FLUSHING FINANCIAL CORPORATION

220 RXR Plaza

Uniondale, New York 11556

(718) 961-5400

April 18, 2024

Dear Shareholder:

You are cordially invited to attend the annual meeting of shareholders of Flushing Financial Corporation on May 29, 2024 at 1:00 p.m., New York time. The annual meeting will be held in a virtual-only format.

Shareholders will not be able to attend the 2024 annual meeting in-person at a physical location. However, the virtual 2024 annual meeting will provide shareholders of record as of the close of business on April 1, 2024, the ability to vote their shares and submit questions during the meeting via the virtual annual meeting interface.

If you are a shareholder of record, to sign in to the virtual annual meeting go to www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/FFIC2024. You will need the 16-digit control number included on your proxy card or Important Notice Regarding the Availability of Proxy Materials to register. Beneficial owners of shares held in street name will need to follow the instructions provided by the broker, bank or other nominee that holds their shares. Only one shareholder per 16-digit control number can access the virtual annual meeting. We encourage shareholders to log into this website and access the webcast before the virtual annual meeting start time.

The matters to be considered by shareholders at the annual meeting are described in the accompanying materials.

It is very important that you be represented at the annual meeting regardless of the number of shares you own. You may vote over the Internet, by telephone, or by signing, dating, and returning a proxy card. Voting over the Internet, by telephone or by written proxy will not prevent you from voting during the virtual annual meeting but will ensure that your vote is counted if you are unable to attend the virtual annual meeting. Please review the instructions on the Important Notice Regarding the Availability of Proxy Materials or proxy card regarding each of these voting options.

Your continued support of and interest in Flushing Financial Corporation are sincerely appreciated.

				Sincerely,
Alfred A. DelliBovi				John R. Buran
Chairman of the Board				President and Chief Executive Officer

FLUSHING FINANCIAL CORPORATION

220 RXR Plaza

Uniondale, New York 11556

(718) 961-5400

NOTICE OF ANNUAL MEETING OF SHAREHOLDERS

Important Notice Regarding the Availability of Proxy Materials for the Annual Meeting to be held on May 29, 2024: The Proxy Statement and our Annual Report to Shareholders for the year ended December 31, 2023 are available at https://materials.proxyvote.com/343873.

BY ORDER OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS,

Maria A. Grasso

Corporate Secretary

Uniondale, New York

April 18, 2024

FLUSHING FINANCIAL CORPORATION

220 RXR Plaza

Uniondale, New York 11556

(718) 961-5400

PROXY STATEMENT

Annual Meeting of Shareholders

To be held on May 29, 2024

TABLE OF CONTENTS

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INTRODUCTION

This proxy statement is furnished to holders of common stock, $0.01 par value per share, of Flushing Financial Corporation (the “Company”), which is the sole shareholder of Flushing Bank. In this proxy statement we use the term “the Bank” to mean Flushing Bank. Proxies are being solicited on behalf of the Board of Directors of the Company (the “Board of Directors” or “Board”) to be used at the annual meeting of shareholders to be held in a virtual-only format. If you are a shareholder of record, to sign in to the virtual annual meeting go to www.virtualshareholdermeeting.com/FFIC2024 at 1:00 p.m., New York time, on May 29, 2024 and at any adjournment thereof. Only holders of record of the Company’s issued and outstanding common stock as of the close of business on the record date, April 1, 2024, are entitled to notice of and to vote at the annual meeting and any adjournments thereof. We are not mailing the proxy statement and related materials to all shareholders. Instead, the proxy statement, the accompanying notice of annual meeting of shareholders, the form of proxy, and the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023 can be accessed over the Internet. Printed proxy materials will be mailed to shareholders only upon request. All persons who are entitled to vote at the annual meeting will receive in the mail (or by email, if they have agreed to delivery in such manner) an Important Notice Regarding the Availability of Proxy Materials that describes how to access our proxy materials. We will begin distributing the Important Notice Regarding the Availability of Proxy Materials on or about April 18, 2024.

VOTING AND PROXIES

Voting Rights and Quorum Requirement

Shareholders of record as of the close of business on April 1, 2024, the record date, are entitled to one vote for each share of common stock then held. On the record date, there were 29,068,556 shares of common stock outstanding and entitled to be voted and the Company had no other class of equity securities outstanding. Holders of a majority of the outstanding shares of common stock must be present at the annual meeting, either in person or represented by proxy to constitute a quorum for the conduct of business. In order to ensure a quorum, you are requested to vote by proxy even if you plan to attend the annual meeting virtually. You may vote over the Internet, by telephone, or by signing, dating, and returning a proxy card.

Voting over the Internet or by Telephone

If your shares are registered in your name with our transfer agent, you may vote either over the Internet or by telephone. Specific instructions for voting over the Internet or by telephone are set forth on the Important Notice Regarding the Availability of Proxy Materials. These procedures are designed to authenticate each shareholder’s identity and to allow shareholders to vote their shares and confirm that their instructions have been properly recorded.

If your shares are registered in the name of a bank or brokerage firm, you may also be able to vote your shares over the Internet or by telephone. A large number of banks and brokerage firms are participating in online programs that allow eligible shareholders to vote over the Internet or by telephone. If your bank or brokerage firm is participating in such a program, your voting form will provide instructions. If your voting form does not contain Internet or telephone voting information, please complete and return the paper proxy card in the self-addressed, postage-paid envelope provided by your bank or brokerage firm.

Effect of Proxy

The proxy solicited by this proxy statement, if properly signed and received by the Company in time for the annual meeting, or properly transmitted by telephone or the Internet, and not revoked prior to its use, will be voted in accordance with the instructions it contains. If you return or transmit a proxy without specifying your voting instructions, the proxy will be voted FOR election of the nominees for director described herein, FOR

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the advisory approval of the Company’s executive compensation, FOR approval of the 2024 Omnibus Incentive Plan, and FOR ratification of the selection of BDO USA, P.C. as the Company’s independent registered public accounting firm for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2024. With respect to the transaction of such other business as may properly come before the meeting, each proxy received will be voted in accordance with the best judgment of the persons appointed as proxies. At this time, the Board of Directors knows of no such other business.

Revoking a Proxy

If you give a proxy, you may revoke it at any time before it is voted by (1) filing written notice of revocation with the Corporate Secretary of the Company (Corporate Secretary, Flushing Financial Corporation, 220 RXR Plaza, Uniondale, New York 11556); (2) submitting a duly executed proxy bearing a later date; or (3) attending the virtual only annual meeting and giving the Corporate Secretary notice of your intention to vote.

Votes Required for Approval

The election of each director nominee, the advisory approval of the Company’s executive compensation, the approval of the 2024 Omnibus Incentive Plan, and the ratification of the appointment of the independent registered public accounting firm require the affirmative vote of a majority of the votes cast (whether in person or represented by proxy), assuming a quorum is present at the meeting. A majority of votes cast means that the number of shares voted “for” a proposal exceeds the number of shares voted “against” that proposal.

New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) rules determine whether proposals are routine or not routine. If a proposal is routine, a broker holding shares for an owner in street name may vote for the proposal without voting instructions. If a proposal is not routine, the broker may vote on the proposal only if the owner has provided voting instructions. If a broker does not receive voting instructions for a non-routine proposal, the broker will return a proxy card without a vote on that proposal, which is usually referred to as a “broker non-vote.” Under current NYSE rules, brokers have discretionary authority to vote shares held in street name with respect to the ratification of the appointment of the independent registered public accounting firm, but not on the election of directors or any other proposal. 

Abstentions and broker non-votes are considered present for purposes of determining the presence of a quorum. Abstentions and broker non-votes are not “votes cast” on a proposal, so they will have no effect on the outcome of any proposal.

Cost of Solicitation of Proxies

The cost of solicitation of proxies will be borne by the Company. In addition to the solicitation of proxies by mail, Morrow Sodali, LLC, a proxy soliciting firm, will assist the Company in soliciting proxies for the annual meeting and will be paid a fee of $8,000, plus reimbursement for out-of-pocket expenses. Proxies also may be solicited personally or by telephone or telecopy by directors, officers and employees of the Company or the Bank, without additional compensation to these individuals. The Company will also request persons, firms and corporations holding shares in their names, or in the name of their nominees, which are beneficially owned by others, to send proxy materials to and obtain proxies from such beneficial owners and will reimburse such holders for reasonable expenses incurred in connection therewith.

Internet Availability of Proxy Materials

The Company’s proxy statement and annual report to shareholders for the year ended December 31, 2023 are available at https://materials.proxyvote.com/343873.

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PROPOSAL NO. 1

ELECTION OF DIRECTORS

The Board of Directors of the Company currently consists of eleven directors divided into three classes. The directors hold office for staggered terms of three years (and until their successors are elected and qualified). One of the three classes is elected each year to succeed the directors whose terms are expiring. The directors in Classes C and A are serving terms expiring at the annual meeting of shareholders in 2025 and 2026, respectively.

The directors in Class B, whose terms expire at the 2024 annual meeting, are Michael A. Azarian, Steven J. D’Iorio, Louis C. Grassi, and Sam S. Han. Each of these directors has been nominated by the Board of Directors, upon the recommendation of its Nominating and Governance Committee, to stand for election for a term expiring at the annual meeting of shareholders to be held in 2027. Each of these nominees has consented to being named in this proxy statement as a Board nominee and to serve if elected.

Unless otherwise instructed, it is the intention of the proxy holders to vote the proxies received by them in response to this solicitation FOR the election of the nominees named above as directors. If any such nominee should refuse or be unable to serve, the proxies will be voted for such person as shall be designated by the Board of Directors as recommended by the Nominating and Governance Committee to replace such nominee. The Board of Directors has no reason to believe that any of the Board nominees will refuse or be unable to serve as a director if elected.

Because this election is uncontested, directors are elected by a majority of the votes cast “for” or “against” the nominee at the virtual annual meeting or represented by proxy (the number of shares voted “for” a nominee must exceed the number of shares voted “against” the nominee). Votes may be cast “for” or “against” each nominee, or a shareholder may abstain from voting for one or more nominees. If there is a contested election (which is not the case in 2024), directors would be elected by a plurality of votes cast. Pursuant to applicable Delaware law and our by-laws, abstentions and broker non-votes will have no effect on the outcome of the vote.

THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS UNANIMOUSLY RECOMMENDS A VOTE

“FOR” ELECTION OF THE ABOVE NOMINEES AS DIRECTORS.

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Information About Directors

The following table sets forth certain information regarding the Board nominees and members of the Board of Directors of the Company.

