Filed Pursuant to Rule 424(b)(3)

Registration No. 333-158971

 

SUBJECT TO COMPLETION. DATED MAY 12, 2009.

 

Preliminary Prospectus Supplement to Prospectus dated May 4, 2009

 

 

           Shares

 

 

Common Stock

 

 

 

 

We are offering           shares of our common stock, par value $0.0001 per share. Our common stock is listed for trading on the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) under the symbol “WAL.” On May 11, 2009, the last reported sale price of our common stock on NYSE was $8.73 per share.

 

The shares of common stock are not savings accounts, deposits or other obligations of any of our bank or non-bank subsidiaries and are not insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”) or any other governmental agency.

 

Investing in our common stock involves risks. See “Risk Factors” beginning on page S-4 to read about factors you should consider before buying our common stock.

 

 

 

 

Neither the Securities and Exchange Commission nor any state securities regulator has approved or disapproved of these securities or determined if this prospectus supplement or the accompanying prospectus is truthful or complete. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.

 

 

 

 

 

The underwriters also may purchase up to an additional           shares of our common stock within 30 days of the date of this prospectus supplement to cover over-allotments, if any.

 

The underwriters expect to deliver the common stock in book-entry form only, through the facilities of The Depository Trust Company, against payment on or about May   , 2009.

 

 

Prospectus Supplement dated May   , 2009

 

You should rely only on the information contained or incorporated by reference in this prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus. We have not, and the underwriters have not, authorized any person to provide you with different or inconsistent information. 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 supplement, the accompanying prospectus and the documents incorporated by reference is accurate only as of their respective dates. Western Alliance Bancorporation’s business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects may have changed since such dates.

 

If there is any inconsistency between the information in this prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus, you should rely on the information in this prospectus supplement.

 

Unless otherwise indicated or unless the context requires otherwise, all references in this prospectus supplement to “Western Alliance,” “we,” “us,” “our” or similar references mean Western Alliance Bancorporation.

 

We file annual, quarterly and current reports, proxy statements and other information with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”). You may read and copy any document we file at the SEC’s public reference room at 100 F Street, N.E., Washington, D.C. 20549. Please call the SEC at 1-800-SEC-0330 for further information on the public reference room. In addition, our SEC filings are available to the public at the SEC’s Internet site at http://www.sec.gov and on our website at http://www.westernalliancebancorp.com.

 

In this prospectus supplement, as permitted by law, we “incorporate by reference” information from other documents that we file with the SEC. This means that we can disclose important information to you by referring you to those documents. The information incorporated by reference is considered to be a part of this prospectus supplement and should be read with the same care. When we update the information contained in documents that have been incorporated by reference by making future filings with the SEC, the information incorporated by reference in this prospectus supplement is considered to be automatically updated and superseded. In other words, in case of a conflict or inconsistency between information contained in this prospectus supplement and information incorporated by reference into this prospectus supplement, you should rely on the information contained in the document that was filed later.

 

We incorporate by reference the documents listed below and any documents we file with the SEC in the future under Section 13(a), 13(c), 14, or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), until our offering is completed:

 

 

Unless stated otherwise in the applicable report, information furnished under Item 2.02 or 7.01 of our Current Reports on Form 8-K is not incorporated by reference.

 

You may request a copy of any of these filings, other than an exhibit to a filing unless that exhibit is specifically incorporated by reference into that filing, at no cost, by writing to or telephoning us at the following address:

 

Western Alliance Bancorporation

2700 W. Sahara Avenue

Las Vegas, Nevada 89102

(702) 248-4200

Attn: Dale Gibbons, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

 

Other than any documents expressly incorporated by reference, the information on our website and any other website that is referred to in this prospectus supplement is not part of this prospectus supplement.

 

This prospectus supplement, the accompanying prospectus and the information included or incorporated by reference in them includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements often include the words “believes,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “estimates,” “forecasts,” “intends,” “plans,” “targets,” “potentially,” “probably,” “projects,” “outlook” or similar expressions or future conditional verbs such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “would” and “could.” These forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause the actual results to differ materially from the statements, including:

 

 

Some of these and other factors are discussed in our annual and quarterly reports previously filed with the SEC. Such developments could have an adverse impact on our financial position and our results of operations.

 

The forward-looking statements are based upon management’s beliefs and assumptions and are made as of the date of this prospectus supplement. We undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements included or incorporated by reference in this prospectus supplement or to update the reasons why actual results could differ from those contained in such statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except to the extent required by federal securities laws. In light of these risks, uncertainties and assumptions, the forward-looking events discussed in this prospectus supplement or in the incorporated documents might not occur, and you should not put undue reliance on any forward-looking statements.

 

PROSPECTUS SUPPLEMENT SUMMARY

Common stock we are offering		shares
Common stock outstanding after this offering		shares(1)(2)
Use of proceeds		Our net proceeds from this offering will be approximately $      million, or approximately $      million if the underwriters exercise their over-allotment option in full, after deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and other estimated expenses of this offering. We intend to use all of the net proceeds of the offering for general corporate purposes, including to increase liquidity and to provide for additional capital and growth. For a more complete description, see “Use of Proceeds.”
NYSE listing		WAL
Settlement date		Delivery of shares of our common stock will be made against payment therefor on or about May   , 2009.

(1)		The number of shares of common stock outstanding immediately after the closing of this offering is based on 38,988,316 shares of common stock outstanding as of April 30, 2009.
(2)		Unless otherwise indicated, the number of shares of common stock presented in this prospectus supplement excludes shares issuable pursuant to the exercise of the underwriter’s over-allotment option, 2,939,500 shares of common stock issuable under our stock compensation plans and 2,972,400 shares of common stock issuable upon the exercise of various warrants (including the warrant for 1,574,213 shares of common stock held by the United States Department of the Treasury).

		As of or for the
		Three Months Ended
		March 31,								As of or for the Year Ended December 31,
		2009				2008				2008				2007				2006				2005				2004
		(Dollars in thousands, except per share data)
Statement of Income
Interest income		$	70,168			$	76,792			$	295,591			$	305,822			$	233,085			$	134,910			$	90,855
Total interest expense			19,438				29,930				100,683				125,933				84,297				32,568				19,720
Net interest income			50,730				46,862				194,908				179,889				148,788				102,342				71,135
Provision for loan losses			19,984				8,059				68,189				20,259				4,660				6,179				3,914
Noninterest income (loss)			(32,469	)			4,723				(117,046	)			22,538				13,434				12,138				8,726
Noninterest expense			88,496				38,003				300,081				133,670				96,086				64,864				44,929
Income (loss) before income tax expense			(90,219	)			5,523				(290,408	)			48,498				61,476				43,437				31,018
Minority interest			—				—				218				110				—				—				—
Income tax expense (benefit)			(3,777	)			1,381				(54,166	)			15,513				21,587				15,372				10,961
Net income (loss)			(86,442	)			4,142				(236,460	)			32,875				39,889				28,065				20,057
Preferred stock dividends			1,750				—				778				—				—				—				—
Accretion on preferred stock discount			682				—				303				—				—				—				—
Net income (loss) available to common stockholders		$	(88,874	)		$	4,142			$	(237,541	)		$	32,875			$	39,889			$	28,065			$	20,057
Earnings (loss) per share
Basic		$	(2.33	)		$	0.14			$	(7.27	)		$	1.14			$	1.56			$	1.36			$	1.17
Diluted		$	(2.33	)		$	0.14			$	(7.27	)		$	1.06			$	1.41			$	1.24			$	1.09
Balance Sheet Data
Total Assets		$	5,267,286			$	5,197,303			$	5,242,761			$	5,016,096			$	4,169,604			$	2,857,271			$	2,176,849
Net loans			3,998,557				3,671,793				4,020,884				3,583,704				2,969,671				1,772,145				1,173,264
Goodwill and other intangible assets, net			54,055				241,366				100,000				242,180				148,230				5,164				5,386
Deposits			4,061,499				3,630,264				3,652,266				3,546,922				3,400,423				2,393,812				1,756,036
Customer repurchase agreements, FHLB advances and other borrowings and subordinated debt			745,846				1,037,061				1,061,160				941,955				341,524				189,610				280,122
Stockholders’ equity			426,938				493,960				495,497				501,518				408,579				244,223				133,571

 

An investment in our common stock involves certain risks. You should carefully consider the risks described below and the risk factors included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2008, as well as the other information included or incorporated by reference in this prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus, before making an investment decision. Our business, financial condition or results of operations could be materially adversely affected by any of these risks. The trading price of our common stock could decline due to any of these risks, and you may lose all or part of your investment. This prospectus supplement also contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Our actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of certain factors, including the risks faced by us described below and elsewhere in this prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus.

 

Risks Relating to Recent Economic Conditions and Governmental Response Efforts

 

The recent decline in economic conditions and disruptions to financial markets may not improve for the foreseeable future, which could cause us to suffer continuing operating losses, adversely effect our liquidity position, erode our capital base or create other business problems.

 

The global and U.S. economies, and the economies of the local communities in which we operate, experienced a rapid decline in 2008. The financial markets and the financial services industry in particular suffered unprecedented disruption, causing many major institutions to fail or require government intervention to avoid failure. These conditions were largely the result of the erosion of the U.S. and global credit markets, including a significant and rapid deterioration of the mortgage lending and related real estate markets. As a consequence of the difficult economic environment, we experienced losses, resulting primarily from significant provisions for loan losses and substantial write-downs of our investment securities and goodwill. Although we continued to grow net revenues and customer funds in 2008 and the first three months of 2009, the rate of growth in these areas declined compared to prior years and periods. There can be no assurance that the economic conditions that have adversely affected the financial services industry, and the capital, credit and real estate markets generally, will improve in the near term, in which case we could continue to experience significant losses and write-downs of assets, and could face capital and liquidity constraints or other business challenges.

 

We cannot predict the effect of recent legislative and regulatory initiatives.

 

The U.S. federal, state and foreign governments have taken or are considering extraordinary actions in an attempt to deal with the worldwide financial crisis and the severe decline in the global economy. To the extent adopted, many of these actions have been in effect for only a limited time, and have produced limited or no relief to the capital, credit and real estate markets. There is no assurance that these actions or other actions under consideration will ultimately be successful.

 

In the United States, the federal government has adopted the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 (enacted on October 3, 2008) (“EESA”) and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (enacted on February 17, 2009) (“ARRA”). With authority granted under these laws, the Treasury has proposed a financial stability plan that is intended to:

 

 

In many cases, full implementation of the laws will require the adoption of regulations and program parameters. Other laws, regulations, and programs at the federal, state and even local levels are under consideration that address the economic climate and/or the financial services industry. The full effect of these initiatives cannot be predicted. Compliance with such initiatives may increase our costs and limit our ability to pursue business opportunities. Also, participation in specific programs may subject us to additional restrictions. In addition, we are required to pay significantly higher FDIC premiums because market developments have significantly depleted the insurance fund of the FDIC and reduced the ratio of reserves to insured deposits.

There can be no assurance that these initiatives will improve economic conditions generally or the financial markets or financial services industry in particular. The failure of EESA, ARRA and the financial stability plan to stabilize the financial markets could materially adversely affect our ability to access the capital and credit markets, our business, financial condition, results of operations and the market price for our common stock.

 

Participation in the Treasury’s Capital Purchase Program may result in dilution of common stockholders.

 

The U.S. government has taken action to restore liquidity and stability to financial and credit markets, including the enactment of EESA and the Troubled Assets Relief Program (“TARP”). As part of TARP, the Treasury implemented a program to purchase senior preferred stock from qualifying financial institutions, including us. On November 21, 2008, we issued preferred securities and a warrant to purchase our common stock to the Treasury. Prior to November 21, 2011, unless we have redeemed the preferred securities or the Treasury has transferred the securities to a third party, the Treasury’s consent will be required for us to pay a common stock dividend or repurchase our common stock, other than in connection with benefit plans consistent with past practice. Under the anti-dilution provisions included in the terms of the Treasury’s investment, the per share exercise price of the warrant and the number of shares of our common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrant will be adjusted upon certain issuances of our common stock at or below a specified price relative to the initial exercise price. The exercise of the common stock purchase warrant could result in material dilution to existing common stockholders.

 

The soundness of other financial institutions with which we do business could adversely affect us.

 

The financial services industry and the securities markets have been materially adversely affected by significant declines in values of almost all asset classes and by extreme lack of liquidity in the capital and credit markets. Financial institutions specifically have been subject to increased volatility and an overall loss in investor confidence.

 

Financial institutions are interrelated as a result of trading, clearing, counterparty, investment or other relationships. We routinely execute transactions with counterparties in the financial services industry such as commercial banks, brokers and dealers, investment banks and other institutional clients for a range of transactions including loan participations, derivatives and hedging transactions. In addition, we invest in securities or loans originated or issued by financial institutions or supported by the loans they originate. Many of these transactions expose us to credit or investment risk in the event of default by our counterparty. In addition, our credit risk may be exacerbated if the collateral we hold cannot be realized or is liquidated at prices not sufficient to recover the full amount of the loan or other exposure to us. We have taken significant impairments or write-downs in our securities portfolio and have suffered periodic gains or losses on other investments under mark to market accounting treatment. We could incur additional losses to our securities portfolio in the future as a result of these issues. These types of losses may have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operation.

 

We may need to raise additional capital in the future and such capital may not be available when needed or at all.

 

We may need to raise additional capital in the future to provide us with sufficient capital resources and liquidity to meet our commitments and business needs. Our ability to raise additional capital, if needed, will depend on, among other things, conditions in the capital markets at that time, which are outside of our control, and our financial performance. The ongoing liquidity crisis and the loss of confidence in financial institutions may increase our cost of funding and limit our access to some of our customary sources of capital, including, but not limited to, inter-bank borrowings, repurchase agreements and borrowings from the discount window of the Federal Reserve.

 

We cannot assure you that such capital will be available to us on acceptable terms or at all. Any occurrence that may limit our access to the capital markets, such as a decline in the confidence of debt purchasers, depositors of our subsidiary banks or counterparties participating in the capital markets, or a downgrade of our debt rating, may adversely affect our capital costs and our ability to raise capital and, in turn, our liquidity. An inability to raise additional capital on acceptable terms when needed could have a materially adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

The limitations on bonuses, retention awards, severance payments and incentive compensation contained in ARRA may adversely affect our ability to retain our highest performing employees.

 

For so long as any equity or debt securities that were issued to the Treasury under TARP remain outstanding, ARRA restricts bonuses, retention awards, severance payments and other incentive compensation payable to an institution’s five senior executive officers and up to the next 20 highest paid employees. Depending upon the final regulations issued under ARRA, it is possible that we may be unable to create a compensation structure that permits us to retain our highest performing employees or recruit additional employees, especially if we are competing against institutions that are not subject to the same restrictions. If this were to occur, our business and results of operations could be materially adversely affected.

 

Risks Related to Our Market and Business

 

Our current primary market area is substantially dependent on gaming and tourism revenue, and the downturn in the gaming and tourism industries has hurt our business and our prospects.

 

Our business is currently concentrated in the Las Vegas metropolitan area. The economy of the Las Vegas metropolitan area is unique in the United States for its level of dependence on services and industries related to gaming and tourism. Although we have no substantial customer relationships in the gaming and tourism industries, the downturn in the gaming industry, and the Las Vegas economy generally, has adversely affected our customers, and has resulted in a significant increase in loan delinquencies and foreclosures, a reduction in the demand for some of our products and services and a reduction of the value of our collateral for loans, which has adversely affected our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.

 

Any event or state of affairs that negatively impacts the gaming or tourism industry adversely impacts the Las Vegas economy. Gaming and tourism revenue (whether or not such tourism is directly related to gaming) is particularly vulnerable to fluctuations in the economy. Virtually any development or event that dissuades travel or spending related to gaming and tourism, whether inside or outside of Las Vegas, adversely affects the Las Vegas economy. In this regard, the Las Vegas economy is more susceptible than the economies of other cities to such issues as higher gasoline and other fuel prices, increased airfares, unemployment levels, recession, rising interest rates and other economic conditions, whether domestic or foreign. Gaming and tourism are also susceptible to certain political conditions or events, such as military hostilities and acts of terrorism, whether domestic or foreign. In addition, Las Vegas competes with other areas of the country, and other parts of the world, for gaming revenue, and it is possible that the expansion of gaming operations in other states, such as California, and other countries, as a result of changes in laws or otherwise, could significantly reduce gaming revenue in the Las Vegas area. A further decline in the Las Vegas economy could further adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects.

 

We are highly dependent on real estate and events that negatively impact the real estate market hurt our business.

 

We are located in areas in which economic growth is largely dependent on the real estate market, and a significant portion of our loan portfolio is dependent on real estate. As of March 31, 2009, real estate related loans accounted for approximately 78.5% of total loans. Real estate values have been declining in our markets, in some cases in a material and even dramatic fashion, which affects collateral values and has resulted in increased provisions for loan losses. The slowdown in real estate activity in the markets we serve has also caused a decline in our deposit growth and negatively impacted our financial condition. As an example, non-interest bearing title company deposits comprised 11.1% of our total noninterest bearing deposits as of March 31, 2009, down from 18.0% as of March 31, 2008. We expect the weakness in these portions of our loan portfolio to continue well into 2009. Accordingly, it is anticipated that our nonperforming asset and charge-off levels will remain elevated.

 

Further, the effects of recent mortgage market challenges, combined with the ongoing decrease in residential real estate market prices and demand, could result in further price reductions in home values, adversely affecting the value of collateral securing the residential real estate and construction loans that we hold, as well as loan originations and gains on sale of real estate and construction loans. A further decline in real estate activity would likely cause a further decline in asset and deposit growth and negatively impact our financial condition.

Our high concentration of commercial real estate, construction and land development and commercial and industrial loans expose us to increased lending risks.

 

As of March 31, 2009, the composition of our loan portfolio was as follows:

 

 

Commercial real estate, construction and land development and commercial and industrial loans, which comprised 83.9% of our total loan portfolio as of March 31, 2009, expose us to a greater risk of loss than our residential real estate and consumer loans, which comprised 16.1% of our total loan portfolio as of March 31, 2009. Commercial real estate and land development loans typically involve larger loan balances to single borrowers or groups of related borrowers compared to residential loans. Consequently, an adverse development with respect to one commercial loan or one credit relationship exposes us to a significantly greater risk of loss compared to an adverse development with respect to one residential mortgage loan.

 

Credit losses are inherent in the business of making loans and could have a material adverse effect on our operating results. We make various assumptions and judgments about the collectibility of our loan portfolio and provide an allowance for estimated credit losses based on a number of factors. We believe that our allowance for credit losses is adequate. However, if our assumptions or judgments are wrong, our allowance for credit losses may not be sufficient to cover our actual credit losses. We may have to increase our allowance in the future in response to the request of one of our primary banking regulators, to adjust for changing conditions and assumptions or as a result of any deterioration in the quality of our loan portfolio. The actual amount of future provisions for credit losses cannot be determined at this time and may vary from the amounts of past provisions.

