The information contained in this section should be read in conjunction with our Consolidated Financial Statements appearing elsewhere in this quarterly report on Form 10-Q. In this quarterly report on Form 10-Q, the "Company", "we", "us", "our" and "WhiteHorse Finance" refer to WhiteHorse Finance, Inc. and its consolidated subsidiaries.

Forward-Looking Statements

Some of the statements in this quarterly report on Form 10-Q constitute forward-looking statements, which relate to future events or our future performance or financial condition. The forward-looking statements contained in this quarterly report on Form 10-Q involve risks and uncertainties, including statements as to:

? our future operating results;

? our ability to consummate new investments and the impact of such investments;

our ability to continue to effectively manage our business and our business

? prospects and the prospects of our prospective portfolio companies, due to the

significant disruptions caused by the current pandemic caused by the novel

coronavirus (commonly known as "COVID-19");

? the ability of our portfolio companies to achieve their objectives;

? our contractual arrangements and relationships with third parties;

changes in political, economic or industry conditions, the interest rate

environment or conditions affecting the financial and capital markets, which

? could result in changes to the value of our assets, including changes from the

impact of the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine and the prolonged

lockdowns in China due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic;

? the elevating levels of inflation, and the potential impact of inflation on our

portfolio companies and on the industries in which we invest;

? the dependence of our future success on the general economy and its impact on

the industries in which we invest;

? the impact of increased competition;

? the ability of our investment adviser to locate suitable investments for us and

to monitor our investments;

? our expected financings and investments and the rate at which our investments

are refunded by portfolio companies;

? our ability to pay dividends or make distributions;

? the adequacy of our cash resources and working capital;

? the timing of cash flows, if any, from the operations of our prospective

portfolio companies; and

? the impact of future acquisitions and divestitures.

We use words such as "may," "might," "will," "intends," "should," "could," "can," "would," "expects," "believes," "estimates," "anticipates," "predicts," "potential," "plan" and similar expressions to identify forward-looking statements. Our actual results could differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements for any reason, including the factors set forth in "Item 1A-Risk Factors" in our annual report on Form 10-K and elsewhere in this quarterly report on Form 10-Q.



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We have based the forward-looking statements included in this quarterly report on Form 10-Q on information available to us on the date of this quarterly report on Form 10-Q, and we assume no obligation to update any such forward-looking statements. Although we undertake no obligation to revise or update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, you are advised to consult any additional disclosures that we may make directly to you or through reports that we may file with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, or the SEC, in the future, including annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and current reports on Form 8-K.

You should understand that under Sections 27A(b)(2)(B) and (D) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Securities Act, and Sections 21E(b) (2)(B) and (D) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or the Exchange Act, the "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, as amended, do not apply to statements made in connection with this quarterly report on Form 10-Q or any periodic reports we file under the Exchange Act.

Overview

We are an externally managed, non-diversified, closed-end management investment company that has elected to be treated as a business development company under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, or the 1940 Act. In addition, for tax purposes, we elected to be treated as a regulated investment company, or RIC, under Subchapter M of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, or the Code.

We were formed on December 28, 2011 and commenced operations on January 1, 2012. We were originally capitalized with approximately $176.3 million of contributed assets from H.I.G. Bayside Debt & LBO Fund II, L.P. and H.I.G. Bayside Loan Opportunity Fund II, L.P., each of which is an affiliate of H.I.G. Capital, L.L.C., or H.I.G. Capital. These assets were contributed as of January 1, 2012 in exchange for 11,752,383 units in WhiteHorse Finance, LLC. On December 4, 2012, we converted from a Delaware LLC into a Delaware corporation and elected to be treated as a business development company under the 1940 Act.

On December 4, 2012, we priced our initial public offering, or the IPO, selling 6,666,667 shares. Concurrent with the IPO, certain of our directors and officers, the managers of H.I.G. WhiteHorse Advisers, LLC ("WhiteHorse Advisers" or the "Investment Adviser") and their immediate family members or entities owned by, or family trusts for the benefit of, such persons, purchased an additional 472,673 shares through a private placement exempt from registration under the Securities Act. Our shares of common stock are listed on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol "WHF."

We are a direct lender targeting debt investments in privately held, lower middle market companies located in the United States. We define the lower middle market as those companies with enterprise values between $50 million and $350 million. Our investment objective is to generate attractive risk-adjusted returns primarily by originating and investing in senior secured loans, including first lien and second lien facilities, to performing lower middle market companies across a broad range of industries. Such loans typically carry a floating interest index rate such as the London Interbank Offered Rate, or LIBOR, or the Secured Overnight Financing Rate, or SOFR, plus a spread and typically have a term of three to six years. While we focus principally on originating senior secured loans to lower middle market companies, we may also opportunistically make investments at other levels of a company's capital structure, including mezzanine loans or equity interests, and in companies outside of the lower middle market, to the extent we believe the investment presents an opportunity to achieve an attractive risk-adjusted return. We also may receive warrants to purchase common stock in connection with our debt investments. We expect to generate current income through the receipt of interest payments, as well as origination and other fees, capital appreciation and dividends.

