Pathfinder Bancorp, Inc.

Banking organizations are required to notify their primary federal regulator as soon as possible, and no later than 36 hours after, the banking organization determines that a “computer-security incident” rising to the level of a “notification incident” has occurred. Notification is required for incidents that have materially affected or are reasonably likely to materially affect the viability of a banking organization’s operations, its ability to deliver banking products and services, or the stability of the financial sector. Service providers are required under the rule to notify affected banking organization customers as soon as possible when the provider determines that it has experienced a computer-security incident that has materially affected or is reasonably likely to materially affect the banking organization’s customers for four or more hours.

Federal Home Loan Bank System. Pathfinder Bank is a member of the Federal Home Loan Bank System, which consists of eleven regional Federal Home Loan Banks. The Federal Home Loan Bank System provides a central credit facility primarily for member institutions as well as other entities involved in home mortgage lending. As a member of the FHLBNY, Pathfinder Bank is required to acquire and hold a specified amount of shares of capital stock in the FHLBNY. As of December 31, 2024, Pathfinder Bank was in compliance with this requirement.

Other Regulations

Interest and other charges collected or contracted for by Pathfinder Bank are subject to state usury laws and federal laws concerning interest rates. Pathfinder Bank’s operations are also subject to federal laws applicable to credit transactions, such as the:

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Truth-In-Lending Act, governing disclosures of credit terms to consumer borrowers;

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Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act, requiring that borrowers for mortgage loans for one-to-four family residential real estate receive various disclosures, including good faith estimates of settlement costs, lender servicing and escrow account practices, and prohibiting certain practices that increase the cost of settlement services;

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The TILA-RESPA Integrated Disclosure Rule, commonly known as the TRID rule. This rule amended the Truth in Lending Act and the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act to integrate several consumer disclosures for mortgage loans;

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Home Mortgage Disclosure Act, requiring financial institutions to provide information to enable the public and public officials to determine whether a financial institution is fulfilling its obligation to help meet the housing needs of the community it serves;

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Equal Credit Opportunity Act, prohibiting discrimination on the basis of race, creed or other prohibited factors in extending credit;

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Fair Credit Reporting Act, governing the use and provision of information to credit reporting agencies;

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Fair Debt Collection Act, governing the manner in which consumer debts may be collected by collection agencies;

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Truth in Savings Act;

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Rules and regulations of the various federal agencies charged with the responsibility of implementing such federal laws;

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Right to Financial Privacy Act, which imposes a duty to maintain confidentiality of consumer financial records and prescribes procedures for complying with administrative subpoenas of financial records;

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Electronic Funds Transfer Act and Regulation E promulgated thereunder, which govern automatic deposits to and withdrawals from deposit accounts and customers’ rights and liabilities arising from the use of automated teller machines and other electronic banking services;

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Check Clearing for the 21 st Century Act (also known as “Check 21”), which gives “substitute checks,” such as digital check images and copies made from that image, the same legal standing as the original paper check;

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USA PATRIOT Act, which requires banks operating to, among other things, establish broadened anti-money laundering compliance programs, due diligence policies and controls to ensure the detection and reporting of money laundering. Such required compliance programs are intended to supplement existing compliance requirements, also applicable to financial institutions, under the Bank Secrecy Act and the Office of Foreign Assets Control regulations; and

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Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act, which places limitations on the sharing of consumer financial information by financial institutions with unaffiliated third parties. Specifically, the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act requires all financial institutions offering financial products or services to retail customers to provide such customers with the financial institution’s privacy policy and provide such customers the opportunity to “opt out” of the sharing of certain personal financial information with unaffiliated third parties.

Holding Company Regulation

The Company, as a Bank Holding Company ("BHC"), is subject to examination, regulation, and periodic reporting under the Bank Holding Company Act of 1956, as amended, as administered by the Federal Reserve Board. The Company is required to obtain the prior approval of the Federal Reserve Board to acquire all, or substantially all, of the assets of any bank or bank holding company. Prior Federal Reserve Board approval would be required for the Company to acquire direct or indirect ownership or control of any voting securities of any bank or BHC if it would, directly or indirectly, own or control more than 5% of any class of voting shares of the bank or bank holding company.

A BHC is generally prohibited from engaging in, or acquiring, direct or indirect control of more than 5% of the voting securities of any company engaged in non-banking activities. One of the principal exceptions to this prohibition is for activities found by the Federal Reserve Board to be so closely related to banking or managing or controlling banks as to be a proper incident thereto. Some of the principal activities that the Federal Reserve Board has determined by regulation to be closely related to banking are: (i) making or servicing loans; (ii) performing certain data processing services; (iii) providing securities brokerage services; (iv) acting as fiduciary, investment or financial advisor; (v) leasing personal or real property under certain conditions; (vi) making investments in corporations or projects designed primarily to promote community welfare; and (vii) acquiring a savings association.

The Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act of 1999 authorizes a BHC that meets specified conditions, including depository institutions subsidiaries that are “well capitalized” and “well managed,” to opt to become a “financial holding company.” A “financial holding company” may engage in a broader array of financial activities than permitted a typical bank holding company. Such activities can include insurance underwriting and investment banking. The Company has elected to be a “financial holding company.”

On August 28, 2018, pursuant to EGRRCPA, the Federal Reserve Board issued an interim final rule revising the “Small Bank Holding Company Policy Statement” increasing the consolidated asset limit to $3 billion. Under the Policy Statement, a BHC that meets certain Qualitative Requirements:

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is exempt from the FRB's risk-based capital and leverage rules (Appendixes A and D of Regulation Y); and

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may use debt to finance up to 75% of the purchase price of an acquisition allowing a BHC to have a debt-to-equity ratio of up to 3:1.

The Policy Statement now applies to a BHC with consolidated assets of less than $3 billion that meets the following Qualitative Requirements: (i) it is not engaged in significant non-banking activities either directly or through a non-bank subsidiary; (ii) it does not conduct significant off-balance sheet activities, including securitizations or asset management or administration, either directly or through a non-bank subsidiary; or (iii) it does not have a material amount of debt or equity securities outstanding (other than trust preferred securities) that are registered with the SEC. BHCs that meet these Qualitative Requirements are determined to be "Qualifying BHCs". A Qualifying BHC is exempt from the FRB's risk-based capital and leverage rules. As a consequence, it does not have to comply with the Basel III Capital Adequacy rules. Each subsidiary bank of a Qualifying BHC must comply with the Basel III Capital Adequacy rules (or the Community Bank Leverage Ratio) and must be well-capitalized. If any subsidiary bank is not, the Federal Reserve Board expects it to become well-capitalized within a brief period of time. This Policy Statement applies to the Company.

A BHC is generally required to give the Federal Reserve Board prior written notice of any purchase or redemption of then outstanding equity securities if the gross consideration for the purchase or redemption, when combined with the net consideration paid for all such purchases or redemptions during the preceding 12 months, is equal to 10% or more of the company’s consolidated net worth. The Federal Reserve Board may disapprove such a purchase or redemption if it determines that the proposal would constitute an unsafe and unsound practice, or would violate any law, regulation, Federal Reserve Board order or directive, or any condition imposed by, or written agreement with, the Federal Reserve Board. The Federal Reserve Board has adopted an exception to that approval requirement for well-capitalized bank holding companies that meet certain other conditions. The Federal Reserve Board has issued guidance which requires consultation with the Federal Reserve Board prior to a redemption or repurchase in certain circumstances.

The Federal Reserve Board has issued a policy statement regarding the payment of dividends by BHCs. In general, the Federal Reserve Board’s policies provide that dividends should be paid only out of current earnings and only if the prospective rate of earnings retention by the BHC appears consistent with the organization’s capital needs, asset quality and overall financial condition. The Federal Reserve Board’s policies also require that a BHC serve as a source of financial strength to its subsidiary banks by using available resources to provide capital funds during periods of financial stress or adversity and by maintaining the financial flexibility and capital-raising capacity to obtain additional resources for assisting its subsidiary banks where necessary. The Dodd-Frank Act codified the source of strength policy. Under the prompt corrective action laws, the ability of a BHC to pay dividends may be restricted if a subsidiary bank

-19 - becomes undercapitalized. These regulatory policies could affect the ability of the Company to pay dividends or otherwise engage in capital distributions.

The Company and the Bank will be affected by the monetary and fiscal policies of various agencies of the United States Government, including the Federal Reserve System. In view of changing conditions in the national economy and in the money markets, it is impossible for management to accurately predict future changes in monetary policy or the effect of such changes on the business or financial condition of the Company or the Bank.

The Company’s status as a registered BHC under the Bank Holding Company Act will not exempt it from certain federal and state laws and regulations applicable to corporations generally, including, without limitation, certain provisions of the federal securities laws.

Federal Securities Laws

The Company’s common stock is registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. We are subject to the information, proxy solicitation, insider trading restrictions and other requirements under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

The registration under the Securities Act of 1933 of the Company’s shares of common stock issued in the Company’s initial stock offering does not cover the resale of those shares. Shares of common stock purchased by persons who are not our affiliates may be resold without registration. Shares purchased by our affiliates are subject to the resale restrictions of Rule 144 under the Securities Act of 1933. If we meet the current public information requirements of Rule 144 under the Securities Act of 1933, each affiliate of ours that complies with the other conditions of Rule 144, including those that require the affiliate’s sale to be aggregated with those of other persons, would be able to sell in the public market, without registration, a number of shares not to exceed, in any three-month period, the greater of 1% of our outstanding shares, or the average weekly volume of trading in the shares during the preceding four calendar weeks. In the future, we may permit affiliates to have their shares registered for sale under the Securities Act of 1933.

Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002

The Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 addresses, among other issues, corporate governance, auditing and accounting, executive compensation, and enhanced and timely disclosure of corporate information. We have prepared policies, procedures and systems designed to ensure compliance with these regulations.

FEDERAL AND STATE TAXATION

Deferred Income Tax Assets and Liabilities. Deferred income tax assets and liabilities are determined using the liability method. Under this method, the net deferred tax asset or liability is recognized for the future tax consequences. This is attributable to the differences between the financial statement carrying amounts of existing assets and liabilities and their respective tax bases as well as net operating and capital loss carry forwards. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are measured using enacted tax rates applied to taxable income in the years in which those temporary differences are expected to be recovered or settled. The effect on deferred tax assets and liabilities of a change in tax rates is recognized in income tax expense in the period that includes the enactment date. If current available evidence about the future raises doubt about the likelihood of a deferred tax asset being realized, a valuation allowance is established. The judgment about the level of future taxable income, including that which is considered capital, is inherently subjective and is reviewed on a continual basis as regulatory and business factors change.

Federal Taxation

General. The Bank and the Company are subject to federal income taxation in the same general manner as other corporations, with some exceptions discussed below. The following discussion of federal taxation is intended only to summarize certain pertinent federal income tax matters and is not a comprehensive description of the tax rules applicable to the Company or the Bank.

The Company’s federal tax returns are statutorily subject to potential audit for the years 2021 through 2024. No federal income tax returns are under audit as of the date of this report.

Method of Accounting. For federal income tax purposes, the Company currently reports its income and expenses on the accrual method of accounting and uses a tax year ending December 31 for filing its federal and state income tax returns.

Bad Debt Reserves. Prior to 1996, Pathfinder Bank was permitted to establish a reserve for bad debts and to make annual additions to the reserve. These additions could, within specified formula limits, be deducted in arriving at our taxable income. As a result of tax law changes in 1996, Pathfinder Bank was required to use the specific charge-off method in computing its bad debt deduction beginning with its 1996 federal tax return. Savings institutions were required to recapture any excess reserves over those established as of December 31, 1987 (base year reserve). At December 31, 2024, Pathfinder Bank had no reserves subject to recapture in excess of its base year reserves. The Bank continues to be required to use the specific charge-off method to account for tax bad debt deductions.

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Taxable Distributions and Recapture. Prior to 1996, bad debt reserves created prior to 1988 were subject to recapture into taxable income if Pathfinder Bank failed to meet certain thrift asset and definitional tests or made certain distributions. Tax law changes in 1996 eliminated thrift-related recapture rules. However, under current law, pre-1988 tax bad debt reserves remain subject to recapture if Pathfinder Bank makes certain non-dividend distributions, repurchases any of its common stock, pays dividends in excess of earnings and profits, or fails to qualify as a “bank” for tax purposes. At December 31, 2024, our total federal pre-base year bad debt reserve was approximately $1.3 million.

Net Operating Loss Carryovers. Federal tax law allows net operating losses to be carried forward indefinitely with the net operating loss deduction limited to 80% of taxable income in any carryforward year.

Corporate Dividends Received Deduction. The Company may exclude from its federal taxable income 100% of dividends received from Pathfinder Bank as a wholly-owned subsidiary by filing consolidated tax returns. The corporate dividends received deduction is 65% when the corporation receiving the dividend owns at least 20% of the stock of the distributing corporation. The dividends-received deduction is 50% when the corporation receiving the dividend owns less than 20% of the distributing corporation.

Employee Compensation. A publicly held corporation is not permitted to deduct compensation in excess of $1 million per year paid to certain employees. Federal tax law eliminates certain exceptions to the $1 million limit applicable under prior law related to performance-based compensation, such as equity grants and cash bonuses that are paid only on the attainment of performance goals.

Business Asset Expensing. Federal tax law allows taxpayers to immediately expense the entire cost of certain depreciable tangible property and real property improvements acquired and placed in service after September 27, 2017 and before January 1, 2023 (with an additional year for certain property). This 100% bonus depreciation is phased out proportionately for property placed in service on or after January 1, 2023 and before January 1, 2027 (with an additional year for certain property).

