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As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on December 1, 2020

Registration No. 333-                

 

 

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

 

 

FORM S-1

REGISTRATION STATEMENT UNDER

THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933

 

 

Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

 

 

 

Delaware

 

6770

 

85-2738750

(State or other jurisdiction of
incorporation or organization)
  (Primary Standard Industrial
Classification Code Number)
  (I.R.S. Employer
Identification Number)

850 Library Avenue, Suite 204

Newark, Delaware 19711

(970) 315-2644

(Address, including zip code, and telephone number, including area code, of registrant’s principal executive offices)

 

 

Makram Azar, Chief Executive Officer; Scott Freidheim, Chairman of the Board

850 Library Avenue, Suite 204

Newark, Delaware 19711

(970) 315-2644

(Name, address, including zip code, and telephone number, including area code, of agent for service)

 

 

Copies to:

Alan I. Annex, Esq.

Jason T. Simon, Esq.

Greenberg Traurig, LLP

1750 Tysons Boulevard

Suite 1000

McLean, VA 22102

Telephone: (703) 749-1300

  David Alan Miller, Esq.
Jeffrey M. Gallant, Esq.
Graubard Miller
The Chrysler Building
405 Lexington Avenue
New York, New York 10174
Telephone: (212) 818-8800

 

 

Approximate date of commencement of proposed sale to the public: As soon as practicable after the effective date of this registration statement.

If any of the securities being registered on this Form are to be offered on a delayed or continuous basis pursuant to Rule 415 under the Securities Act of 1933 check the following box. ☐

If this Form is filed to register additional securities for an offering pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act, please check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering. ☐

If this Form is a post-effective amendment filed pursuant to Rule 462(c) under the Securities Act, check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering. ☐

If this Form is a post-effective amendment filed pursuant to Rule 462(d) under the Securities Act, check the following box and list the Securities Act registration statement number of the earlier effective registration statement for the same offering. ☐

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

 

Large accelerated filer  

   Accelerated filer  

Non-accelerated filer  

   Smaller reporting company  

     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 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act. ☐

CALCULATION OF REGISTRATION FEE

 

 

Title of each Class of Security being registered    Amount being
Registered
   Proposed
Maximum
Offering
Price Per
Security(1)
     Proposed
Maximum
Aggregate
Offering Price(1)
     Amount of
Registration Fee
 

Units, each consisting of one share of Class A common stock, $0.0001 par value, and one-half of one redeemable Warrant(2)

   28,750,000

Units

   $ 10.00      $ 287,500,000      $ 31,366.25  

Shares of Class A common stock included as part of the Units(3)

   28,750,000

Shares

     —          —          —  (4)  

Redeemable Warrants included as part of the Units(3)

   14,375,000
Warrants
     —          —          —  (4)  
        

 

 

    

 

 

 

Total

         $ 287,500,000      $ 31,366.25  
        

 

 

    

 

 

 

 

(1)   Estimated solely for the purpose of calculating the registration fee.
(2)   Includes 3,750,000 Units, consisting of 3,750,000 shares of Class A common stock and 1,875,000 Redeemable Warrants underlying such Units, which may be issued on exercise of a 45-day option granted to the underwriter.
(3)   Pursuant to Rule 416 under the Securities Act of 1933, there are also being registered an indeterminable number of additional securities as may be issued to prevent dilution resulting from share splits, share capitalizations or similar transactions.
(4)   No fee pursuant to Rule 457(g) under the Securities Act of 1933.

The registrant hereby amends this registration statement on such date or dates as may be necessary to delay its effective date until the registrant shall file a further amendment which specifically states that this registration statement shall thereafter become effective in accordance with Section 8(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 or until the registration statement shall become effective on such date as the Securities and Exchange Commission, acting pursuant to said Section 8(a), may determine.


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The information in this preliminary prospectus is not complete and may be changed. We may not sell these securities until the registration statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission is effective. This preliminary prospectus is not an offer to sell these securities and it is not soliciting an offer to buy these securities in any jurisdiction where the offer or sale is not permitted.

