8-K

UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934
Date of Report (Date of Earliest Event Reported):
January 18, 2018
FIRST MID-ILLINOIS BANCSHARES, INC.
(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in its Charter)
Delaware	0-13368		37-1103704
(State of Other Jurisdiction	(Commission File Number)		(IRS Employer
of Incorporation)			Identification No.)
1421 CHARLESTON AVENUE
MATTOON, IL		61938
(Address of Principal Executive Offices)		(Zip Code)
(217) 234-7454
(Registrant’s Telephone Number, including Area Code)

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:

[x]	Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17CFR 230.425)
[ ]	Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17CFR 240.14a-12)
[ ]	Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17CFR 240.14d-2(b))
[ ]	Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17CFR 240.13e-4(c))

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. [ ]

Item 1.01. Entry into a Material Definitive Agreement

On January 18, 2018, First Mid-Illinois Bancshares, Inc. (the “Company”), Project Hawks Merger Sub LLC, a Delaware limited liability company and wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company (“Merger Sub”), and First BancTrust Corporation, a Delaware corporation (“First Bank”), entered into a First Amendment to Agreement and Plan of Merger (the “Amendment”), which amends the previously announced Agreement and Plan of Merger (the “Original Merger Agreement”), dated as of December 11, 2017, by and among the Company, Merger Sub (then known as Project Hawks Merger Sub Corp.) and First Bank.

The Amendment reflects Merger Sub’s conversion from a Delaware corporation to a Delaware limited liability company on January 18, 2018, and modifies the structure of the merger provided for in the Original Agreement so that First Bank will be merged with and into Merger Sub, with Merger Sub continuing as the surviving company and a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company.

Other than as expressly modified pursuant to the Amendment, the Original Merger Agreement, which was previously filed as Exhibit 2.1 to the Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission by the Company on December 12, 2017, remains in full force and effect.  The foregoing description of the Amendment is not complete and is qualified in its entirety by reference to the full text of the Amendment, a copy of which is filed as Exhibit 2.1 hereto, which is attached hereto as Exhibit 2.1 and is incorporated herein by reference.

Forward Looking Statements

This document may contain certain forward-looking statements about First Mid and First Bank, such as discussions of First Mid’s and First Bank’s pricing and fee trends, credit quality and outlook, liquidity, new business results, expansion plans, anticipated expenses and planned schedules. First Mid and First Bank intend such forward-looking statements to be covered by the safe harbor provisions for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1955. Forward-looking statements, which are based on certain assumptions and describe future plans, strategies and expectations of First Mid and First Bank, are identified by use of the words “believe,” “expect,” “intend,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “project,” or similar expressions. Actual results could differ materially from the results indicated by these statements because the realization of those results is subject to many risks and uncertainties, including, among other things, the possibility that any of the anticipated benefits of the proposed transactions between First Mid and First Bank will not be realized or will not be realized within the expected time period; the risk that integration of the operations of First Bank with First Mid will be materially delayed or will be more costly or difficult than expected; the inability to complete the proposed transactions due to the failure to obtain the required stockholder approval; the failure to satisfy other conditions to completion of the proposed transactions, including receipt of required regulatory and other approvals; the failure of the proposed transactions to close for any other reason; the effect of the announcement of the transaction on customer relationships and operating results; the possibility that the transaction may be more expensive to complete than anticipated, including as a result of unexpected factors or events; changes in interest rates; general economic conditions and those in the market areas of First Mid and First Bank; legislative/regulatory changes; monetary and fiscal policies of the U.S. Government, including policies of the U.S. Treasury and the Federal Reserve Board; the quality or composition of First Mid’s and First Bank’s loan or investment portfolios and the valuation of those investment portfolios; demand for loan products; deposit flows; competition, demand for financial services in the market areas of First Mid and First Bank; and accounting principles, policies and guidelines. Additional information concerning First Mid, including additional factors and risks that could materially affect First Mid’s financial results, are included in First Mid’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), including its Annual Reports on Form 10-K. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made. Except as required under the federal securities laws or the rules and regulations of the SEC, we do not undertake any obligation to update or review any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Important Information about the Merger and Additional Information

First Mid will file a registration statement on Form S-4 with the SEC in connection with the proposed transaction. The registration statement will include a proxy statement of First Bank that also constitutes a prospectus of First Mid, which will be sent to the stockholders of First Bank. Investors in First Bank are urged to read the proxy statement/prospectus, which will contain important information, including detailed risk factors, when it becomes available. The proxy statement/prospectus and other documents which will be filed by First Mid with the SEC will be available free of charge at the SEC’s website, www.sec.gov, or by directing a request when such a filing is made to First Mid-Illinois Bancshares, P.O. Box 499, Mattoon, IL 61938, Attention: Investor Relations; or to First BancTrust Corporation, 114 West Church Street, Champaign, IL 61824, Attention: Investor Relations. A final proxy statement/prospectus will be mailed to the stockholders of First Bank.

