UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, DC 20549
FORM
CURRENT REPORT
PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(D)
OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
Date of report (Date of earliest event reported):
(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Its Charter)
(State or Other Jurisdiction of Incorporation)
| (Commission File Number) |
(IRS Employer Identification No.) |
| (Address of Principal Executive Offices) | (Zip Code) |
(Registrant’s Telephone Number, Including Area Code)
Not Applicable
(Former Name or Former Address, if Changed Since Last Report)
Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the registrant under any of the following provisions (see General Instruction A.2. below):
| Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425) |
| Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12) |
| Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b)) |
| Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c)) |
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
| Title of each class |
Trading |
Name of each exchange on which registered | ||
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933 (§230.405 of this chapter) or Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (§240.12b-2 of this chapter).
Emerging growth company
If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This report contains statements that we believe are “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Rule 175 promulgated thereunder, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and Rule 3b-6 promulgated thereunder. All statements other than statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements. These statements relate to our financial condition, results of operations, plans, objectives, future performance, capital actions or business. They usually can be identified by the use of forward-looking language such as “will likely result,” “may,” “are expected to,” “is anticipated,” “potential,” “estimate,” “forecast,” “projected,” “intends to,” or may include other similar words or phrases such as “believes,” “plans,” “trend,” “objective,” “continue,” “remain,” or similar expressions, or future or conditional verbs such as “will,” “would,” “should,” “could,” “might,” “can,” or similar verbs. You should not place undue reliance on these statements, as they are subject to risks and uncertainties, including but not limited to the risk factors set forth in our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K as updated by our filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”).
There are a number of important factors that could cause future results to differ materially from historical performance and these forward-looking statements. Factors that might cause such a difference include, but are not limited to: (1) deteriorating credit quality; (2) loan concentration by location or industry of borrowers or collateral; (3) problems encountered by other financial institutions; (4) inadequate sources of funding or liquidity; (5) unfavorable actions of rating agencies; (6) inability to maintain or grow deposits; (7) limitations on the ability to receive dividends from subsidiaries; (8) cyber-security risks; (9) Fifth Third’s ability to secure confidential information and deliver products and services through the use of computer systems and telecommunications networks; (10) failures by third-party service providers; (11) inability to manage strategic initiatives and/or organizational changes; (12) inability to implement technology system enhancements, including the use of artificial intelligence; (13) failure of internal controls and other risk management programs; (14) losses related to fraud, theft, misappropriation or violence; (15) inability to attract and retain skilled personnel; (16) adverse impacts of government regulation; (17) governmental or regulatory changes or other actions; (18) failures to meet applicable capital requirements; (19) regulatory objections to Fifth Third’s capital plan; (20) regulation of Fifth Third’s derivatives activities; (21) deposit insurance premiums; (22) assessments for the orderly liquidation fund; (23) weakness in the national or local economies; (24) global political and economic uncertainty or negative actions; (25) changes in interest rates and the effects of inflation; (26) changes in U.S. trade policies, including the imposition of tariffs and retaliatory tariffs; (27) changes and trends in capital markets; (28) fluctuation of Fifth Third’s stock price; (29) volatility in mortgage banking revenue; (30) litigation, investigations, and enforcement proceedings; (31) breaches of contractual covenants, representations and warranties; (32) competition and changes in the financial services industry; (33) potential impacts of the adoption of real-time payment networks; (34) changing retail distribution strategies, customer preferences and behavior; (35) difficulties in identifying, acquiring or integrating suitable strategic partnerships, investments or acquisitions; (36) potential dilution from future acquisitions; (37) loss of income and/or difficulties encountered in the sale and separation of businesses, investments or other assets; (38) results of investments or acquired entities; (39) changes in accounting standards or interpretation or declines in the value of Fifth
Third’s goodwill or other intangible assets; (40) inaccuracies or other failures from the use of models; (41) effects of critical accounting policies and judgments or the use of inaccurate estimates; (42) weather-related events, other natural disasters, or health emergencies (including pandemics); (43) the impact of reputational risk created by these or other developments on such matters as business generation and retention, funding and liquidity; (44) changes in law or requirements imposed by Fifth Third’s regulators impacting our capital actions, including dividend payments and stock repurchases; (45) Fifth Third’s ability to meet its environmental and/or social targets, goals and commitments; and (46) risks relating to the pending merger with Comerica Incorporated, including Fifth Third’s inability to realize the anticipated benefits of the pending merger, the failure to satisfy the closing conditions of the pending merger or an unexpected delay in the closing of the pending merger and the disruption of Fifth Third’s business as a result of the pending merger.