Set forth below is certain information with respect to the nominees and other directors of the Company. Unless otherwise indicated, the principal occupation listed below for each person has been his or her principal occupation for the past five years. In addition, described below are each director’s particular experiences, qualifications, attributes, or skills that contributed to the Board’s conclusion that the person should continue to serve as a director of the Company.

Board Nominees

Michael A. Azarian joined the Board of Directors of the Company and the Bank on February 26, 2019. From 2013 to 2017 he served as Managing Director, Global Consumer Technology Executive at Citibank where he was responsible for the Retail Bank implementation of advanced customer servicing and global common operational processes. Mr. Azarian retired from Citibank in 2017. From June 2018 through July 2021, he was an Advisory Board Member of CXO Nexus, Inc., which provides automated, role-specific advice to simplify and optimize category and vendor spend management tasks. In August of 2021 Mr. Azarian became a member of the board of directors of CXO Nexus, Inc.

Mr. Azarian’s business experience, with more than 40 years of diversified technology operations experience in the financial services industry, including over 30 years at two industry leaders, JPMorgan Chase and Citigroup, makes Mr. Azarian a valuable member of our Board of Directors.

Steven J. D’Iorio has over 40 years of experience in real estate development and project management. He is an Executive Managing Director of Project and Development Services at Cushman and Wakefield. Mr. D’Iorio manages and executes complex multi-disciplined projects and delivers responsive high quality and cost-effective solutions to a diverse array of clients on a global basis.

Mr. D’Iorio’s knowledge of and business experience in the real estate market in which the Company operates, in light of the importance to the Company of real estate as loan collateral and the retail nature of its branches, makes Mr. D’Iorio a valuable member of our Board of Directors.

Louis C. Grassi is Chief Executive Officer of Grassi Advisory Group, located in Jericho and New York City, with practices in accounting, tax, technology and management consulting services. He is a licensed

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Certified Public Accountant and Certified Fraud Examiner, an author and an editor of a national tax and accounting publication. Mr. Grassi is a member of the Board of Directors of BRT Realty Trust. Mr. Grassi is board chair of Moore Stephens North America, a network of accounting and consulting firms.

Mr. Grassi’s accounting, tax and management expertise, including in particular his experience as a fraud examiner and his general understanding of controls, as well as his firm leadership background, make Mr. Grassi a valuable member of our Board of Directors.

Sam S. Han is President and Founder of The Korean Channel, Inc. and has over 30 years of business experience within the broadcast media industry. Mr. Han started the first Korean American cable TV station in 1985, which is today the premiere 24-hour Korean broadcasting company servicing the East Coast on Charter Communications, Altice Cablevision, and DirectTV. Mr. Han serves as a member of the Board of Trustees of Flushing Hospital Medical Center and is the founder of Arirang Foundation, a non-profit organization whose mission is to support future generations of Korean American leaders. Mr. Han was an advisor and member of the Board of Flushing Town Hall from 1998 to 2008.

Mr. Han’s successful business background and his strong personal and professional connection to the markets served by the Company, coupled with his long-time work in the Korean American communities served by the Company, add to our diversity and make him a valuable member of our Board of Directors.

Continuing Directors

James D. Bennett is Chief Executive Officer of Land Enterprises, Inc., a realty investment and management firm. He served as counsel with the law firm of Farrell, Fritz, P.C. in Uniondale, New York, with a practice in civil law and real estate, until his retirement in August 2015. Prior to July 2001, Mr. Bennett was a partner in the realty law firm of Bennett, Rice & Schure, LLP in Rockville Centre, New York. In the past, he has served as a Trustee of both the Long Island Power Authority and the New York State Conservation Fund Advisory Council, as Supervisor and a Councilman of the Town of Hempstead, and as a Commissioner of the New York State Public Service Commission.

Mr. Bennett’s legal background, including in particular his extensive knowledge and experience as a real estate lawyer practicing in the Company’s marketplace, in light of the importance to the Company of real estate as loan collateral and the retail nature of its branches, makes Mr. Bennett a valuable member of our Board of Directors.

John R. Buran is President and Chief Executive Officer and a Director of the Company and the Bank. He has served as President and Chief Executive Officer of the Company and the Bank since July 2005. He has been a Director of the Company and the Bank since 2003. Prior to that, he served as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of the Company and the Bank from January 2001 until June 2005. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Buran held a variety of positions within the banking industry, including Executive Vice President of the New York Metro Division of Fleet Bank and Vice President New York Investment Sales at Citibank. He is a former Chairman of the Board and current director of the New York Bankers Association. He served as Chairman of the Board of the Federal Home Loan Bank of New York from 2018-2023 and a director from 2010-2023. He is a former Director of the Nassau County Interim Finance Authority where he served for eight years.

Mr. Buran’s experience with the Company and his career-long experience in the banking industry, including at some of the nation’s largest banks, his community and other activities connecting him to the Company’s marketplace and his extensive knowledge of Banking regulations and other matters as applicable specifically to the Company, make him a valuable member of our Board of Directors. In addition, Mr. Buran’s leadership during recent adverse macro-economic circumstances including the Great Recession and the coronavirus pandemic especially qualifies him as a Board member to meet future such challenges.

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Alfred A. DelliBovi has been Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Company and the Bank since February 3, 2017. He served as President and Chief Executive Officer of the Federal Home Loan Bank of New York (“FHLBNY”) until his retirement in April 2014. During his 21 years at the helm of the FHLBNY, he led a team of financial professionals growing the bank ten-fold to $120 billion in assets. The FHLBNY is a wholesale bank that provides liquidity to 330 neighborhood-based lenders in New Jersey, New York, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. He served as Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development from 1989 until 1992. Nominated by President George H.W. Bush, he was confirmed by a unanimous vote of the United States Senate. In addition to serving as the Chief Operating Officer of HUD, in the absence of The Secretary, he served as a voting member of the Resolution Trust Corporation Oversight Board; the Federal Housing Finance Board; and the Interim Board of Freddie Mac.

Mr. DelliBovi’s experience in the banking industry in which the Company operates, coupled with his extensive knowledge of business and government, makes Mr. DelliBovi a valuable member of our Board of Directors.

Douglas C. Manditch joined the Board of Directors of the Company and the Bank on November 1, 2020. Prior to joining the Bank, he served as the Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Empire Bancorp, Inc. and Empire National Bank since their respective inceptions. Mr. Manditch is a 58-year veteran of the banking industry and has served his entire banking career on Long Island. He served as President and Chief Executive Officer and a director of Long Island Commercial Bank and its holding company, Long Island Financial Corp., from its formation in 1987 until its sale to New York Community Bancorp, Inc. in December 2005. He has also held senior management positions with National Bank of New York City, North Fork Bank and First National Bank of Long Island.

In addition to his banking activities, Mr. Manditch has served on the Board of The Clark Gillies Foundation; the YMCA of Long Island; Island Harvest; the Richard J. O’Brien Foundation; as past Chairman of the New York Bankers Association, Long Island Division; and past Chairman of Independent Bankers Association of New York. He has served on the Board of the Monsignor Thomas Hartman Foundation for Parkinson’s Research, Inc.; Vice Chairman of the Honorary Board of the Suffolk County Coalition Against Domestic Violence; an Honorary Member of The Friends of Sagamore Hill; the Theodore Roosevelt Council of the Boy Scouts of America; Vice Chairman of the Board of Trustees of St. Charles Hospital in Port Jefferson; and Trustee of the Long Island Museum of American Art, History & Carriages in Stony Brook, along with several other organizations during his career.

Mr. Manditch’s long history in banking and his experience on other boards makes him a valuable member of our Board of Directors.

John J. McCabe served as Chief Equity Strategist of Shay Assets Management, Inc. for over 20 years and as co-manager of the AMF Large Cap Equity Fund managed by Shay Assets Management, until his retirement in December 2015. He has also served as Managing Director of Sterling Manhattan Corp., an investment banking firm, and spent 19 years at Bankers Trust Company serving in various capacities, including Managing Director of the Investment Management Group, Director of Investment Research and member of the Senior Investment Policy Committee. Mr. McCabe is a past director of the New York Society of Security Analysts, having served twice as its President. He is a past Governor of the CFA Institute.

Mr. McCabe brings long-time experience in the securities industry and fund management business, as well as a background of investment banking, to the Company which makes him a valuable member of our Board of Directors.

Donna M. O’Brien is President of Strategic Visions in Healthcare, LLC, a healthcare strategy/policy consulting firm with particular expertise in cancer program planning. With over 25 years of healthcare experience in academic medical centers, multi-institutional health systems and community hospitals, her

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management positions have included being the Executive Vice President of the Catholic Health System of Long Island (a $1.8 billion regional health system) where she led the formation of the system, and at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston. Ms. O’Brien has served as a Special Advisor to the Director of the National Cancer Institute. She has served on numerous healthcare organization boards across the country and is currently a member of the Board of Trustees of the College of Holy Cross and on the Board of Directors of the International Cancer Expert Corps.

Ms. O’Brien’s long history in senior executive positions and her experience on other boards make her a valuable member of our Board of Directors.

Caren C. Yoh has been the owner of a full-service accounting firm in Flushing, Queens since 1989. Ms. Yoh is a Certified Public Accountant and is well known for her expertise in auditing, taxation and estate planning. Ms. Yoh has held various board positions with several business and community organizations including the Asian Advisory Board for Flushing Bank, Flushing Business Improvement District (BID), Flushing Chinese Business Association, New York Hua Liu Tsu Hui Buddhist Temple, Chinese American Women Commerce Association, and LaGuardia Community College Foundation. She also served as President of the Chinese American Entrepreneur Association.

Ms. Yoh’s accounting, tax and management expertise and her general understanding of controls, as well as her firm leadership background, make Ms. Yoh a valuable member of our Board of Directors.

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Director Skills Assessment and Board Diversity

The matrix below summarizes certain skills, experiences, and attributes that our directors bring to the Board to enable effective oversight. The matrix is intended to provide a summary of our director qualifications and is not all inclusive of each director’s strengths or contributions to the Board. Additional details on each director are set forth in their biographies above.

Executive Officers Who Are Not Directors

The following persons currently serve as executive officers who are not directors of the Company.

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Set forth below is certain information with respect to the executive officers who are not directors of the Company.

Michael Bingold has been Senior Executive Vice President/Chief Retail and Client Development Officer of the Company since December 2019. Prior to that, he had been Executive Vice President/Director of Distribution and Client Development of the Company since August 2014. Mr. Bingold joined the Company in May 2013 as Senior Vice President/Chief of Staff. Prior to joining the Company, he was Small Business Region Director for New York City, Boston and Florida at Citibank from 2010 to 2013. Prior to this position, he held various senior manager positions at Citibank, including East Division Sales Director, Mass Affluent Sales Director and Area Director.