 

Our financial instruments expose us to certain market risks and may increase the volatility of reported earnings.

 

Effective January 1, 2007, we adopted SFAS No. 157, Fair Value Measurements, and SFAS No. 159, The Fair Value Option for Financial Assets and Financial Liabilities — including an amendment of FASB Statement No. 115. In connection with this adoption, we elected to record selected financial instruments, including investment securities, junior subordinated debt and other borrowings, at fair value. We also enter into interest rate swaps and other hedging transactions, which are also recorded at fair value.

 

For those financial instruments we elected to carry at fair value, SFAS No. 159 requires us to recognize, in earnings, changes in the fair value of such instruments. Therefore, any increases or decreases in the fair value of the financial instruments that we carry at fair value have a corresponding impact on reported earnings. Fair value can be affected by a variety of factors, many of which are beyond our control, including our credit position, interest rate volatility, volatility in capital markets and other economic factors. Accordingly, our earnings are subject to mark-to-market risk and the application of fair value accounting may cause our earnings to be more volatile than would be suggested by our underlying performance.

 

For the three months ended March 31, 2009, we had net mark-to-market gains of approximately $4.0 million, offset by securities impairment charges of approximately $38.4 million, as compared to net mark-to-market gains of approximately $1.6 million and securities impairment charges of $5.3 million for the three months ended March 31, 2008. We may be required to write down assets or incur additional securities impairment charges in future periods, which would have a direct and negative impact on earnings.

 

If we lost a significant portion of our low-cost deposits, it would negatively impact our liquidity and profitability.

 

Our profitability depends in part on our success in attracting and retaining a stable base of low-cost deposits. As of March 31, 2009, 25.6% of our deposit base was comprised of noninterest bearing deposits, of which 11.1% consisted of title company deposits (as compared to 18.0% as of March 31, 2008); 83.1% consisted of other business

deposits, which consist primarily of operating accounts for businesses; and 5.8% consisted of consumer deposits. While we generally do not believe these core deposits are sensitive to interest rate fluctuations, the competition for these deposits in our markets is strong and customers are increasingly seeking investments that are safe, including the purchase of U.S. Treasury securities and other government-guaranteed obligations, as well as the establishment of accounts at the largest, most-well capitalized banks. If we were to lose a significant portion of our low-cost deposits, it would negatively impact our liquidity and profitability.

 

The holder of subordinated debt issued by our Bank of Nevada subsidiary has asserted an event of default not related to debt service on the subordinated debt.

 

Our Bank of Nevada subsidiary recently received a notice from the holder of $60 million in subordinated debt issued by the Bank asserting an event of default based on the Bank’s receipt of a notice from banking regulators regarding additional informal supervisory oversight of the Bank. The asserted event of default would convert the interest rate on this debt from a LIBOR-based rate to Prime Rate-based rate, effective July 1, 2009. As asserted, the new interest rate would be the holder’s Prime Rate + 0.13%, on a blended basis. Although the relationship between LIBOR and the Prime Rate fluctuates, we estimate that the after tax increase in interest payments due to this conversion would be approximately $75,000 per quarter. The notice further asserts that the Bank may not, during the continuance of the asserted default, pay any dividends or make any loans to Western Alliance Bancorporation. The notice reserves all of the holder’s other rights and remedies, but does not specify or assert any such rights or remedies. For more information regarding remedies in the case of an event of default, please refer to note 12 to the consolidated financial statements in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2008. The exercise of such remedies could negatively impact our financial condition and liquidity.

 

We are reliant on borrowings from the Federal Home Loan Bank and the Federal Reserve, and there can be no assurance these programs will continue in their current manner.

 

As pressure on retaining and obtaining deposits has increased, we have become reliant on borrowings from the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco and the Federal Reserve. The amount loaned to us is generally dependent on the value of the collateral pledged. These lenders could reduce the percentages loaned against various collateral categories, could eliminate certain types of collateral and could otherwise modify or even terminate their loan programs. In this regard, the FHLB of San Francisco did not pay a dividend for the fourth quarter of 2008 and did not purchase excess capital stock on January 31, 2009. Any change or termination would have an adverse affect on our liquidity and profitability.

 

A substantial decline in the value of our Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco common stock may adversely affect our financial condition.

 

We own common stock of the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco (“FHLB”) in order to qualify for membership in the Federal Home Loan Bank system, which enables us to borrow funds under the Federal Home Loan Bank advance program. The carrying value and fair market value of our FHLB common stock was $40.2 million as of March 31, 2009.

 

Recent published reports indicate that certain member banks of the Federal Home Loan Bank system may be subject to asset quality risks that could result in materially lower regulatory capital levels. In an extreme situation, it is possible that the capitalization of a Federal Home Loan Bank, including the FHLB, could be substantially diminished or reduced to zero. Consequently, given that there is no market for our FHLB common stock, we believe that there is a risk that our investment could be deemed other than temporarily impaired at some time in the future. If this occurs, it may adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition.

 

If the capitalization of the FHLB is substantially diminished and if it reduces or suspends its dividend, our liquidity may be adversely impaired if we are not able to obtain an alternative source of funding.

A decline in our stock price or expected future cash flows, or a material adverse change in our results of operations or prospects, could result in further impairment of our goodwill.

 

A further significant and sustained decline in our stock price and market capitalization, a significant decline in our expected future cash flows, a significant adverse change in the business climate or slower growth rates could result in additional impairment of our goodwill. If we were to conclude that a future write-down of our goodwill is necessary, then we would record the appropriate charge, which could have an adverse effect on our operating results and financial position.

 

Any reduction in our credit rating could increase the cost of our funding from the capital markets.

 

The major rating agencies regularly evaluate us and their ratings of our long-term debt based on a number of factors, including our financial strength as well as factors not entirely within our control, including conditions affecting the financial services industry generally. In light of the difficulties in the financial services industry and the housing and financial markets and the asserted event of default on the subordinated debt of our Bank of Nevada subsidiary, there can be no assurance that we will not be subject to credit downgrades. Credit ratings measure a company’s ability to repay its obligations and directly affect the cost and availability to that company of unsecured financing. Downgrades could adversely affect the cost and other terms upon which we are able to obtain funding and increase our cost of capital.

 

As compared to prior periods, our growth slowed considerably in 2008 and the first three months of 2009 and we cannot predict when, if ever, we will grow at the rate we have in the past.

 

We grew from having one chartered bank with $443.7 million in total assets and $410.2 million in total deposits as of December 31, 2000, to five chartered banks with $5.0 billion in total assets and $3.5 billion in total deposits as of December 31, 2007. Although we continued to grow in 2008 and the first three months of 2009, reaching $5.3 billion in total assets and $4.1 billion in total deposits at March 31, 2009, our growth rates have slowed. We cannot predict when, if ever, we will be able to grow at rates we have achieved in the past.

 

Our expansion strategy may not prove to be successful and our market value and profitability may suffer.

 

We continually evaluate expansion through acquisitions of banks, selected assets or deposits of failed or distressed banks, the organization of new banks and the expansion of our existing banks through establishment of new branches. Any future acquisitions will be accompanied by the risks commonly encountered in acquisitions. These risks include, among other things:

 

 

The recent crisis also revealed and caused risks that are unique to acquisitions of financial institutions and banks, and that are difficult to assess, including the risk that the acquired institution has troubled, illiquid or bad assets or an unstable base of deposits or assets under management. We expect that competition for suitable acquisition candidates may be significant. We may compete with other banks or financial service companies with similar acquisition strategies, many of which are larger and have greater financial and other resources. We cannot assure you that we will be able to successfully identify and acquire suitable acquisition targets on acceptable terms and conditions.

 

In addition to the acquisition of existing financial institutions, we may consider the organization of new banks in new market areas. We do not have any current plan to organize a new bank. Any acquisition or organization of a new bank carries with it numerous risks, including the following:

 

 

 

We cannot assure you that we will be successful in overcoming these risks or any other problems encountered in connection with acquisitions and the organization of new banks. Our inability to overcome these risks could have an adverse effect on our ability to achieve our business strategy and maintain our market value.

 

We may not be able to control costs and our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects could suffer.

 

Our ability to manage our business successfully will depend in part on our ability to maintain low-cost deposits and to control operating costs. If we are not able to efficiently manage our costs, our results of operations would suffer.

 

We may be forced to divert resources from maintaining and growing existing businesses and client relationships, which could cause us to experience a material adverse effect.

 

Our future success will depend on the ability of our officers and other key employees to continue to implement and improve our operational, credit, financial, management and other internal risk controls and processes, and improve our reporting systems and procedures, while at the same time maintaining and growing existing businesses and client relationships. We may not successfully implement such improvements in an efficient or timely manner and may discover deficiencies in existing systems and controls. Such activities would divert management from maintaining and growing our existing businesses and client relationships and could require us to incur additional expenditures to expand our administrative and operational infrastructure. If we are unable to improve our controls and processes, or our reporting systems and procedures, we may experience compliance and operational problems or incur additional expenditures beyond current projections, any one of which could adversely affect our financial results.

 

Our business success is dependent upon our ability to recruit and retain qualified employees, especially seasoned relationship bankers.

 

Our business plan includes, and is dependent upon, hiring and retaining highly qualified and motivated executives and employees at every level. In particular, our relative success to date has been partly the result of our management’s ability to seek and retain highly qualified relationship bankers that have long-standing relationships in their communities. These professionals bring with them valuable customer relationships, and have been an integral part of our ability to attract deposits and to expand in our market areas. Our declining stock price and new government limits on employee compensation for TARP recipients could make it more difficult to recruit and retain employees. From time to time we recruit or utilize the services of employees who are subject to limitations on their ability to use confidential information of a prior employer, to freely compete with that employer or to solicit customers of that employer. If we are unable to hire or retain qualified employees, we may not be able to successfully execute our business strategy. If we are found to have violated any nonsolicitation or other restrictions applicable to us or our employees, we could become subject to litigation or other proceedings.

 

Our future success will depend on our ability to compete effectively in a highly competitive market.

 

We face substantial competition in all phases of our operations from a variety of different competitors. Our competitors, including commercial banks, community banks, savings and loan associations, mutual savings banks, credit unions, consumer finance companies, insurance companies, securities dealers, brokers, mortgage bankers, investment advisors, money market mutual funds and other financial institutions, compete with lending and deposit-gathering services offered by us. Increased competition in our markets may result in reduced loans and deposits.

 

There is very strong competition for financial services in the market areas in which we conduct our businesses from many local commercial banks as well as numerous regionally based commercial banks. Many of these competing institutions have much greater financial and marketing resources than we have. Due to their size, many

competitors can achieve larger economies of scale and may offer a broader range of products and services than us. If we are unable to offer competitive products and services, our business may be negatively affected.

 

Some of the financial services organizations with which we compete are not subject to the same degree of regulation as is imposed on bank holding companies and federally insured financial institutions. As a result, these non-bank competitors have certain advantages over us in accessing funding and in providing various services. The banking business in our primary market areas is very competitive, and the level of competition facing us may increase further, which may limit our asset growth and financial results.

 

Our business would be harmed if we lost the services of any of our senior management team or senior relationship bankers.

 

We believe that our success to date has been substantially dependent on our senior management team, which includes Robert Sarver, our Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer, Dale Gibbons, our Chief Financial Officer, Bruce Hendricks, Chief Executive Officer of Bank of Nevada, James Lundy, President and Chief Executive Officer of Alliance Bank of Arizona, Gerald Cady, Chief Executive Officer of Torrey Pines Bank and President of Bank of Nevada, Grant Markham, President and Chief Executive Officer of First Independent Bank of Nevada, Arnold Grisham, President and Chief Executive Officer of Alta Alliance Bank and certain of our senior relationship bankers. We also believe that our prospects for success in the future are dependent on retaining our senior management team and senior relationship bankers. In addition to their skills and experience as bankers, these persons provide us with extensive community ties upon which our competitive strategy is based. Our ability to retain these persons may be hindered by the fact that we have not entered into employment agreements with any of them. The loss of the services of any of these persons, particularly Mr. Sarver, could have an adverse effect on our business if we cannot replace them with equally qualified persons who are also familiar with our market areas. See also “The limitations on bonuses, retention awards and incentive compensation contained in ARRA may adversely affect our ability to retain our highest performing employees.”

 

Mr. Sarver’s involvement in outside business interests requires substantial time and attention and may adversely affect our ability to achieve our strategic plan.

 

Mr. Sarver joined us in December 2002 and is an integral part of our business. He has substantial business interests that are unrelated to us, including his ownership interest in the Phoenix Suns NBA franchise. Mr. Sarver’s other business interests demand significant time commitments, the intensity of which may vary throughout the year. Mr. Sarver’s other commitments may reduce the amount of time he has available to devote to our business. We believe that Mr. Sarver spends the substantial majority of his business time on matters related to our company. However, a significant reduction in the amount of time Mr. Sarver devotes to our business may adversely affect our ability to achieve our strategic plan.

 

Terrorist attacks and threats of war or actual war may impact all aspects of our operations, revenues, costs and stock price in unpredictable ways.

 

Terrorist attacks in the United States, as well as future events occurring in response or in connection to them including, without limitation, future terrorist attacks against United States targets, rumors or threats of war, actual conflicts involving the United States or its allies or military or trade disruptions, may impact our operations. Any of these events could cause consumer confidence and savings to decrease or result in increased volatility in the United States and worldwide financial markets and economy. Any of these occurrences could have an adverse impact on our operating results, revenues and costs and may result in the volatility of the market price for our common stock and impair its future price.

 

If our real estate investment trust (“REIT”) affiliate fails to qualify as a REIT, we may be subject to a higher consolidated effective tax rate.

 

We hold certain commercial real estate loans, residential real estate loans and other loans in a real estate investment trust through our wholly owned subsidiary, Bank of Nevada. Qualification as a REIT involves application of specific provisions of the Internal Revenue Code relating to various assets. If our REIT subsidiary fails to meet any of the required provisions for REITs, or there are changes in tax laws or interpretations thereof, it

may no longer qualify as a REIT and the resulting tax consequences would increase our effective tax rate or cause us to have a tax liability for prior years.

 

We do not anticipate paying any dividends on our common stock. As a result, an increase in the price of our common stock may be an investor’s sole source of gains in the future.

 

We have never paid a cash dividend, and do not anticipate paying a cash dividend in the foreseeable future. Further, we cannot pay dividends for so long as the Series A Preferred Stock that we issued to the Treasury is outstanding. As a result, investors may only receive a return on their investment in the common stock if the market price of the common stock increases over their purchase price.

 

Our business may be adversely affected by internet fraud.

 

We are inherently exposed to many types of operational risk, including those caused by the use of computer, internet and telecommunications systems. These risks may manifest themselves in the form of fraud by employees, by customers, other outside entities targeting us and/or our customers that use our internet banking, electronic banking or some other form of our telecommunications systems. Given the growing level of use of electronic, internet-based, and networked systems to conduct business directly or indirectly with our clients, certain fraud losses may not be avoidable regardless of the preventative and detection systems in place.

 

Risks Related to the Banking Industry

 

We operate in a highly regulated environment and any failure to comply with the laws and regulations that govern our operations, or any changes in such laws and regulations or in the accounting principles that are applicable to us, may adversely affect us.

 

We are subject to extensive legislation, regulation, supervision and examinations that govern almost all aspects of our operations. The laws and regulations applicable to the banking industry are primarily intended for the protection of customers, depositors, the deposit insurance funds, and the financial system as a whole, rather than of banks, bank holding companies, or their investors. With the exception of certain formal enforcement orders, examination and supervisory information and correspondence generally is not publicly available.

 

Because our five subsidiary banks represent the vast majority of our assets and revenues, any problems at one or more of our banks could affect our assets, revenues, and ability to pay dividends. Under Federal Reserve regulations, a bank holding company is required to serve as a source of financial and managerial strength for its subsidiary banks, and it is the Federal Reserve’s policy that in doing so a bank holding company should stand ready to use its available resources to provide adequate capital to its subsidiary banks during a period of financial stress or adversity and should maintain the financial flexibility and capital-raising capacity to obtain additional resources for assisting its subsidiary banks. A bank holding company must also guarantee that a subsidiary bank that adopts a capital restoration plan pursuant to the prompt corrective action requirements of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act will meet its plan obligations, in an amount not to exceed 5% of the subsidiary bank’s assets or the amount required to meet regulatory capital requirements, whichever is less. Any capital loans made by a bank holding company to a subsidiary bank are subordinated to the claims of depositors in the bank and to certain other indebtedness of the subsidiary bank. In the event of the bankruptcy of a bank holding company, any commitment by the bank holding company to a federal banking regulatory agency to maintain the capital of a subsidiary bank would be assumed by the bankruptcy trustee and would be entitled to priority of payment. In addition, an FDIC-insured depository institution may be held liable for any loss incurred or reasonably expected to be incurred or assistance provided by the FDIC in connection with the default or threatened default of any commonly controlled FDIC-insured institution. Because of this cross-guarantee liability, the failure or threatened failure of any one of our subsidiary banks, therefore, could lead to the failure of or losses to all of our subsidiary banks.

 

Federal banking agencies possess broad powers to take corrective and other supervisory action to resolve the problems of insured depository institutions, including institutions that fall below prescribed minimum capital ratios or are determined to be in an unsafe or unsound condition or to have conducted an unsafe or unsound practice. At each successively lower supervisory category, an insured depository institution is subject to additional restrictions, and if certain criteria are met a conservator or receiver may be appointed notwithstanding that the bank is current on its obligations and has a positive net worth. Federal banking regulatory authorities may also bring enforcement actions against banks and bank holding companies for unsafe or unsound practices in the conduct of their businesses or for violations of any law, rule or regulation, any condition imposed in writing by the appropriate federal banking regulatory

authority, or any written agreement with the authority. Possible enforcement actions include the appointment of a conservator or receiver, the termination of insurance of deposits (in the case of a depository institution), the issuance of a cease-and-desist order that could be judicially enforced, the imposition of civil money penalties, the issuance of directives to increase capital, the issuance of formal and informal agreements including memoranda of understanding, the issuance of removal and prohibition orders against institution-affiliated parties, and the enforcement of such actions through injunctions or restraining orders. A bank holding company’s failure or inability to serve as a source of strength for its subsidiary banks could also serve as a basis for a regulatory action against the bank holding company.

 

Any changes to the laws, regulations, accounting principles or deposit insurance assessments applicable to us could make it more difficult and expensive for us to comply with such laws, regulations, principles or assessments, and could affect the way that we conduct business and negatively impact our results of operations and financial condition. While we cannot predict what effect any presently contemplated or future changes in the laws or regulations or their interpretations would have on us, these changes could be materially adverse to our investors and stockholders.

 

Our Bank of Nevada subsidiary was notified by banking regulators that its operations and activities will be subject to additional informal supervisory oversight following their September 30, 2008 examination of the bank. The bank will be required to enhance a variety of its policies, procedures and processes regarding asset quality, loan concentrations, liquidity, interest rate sensitivity, and investment securities. In addition, the bank will be required to obtain the non-objection of these agencies before engaging in any transaction that would materially change its balance sheet composition and before certain changes to management. The bank has already implemented a number of changes to its policies, procedures and processes in the last several months that we believe address many of these issues.

