means the Corporation or the Adviser, as the context requires.

Section III    Objective and General Prohibitions

Covered Personnel may not engage in any investment transaction under circumstances in which the Covered Personnel benefits from or interferes with the purchase or sale of investments by the Corporation. In addition, Covered Personnel may not use information concerning the investments or investment intentions of the Corporation, or their ability to influence such investment intentions, for personal gain or in a manner detrimental to the interests of the Corporation.

 

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Covered Personnel may not engage in conduct that is deceitful, fraudulent or manipulative, or that involves false or misleading statements, in connection with the purchase or sale of investments by the Corporation. In this regard, Covered Personnel should recognize that Rule 17j-1 makes it unlawful for any affiliated person of the Corporation, or any affiliated person of an investment adviser for the Corporation, in connection with the purchase or sale, directly or indirectly, by the person of a Security Held or to be Acquired by the Corporation to:

 

(i)

employ any device, scheme or artifice to defraud the Corporation;

 

(ii)

make any untrue statement of a material fact to the Corporation or omit to state to the Corporation a material fact necessary in order to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which they are made, not misleading;

 

(iii)

engage in any act, practice or course of business that operates or would operate as a fraud or deceit upon the Corporation; or

 

(iv)

engage in any manipulative practice with respect to the Corporation.

Covered Personnel should also recognize that a violation of this Code or of Rule 17j-1 may result in the imposition of: (1) sanctions as provided by Section VIII below; or (2) administrative, civil and, in certain cases, criminal fines, sanctions or penalties.

Section IV    Prohibited Transactions

 

(A)

An Access Person may not purchase or otherwise acquire direct or indirect Beneficial Ownership of any Covered Security, and may not sell or otherwise dispose of any Covered Security in which he or she has direct or indirect Beneficial Ownership, if he or she knows or should know at the time of entering into the transaction that: (1) the Corporation has purchased or sold the Covered Security within the last 15 calendar days, or is purchasing or selling or intends to purchase or sell the Covered Security in the next 15 calendar days; or (2) the Adviser has within the last 15 calendar days considered purchasing or selling the Covered Security for the Corporation or within the next 15 calendar days intend to consider purchasing or selling the Covered Security for the Corporation.

 

(B)

Every Advisory Person of the Corporation or the Adviser must obtain approval from the Corporation or the Adviser, as the case may be, before directly or indirectly acquiring Beneficial Ownership in any securities in an Initial Public Offering or in a Limited Offering. Such approval must be obtained from the Chief Compliance Officer, unless he is the person seeking such approval, in which case it must be obtained from the President of the 17j-1 Organization.

 

(C)

No Access Person shall recommend any transaction in any Covered Securities by the Corporation without having disclosed to the Chief Compliance Officer his or

 

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her interest, if any, in such Covered Securities or the issuer thereof, including: the Access Person’s Beneficial Ownership of any Covered Securities of such issuer; any contemplated transaction by the Access Person in such Covered Securities; any position the Access Person has with such issuer; and any present or proposed business relationship between such issuer and the Access Person (or a party which the Access Person has a significant interest).

Section V    Reports by Access Persons

 

(A)

Personal Securities Holdings Reports.

All Access Persons shall within 10 days of the date on which they become Access Persons, and thereafter, within 30 days after the end of each calendar year, disclose the title, number of shares and principal amount of all Covered Securities in which they have a Beneficial Ownership as of the date the person became an Access Person, in the case of such person’s initial report, and as of the last day of the year, as to annual reports. A form of such report, which is hereinafter called a “Personal Securities Holdings Report,” is attached as Schedule A. Each Personal Securities Holdings Report must also disclose the name of any broker, dealer or bank with whom the Access Person maintained an account in which any securities were held for the direct or indirect benefit of the Access Person as of the date the person became an Access Person or as of the last day of the year, as the case may be. Each Personal Securities Holdings Report shall state the date it is being submitted.

 

(B)

Quarterly Transaction Reports.

Within 10 days after the end of each calendar quarter, each Access Person shall make a written report to the Chief Compliance Officer of all transactions occurring in the quarter in a Covered Security in which he or she had any Beneficial Ownership. A form of such report, which is hereinafter called a “Quarterly Securities Transaction Report,” is attached as Schedule B.