State Taxation

Pathfinder Bancorp, Inc., Pathfinder Bank, Whispering Oaks, and Pathfinder Risk Management Corporation report income on a combined basis to New York State. The New York State franchise tax is imposed in an amount equal to the greater of 6.5% of Business Income for companies with a Business Income Base up to $5 million, or 7.25% for companies with a Business Income Base greater than $5 million, 0.1875% of average Business Capital, or a fixed dollar amount based on New York sourced gross receipts.

As a Maryland business corporation, the Company is required to file an annual report with, and pay franchise taxes to, the State of Maryland.

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HUMAN CAPITAL RESOURCES

Our Mission

Our Mission, which is thoroughly communicated to all of our team members, is “To foster relationships with individuals and businesses within our communities to be the financial provider of choice. Our goal is to continually enhance the value of the Bank for the benefit of our shareholders, customers, employees and communities.”

Our Values

Our workplace culture is grounded in our customer and employee value proposition. We have adopted a formally-stated set of Values, which are also ingrained in our human capital resource management programs. These Values state that we are:

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Competent Professionals

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Service-Driven

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A Family

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Respectful

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Compassionate

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Proud

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Honest

Each of the Values, outlined above, are further defined in our internal communications, recognition programs, training programs and team-oriented activities.

Human Capital

The success of our business is highly dependent on our team members, who provide value to our customers and communities through their dedication to our mission and values. We define, exemplify and foster our culture by the Values listed above. We value our team members by investing in a healthy work-life balance, competitive compensation and benefit packages, and a vibrant, team-oriented environment centered on professional service and open communication among team members. We strive to build and maintain a high-performing culture by creating a work environment that attracts and retains outstanding, engaged team members who embody our company mantra of "Local. Community. Trust.”

Demographics

At December 31, 2024, we employed 186 team members, of which 172 were full-time, 10 were part-time, three were interns, and one was temporary. Our staff is comprised of approximately 74% women. We continue to grow and employ team members respectively across our three-county footprint as follows:

At December 31, 2024, approximately 55% of our staff was employed at our bank branch and loan production offices, with the remainder of our team employed within all other functional areas, including our customer-facing electronic commerce and call center units. None of these employees are represented by a collective bargaining agreement and management considers its relationship with employees to be good. During fiscal year 2024, we hired 71 employees, of which 56 were full-time, four were part-time, four were temporary, and seven were interns. Our voluntary turnover rates for the previous five years are as follows:

Culture

An open-minded community that engages excellence is fundamental to supporting the Pathfinder Bank vision to be a local bank that the community trusts. The communities in which we serve include persons of various race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation,

-22 - socio-economic status, age, physical and cognitive ability, religion and political belief. We are committed to valuing and sharing the strength of our differences in a safe and positive environment, while maintaining selection and promotion processes that are without bias.

This commitment is essential to reflecting the values of our team members and the society we serve today. It makes business sense because it helps us to attract and retain the best talent, it enables us to understand and meet clients' needs more effectively and thus provide a better quality service. We continue our commitment to equal employment opportunity through a robust anti-discrimination plan, which includes annual compensation analyses and ongoing reviews of our selection and hiring practices.

For the year 2024, the population of our workforce was as follows:

Compensation and Benefits

We provide a competitive compensation and benefits program to help meet the needs of our team members. In addition to salaries, these programs include annual bonuses, stock awards, a 401(k) Plan with an employer matching contribution in addition to an employer-paid annual contribution, healthcare and other insurance benefits, health savings, flexible spending accounts, paid time off, family leave, identity theft protection, telemedicine service, and an employee assistance program, including mental health services. The Company has surveyed employees to determine their benefits program preferences and has made program changes accordingly.

Learning and Development

We invest in the growth and development of our team members by providing a multi-dimensional approach to learning that empowers, intellectually grows, and professionally develops our colleagues. We encourage and support the growth and development of our team members and, wherever possible, seek to fill positions by promotion and transfer from within the organization. Continual learning and career development is advanced through performance and development conversations between team members and their managers, internally developed training programs, customized corporate training engagements and educational reimbursement programs. Reimbursement is available to team members enrolled in pre-approved degree or certification programs at accredited institutions that teach skills or knowledge relevant to our business, in compliance with Section 127 of the Internal Revenue Code, and for seminars, conferences, and other training events team members attend in connection with their job duties.

Retention Efforts

Employee retention helps us operate efficiently and achieve one of our business objectives. We believe our commitment to living out our core values, actively prioritizing concern for our team members’ well-being, supporting our team members’ career goals, offering competitive wages and providing valuable fringe benefits aids in retention of our top-performing team members. At December 31, 2024, 26.9% of our current staff had been with us for ten years or more. There is a team assigned to retention efforts as a strategic initiative for 2025 and forward.

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