This communication shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy securities, nor shall there be any sale of securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of such jurisdiction.

Participants in the Solicitation

First Mid and First Bank, and certain of their respective directors, executive officers and other members of management and employees are participants in the solicitation of proxies in connection with the proposed transactions. Information about the directors and executive officers of First Mid is set forth in the proxy statement for its 2017 annual meeting of stockholders, which was filed with the SEC on March 14, 2017. Information about the directors and executive officers of First Bank is set forth in its proxy statement for its 2017 annual meeting of stockholders, which is available on its website. Investors may obtain additional information regarding the interests of such participants in the proposed transactions by reading the proxy statement/prospectus for such proposed transactions when it becomes available.

Item 9.01.     Financial Statements and Exhibits

(d)   Exhibits

Exhibit Number	Description
2.1	First Amendment to Agreement and Plan of Merger by and among First Mid-Illinois Bancshares, Inc., Project Hawks Merger Sub LLC (formerly known as Project Hawks Merger Sub Corp.) and First BancTrust Corporation, dated January 18, 2018.

SIGNATURE

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.

FIRST MID-ILLINOIS BANCSHARES, INC.

Dated: January 19, 2018

By:

Joseph R. Dively

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

EX-2.1

Exhibit 2.1

FIRST AMENDMENT

TO

AGREEMENT AND PLAN OF MERGER

This FIRST AMENDMENT TO AGREEMENT AND PLAN OF MERGER (this “First Amendment”) is entered into as of the 18th day of January, 2018, by and among First Mid-Illinois Bancshares, Inc., a Delaware corporation (“Parent”), Project Hawks Merger Sub LLC, a Delaware limited liability company formerly known as Project Hawks Merger Sub Corp. (“Merger Sub”), and First BancTrust Corporation, a Delaware corporation (the “Company”). Each of Parent, Merger Sub and the Company are referred to herein as a “Party” and collectively as the “Parties.”

WHEREAS, the Parties entered into that certain Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated as of December 11, 2017 (the “Agreement”), pursuant to the terms of which Merger Sub would have merged with and into the Company;

WHEREAS, on the date hereof, Merger Sub was converted from a Delaware corporation to a Delaware limited liability company, in accordance with the DGCL and the DLLCA, and, as a result thereof, Parent is the sole member of Merger Sub;

WHEREAS, Section 9.6 of the Agreement prohibits any modifications or amendments to the Agreement other than by written agreement of the Parties; and

WHEREAS, the Parties desire to amend the Agreement pursuant to Sections 1.4(e) and 9.6 of the Agreement as herein provided.

NOW, THEREFORE,in consideration of the premises, the mutual covenants hereinafter contained, and other good and valuable consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of which are hereby acknowledged, and intending to be legally bound hereby, subject to the terms and conditions set forth herein, Parent and the Company hereby agree as follows:

1.General. The Agreement is amended, as of the date on which the Parties execute this First Amendment, by adding, deleting or otherwise modifying the provisions of the Agreement as noted herein. All other provisions of the Agreement remain intact and by signing below, each of the Parties reaffirms its agreement to be bound by the terms and conditions of the Agreement (as hereby amended by this First Amendment). This First Amendment is part of the Agreement. Capitalized terms used but not defined in this First Amendment shall have the same meanings ascribed to such terms in the Agreement.

2.Amendments.

a.The first “WHEREAS” clause in the Recitals of the Agreement is hereby amended and restated in its entirety to read as follows:

“WHEREAS, the Parent Board and the Company Board, and the sole member of Merger Sub, have each approved and declared it advisable and in the best interests of the Parties and their respective stockholders to effect a reorganization, whereby the Company will merge with and into Merger Sub, in the manner and on the terms and subject to the conditions set forth in ARTICLE I (the “Merger”), as a result of which Merger Sub will be the Surviving Company;”

b.The first sentence of Section 1.1 of the Agreement is hereby amended and restated in its entirety to read as follows:

“Upon the terms and subject to the conditions of this Agreement, on the Closing Date and in accordance with the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware, as amended (the “DGCL”), and the Limited Liability Company Act of the State of Delaware, as amended (the “DLLCA”), the Company shall be merged with and into Merger Sub, whereupon the separate corporate existence of the Company shall cease, and Merger Sub shall continue as the company surviving the Merger (the “Surviving Company”).”

c.The first sentence of Section 1.2 of the Agreement is hereby amended and restated in its entirety to read as follows:

“As of the Closing, the Parties will cause the certificate of merger (the “Certificate of Merger”) to be executed and filed with the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware (the “DE SOS”) as provided in the DGCL and DLLCA.”