 

Our business is highly sensitive to market and liquidity risks, and any failure to adequately manage these risks could affect our business and prospects.

 

Our balance sheet is complex and contains many securities and other instruments that are highly sensitive to market fluctuations and require sophisticated monitoring and management. We also rely on funding sources other than core deposits, which require sophisticated fund management practices. Any failure to adequately manage these market and liquidity risks could materially and adversely affect our business and prospects.

 

Changes in interest rates could adversely affect our profitability, business and prospects.

 

Most of our assets and liabilities are monetary in nature, which subjects us to significant risks from changes in interest rates and can impact our net income and the valuation of our assets and liabilities. Increases or decreases in prevailing interest rates could have an adverse effect on our business, asset quality and prospects. Our operating income and net income depend to a great extent on our net interest margin. Net interest margin is the difference between the interest yields we receive on loans, securities and other interest earning assets and the interest rates we pay on interest bearing deposits, borrowings and other liabilities. These rates are highly sensitive to many factors beyond our control, including competition, general economic conditions and monetary and fiscal policies of various governmental and regulatory authorities, including the Federal Reserve. If the rate of interest we pay on our interest bearing deposits, borrowings and other liabilities increases more than the rate of interest we receive on loans, securities and other interest earning assets, our net interest income, and therefore our earnings, could be adversely affected. Our earnings could also be adversely affected if the rates on our loans and other investments fall more quickly than those on our deposits and other liabilities.

 

In addition, loan volumes are affected by market interest rates on loans; rising interest rates generally are associated with a lower volume of loan originations while lower interest rates are usually associated with higher loan originations. Conversely, in rising interest rate environments, loan repayment rates will decline and in falling interest rate environments, loan repayment rates will increase. We cannot assure you that we will be able to minimize our interest rate risk. In addition, an increase in the general level of interest rates may adversely affect the ability of certain borrowers to pay the interest on and principal of their obligations.

 

Interest rates also affect how much money we can lend. When interest rates rise, the cost of borrowing increases. Accordingly, changes in market interest rates and our ability to monitor and manage the risks associated with such changes could materially and adversely affect our net interest spread, asset quality, loan origination volume, business, financial condition, results of operations and cash flows.

We are required to maintain an allowance for loan losses. This allowance for loan losses may have to be adjusted in the future. Any adjustment to the allowance for loan losses, whether due to regulatory changes, economic changes or other factors, may affect our financial condition and earnings.

 

We maintain an allowance for loan losses. The allowance is established through a provision for loan losses based on our management’s evaluation of the risks inherent in our loan portfolio and the general economy. The allowance is based upon a number of factors, including the size of the loan portfolio, asset classifications, economic trends, industry experience and trends, industry and geographic concentrations, estimated collateral values, management’s assessment of the credit risk inherent in the portfolio, historical loan loss experience and loan underwriting policies. In addition, we evaluate all loans identified as problem loans and augment the allowance based upon our estimation of the potential loss associated with those problem loans. Additions to our allowance for loan losses decrease our net income.

 

The deterioration in economic conditions has caused us to increase our allowance for loan losses to $77.2 million, or 1.89% of gross loans, at March 31, 2009 from $50.8 million, or 1.37% of gross loans, at March 31, 2008. The actual amount of future provisions for loan losses cannot be determined at this time and may exceed the amounts of past provisions.

 

If the evaluation we perform in connection with establishing loan loss reserves is wrong, our allowance for loan losses may not be sufficient to cover our losses, which would have an adverse effect on our operating results. Due to the significant increase in loans originated in recent periods, which lack repayment history, and the volatile economy, we cannot assure you that we will not experience an increase in delinquencies and losses as these loans continue to mature.

 

The federal regulators, in reviewing our loan portfolio as part of a regulatory examination, from time to time require us to increase our allowance for loan losses, thereby negatively affecting our financial condition and earnings at that time. Moreover, additions to the allowance may be necessary based on changes in economic and real estate market conditions, new information regarding existing loans, identification of additional problem loans and other factors, both within and outside of our management’s control.

 

We are exposed to risk of environmental liabilities with respect to properties to which we take title.

 

About 78.5% of our outstanding loan portfolio as of March 31, 2009 was secured by real estate. In the course of our business, we may foreclose and take title to real estate, and could be subject to environmental liabilities with respect to these properties. We may be held liable to a governmental entity or to third parties for property damage, personal injury, investigation and clean-up costs incurred by these parties in connection with environmental contamination, or may be required to investigate or clean up hazardous or toxic substances, or chemical releases at a property. The costs associated with investigation or remediation activities could be substantial. In addition, if we are the owner or former owner of a contaminated site, we may be subject to common law claims by third parties based on damages and costs resulting from environmental contamination emanating from the property. These costs and claims could adversely affect our business and prospects.

 

An entity holding as little as a 5% interest in our outstanding common stock could, under certain circumstances, be subject to regulation as a “bank holding company.”

 

Any entity (including a “group” composed of natural persons) owning or controlling with the power to vote 25% or more of our outstanding common stock, or 5% or more if such holder otherwise exercises a “controlling influence” over us, may be subject to regulation as a “bank holding company” in accordance with the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956, as amended (the “BHCA”). In addition, (1) any bank holding company or foreign bank with a U.S. presence may be required to obtain the approval of the Federal Reserve Board under the BHCA to acquire or retain 5% or more of our outstanding common stock and (2) any person not otherwise defined as a company by the BHCA and its implementing regulations may be required to obtain the approval of the Federal Reserve Board under the Change in Bank Control Act to acquire or retain 10% or more of our outstanding common stock. Becoming a bank holding company imposes certain statutory and regulatory restrictions and obligations, such as providing managerial and financial strength for its bank subsidiaries. Regulation as a bank holding company could require the holder to divest all or a portion of the holder’s investment in our common stock or such nonbanking investments that may be deemed impermissible or incompatible with bank holding company status, such as a material investment in a company unrelated to banking.

Risks Related to our Common Stock and this Offering

 

The price of our common stock may fluctuate significantly, and this may make it difficult for you to resell shares of common stock owned by you at times or at prices you find attractive.

 

The price of our common stock on NYSE constantly changes. We expect that the market price of our common stock will continue to fluctuate and there can be no assurances about the market prices for our common stock.

 

Our stock price may fluctuate as a result of a variety of factors, many of which are beyond our control. These factors include:

 

 

There may be future sales or other dilution of our equity, which may adversely affect the market price of our common stock.

 

Except as described under “Underwriting,” we are not restricted from issuing additional common stock, including any securities that are convertible into or exchangeable for, or that represent the right to receive, common stock. The issuance of any additional shares of common stock or preferred stock or securities convertible into, exchangeable for or that represent the right to receive common stock or the exercise of such securities could be substantially dilutive to shareholders of our common stock. Holders of our shares of common stock have no preemptive rights that entitle holders to purchase their pro rata share of any offering of shares of any class or series. The market price of our common stock could decline as a result of this offering as well as sales of shares of our common stock made after this offering or the perception that such sales could occur. Because our decision to issue securities in any future offering will depend on market conditions and other factors beyond our control, we cannot predict or estimate the amount, timing or nature of our future offerings. Thus, our stockholders bear the risk of our future offerings reducing the market price of our common stock and diluting their stock holdings in us. In addition, giving effect to the issuance of common stock in this offering, the receipt of the expected net proceeds and the use of those proceeds, we expect that this offering will have a dilutive effect on our expected earnings per share.

 

Offerings of debt, which would be senior to our common stock upon liquidation, and/or preferred equity securities which may be senior to our common stock for purposes of dividend distributions or upon liquidation, may adversely affect the market price of our common stock.

 

We may attempt to increase our capital resources or, if our or any of our banking subsidiaries’ capital ratios fall below the required minimums, we or one or more of our banking subsidiaries could be forced to raise additional capital by making additional offerings of debt or preferred equity securities, including medium-term notes, trust preferred securities, senior or subordinated notes and preferred stock. Upon liquidation, holders of our debt

securities and shares of preferred stock and lenders with respect to other borrowings will receive distributions of our available assets prior to the holders of our common stock. Additional equity offerings may dilute the holdings of our existing stockholders or reduce the market price of our common stock, or both. Holders of our common stock are not entitled to preemptive rights or other protections against dilution.

 

Our Board of Directors is authorized to issue one or more classes or series of preferred stock from time to time without any action on the part of the stockholders. Our Board of Directors also has the power, without stockholder approval, to set the terms of any such classes or series of preferred stock that may be issued, including voting rights, dividend rights, and preferences over our common stock with respect to dividends or upon our dissolution, winding-up and liquidation and other terms. If we issue preferred stock in the future that has a preference over our common stock with respect to the payment of dividends or upon our liquidation, dissolution, or winding up, or if we issue preferred stock with voting rights that dilute the voting power of our common stock, the rights of holders of our common stock or the market price of our common stock could be adversely affected.

 

Anti-takeover provisions could negatively impact our stockholders.

 

Provisions of Nevada law and provisions of our amended and restated articles of incorporation and amended and restated by-laws could make it more difficult for a third party to acquire control of us or have the effect of discouraging a third party from attempting to acquire control of us. Additionally, our amended and restated articles of incorporation authorizes our Board of Directors to issue additional series of preferred stock and such preferred stock could be issued as a defensive measure in response to a takeover proposal. These provisions could make it more difficult for a third party to acquire us even if an acquisition might be in the best interest of our stockholders.

 

We expect to receive net proceeds from the sale of common stock offered hereby of approximately $      million (or approximately $      million if the underwriters exercise their over-allotment option in full), after deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and estimated expenses payable by us. We will use the net proceeds from the sale of any securities offered by us for general corporate purposes, including to increase liquidity and to provide for additional capital and growth.

 

The following table sets forth our cash and cash equivalents and our consolidated capitalization as of March 31, 2009 and to give effect to the issuance of the common stock offered hereby.

 

 

 

 

Our common stock is listed on NYSE under the symbol “WAL.” As of May 11, 2009, the last reported sale price of our common stock on NYSE was $8.73. As of May 12, 2009, there were approximately 1,120 stockholders of record.

 

The following table presents the high and low closing sales price per share of our common stock during certain periods, as reported on NYSE. We have never paid a cash dividend on our common stock and do not anticipate paying any cash dividends in the foreseeable future.

 

On November 21, 2008, we issued preferred securities and a warrant to purchase our common stock to the Treasury. Prior to November 21, 2011, unless we have redeemed the preferred securities or the Treasury has transferred the securities to a third party, the Treasury’s consent will be required for us to pay a common stock dividend or repurchase our common stock, other than in connection with benefit plans consistent with past practice.

 

Our Bank of Nevada subsidiary recently received a notice from the holder of $60 million in subordinated debt issued by the Bank asserting an event of default based on the Bank’s receipt of a notice from banking regulators regarding additional informal supervisory oversight of the Bank. The notice asserts, among other things, that the Bank may not, during the continuance of the asserted default, pay any dividends or make any loans to Western Alliance Bancorporation.

 

 

The following description is a general summary of the terms of our capital stock. The description below does not purport to be complete and is subject to and qualified in its entirety by reference to our amended and restated articles of incorporation and amended and restated by-laws. The description herein does not contain all of the information that you may find useful or that may be important to you. You should refer to the provisions of our amended and restated articles of incorporation and amended and restated by-laws because they, and not the summaries, define the rights of holders of shares of our capital stock. You can obtain copies of our amended and restated articles incorporation and amended and restated by-laws by following the directions under the heading “Where You Can Find More Information.”

 

Common Stock

 

General

 

Our amended and restated articles of incorporation provide the authority to issue 100,000,000 shares of common stock, par value $.0001 per share. At March 31, 2009, there were 38,956,027 shares of common stock issued and we had outstanding stock options granted to directors, officers and other employees for 2,942,600 shares of our common stock.

 

Each share of our common stock has the same relative rights and is identical in all respects to each other share of our common stock. Our common stock is non-withdrawable capital, is not of an insurable type and is not insured by the FDIC or any other governmental entity.

 

Voting Rights

 

Holders of our common stock are entitled to one vote per share on each matter properly submitted to stockholders for their vote, including the election of directors. Holders of our common stock do not have the right to cumulate their votes for the election of directors, which means that the holders of more than 50% of the shares of common stock voting for the election of directors can elect 100% of the directors standing for election at any meeting if they choose to do so. In that event, the holders of the remaining shares voting for the election of directors will not be able to elect any person or persons to our board of directors at that meeting.

 

Liquidation Rights

 

The holders of our common stock and the holders of any class or series of stock entitled to participate with the holders of our common stock as to the distribution of assets in the event of any liquidation, dissolution or winding-up of us, whether voluntary or involuntary, will become entitled to participate equally in the distribution of any of our assets remaining after we have paid, or provided for the payment of, all of our debts and liabilities and after we have paid, or set aside for payment, to the holders of any class of stock having preference over the common stock in the event of liquidation, dissolution or winding-up, the full preferential amounts, if any, to which they are entitled.

 

Dividends

 

The holders of our common stock and any class or series of stock entitled to participate with the holders of our common stock are entitled to receive dividends declared by our board of directors out of any assets legally available for distribution. The board may not declare, and we may not pay, dividends or other distributions, unless we have paid or the board has declared or set aside all accumulated dividends and any sinking fund, retirement fund or other retirement payments on any class of stock having preference as to payments of dividends over our common stock. As a holding company, our ability to pay distributions is affected by the ability of our subsidiaries to pay dividends. The ability of our bank subsidiaries, and our ability, to pay dividends in the future is, and could in the future be further, influenced by bank regulatory requirements and capital guidelines.

Miscellaneous

 

The holders of our common stock have no preemptive or conversion rights for any shares that may be issued. Our common stock is not subject to additional calls or assessments, and all shares of our common stock currently outstanding are fully paid and non-assessable. All shares of common stock offered pursuant to a prospectus supplement, or issuable upon conversion, exchange or exercise of preferred stock or other convertible securities, will, when issued, be fully paid and non-assessable, which means that the full purchase price of the shares will have been paid and the holders of the shares will not be assessed any additional monies for the shares.

 

Some Important Charter Provisions

 

Our amended and restated articles of incorporation provide for the division of our board of directors into three classes of directors, each class as nearly as equal as possible, with each serving staggered, three-year terms. Any amendment to our amended and restated articles of incorporation must be approved by at least sixty-six and two-thirds percent (662/3%) of the outstanding shares of each class of shares entitled to vote thereon at a duly called annual or special meeting; provided, however, that approval by the affirmative vote of at least 80% of the outstanding shares of each class entitled to vote is required to amend certain of the provisions contained in the amended and restated articles of incorporation regarding classification of the board of directors, removal of directors and approval of business combinations. Our amended and restated by-laws may be amended by the affirmative vote of at least two-thirds of the board of directors or by stockholders by the affirmative vote of at least 80% of the total votes eligible to be voted, at a duly constituted meeting called for that purpose.

 

Some of the foregoing provisions may have the effect of deterring hostile takeovers or delaying changes in control or management of us.

 

Since the terms of our amended and restated articles of incorporation and amended and restated by-laws may differ from the general information we are providing, you should only rely on the actual provisions of our amended and restated articles of incorporation and amended and restated by-laws.

 

NYSE Listing

 

Our common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “WAL.”

 

Transfer Agent and Registrar

 

The transfer agent and registrar for our common stock is American Stock Transfer & Trust Company.

 

Preferred Stock

 

General

 

We are authorized to issue 20,000,000 shares of preferred stock, par value $0.0001 per share. As of December 31, 2008, 140,000 shares of preferred stock were issued and outstanding, consisting of 140,000 shares of Fixed Rate Cumulative Perpetual Preferred Stock, Series A (the “Series A Preferred Stock”). Our amended and restated articles of incorporation, subject to limitations prescribed in such articles and subject to limitations prescribed by Nevada law, authorizes the board of directors, from time to time by resolution and without further stockholder action, to provide for the issuance of shares of preferred stock, in one or more series, and to fix the designation, powers, preferences and other rights of the shares and to fix the qualifications, limitations and restrictions thereof. As a result of its broad discretion with respect to the creation and issuance of preferred stock without stockholder approval, the board of directors could adversely affect the voting power of the holders of common stock and, by issuing shares of preferred stock with certain voting, conversion and/or redemption rights, could discourage any attempt to obtain control of us.

Series A Preferred Stock

 

Dividends Payable on Shares of Series A Preferred Stock

 

Holders of shares of Series A Preferred Stock are entitled to receive if, as and when declared by our board of directors or a duly authorized committee of the board, out of assets legally available for payment, cumulative cash dividends at a rate per annum of 5% per share on a liquidation preference of $1,000 per share of Series A Preferred Stock with respect to each dividend period from November 21, 2008 to, but excluding, November 15, 2013. From and after November 15, 2013, holders of shares of Series A Preferred Stock are entitled to receive cumulative cash dividends at a rate per annum of 9% per share on a liquidation preference of $1,000 per share of Series A Preferred Stock with respect to each dividend period thereafter.

 

Dividends are payable quarterly in arrears on each February 15, May 15, August 15 and November 15, each a dividend payment date, starting with February 15, 2009. If any dividend payment date is not a business day, then the next business day will be the applicable dividend payment date, and no additional dividends will accrue as a result of the applicable postponement of the dividend payment date. Dividends payable during any dividend period are computed on the basis of a 360-day year consisting of twelve 30-day months. Dividends payable with respect to the Series A Preferred Stock are payable to holders of record of shares of Series A Preferred Stock on the date that is 15 calendar days immediately preceding the applicable dividend payment date or such other record date as the board of directors or any duly authorized committee of the board determines, so long as such record date is not more than 60 nor less than 10 days prior to the applicable dividend payment date.

 

If we determine not to pay any dividend or a full dividend with respect to the Series A Preferred Stock, we are required to provide written notice to the holders of shares of Series A Preferred Stock prior to the applicable dividend payment date.

 

We are subject to various regulatory policies and requirements relating to the payment of dividends, including requirements to maintain adequate capital above regulatory minimums. The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System is authorized to determine, under certain circumstances relating to the financial condition of a bank holding company, such as us, that the payment of dividends would be an unsafe or unsound practice and to prohibit payment thereof. In addition, we are subject to Nevada state laws relating to the payment of dividends.

 

Priority of Dividends

 

With respect to the payment of dividends and the amounts to be paid upon liquidation, the Series A Preferred Stock will rank:

 

 

So long as any shares of Series A Preferred Stock remain outstanding, unless all accrued and unpaid dividends for all prior dividend periods have been paid or are contemporaneously declared and paid in full, no dividend whatsoever shall be paid or declared on our common stock or other junior stock, other than a dividend payable solely in common stock. We and our subsidiaries also may not purchase, redeem or otherwise acquire for consideration any shares of our common stock or other junior stock unless we have paid in full all accrued dividends on the Series A Preferred Stock for all prior dividend periods, other than:

 

 

 

Until such time as the initial selling securityholder ceases to own any shares of Series A Preferred Stock, if we repurchase shares of Series A Preferred Stock from a holder who is not the initial selling securityholder, other than permitted repurchases, we must offer to repurchase a ratable portion of the Series A Preferred Stock then held by the initial selling securityholder.

