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): May 31, 2022
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
| British Columbia, Canada | 001-39281 | |
| (State or other jurisdiction of
incorporation) |
(Commission File Number) | (IRS Employer Identification No.) |
| 595 Howe Street, 10th Floor Vancouver, British Columbia |
V6C 2T5 | |
| (Address of principal executive offices) |
(Zip Code) |
Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (604) 631-3115
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:
| ¨ | 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 Symbol(s) |
Name of each exchange on | ||
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company 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 x
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 5.02. Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers.
(e) The Annual and Special Meeting of Shareholders of TMC the metals company Inc. (the “Company”) was held in a virtual format on May 31, 2022 at 10:00 a.m. EDT (the “Annual Meeting”). At the Annual Meeting, the shareholders of the Company approved the Company’s 2021 Employee Stock Purchase Plan, which provides eligible employees with an opportunity to purchase the Company’s common shares at a discount, on a tax-favored basis, through regular payroll deductions in compliance with Section 423 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. There are 5,254,324 common shares reserved for issuance under the 2021 Employee Stock Purchase Plan, which amount is subject to increase or adjustment as set forth in the 2021 Employee Stock Purchase Plan. The Company’s executive officers are eligible to participate in the 2021 Employee Stock Purchase Plan.
The foregoing summary of the 2021 Employee Stock Purchase Plan does not purport to be complete and is subject to, and qualified in its entirety by, the full text of the 2021 Employee Stock Purchase Plan, filed hereto as Exhibit 10.1.
Item 5.07. Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders.
The actions set forth below were taken at the Annual Meeting. Of the Company’s 226,780,843 common shares outstanding and eligible to vote as of the record date of April 4, 2022, a quorum of more than two shareholders representing 141,068,581 shares, or 62.2% of the eligible shares, was present or represented by proxy at the Annual Meeting. Each of the matters set forth below is described in detail in the Company’s Proxy Statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 14, 2022.
| 1. | Set the number of directors at 8. |
| Votes For | Votes Against | Votes Abstained | ||||||||
| 140,675,694 | 307,876 | 85,011 | ||||||||
| 2. | Election of the following directors of the Company, to serve until the Company’s 2023 annual meeting of shareholders and until their respective successors have been elected and qualified. |
| Votes For | Votes Withheld | Broker Non-Votes | ||||||||||
| Gerard Barron | 114,035,721 | 140,639 | 26,892,221 | |||||||||
| Andrew Hall | 113,954,224 | 222,136 | 26,892,221 | |||||||||
| Sheila Khama | 113,554,189 | 622,171 | 26,892,221 | |||||||||
| Andrei Karkar | 113,607,608 | 568,752 | 26,892,221 | |||||||||
| Christian Madsbjerg | 113,966,658 | 209,702 | 26,892,221 | |||||||||
| Kathleen McAllister | 114,046,677 | 129,683 | 26,892,221 | |||||||||
| Amelia Siamomua | 113,960,980 | 215,380 | 26,892,221 | |||||||||
| Gina Stryker | 113,547,389 | 628,971 | 26,892,221 | |||||||||
| 3. | Approval of the Company’s 2021 Employee Stock Purchase Plan. |
| Votes For | Votes Against | Votes Abstained | Broker Non-Votes | |||||||||||
| 92,002,240 | 1,292,349 | 20,881,771 | 26,892,221 | |||||||||||
| 4. | Appointment of Ernst & Young LLP as the Company’s independent registered public accounting firm for the 2022 fiscal year. |
| Votes For | Votes Withheld | |||||
| 140,871,801 | 196,780 | |||||
Item 9.01. Financial Statements and Exhibits.
(d) Exhibits.
Exhibit No. Description
| 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.
| TMC THE METALS COMPANY INC. | ||
| Date: June 2, 2022 | By: | /s/ Gerard Barron |
| Name: | Gerard Barron | |
| Title: | Chief Executive Officer | |