Our investment activities are managed by WhiteHorse Advisers and are supervised by our board of directors, a majority of whom are independent of us, WhiteHorse Advisers and its affiliates. Under our investment advisory agreement with WhiteHorse Advisers, or the Investment Advisory Agreement, we have agreed to pay WhiteHorse Advisers an annual base management fee based on our average consolidated gross assets as well as an incentive fee based on our investment performance. We have also entered into an administration agreement, or the Administration Agreement, with H.I.G. WhiteHorse Administration, LLC, or WhiteHorse Administration. Under our Administration



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Agreement, we have agreed to reimburse WhiteHorse Administration for our allocable portion (subject to the review and approval of our independent directors) of overhead and other expenses incurred by WhiteHorse Administration in performing its obligations under the Administration Agreement.

COVID-19 Developments

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and its effects on the U.S. and global economy had adverse consequences on the business operations of some of our portfolio companies and adversely affected, and may continue to adversely affect, our operations and the operations of our investment adviser. Our investment adviser is continuing to monitor the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on our business and the business of our portfolio companies and has been focused on proactively engaging with our portfolio companies in order to collaborate with the management teams of certain portfolio companies to evaluate their response to the impacts of COVID-19.

Given the persistence of COVID-19 and the difficulty in predicting the next phase of the pandemic the extent to which COVID-19 and/or other disease pandemics may continue to negatively affect our business and our portfolio companies' operating results and financial condition is uncertain. Due to the ongoing business disruptions caused by COVID-19, some of our portfolio companies have experienced financial distress and have defaulted on their financial obligations to us and their other capital providers. Such developments could impair the business operations of our portfolio companies and may result in a decrease in the value of our investment in any such portfolio companies.

In connection with the adverse effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have restructured and may need to continue to restructure additional investments in some of our portfolio companies, which has resulted in and could result in additional diminished interest payments or in permanent impairments on our investments. The effects of the COVID-19 pandemic discussed above may increase the risk that more of our portfolio investments may be placed on non-accrual status in the future. Any decreases in our net investment income would increase the portion of our cash flows dedicated to distribution payments to stockholders and to servicing our existing debt under our revolving credit facility, or the Credit Facility, with JPMorgan Chase Bank, National Association, as administrative agent and lender, or the Lender.

WhiteHorse Advisers' credit team continues to be in close contact with the owners and management teams of each of our portfolio companies. Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, some of these owners and management teams have assessed the impacts to their businesses and are continuing to coordinate with us to guide their companies through the recovery. We are operating under a philosophy that we will work hand in hand with our borrowers to support them, allowing flexibility in our terms as appropriate, and we expect owners to support their businesses with additional equity where possible.

As a business development company, we are permitted under the 1940 Act to borrow amounts such that our asset coverage, as defined in the 1940 Act, equals at least 150% after such borrowing. We are required to comply with various covenants pursuant to the Credit Facility. If we fail to satisfy the covenants of the Credit Facility or are unable to cure any event of default or obtain a waiver from the applicable lender, it could result in foreclosure by the lenders under the Credit Facility, which would accelerate our repayment obligations under the Credit Facility and thereby result in a material adverse effect on our business, liquidity, financial condition, results of operations and ability to pay distributions to our stockholders. As of September 30, 2022, we were in compliance with all covenants and other requirements of the Credit Facility.



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We are also subject to financial risks, including changes in market interest rates. As of September 30, 2022, nearly all of our debt investments at fair value were at floating rates, which are generally based on a floating index rate such as LIBOR or SOFR, and many of which are subject to certain floors. See "Item 3. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk" for an analysis of the impact of hypothetical base rate changes in interest rates.

Our management team has sought strategies that will help us weather periods of economic decline. We have attempted to avoid deeply cyclical sectors and have only made loans where we believed we would be able to recover 100% of our loans in the event of a financial crisis, such as the financial crisis in 2008. Additionally, we have taken a conservative position on the Company's liquidity, making sure we have a top-tier leverage partner and very significant cushion against default.

We will continue to monitor the ongoing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and guidance from U.S. and international authorities, including federal, state and local public health authorities and may take additional actions based on their recommendations. In these circumstances, there may be developments outside our control requiring us to adjust our plan of operation. As such, given the dynamic nature of this situation, we cannot quantify the full effect of COVID-19 on our financial condition, results of operations or cash flows in the future.

Reference Rate Reform

In July 2017, the head of the United Kingdom Financial Conduct Authority, or the FCA, announced that it will phase out the use of LIBOR by 2021. On November 30, 2020, the ICE Benchmark Administration Limited, or the IBA, the administrator of LIBOR, announced that it will consult in early December 2020 to consider extending the LIBOR transition deadline to the end of June 2023. On March 2021, the FCA and the IBA announced that (i) 1-week and 2-month U.S. dollar LIBOR and non-U.S. LIBOR will cease at the end of 2021 and (ii) the remaining U.S. dollar LIBOR tenors will cease after June 30, 2023, effectively extending the LIBOR transition period to June 30, 2023. There is currently no definitive information regarding the future utilization of LIBOR or of any particular replacement rate.