Thomas M. Buonaiuto has been Senior Executive Vice President/Chief of Staff and Deposit Channel Executive of the Company since November 2020. Prior to that, he had been President and Chief Operating Officer, and a director of Empire Bancorp Inc. and Empire National Bank since their respective inceptions. Mr. Buonaiuto served as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Union State Bank until its acquisition by KeyCorp in 2007. Prior to this, Mr. Buonaiuto was Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of the Long Island Commercial Bank, and its holding company Long Island Financial Corp., and served in that capacity until its acquisition by New York Community Bancorp in 2005.

Susan K. Cullen has been Senior Executive Vice President, Treasurer and Chief Financial Officer of the Company since February 2016. Ms. Cullen joined the Company in August 2015 as Executive Vice President/Chief Accounting Officer. Prior to joining the Company, she held the positions of Executive Vice President/SEC Reporting and Investor Relations, from January 2014 to July 2015, and Executive Vice President/Chief Risk Officer, from June 2012 to January 2014, at Hudson Valley Bank. Prior to Hudson Valley Bank, she was an audit partner with Grant Thornton, LLP in the Financial Service Practice. Ms. Cullen is a Certified Public Accountant.

Maria A. Grasso has been Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of the Company since January 2014. Ms. Grasso had been Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of the Company since May 2006. Prior to joining the Company, she was Senior Vice President of the Long Island Queens Division of The Bank of New York. From 1997 to 2002, she was Senior Vice President NY Metro Division of Fleet Bank, N.A. Prior to that, she held several senior management positions at NatWest Bank and Chase Manhattan Bank, N.A.

Francis W. Korzekwinski has been Senior Executive Vice President and Chief of Real Estate Lending of the Company since January 2014. Prior to that, he had been an Executive Vice President and Chief of Real Estate Lending of the Company since December 2006. Mr. Korzekwinski joined the Company in 1993 as Assistant Vice President of Commercial Real Estate and was promoted to Vice President in 1995. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Korzekwinski was Vice President, Mortgage Officer at Bankers Federal Savings Bank, FSB for five years. Prior to that, he served as Vice President of Secondary Marketing for a mortgage banking company.

Douglas J. McClintock has been Senior Executive Vice President and General Counsel of the Company since January 2022. Prior to joining the Company, he was Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary of Emigrant Bank from July 2013 to May 2021, and a consultant for Emigrant Bank from June 2021 to November 2021. Prior to this, Mr. McClintock was a partner at Alston & Bird from September 2011 to July 2013, and a partner of Dentons from 2009 to 2011. Prior to that, Mr. McClintock was an associate and then a partner at Thacher Proffitt & Wood from 1975 to 2008.

Astrid Burrowes has been Executive Vice President/Controller of the Company since January 2016 and Executive Vice President/Chief Accounting Officer of the Company since February 2016. Prior to that she has been Senior Vice President and Controller of the Company since March 2008. Prior to joining the Company, from 1998 to 2008, she was Senior Vice President and Controller of Delta Financial Corporation, a mortgage banking company. From 1994 to 1998, she was with KPMG, LLP, a public accounting firm. From 1984 to 1994, Ms. Burrowes held various positions at Roslyn Savings Bank. Ms. Burrowes is a Certified Public Accountant.

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Theresa Kelly has been Executive Vice President/Business Banking of the Company since January 2014. Prior to that, she had been Senior Vice President/Business Banking of the Company since May 2006. Prior to joining the Company, Ms. Kelly held various Senior Vice President positions within the Commercial Banking Group and Business Financial Services Group for Bank of America since 2000. Prior to her work at Bank of America, Ms. Kelly worked at Citibank as Senior Relationship Manager-Business and Professional Sales.

Other Officers

The following persons currently serve as officers of the Company.

Allen M. Brewer has been Senior Executive Vice President/Chief Information Officer of the Company since December 2020. Prior to that, he had been Executive Vice President/Chief Information Officer of the Company since August 2014. Mr. Brewer joined the Company in December 2008 as Senior Vice President/Chief Information Officer. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Brewer served as President of ALEL Management Corporation, a technology consulting firm, since 2007. Mr. Brewer held the position of Executive Vice President at Alliance Consulting, a global IT solutions organization servicing the financial services industry, from 2004 to 2008. Prior to that, Mr. Brewer served as Chief Information Officer of Corporate Systems at American International Group, Vice President at J.P. Morgan Chase, and Managing Director for Global Cash Management at Citigroup.

Barbara A. Beckmann has been Executive Vice President/Director of Operations since January 2016. Prior to that she had been Senior Vice President/Director of Operations of the Company since February 2008. Ms. Beckmann joined the Company in 2006 as Vice President and Operations Manager. Prior to joining the Company, she was a Vice President and Division Operations Manager for The Bank of New York. From 1997 to 2004, she held several management positions at FleetBoston Financial, including Vice President, District Operations Manager and New York Risk Management Team Leader.

Ruth E. Filiberto has been Executive Vice President/Director of Human Resources of the Company since January 2016. Prior to that she had been Senior Vice President/Director of Human Resources of the Company since August 2007. Prior to joining the Company, Ms. Filiberto held various positions, including Vice President/Director, within the Human Resources department at First Data Corporation from 1993 to 2006.

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Vincent E. Giovinco has been Executive Vice President/Director of Commercial Real Estate since April 2020. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Giovinco was First Senior Vice President at New York Community Bank from 2004 to 2020. Mr. Giovinco is a Certified Public Accountant.

James P. Jacovatos has been Executive Vice President, Real Estate Credit Center Manager of the Company since January 2016. Prior to that, he had been Senior Vice President/Real Estate Credit Center Manager of the Company since joining in June 2013. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Jacovatos held various banking related consulting positions, and prior to that he served as President and CEO of Hanover Community Bank.

Alan J. (A.J.) Jin has been Executive Vice President/Residential, Mixed-Use, and Small Multi-Family Real Estate Lending of the Company since January 2014. Prior to that, he had been Senior Vice President/Residential, Mixed-Use, and Small Multi-Family Real Estate Lending of the Company since February 2007. Mr. Jin joined the Company in July 1998 as Assistant Secretary/Commercial Loan Officer. Mr. Jin was promoted to Assistant Vice President/Commercial Loan officer in 2000 and to Vice President/Mortgage Loan Officer in 2002. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Jin was Assistant Vice President, Consumer Lending Loan Officer at Korea Exchange Bank.

Gary P. Liotta has been Executive Vice President/Chief Risk Officer of the Company since August 2014. Prior to that, he had been Senior Vice President/Chief Risk Officer of the Company since April 2010. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Liotta was Vice President of Investment Management for Morgan Stanley from 2002 to 2010. Prior to that, he was Vice President at Lehman Brothers and an Audit Manager for Ernst and Young. He has also held officer positions at the Federal Home Loan Bank of New York and JP Morgan Chase. Mr. Liotta is a Certified Public Accountant.

Rosina Manzi has been Executive Vice President/Chief Audit Officer of the Company since October 2017. Prior to joining the Company, Ms. Manzi held various positions, including Senior Vice President/Chief Compliance Officer at Astoria Bank from 1984 to 2017. Ms. Manzi is a Certified Internal Auditor, Certified Financial Services Auditor, and a Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist.

Patricia Mezeul has been Executive Vice President/Director of Government Banking of the Company since August 2014. Prior to that, she had been Senior Vice President/Director of Government Banking of the Company since January 2008. Prior to joining the Company, Ms. Mezeul held the position of Vice President, Senior Team Leader for Commerce Bank from 2002 to 2008 where she successfully established a Government Banking team.

Theodoros Kalogiannis has been Senior Vice President/Director of Portfolio Management since January 2018. Prior to that, he had been Vice President/Portfolio Management Team Leader of the Company since March 2017. Mr. Kalogiannis joined the Company in 2014 as Vice President/Senior Loan Workout Officer.

Douglas Liang has been Senior Vice President/Chief Investment Officer since July 2020. Prior to that, he had been Senior Vice President/Treasury since December 2014, and before that Vice President/Treasury since January 2014. Mr. Liang joined the Company as Assistant Vice President/Treasury in September 2012.

Yan Nuriyev has been Senior Vice President/Chief Technology Officer since February 2021. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Nuriyev was Chief Technology Officer at Quantridge from 2018 to 2021. Prior to that he was a Technology Advisor at McKinsey & Company, and Vice President at Banco Santander from 2008 to 2019. Mr. Nuriyev also holds several securities licenses in Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA).

Joanne Orelli has been Senior Vice President/Loan Servicing Collections and Foreclosure Manager since May 2017. Prior to that, she had been Senior Vice President/Collections and Foreclosure of the Company since January 2013, and Vice President/Collections Foreclosure since 2010. Since joining the Company in 2004, Ms. Orelli has focused her career in Collections and Loans Servicing.

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Albert H. Savastano has been Senior Vice President/Director of Investor Relations since February 2021. Prior to joining the Company, Mr. Savastano was Portfolio Manager at Norges Bank Investment Management from 2011 to 2020. Mr. Savastano is a Chartered Financial Analyst.

Patricia Tiffany has been Senior Vice President/Senior Director of Marketing since January 2019. Prior to that, she was Senior Vice President/Director of Marketing since January 2014. Ms. Tiffany joined the Company in 2009 as Vice President and Director of Marketing. Prior to joining the Company, from 2004 to 2009, she was a Senior Vice President with Citigroup in the Consumer Lending Group. From 1988 to 2004, she held numerous senior marketing positions at JPMorgan Chase in its Credit Card Services Division.

Richard A. White, PhD has been Senior Vice President/Chief Information Security Officer of the Company since August 2018. Prior to joining the Company, Dr. White was Managing Director of Oxford Solutions since 2013. Dr. White held the position of Chief Information Security Officer with the United States Capitol Police, the Law Enforcement Branch for the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate in Washington, D.C. from 2010 to 2013. Dr. White has a Ph.D. in Information Technology, is a Subject Matter Expert and Final Content Reviewer for University of Maryland University College Cyber Security Information Assurance (CSIA) courses, and holds certifications in information technology, including NSA Information Assessment Methodology, Checkpoint Security Engineer, and Microsoft Systems Engineer.

Ling Xu has been Senior Vice President/Director of Retail Banking since July 2022. Prior to that, she had been Senior Vice President/Retail Sales Manager of the Company since January 2020, and Vice President/Branch Manager since joining the Company in 2015.