A Quarterly Securities Transaction Report shall be in the form of Schedule B or such other form approved by the Chief Compliance Officer and must contain the following information with respect to each reportable transaction:

(1) Date and nature of the transaction (purchase, sale or any other type of acquisition or disposition);

(2) Title, interest rate and maturity date (if applicable), number of shares and principal amount of each Covered Security involved and the price of the Covered Security at which the transaction was effected;

(3) Name of the broker, dealer or bank with or through whom the transaction was effected; and

 

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(4) The date the report is submitted by the Access Person.

 

(C)

Independent Directors.

Notwithstanding the reporting requirements set forth in this Section V, an Independent Director who would be required to make a report under this Section V solely by reason of being a director of the Corporation is not required to file a Personal Securities Holding Report upon becoming a director of the Corporation or an annual Personal Securities Holding Report. Such an Independent Director also need not file a Quarterly Securities Transaction Report unless such director knew or, in the ordinary course of fulfilling his or her official duties as a director of the Corporation, should have known that during the 15-day period immediately preceding or after the date of the transaction in a Covered Security by the director such Covered Security is or was purchased or sold by the Corporation or the Corporation or the Adviser considered purchasing or selling such Covered Security.

 

(D)

Access Persons of the Adviser.

An Access Person of the Adviser need not make a Quarterly Transaction Report if all of the information in the report would duplicate information required to be recorded pursuant to Rules 204-2(a)(12) or (13) under the Advisers Act.

 

(E)

Brokerage Accounts and Statements.

Access Persons, except Independent Directors, shall:

(1) within 10 days after the end of each calendar quarter, identify the name of the broker, dealer or bank with whom the Access Person established an account in which any securities were held during the quarter for the direct or indirect benefit of the Access Person and identify any new account(s) and the date the account(s) were established. This information shall be included on the appropriate Quarterly Securities Transaction Report.

(2) instruct the brokers, dealers or banks with whom they maintain such an account to provide duplicate account statements to the Chief Compliance Officer.

(3) on an annual basis, certify that they have complied with the requirements of (1) and (2) above.

 

(F)

Form of Reports.

A Quarterly Securities Transaction Report may consist of broker statements or other statements that provide a list of all personal Covered Securities holdings and transactions in the time period covered by the report and contain the information required in a Quarterly Securities Transaction Report.

 

(G)

Responsibility to Report.

 

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It is the responsibility of each Access Person to take the initiative to comply with the requirements of this Section V. Any effort by the Corporation, or by the Adviser and its affiliates, to facilitate the reporting process does not change or alter that responsibility. A person need not make a report hereunder with respect to transactions effected for, and Covered Securities held in, any account over which the person has no direct or indirect influence or control.

 

(H)

Where to File Reports.

All Quarterly Securities Transaction Reports and Personal Securities Holdings Reports must be filed with the Chief Compliance Officer.

 

(I)

Disclaimers.

Any report required by this Section V may contain a statement that the report will not be construed as an admission that the person making the report has any direct or indirect Beneficial Ownership in the Covered, Security to which the report relates.

Section VI    Additional Prohibitions

 

(A)

Confidentiality of the Corporation’s Transactions.

Until disclosed in a public report to shareholders or to the Securities and Exchange Commission in the normal course, all information concerning the securities “being considered for purchase or sale” by the Corporation shall be kept confidential by all Covered Personnel and disclosed by them only on a “need to know” basis. It shall be the responsibility of the Chief Compliance Officer to report any inadequacy found in this regard to the directors of the Corporation.

 

(B)

Outside Business Activities and Directorships.

Access Persons may not engage in any outside business activities that may give rise to conflicts of interest or jeopardize the integrity or reputation of the Corporation. Similarly, no such outside business activities may be inconsistent with the interests of the Corporation. All directorships of public or private companies held by Access Persons shall be reported to the Chief Compliance Officer.

 

(C)

Gratuities.

Covered Personnel shall not, directly or indirectly, take, accept or receive gifts or other consideration in merchandise, services or otherwise of more than nominal value from any person, firm, corporation, association or other entity other than such person’s employer that does business, or proposes to do business, with the Corporation.

 

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Section VII    Prohibition Against Insider Trading

This Section is intended to satisfy the requirements of Section 204A of the Advisers Act, which is applicable to the Adviser and requires that the Adviser establish and enforce procedures designed to prevent the misuse of material, non-public information by its associated persons. It applies to all Advisory Persons. Trading securities while in possession of material, non-public information, or improperly communicating that information to others, may expose an Advisory Person to severe penalties. Criminal sanctions may include a fine of up to $1,000,000 and/or ten years imprisonment. The SEC can recover the profits gained or losses avoided through the violative trading, a penalty of up to three times the illicit windfall, and an order permanently barring an Advisory Person from the securities industry. Finally, an Advisory Person may be sued by investors seeking to recover damages for insider trading violations.

