Chime Financial, Inc. Class A (CHYM) Risk Analysis

Certain stock index providers have excluded companies with multiple classes of shares of common stock from being added to certain stock indices. Accordingly, the multi-class structure of our common stock would make us ineligible for inclusion in indices with such restrictions and, as a result, mutual funds, exchange-traded funds, and other investment vehicles that attempt to passively track those indices may not invest in our Class A common stock. In addition, several stockholder advisory firms and large institutional investors have been critical of the use of multi-class structures. Such stockholder advisory firms may publish negative commentary about our corporate governance practices or our capital structure, which may dissuade large institutional investors from purchasing shares of our Class A common stock. These actions could make our Class A common stock less attractive to other investors and may result in a less active trading market for our Class A common stock.

The market price of our Class A common stock may fluctuate substantially, depending on a number of factors, many of which are beyond our control and may not be related to our operating performance. These fluctuations may cause you to lose all or part of your investment in our Class A common stock. Factors that may cause fluctuations in the market price of our Class A common stock include the following: - price and volume fluctuations in the overall stock market from time to time, including fluctuations due to general economic uncertainty or negative market sentiment;- volatility in the market and trading volumes of technology and financial services stocks;- changes in the operating performance and stock market valuations of other technology or financial services companies generally, or those in our industry in particular;- sales of shares of our Class A common stock by us or our stockholders, as well as the anticipation of lock-up releases;- rumors and market speculation involving us or other companies in our industry;- failure of securities analysts to maintain coverage of us, changes in financial estimates by securities analysts who follow our company, or our failure to meet these estimates or the expectations of investors;- actual or perceived significant data breaches involving our business;- the financial or non-financial projections we may provide to the public, any changes in those projections or our failure to meet those projections;- third-party data published about us or other companies in our industry, whether or not such data is accurate;- announcements by us or our competitors of new products;- the public's reaction to our press releases, other public announcements, and filings with the SEC;- fluctuations in the trading volume of shares of our Class A common stock or the size of our public float;- repurchases or expectations with respect to repurchases of our Class A common stock by us;- short selling of our Class A common stock or related derivative securities;- actual or anticipated changes or fluctuations in our results of operations;- actual or anticipated developments in our business, our competitors' businesses, or the competitive landscape generally;- our issuance of shares of our Class A common stock;- litigation or regulatory action involving us, our industry or both, or investigations by regulators into our operations or those of our competitors;- developments or disputes concerning our intellectual property or other proprietary rights;- announced or completed acquisitions of businesses or technologies, or similar strategic transactions, by us or our competitors;- new laws or regulations or new interpretations of existing laws or regulations applicable to our business;- changes in accounting standards, policies, guidelines, interpretations, or principles;- major catastrophic events such as war, incidents of terrorism, pandemics, or responses to such events;- any significant change in our management; and - general economic conditions and slow or negative growth of our markets. In addition, if the market for technology stocks or the stock market in general experiences a loss of investor confidence, the market price of our Class A common stock may decline for reasons unrelated to our business, financial condition, or results of operations. The market price of our Class A common stock may also decline in reaction to events that affect other companies in our industry even if these events do not directly affect us. Accordingly, we cannot assure you of the liquidity of any trading market, your ability to sell your shares of our Class A common stock when desired, or the prices that you may obtain for your shares of our Class A common stock. In the past, stockholders have initiated securities class action lawsuits against companies following periods of stock price volatility. If the market price of our Class A common stock is volatile, we may become the target of securities litigation. Such litigation may subject us to substantial costs, divert resources and management's attention, and adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations. Furthermore, certain stockholders are entitled, under our amended and restated investors' rights agreement, to demand registration rights. In addition, we intend to file a registration statement to register shares reserved for future issuance under our equity compensation plans. Upon effectiveness of that registration statement, subject to the satisfaction of applicable exercise periods and the expiration or waiver of the market standoff agreements and lock-up agreements referred to above, the shares issued upon exercise of outstanding stock options will be available for immediate resale in the United States in the open market.

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation authorizes us to issue up to an aggregate of 5,565,000,000 shares of common stock and up to 100,000,000 shares of preferred stock with such rights, powers, and preferences as may be determined by our board of directors. Subject to compliance with applicable rules and regulations, we may issue shares of Class A common stock or securities convertible into shares of our Class A common stock from time to time in connection with a financing, acquisition, investment, our equity incentive plans, or otherwise. Any such issuances may result in substantial dilution to our existing stockholders and cause the market price of our Class A common stock to decline.