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CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

Independence of Directors

The Board of Directors has determined that nine of the eleven members of the Board are independent under the Nasdaq director independence standards. Under these standards, a director is not independent if he or she has certain specified relationships with the Company or any other relationship that, in the opinion of the Board, would interfere with the exercise of independent judgment as a director. Mr. Manditch is not independent as a result of the consulting fees he received from the Company and the Bank. Mr. Buran is not independent because he is an executive officer of the Company. In evaluating the independence of the remaining directors, the Board considered the payments described below under the heading “Corporate Governance—Transactions with Related Persons, Promoters and Certain Control Persons” and determined that they did not impair independence.

Meetings and Committees of the Board of Directors

The Board of Directors meets on a monthly basis and may have additional special meetings upon the request of the Chairman of the Board, the President or a majority of directors in office at the time. During 2023, the Board of Directors held twelve regular meetings and six special meetings. No director attended less than 75% of the meetings of the Board of Directors and its committees on which they served.

At least quarterly, the independent directors meet in executive session with no members of Company management present.

The Board of Directors has established the following committees:

Compensation Committee. The Compensation Committee of the Board of Directors (the “Compensation Committee”) is composed of Messrs. Han (Chairman), DelliBovi, D’Iorio, and Grassi, and Ms. O’Brien, all of whom are independent under Nasdaq independence standards and satisfy the additional Nasdaq independence standards for compensation committee members. The Compensation Committee has primary responsibility for establishing and administering the compensation and benefit programs of the Company for its executive officers and other key personnel, administering awards to members of the Board of Directors who are not employees of the Company or the Bank (“Outside Directors”) under the 2014 Omnibus Incentive Plan and granting, subject to concurrent approval by the Board of Directors, awards to employees under the 2014 Omnibus Incentive Plan. The Compensation Committee has the authority to retain or obtain advice from compensation consultants, legal counsel and other experts. The charter of the Compensation Committee is publicly available on the Company’s website at http://www.flushingbank.com by following the links to investor relations, investors, corporate profile, and then governance documents, and then Compensation Committee Charter of FFIC. The Compensation Committee meets on an as needed basis, but no less than three times a year. During 2023, the Compensation Committee met four times.

Audit Committee. The Audit Committee of the Board of Directors (the “Audit Committee”) is composed of Messrs. Grassi (Chairman), Azarian, and DelliBovi, and Ms. Yoh, all of whom are independent under Nasdaq independence standards and satisfy the SEC independence requirements for audit committee members. The Audit Committee meets at least quarterly to assist the Board of Directors in meeting its oversight responsibilities. The Audit Committee has sole authority to appoint and replace the Company’s independent registered public accounting firm and is directly responsible for the compensation and oversight of the work of that firm. The Audit Committee reviews the results of regulatory examinations, the financial reporting process, the systems and processes of internal control and compliance, and the audit process of the Company’s independent registered public accounting firm. The Audit Committee has the authority to engage independent counsel and other advisers. The charter of the Audit Committee is publicly available on the Company’s website at http://www.flushingbank.com by following the links to investor relations, investors, corporate profile, and then governance documents, and then Audit Committee Charter of FFIC. During 2023, the Audit Committee met five times. The Report of the Audit Committee is included on page 67.

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Nominating and Governance Committee. The Nominating and Governance Committee of the Board of Directors (the “Nominating and Governance Committee”) is composed of Messrs. Grassi (Chairman), Bennett, DelliBovi, Han, and McCabe, all of whom are independent under Nasdaq independence standards. The Nominating and Governance Committee has primary responsibility for recommending to the Board of Directors the slate of director nominees to be proposed by the Board for election by the shareholders (as well as any director nominees to be elected by the Board to fill interim vacancies). The Nominating and Governance Committee also recommends the directors to be selected for membership on the various Board committees and the chairs of those committees. The Nominating and Governance Committee is responsible for developing and recommending to the Board appropriate corporate governance policies and procedures and for approving proposed related party transactions involving directors or executive officers and the Company. The Nominating and Governance Committee has the authority to engage consultants, legal counsel and search firms to assist it in fulfilling its responsibilities. The charter of the Nominating and Governance Committee is publicly available on the Company’s website at http://www.flushingbank.com by following the links to investor relations, investors, corporate profile, and then governance documents, and then Nominating and Governance Committee Charter. During 2023, the Nominating and Governance Committee met once.

Other Committees. In addition to the committees described above, the Board of Directors has established an Executive Committee, an Insurance Committee, an Investment and Asset Liability Committee, an Information Technology Committee, and a Risk and Compliance Committee.

Bank Board and Committees. The business of the Bank is conducted at regular and special meetings of the Bank’s Board of Directors (the “Bank Board”) and its committees. The Bank Board and the Board of Directors are identically constituted. During 2023, the Bank Board held twelve regular meetings. The Bank Board maintains an Executive Committee, an Insurance Committee, an Investment and Asset Liability Committee, a Compensation Committee, an Information Technology Committee, a Risk and Compliance Committee, and an Audit Committee. The membership of these committees is the same as that of the comparable committees of the Company’s Board of Directors. These committees serve substantially the same functions at the Bank level as those at the Company level. The Bank Board also maintains a Loan Committee. No director attended less than 75% of the meetings of the Bank Board and its committees on which they served. Directors of the Bank are nominated by the Nominating and Governance Committee and elected by the Company as sole shareholder of the Bank.

Election of Directors by Majority Voting Standard

In 2013, the Board of Directors amended the Company’s by-laws to adopt a majority voting standard for all uncontested director elections (defined as elections in which the number of nominees does not exceed the number of open director positions). The by-laws provide that in uncontested elections, director nominees must be elected by a majority of the votes cast at the annual meeting of shareholders. Incumbent directors who fail to receive a majority of votes—and who under Delaware law would otherwise remain in office until a successor is elected—are required to, within 10 business days of certification of election results, submit to the Board of Directors a letter of resignation for consideration by the Nominating and Governance Committee, which is required to act promptly. The Board of Directors, with the recommendation of the Nominating and Governance Committee, will determine whether to accept or reject such resignation, or what other action should be taken, in accordance with the Company’s by-laws. Plurality voting will continue to apply if the number of nominees exceeds the number of open director positions. The Board of Director’s decision to adopt a majority voting standard for the election of directors in uncontested elections demonstrates the Company’s continued commitment to best practices in corporate governance and the best interests of its shareholders.

Director Nominations

In evaluating director candidates for purposes of recommending director candidates to the Board, the Nominating and Governance Committee will consider the following factors: the candidate’s moral character and

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personal integrity; whether the candidate has expertise and experience relevant to the Company’s business (including knowledge of the communities and markets served by the Bank); whether the candidate’s expertise and experience complements the expertise and experience of the other directors; whether the candidate would be considered independent under the Nasdaq independence standards; whether the candidate would be independent of any particular constituency and able to represent the interests of all shareholders of the Company; the congeniality of the candidate with the other directors; whether the candidate would have sufficient time available to devote to Board activities; and any other factors deemed relevant by the Nominating and Governance Committee.

The Nominating and Governance Committee may establish additional criteria and is responsible for assessing the appropriate balance of criteria required of Board members. Although we do not have a written policy with respect to Board diversity, the Nominating and Governance Committee and the Board believe that a diverse board leads to improved Company performance by encouraging new ideas, expanding the knowledge base available to management and fostering a boardroom culture that promotes innovation and vigorous deliberation. Consequently, when evaluating potential nominees, the Nominating and Governance Committee considers individual characteristics that may bring diversity to the Board, including gender, race, national origin, age, professional background, unique skill sets and areas of expertise (such as, by way of example, but without limitation, cyber-security, information technology, real estate, legal and leadership).

The Nominating and Governance Committee will consider director candidates recommended by shareholders of the Company as described below. Shareholders may recommend an individual for consideration by submitting to the Nominating and Governance Committee the name of the individual; his or her background (including education and employment history); a statement of the particular skills and expertise that the candidate would bring to the Board; the name, address and number of shares of the Company owned by the shareholder submitting the recommendation; any relationship or interest between such shareholder and the proposed candidate; and any additional information that would be required under applicable SEC rules to be included in the Company’s proxy statement if such proposed candidate were to be nominated as a director.

Such submissions should be addressed to Flushing Financial Corporation Nominating and Governance Committee, at the Company’s executive offices. In order for a candidate to be considered by the committee for any annual meeting, the submission must be received by the committee no later than the November 1 preceding such annual meeting.

The Nominating and Governance Committee will evaluate the biographical information and background material relating to each potential candidate and may seek additional information from the submitting shareholder, the potential candidate, and/or other sources. The committee may hold interviews with selected candidates. Individuals recommended by shareholders will be considered under the same factors as individuals recommended by other sources.

Board Leadership Structure

Since its formation in 1994, the Company has separated the roles of Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer. We believe it is the Chief Executive Officer’s responsibility to run the Company and the Chairman’s responsibility to lead the Board. As directors continue to have more oversight responsibilities than ever before, we believe it is beneficial to have an independent Chairman whose sole job is leading the Board. The Board expects that the time Mr. Buran will be required to devote to the CEO position will continue to be significant and demanding. By having another director serve as Chairman of the Board, Mr. Buran will be able to focus his entire energy on running the Company.

Corporate Responsibility and Environmental, Social and Governance Strategies

The Company recognizes the importance of Environmental, Social and Governance (“ESG”) strategies and has continued to enhance its initiatives through 2023.

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Environmental Sustainability. The Company is focused on the environment and committed to fostering sustainable practices. In order to achieve this, the Company has focused on reducing its carbon footprint and assessing the environmental impact in underwriting primarily through environmental studies and flood insurance when necessary. To reduce its carbon footprint, the Company is transitioning to hybrid vehicles for Company cars and uses energy-efficient appliances and LED lighting where possible. Moreover, the adoption of digital banking enables the Company to support its customers in their efforts to consume less fuel and paper.

Supporting our Customers, Communities, and Employees. Since its founding in 1929, the Company has always focused on its customers, giving back to the communities and ensuring its employees are satisfied and engaged. In order to attend to its customers’ needs and add value, the Company took a leadership position and eliminated consumer overdraft, insufficient funds, and transfer fees on consumer checking accounts. In addition, as part of the Company’s ongoing support to small businesses and low-income families, it has made more the 1,400 small business loans and continues to be a significant lender for rent-controlled and rent stabilized multifamily buildings in the New York City area. The Company continued its support of Neighborhood Housing Services of New York City, United Way of Long Island and Asian Americans For Equality, as well as a plethora of other organizations. To stay connected to the communities, the Company sponsors three advisory boards made up of local community and civic leaders, which meet quarterly to share ideas on ways to support the communities’ needs and growth. The Company will continue to actively support the communities, customers and employees in its multicultural markets, while remaining a responsible corporate citizen. For additional information, see Shareholder Outreach on page 25.