You should refer to our periodic and current reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, or “SEC,” for further information on other factors, which could cause actual results to be significantly different from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. Moreover, you should treat these statements as speaking only as of the date they are made and based only on information then actually known to us. We expressly disclaim any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect any change in our expectations or any changes in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based, except as may be required by law, and we claim the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The information contained herein is intended to be reviewed in its totality, and any stipulations, conditions or provisos that apply to a given piece of information in one part of this report should be read as applying mutatis mutandis to every other instance of such information appearing herein.
Unless otherwise mentioned or unless the context requires otherwise, all references to “Fifth Third,” “we,” “us,” “our” or similar references mean Fifth Third Bancorp and its subsidiaries.
| Item 8.01 | Other Events. |
Offering of 4.566% Fixed Rate/Floating Rate Senior Notes Due 2032 and of 5.141% Fixed Rate/Floating Rate Senior Notes Due 2037 (the “Senior Notes”). On January 29, 2026, Fifth Third issued $1,000,000,000 in principal amount of its 4.566% Fixed Rate/Floating Rate Senior Notes due 2032 and $1,000,000,000 in principal amount of its 5.141% Fixed Rate/Floating Rate Senior Notes due 2037 (the “Senior Notes Offering”) sold pursuant to an Underwriting Agreement (the “Underwriting Agreement”) with Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC, BofA Securities, Inc., Fifth Third Securities, Inc. and Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC. On January 29, 2026, Fifth Third entered into a Supplemental Indenture with Wilmington Trust Company, as Trustee, which modifies the existing Indenture for Senior Debt Securities dated as of April 30, 2008, as amended by Article 4 of the Twelfth Supplemental Indenture dated as of April 25, 2022 between Fifth Third and the Trustee. The Supplemental Indenture and the Indenture define the rights of the Senior Notes, which Senior Notes are represented by Global Securities dated as of January 29, 2026. The net proceeds from the sale of the Senior Notes after the underwriting discount and estimated expenses to be paid by Fifth Third are approximately $1,987,881,800.
The Senior Notes Offering is described in Fifth Third’s prospectus supplement dated January 26, 2026, together with the related prospectus dated March 21, 2025, filed with the SEC under Rule 424(b) on January 28, 2026.
The Underwriting Agreement, the Supplemental Indenture and the Global Securities representing the Senior Notes contain various representations, warranties and agreements by Fifth Third, conditions to closing, indemnification rights and obligations of the parties, and termination provisions. The descriptions of the Underwriting Agreement, the Supplemental Indenture and the Global Securities, and other documents relating to this transaction do not purport to be complete and are qualified in their entirety by reference to the full text of such securities and documents, forms or copies of which are attached hereto as exhibits and incorporated herein by reference.
*****************
The Senior Notes sold in the Senior Notes Offering were registered by Fifth Third pursuant to an automatic shelf registration statement on Form S-3 (SEC File No. 333-286007) filed with the SEC on March 21, 2025.
| Item 9.01 | Financial Statements and Exhibits |
(d) Exhibits
Exhibits below relate to Registration Number 333-286007 on Form S-3 of Fifth Third Bancorp and are filed herewith for incorporation by reference in such Registration Statement:
4.2 – Form of 4.566% Fixed Rate/Floating Rate Senior Notes due 2032.
4.3 – Form of 5.141% Fixed Rate/Floating Rate Senior Notes due 2037.
23.1 – Consent of Bricker Graydon Wyatt LLP (included in opinion filed as Exhibit 5.1).
104 - Cover Page Interactive Data File (embedded within the Inline XBRL document).
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
| FIFTH THIRD BANCORP | ||||||
| (Registrant) | ||||||
| January 29, 2026 | /s/ Bryan D. Preston | |||||
| Bryan D. Preston | ||||||
| Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer | ||||||