 

On any dividend payment date for which full dividends are not paid, or declared and funds set aside therefor, on the Series A Preferred Stock and any other parity stock, all dividends paid or declared for payment on that dividend payment date (or, with respect to parity stock with a different dividend payment date, on the applicable dividend date therefor falling within the dividend period and related to the dividend payment date for the Series A Preferred Stock), with respect to the Series A Preferred Stock and any other parity stock shall be declared ratably among the holders of any such shares who have the right to receive dividends, in proportion to the respective amounts of the undeclared and unpaid dividends relating to the dividend period.

 

Subject to the immediately preceding paragraph, such dividends (payable in cash, securities or otherwise) as may be determined by our board of directors (or a duly authorized committee of the board) may be declared and paid on our common stock and any other stock ranking junior to the Series A Preferred Stock from time to time out of any funds legally available for such payment, and the Series A Preferred Stock shall not be entitled to participate in any such dividend.

 

Redemption

 

The Series A Preferred Stock may not be redeemed prior to February 15, 2012 unless we have received aggregate gross proceeds from one or more qualified equity offerings (as described below) equal to $35,000,000, which equals 25% of the aggregate liquidation amount of the Series A Preferred Stock on the date of issuance. In such a case, we may redeem the Series A Preferred Stock, subject to the approval of Federal Reserve Board, in whole or in part, upon notice as described below, up to a maximum amount equal to the aggregate net cash proceeds received by us from such qualified equity offerings. A “qualified equity offering” is a sale and issuance for cash by us, to persons other than ourselves or one of our subsidiaries after November 21, 2008, of shares of perpetual preferred stock, common stock or a combination thereof, that in each case qualify as Tier 1 capital to us at the time of issuance under the applicable risk-based capital guidelines of the Federal Reserve Board (other than any such sales or issuances made pursuant to agreements or arrangements entered into, or pursuant to financing plans that were publicly announced, on or prior to October 13, 2008).

 

After February 15, 2012, the Series A Preferred Stock may be redeemed at any time, subject to the approval of the Federal Reserve Board, in whole or in part, subject to notice as described below.

 

In any redemption, the redemption price is an amount equal to the per share liquidation amount plus accrued and unpaid dividends to but excluding the date of redemption.

The Series A Preferred Stock will not be subject to any mandatory redemption, sinking fund or similar provisions. Holders of shares of Series A Preferred Stock have no right to require the redemption or repurchase of the Series A Preferred Stock.

 

If fewer than all of the outstanding shares of Series A Preferred Stock are to be redeemed, the shares to be redeemed will be selected either pro rata from the holders of record of shares of Series A Preferred Stock in proportion to the number of shares held by those holders or in such other manner as our board of directors or a committee thereof may determine to be fair and equitable.

 

We will mail notice of any redemption of Series A Preferred Stock by first class mail, postage prepaid, addressed to the holders of record of the shares of Series A Preferred Stock to be redeemed at their respective last addresses appearing on our books. This mailing will be at least 30 days and not more than 60 days before the date fixed for redemption. Any notice mailed or otherwise given as described in this paragraph will be conclusively presumed to have been duly given, whether or not the holder receives the notice, and failure duly to give the notice by mail or otherwise, or any defect in the notice or in the mailing or provision of the notice, to any holder of Series A Preferred Stock designated for redemption will not affect the validity of the redemption of any other Series A Preferred Stock. Each notice of redemption will set forth the applicable redemption date, the redemption price, the place where shares of Series A Preferred Stock are to be redeemed, and the number of shares of Series A Preferred Stock to be redeemed (and, if less than all shares of Series A Preferred Stock held by the applicable holder, the number of shares to be redeemed from the holder).

 

Shares of Series A Preferred Stock that are redeemed, repurchased or otherwise acquired by us will revert to authorized but unissued shares of our preferred stock.

 

Liquidation Rights

 

In the event that we voluntarily or involuntarily liquidate, dissolve or wind up our affairs, holders of Series A Preferred Stock will be entitled to receive an amount per share, referred to as the total liquidation amount, equal to the fixed liquidation preference of $1,000 per share, plus any accrued and unpaid dividends, whether or not declared, to the date of payment. Holders of the Series A Preferred Stock will be entitled to receive the total liquidation amount out of our assets that are available for distribution to stockholders, after payment or provision for payment of our debts and other liabilities but before any distribution of assets is made to holders of our common stock or any other shares ranking, as to that distribution, junior to the Series A Preferred Stock.

 

If our assets are not sufficient to pay the total liquidation amount in full to all holders of Series A Preferred Stock and all holders of any shares of outstanding parity stock, the amounts paid to the holders of Series A Preferred Stock and other shares of parity stock will be paid pro rata in accordance with the respective total liquidation amount for those holders. If the total liquidation amount per share of Series A Preferred Stock has been paid in full to all holders of Series A Preferred Stock and other shares of parity stock, the holders of our common stock or any other shares ranking, as to such distribution, junior to the Series A Preferred Stock will be entitled to receive all of our remaining assets according to their respective rights and preferences.

 

For purposes of the liquidation rights, neither the sale, lease or exchange (for cash, securities or other property) of all or substantially all of our assets, nor the consolidation or merger by us with or into any other corporation or any other entity or by another corporation or any other entity with or into us, will constitute a liquidation, dissolution or winding-up of our affairs.

 

Voting Rights

 

Except as indicated below or otherwise required by law, the holders of Series A Preferred Stock will not have any voting rights.

 

Election of Two Directors upon Non-Payment of Dividends.  If the dividends on the Series A Preferred Stock have not been paid for an aggregate of six quarterly dividend periods or more (whether or not consecutive), the authorized number of directors then constituting our board of directors will be increased by two. Holders of Series A Preferred Stock, together with the holders of any outstanding parity stock with like voting rights, referred to as voting parity stock, voting as a single class, will be entitled to elect the two additional members of our board of

directors, referred to as the preferred stock directors, at the next annual meeting (or at a special meeting called for the purpose of electing the preferred stock directors prior to the next annual meeting) and at each subsequent annual meeting until all accrued and unpaid dividends for all past dividend periods have been paid in full. The election of any preferred stock director is subject to the qualification that the election would not cause us to violate the corporate governance requirement of the New York Stock Exchange (or any other exchange on which our securities may be listed) that listed companies must have a majority of independent directors.

 

Upon the termination of the right of the holders of Series A Preferred Stock and voting parity stock to vote for preferred stock directors, as described above, the preferred stock directors will immediately cease to be qualified as directors, their term of office shall terminate immediately and the number of our authorized directors will be reduced by the number of preferred stock directors that the holders of Series A Preferred Stock and voting parity stock had been entitled to elect. The holders of a majority of shares of Series A Preferred Stock and voting parity stock, voting as a class, may remove any preferred stock director, with or without cause, and the holders of a majority of the shares of Series A Preferred Stock and voting parity stock, voting as a class, may fill any vacancy created by the removal of a preferred stock director. If the office of a preferred stock director becomes vacant for any other reason, the remaining preferred stock director may choose a successor to fill such vacancy for the remainder of the unexpired term.

 

Other Voting Rights.  So long as any shares of Series A Preferred Stock are outstanding, in addition to any other vote or consent of stockholders required by-law or by our articles of incorporation, the vote or consent of the holders of at least 662/3% of the shares of Series A Preferred Stock at the time outstanding, voting separately as a single class, given in person or by proxy, either in writing without a meeting or by vote at any meeting called for the purpose, shall be necessary for effecting or validating:

 

 

Holders of shares of Series A Preferred Stock will be entitled to one vote for each such share on any matter on which holders of shares of Series A Preferred Stock are entitled to vote, including any action by written consent.

 

The foregoing voting provisions will not apply if, at or prior to the time when the vote or consent would otherwise be required, all outstanding shares of Series A Preferred Stock have been redeemed or called for redemption upon proper notice and sufficient funds have been set aside by us for the benefit of the holders of Series A Preferred Stock to effect the redemption.

 

Treasury Warrant

 

In connection with the Treasury’s purchase of our Series A Preferred Stock, we issued to the Treasury a ten-year warrant exercisable for 1,574,213 shares of our common stock at an initial exercise price of $13.34 (the “Warrant”).

Shares of Common Stock Subject to the Warrant

 

The Warrant is initially exercisable for 1,574,213 shares of our common stock. If we complete one or more qualified equity offerings on or prior to December 31, 2009 that result in our receipt of aggregate gross proceeds of not less than $140,000,000, which is equal to 100% of the aggregate liquidation preference of the Series A Preferred Stock, the number of shares of common stock underlying the Warrant then held by the selling securityholders will be reduced by 50%. The number of shares subject to the Warrant are subject to the further adjustments described below under the heading “— Adjustments to the Warrant.”

 

Exercise of the Warrant

 

The initial exercise price applicable to the Warrant is $13.34 per share of common stock for which the Warrant may be exercised. The Warrant may be exercised at any time on or before November 21, 2018 by surrender of the Warrant and a completed notice of exercise attached as an annex to the Warrant and the payment of the exercise price for the shares of common stock for which the Warrant is being exercised. The exercise price may be paid either by the withholding of such number of shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the Warrant equal to the value of the aggregate exercise price of the Warrant determined by reference to the market price of our common stock on the trading day on which the Warrant is exercised or, if agreed to by us and the warrantholder, by the payment of cash equal to the aggregate exercise price. The exercise price applicable to the Warrant is subject to the further adjustments described below under the heading “— Adjustments to the Warrant.”

 

Upon exercise of the Warrant, certificates for the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise will be issued to the warrantholder. We will not issue fractional shares upon any exercise of the Warrant. Instead, the warrantholder will be entitled to a cash payment equal to the market price of our common stock on the last trading day preceding the date of exercise of the Warrant (less the pro-rated exercise price of the Warrant) for any fractional shares that would have otherwise been issuable upon exercise of the Warrant. We will at all times reserve the aggregate number of shares of our common stock for which the Warrant may be exercised. We have listed the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the Warrant with the New York Stock Exchange.

 

Rights as a Shareholder

 

The warrantholder shall have no rights or privileges of the holders of our common stock, including any voting rights, until (and then only to the extent) the Warrant has been exercised.

 

Transferability

 

The initial selling securityholder may not transfer a portion of the Warrant with respect to more than 50% of shares of common stock until the earlier of the date on which Western Alliance has received aggregate gross proceeds from a qualified equity offering of at least $140,000,000 and December 31, 2009. The Warrant, and all rights under the Warrant, are otherwise transferable.

 

Adjustments to the Warrant

 

Adjustments in Connection with Stock Splits, Subdivisions, Reclassifications and Combinations.  The number of shares for which the Warrant may be exercised and the exercise price applicable to the Warrant will be proportionately adjusted in the event we pay dividends or make distributions of our common stock, subdivide, combine or reclassify outstanding shares of our common stock.

 

Anti-dilution Adjustment.  Until the earlier of November 21, 2011 and the date on which the initial selling securityholder no longer holds the Warrant or any portion of the Warrant (and other than in certain permitted transactions described below), if we issue any shares of common stock (or securities convertible or exercisable into common stock) without consideration or for less than 90% of the market price of the common stock on the last trading day prior to the date of the agreement on pricing such shares, then the number of shares of common stock into which the Warrant is exercisable and the exercise price will be adjusted. Permitted transactions include issuances:

 

 

 

Other Distributions.  If we declare any dividends or distributions other than our historical, ordinary cash dividends, the exercise price of the Warrant will be adjusted to reflect such distribution.

 

Certain Repurchases.  If we effect a pro rata repurchase of common stock, both the number of shares issuable upon exercise of the Warrant and the exercise price will be adjusted.

 

Business Combinations.  In the event of a merger, consolidation or similar transaction involving Western Alliance and requiring stockholder approval, the warrantholder’s right to receive shares of our common stock upon exercise of the Warrant shall be converted into the right to exercise the Warrant for the consideration that would have been payable to the warrantholder with respect to the shares of common stock for which the Warrant may be exercised, as if the Warrant had been exercised prior to such merger, consolidation or similar transaction.

 

Other Warrants

 

In addition to the Warrant described above, there are outstanding warrants exercisable for 1,398,187 shares of our common stock with a weighted average exercise price of $10.15.

 

This section summarizes certain United States federal income and estate tax consequences of the ownership and disposition of our common stock by a non-U.S. holder. You are a non-U.S. holder if you are, for United States federal income tax purposes:

 

 

This section does not consider the specific facts and circumstances that may be relevant to a particular non-U.S. holder and does not address the treatment of a non-U.S. holder under the laws of any state, local or foreign taxing jurisdiction. This section is based on the tax laws of the United States, including the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, existing and proposed regulations, and administrative and judicial interpretations, all as currently in effect. These laws are subject to change, possibly on a retroactive basis.

 

If a partnership holds our common stock, the United States federal income tax treatment of a partner will generally depend on the status of the partner and the tax treatment of the partnership. A partner in a partnership holding our common stock should consult its tax advisor with regard to the United States federal income tax treatment of an investment in our common stock.

 

You should consult a tax advisor regarding the United States federal tax consequences of acquiring, holding and disposing of our common stock in your particular circumstances, as well as any tax consequences that may arise under the laws of any state, local or foreign taxing jurisdiction.

 

Dividends

 

Except as described below, if you are a non-U.S. holder of our common stock, dividends paid to you are subject to withholding of United States federal income tax at a 30% rate or at a lower rate if you are eligible for the benefits of an income tax treaty that provides for a lower rate. Even if you are eligible for a lower treaty rate, we and other

payors will generally be required to withhold at a 30% rate (rather than the lower treaty rate) on dividend payments to you, unless you have furnished to us or another payor:

 

 

If you are eligible for a reduced rate of United States withholding tax under a tax treaty, you may obtain a refund of any amounts withheld in excess of that rate by filing a refund claim with the United States Internal Revenue Service.

 

If dividends paid to you are “effectively connected” with your conduct of a trade or business within the United States, and, if required by a tax treaty, the dividends are attributable to a permanent establishment that you maintain in the United States, we and other payors generally are not required to withhold tax from the dividends, provided that you have furnished to us or another payor a valid Internal Revenue Service Form W-8ECI or an acceptable substitute form upon which you represent, under penalties of perjury, that:

 

 

“Effectively connected” dividends are taxed at rates applicable to United States citizens, resident aliens and domestic United States corporations.

 

If you are a corporate non-U.S. holder, “effectively connected” dividends that you receive may, under certain circumstances, be subject to an additional “branch profits tax” at a 30% rate or at a lower rate if you are eligible for the benefits of an income tax treaty that provides for a lower rate.

 

Gain on Disposition of Common Stock

 

If you are a non-U.S. holder, you generally will not be subject to United States federal income tax on gain that you recognize on a disposition of our common stock unless:

 

 

If you are a corporate non-U.S. holder, “effectively connected” gains that you recognize may also, under certain circumstances, be subject to an additional “branch profits tax” at a 30% rate or at a lower rate if you are eligible for the benefits of an income tax treaty that provides for a lower rate.

 

We currently believe that we are not, but it is possible that we may become in the future, a USRPHC. If we were to be a USRPHC, a non-U.S. holder could be subject to tax on any gain realized on a disposition of our common stock and to 10% withholding (creditable against such tax liability) on the gross amount realized. If our common stock is regularly traded on an established securities market at the time of the disposition, withholding generally will

not be required and, provided that the first two bullets above under the heading “Gain on Disposition of Common Stock” are also satisfied, a non-U.S. holder who did not own more than 5% of the value of our common stock, actually or constructively, at any time during the shorter of the five-year period preceding the disposition or the non-U.S. holder’s holding period, generally should not be subject to U.S. federal income tax on any gain realized on the disposition of our common stock. We believe that our common stock is considered “regularly traded” on an established securities market because it is traded on the New York Stock Exchange and regularly quoted by brokers and/or dealers making a market in our common stock. No assurances may be given, however, that our common stock will continue to be considered regularly traded.

 

Federal Estate Taxes

 

Common stock held by a non-U.S. holder at the time of death will be included in the holder’s gross estate for United States federal estate tax purposes, unless an applicable estate tax treaty provides otherwise.

 

Backup Withholding and Information Reporting

 

If you are a non-U.S. holder, you are generally exempt from backup withholding and information reporting requirements with respect to:

 

 

as long as the income associated with such payments is otherwise exempt from United States federal income tax, and:

 

 

 

 

Payment of the proceeds from the sale of common stock effected at a foreign office of a broker generally will not be subject to information reporting or backup withholding. However, a sale of common stock that is effected at a foreign office of a broker will be subject to information reporting and backup withholding if:

 

 

unless the broker does not have actual knowledge or reason to know that you are a United States person and the documentation requirements described above are met or you otherwise establish an exemption.

 

In addition, a sale of our common stock will be subject to information reporting if it is effected at a foreign office of a broker that is:

 

 

 

 

unless the broker does not have actual knowledge or reason to know that you are a United States person and the documentation requirements described above are met or you otherwise establish an exemption. Backup withholding will apply if the sale is subject to information reporting and the broker has actual knowledge that you are a United States person.

 

You generally may obtain a refund of any amounts withheld under the backup withholding rules that exceed your income tax liability by filing a refund claim with the Internal Revenue Service.

 

This section is only relevant to you if you are an insurance company or the fiduciary of a pension plan or an employee benefit plan proposing to invest in the common stock.

 

We and certain of our affiliates may each be considered a “party in interest” within the meaning of the U.S. Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended, which we call “ERISA,” or a “disqualified person” within the meaning of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, with respect to many employee benefit plans. Prohibited transactions within the meaning of ERISA or the Internal Revenue Code may arise, for example, if the securities offered hereby are acquired by or with the assets of a pension or other employee benefit plan for which we or any of our affiliates is a service provider, unless those securities are acquired under an exemption for transactions effected on behalf of that plan by a “qualified professional asset manager” or an “in-house asset manager” or under any other available exemption. The assets of a pension or other employee benefit plan may include assets held in the general account of an insurance company that are deemed to be “plan assets” under ERISA.

 

If you are an insurance company or the fiduciary of a pension plan or an employee benefit plan and propose to invest in the securities described in this prospectus supplement and the accompanying prospectus you should consult your legal counsel.

 

We are offering the shares of our common stock described in this prospectus through Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, Inc., as representative of the several underwriters (the “Underwriters”). We have entered into an underwriting agreement with the Underwriters, dated May   , 2009 (the “Underwriting Agreement”). Subject to the terms and conditions of the Underwriting Agreement, each of the Underwriters has severally agreed to purchase the number of shares of common stock, $0.0001 par value per share, listed next to its name in the following table:

 

 

Our common stock is offered subject to a number of conditions, including receipt and acceptance of the common stock by the Underwriters.