The Company also recognizes employees are its most valuable asset as well as the importance of diversity, equity and inclusion. To further support its employees, the Diversity and Inclusion Committee was created in 2020, which spearheads the Corporate Leadership Development Program, designed to facilitate professional development and exposure for all employees. In addition, in order to support the employees’ financial wellbeing, the Company offers benefit programs to assist employees to achieve their financial goals, including helping them save and preparing them for retirement. Furthermore, the Company has an employee base that reflects a broad representation of backgrounds. As of March 1, 2023, females represent 60% of employees and 44% of the executive team.

Governance. The key items in the Company’s governance program are the strength of the Board, the oversight of crucial risks and the policies the Company has in place to minimize conflicts of interest. The Company’s strong governance program provides oversight to the executive management team, offers additional perspectives on risk management and corporate strategy and sets the tone for corporate culture. In order to minimize conflicts of interest and support good governance from the Board, the Company does not allow hedging or pledging of the Company’s common stock by directors and executive officers. In addition, the Company has in place stock ownership guidelines, the Named Executive Officers and other key executives are subject to a compensation clawback policy and lending is not permitted to officers, directors or affiliated parties.

Risk Management

The Board has an active role, as a whole and also at the committee level, in overseeing management of the Company’s risks. The Board regularly reviews information regarding the Company’s credit, liquidity and operations, as well as the risks associated with each. The Company’s Chief Risk Officer provides monthly updates to the Board with regard to the Bank’s Enterprise Risk Management. The Company’s Risk and Compliance Committee meets quarterly to oversee the mitigation of risks to the Company’s strategic plan and to oversee the Company’s compliance with consumer regulations. The Company’s Information and Technology Committee, which meets at a minimum once a quarter, is responsible for overseeing the Company’s technology strategy which includes reviewing risk management and risk assessment guidelines, policies regarding information technology security, and cybersecurity risk tolerance. The Company’s Compensation Committee is responsible for overseeing the management of risks relating to the Company’s executive and employee compensation plans and arrangements. The Audit Committee oversees the results of the independent registered

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public accounting firm’s annual attestation of the Company’s financial statements and the Company’s internal audit department’s control testing. The Nominating and Governance Committee manages risks associated with the independence of the Board of Directors and potential conflicts of interest. The Bank Board’s Loan Committee oversees general risks related to the Company’s lending policies. The Investment Committee oversees risk related to the Company’s investment policy, liquidity policy, and interest rate risk management policy. While each committee is responsible for evaluating certain risks and overseeing the management of such risks, the entire Board of Directors is regularly informed through committee reports about such risks. The Board is confident, as outlined above, that proper independent oversight is in place to properly mitigate the Company’s risks.

Transactions with Related Persons, Promoters and Certain Control Persons

Transactions between related persons (including directors and executive officers of the Company and the Bank and their immediate family members) and the Company, the Bank or their affiliates are subject to approval by the Nominating and Governance Committee, as set forth in its charter. Officers and directors are regularly reminded of their obligation to seek Nominating and Governance Committee approval of any related party transaction or potential conflict of interest. The Nominating and Governance Committee considers all factors that it deems relevant, including the nature of the related party’s interest in the transaction, whether the terms are no less favorable than could be obtained in arms-length dealings with unrelated third parties and the materiality of the transaction to the Company.

Under the Bank’s lending policies, mortgage loans are not made to directors and executive officers. Additionally, there were no loans outstanding to an immediate family member of a director during 2023.

On October 30, 2020, the Company completed its merger with Empire Bancorp, Inc. (“Empire”) pursuant to the terms of that certain Agreement and Plan of Merger (the “Merger Agreement”) dated as of October 24, 2019, by and among the Company, Empire and a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company. Pursuant to the Merger Agreement, the consulting agreement with Flushing Bank (the “Consulting Agreement”), originally entered into on October 24, 2019, became effective. Pursuant to the Consulting Agreement, Mr. Manditch provided consulting services to Flushing Bank for a term of three years which ended October 30, 2023. The Consulting Agreement provided for the payment of consulting fees to Mr. Manditch in the amount of $16,666.66 per month and certain customary other terms. In addition, the Consulting Agreement contains non-competition and non-solicitation provisions during the term of the Consulting Agreement and for a one-year period after the termination thereof, as well as confidentiality provisions. During 2023, Mr. Manditch received fees of approximately $150,000 pursuant to the consulting agreement.

Shareholder Communications with the Board of Directors

The Board of Directors has adopted the following policy by which shareholders may communicate with the Board or with individual directors or Board committees. The communication should be in writing, addressed to the Board or applicable committee or directors, c/o Corporate Secretary, Flushing Financial Corporation, at the Company’s executive offices. The Corporate Secretary will review all such correspondence received and will periodically, at least quarterly, forward to the applicable directors a summary of all such correspondence together with copies of correspondence that the Corporate Secretary believes should be seen in its entirety. Correspondence or summaries will be forwarded to the applicable directors on an expedited basis where the Corporate Secretary deems it appropriate. Communications raising concerns related to the Company’s accounting, internal controls, or auditing matters will be immediately brought to the attention of the Company’s Chief Audit Officer and the Chairman of the Audit Committee and will be handled in accordance with the procedures established by the Audit Committee with respect to such matters.

Directors may at any time review a log of correspondence received by the Company that is addressed to the director (or to the full Board or a Board committee on which he or she serves) and may request copies of any such correspondence.

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The Company believes that it is important for directors to directly hear concerns expressed by shareholders. Accordingly, it is the Company’s policy that Board members are expected to attend the annual meeting of shareholders absent a compelling commitment that prevents such attendance. All of the members of the Board of Directors at the time of the 2023 annual meeting attended the virtual annual meeting.

Code of Business Conduct and Ethics

The Company has adopted a Code of Business Conduct and Ethics Policy that applies to all of its directors, officers and employees. This code is publicly available on the Company’s website at http://www.flushingbank.com by following the links to investor relations, investors, corporate profile, and then governance documents, and then Code of Business Conduct and Ethics Policy. Any substantive amendments to the code and any grant of a waiver from a provision of the code requiring disclosure under applicable SEC or Nasdaq rules will be disclosed in a report on Form 8-K.

Compensation Committee Interlocks and Insider Participation

During 2023, the Compensation Committee consisted of Messrs. Han (Chairman), DelliBovi, D’Iorio, and Grassi, and Ms. O’Brien. None of the members of the Compensation Committee is a former officer of the Company or the Bank.

Under the Bank’s lending policies, residential mortgage loans to immediate family members of directors are made at market rates of interest and other normal terms but with reduced origination fees. There were no such loans outstanding to an immediate family member of a director during 2023.

Role of Executive Officers in Compensation Decisions

The Chairman of the Board of Directors and the Chief Executive Officer annually review the performance of each named executive officer (other than the Chief Executive Officer whose performance is reviewed by the Compensation Committee). The conclusions reached and recommendations based on these reviews, including with respect to salary adjustments and annual award amounts, are presented to the Compensation Committee. The Compensation Committee can exercise its discretion in modifying any recommended adjustments or awards to executive officers. Our Chief Executive Officer makes recommendations to the Compensation Committee with respect to compensation for other executive officers, including the structure and terms of these executives’ annual cash incentives and long-term equity incentives. Our Chief Executive Officer considers factors such as tenure, individual performance, responsibilities and experience levels of the executives, as well as the compensation of the executives relative to one another, when making recommendations regarding appropriate total compensation of our executives. Certain executives assist the Chief Executive Officer in structuring his proposals regarding the design of the annual cash incentives and long-term equity incentives; however, executives do not play any role in setting their own compensation. Our Chief Executive Officer either discusses his recommendations with the Chairman of the Compensation Committee or has management present them at Compensation Committee meetings. The compensation and benefits personnel within our human resources department support the Compensation Committee in the performance of its responsibilities. During fiscal year 2023, our Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice President of Human Resources regularly attended the Compensation Committee meetings to provide perspectives on the competitive landscape, the needs of the business and information about our financial performance. The Compensation Committee periodically meets in executive session without management to deliberate on executive compensation matters. The Compensation Committee considers but is not bound to and does not always accept, the Chief Executive Officer’s recommendations regarding executive compensation. The Compensation Committee reviews all recommendations in light of our compensation philosophy and generally seeks input from the Committee’s compensation consultant prior to making any final decisions.

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Determining Executive Compensation and the Role of the Consultant

The Company’s executive compensation program is intended to link management’s pay with the Company’s annual and long-term performance. The Compensation Committee believes it is important to attract and retain highly qualified executive officers by providing compensation opportunities that are both competitive with the market for executive talent and consistent with the Company’s performance. The Compensation Committee has retained Pearl Meyer (the “Consultant” or “Pearl Meyer”), an independent nationally recognized compensation consulting firm, to advise the Compensation Committee with respect to compensation of the Company’s executive officers. The Consultant is retained by the Compensation Committee and reports directly to the Compensation Committee. The Consultant was instrumental in the development of the pay for performance philosophy of the Company and the development of the shareholder approved 2014 Omnibus Incentive Plan. In 2023, the Compensation Committee formally re-engaged the Consultant. The Consultant discussed with the Compensation Committee the philosophy for determining the 2023 compensation and discussed trends in the executive compensation arena to be considered. For a discussion of the elements involved in the Compensation Committee’s decisions regarding executive compensation, see “Executive Compensation—Compensation Discussion and Analysis.”

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DIRECTOR COMPENSATION

The Company uses a combination of cash and stock-based incentive compensation to attract and retain qualified candidates to serve on the Board of Directors.

Cash Compensation

For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, members of the Board of Directors who are not employees of the Company or the Bank (“Outside Directors”) were entitled to receive an annual retainer of $37,500 from the Bank with no additional retainer from the Company. In addition, in 2023, the Chairman of the Board received a fee of $75,000 for services to the Company and the Bank in those capacities. The Chairman of the Audit Committee received an additional annual retainer of $15,000, the Chairman of the Compensation Committee received an additional annual retainer of $10,000, and the Chairman of the Nominating and Governance Committee received an additional annual retainer of $7,500. Outside Directors also received meeting fees of $1,500 for each Board or Bank Board meeting attended, $1,300 for each Audit Committee meeting attended, and $1,000 for each other committee meeting attended, whether or not they are members of such committee. However, where the Board of Directors and the Bank Board meet on the same day, directors receive only a single Board meeting fee for such meetings. Similarly, directors receive only a single committee meeting fee where identically constituted committees of the Board of Directors and Bank Board meet on the same day.