 

PRELIMINARY PROSPECTUS   SUBJECT TO COMPLETION, DATED   DECEMBER 1, 2020

 

Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

$250,000,000

25,000,000 Units

Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp. is a newly organized blank check company formed for the purpose of effecting a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination, which we refer to throughout this prospectus as our initial business combination, with one or more businesses or entities, which we refer to throughout this prospectus as a target business. We have not selected any specific target business and we have not, nor has anyone on our behalf, initiated any substantive discussions, directly or indirectly, with any target business regarding a business combination with our company.

This is an initial public offering of our securities. Each unit has an offering price of $10.00 and consists of one share of our Class A common stock and one-half of one redeemable warrant. Each whole warrant entitles the holder thereof to purchase one share of our Class A common stock at a price of $11.50 per share, subject to adjustment as described in this prospectus, and only whole warrants are exercisable. The warrants will become exercisable on the later of 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination and 12 months from the closing of this offering, and will expire five years after the completion of our initial business combination or earlier upon redemption or liquidation, as described in this prospectus. Subject to the terms and conditions described in this prospectus, we may redeem the warrants once the warrants become exercisable. No fractional warrants will be issued upon separation of the units and only whole warrants will trade. We have also granted the underwriters a 45-day option to purchase up to an additional 3,750,000 units to cover over-allotments, if any.

We will provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their shares of our Class A common stock upon the completion of our initial business combination at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account described below, calculated as of two business days prior to the consummation of our initial business combination, including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes, divided by the number of then outstanding shares of Class A common stock that were sold as part of the units in this offering, which we refer to collectively as our public shares throughout this prospectus, subject to the limitations described herein. If we have not completed our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering, we will redeem 100% of the public shares at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, subject to applicable law and as further described herein.

Our sponsor, Golden Falcon Sponsor Group, LLC, has agreed that it will purchase an aggregate of 7,000,000 warrants (or 7,750,000 warrants if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) at a price of $1.00 per warrant ($7,000,000 in the aggregate, or $7,750,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) in a private placement that will close simultaneously with the closing of this offering. We refer to these warrants as the private placement warrants throughout this prospectus. Each private placement warrant entitles the holder thereof to purchase one share of our Class A common stock at $11.50 per share, subject to adjustment as provided herein.

Our initial stockholders own an aggregate of 7,187,500 shares of our Class B common stock (up to an aggregate of 937,500 shares of which are subject to forfeiture depending on the extent to which the underwriter’s over-allotment option is exercised). We refer to these shares of Class B common stock as the founder shares throughout this prospectus. The shares of Class B common stock will automatically convert into shares of Class A common stock at the time of our initial business combination, or earlier at the option of the holder, on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment as described herein.

Currently, there is no public market for our units, Class A common stock or warrants. We intend to apply to have our units listed on the New York Stock Exchange, or NYSE, under the symbol “GFX.U” on or promptly after the date of this prospectus. We cannot assure you that our securities will be approved for listing on the NYSE. We expect that our units will be listed on the NYSE on or promptly after the date of this prospectus. We expect that the Class A common stock and warrants comprising the units will begin separate trading on the 52nd day following the date of this prospectus (or, if such date is not a business day, the following business day) unless UBS Securities LLC and Moelis & Co., the representatives of the underwriters in this offering, inform us of their decision to allow earlier separate trading, subject to our filing a Current Report on Form 8-K with the Securities and Exchange Commission, or the SEC, containing an audited balance sheet reflecting our receipt of the gross proceeds of this offering and issuing a press release announcing when such separate trading will begin. Once the securities comprising the units begin separate trading, we expect that the Class A common stock and warrants will be listed on the NYSE under the symbols “GFX” and “GFX WS,” respectively. We cannot assure you that any of our securities will continue to be listed on the NYSE after this offering.

We are an “emerging growth company” and “smaller reporting company” under applicable federal securities laws and will be subject to reduced public company reporting requirements. Investing in our securities involves a high degree of risk. See the section of this prospectus entitled “Risk Factors” beginning on page 45 for a discussion of information that should be considered in connection with an investment in our securities. Investors will not be entitled to protections normally afforded to investors in Rule 419 blank check offerings.

Neither the SEC nor any state securities commission has approved or disapproved of these securities or determined if this prospectus is truthful or complete. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.