 

In connection with this offering, the Underwriters or securities dealers may distribute prospectuses electronically.

 

Director and officer participation

 

Our management, directors, principal stockholders, or their affiliates may acquire shares in this offering. Furthermore, any purchases by management, directors, principal stockholders, or their affiliates must be made on the same terms and conditions as purchases by nonaffiliated investors and with a view toward investment, not resale.

 

Over-allotment option

 

We have granted to the Underwriters an option to buy          additional shares of our common stock. The Underwriters may exercise this option solely for the purpose of covering over-allotments, if any, made in connection with this offering. The Underwriters have thirty (30) days from the date of this prospectus to exercise this option.

 

Commissions and discounts

 

Shares of common stock sold by the Underwriters to the public will initially be offered at the offering price set forth on the cover of this prospectus. Any shares of common stock sold by the Underwriters to securities dealers may be sold at a discount of up to $      per share from the public offering price. Any of these securities dealers may resell any shares of common stock purchased from the Underwriters to other brokers or dealers at a discount of up to $      per share from the public offering price. If all the shares of common stock are not sold at the public offering price, the representative may change the offering price and the other selling terms. Sales of shares of common stock made outside of the United States may be made by affiliates of the Underwriters.

 

The following table shows the per share and total underwriting discounts and commissions we will pay to the Underwriters, assuming both no exercise and full exercise of the Underwriters’ option to purchase an additional           shares of common stock:

 

 

We estimate that the total expenses of this offering payable by us, not including the underwriting discounts and commissions but including our reimbursement of certain expenses of the Underwriters, will be approximately $     .

No sales of similar securities

 

We and our executive officers and directors have entered into lock-up agreements with the Underwriters. Under these agreements, we and each of these persons may not, without the prior written approval of the representative, subject to limited exceptions, offer, sell, contract to sell or otherwise dispose of or hedge our common stock or securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for our common stock. These restrictions will be in effect for a period of ninety (90) days after the date of this prospectus. At any time and without public notice, the representative may, in their sole discretion, release all or some of the securities from these lock-up agreements.

 

Indemnification and contribution

 

We have agreed to indemnify the Underwriters and their affiliates and controlling persons against certain liabilities. If we are unable to provide this indemnification, we will contribute to the payments the Underwriters, their affiliates and their controlling persons may be required to make in respect of those liabilities.

 

NYSE Listing

 

Our common stock is listed on NYSE under the symbol “WAL.”

 

Price stabilization and short positions

 

In connection with this offering, the Underwriters may engage in activities that stabilize, maintain or otherwise affect the price of our common stock, including:

 

 

Stabilizing transactions consist of bids or purchases made for the purpose of preventing or retarding a decline in the market price of our common stock while this offering is in progress. These transactions may also include making short sales of our common stock, which involve the sale by the Underwriters of a greater number of shares of common stock than they are required to purchase in this offering. Short sales may be “covered short sales,” which are short positions in an amount not greater than the Underwriters’ over-allotment option referred to above, or may be “naked short sales,” which are short positions in excess of that amount.

 

The Underwriters may close out any covered short position either by exercising their over-allotment option, in whole or in part, or by purchasing shares in the open market. In making this determination, the Underwriters will consider, among other things, the price of shares available for purchase in the open market compared to the price at which they may purchase shares through the over-allotment option. 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 the common stock in the open market that could adversely affect investors who purchased in this offering.

 

As a result of these activities, the price of our common stock may be higher than the price that otherwise might exist in the open market. If these activities are commenced, they may be discontinued by the Underwriters at any time. The Underwriters may carry out these transactions on the NYSE, in the over-the-counter market or otherwise.

 

Affiliations

 

The Underwriters and their affiliates have provided and may continue to provide certain commercial banking, financial advisory and investment banking services for us for which they receive fees.

 

The Underwriters and their affiliates may from time to time in the future engage in transactions with us and perform services for us in the ordinary course of their business.

 

Selling Restrictions

 

European Economic Area

 

In relation to each Member State of the European Economic Area which has implemented the Prospectus Directive (each, a Relevant Member State), each Underwriter has represented and agreed that with effect from and including the date on which the Prospectus Directive is implemented in that Relevant Member State (the Relevant Implementation Date) it has not made and will not make an offer of shares to the public in that Relevant Member State prior to the publication of a prospectus in relation to the shares which 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 it may, with effect from and including the Relevant Implementation Date, make an offer of shares to the public in that Relevant Member State at any time:

 

(a) to legal entities which are authorized or regulated to operate in the financial markets or, if not so authorized or regulated, whose corporate purpose is solely to invest in securities;

 

(b) to any legal entity which has two or more of (1) an average of at least 250 employees during the last financial year; (2) a total balance sheet of more than €43,000,000 and (3) an annual net turnover of more than €50,000,000, as shown in its last annual or consolidated accounts;

 

(c) to fewer than 100 natural or legal persons (other than qualified investors as defined in the Prospectus Directive) subject to obtaining the prior consent of the representative for any such offer; or

 

(d) in any other circumstances which do not require the publication by the Issuer of a prospectus pursuant to Article 3 of the Prospectus Directive.

 

For the purposes of this provision, the expression an “offer of shares to the public” in relation to any shares 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 or subscribe for the shares, as the same may be varied in that Relevant Member State by any measure implementing the Prospectus Directive in that Relevant Member State, and the expression Prospectus Directive means Directive 2003/71/EC and includes any relevant implementing measure in each Relevant Member State.

 

United Kingdom

 

Each Underwriter has represented and agreed that:

 

(a) it has only communicated or caused to be communicated and will only communicate or cause to be communicated an invitation or inducement to engage in investment activity (within the meaning of Section 21 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, as amended (the “FSMA”)) received by it in connection with the issue or sale of the shares in circumstances in which Section 21(1) of the FSMA does not apply to the Issuer; and

 

(b) it has complied and will comply with all applicable provisions of the FSMA with respect to anything done by it in relation to the shares in, from or otherwise involving the United Kingdom.

 

The validity of the shares of common stock offered by this prospectus supplement will be passed upon for us by Jones Vargas, Reno, Nevada and certain legal matters about us and with respect to this offering will be passed upon for us by Hogan & Hartson LLP, Washington, D.C. Certain legal matters with respect to this offering will be passed upon for the underwriters by Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP, Los Angeles, California.

 

Our consolidated financial statements appearing in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2008, have been audited by McGladrey & Pullen, LLP, an independent registered public accounting firm, as set forth in their report included therein and incorporated herein by reference. Such consolidated financial statements are incorporated herein by reference in reliance upon such report given on the authority of such firm as experts in accounting and auditing.

PROSPECTUS

WESTERN ALLIANCE BANCORPORATION

 

Debt Securities, Common Stock, Preferred Stock, Depositary Shares,

Purchase Contracts, Units and Warrants

 

By this prospectus, we may offer from time to time:

 

 

When we offer securities, we will provide you with a prospectus supplement describing the terms of the specific issue of securities, including the price of the securities. You should read this prospectus and any prospectus supplement carefully before you decide to invest. This prospectus may not be used to sell securities unless it is accompanied by a prospectus supplement that further describes the securities being delivered to you.

 

We may offer and sell these securities to or through one or more underwriters, dealers and agents, or directly to purchasers, on a continuous or delayed basis.

 

Our common stock is listed for trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “WAL.” We have not yet determined whether any of the securities that may be offered by this prospectus will be listed on any exchange, or included in any inter-dealer quotation system or over-the-counter market. If we decide to seek the listing or inclusion of any such securities upon issuance, the prospectus supplement relating to those securities will disclose the exchange, quotation system or market on or in which the securities will be listed or included.

 

Investing in our securities involves risks. We may include specific risk factors in an applicable prospectus supplement under the heading “Risk Factors.”

 

 

 

 

The offered securities are not deposits or obligations of a bank or savings associations and are not insured or guaranteed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other governmental agency.

 

 

 

 

Neither the Securities and Exchange Commission 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 date of this prospectus is          , 2009.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

 

You should rely only on the information provided in this prospectus and in any prospectus supplement, including the information incorporated by reference. We have not authorized anyone to provide you with different information. You should not assume that the information in this prospectus, or any supplement to this prospectus, is accurate at any date other than the date indicated on the cover page of these documents.

 

References in this prospectus to “Western Alliance,” “we,” “us” and “our” are to Western Alliance Bancorporation. In this prospectus, we sometimes refer to the debt securities, common stock, preferred stock, depository shares, purchase contracts, units, warrants and trust preferred securities collectively as “offered securities.”

 

We file annual, quarterly and current reports, proxy statements and other information with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”). Because our common stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “WAL,” those materials can also be inspected and copied at the offices of that organization. Here are ways you can review and obtain copies of this information:

 

 

We have filed with the SEC a registration statement on Form S-3 under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), relating to the securities covered by this prospectus. The registration statement, including the attached exhibits and schedules, contains additional relevant information about us and the securities. This prospectus does not contain all of the information set forth in the registration statement. Whenever a reference is made in this prospectus to a contract or other document, the reference is only a summary and you should refer to the exhibits that form a part of the registration statement for a copy of the contract or other document. You can get a copy of the registration statement, at prescribed rates, from the sources listed above. You can also obtain these documents from us, without charge (other than exhibits, unless the exhibits are specifically incorporated by reference), by requesting them in writing or by telephone at the following address:

 

Western Alliance Bancorporation
2700 W. Sahara Avenue
Las Vegas, Nevada 89102
(702) 248-4200
Attn: Dale Gibbons, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Internet Website: www.westernalliancebancorp.com

 

THE INFORMATION CONTAINED ON OUR WEBSITE DOES NOT
CONSTITUTE A PART OF THIS PROSPECTUS.

 

The SEC allows us to “incorporate by reference” information into this prospectus. This means that we can disclose important information to you by referring you to another document filed separately with the SEC. The information incorporated by reference is considered to be a part of this prospectus, except for any information that is superseded by other information that is included in or incorporated by reference into this document.

 

This prospectus incorporates by reference the documents listed below that we have previously filed with the SEC. These documents contain important information about us:

 

 

All filings that we may file pursuant to the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), subsequent to the date hereof and prior to effectiveness of this registration statement shall be deemed to be incorporated in this registration statement and to be a part hereof from the date of filing of such documents or reports. In addition, we incorporate by reference any additional documents that we may file with the SEC under Section 13(a), 13(c), 14 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act (other than those furnished pursuant to Item 2.02 or Item 7.01 of Form 8-K or other information “furnished” to the SEC), from the date of the registration statement of which this prospectus is part until the termination of the offering of the securities. These documents may include annual, quarterly and current reports, as well as proxy statements. Any material that we later file with the SEC will automatically update and replace the information previously filed with the SEC. These documents are available to you without charge. See “Where You Can Find More Information.”

 

For purposes of this registration statement, any statement contained in a document incorporated or deemed to be incorporated herein by reference shall be deemed to be modified or superseded to the extent that a statement contained herein or in any other subsequently filed document which also is or is deemed to be incorporated herein by reference modifies or supersedes such statement in such document.

 

This prospectus supplement, the accompanying prospectus and the information included or incorporated by reference in them includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements often include the words “believes,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “estimates,” “forecasts,” “intends,” “plans,” “targets,” “potentially,” “probably,” “projects,” “outlook” or similar expressions or future conditional verbs such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “would” and “could.” These forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause the actual results to differ materially from the statements, including:

 

 

 

Some of these and other factors are discussed in our annual and quarterly reports previously filed with the SEC. Such developments could have an adverse impact on our financial position and our results of operations.

 

The forward-looking statements are based upon managements’ beliefs and assumptions and are made as of the date of this prospectus supplement. We undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements included or incorporated by reference in this prospectus supplement or to update the reasons why actual results could differ from those contained in such statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except to the extent required by federal securities laws. In light of these risks, uncertainties and assumptions, the forward-looking events discussed in this prospectus supplement or in the incorporated documents might not occur, and you should not put undue reliance on any forward-looking statements.

 

We are a bank holding company headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada. We provide a full range of banking and related services to locally owned businesses, professional firms, real estate developers and investors, local non-profit organizations, high net worth individuals and other consumers through our subsidiary banks and financial services companies located in Nevada, Arizona, California and Colorado. On a consolidated basis, as of December 31, 2008, we had approximately $5.2 billion in assets, $4.1 billion in total loans, $3.7 billion in deposits and $495.5 million in stockholders’ equity. We have focused our lending activities primarily on commercial loans, which comprised 83.9% of our total loan portfolio at December 31, 2008. In addition to traditional lending and deposit gathering capabilities, we also offer a broad array of financial products and services aimed at satisfying the needs of small to mid-sized businesses and their proprietors, including cash management, trust administration and estate planning, custody and investments, equipment leasing and affinity credit card services nationwide.

 

Bank of Nevada (formerly BankWest of Nevada) was founded in 1994 by a group of individuals with extensive community banking experience in the Las Vegas market. We believe our success has been built on the strength of our management team, our conservative credit culture, the attractive long-term growth characteristics of the markets in which we operate and our ability to expand our franchise by attracting seasoned bankers with long-standing relationships in their communities.

 

In 2003, we opened Alliance Bank of Arizona in Phoenix, Arizona and Torrey Pines Bank in San Diego, California. In 2006, we opened Alta Alliance Bank in Oakland, California. In addition, we acquired both Nevada First Bank and Bank of Nevada as part of mergers that were completed in 2006. Both of these banks were merged into BankWest of Nevada (whose name was subsequently changed to Bank of Nevada).

 

In March 2007, we expanded our presence in Northern Nevada through the acquisition of First Independent Bank of Nevada, which is headquartered in Reno, Nevada. At December 31, 2008, the Company, through its banking and other subsidiaries, had total assets of approximately $5.2 billion and total deposits of approximately $3.7 billion.

 

In July 2007, we announced the formation of PartnersFirst Affinity Services (“PartnersFirst”), a division of our Torrey Pines Bank affiliate. PartnersFirst focuses on affinity credit card marketing using an innovative model and approach. Through our wholly-owned, non-bank subsidiaries, Miller/Russell & Associates, Inc. (“Miller/Russell”), Shine Investment Advisory Services, Inc. (“Shine”), and Premier Trust, Inc. (“Premier Trust”), we provide investment advisory and wealth management services, including trust administration and estate planning. We acquired Miller/Russell in May 2004, Premier Trust in December 2003 and a majority interest in Shine in July 2007. As of December 31, 2008, Miller/Russell had $1.0 billion in assets under management, Shine had $328 million in

assets under management and Premier Trust had $316 million in assets under management and $488 million in total trust assets.

 

Our common stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol “WAL.” Our principal executive offices are located at 2700 W. Sahara Avenue, Las Vegas, Nevada 89102. Our telephone number is (702) 248-4200. Our website is www.westernalliancebancorp.com. References to our website and those of our subsidiaries are not intended to be active links and the information on such websites is not, and you must not consider the information to be, a part of this prospectus.

 

On April 23, 2009, we announced our unaudited consolidated financial results for the quarter ended March 31, 2009.

 

Total assets increased 1.3% to $5.27 billion at March 31, 2009, compared to $5.20 billion for the quarter ended March 31, 2008. Total loans were $4.08 billion at March 31, 2009, a decrease of 0.5% from $4.10 billion at December 31, 2008 and an increase of 9.5%, from $3.72 billion at March 31, 2008. Total deposits were $4.29 billion at March 31, 2009, an increase of $380 million from December 31, 2008 and an increase of $509 million from $3.78 billion at March 31, 2008. We had a net loss of $86.5 million for the quarter ended March 31, 2009 compared to net income of $4.1 million for the same period last year, primarily due to a non-cash goodwill impairment charge of $45 million and an after tax write down of $36 million on Bank of America preferred stock, which is still performing.

 

Our historical ratios of earnings to fixed charges and preferred stock dividends for the periods indicated are set forth in the table below. As of December 31, 2008, we had 140,000 shares of preferred stock outstanding, all of which were issued on November 21, 2008. The ratio of earnings to fixed charges and preferred stock dividends is computed by dividing (1) income from continuing operations before income taxes and fixed charges by (2) total fixed charges and pre-tax earnings required for preferred stock dividends. For purposes of computing these ratios:

 

 

 

 

 

Unless otherwise indicated in the applicable prospectus supplement, we expect to use the net proceeds from the sale of offered securities for general corporate purposes, including:

 

 

The prospectus supplement with respect to an offering of offered securities may identify different or additional uses for the proceeds of that offering.

 

Pending the application of the net proceeds, we expect to temporarily invest the proceeds from the sale of offered securities in short-term obligations.

 

The descriptions of the securities contained in this prospectus, together with the applicable prospectus supplements, summarize certain material terms and provisions of the various types of securities that we may offer. The particular material terms of the securities offered by a prospectus supplement will be described in that prospectus supplement. If indicated in the applicable prospectus supplement, the terms of the offered securities may differ from the terms summarized below. The prospectus supplement will also contain information, where applicable, about material U.S. federal income tax considerations relating to the offered securities, and the securities exchange, if any, on which the offered securities will be listed. The descriptions herein and in the applicable prospectus supplement do not contain all of the information that you may find useful or that may be important to you. You should refer to the provisions of the actual documents whose terms are summarized herein and in the applicable prospectus supplement, because those documents, and not the summaries, define your rights as holders of the relevant securities. For more information, please review the forms of these documents, which are or will be filed with the SEC and will be available as described under the heading “Where You Can Find More Information” above.

 

We may offer and sell from time to time, in one or more offerings, the following:

 

 

General

 

We may issue senior debt securities and/or senior subordinated debt securities, which in each case will be unsecured, direct, general obligations of Western Alliance.

 

The senior debt securities will rank equally with all our other unsecured and unsubordinated debt. The senior subordinated debt securities will be subordinate and junior in priority of payment to our senior debt securities, as described below under “Ranking — Subordination of Senior Subordinated Debt Securities” and in the prospectus supplement applicable to any senior subordinated debt securities that we may offer. For purposes of the descriptions in this section, we may refer to the senior debt securities and the senior subordinated debt securities collectively as the “debt securities.” The debt securities will be effectively subordinated to the creditors and preferred equity holders of our subsidiaries.

 

We will issue senior debt securities under a senior debt indenture and senior subordinated debt securities under a separate senior subordinated debt indenture. Provisions relating to the issuance of debt securities may also be set forth in a supplemental indenture to either of the indentures. For purposes of the descriptions in this section, we may refer to the senior debt indenture and the senior subordinated debt indenture and any related supplemental indentures, as “an indenture” or, collectively, as “the indentures.” The indentures will be qualified under and governed by the Trust Indenture Act of 1939, as amended (the “Trust Indenture Act”).

 

Each indenture will be between us and a trustee that meets the requirements of the Trust Indenture Act. We expect that each indenture will provide that there may be more than one trustee under that indenture, each with respect to one or more series of debt securities. Any trustee under an indenture may resign or be removed with respect to one or more series of debt securities and, in that event, we may appoint a successor trustee. Except as otherwise provided in the indenture or supplemental indenture, any action permitted to be taken by a trustee may be taken by that trustee only with respect to the one or more series of debt securities for which it is trustee under the applicable indenture.