Outside Directors who are members of the Loan Committee also receive a fee from the Bank for conducting on-site inspections of proposed real estate collateral for certain loans.

Equity Compensation

Pursuant to the Company’s 2014 Omnibus Incentive Plan, under which equity awards granted on or after May 20, 2014 were made, each Outside Director receives an annual award of 4,800 restricted stock units (“RSUs”), or shares of restricted stock if so determined by the Compensation Committee, as of January 30 of each year. Upon initial election or appointment to the Board of Directors or a change to Outside Director status, an Outside Director receives a prorated portion of the annual award consisting of 400 shares of restricted stock (or RSUs if so determined by the Compensation Committee) for each full or partial month from the date of such person’s election or appointment or change in status to the following January 30.

Each award to an Outside Director vests with respect to one-third of the underlying shares on the January 30 following the date of grant, and an additional one-third of the underlying shares on each of the two subsequent January 30, provided the award holder is a director of the Company on each such date. In the event the Outside Director ceases to be a director of the Company before an award has fully vested, the unvested portion of the award is forfeited. Awards to Outside Directors become fully vested in advance of such schedule upon a change of control of the Company or the Bank (if the director is a member of the Board of Directors at such time) or upon termination of the director’s service on the Board of Directors due to death, disability or retirement. For this purpose, retirement means a director’s termination of service after five years of service as an Outside Director if the director’s age plus years of service as an Outside Director equals or exceeds 55.

Unless the Compensation Committee provides otherwise, dividends or dividend equivalents on these awards are paid on a current basis, and the awards are settled in stock, generally at the time they vest. An RSU award entitles the award holder to receive one share of common stock (or the fair market value of a share in cash or other property) at a specified future time.

On January 25, 2024, the Compensation Committee approved a grant of Company stock in the form of 4,800 RSUs to each Outside Director, which vests in full one year from the date of grant, thus deviating from the formula in the Company’s 2014 Omnibus Incentive Plan as outlined above. The Compensation Committee’s recommendation to the Board to grant equity at a value of $100,000, not to exceed 4,800 RSUs, with a one-year vesting period was a continuation of equity grant practices implemented in January of 2019.

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Director Stock Ownership Guidelines

In November 2015, the Compensation Committee formally established Director Stock Ownership Guidelines for Outside Directors as a way to more closely align the interests of Outside Directors with those of the Company’s shareholders. These guidelines provide a direct link between Outside Director rewards and Company results and encourage Outside Directors to consider Company performance from a long-term as well as short-term perspective.

These stock ownership guidelines require Outside Directors to hold at least 5,000 shares of the Company’s common stock after five full years of board service. Compliance with these guidelines is mandatory for all Outside Directors of the Company.

Director Retirement Plan

The Bank has an unfunded noncontributory defined benefit Outside Director Retirement Plan, which provides benefits to each Outside Director who became an Outside Director before January 1, 2004 who has at least five years of service as an Outside Director and whose years of service as an Outside Director plus age equals or exceeds 55. Benefits are also payable to an Outside Director who became an Outside Director before January 1, 2004, and whose status as an Outside Director terminates due to death or disability or who is an Outside Director upon a change of control of the Company or the Bank. Any person who became an Outside Director after January 1, 2004, is not eligible to participate in the Outside Director Retirement Plan. Upon termination, an eligible director will be paid an annual retirement benefit equal to $48,000. Such benefit will be paid in equal monthly installments for 120 months.

In the event of a change of control, benefits under the plan will be paid in a cash lump sum; each eligible director will receive the equivalent of 120 months of benefits. In the event of an Outside Director’s death, the surviving spouse will receive the equivalent benefit. No benefit will be paid to an Outside Director who is removed for cause. The Company has guaranteed the payment of benefits under the Outside Director Retirement Plan. A director’s right to receive benefits under the plan is no greater than the right of an unsecured general creditor of the Bank or the Company.

Deferred Compensation Program for Outside Directors

The Bank has adopted an Outside Director Deferred Compensation Plan pursuant to which Outside Directors may elect to defer all or a portion of their annual retainer, meeting fees, and inspection fees. Deferred amounts are credited with earnings based on certain mutual fund investments. The deferred amounts plus earnings thereon will be paid to the director in cash after the director’s termination of service, either in a lump sum or, if the director so elects, in annual installments over a period not to exceed five years. The Company has guaranteed the payment of benefits under the Outside Director Deferred Compensation Plan. A director’s right to receive benefits under the plan is no greater than the right of an unsecured general creditor of the Bank or the Company. As of December 31, 2023, there were no participants in this plan.

Indemnity Agreements

The Company and the Bank have entered into an indemnity agreement with each of the directors which agreements provide for mandatory indemnification of each director to the full extent permitted by law for any claim arising out of such person’s service to the Company or the Bank. The agreements provide for advancement of expenses and specify procedures for determining entitlement to indemnification.

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Director Compensation Table

The table below summarizes the compensation paid by the Company to Outside Directors for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023.

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EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION

Compensation Discussion and Analysis

This Compensation Discussion and Analysis (“CD&A”) explains our executive compensation programs for our named executive officers (“NEOs”) captured in the table below. The CD&A also describes the processes followed by the Compensation Committee of the Board (“Compensation Committee” or “the Committee”) for making pay decisions as well as its rationale behind other matters which effect the compensation of the NEOs.

Executive Summary

2023 Performance Highlights

The Company’s ability to continue to grow core deposits and maintain a well-diversified and low risk loan portfolio, while managing asset quality with consistently disciplined underwriting, enabled us to maintain strong credit quality in 2023, despite aggressive interest rate movements by the Federal Reserve that directly impacted our funding costs and compressed the Company’s net interest margin.

The Company continued to execute well, maintain its service capacity, mitigate risk and manage its capital structure for financial strength and stability, as outlined in the performance highlights below:

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2023 Compensation Actions At-A-Glance

However, following the 2023 proxy season, in June of 2023, Pearl Meyer assessed the competitiveness of the Company’s executive compensation in an interim review utilizing recently disclosed proxy data and updated survey data where available.

The Committee recognizes that base salary is designed to provide competitive levels of guaranteed compensation to executives based upon their experience, duties, scope of responsibility, overall individual performance, and ability to successfully navigate complexities of the greater banking environment. Additionally, the Company pays base salaries because they provide a basic level of compensation that is necessary to retain key tenured executives, which was especially critical during 2023 in light of the banking

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crisis in March of 2023 when several large banks faced liquidity issues that caused a run on those banks by depositors and ultimately resulted in their failure or takeover that continued at various levels throughout 2023. The Committee reviewed these factors and Pearl Meyer’s June 2023 analyses, while also considering an active backdrop of a very competitive marketplace for key talent and resolved to increase the base salaries for the NEOs, effective July 2023, by 10% to better align their total compensation versus our peers. The Committee also recognized these base salary adjustments were the first increases for the President & CEO, the Senior Executive Vice President/Chief Operating Officer, and the Senior Executive Vice President/Chief Real Estate Lending Officer in over six years dating back to January 2018.

In November of 2023 and in January of 2024, the Compensation Committee convened to review 2023 Company performance and pay levels versus a benchmarking analysis provided by Pearl Meyer which is used to set 2024 pay levels. The Pearl Meyer analysis indicated that the base salaries of the NEOs were generally aligned within a competitive range of the market. Accordingly, the Compensation Committee did not adjust any of the NEOs’ base salaries in January of 2024.

The Compensation Committee implemented a performance vesting equity component to the annual long term incentive grant in 2019, in an effort to further align executive compensation with that of the long-term interests of our shareholders. Based on the Company’s achievement of the performance goals in the three-year performance period (2021-2023), the Compensation Committee determined that the 2021 performance restricted stock units were earned at 140% of target. See Long-Term Equity Incentive Compensation below.

Impact of Advisory Say-On-Pay Vote

At our 2023 Annual Meeting of Shareholders, 88% of the votes cast on Say-On-Pay were voted in approval of the compensation of the NEOs. The Compensation Committee and senior management continued their shareholder engagement efforts in 2023. During 2023, we directly telephoned, emailed, and/or engaged in discussions with over 18 of our largest institutional investors representing approximately 57% of our total outstanding shares. Where investors were not readily available, we followed up where appropriate to maximize our connectivity. We were successful in establishing direct discussions with approximately a quarter of our largest institutional investors. When we were not able to engage in direct communication, we encouraged open dialogue with our shareholders throughout the year. Several institutions confirmed that they are not structured to engage in open dialogue and continue to outsource their proxy voting. More details about our approach to shareholder outreach are described below.

Shareholder Outreach

We value the opinions of our shareholders and look forward to a continued, open dialogue on compensation matters and other issues relevant to our business. We want our shareholders to fully understand our rationale for our approach to executive compensation, and we want to understand the views of our shareholders. Although our current executive compensation program contains continuations or versions of arrangements that were put in place historically and under different circumstances, we continue to evolve its design and features in light of current best practices and shareholders’ feedback.

To foster our dialogue with shareholders and more specifically to respond to Say-On-Pay results, we formalized our annual shareholder interaction into an organized and comprehensive shareholder outreach

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program initiated under the auspices of our Compensation Committee. Our outreach and engagement efforts during 2023 were led by our Executive Vice President/Director of Human Resources. In addition, the outreach program was advised by our independent compensation consulting firm and external counsel. Discussions centered on executive compensation matters, but also touched on other business-related matters. While we devoted much time and effort in 2023 to communicating information regarding our executive compensation policies and practices, we also were keenly interested in feedback from our shareholders as to how we might improve those practices and policies. We generally seek a collaborative and mutually beneficial approach to many issues of importance to investors that affect our business, and to ensure that our corporate governance practices remain appropriate. This approach is especially important in the context of executive compensation matters.