d.Section 1.3 of the Agreement is hereby amended and restated in its entirety to read as follows:

“1.3Effects of the Merger. At and as of the Effective Time:

as a result of the Merger, the certificate of formation and limited liability company agreement of Merger Sub shall be the certificate of formation and limited liability company agreement of the Surviving Company;

the officers of the Surviving Company shall be the officers of Merger Sub serving immediately prior to the Effective Time, who shall continue in office for the terms provided in the limited liability company agreement of the Surviving Company and until their successors are duly elected or appointed and qualified; and

the Merger shall have the effects set forth in the applicable provisions of the DGCL and DLLCA and, without limiting the generality of the foregoing, at the Effective Time, all of the property, rights, privileges, powers and franchises of the Company shall be vested in the Surviving Company, and all debts, liabilities and duties of the Company shall become the debts, liabilities and duties of the Surviving Company.”

e.Section 1.6(f) of the Agreement is hereby amended and restated in its entirety to read as follows:

“Any portion of the Conversion Fund that remains unclaimed by the stockholders of the Company twelve months after the Effective Time shall be paid to the Surviving Company, or its successors in interest. Any stockholders of the Company who have not theretofore complied with this ARTICLE I shall thereafter look only to the Surviving Company, or its successors in interest, for the issuance of the Cash Consideration, the payment of the Parent Stock Consideration and the payment of

cash in lieu of any fractional shares deliverable in respect of such stockholders’ shares of Company Common Stock, as well as any accrued and unpaid dividends or distributions on such Parent Stock Consideration. Notwithstanding the foregoing, none of Parent, the Surviving Company, the Exchange Agent or any other Person shall be liable to any former holder of shares of Company Common Stock for any amount delivered in good faith to a public official pursuant to applicable abandoned property, escheat or similar laws.”

f.Section 2.4(b)(i) of the Agreement is hereby amended and restated in its entirety to read as follows:

“(i) materially interfere with the Ordinary Course of Business conducted by the Company, any Company Subsidiary or the Surviving Company or”

g.Section 2.5(c) of the Agreement is hereby amended and restated in its entirety to read as follows:

“(c) the filing of the Certificate of Merger with the DE SOS under the DGCL and the DLLCA.”

h.The second sentence of Section 3.1(a) of the Agreement is hereby amended and restated in its entirety to read as follows:

“Merger Sub is a limited liability company duly organized, validly existing and in good standing under the laws of the State of Delaware, has the limited liability company power and authority to own its own properties and to carry on its business as it is now being conducted, and is duly qualified and in good standing as a foreign limited liability company in each jurisdiction where the location and character of its properties and the business conducted by it require such qualification, except where the failure to be so qualified would not have a Material Adverse Effect on Parent.”

i.Section 3.4(e) of the Agreement is hereby amended and restated in its entirety to read as follows:

“(e) the filing of the Certificate of Merger with the DE SOS under the DGCL and the DLLCA.”

j.The term “Surviving Corporation” in the “Index of Defined Terms” of the Agreement is hereby amended and restated in its entirety to be “Surviving Company”.

3. Ratification. As amended by this First Amendment, the Agreement is in all respects ratified and confirmed, and as so amended by this First Amendment, the Agreement shall be read, taken and construed as one and the same instrument. Upon the execution of this First Amendment, each reference in the First Agreement or the Agreement to “this Agreement,” “hereby,” “hereunder,” “herein,” “hereof” or words of like import referring to the Agreement shall mean and refer to the Agreement as amended by this First Amendment. Any and all notices, requests, certificates and other instruments executed and delivered prior to, on or after the date of this First Amendment may refer to the Agreement without making specific reference to this First Amendment, but nevertheless all references to the Agreement shall be a reference to such document as amended hereby.

4.Counterparts. This First Amendment may be executed in more than one counterpart, each of which shall be deemed an original, but all of which, taken together, shall constitute one and the same instrument and shall become effective when counterparts have been signed by each Party and delivered to the other Parties, it being understood that each Party need not sign the same counterpart.

** Signature Page Follows **

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Parties have each executed this First Amendment to Agreement and Plan of Merger as of the day and year first written above.

FIRST MID-ILLINOIS BANCSHARES, INC.

By: /s/ Joseph R. Dively

Name: Joseph R. Dively

Title: Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

PROJECT HAWKS MERGER SUB LLC, formerly known as Project Hawks Merger Sub Corp.

By: FIRST MID-ILLINOIS BANCSHARES, INC., its sole member

By: /s/ Joseph R. Dively

Name: Joseph R. Dively

Title: Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

FIRST BANCTRUST CORPORATION

By: /s/ Jack Franklin

Name: Jack Franklin

Title: Chairman and Chief Executive Officer