 

The descriptions in this section relating to the debt securities and the indentures are summaries of their provisions. The summaries are not complete and are qualified in their entirety by reference to the actual indentures and debt securities and the further descriptions in the applicable prospectus supplement. A form of the senior debt indenture and a form of the senior subordinated debt indenture under which we may issue our senior debt securities and senior subordinated debt securities, respectively, and the forms of the debt securities, have been filed with the SEC as exhibits to the registration statement that includes this prospectus and will be available as described under the heading “Where You Can Find More Information” above. Whenever we refer in this prospectus or in any prospectus supplement to particular sections or defined terms of an indenture, those sections or defined terms are incorporated by reference in this prospectus or in the prospectus supplement, as applicable. You should refer to the provisions of the indentures for provisions that may be important to you.

 

The terms and conditions described in this section are terms and conditions that apply generally to the debt securities. The particular terms of any series of debt securities will be summarized in the applicable prospectus supplement. Those terms may differ from the terms summarized below.

 

Except as set forth in the applicable indenture or in a supplemental indenture and described in an applicable prospectus supplement, the indentures do not limit the amount of debt securities we may issue under the indentures. We are not required to issue all of the debt securities of one series at the same time and, unless otherwise provided in the applicable indenture or supplemental indenture and described in the applicable prospectus supplement, we may, from time to time, reopen any series and issue additional debt securities under that series without the consent of the holders of the outstanding debt securities of that series. Additional notes issued in this manner will have the same terms and conditions as the outstanding debt securities of that series, except for their original issue date and issue price, and will be consolidated with, and form a single series with, the previously outstanding debt securities of that series.

Terms of Debt Securities to be Included in the Prospectus Supplement

 

The prospectus supplement relating to any series of debt securities that we may offer will set forth the price or prices at which the debt securities will be offered, and will contain the specific terms of the debt securities of that series. These terms may include, without limitation, the following:

 

 

 

Unless otherwise specified in the applicable prospectus supplement, the debt securities will not be listed on any securities exchange.

 

We may offer and sell our debt securities at a substantial discount below their stated principal amount. These debt securities may be original issue discount securities, which means that less than the entire principal amount of the original issue discount securities will be payable upon declaration of acceleration of their maturity. Special federal income tax, accounting and other considerations applicable to original issue discount securities will be described in the applicable prospectus supplement.

 

We may issue debt securities with a fixed interest rate or a floating interest rate. Any material federal income tax considerations applicable to any discounted debt securities or to debt securities issued at par that are treated as having been issued at a discount for federal income tax purposes will be described in the applicable prospectus supplement.

 

Except as set forth in the applicable indenture or in a supplemental indenture, the applicable indenture will not contain any provisions that would limit our ability to incur indebtedness or that would afford holders of debt securities protection in the event of a highly leveraged or similar transaction involving us. The applicable indenture may contain provisions that would afford debt security holders protection in the event of a change of control. You should refer to the applicable prospectus supplement for information with respect to any deletions from, modifications of or additions to the events of default or covenants that are described below, including any addition of a covenant or other provision providing event risk or similar protection.

 

For purposes of the descriptions in this section:

 

 

Ranking

 

Senior Debt Securities

 

Payment of the principal of and premium, if any, and interest on debt securities we issue under the senior debt indenture will rank equally with all of our unsecured and unsubordinated debt.

 

Subordination of Senior Subordinated Debt Securities

 

To the extent provided in the senior subordinated debt indenture and any supplemental indenture, and as described in the prospectus supplement describing the applicable series of senior subordinated debt securities, the payment of the principal of and premium, if any, and interest on any senior subordinated debt securities, including amounts payable on any redemption or repurchase, will be subordinated in right of payment and junior to senior debt, which is defined below. If there is a distribution to our creditors in a liquidation or dissolution of us, or in a bankruptcy, reorganization, insolvency, receivership or similar proceeding relating to us, the holders of senior debt will first be entitled to receive payment in full of all amounts due on the senior debt (or provision shall be made for such payment in cash) before any payments may be made on the senior subordinated debt securities. Because of this subordination, our general creditors may recover more, ratably, than holders of senior subordinated debt securities in the event of a distribution of assets upon insolvency.

 

The supplemental indenture will set forth the terms and conditions under which, if any, we will not be permitted to pay principal, premium, if any, or interest on the related senior subordinated debt securities upon the occurrence of an event of default or other circumstances arising under or with respect to senior debt.

 

The indentures will place no limitation on the amount of senior debt that we may incur. We expect to incur from time to time additional indebtedness constituting senior debt, which may include indebtedness that is senior to the subordinated debt securities but subordinate to our other obligations.

 

“Senior debt” means the principal of, and premium, if any, and interest, including interest accruing after the commencement of any bankruptcy proceeding relating to us, on, or substantially similar payments we will make in respect of the following categories of debt, whether that debt is outstanding at the date of execution of the applicable indenture or thereafter incurred, created or assumed:

 

 

However, “senior debt” excludes:

 

 

As used above, the term “purchase money obligations” means indebtedness, obligations or guarantees evidenced by a note, debenture, bond or other instrument, whether or not secured by a lien or other security interest, and any deferred obligation for the payment of the purchase price of property but excluding indebtedness or obligations for which recourse is limited to the property purchased, issued or assumed as all or a part of the consideration for the acquisition of property or services, whether by purchase, merger, consolidation or otherwise, but does not include any trade accounts payable. There will not be any restrictions in an indenture relating to senior subordinated debt securities upon the creation of additional senior debt.

 

The applicable prospectus supplement may further describe the provisions, if any, applicable to the subordination of the senior subordinated debt securities of a particular series. The applicable prospectus supplement or the information incorporated by reference in the applicable prospectus supplement or in this prospectus will describe as of a recent date the approximate amount of our senior debt outstanding as to which the senior subordinated debt securities of that series will be subordinated.

 

Structural Subordination

 

Because we are a holding company, our cash flows and consequent ability to service our obligations, including our debt securities, are dependent on distributions and other payments of earnings and other funds by our subsidiaries to us. The payment of dividends and other distributions by our subsidiaries is contingent on their earnings and is subject to the requirements of federal banking regulations and other restrictions. In addition, the debt securities will be structurally subordinated to all indebtedness and other liabilities of our subsidiaries, since our right to receive any assets of its subsidiaries upon their liquidation or reorganization, and the consequent right of the holders of the debt securities to participate in those assets, will be effectively subordinated to the claims of that subsidiary’s creditors. If we are recognized as a creditor of that subsidiary, our claims would still be subordinate to any security interest in the assets of that subsidiary and any indebtedness of that subsidiary senior to that held by us. Claims from creditors (other than us), on subsidiaries may include long-term and medium-term debt and substantial obligations related to deposit liabilities, federal funds purchased, securities sold under repurchase agreements and other short-term borrowings. Any capital loans that we make to Bank of Nevada, Alliance Bank of Arizona, Torrey Pines Bank, Alta Alliance Bank or First Independent Bank of Nevada and our other non-banking subsidiaries would be subordinate in right of payment to deposits and to other indebtedness of the banks or our other non-banking subsidiaries.

 

Conversion or Exchange of Debt Securities

 

The applicable prospectus supplement will set forth the terms, if any, on which a series of debt securities may be converted into or exchanged for our other securities. These terms will include whether conversion or exchange is mandatory, or is at our option or at the option of the holder. We will also describe in the applicable prospectus supplement how we will calculate the number of securities that holders of debt securities would receive if they were to convert or exchange their debt securities, the conversion price and other terms related to conversion and any anti-dilution protections.

 

Redemption of Securities

 

We may redeem the debt securities at any time, in whole or in part, at the prescribed redemption price, at the times and on the terms described in the applicable prospectus supplement.

From and after notice has been given as provided in the indentures, if we have made available funds for the redemption of any debt securities called for redemption on the applicable redemption date, the debt securities will cease to bear interest on the date fixed for the redemption specified in the notice, and the only right of the holders of the debt securities will be to receive payment of the redemption price.

 

Notice of any optional redemption by us of any debt securities is required to be given to holders at their addresses, as shown in the security register. The notice of redemption will be required to specify, among other items, the redemption price and the principal amount of the debt securities held by the holder to be redeemed.

 

If we elect to redeem debt securities, we will be required to notify the trustee of the aggregate principal amount of debt securities to be redeemed and the redemption date. If fewer than all the debt securities are to be redeemed, the trustee is required to select the debt securities to be redeemed equally, by lot or in a manner it deems fair and appropriate.

 

Denomination, Interest, Registration and Transfer

 

Unless otherwise specified in the applicable prospectus supplement, we will issue the debt securities (i) in denominations of $1,000 or integral multiples of $1,000 if the debt securities are in registered form and (ii) in denominations of $5,000 if the debt securities are in bearer form.

 

Unless otherwise specified in the applicable prospectus supplement, we will pay the principal of, and applicable premium, if any, and interest on any series of debt securities at the corporate trust office of the trustee, the address of which will be stated in the applicable prospectus supplement. At our option, we may pay interest by check mailed to the address of the person entitled to the interest payment as it appears in the register for the applicable debt securities or by wire transfer of funds to that person at an account maintained within the United States.

 

Any defaulted interest, which means interest not punctually paid or duly provided for on any interest payment date with respect to a debt security, will immediately cease to be payable to the registered holder on the applicable regular record date by virtue of his having been the registered holder on such date. We may pay defaulted interest either to the person in whose name the debt security is registered at the close of business on a special record date for the payment of the defaulted interest to be fixed by the trustee, notice of which is to be given to the holder of the debt security not less than ten days before the special record date, or at any time in any other lawful manner, all as more completely described in the applicable indenture or supplemental indenture.

 

Subject to limitations imposed upon debt securities issued in book-entry form, the holder may exchange debt securities of any series for other debt securities of the same series and of a like aggregate principal amount and tenor of different authorized denominations upon surrender of the debt securities at the corporate trust office of the applicable trustee. In addition, subject to limitations imposed upon debt securities issued in book-entry form, the holder may surrender debt securities of any series for registration of transfer or exchange at the corporate trust office of the applicable trustee. Every debt security surrendered for registration of transfer or exchange must be duly endorsed or accompanied by a written instrument of transfer. No service charge will be imposed for any registration of transfer or exchange of any debt securities, but we may require payment of a sum sufficient to cover any tax or other governmental charge payable in connection with any registration of transfer or exchange of any debt securities. If the applicable prospectus supplement refers to any transfer agent, in addition to the applicable trustee, initially designated by us with respect to any series of debt securities, we may at any time rescind the designation of that transfer agent or approve a change in the location through which any transfer agent acts, except that we will be required to maintain a transfer agent in each place of payment for that series. We may at any time designate additional transfer agents with respect to any series of debt securities.

 

If we redeem the debt securities of any series, neither we nor any trustee will be required to:

 

 

 

Global Securities

 

We may issue the debt securities of a series in whole or in part in the form of one or more global securities to be deposited with, or on behalf of, a depository or with a nominee for a depository identified in the applicable prospectus supplement relating to that series. We may issue global securities in either registered or bearer form and in either temporary or permanent form. The specific terms of the depository arrangement with respect to a series of debt securities will be described in the prospectus supplement relating to that series.

 

Our obligations with respect to the debt securities, as well as the obligations of the applicable trustee, run only to persons who are registered holders of debt securities. For example, once we make payment to the registered holder, we have no further responsibility for that payment even if the recipient is legally required to pass the payment along to an individual investor but fails to do so. As an indirect holder, an investor’s rights relating to a global security will be governed by the account rules of the investor’s financial institution and of the depositary, as well as general laws relating to transfers of debt securities.

 

An investor should be aware that when debt securities are issued in the form of global securities:

 

 

The prospectus supplement for a series of debt securities will list the special situations, if any, in which a global security will terminate and interests in the global security will be exchanged for physical certificates representing debt securities. After that exchange, the investor may choose whether to hold debt securities directly or indirectly through an account at the investor’s bank or brokerage firm. In that event, investors must consult their banks or brokers to find out how to have their interests in debt securities transferred to their own names so that they may become direct holders. When a global security terminates, the depositary, and not us or one of the trustees, is responsible for deciding the names of the institutions that will be the initial direct holders.

 

Merger, Consolidation or Sale of Assets

 

We will not be permitted to consolidate with or merge into any other entity, or sell, lease, transfer or convey all or substantially all of our properties and assets, either in one transaction or a series of transactions, to any other entity and no other entity will consolidate with or merge into us, or sell, lease, transfer or convey all or substantially all of its properties and assets to us unless:

 

(1) either:

 

 

(2) immediately after giving effect to the transaction and treating any indebtedness that becomes our obligation or the obligation of any of our subsidiaries as a result of that transaction as having been incurred by us or our subsidiary at the time of the transaction, no event of default under the indentures or supplemental indentures, and no event which, after notice or the lapse of time, or both, would become an event of default, will have occurred and be continuing;

 

provided, however, that the conditions described in (1) and (2) above will not apply to the direct or indirect transfer of the stock, assets or liabilities of any of our subsidiaries to another of our direct or indirect subsidiaries.

 

Except as provided in this prospectus or as may otherwise be provided in the applicable prospectus supplement, the indenture and the terms of the debt securities will not contain any event risks or similar covenants that are intended to afford protection to holders of any debt securities in the event of a merger, a highly leveraged transaction or other significant corporate event involving us or our subsidiaries, whether or not resulting in a change of control, which may adversely affect holders of the debt securities.

 

Additional Covenants and/or Modifications to the Covenant Described Above

 

Any of our additional covenants and/or modifications to the covenant described above with respect to any series of debt securities, including any covenants relating to limitations on incurrence of indebtedness or other financial covenants, will be set forth in the applicable indenture or supplemental indenture and described in the prospectus supplement relating to that series of debt securities.

 

Unless the applicable prospectus supplement indicates otherwise, the subordinated indenture does not contain the restrictive covenant stated above, nor does it contain any other provision which restricts us from, among other things:

 

 

Events of Default, Waiver and Notice

 

Events of Default.

 

The events of default with respect to any series of debt securities issued under it, subject to any modifications or deletions provided in any supplemental indenture with respect to any specific series of debt securities, include the following events:

 

 

If an event of default under any indenture with respect to debt securities of any series at the time outstanding occurs and is continuing, then in every case other than in the case described in clause (5) above, in which case acceleration will be automatic, the applicable trustee or the holders of not less than 25% of the principal amount of the outstanding debt securities of that series will have the right to declare the principal amount, or, if the debt securities of that series are original issue discount securities or indexed securities, the portion of the principal amount as may be specified in the terms of that series, of all the debt securities of that series to be due and payable immediately by written notice to us, and to the applicable trustee if given by the holders. At any time after a declaration of acceleration has been made with respect to debt securities of a series, or of all debt securities then outstanding under any indenture, as the case may be, but before a judgment or decree for payment of the money due has been obtained by the applicable trustee, however, the holders of not less than a majority in principal amount of the outstanding debt securities of that series, or of all debt securities then outstanding under the applicable indenture, as the case may be, may annul the declaration of acceleration and waive any default in respect of those debt securities if:

 

 

Waiver

 

Each indenture also will provide that the holders of not less than a majority in principal amount of the outstanding debt securities of any series, or of all debt securities then outstanding under the applicable indenture, as the case may be, may waive any past default with respect to that series and its consequences, except a default:

 

 

Notice

 

Each trustee will be required to give notice to the holders of the applicable debt securities within 90 days of a default under the applicable indenture unless the default has been cured or waived; but the trustee may withhold notice of any default, except a default in the payment of the principal of, or premium, if any, or interest on the debt securities or in the payment of any sinking fund installment in respect of the debt securities, if specified responsible officers of the trustee consider the withholding to be in the interest of the holders.

 

The holders of debt securities of any series may not institute any proceedings, judicial or otherwise, with respect to the indentures or for any remedy under the indentures, except in the case of failure of the applicable trustee, for 60 days, to act after the trustee has received a written request to institute proceedings in respect of an event of default from the holders of not less than 25% in principal amount of the outstanding debt securities of that series, as well as an offer of indemnity reasonably satisfactory to the trustee, and provided that no direction inconsistent with such written request has been given to the trustee during such 60-day period by the holders of a majority of the outstanding debt securities of that series. However, any holder of debt securities is not prohibited from instituting suit for the enforcement of payment of the principal of, and premium, if any, and interest on the debt securities at their respective due dates.

 

Subject to the trustee’s duties in case of default, no trustee will be under any obligation to exercise any of its rights or powers under an indenture at the request or direction of any holders of any series of debt securities then outstanding under that indenture, unless the holders offer to the trustee reasonable security or indemnity. Subject to such provisions for the indemnification of the trustee, the holders of not less than a majority in principal amount of

the outstanding debt securities of any series, or of all debt securities then outstanding under an indenture, as the case may be, will have the right to direct the time, method and place of conducting any proceeding for any remedy available to the applicable trustee, or of exercising any trust or power conferred upon the trustee. A trustee may refuse, however, to follow any direction that is in conflict with any law or the applicable indenture that may involve the trustee in personal liability or may be unduly prejudicial to the holders of debt securities of that series not joining in the direction.

 

Within 180 days after the end of each fiscal year, we will be required to deliver to each trustee a certificate, signed by one of several specified officers, stating whether or not that officer has knowledge of any default under the applicable indenture and, if so, specifying each default and the nature and status of the default.

 

Modification of the Indentures

 

Except as otherwise specifically provided in the applicable indenture, with the consent of the holders of not less than a majority in principal amount of all outstanding debt securities issued under that indenture that are affected by the modification or amendment, we may enter into supplemental indentures with the trustee for the purpose of adding any provisions to or changing in any manner or eliminating any of the provisions of such indenture or of modifying in any manner the rights of the holders under debt securities issued under such indenture. However, no modification or amendment may, without the consent of the holder of each debt security affected by the modification or amendment:

 

 

 

 

The holders of not less than a majority in principal amount of the outstanding debt securities of each series affected by the modification or amendment will have the right to waive compliance by us with specific covenants in the indenture.

We and the respective trustee may modify and amend an indenture without the consent of any holder of debt securities for any of the following purposes:

 

 

In determining whether the holders of the requisite principal amount of outstanding debt securities of a series have given any request, demand, authorization, direction, notice, consent or waiver under the indenture or whether a quorum is present at a meeting of holders of debt securities:

 

 

 

Discharge, Defeasance and Covenant Defeasance

 

Discharge

 

We may be permitted under the applicable indenture to discharge specific obligations to holders of any series of debt securities (1) that have not already been delivered to the applicable trustee for cancellation and (2) that either have become due and payable or will, within one year, become due and payable or scheduled for redemption, by irrevocably depositing with the applicable trustee, in trust, money or funds certified to be sufficient to pay when due, whether at maturity, upon redemption or otherwise, the principal of, and premium, if any, on and interest on the debt securities.