 

(A)

No Advisory Person may trade a security, either personally or on behalf of any other person or account (including any fund), while in possession of material, non-public information concerning that security or the issuer thereof, nor may any Advisory Person communicate material, non-public information to others in violation of the law.

 

(B)

Information is “material” where there is a substantial likelihood that a reasonable investor would consider it important in making his or her investment decisions. Generally, this includes any information the disclosure of which will have a substantial effect on the price of a security. No simple test exists to determine when information is material; assessments of materiality involve a highly fact specific inquiry. For this reason, an Advisory Person should direct any questions about whether information is material to the Chief Compliance Officer. Material information often relates to a company’s results and operations, including, for example, dividend changes, earnings results, changes in previously released earnings estimates, significant merger or acquisition proposals or agreements, major litigation, liquidation problems, and extraordinary management developments. Material information may also relate to the market for a company’s securities. Information about a significant order to purchase or sell Securities may, in some contexts, be material. Pre-publication information regarding reports in the financial press may also be material.

 

(C)

Information is “public” when it has been disseminated broadly to investors in the marketplace. For example, information is public after it has become available to the general public through a public filing with the SEC or some other government agency, the Dow Jones “tape” or The Wall Street Journal or some other publication of general circulation, and after sufficient time has passed so that the information has been disseminated widely.

 

(D)

An Advisory Person, before executing any trade for himself or herself, or others, including the Corporation or other accounts managed by the Adviser or by a stockholder of the Adviser, or any affiliate of the stockholder (“Client Accounts”),

 

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must determine whether he or she has material, non-public information. Any Advisory Person who believes he or she is in possession of material, non-public information must take the following steps:

 

(1)

Report the information and proposed trade immediately to the Chief Compliance Officer.

 

(2)

Do not purchase or sell the securities on behalf of anyone, including Client Accounts.

 

(3)

Do not communicate the information to any person, other than to the Chief Compliance Officer.

After the Chief Compliance Officer has reviewed the issue, the Chief Compliance Officer will determine whether the information is material and non-public and, if so, what action the Advisory Person should take. An Advisory Person must consult with the Chief Compliance Officer before taking any further action. This degree of caution will protect the Advisory Person and the Adviser.

 

(E)

To prevent and detect insider trading from occurring, the Chief Compliance Officer shall prepare and maintain a “Restricted List” in order to monitor and prevent the occurrence of insider trading in certain securities that Access Persons are prohibited or restricted from trading. The Chief Compliance Officer manages, maintains and updates the Restricted List to actually restrict trading (no buying, no selling, no shorting, no trading, etc.) in the securities of specific issuers for personal accounts and on behalf Adviser’s clients. Before executing any trade for himself or herself, Advisory Persons are required to determine whether the transaction involves a security on the Restricted List. Advisory Persons are prohibited from trading any security which appears on the Restricted List, except that, with prior approval, an Advisory Person may sell securities which were not on the Restricted List when acquired (or which were acquired at a time when the Advisory Person was not subject to such restrictions). The Restricted List must be maintained strictly confidential and not disclosed to anyone outside of the Adviser and the Corporation.

 

(F)

Contacts with public companies will sometimes be a part of an Adviser’s research efforts. Persons providing investment advisory services to the Corporation may make investment decisions on the basis of conclusions formed through such contacts and analysis of publicly available information. Difficult legal issues arise, however, when, in the course of these contacts, an Advisory Person becomes aware of material, non-public information. This could happen, for example, if a company’s chief financial officer prematurely discloses quarterly results to an analyst, or an investor relations representative makes selective disclosure of adverse news to a handful of investors. In such situations, the Adviser must make a judgment as to its further conduct. To protect yourself,

 

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clients and the Adviser, you should contact the Chief Compliance Officer immediately if you believe that you may have received material, non-public information.

Section VIII    Annual Certification

 

(A)

Access Persons.

Access Persons who are directors, managers, officers or employees of the Corporation or the Adviser shall be required to certify annually that they have read this Code and that they understand it and recognize that they are subject to it. Further, such Access Persons shall be required to certify annually that they have complied with the requirements of this Code.