To identify a successor rate for U.S. dollar LIBOR, the Federal Reserve System, in conjunction with the Alternative Reference Rates Committee, a steering committee comprised of large U.S. financial institutions, has identified SOFR as its preferred alternative rate for LIBOR. SOFR is a measure of the cost of borrowing cash overnight, collateralized by U.S. Treasury securities, and is based on directly observable U.S. Treasury-backed repurchase transactions. As of September 30, 2022, SOFR is utilized as the floating benchmark rate on 26 investments to our portfolio companies. As of September 30, 2022, SOFR is utilized as the floating benchmark rate on the Credit Facility for USD denominated borrowings above $285.0 million. We expect any new credit facilities that we enter into subsequent to September 30, 2022 will reference a benchmark interest rate other than LIBOR, such as SOFR.

Other jurisdictions have also proposed their own alternative to LIBOR, including the Sterling Overnight Index Average for Sterling markets, the Euro Short Term Rate for Euros and Tokyo Overnight Average Rate for Japanese Yens. Although SOFR appears to be the preferred replacement rate for U.S. dollar LIBOR, at this time, it is not possible to predict whether any of these alternative reference rates will attain market traction as a LIBOR replacement tool or the effect of any such changes as the establishment of alternative reference rates or other reforms to LIBOR may be enacted in the United States, United Kingdom or elsewhere. As such, the potential effect on how markets will respond to the transition to SOFR, or other reference rates, is uncertain.



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Revenues

We generate revenue in the form of interest payable on the debt securities that we hold and capital gains and distributions, if any, on the portfolio company investments that we originate or acquire. Our debt investments, whether in the form of senior secured loans or mezzanine loans, typically have terms of three to six years and bear interest at a fixed or floating rate based on a spread over LIBOR, SOFR or an equivalent index rate. Interest on debt securities is generally payable monthly or quarterly, with the amortization of principal generally being deferred for several years from the date of the initial investment. In some cases, we may also defer payments of interest for the first few years after our investment. The principal amount of the debt securities and any accrued but unpaid interest generally becomes due at the maturity date. In addition, we generate revenue in the form of commitment, origination, structuring or diligence fees, fees for providing managerial assistance and possibly consulting fees. We capitalize loan origination fees, original issue discount and market discount, and we then amortize such amounts as interest income. Upon the prepayment of a loan or debt security, we record any unamortized loan origination fees as interest income. We record prepayment premiums on loans and debt securities as fee income when earned. Dividend income is recorded on the record date for private portfolio companies or on the ex-dividend date for publicly traded portfolio companies.

Expenses

Our primary operating expenses include (1) investment advisory fees to WhiteHorse Advisers; (2) the allocable portion of overhead under the Administration Agreement; (3) the interest expense on our outstanding debt; and (4) other operating costs as detailed below. Our investment advisory fees compensate our investment adviser for its work in identifying, evaluating, negotiating, consummating and monitoring our investments.

We bear all other costs and expenses of our operations and transactions, including:



 ? our organization;

? calculating our net asset value and net asset value per share (including the

costs and expenses of independent valuation firms);

fees and expenses, including travel expenses, incurred by WhiteHorse Advisers

? or payable to third parties in performing due diligence on prospective

portfolio companies, monitoring our investments and, if necessary, enforcing

our rights;

? the costs of all future offerings of common shares and other securities, and

other incurrences of debt;

? the base management fee and any incentive fee;

? distributions on our shares;

? transfer agent and custody fees and expenses;

? amounts payable to third parties relating to, or associated with, evaluating,

making and disposing of investments;

? brokerage fees and commissions;




 ? registration fees;


 ? listing fees;


 ? taxes;

? independent directors' fees and expenses;




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? costs associated with our reporting and compliance obligations under the 1940

Act and applicable U.S. federal and state securities laws;

? the costs of any reports, proxy statements or other notices to our

stockholders, including printing costs;

? costs of holding stockholder meetings;

? our fidelity bond;

? directors and officers/errors and omissions liability insurance and any other

insurance premiums;

? litigation, indemnification and other non-recurring or extraordinary expenses;

? direct costs and expenses of administration and operation, including audit and

legal costs;

? fees and expenses associated with marketing efforts, including deal sourcing

and marketing to financial sponsors;

? dues, fees and charges of any trade association of which we are a member; and

all other expenses reasonably incurred by us or WhiteHorse Administration in

? connection with administering our business, including rent and our allocable

portion of the costs and expenses of our chief financial officer and chief

compliance officer along with their respective staffs.

WhiteHorse Advisers or WhiteHorse Administration may pay for certain expenses that we incur, which are subject to reimbursement by us.



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Recent Developments

For the period October 1, 2022 through November 14, 2022, we contributed one additional asset of senior secured debt facilities to the STRS JV.

On October 14, 2022, we declared a special distribution of $0.05 per share, which will be payable on December 9, 2022 to stockholders of record as of October 31, 2022.

On November 10, 2022, our board of directors approved amended and restated bylaws that revise Section 2.8 of the bylaws regarding the preparation of voting lists in advance of stockholder meetings to conform to recent amendments to the Delaware General Corporation Law regarding preparation of such lists.

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