loanDepot Reaches Settlement, Agreement with Founder and CEO Anthony Hsieh

loanDepot, Inc. has announced that it has entered into a settlement and cooperation agreement with Anthony Hsieh, LDI's Chairman of the Board, founder and largest shareholder. Pursuant to the agreement, the size of the Company's Board of Directors will be temporarily increased from eight to nine directors and Steven Ozonian will join the Board immediately. Ozonian, along with current directors Andrew Dodson and Pamela Hughes Patenaude, will be nominated for election to three-year terms at the 2023 Annual Meeting.

In connection with the 2024 Annual Meeting, the Company will nominate only Hsieh and Brian Golson for reelection as a Class III director and the Board will be reduced from nine to eight directors, subject to the terms of the cooperation agreement.

"We believe that reaching this agreement with Anthony is clearly in the best interests of loanDepot and all of its shareholders," said Dawn Lepore, Chair of the Board's Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee. "With this mutually beneficial resolution, we avoid the distraction of a contested election and management, under Frank Martell's leadership as CEO, can focus fully on the continued execution of our Vision 2025 plan to position LDI for long-term value creation. We look forward to the perspectives Steve will bring to the Board and the continued contributions of Pam and Andrew."

"The Board and I have been discussing bringing in Steve Ozonian as a new director for the past several months, and I am pleased we have reached this point," said Founder and CEO Anthony Hsieh, LDI's Chairman of the Board. "The addition of Steve to the Board will bring a new and valuable perspective that will help loanDepot navigate the extraordinary challenges facing the mortgage industry. loanDepot is an incredible company with a track record of driving innovation and providing exceptional customer experiences. I am excited about LDI's future as we continue to work to delight our customers and increase long-term shareholder value under the direction of LDI's management team."

The agreement provides that Hsieh will vote all shares for which he has voting power to support the Board's director nominations at the 2023 and 2024 Annual Meetings and will not make any director nominations in either year. The size of the Board will return to eight directors effective as of the 2024 Annual Meeting, subject to the terms of the cooperation agreement. The agreement will be filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission as an exhibit to a Current Report on Form 8K.

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