 

(B)

Board Review.

No less frequently than annually, the Corporation and the Adviser must furnish to the Corporation’s board of directors, and the board must consider, a written report that: (A) describes any issues arising under this Code or procedures since the last report to the board, including, but not limited to, information about material violations of the Code or procedures and sanctions imposed in response to material violations; and (B) certifies that the Corporation or the Adviser, as applicable, has adopted procedures reasonably necessary to prevent Access Persons from violating the Code.

Section IX    Sanctions

Any violation of this Code shall be subject to the imposition of such sanctions by the 17j-1 Organization as may be deemed appropriate under the circumstances to achieve the purposes of Rule 17j-1 and this Code. The sanctions to be imposed shall be determined by the board of directors, including a majority of the Independent Directors, provided, however, that with respect to violations by persons who are directors, managers, officers or employees of the Adviser (or of a company that controls the Adviser), the sanctions to be imposed shall be determined by the Adviser (or the controlling person thereof). Sanctions may include, but are not limited to, suspension or termination of employment, a letter of censure and/or restitution of an amount equal to the difference between the price paid or received by the Corporation and the more advantageous price paid or received by the offending person.

Section X    Administration and Construction

 

(A)

The administration of this Code shall be the responsibility of the Chief Compliance Officer.

 

(B)

The duties of the Chief Compliance Officer are as follows:

(1) Continuous maintenance of a current list of the names of all Access Persons with an appropriate description of their title or employment, including a notation of any

 

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directorships held by Access Persons who are officers or employees of the Adviser or of any company that controls the Adviser, and informing all Access Persons of their reporting obligations hereunder;

(2) On an annual basis, providing all Covered Personnel a copy of this Code and informing such persons of their duties and obligations hereunder including any supplemental training that may be required from time to time;

(3) Maintaining or supervising the maintenance of all records and reports required by this Code;

(4) Preparing listings of all transactions effected by Access Persons who are subject to the requirement to file Quarterly Securities Transaction Reports and reviewing such transactions against a listing of all transactions effected by the Corporation;

(5) Issuance either personally or with the assistance of counsel as may be appropriate, of any interpretation of this Code that may appear consistent with the objectives of Rule 17j-1 and this Code;

(6) Conduct such inspections or investigations as shall reasonably be required to detect and report, with recommendations, any apparent violations of this Code to the board of directors of the Corporation;

(7) Submission of a report to the board of directors of the Corporation, no less frequently than annually, a written report that describes any issues arising under the Code since the last such report, including but not limited to the information described in Section VII (B); and

 

(C)

The Chief Financial Officer shall maintain and cause to be maintained in an easily accessible place at the principal place of business of the 17j-1 Organization, the following records:

(1) A copy of all codes of ethics adopted by the Corporation or the Adviser and its affiliates, as the case may be, pursuant to Rule 17j-1 that have been in effect at any time during the past five (5) years;

(2) A record of each violation of such codes of ethics and of any action taken as a result of such violation for at least five (5) years after the end of the fiscal year in which the violation occurs;

(3) A copy of each report made by an Access Person for at least two (2) years after the end of the fiscal year in which the report is made, and for an additional three (3) years in a place that need not be easily accessible;

 

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(4) A copy of each report made by the Chief Compliance Officer to the board of directors for two (2) years from the end of the fiscal year of the Corporation in which such report is made or issued and for an additional three (3) years in a place that need not be easily accessible;

(5) A list of all persons who are, or within the past five (5) years have been, required to make reports pursuant to the Rule and this Code of Ethics, or who are or were responsible for reviewing such reports;

(6) A copy of each report required by Section VII (B) for at least two (2) years after the end of the fiscal year in which it is made, and for an additional three (3) years in a place that need not be easily accessible; and

(7) A record of any decision, and the reasons supporting the decision, to approve the acquisition by an Advisory Person of securities in an Initial Public Offering or Limited Offering for at least five (5) years after the end of the fiscal year in which the approval is granted.

 

(D)

This Code may not be amended or modified except in a written form that is specifically approved by majority vote of the Independent Directors.

This Joint Code of Ethics was adopted and approved by the Board of Directors of the Corporation, including a majority of the Independent Directors, at a meeting on March 10, 2011.