In November 2025, our board of directors authorized a share repurchase program to repurchase up to $200.0 million of our outstanding shares of Class A common stock. In May 2026, our board of directors approved an additional $200.0 million share repurchase authorization. Under this program, repurchases may be made from time to time through open market purchases, in privately negotiated transactions, or by other means, including through the use of trading plans intended to qualify under Rule 10b5-1 under the Exchange Act, in accordance with applicable securities laws. Open market repurchases may be structured to occur in accordance with the requirements of Rule 10b-18 of the Exchange Act. The share repurchase program does not have a fixed expiration date, may be suspended or discontinued at any time, and does not obligate us to acquire any amount of Class A common stock. The timing, manner, and amount of any repurchases will depend on a variety of factors, including legal requirements, price, economic and market conditions and other considerations. In addition, the United States imposes a 1% excise tax on certain stock repurchases, which may increase the costs associated with repurchasing shares of our Class A common stock. We cannot guarantee that the share repurchase program will be fully consummated or that it will enhance long-term stockholder value. The share repurchase program could also affect the trading price of our Class A common stock and increase volatility, and any announcement of a reduction, suspension or termination of the program may result in a decrease in the trading price of our Class A common stock. In addition, repurchasing shares of our Class A common stock could diminish our cash and cash equivalents and marketable securities available to fund working capital, repayment of debt, capital expenditures, strategic acquisitions, investments, or business opportunities, and other general corporate purposes.

Our status as a Delaware corporation and the anti-takeover provisions of the Delaware General Corporation Law may discourage, delay, or prevent a change in control by prohibiting us from engaging in a business combination with an interested stockholder for a period of three years after the date of the transaction in which the person became an interested stockholder, even if a change of control would be beneficial to our existing stockholders. In addition, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and amended and restated bylaws contain provisions that may make the acquisition of our company more difficult, including the following: - our multi-class common stock structure, which provides our Co-Founders with the ability to significantly influence or determine any action requiring the approval of our stockholders, even if they own significantly less than a majority of the shares of our outstanding Class A common stock, Class B common stock, and Class C common stock;- any amendments to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation that require stockholder approval will require the affirmative vote of the holders of at least a majority of the voting power of the outstanding shares of our capital stock entitled to vote generally in the election of directors voting together as a single class;- any adoption, amendment, alteration, or repeal of our amended and restated bylaws by our stockholders will require the affirmative vote of the holders of at least a majority of the total voting power of our outstanding voting securities, voting together as a single class;- with respect to vacancies on our board of directors, (A) prior to the first date on which the outstanding shares of our Class B common stock represent less than a majority of the total voting power of the then outstanding shares of our capital stock entitled to vote generally in the election of directors (the "Voting Threshold Date"), vacancies on our board of directors may be filled only by our board of directors, except if such vacancy is created by the removal of a director by the stockholders, in which case, the vacancy may be filled by a vote of the stockholders or, if not filled within 60 days, by a vote of a majority of the remaining members of our board of directors, and (B) on or after the Voting Threshold Date, vacancies on our board of directors will be able to be filled only by vote of a majority of the remaining members of our board of directors and not by stockholders;- our board of directors is classified into three classes of directors with staggered three-year terms;- with respect to availability of stockholder action by written consent, (A) prior to the Voting Threshold Date, our stockholders will only be able to take action by written consent if such action is first recommended or approved by our board of directors or our board of directors and our secretary have been provided with at least 30 days' prior written notice of such action, and (B) on or after the Voting Threshold Date, our stockholders will only be able to take action at a meeting of stockholders and will not be able to take action by written consent for any matter;- a special meeting of our stockholders will only be able to be called by a majority of our entire board of directors, the chairman of our board of directors, our Chief Executive Officer, or our president;- advance notice procedures apply for stockholders to nominate candidates for election as directors or to bring matters before an annual meeting of stockholders;- our amended and restated certificate of incorporation does not provide for cumulative voting;- our amended and restated certificate of incorporation allows stockholders to remove directors only for cause; and - our amended and restated certificate of incorporation authorizes undesignated preferred stock, the terms of which may be established and shares of which may be issued by our board of directors, without further action by our stockholders. These provisions, alone or together, may discourage, delay, or prevent a transaction involving a change in control of our company. These provisions may also discourage proxy contests and make it more difficult for stockholders to elect directors of their choosing and to cause us to take other corporate actions they desire, any of which may limit the opportunity for our stockholders to receive a premium for their shares of our Class A common stock, and may also affect the market price of our Class A common stock. Further, because our Co-Founders have not entered into a voting agreement or otherwise agreed to act together for the purpose of voting shares of our common stock, there is no formal or contractual mechanism that requires them to vote together on any matter submitted to stockholders and they may vote differently. As a result, any disagreement between our Co-Founders on a matter submitted to stockholders that requires the affirmative vote of the holders of at least a majority of the voting power of the outstanding shares of our capital stock voting together as a single class, such as amendments to our certificate of incorporation or certain transactions involving a change of control of our company, may make it more difficult to obtain the required stockholder approval.