 

Defeasance and Covenant Defeasance

 

If the provisions in that indenture relating to defeasance and covenant defeasance are made applicable to the debt securities of or within any series, we may elect either:

 

 

A trust will only be permitted to be established if, among other things:

 

 

In general, if we elect covenant defeasance with respect to any debt securities and payments on those debt securities are declared due and payable because of the occurrence of an event of default, the amount of money and/or government obligations on deposit with the applicable trustee would be sufficient to pay amounts due on those debt securities at the time of their stated maturity, but may not be sufficient to pay amounts due on those debt securities at the time of the acceleration resulting from the event of default. In that case, we would remain liable to make payment of the amounts due on the debt securities at the time of acceleration.

 

The applicable prospectus supplement may further describe the provisions, if any, permitting defeasance or covenant defeasance, including any modifications to the provisions described above, with respect to the debt securities of or within a particular series.

 

Option to Extend Interest Payment Period

 

If indicated in the applicable prospectus supplement, we will have the right, as long as no event of default under the applicable series of debt securities has occurred and is continuing, at any time and from time to time during the term of the series of debt securities to defer the payment of interest on one or more series of debt securities for the number of consecutive interest payment periods specified in the applicable prospectus supplement, subject to the terms, conditions and covenants, if any, specified in the prospectus supplement, provided that no extension period may extend beyond the stated maturity of the debt securities. Material United States federal income tax consequences and special considerations applicable to these debt securities will be described in the applicable prospectus supplement. Unless otherwise indicated in the applicable prospectus supplement, at the end of the extension period, we will pay all interest then accrued and unpaid together with interest on accrued and unpaid interest compounded semiannually at the rate specified for the debt securities to the extent permitted by applicable law. However, unless otherwise indicated in the applicable prospectus supplement, during the extension period neither we nor any of our subsidiaries may:

 

 

 

 

Prior to the termination of any extension period, as long as no event of default under the applicable indenture has occurred and is continuing, we may further defer payments of interest, subject to the above limitations set forth in this section, by extending the interest payment period; provided, however, that, the extension period, including all previous and further extensions, may not extend beyond the maturity of the debt securities. Upon the termination of any extension period and the payment of all amounts then due, we may commence a new extension period, subject to the terms set forth in this section. No interest during an extension period, except at the end of the extension period,

will be due and payable, but we may prepay at any time all or any portion of the interest accrued during an extension period.

 

We do not currently intend to exercise our right to defer payments of interest by extending the interest payment period on the senior debt securities or the senior subordinated debt securities. In the case of our junior subordinated debentures, if the property trustee is the sole holder of such debt securities, we will give the administrative trustees and the property trustee notice of our selection of an extension period two business days before the earlier of (1) the next succeeding date on which distributions on the preferred securities are payable or (2) the date the administrative trustees are required to give notice to the New York Stock Exchange, or other applicable self-regulatory organization, or to holders of the preferred securities of the record or payment date of the distribution, but in any event, at least one business day before such record date. The administrative trustees will give notice of our selection of the extension period to the holders of the preferred securities. If the property trustee is not the sole holder of such debt securities, or in the case of the senior and subordinated debt securities, we will give the holders of these debt securities notice of our selection of an extension period at least two business days before the earlier of (a) the next succeeding interest payment date or (b) the date upon which we are required to give notice to the New York Stock Exchange, or other applicable self-regulatory organization, or to holders of such debt securities of the record or payment date of the related interest payment.

 

Regarding the Trustees

 

We will designate the trustee under the senior and subordinated indentures in a prospectus supplement. From time to time, we may enter into banking or other relationships with any of such trustees or their affiliates.

 

There may be more than one trustee under each indenture, each with respect to one or more series of debt securities. Any trustee may resign or be removed with respect to one or more series of debt securities, and a successor trustee may be appointed to act with respect to such series.

 

If two or more persons are acting as trustee with respect to different series of debt securities, each trustee will be a trustee of a trust under the indenture separate from the trust administered by any other such trustee. Except as otherwise indicated in this prospectus, any action to be taken by the trustee may be taken by each such trustee with respect to, and only with respect to, the one or more series of debt securities for which it is trustee under the indenture.

 

Governing Law

 

The senior debt securities, the senior subordinated debt securities and the related indentures will be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the internal laws of the State of New York.

 

The following description is a general summary of the terms of our common stock. The description below does not purport to be complete and is subject to and qualified in its entirety by reference to our amended and restated articles of incorporation and amended and restated by-laws, each as amended and restated. The description herein does not contain all of the information that you may find useful or that may be important to you. You should refer to the provisions of our amended and restated articles of incorporation and amended and restated by-laws because they, and not the summaries, define the rights of holders of shares of our common stock. You can obtain copies of our amended and restated articles incorporation and amended and restated by-laws by following the directions under the heading “Where You Can Find More Information.”

 

General

 

Our amended and restated articles of incorporation provide the authority to issue 100,000,000 shares of common stock, par value $.0001 per share. At March 1, 2009, there were 38,909,652 shares of common stock issued and we had outstanding stock options granted to directors, officers and other employees for 2,990,200 shares of our common stock.

Each share of our common stock has the same relative rights and is identical in all respects to each other share of our common stock. Our common stock is non-withdrawable capital, is not of an insurable type and is not insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation or any other governmental entity.

 

Voting Rights

 

Holders of our common stock are entitled to one vote per share on each matter properly submitted to stockholders for their vote, including the election of directors. Holders of our common stock do not have the right to cumulate their votes for the election of directors, which means that the holders of more than 50% of the shares of common stock voting for the election of directors can elect 100% of the directors standing for election at any meeting if they choose to do so. In that event, the holders of the remaining shares voting for the election of directors will not be able to elect any person or persons to our board of directors at that meeting.

 

Liquidation Rights

 

The holders of our common stock and the holders of any class or series of stock entitled to participate with the holders of our common stock as to the distribution of assets in the event of any liquidation, dissolution or winding-up of us, whether voluntary or involuntary, will become entitled to participate equally in the distribution of any of our assets remaining after we have paid, or provided for the payment of, all of our debts and liabilities and after we have paid, or set aside for payment, to the holders of any class of stock having preference over the common stock in the event of liquidation, dissolution or winding-up, the full preferential amounts, if any, to which they are entitled.

 

Dividends

 

The holders of our common stock and any class or series of stock entitled to participate with the holders of our common stock are entitled to receive dividends declared by our board of directors out of any assets legally available for distribution. The board may not declare, and we may not pay, dividends or other distributions, unless we have paid or the board has declared or set aside all accumulated dividends and any sinking fund, retirement fund or other retirement payments on any class of stock having preference as to payments of dividends over our common stock. As a holding company, our ability to pay distributions is affected by the ability of our subsidiaries to pay dividends. The ability of our bank subsidiaries, and our ability, to pay dividends in the future is, and could in the future be further, influenced by bank regulatory requirements and capital guidelines.

 

Miscellaneous

 

The holders of our common stock have no preemptive or conversion rights for any shares that may be issued. Our common stock is not subject to additional calls or assessments, and all shares of our common stock currently outstanding are fully paid and non-assessable. All shares of common stock offered pursuant to a prospectus supplement, or issuable upon conversion, exchange or exercise of preferred stock or other convertible securities, will, when issued, be fully paid and non-assessable, which means that the full purchase price of the shares will have been paid and the holders of the shares will not be assessed any additional monies for the shares.

 

Some Important Charter Provisions

 

Our amended and restated articles of incorporation provide for the division of our board of directors into three classes of directors, each class as nearly as equal as possible, with each serving staggered, three-year terms. Any amendment to our amended and restated articles of incorporation must be approved by at least sixty-six and two-thirds percent (662/3%) of the outstanding shares of each class of shares entitled to vote thereon at a duly called annual or special meeting; provided, however, that approval by the affirmative vote of at least 80% of the outstanding shares of each class entitled to vote is required to amend certain of the provisions contained in the amended and restated articles of incorporation regarding classification of the board of directors, removal of directors and approval of business combinations. Our amended and restated by-laws may be amended by the affirmative vote of at least two-thirds of the board of directors or by stockholders by the affirmative vote of at least 80% of the total votes eligible to be voted, at a duly constituted meeting called for that purpose.

Some of the foregoing provisions may have the effect of deterring hostile takeovers or delaying changes in control or management of us.

 

Since the terms of our amended and restated articles of incorporation and amended and restated by-laws may differ from the general information we are providing, you should only rely on the actual provisions of our amended and restated articles of incorporation and amended and restated by-laws. If you would like to read our Certificate of Incorporation and bylaws, you may request a copy from us by following the directions under the heading “Where You Can Find More Information.”

 

NYSE Listing

 

Our common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “WAL.”

 

Transfer Agent and Registrar

 

The transfer agent and registrar for our common stock is American Stock Transfer & Trust Company.

 

The following description is a general summary of the terms of the preferred stock which we may issue. The description below and in any prospectus supplement does not purport to be complete and is subject to and qualified in its entirety by reference to our amended and restated articles of incorporation, and the applicable certificate of designation to our amended and restated articles of incorporation, determining the terms of the related series of preferred stock and our amended and restated by-laws, each of which we will make available upon request. The descriptions herein and in the applicable prospectus supplement do not contain all of the information that you may find useful or that may be important to you. You should refer to the provisions of our amended and restated articles of incorporation, the applicable certificate of designation and our amended and restated by-laws because they, and not the summaries, define your rights as holders of shares of our preferred stock.

 

General

 

We are authorized to issue 20,000,000 shares of preferred stock, par value $0.0001 per share. As of December 31, 2008, 140,000 shares of preferred stock were issued and outstanding, consisting of 140,000 shares of Fixed Rate Cumulative Perpetual Preferred Stock, Series A. Our amended and restated articles of incorporation, subject to limitations prescribed in such articles and subject to limitations prescribed by Nevada law, authorizes the board of directors, from time to time by resolution and without further stockholder action, to provide for the issuance of shares of preferred stock, in one or more series, and to fix the designation, powers, preferences and other rights of the shares and to fix the qualifications, limitations and restrictions thereof. As a result of its broad discretion with respect to the creation and issuance of preferred stock without stockholder approval, the board of directors could adversely affect the voting power of the holders of common stock and, by issuing shares of preferred stock with certain voting, conversion and/or redemption rights, could discourage any attempt to obtain control of us.

 

Terms of the Preferred Stock That We May Offer and Sell to You

 

You should refer to the prospectus supplement relating to the class or series of preferred stock being offered for the specific terms of that class or series, including:

 

 

 

Ranking

 

Unless otherwise specified in the applicable prospectus supplement, the preferred stock will, with respect to distribution rights and rights upon liquidation, dissolution or winding up of our affairs, rank:

 

 

For purposes of this subheading, the term “equity securities” does not include convertible debt securities.

 

Distributions

 

Holders of the preferred stock of each series will be entitled to receive, when, as and if declared by our board of directors, out of our assets legally available for payment to stockholders, cash distributions, or distributions in kind or in other property if expressly permitted and described in the applicable prospectus supplement, at the rates and on the dates as we will set forth in the applicable prospectus supplement. We will pay each distribution to holders of record as they appear on our stock transfer books on the record dates determined by our board of directors.

 

Distributions on any class or series of preferred stock, if cumulative, will be cumulative from and after the date set forth in the applicable prospectus supplement. If our board of directors fails to declare a distribution payable on a distribution payment date on any class or series of preferred stock for which distributions are non-cumulative, then the holders of that class or series of preferred stock will have no right to receive a distribution in respect of the distribution period ending on that distribution payment date, and we will have no obligation to pay the distribution

accumulated for that period, whether or not distributions on that series are declared payable on any future distribution payment date.

 

If any shares of the preferred stock of any class or series are outstanding, no full dividends will be declared or paid or set apart for payment on our preferred stock of any other class or series ranking, as to dividends, equally with or junior to the preferred stock of the class or series for any period unless all required dividends are paid. The phrase “all required dividends are paid” when used in this prospectus with respect to class or series of preferred stock means that:

 

 

When dividends are not paid in full, or a sum sufficient for the full payment is not so set apart, upon the shares of preferred stock of any class or series and the shares of any other class or series of preferred stock ranking equally as to dividends with the preferred stock of the class or series, all dividends declared upon shares of preferred stock of the class or series and any other class or series of preferred stock ranking equally as to dividends with the preferred stock will be declared equally so that the amount of dividends declared per share on the preferred stock of the class or series and the other class or series of preferred stock will in all cases bear to each other the same ratio that accrued and unpaid dividends per share on the shares of preferred stock of the class or series, which will not include any accumulation in respect of unpaid dividends for prior dividend periods if the preferred stock does not have cumulative dividend, and the other class or series of preferred stock bear to each other. No interest, sum of money in lieu of interest, will be payable in respect of any dividend payment or payments on preferred stock of the class or series which may be in arrears.

 

Except as provided in the immediately preceding paragraph, unless all required dividends are paid, no dividends, other than in common stock or other stock ranking junior to the preferred stock of the class or series as to dividends and upon liquidation, dissolution or winding-up of us, will be declared or paid or set aside for payment or other distribution will be declared or made upon the common stock or any of our other stock ranking junior or equally with the preferred stock of the class or series as to dividends or upon liquidation, nor will any common stock or any of our other capital stock ranking junior to or equally with preferred stock of the class or series as to dividends or upon liquidation, dissolution or winding-up of us be redeemed, purchased or otherwise acquired for any consideration, or any moneys be paid to or made available for a sinking fund for the redemption of any shares of any stock, by us except by conversion into or exchange for our other stock ranking junior to the preferred stock of the class or series as to dividends and upon liquidation, dissolution or winding-up of us.

 

Any dividend payment made on shares of a class or series of preferred stock will first be credited against the earliest accrued but unpaid dividend due with respect to shares of the class or series which remains payable.

 

Redemption

 

If so provided in the applicable prospectus supplement, the preferred stock will be subject to mandatory redemption or redemption at our option, in whole or in part, in each case upon the terms, at the times and at the redemption prices set forth in the prospectus supplement.

 

The prospectus supplement relating to a class series of preferred stock that is subject to mandatory redemption will specify the number of shares of the preferred stock that will be redeemed by us in each year commencing after a date to be specified, at a redemption price per share to be specified, together with an amount equal to all accumulated and unpaid dividends thereon, which will not, if the preferred stock does not have a cumulative dividend, include an accumulation in respect of unpaid dividends for prior dividends periods, to the date of redemption. The redemption price may be payable in cash or other property, as specified in the applicable prospectus supplement. If the redemption price for preferred stock of any series is payable only from the net

proceeds of the issuance of our stock, the terms of the preferred stock may provide that, if no stock will have been issued or to the extent the net proceeds from any issuance are insufficient to pay in full the aggregate redemption price then due, the preferred stock will automatically and mandatorily be converted into shares of our applicable stock pursuant to conversion provisions specified in the applicable prospectus supplement.

 

Notwithstanding the foregoing, unless provided otherwise for any class or series of preferred stock, unless all required dividends are paid:

 

 

provided, however, that the above restrictions will not prevent the purchase or acquisition of shares of preferred stock of the class or series pursuant to a purchase or exchange offer made on the same terms to holders of all outstanding shares of preferred stock of the class or series.

 

Liquidation Preference

 

Upon any voluntary or involuntary liquidation, dissolution or winding up of our affairs, then, before any distribution or payment will be made to the holders of any common stock or any other class or series of shares of our capital stock ranking junior to the preferred stock in the distribution of assets upon any liquidation, dissolution or winding up of our affairs, the holders of each series or class of preferred stock will be entitled to receive out of our assets legally available for distribution to stockholders liquidating distributions in the amount of the liquidation preference set forth in the applicable prospectus supplement, plus an amount equal to all accumulated and unpaid distributions. After payment of the full amount of the liquidating distributions to which they are entitled, the holders of shares of preferred stock will have no right or claim to any of our remaining assets. If, upon the voluntary or involuntary liquidation, dissolution or winding up, our available assets are insufficient to pay the amount of the liquidating distributions on all outstanding shares of preferred stock and the corresponding amounts payable on all shares of other classes or series of shares of our capital stock ranking equally with the preferred stock in the distribution of assets, then the holders of the preferred stock and all other classes or series of shares of capital stock will share ratably in any distribution of assets in proportion to the full liquidating distributions to which they would otherwise be respectively entitled.

 

If liquidating distributions will have been made in full to all holders of preferred stock, our remaining assets will be distributed among the holders of any other classes or series of shares of capital stock ranking junior to the preferred stock upon liquidation, dissolution or winding up, according to their respective rights and preferences and in each case according to their respective number of shares.

 

For those purposes, the consolidation or merger of us with or into any other corporation, trust or entity, or the sale, lease or conveyance of all or substantially all of our property or business, will not be deemed to constitute a liquidation, dissolution or winding up of our affairs.

 

Voting Rights

 

Holders of preferred stock will not have any voting rights, except as set forth below or as otherwise from time to time required by law, or as otherwise provided in the certificate of designation or the resolutions establishing such series and as indicated in the applicable prospectus supplement.

 

Under the Nevada Revised Statutes, holders of outstanding shares of a series of preferred stock may be entitled to vote as a separate class on a proposed amendment to the terms of that series of preferred stock or our amended and restated articles of incorporation, if the amendment would:

 

(1) increase or decrease the aggregate number of authorized shares of such a series of preferred stock and includes provisions pursuant to which only money will be paid or scrip will be issued to holders who, before the amendment becomes effective, in the aggregate hold 10% or more of the outstanding shares of that series

and who would otherwise be entitled to receive fractions of shares in exchange for the cancellation of all of their outstanding shares, in which case, in addition to any vote otherwise required, the approval of the proposed amendment would require the affirmative vote of at least a majority of the outstanding shares of that series of preferred stock;

 

(2) increase or decrease the aggregate number of authorized shares of such a series of preferred stock and such increase or decrease would alter or change the powers, preferences or special rights of the shares of such class so as to affect them adversely, in which case, in addition to any vote otherwise required, the approval of the proposed amendment would require the affirmative vote of at least a majority of the outstanding shares of that series of preferred stock; and

 

(3) decrease the aggregate number of issued and outstanding shares of that series of preferred stock would not decrease the aggregate number of authorized shares of that series, in which case, in addition to any vote otherwise required, the approval of the proposed amendment would require the affirmative vote of at least a majority of the outstanding shares of that series of preferred stock.

 

Conversion Rights

 

The terms and conditions, if any, upon which any class or series of preferred stock are convertible into or exchangeable for our other securities or rights or those of other issuers, including, without limitation, common stock, debt securities, trust preferred securities or another series of preferred stock, or any combination of the foregoing, will be set forth in the applicable prospectus supplement relating to the preferred stock. The terms will include the name of the issuer of the other securities or rights and the number or principal amount of the securities or rights into which the shares of preferred stock are convertible or exchangeable, the conversion or exchange price or rate or the manner of calculating the price, the conversion or exchange date(s) or period(s), provisions as to whether conversion or exchange will be at the option of the holders of the preferred stock or at our or other issuer’s option, the events requiring an adjustment of the conversion or exchange price or rate and provisions affecting conversion or exchange in the event of the redemption of the series of preferred stock.