 

      Per Unit      Total  
Public offering price    $ 10.00      $ 250,000,000  
Underwriting discounts and commissions(1)    $   0.55      $ 13,750,000  
Proceeds, before expenses, to Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.    $ 9.45      $ 236,250,000  

 

(1)   Includes $0.35 per unit, or $8,750,000 (or up to $10,062,500 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) in the aggregate payable to the representative of the underwriters for deferred underwriting commissions to be placed in a trust account located in the United States as described herein. The deferred commissions will be released to the representatives of the underwriters only on completion of an initial business combination, as described in this prospectus. See the section of this prospectus entitled “Underwriting” for a description of compensation and other items of value payable to the underwriters.

Of the proceeds we receive from this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants described in this prospectus, $250.0 million, or $287.5 million if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full ($10.00 per unit in either case), will be deposited into a U.S.-based trust account with Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company acting as trustee, and $2.0 million will be available to pay fees and expenses in connection with the closing of this offering and for working capital following the closing of this offering. Except with respect to interest earned on the funds held in the trust account that may be released to us to pay our tax obligations, the proceeds from this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants held in the trust account will not be released from the trust account until the earliest to occur of (a) the completion of our initial business combination, (b) the redemption of any public shares properly submitted in connection with a stockholder vote to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation (i) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or certain amendments to our charter or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering or (ii) with respect to any other provisions relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity and (c) the redemption of our public shares if we have not completed our business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering, subject to applicable law. The proceeds deposited in the trust account could become subject to the claims of our creditors, if any, which could have priority over the claims of our public stockholders.

The underwriters are offering the units for sale on a firm commitment basis. The underwriters expect to deliver the units to the purchasers on or about    , 2020.

Joint Book-Running Managers

 

UBS Investment Bank    Moelis & Co.

Lead Manager

EarlyBirdCapital, Inc.

    , 2020


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We are responsible for the information contained in this prospectus. We have not authorized anyone to provide you with different information, and neither we nor the underwriters take responsibility for any other information others may give to you. We are not, and the underwriters are not, making an offer to sell securities in any jurisdiction where the offer or sale is not permitted. You should not assume that the information contained in this prospectus is accurate as of any date other than the date on the front of this prospectus or the date specified herein.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

 

 

     Page  

Summary

     1  

Risk factors

     45  

Cautionary note regarding forward-looking statements

     85  

Use of proceeds

     86  

Dividend policy

     91  

Dilution

     92  

Capitalization

     94  

Management’s discussion and analysis of financial condition and results of operations

     95  

Proposed business

     102  

Management

     133  

Principal stockholders

     147  

Certain relationships and related party transactions

     150  

Description of securities

     153  

United States federal income tax considerations

     172  

Underwriting

     183  

Legal matters

     191  

Experts

     191  

Where you can find additional information

     191  

Index to Financial Statements

     F-1  

 

Trademarks

This prospectus contains references to trademarks and service marks belonging to other entities. Solely for convenience, trademarks and trade names referred to in this prospectus may appear without the ® or TM symbols, but such references are not intended to indicate, in any way, that the applicable licensor will not assert, to the fullest extent under applicable law, its rights to these trademarks and trade names. We do not intend our use or display of other companies’ trade names, trademarks or service marks to imply a relationship with, or endorsement or sponsorship of us by, any other companies.

 

 

 

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Summary

This summary only highlights the more detailed information appearing elsewhere in this prospectus. As this is a summary, it does not contain all of the information that you should consider in making an investment decision. You should read this entire prospectus carefully, including the information under the section of this prospectus entitled “Risk Factors” and our financial statements and the related notes included elsewhere in this prospectus, before investing.

