OREANDA-NEWS. August 20, 2015. Bankwell Financial Group, Inc. (NASDAQ:BWFG) (the “Company” or “Bankwell”), the parent company of Bankwell Bank, today announced that it has completed a private placement of \\$25.5 million in aggregate principal amount of fixed rated subordinated notes (the “Notes”) to certain institutional investors. The Notes are non-callable for five years, have a stated maturity of August 15, 2025, and bear interest at a quarterly pay fixed rate of 5.75% per year to the maturity date or any early redemption date.

The Notes have been structured to quality for the Company as Tier 2 capital under regulatory guidelines. The Company plans to use the net proceeds from the sales of the Notes for general corporate purposes, including to redeem the approximately \\$11.0 million outstanding of its Senior Noncumulative Perpetual Preferred Stock issued in 2011 to the U.S. Treasury under the Small Business Lending Fund Program. The Notes were assigned an investment grade rating of BBB by Kroll Bond Rating Agency.

Keefe, Bruyette & Woods, A Stifel Company, served as the sole placement agent for the private offering. Hinckley, Allen & Snyder LLP served as issuer’s counsel and Goodwin Procter LLP served as placement agent’s counsel.

The Notes have not been registered under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or any state securities laws and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an applicable exemption from registration requirements. The Company has agreed to take steps to exchange the privately placed notes for registered notes having substantially the same terms and to file a registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission in connection therewith.

This press release does not constitute an offer to sell, or the solicitation of an offer to buy, any security and will not constitute an offer, solicitation or sale in any jurisdiction in which such offering would be unlawful.

About Bankwell Financial Group, Inc.

Bankwell is a commercial bank that serves the banking and lending needs of residents and businesses throughout Fairfield and New Haven Counties, CT. For more information about this press release, interested parties may contact Christopher R. Gruseke, President and Chief Executive Officer or Ernest J. Verrico Sr., Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Bankwell Financial Group at (203) 652-0166.

For more information, visit www.mybankwell.com.