The results of our outreach program were helpful in gauging the pulse of our institutional investors. Specifically, top institutional investors continue to support the changes made to the Company’s compensation programs back in 2019 and the overall breadth of compensation disclosures. Further, some top institutional shareholders stated their understanding that such changes in the Company’s compensation programs take time to fully implement and ultimately be positively reflected in future benchmarking analyses performed either by institutional investor firms or proxy advisory firms. New institutional investor feedback touched on some reoccurring themes which included board diversity in light of board succession/refreshment and general interest in the strategic initiatives of the Company. The Company recognizes the value and the importance of how it manages relationships with employees, customers, and in communities where the Company operates, as well as the Company’s transparency of accurate audit/accounting methods and the ability of our shareholders to vote on important issues. These criteria and others are captured in the Company’s June 2022 inaugural ESG Report which can be found on the Bank’s website at https://investor.flushingbank.com/esg/default.aspx. Also see Corporate Responsibility and Environmental, Social and Governance Strategies on page 15.

Key Governance Features

The following practices highlight our compensation governance structure:

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What Guides Our Compensation Program

Our Executive Compensation Philosophy and Objectives

The Compensation Committee believes that the most effective executive compensation program is one that is designed to reward the achievement of specific annual, long-term and strategic goals of the Company in a risk appropriate fashion, and which aligns executives’ interests with those of the shareholders rewarding performance at or above established goals, with the ultimate objective of improving shareholder value. The Compensation Committee evaluates both performance and compensation to ensure that the Company maintains its ability to attract and retain superior employees in key positions and that compensation provided to key employees remains competitive relative to the compensation paid to similarly situated executives of our peers. The Compensation Committee targets total direct compensation to be within a competitive range of the median of the markets we draw talent from, taking into consideration experience, role, contributions, and criticality.

Elements of Compensation

Our compensation philosophy is supported by the following principal elements of pay:

The pay mix of total direct compensation for our NEOs includes base salary, performance-based annual incentives, and both long-term performance and time-based equity incentives. We believe that these compensation components help balance the incentive for our executives to achieve annual goals but not take undue risk.

The Decision-Making Process

Role of the Compensation Committee

Our Compensation Committee has the primary responsibility for approving our compensation philosophy and programs as they relate to our NEOs. The Committee is comprised of independent, non-employee members of the Board. The Committee works very closely with its independent consultant and management to examine the effectiveness of the Company’s executive compensation program throughout the year. Details of the Committee’s authority and responsibilities are specified in the Compensation Committee’s charter, which is publicly available on the Company’s website at http://www.flushingbank.com by following the links to investor relations, investors, corporate profile, and then governance documents, and then Compensation Committee Charter of FFIC.

The Committee makes all final decisions regarding the elements of our NEOs’ compensation, except for the CEO, whose compensation is determined by the independent members of the full Board, based upon recommendations of the Committee.

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The Role of Management

Members of our management team attend regular meetings where executive compensation, Company and individual performance, and competitive compensation levels and practices are discussed and evaluated. The Committee and subsequently the independent members of the Board review the CEO’s performance and make all final determinations regarding CEO compensation after conducting their review. For other NEOs, the Committee reviews the CEO’s assessment of their performance and proposed pay decisions. Only the Committee members are allowed to vote on decisions regarding NEO compensation. The CEO does not participate in the deliberations of the Committee regarding his own compensation.

Role of Compensation Consultant

The Compensation Committee has the sole authority to retain, terminate, obtain advice from, oversee and compensate its outside advisors, including its compensation consultant. The Compensation Committee has the funding it needs for these purposes.

The Compensation Committee retained Pearl Meyer in 2023 as its independent executive compensation consultant. The services Pearl Meyer provides include advising the Compensation Committee on the principal aspects of the executive compensation program and evolving best practices and providing market information and analysis regarding the competitiveness of our program design and awards in relationship to our performance.

None of the Company’s management team participated in the Compensation Committee’s decision to retain Pearl Meyer. Pearl Meyer reports directly to the Compensation Committee, and the Compensation Committee may replace Pearl Meyer or hire additional consultants at any time.

The Compensation Committee regularly reviews the services provided by its outside consultants and believes that Pearl Meyer is independent in providing executive compensation consulting services. The Compensation Committee conducted a specific review of its relationship with Pearl Meyer in 2023 and determined that Pearl Meyer’s work for the Compensation Committee did not raise any conflicts of interest taking into account the “independence factors” identified by the SEC and NASDAQ. The Compensation Committee continues to monitor the independence of its compensation consultant on a periodic basis.

In 2023, Pearl Meyer prepared executive compensation analyses with regard to the NEOs. This analysis included a review of the competitiveness of compensation levels, a pay for performance analysis, and a retention analysis. Pearl Meyer utilized a group of publicly traded financial institutions (collectively the “Peer Group”), disclosed in its analysis below.

Use of Peer Group

The Peer Group analysis is typically performed and reviewed annually. In order to capture an appropriate view of the Company’s competitors, Pearl Meyer utilized the following Peer Group, consisting of 22 banks, which are close to the Company’s size (generally, no more than twice as large and no less than half the size of the Company in terms of assets) and which are located in major urban/suburban areas of the Northeast United States. At the time the Peer Group analysis was performed, the median asset size of the Peer Group and the Company was $11.0 billion and $8.5 billion, respectively.

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Year over year changes to the Peer Group included the removal of Independent Bank Corporation and WSFS Financial Corporation due to asset growth that exceeded the desired asset range. Peapack-Gladstone Financial Corp. was added to the above group as it meets the selection criteria (e.g., assets ranges and regional location) and has a similar business model.

In determining the amount of compensation for the NEOs, the Compensation Committee typically reviews each element of total compensation against the Peer Group. Total compensation is comprised of annual base salary, annual earned bonus, the grant date value of long-term incentive awards, and other proxy-reported compensation not captured in salary, bonus, or long-term incentives. Based on the recommendation of Pearl Meyer, the Compensation Committee then considers setting salaries within a competitive range of the Peer Group based on individual performance. The Compensation Committee continues to focus on maintaining total compensation within our updated disclosed philosophy by assuring the variable components of compensation have a strong pay-for-performance orientation.

The Compensation Committee considered factors other than amounts paid by the Peer Group and other sources of compensation data when determining compensation amounts, such as the individual executive’s level of responsibility, individual performance, the financial and operational performance of the Company, and the Company’s performance in relation to internal budgeted amounts and performance of competitors. Indicators of financial and operational performance considered by the Compensation Committee include, among others, total assets, core operating pre-tax income, core operating earnings per diluted common share, core operating return on average equity and book value per share. The achievements of certain strategic goals that are part of the Company’s Strategic Plan were also taken into consideration. The Compensation Committee also compared the Company’s performance against the performance of the Peer Group with respect to certain other indicators, including such performance measures as total shareholder return, return on average assets, net interest margin, and efficiency ratio.

Our 2023 Executive Compensation Program In Detail

Base Salary

As outlined above under 2023 Compensation Actions-At-A-Glance, base salary is designed to provide competitive levels of guaranteed compensation to executives based upon their experience, duties, scope of responsibility, overall individual performance, and ability to successfully navigate complexities of the greater banking environment. Additionally, the Company pays base salaries because they provide a basic level of compensation that is necessary to retain key tenured executives, which was especially critical during 2023 in light of the banking crisis in March of 2023 when several large banks faced liquidity issues that caused a run on those banks by depositors and ultimately resulted in their failure or takeover that continued at various levels throughout 2023. The Committee reviewed these factors and Pearl Meyer’s analyses, while also considering an active backdrop of a very competitive marketplace for key talent and resolved to increase the base salaries for the NEOs, effective July 2023, by 10% to better align their total compensation versus our peers. The Committee also recognized these base salary adjustments were the first increases for the President & CEO, the Senior Executive Vice President/Chief Operating Officer, and the Senior Executive Vice President/Chief Real Estate Lending Officer in over six years dating back to January 2018.

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Performance-Based Annual Incentives

The Company offers NEOs the opportunity to earn performance-based annual cash incentive bonuses to drive achievement of performance goals for the year. These bonuses are provided consistent with the Company’s Annual Incentive Plan for Executives and Senior Officers (the “Incentive Bonus Plan”), which was adopted under the authority of our 2014 Omnibus Incentive Plan.

Under the Incentive Bonus Plan for 2023, the target bonus for each NEO as a percentage of his or her base salary was as follows:

For all of our NEOs, the performance criteria used were solely based on Company financial performance metrics. These criteria consisted of:

The Compensation Committee concluded that these performance criteria continued to be appropriate for 2023. They are well-recognized measures of performance and profitability in the banking industry.

The Company uses core operating results to set Incentive Bonus Plan target performance rather than using accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (“GAAP”) measures because core operating results exclude one-time gains and losses and other non-recurring items that may be related to strategic decisions involving long-term opportunities or risk mitigation. The Company believes this measure of earnings is an important indication of ongoing operations (as defined in the Reconciliation of GAAP and Core Earnings table provided in Exhibit 99.1 on the Company’s current report on Form 8-K filed on January 25, 2024). The Company believes this earnings measure is important to management and investors in evaluating its ongoing operating performance.

For each performance factor, the threshold performance level was set at 80% of the target level, and the maximum performance level was set at 130% of the target level. Performance results within these benchmarks are linearly interpolated. Target, minimum and maximum bonus amounts for established performance targets were subject to reduction, but not increase, at the discretion of the Compensation Committee.

The target performance levels for 2023 were consistent with the Company’s Strategic Plan as approved by the Board of Directors and were set in early 2023. The performance levels determined as set forth below for the Incentive Bonus Plan for 2023 were designed by the Compensation Committee consistent with the Company’s 2023 Strategic Plan and in the context of numerous complex and uncertain risks to our 2023 performance as described in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 15, 2024. The targets set for 2023 represented a decrease compared to actual 2022 achievement levels and 2022 target performance goals.

For 2023, target level performance was set as follows:

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As a result of the above considerations and based on our 2023 financial performance and consistent with our program design, the NEOs received annual incentive awards payouts of 30.0% of target.

The amount of compensation earned by each of the NEO’s under the Incentive Bonus Plan for 2023 is shown in the Summary Compensation Table on page 37 in the Non-Equity Incentive Plan Compensation column.

Long-Term Equity Incentive Compensation

The Company provides the NEOs with long-term equity incentive compensation to encourage them to focus on long-term Company performance and to provide an opportunity for them to increase their ownership stake in the Company.

The Compensation Committee periodically evaluates the use of all forms of long-term equity incentive instruments. Annual equity grants to the NEOs in 2023 consisted of a 50/50 mix of performance-based and time-based equity as follows:

The Compensation Committee grants performance-based and time-based restricted stock units to each of our NEOs to align with shareholder interests and to also limit shareholder dilution. Target award opportunities are determined using various factors, including individual performance, market data, and overall Company performance metrics.