Unless otherwise stated in this prospectus, or the context otherwise requires, references to:

 

Ø  

“certificate of incorporation” are to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation to be in effect as of the date of this prospectus;

 

Ø  

“common stock” are to our Class A common stock and our Class B common stock, collectively;

 

Ø  

“company,” “our,” “we” or “us” are to Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.;

 

Ø  

“equity-linked securities” are to any securities of our company that are convertible into or exchangeable or exercisable for common stock of our company;

 

Ø  

“founder shares” are to shares of our Class B common stock outstanding as of this offering and the shares of our Class A common stock that may be issued upon the conversion thereof as described herein;

 

Ø  

“initial stockholders” are to our sponsor and the other holders of our founder shares prior to this offering;

 

Ø  

“management” or our “management team” are to our officers and directors (including our director nominees who will become directors in connection with the consummation of this offering);

 

Ø  

“private placement warrants” are to the warrants issued in a private placement simultaneously with the closing of this offering;

 

Ø  

“public shares” are to shares of our Class A common stock sold as part of the units in this offering (whether they are purchased in this offering or thereafter in the open market);

 

Ø  

“public stockholders” are to the holders of our public shares, including our initial stockholders and members of our management team to the extent they purchase public shares, provided that each initial stockholder’s and member of our management team’s status as a “public stockholder” shall only exist with respect to such public shares;

 

Ø  

“public warrants” are to (1) our redeemable warrants sold as part of the units in this offering (whether they are purchased in this offering or thereafter in the open market) and (2) any private placement warrants or warrants issued upon conversion of working capital loans that are transferred to third parties that are not our sponsor or its permitted transferees following the consummation of our initial business combination;

 

Ø  

“Representatives” are to UBS Securities LLC and Moelis & Co., as representatives of the several underwriters of this offering;

 

Ø  

“specified future issuance” are to an issuance of a class of equity or equity-linked securities to certain purchasers, which may include affiliates of our management team, that we may determine to make in connection with financing our initial business combination;

 

Ø  

“sponsor” is to Golden Falcon Sponsor Group, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company; and

 

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Ø  

“warrants” are to our public warrants and private placement warrants, as well as any warrants issued upon conversion of working capital loans upon consummation of our initial business combination, collectively.

Unless we tell you otherwise, the information in this prospectus assumes that the underwriters will not exercise their over-allotment option and the forfeiture by our initial stockholders of an aggregate of 937,500 founder shares.

 

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Proposed business

GENERAL

We are a newly organized Delaware corporation structured as a blank check company formed for the purpose of effecting a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses or entities. To date, our efforts have been limited to organizational activities and activities related to this offering. We have not selected any potential business combination target, and we have not, nor has anyone on our behalf, initiated any substantive discussions, directly or indirectly, with any potential target regarding entering into a business combination with us.

We will seek to leverage our management team’s proprietary global network of strong relationships with private equity sponsors, entrepreneurs, venture and growth capital funds, family offices, large corporations, sovereign wealth funds and their owners and most senior officers to identify, structure, finance, acquire and support the operation of a business combination target. In pursuing our strategy we will take advantage of our management team’s extensive experience in investing in and operating businesses across a wide range of sectors and geographies.

While we may pursue an initial business combination with any target business and in any sector or geographical location, we intend to focus our search on companies operating in the technology, media, telecommunications (“TMT”) and fintech sectors that are headquartered in Europe, Israel, the Middle East or North America.

We believe that this combination of relationships, experience and expertise puts us in a strong position to source an attractive target and complete an initial business combination and makes us a preferred partner for potential business combination targets.

MANAGEMENT TEAM

Makram Azar, our Chief Executive Officer and a member of our board of directors, has over 30 years of investment banking and private equity experience. Mr. Azar is Chief Executive Officer and director of Full Circle Capital Limited, a private investment and advisory group, which he founded in 2019. Since 2019, Mr. Azar has also served as Chief Executive Officer and director of Full Circle Capital Services Limited (“Full Circle Capital”), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Full Circle Capital Limited. Previously, from 2010 to 2019, he was at Barclays Bank PLC, where among other roles, he served as Chairman of Banking EMEA and Chairman of Barclays Bank PLC, MENA. Since 2019, he has continued his relationship with Barclays Bank PLC, serving as Senior Advisor. Before this, Mr. Azar served as Managing Director and Head of MENA for Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co (“KKR”) from 2008 to 2010. Prior to joining KKR, Mr. Azar had spent 18 years at Lehman Brothers, latterly as Global Head of Sovereign Wealth Funds and Chairman of Media Investment Banking EMEA. Previously he led the Media, Consumer & Retail Investment Banking businesses of Lehman Brothers in EMEA. Mr. Azar has completed over 200 M&A, equity capital markets, debt capital markets and private equity deals with an aggregate value in excess of $350 billion, across a broad spectrum of geographies and industries, including TMT, consumer, sustainable energy, retail, hospitality, financial services, industrials and real estate. His clients have included some of the largest institutional investors, multinational corporations, sovereign wealth funds and governments. Mr. Azar holds a BA in Applied Economics from the University Paris-IX Dauphine and a Master’s degree in Management and Finance from École des Hautes Études Commerciales (HEC) in Paris.