 

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		THOMAS FRIEDMANN   thomas.friedmann@dechert.com +1 202 261 3313 Direct +1 202 261 3016 Fax

March 29, 2011

VIA EDGAR

John M. Ganley

Senior Counsel

Division of Investment Management

Securities and Exchange Commission

100 F Street, N.E.

Washington, DC 20549

 

Re:	PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd. (the “Company”)

Registration Statement on Form N-2—File Nos. 333-170243 and 811-22489

Dear Mr. Ganley:

Thank you for your comments on March 24, 2011, regarding Pre-Effective Amendment No. 2 to the Company’s Registration Statement on Form N-2 (Registration Nos. 333-170243 and 811-22489; “PEA 2”) filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) on February 9, 2011. We describe below the changes that we have made in response to your comments in Pre-Effective Amendment No. 3 (“PEA 3”) to the Registration Statement that the Company filed on March 29, 2011. For your convenience, your comments are numbered and presented in italicized text below, and each comment is followed by our proposed response. We will also provide you under separate cover courtesy copies of PEA 3 as-filed and marked to reflect the changes from PEA 2.

In addition to responding to your comments, PEA 3 updates and completes certain disclosures and includes audited financial statements, among other things.

PROSPECTUS:

Cover Page

1. The first sentence of the first paragraph states that the Company has elected to be treated as a business development company under the Investment Company Act of 1940. Please revise the disclosure here and elsewhere in the prospectus so that such disclosure accurately reflects the circumstances on the date of the red herring prospectus.

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		John M. Ganley March 29, 2011 Page 2

As requested, the Company has revised the disclosure to make clear that, on the date of the red herring prospectus, the Company will not yet have filed an election to be treated as a business development company on Form N-54A and that, on such date, it will still “intend to elect to be treated” as a business development company under the Investment Company Act of 1940 (the “Investment Company Act”). In addition, the Company has made consistent revisions to its prospectus disclosure with respect to the timing of certain actions that it expects to take in connection with the offering.

2. The first sentence of the second paragraph states that the Company’s primary investment objective is to seek high current income, with a secondary objective to seek preservation of capital, consistent with the primary goal of high current income. Elsewhere in the prospectus, the Company states that it intends to invest in securities issued by non-investment grade companies that may be considered speculative and that its ability to obtain the secondary investment objective is limited by its investment policy. Accordingly, please revise the formulation of the Company’s investment objective to remove the reference to a secondary objective of preservation of capital or revise the prospectus disclosure to reconcile these apparent inconsistencies.

As requested, the Company has revised its investment objective to state: “Our investment objective is to seek current income.”

3. The first sentence of the third paragraph states that under normal market conditions, at least 80% of the Company’s Managed Assets will be invested in Floating Rate Loans and investments with similar economic characteristics. Since the Company has floating rate in its name, please revise this section to state that the Company will invest 80% of its Managed Assets in “floating rate” securities.

As requested, the Company has revised the disclosure to make clear that at least 80% of the Company’s assets will be invested in floating rate instruments and has deleted the reference to “investments with similar economic characteristics.”

Risk Factors – Risks Related To Our Business and Structure

4. Please provide additional disclosure related to the Company’s plans to securitize assets as a mechanism for funding future investments. Specifically, please state affirmatively that debt incurred in connection with the securitization transaction contemplated by the Company would be consolidated on the Company’s balance sheet for financial reporting purposes and that the Company would treat any debt incurred by such securitization vehicle as debt of the Company for purposes of determining the Company’s compliance with the asset coverage requirement under the Investment Company Act.

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		John M. Ganley March 29, 2011 Page 3

As requested, the Company has confirmed in its disclosure that it intends to consolidate indebtedness incurred by any subsidiary in connection with its contemplated securitization facility for financial reporting purposes and, in addition, that any such indebtedness would be included in the Company’s determination of its compliance with the asset coverage test under the Investment Company Act.

Use of Proceeds

5. Please state whether the Company will launch a consolidated Small Business Investment Company, “SBIC,” subsidiary.

The Company has no present intention to organize and launch an SBIC subsidiary.

* * * * * * *

If you have any further comments, or if you require additional information, please do not hesitate to contact me at (202) 261-3313 or David Harris at (202) 261-3385.

Sincerely,

/s/ Thomas J. Friedman

Thomas J. Friedmann

 

Cc:	Arthur Penn

Aviv Efrat

PennantPark Floating Rate Capital Ltd.

David J. Harris

Dechert LLP