The table below shows the annual equity awards, the number of target performance-based restricted stock units and time-based restricted stock units, and the grant date fair value of the awards, as reported in the Grants of Plan Based Awards in 2023 table on page 38 for each of the NEOs:

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In January 2023, the Compensation Committee determined the performance metrics for the performance-based restricted stock units which were the following two equally weighted metrics: (1) total charge offs, and (2) increase tangible book value per share. Performance-based restricted stock units will be earned, if at all, based on the achievement of the performance goals during the three-year performance period as determined by the Compensation Committee in its sole discretion. For each performance goal, the amount of performance-based restricted stock units that may be earned (as a percentage of the target grant amount) at each of the threshold, target and maximum levels are as follows:

Performance below the threshold-level during the performance period will result in no performance-based restricted stock units being earned with respect to the applicable performance goal. Performance above the maximum level during the performance period will result in no more than the maximum performance-based restricted stock units being earned with respect to the applicable performance goal. In addition, performance between the threshold-level and maximum-level will be calculated using linear interpolation.

In January of 2024, the Company’s 2021 performance-based restricted stock unit grant settled following completion of the three-year performance period (2021-2023). Target level performance for these grants was set in 2021 as follows for the two equally weighted metrics:

Based on the Company’s achievement of the performance goals in the three-year performance period, the Compensation Committee determined that the 2021 performance-based restricted stock units were earned at 140% of target.

The 2021 performance-based restricted stock unit grants that were earned by each of our NEOs are captured in the Outstanding Equity Awards at 2023 Fiscal Year-End Table on page 40.

Other Compensation Practices, Policies and Programs

Executive Stock Ownership Guidelines

The Compensation Committee has formally established Executive Stock Ownership Guidelines for executive officers as a way to align the interests of key executives more closely with those of the Company’s shareholders. These guidelines provide a direct link between executive rewards and Company results and encourage executives to consider Company performance from a long-term as well as short-term perspective.

These stock ownership guidelines apply to all long-term equity awards made to executive officers on or after June 1, 2006. The amount to be retained depends on the executive’s position. The President/CEO, Senior Executive Vice Presidents, and Executive Vice Presidents are required to retain 50% of their “profit shares” and certain Senior Vice Presidents must retain 25% of their “profit shares.” Profit shares are defined as net shares

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acquired upon vesting of full-value awards following payment of applicable taxes with respect to the award. Shares subject to the ownership guidelines must be retained while the executive is employed by the Company until the executive reaches age 61, after which time the executive may dispose annually 20% of the aggregate number of profit shares then held. Compliance with these guidelines is mandatory for all executive officers of the Company.

Compensation Clawback Features

We are subject to Section 304 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, which requires the recovery of any bonus, or other incentive-based or equity-based compensation received from the Company, as well as any profits realized from the sale of securities of the Company, from our CEO and CFO if we are required to restate our financials due to material noncompliance with any financial reporting requirements as a result of misconduct. We have never been required to recover any compensation from our CEO or CFO under this provision. In October of 2023, the Company also adopted a clawback policy consistent with the requirements of Exchange Act Rule 10D-1 and NASDAQ Listing Rule 5608.

Anti-hedging/Pledging Policy

We have a policy prohibiting our executive officers and directors from engaging in any form of hedging transaction (derivatives, equity swaps, forwards, etc.) in our stock, including, among other things, short sales and transactions involving publicly traded options. In addition, with limited exceptions, our executive officers are prohibited from holding our stock in margin accounts and from pledging our stock as collateral for loans. Our Insider Trading Policy, which is applicable to all levels of employees and to our directors, also prohibits all hedging transactions in our equity securities, regardless of whether or not such securities were granted as our compensation. These policies further align executives’ interests with those of our shareholders.

Retirement Benefits

Tax-Qualified Retirement Benefits

The Company provides tax-qualified retirement benefits to substantially all of its employees, including the NEOs, in order to provide a competitive compensation package within the market in which the Company operates.

In 2006, the Company froze its defined benefit Retirement Plan and replaced it with the Defined Contribution Retirement Program (“DCRP”). Under the DCRP, employees receive an annual Company contribution equal to 4% of their eligible base salary (up to tax law limits). In 2019, the Company froze eligibility to the DCRP, excluding new hires who joined the Company after 2019.

The Company offers a tax-qualified retirement savings plan pursuant to which all full-time employees are eligible to contribute up to 25% of their annual salary on a pre-tax and/or post-tax basis (subject to tax law limits). The Company matches 50% of the first 6% of salary contributed by the employee. Additionally, the Company may make a profit-sharing contribution in an amount determined by the Company’s Board of Directors each year in its discretion. Employees who joined the Company after 2019 are ineligible to participate in that profit sharing. For 2023, the contribution was approximately 1.5% of eligible compensation (defined generally as base salary and annual bonus, subject to tax law limits).

Supplemental Retirement Benefits

In addition to the tax-qualified retirement benefits discussed above, the Company provides the named executive officers and certain other executives with the opportunity to participate in a supplemental retirement plan, the Supplemental Savings Incentive Plan (“SSIP”), which offers these individuals the opportunity to receive certain benefits not permitted to be provided under the tax-qualified plans due to tax law limitations. However, the SSIP does not provide credits for DCRP contributions which cannot be made to the tax-qualified plan to the extent base salary exceeds tax law limits.

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The SSIP allows participating executives to defer a portion of their compensation. For amounts earned for 2019 or later, participating executives have the ability to defer up to 80% of their base salary and 100% of their bonus and incentive compensation into the SSIP. The Bank matches 50% of each participant’s eligible contributions to the SSIP. The maximum amount of the match, which varies by participant, is generally between 5% and 7% of base salary.

The Company also credits each participant’s account in the SSIP with a number of phantom shares of common stock of the Company equal to the number of shares of common stock that would have been contributed to the participant’s profit-sharing account under the tax-qualified plan but were not due to tax law limits. When dividends are paid on the common stock, dividend equivalents are deemed reinvested in additional phantom shares. These amounts are required to remain invested as phantom shares of Company common stock (whose value is determined by reference to the price of the Company’s common stock) until the participant’s termination of employment, thereby further aligning our executives’ interests with those of our shareholders. The Company wants management-level employees to have a significant investment in Company common stock and believes it is appropriate to have a portion of their supplemental retirement benefits invested in this way.

Pursuant to the terms of his employment agreement, Mr. Buran participated in a supplemental executive retirement plan (the “SERP”) as discussed in detail under the heading “Potential Payments Upon Termination or Change of Control” on page 45.

Perquisites and Other Personal Benefits

Perquisites and other benefits represent a small part of the Company’s overall compensation package and are offered only after consideration of business needs. Perquisites and other personal benefits provided to the NEOs are reviewed annually. The NEOs are provided with the use of a Company automobile or a car allowance. The use of company automobiles and car allowance are largely for business purposes. NEOs bear the tax cost attributable to their personal usage of the Company automobile. Attributed costs of this perquisite and other personal benefits for the NEOs for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, are not included in the Summary Compensation Table on page 37 since the aggregate incremental cost to the Company due to personal use for each named executive officer was less than $10,000.

Each NEO and certain other officers are offered the opportunity to participate in the Bank Owned Life Insurance (“BOLI”) provided by the Bank. In the event of a BOLI participant’s death while employed by the Bank, his or her beneficiaries are entitled to a death benefit from the policy equal to two times the participant’s base salary at the time of death. Upon retirement from the Bank with five years of service, the death benefit coverage under the policy reduces to one time the base salary plus $50,000. Upon a participant’s termination of employment from the Bank, after five years of service but before eligibility for retirement, the death benefit coverage under the policy reduces to one time the base salary. At the time the Bank purchased the insurance policy providing for this coverage, it paid a single premium intended to fully fund the policy. The Summary Compensation Table on page 37 reflects the value of the insurance coverage provided under the policy in accordance with Internal Revenue Service guidelines.

Employment Agreements

The Company has entered into employment agreements with the NEOs. Information regarding payments to the NEOs pursuant to such employment agreements upon termination of employment or a change of control is provided under the heading “Potential Payments Upon Termination or Change of Control” on page 45.

Risk Assessment of Executive Officer Compensation

In 2023, we continued to enhance our risk assessment processes to comply with the United States Department of the Treasury’s requirement that all incentive plans be reviewed to ensure they do not motivate

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unnecessary or excessive risk that threatens the value of the Company. The Company is regulated by the Federal Reserve and the Bank, which is a New York State chartered commercial bank, is regulated by the New York Department of Financial Services and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. We have always adhered to a conservative and balanced approach to risk. Our management and Board conduct regular reviews of our business in an effort to ensure we remain within appropriate regulatory guidelines and appropriate practice. We believe that our compensation programs reflect a balanced approach to rewarding performance across many different types of financial, customer, and employee performance measures.

Risk Assessment of Senior Executive Officer Plans

The Compensation Committee has reviewed the compensation programs for senior executive officers with the Company’s Chief Risk Officer. The Incentive Bonus Plan, which provides annual performance-based incentive compensation to our NEOs and other senior officers, contains a number of features that discourage our executives from taking unnecessary and excessive risk, including the following:

We believe that our approach to goal setting, setting of targets with payouts at multiple levels of performance, evaluation of performance results, and negative discretion in the payout of incentives helps to mitigate excessive risk-taking that could harm our value or reward poor judgment by our executives. Features of our programs reflect sound risk management practices. We believe that we have allocated our compensation among base salary and short- and long-term incentive compensation in such a way as to not encourage excessive risk-taking. Moreover, the multi-year vesting of our equity awards and our share ownership guidelines enhance risk management over time.

In addition, both the senior executive officer plans and the employee compensation plans are subject to controls which mitigate the risks inherent in these plans. These controls include our risk review with the Company’s Chief Risk Officer, accounting processes, internal and external audit functions, and processes surrounding internal control over financial reporting and disclosure controls.

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Compensation Committee Report

The Compensation Committee of the Board of Directors of the Company has reviewed and discussed the foregoing Compensation Discussion and Analysis with management and based on such review and discussions, the Compensation Committee recommended to the Board of Directors that the Compensation Discussion and Analysis be included in this Proxy Statement.

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Summary Compensation Table

The table below summarizes the total compensation of each of the named executive officers for the fiscal years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021. The Company has entered into employment agreements with the named executive officers. A description of the material terms of these employment agreements is provided under the heading “Potential Payments Upon Termination or Change of Control” on page 45.

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Grants of Plan Based Awards in 2023

All stock and non-equity incentive plan awards granted by the Company to the named executive officers in 2023 are shown in the following table. They were all granted under the 2014 Omnibus Incentive Plan.

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Outstanding Equity Awards at 2023 Fiscal Year-End