 

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Scott J. Freidheim, our Chairman and a member of our board of directors, is the Managing Partner at Freidheim Capital and Co-Chairman of ettain group. Mr. Freidheim has experience as a NYSE traded company Chief Executive Officer and as a board member for profit and not-for-profit institutions. He has served on senior leadership teams across multiple industries including financial services, mass merchandising, brand management, private equity, engineering and staffing, including serving on the global executive committees of Lehman Brothers (Chief Administrative Officer), Investcorp (CEO, Europe), Sears Holdings Corporation (Executive Vice President, Operating & Support Businesses, and President Kenmore, Craftsman & Diehard) and CDI Corporation (Chief Executive Officer) and serving on the boards of ettain group (Charlotte, NC, USA), N+W Global Vending (Milan, Italy), Icopal (Herlev, Denmark), GL Education (London, England) and Lands’ End (Dodgeville, WI, USA). He has also served on the boards of directors of several not-for-profit institutions including: Institute of International Education (NYC, NY, USA), which administers the Fulbright Scholarship program and Spelman College (Atlanta, GA, USA). Mr. Freidheim is a member of The Economic Club of New York and The Council on Foreign Relations. In 2005, he was named a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum (“WEF”) and was a member of the WEF’s inaugural Global Agenda Council. He is a member of the Board of Trustees of the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee Foundation (Colorado Springs, CO, USA). Mr. Freidheim holds a BA from Northwestern University and a Master’s degree in Management with concentration in Finance from Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management.

Eli Muraidekh, our Chief Financial Officer and a member of our board of directors, is Founder, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer of Telamon Capital, a credit opportunity fund founded in 2014. Prior to this, from 2009 to 2014, Mr. Muraidekh was the Investment Manager at Windmill Hill Asset Management. While there, Mr. Muraidekh managed the assets of the philanthropic foundations of Lord Jacob Rothschild totaling over $2.0 billion. He invested across multiple asset classes globally, ranking the endowment in the top five percentile of over 400 endowments tracked by Cambridge Associates. Previously, Mr. Muraidekh was Executive Director of the Value Recovery Fund at Blue Bay Asset Management, leading financial and operational restructurings on behalf of this distressed debt fund. Prior to that, Mr. Muraidekh was Co-Founder of Elwin Capital Partners a growth capital private equity fund, and Executive Director of the Principal Investment Area of Goldman Sachs, evaluating and executing investment opportunities for GS Capital Partners, GS Mezzanine Partners and Whitehall Real Estate Partners, which were, at the time, all of the firm’s major long-term investment vehicles. Mr. Muraidekh holds a BA in Economics summa cum laude from Yale University, where he graduated first in his class, and an MBA with distinction from the Harvard Business School.

John M. Basnage de Beauval, our General Counsel and Secretary, is Managing Director of Full Circle Capital Limited. From February 2018 to March 2020, Mr. Basnage de Beauval served as Founder and Managing Partner of Anthem Legal Services LLC, an advisory firm that provided legal and commercial advice to financial institutions and other companies. Prior to joining Full Circle Capital, Mr. Basnage de Beauval co-founded and was a partner at Epena Law from October 2019 to March 2020, where he provided legal advice in connection with structuring private equity investments in Sub-Saharan Africa. Prior to this, Mr. Basnage de Beauval spent more than 25 years advising on capital markets, M&A and private equity transactions in New York, London and Paris, most recently, from November 2003 to February 2018, as a partner at Hogan Lovells, where he headed the US corporate securities practice in London, and was co-head of equity capital markets in Europe. Mr. Basnage de Beauval has advised acquirors and targets on numerous large and complex cross-border M&A transactions and has written extensively on the subject. Before joining Hogan Lovells, he practiced at Freshfields from 1996 to 2001 and Rogers & Wells from 1992 to 1996. Mr. Basnage de Beauval received a BA from the University of Pennsylvania, magna cum laude, where he was a Benjamin Franklin Scholar and Phi Beta Kappa, and has law degrees from Oxford University and Columbia University. He completed an executive leadership course at Stanford University School of Business.