 

The following description, together with the applicable prospectus supplements, summarizes certain terms and provisions of the depositary shares that we may offer under this prospectus and the related deposit agreements and depositary receipts. The following summary relates to terms and conditions applicable to these types of securities generally. The particular terms of any series of depositary shares will be those set forth in the applicable deposit agreement and summarized in the applicable prospectus supplement. If indicated in the applicable prospectus supplement, the terms of any series may differ from the terms summarized below.

 

Specific deposit agreements and depositary receipts will contain additional important terms and provisions and will be incorporated by reference into the registration statement which includes this prospectus before we issue any depositary shares. The descriptions herein and in the applicable prospectus supplement do not restate those agreements and receipts in their entirety and do not contain all of the information that you may find useful or that may be important to you. You should refer to the provisions of the applicable deposit agreement and deposit certificate because they, and not the summaries, define your rights as holders of the depositary shares. For more information, please review the forms of these documents, which will be filed with the SEC promptly after the offering of depositary shares or depositary share units and will be available as described under the heading “Where You Can Find More Information” above.

 

General

 

We may elect to offer fractional shares of preferred stock rather than full shares of preferred stock. If so, we will issue “depositary receipts” for these “depositary shares.” Each depositary share will represent a fraction of a share of a particular series of preferred stock. Each holder of a depositary share will be entitled, in proportion to the fraction of preferred stock represented by that depositary share, to the rights and preferences of the preferred stock,

including dividend, voting, redemption, conversion and liquidation rights, if any. We will enter into a deposit agreement with a depositary, which will be named in the related prospectus supplement.

 

In order to issue depositary shares, we will issue preferred stock and immediately deposit these shares with the depositary. The depositary will then issue and deliver depositary receipts to the persons who purchase depositary shares. Each whole depositary share issued by the depositary may represent a fraction of a share held by the depositary. The depositary will issue depositary receipts in a form that reflects whole depositary shares, and each depositary receipt may evidence any number of whole depositary shares.

 

Pending the preparation of definitive engraved depositary receipts, a depositary may, upon our written order, issue temporary depositary receipts, which will temporarily entitle the holders to all the rights pertaining to the definitive depositary receipts. We will bear the costs and expenses of promptly preparing definitive depositary receipts and of exchanging the temporary depositary receipts for definitive depositary receipts.

 

Dividends and Other Distributions

 

The depositary will distribute all cash and non-cash dividends and distributions it receives with respect to the underlying preferred stock to the record holders of depositary shares in proportion to the number of depositary shares they hold. In the case of non-cash distributions, the depositary may determine that it is not feasible to make the distribution. If so, the depositary may, with our approval, sell the property and distribute the net proceeds from the sale to the holders. The amounts distributed by the depositary will be reduced by any amount required to be withheld by us or the depositary on account of taxes.

 

Redemption of Depositary Shares

 

If we redeem the series of preferred stock that underlies the depositary shares, the depositary will redeem the depositary shares from the proceeds it receives from the redemption of the preferred stock it holds. The depositary will redeem the number of depositary shares that represent the amount of underlying preferred stock that we have redeemed. The redemption price for depositary shares will be in proportion to the redemption price per share that we paid for the underlying preferred stock. If we redeem less than all of the depositary shares, the depositary will select which depositary shares to redeem by lot, or some substantially equivalent method.

 

After a redemption date is fixed, the depositary shares to be redeemed no longer will be considered outstanding. The rights of the holders of the depositary shares will cease, except for the rights to receive money or other property upon redemption. In order to redeem their depositary shares, holders will surrender their depositary receipts to the depositary.

 

Voting the Preferred Stock

 

We will notify the depositary about any meeting at which the holders of preferred stock are entitled to vote, and the depositary will mail the information to the record holders of depositary shares related to that preferred stock. Each record holder of depositary shares on the record date will be entitled to instruct the depositary on how to vote the shares of preferred stock represented by that holder’s depositary shares. The depositary will vote the preferred stock represented by the depositary shares in accordance with these instructions, provided the depositary receives these instructions sufficiently in advance of the meeting. If the depositary does not receive instructions from the holders of the depositary shares, the depositary will abstain from voting the preferred stock that underlies those depositary shares.

 

Withdrawal of Preferred Stock

 

When a holder surrenders depositary receipts at the corporate trust office of the depositary, and pays any necessary taxes, charges or other fees, the holder will be entitled to receive the number of whole shares of the related series of preferred stock, and any money or other property, if any, represented by the holder’s depositary shares. Once a holder exchanges depositary shares for whole shares of preferred stock, that holder cannot “re-deposit” these shares of preferred stock with the depositary, or exchange them for depositary shares. If a holder delivers depositary receipts that represent a number of depositary shares that exceeds the number of whole shares of related preferred

stock the holder seeks to withdraw, the depositary will issue a new depositary receipt to the holder that evidences the excess number of depositary shares.

 

Amendment and Termination of the Deposit Agreement

 

We and the depositary can agree, at any time, to amend the form of depositary receipt and any provisions of the depositary receipt and any provisions of the deposit agreement. However, if an amendment has a material adverse effect on the rights of the holders of related depositary shares, the holders of at least a majority of the depositary shares then outstanding must first approve the amendment. Every holder of a depositary receipt at the time an amendment becomes effective will be bound by the amended deposit agreement. However, subject to any conditions in the deposit agreement or applicable law, no amendment can impair the right of any holder of a depositary share to receive shares of the related preferred stock, or any money or other property represented by the depositary shares, when they surrender their depositary receipts.

 

We can terminate the deposit agreement at any time, as long as the depositary mails notice of termination to the record holders of depositary shares then outstanding at least 30 days prior to the date fixed for termination. Upon termination, the depositary shall deliver to each holder of depositary receipts, upon surrender of the depositary receipts held by such holder, such number of whole or fractional shares of preferred stock as are represented by the depositary shares evidenced by such depositary receipts, together with any other property held by the depositary with respect to such depositary receipt.

 

Charges of Depositary

 

We will pay all transfer and other taxes and the government charges that relate solely to the depositary arrangements. We will also pay the charges of each depositary, including charges in connection with the initial deposit of the related series of preferred stock, the initial issuance of the depositary shares, and all withdrawals of shares of the related series of preferred stock. However, holders of depositary receipts will pay the fees and expenses of the depositary for any duties requested by such holders to be performed which are outside of those expressly provided for in the deposit agreement.

 

Resignation and Removal of Depositary

 

The depositary may resign at any time by delivering written notice of its decision to us. We may remove the depositary at any time. Any resignation or removal will take effect when we appoint a successor depositary. We must appoint the successor depositary within 60 days after delivery of the notice of resignation or removal. The successor depositary must be a bank or trust company that has its principal office in the United States and has a combined capital and surplus of at least $50,000,000.

 

Miscellaneous

 

We will be required to furnish certain information to the holders of the preferred stock underlying any depositary shares. The depositary, as the holder of the underlying preferred stock, will forward any report or information it receives from us to the holders of depositary shares.

 

Neither we nor the depositary will be liable if its ability to perform its obligations under the deposit agreement is prevented or delayed by law or any circumstance beyond its control. Both we and the depositary will be obligated to use our best judgment and to act in good faith in performing our respective duties under the deposit agreement. We and the depositary will be liable only for gross negligence and willful misconduct in performing our respective duties under the deposit agreement. Neither we nor the depositary will be obligated to appear in, prosecute or defend any legal proceeding with respect to any depositary receipts, depositary shares or preferred stock unless we or the depositary receive what we, in our sole discretion, determine to be a satisfactory indemnity from one or more holders of the depositary shares. We and the depositary will evaluate any proposed indemnity in order to determine whether the financial protection afforded by the indemnity is sufficient to reduce each party’s risk to a satisfactory and customary level. We and the depositary may rely on the advice of legal counsel or accountants of the choice of each. We and the depositary may also rely on information provided by persons we and they believe, in good faith, to be competent, and on documents we and they believe, in good faith, to be genuine.

The applicable prospectus supplement will identify the depositary’s corporate trust office. Unless the prospectus supplement indicates otherwise, the depositary will act as transfer agent and registrar for depositary receipts, and if we redeem shares of preferred stock, the depositary will act as redemption agent for the corresponding depositary receipts.

 

Title

 

We, each depositary and any agent of ours or the applicable depositary may treat the registered owner of any depositary share as the absolute owner of the depositary shares for all purposes, including making payment, regardless of whether any payment in respect of the depositary share is overdue and regardless of any notice to the contrary.

 

General

 

We may issue warrants to purchase our debt securities, common stock or preferred stock or units of two or more of these types of securities, which are collectively referred to in this prospectus as “underlying warrant securities.” We may issue warrants independently or together with any underlying warrant securities and such warrants may be attached to or separate from those underlying warrant securities. We will issue the warrants under warrant agreements to be entered into between us and a bank or trust company, as warrant agent, as more fully described in the applicable prospectus supplement. The warrant agent will act solely as our agent in connection with the warrants of the series being offered and will not assume any obligation or relationship of agency or trust for or with any holders or beneficial owners of warrants.

 

The applicable prospectus supplement will contain a description of the following terms:

 

 

 

Exercise of Warrants

 

Each warrant will entitle its holder to purchase, for cash and/or securities (as will be specified in the applicable prospectus supplement), the amount or number of debt securities, shares of preferred stock, or shares of common stock, at the exercise price, as will in each case be set forth in, or be determinable as set forth in, the applicable prospectus supplement. Holders may exercise warrants at any time up to the close of business on the expiration date set forth in the prospectus supplement relating to the warrants offered thereby. After the close of business on the expiration date, unexercised warrants will become void.

 

Holders of warrants may exercise their respective warrants as set forth in the prospectus supplement relating to such warrants. Upon receipt of payment and the warrant certificate properly completed and duly executed at the corporate trust office of the warrant agent or any other office indicated in the prospectus supplement, we will, as soon as practicable, forward the underlying warrant securities purchasable upon exercise of the warrants. If a holder exercises less than all of the warrants represented by the warrant certificate, the warrant agent will issue a new warrant certificate for the remaining warrants.

 

Prior to the exercise of any warrants to purchase debt securities or other securities, including shares of preferred stock or common stock, holders of the warrants will not have any of the rights of holders of the debt securities or other securities, including shares of preferred stock or common stock purchasable upon exercise, including:

 

 

The descriptions of the warrant agreements in this prospectus and in any prospectus supplement are summaries of certain material provisions of the applicable warrant agreements. These descriptions do not restate those agreements in their entirety and do not contain all of the information that you may find useful or that may be important to you. You should refer to the provisions of the applicable warrant agreement and warrant certificate relating to the warrants because they, and not the summaries, define your rights as holders of the warrants or any warrant units. For more information, please review the forms of these documents, which will be filed with the SEC promptly after the offering of warrants or warrant units and will be available as described under the heading “Where You Can Find More Information” above.

 

As may be specified in a prospectus supplement, we may issue purchase contracts obligating holders to purchase from us, and obligating us to sell to the holders, a number of debt securities, shares of our common stock, preferred stock or depositary shares or warrants, at a future date or dates. The price per purchase contract security may be fixed at the time the purchase contracts are issued or may be determined by reference to a specific formula set forth in the purchase contracts. Under the purchase contracts, we may be required to make periodic payments to the holders of the units or vice versa. These payments may be unsecured or prefunded on some basis to be specified in the applicable prospectus supplement.

 

The purchase contracts may require holders to secure their obligations under the contracts in a specified manner and, in specified circumstances, we may deliver newly issued prepaid purchase contracts, or prepaid securities, when we transfer to a holder any collateral securing the holder’s obligations under the original purchase contract.

The purchase contracts may be issued separately or as part of units consisting of a purchase contract and one or more other securities, which may include our debt securities, depositary shares, preferred securities, common stock, warrants or debt obligations or government securities, and which may secure the holder’s obligations to purchase the purchase contract security under the purchase contract.

 

The prospectus supplement relating to any purchase contracts we are offering will specify the material terms of the purchase contracts, whether they will be issued separately or as part of units, and any applicable pledge or depository arrangements.

 

The descriptions of the purchase contracts and any applicable underlying security or pledge or depository arrangements in this prospectus and in any prospectus supplement are summaries of certain material provisions of the applicable agreements. These descriptions do not restate those agreements in their entirety and do not contain all of the information that you may find useful or that may be important to you. You should refer to the provisions of the applicable agreements because they, and not the summaries, define your rights as holders of the purchase contracts. We will make copies of the relevant agreements available as described under the heading “Where You Can Find More Information” above.

 

As specified in the applicable prospectus supplement, we may issue units comprised of one or more of the other securities described in this prospectus in any combination. Each unit may also include debt obligations of third parties, such as U.S. Treasury securities. Each unit will be issued so that the holder of the unit is also the holder of each security included in the unit. Thus, the holder of a unit will have the rights and obligations of a holder of each included security. The prospectus supplement will describe:

 

 

The descriptions of the units and any applicable underlying security or pledge or depository arrangements in this prospectus and in any prospectus supplement are summaries of the material provisions of the applicable agreements. These descriptions do not restate those agreements in their entirety and do not contain all of the information that you may find useful or that may be important to you. You should refer to the provisions of the applicable agreements because they, and not the summaries, define your rights as holders of the units. We will make copies of the relevant agreements available as described under the heading “Where You Can Find More Information” above.

 

We may sell the offered securities:

 

 

The prospectus supplement relating to a series of the offered securities will set forth its offering terms, including the name or names of any underwriters, dealers or agents, the purchase price of the offered securities and

the proceeds to us from the sale, any underwriting discounts, commissions and other items constituting underwriters’ compensation, any initial public offering price and any underwriting discounts, commissions and other items allowed or reallowed or paid to dealers or agents and any securities exchanges on which the offered securities may be listed.

 

We may use one or more underwriters in the sale of the offered securities, in which case the offered securities will be acquired by the underwriter or underwriters for their own account and may be resold from time to time in one or more transactions either:

 

 

We may directly solicit offers to purchase offered securities. Agents designated by us from time to time may also solicit offers to purchase offered securities. Any agent designated by us, who may be deemed to be an “underwriter” as that term is defined in the Securities Act, involved in the offer or sale of the offered securities in respect of which this prospectus is delivered will be named, and any commissions payable by us to such agent will be set forth in the prospectus supplement.

 

If a dealer is utilized in the sale of the offered securities in respect of which this prospectus is delivered, we will sell the offered securities to the dealer, as principal. The dealer, who may be deemed to be an “underwriter” as that term is defined in the Securities Act, may then resell the offered securities to the public at varying prices to be determined by the dealer at the time of resale.

 

If an underwriter is, or underwriters are, used in the sale, we will execute an underwriting agreement with the underwriters at the time of sale to the underwriters. The names of the underwriters will be set forth in the prospectus supplement, which will be used by the underwriter to make resales of the offered securities in respect of which this prospectus is delivered to the public. In connection with the sale of offered securities, the underwriter may be deemed to have received compensation from us in the form of underwriting discounts or commissions and may also receive commissions from purchasers of offered securities for whom they may act as agents. Underwriters may also sell offered securities to or through dealers, and the dealers may receive compensation in the form of discounts, concessions or commissions from the underwriters and/or commissions from the purchasers for whom they may act as agents.

 

If so indicated in the applicable prospectus supplement, we will authorize underwriters, dealers or other persons to solicit offers by certain institutions to purchase offered securities from us at the public offering price set forth in the applicable prospectus supplement pursuant to delayed delivery contracts providing for payment and delivery on a future date or dates. Institutions with which these contracts may be made include commercial and savings banks, insurance companies, pension funds, investment companies, educational and charitable institutions and others. The obligations of any purchasers under any delayed delivery contract will not be subject to any conditions except that:

 

 

The underwriters, dealers and other persons will not have any responsibility in respect of the validity or performance of such contracts. The prospectus supplement relating to the contracts will set forth the price to be paid for offered securities pursuant to the contracts, the commission payable for solicitation of the contracts and the date or dates in the future for delivery of offered securities pursuant to the contracts.

 

Offered securities may also be offered and sold, if so indicated in the prospectus supplement, in connection with a remarketing upon their purchase, in accordance with a redemption or repayment pursuant to their terms, or

otherwise, by one or more remarketing firms, acting as principals for their own accounts or as agents for us. Any remarketing firm will be identified and the terms of its agreement, if any, with us and its compensation will be described in the applicable prospectus supplement. Remarketing firms may be deemed to be underwriters in connection with their remarketing of offered securities.

 

Unless otherwise set forth in the applicable prospectus supplement, the obligations of underwriters to purchase the offered securities will be subject to certain conditions precedent, and such underwriters will be obligated to purchase all such securities, if any are purchased. In connection with the offering of securities, we may grant to the underwriters an option to purchase additional securities to cover over-allotments at the initial public offering price, with an additional underwriting commission, as may be set forth in the accompanying prospectus supplement. If we grant any over-allotment option, the terms of such over-allotment option will be set forth in the prospectus supplement for such securities.

 

Underwriters, dealers, remarketing firms and agents may be entitled, under agreements that may be entered into with us, to indemnification by us against certain civil liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act, or to contribution with respect to payments which they may be required to make in respect thereof and may engage in transactions with, or perform services for, us in the ordinary course of business.

 

Any underwriter may engage in over-allotment, stabilizing transactions, short-covering transactions and penalty bids in accordance with Regulation M under the Securities Exchange Act. Over-allotment involves sales in excess of the offering size, which create a short position. Stabilizing transactions permit bids to purchase the underlying security so long as the stabilizing bids do not exceed a specified maximum. Short-covering transactions involve purchases of the securities in the open market after the distribution is completed to cover short positions. Penalty bids permit the underwriters to reclaim a selling concession from a dealer when the securities originally sold by the dealer are purchased in a covering transaction to cover short positions. Those activities may cause the price of the securities to be higher than it would otherwise be. If commenced, the underwriters may discontinue any of the activities at any time.

 

The anticipated date of delivery of offered securities will be set forth in the applicable prospectus supplement relating to each offer.

 

In connection with particular offerings of the securities in the future, and if stated in the applicable prospectus supplement, the validity of those securities may be passed upon for us by Randall S. Theisen, Esq., an attorney on Western Alliance’s legal staff, and for the underwriters or agents by counsel named in the applicable prospectus supplement. Mr. Theisen is Senior Vice President and General Counsel of Western Alliance and owns shares and holds options to purchase shares of Western Alliance common stock.

 

Our consolidated financial statements appearing in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2008, have been audited by McGladrey & Pullen, LLP, an independent registered public accounting firm, as set forth in their report included therein and incorporated herein by reference. Such consolidated financial statements are incorporated herein by reference in reliance upon such report given on the authority of such firm as experts in accounting and auditing.

 

 

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

 

 

 

 

           Shares

 

Western Alliance Bancorporation

 

Common Stock

 

 

Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

D.A. Davidson & Co.

 

May   , 2009