 

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Xavier Rolet, KBE will serve as one of our directors as of the effective date of the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part. From January 2019 to January 2020, Mr. Rolet served as Chief Executive Officer of CQS, a global hedge fund. Previously, from 2009 to 2018, Mr. Rolet was the Chief Executive Officer of the London Stock Exchange (“LSE”). Mr. Rolet was named as one of the 100 Best CEOs in the World in the 2017 Harvard Business Review. In his decade at the helm of the LSE, the LSE’s market valuation rose from £800 million to more than £15 billion. He is currently the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Phosagro PJSC, Chairman of the Board of Shore Capital Markets, a member of the Board of Overseers of Columbia Business School, a member of the Board of Directors of the Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul), an External Director—Portfolio Companies of the Public Investment Fund (PIF), a Non Executive Member of the Board of Seplat Petroleum Development Cy Plc, an Expert Adviser to the Shanghai Institute of Finance for the Real Economy (SIFRE), a Member of the Senior Advisory Board at Towerbrook Capital Partners LP, and a Founder and Director of a number of other privately held companies. He has held various senior positions in the financial services industry throughout his career, including Chief Executive Officer of Banque Lehman Brothers in Paris; co-head of Global Equity & Derivatives Trading at Lehman Brothers New York; Global Head of Risk and Trading at Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein; Vice-President, International Equity Risk Arbitrage at Goldman Sachs New York; and co-Head of European Equities Sales and Trading at Goldman Sachs International Ltd. in London. Mr. Rolet holds an MSc from the KEDGE Business School, an MBA from Columbia Business School and a post-graduate degree from Paris-based IHEDN (Institute of Advanced Studies in National Defense).

Dominique D’Hinnin will serve as one of our directors as of the effective date of the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part. Mr. D’Hinnin is chairman of the board of EUTELSAT Communications, a French satellite service company. He is also a board member of PRISA, the world’s leading Spanish and Portuguese-language media group, EDENRED, a French Corporate Services Company, Technicolor, a French technology Company, and Louis Delhaize SA, a Belgium private retail group. Mr. D’Hinnin was formerly a board member of EADS-Airbus, the Deputy Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Canal+ France, Vice Chairman at Atari, and he sat on the Strategic Council at PricewaterhouseCoopers France. From 2009 to 2016, Mr. D’Hinnin served as Co-Managing Partner of Lagardère Group. Previously, he was Chief Financial Officer of Lagardère Group, Executive Vice President of Grolier Inc., where he undertook the overhaul and development of Grolier in the U.S., UK and Asia, and the launch of Grolier Interactive Europe, and Chief Financial Officer of the publisher Hachette Livre, following his active role in the financial and legal restructuring of the Lagardère Group where he oversaw the merger of Matra with Hachette. Mr. D’Hinnin has also held board positions at Marie Claire Album, Holding Evelyne Prouvost, Editions Amaury, and Le Monde. Mr. D’Hinnin received his undergraduate degree from École Normale Supérieure (in classical culture) and a graduate degree from Ecole Nationale d’Administration, the premier graduate school in the country which the majority of government and private sector leaders attend.

I. Martin Pompadur will serve as one of our directors as of the effective date of the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part. Mr. Pompadur is currently an investor and advisor to various companies, and a board member of Nexstar Media Group, Inc. and Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment, Inc., both publicly traded companies. Previously, from 2009 to 2016, he served as Global Vice Chairman, Media and Entertainment at Macquarie Capital, an investment bank and financial services company. From 1998 to 2008, Mr. Pompadur held several positions at News Corporation, a multinational mass media corporation, including Executive Vice President of News Corporation, President of News Corporation Eastern and Central Europe and a member of News Corporation’s Executive Management Committee. In January 2000, Mr. Pompadur was appointed Chairman of News Corporation Europe. In 1985, as advisor to News Corporation, Mr. Pompadur helped acquire for News Corporation the Metromedia television station group and wrote the business plan for the start-up of the Fox Television Network. From 1982 to 2007, Mr. Pompadur was Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

 

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of RP Media Management which operated 12 television stations, 25 radio stations and numerous cable television systems totaling 500,000 subscribers. From 1977 to 1982, Mr. Pompadur served as President of Ziff Corporation, then a holding company for Ziff-Davis Publishing Company. Prior to that, from 1960 to 1977, Mr. Pompadur worked at American Broadcasting Companies, Inc. (“ABC, Inc.”) where he held several positions, including General Manager of the Television Network, Vice President of the Broadcast Division, President of the Leisure Activities Group and Vice President of ABC, Inc. Mr. Pompadur was also previously a Managing General Partner at Northeastern Television Investors LP and was Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of GP Station Partners and of Multivision Cable TV. Mr. Pompadur previously served as a director of IMAX Corporation and Truli Media Group, Inc., both publicly traded companies, and as a director of ABC. Inc, BSkyB, Sky Italia, Premier World, Fox Kids Europe, Metromedia International and Elong. Mr. Pompadur holds a BA from Williams College and a law degree from the University of Michigan Law School.

Isabelle Amiel Azoulai will serve as one of our directors as of the effective date of the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part. Ms. Azoulai is Co-Founder and Managing Partner at La Maison SA, a private equity and venture capital investment group formed in 2014, where she has led more than 50 direct technology-focused investments in Israel, the United States, Europe and China. Ms. Azoulai also serves as the personal advisor to several ultra-high net worth European entrepreneurs. From 2014 to 2019, Ms. Azoulai was also a Senior Banker and Partner at Banque Leonardo, SA, a banking company. Ms. Azoulai was formerly an investment partner at Credit Suisse, where she managed the Ultra High Net Worth Individuals department. Prior to that, she managed the investment consulting department of Credit Suisse Private Banking in Paris. Ms. Azoulai is a founding member of the benefit committee of Institut Imagine, the French institute for genetic diseases. Ms. Azoulai holds a Master’s degree in Business from Lincoln International Business School.

Mikael Breuer-Weil will serve as one of our directors as of the effective date of the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part. Mr. Breuer-Weil co-founded Marylebone Partners LLP, an investment management boutique, in September 2013 and served as founding partner and Chief Investment Officer until March 2020, when he stepped down from his executive roles. Previously, from 1994 to 2012, he was the Principal Investment Adviser to philanthropic and family foundations connected to Lord Jacob Rothschild, and in 2007 became Investment Director for RIT Capital Partners plc, an investment trust with a current market value of approximately £2.8 billion. Additionally, he has held various non-executive and investment advisory roles and he remains an adviser to a number of charitable and family organizations. Mr. Breuer-Weil started his career at Mercury Asset Management in 1986 and worked as a fund manager including a period of secondment with Odyssey Partners LLP in New York. Mr. Breuer-Weil graduated from the London School of Economics with a degree in law.

The past performance of our management team and strategic advisory group is not a guarantee either (i) that we will be able to identify a suitable candidate for our initial business combination or (ii) of success with respect to any business combination we may consummate. You should not rely on the historical record of our management team’s or their respective affiliates’ performance as indicative of our future performance.

BUSINESS STRATEGY

Our business strategy is to identify and complete our initial business combination with a company that can benefit from: (i) the global capital markets and operating experience of our management team and strategic advisory group, (ii) additional capital to achieve its growth strategy and (iii) access to public securities markets.

 

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Our management team has access to a wide range of companies operating in TMT and fintech sectors that are headquartered in Europe, Israel, the Middle East or North America.

Our executive officers’ combined experience includes over 100 years of investment banking, private equity and executive management experience and over 440 transactions with an aggregate value of over $550 billion globally. Our management team’s network has been developed through its:

 

Ø  

experience in sourcing, structuring, acquiring, operating, developing, growing, financing and selling businesses;

 

Ø  

relationships with business owners, financing providers and target management teams; and

 

Ø  

extensive experience in both investing in and operating businesses across a wide range of sectors.

Our management team will leverage these capabilities, networks and expertise together with those of our strategic advisory group.

We have chosen our independent board members and established a strategic advisory group for the purposes of assisting our executive officers with sourcing and evaluating business combination opportunities and developing plans and strategies to optimize any business that we acquire.

Our independent board members have been selected for their extensive sector and geographic expertise, operating experience, access to proprietary deal flow, strong relationships with business leaders and entrepreneurs and their ability to source an attractive target and assist us in implementing our business combination strategy. They have held senior leadership positions with companies where they have a proven strong track record of creating shareholder value, organically and through transformational acquisitions or corporate restructurings, as well as extensive relationships with owners and operators of companies within their respective industries.

Our strategic advisory group consists of individuals who have complementary sourcing and operational expertise in our sectors of focus. Specifically, they have experience in:

 

Ø  

operating companies, devising and implementing strategies and identifying, monitoring and recruiting world-class talent;

 

Ø  

developing and growing companies organically by expanding their product range and geographic footprint;

 

Ø  

acquiring companies, leading transformational transactions or corporate restructurings and managing corporate integration with success;

 

Ø  

investing in equity and fixed income assets in both public and private markets across various sectors, jurisdictions and economic cycles; and

 

Ø  

developing and maintaining extensive relationships with owners and operators of companies, as well as with a wide range of financial and legal advisers.

Our strategic advisory group currently includes:

 

Ø  

Francois Barrault, Chairman & Founder, FDB Partners; formerly CEO, BT Global Services; President, BT International; President & CEO, Lucent EMEA; CEO, Lucent Mobile International; Founder, DigiWorld Summit;

 

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Joseph Berardino, Managing Director, Alvarez & Marsal; formerly Partner, Arthur Andersen; CEO, Andersen Worldwide;

 

 

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Ø  

Matthew Bronfman, Chairman & CEO, BHB Holdings; Chairman, Lincoln Avenue Capital; formerly Chairman, Bronfman Rothschild; Partner, ACI Capital;

 

Ø  

David Gardner, OBE, Co-founder and General Partner of London Venture Partners; formerly CEO of Atari; Executive Vice President of Electronic Arts; Board of Directors of Embracer Group and Double Loop Games;

 

Ø  

Arjun Gupta, founder and managing partner of TeleSoft Partners; Chairman, Nexant Inc.; Chairman, Calient Technologies Inc.; Board of Directors of Larsen & Toubro Infotech Ltd; Board of Directors of L&T Technology Services Limited;

 

Ø  

Travis Katz, Entrepreneur-in-Residence, Redpoint Ventures; formerly Vice President of Products, Skyscanner; Co-Founder & CEO, Trip.com; Co-Founder, Fox Interactive Media;

 

Ø  

Gerrit Meier, Global CEO, Red Bull Media Network; Managing Director, Red Bull Media House; formerly President, International WWE; Global General Manager for Distribution and Partnerships, Spotify; COO, iHeartMedia’s Digital Division;

 

Ø  

Tom Mockridge, former CEO, Virgin Media; Deputy Chairman, BSkyB; CEO, News Corp UK & Ireland; CEO, European TV News Corp; CEO, Sky Italia; Chairman, Star TV;

 

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Lionel de Saint-Exupéry, Executive Board Member and Chairman of the Strategic Committee, China Development Financial Holdings; CEO & Chairman, Investment Committee of CDIB Capital; and

 

Ø  

Kenneth I. Tuchman, former Vice-Chairman, Bank of Montreal; Vice-Chairman, Bank of America Merrill Lynch; Co-Head Global M&A, Lehman Brothers; Chairman, Global Americas, Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein.

We may add additional members to the strategic advisory group from time to time. Unlike our management team, members of our strategic advisory group are not responsible for managing our day-to-day affairs and have no authority to engage in substantive discussions with business combination targets on our behalf. Members of our strategic advisory group will not be paid, but may be reimbursed for any out-of-pocket expenses incurred by them, in connection with the search for business combination targets before or after the consummation of our initial business combination. We have not currently entered into any formal arrangements or agreements with the members of our strategic advisory group to provide services to us and they will have no fiduciary obligations to present business opportunities to us.

To align the incentives of members of the strategic advisory group with our stockholders, a majority of the members of the strategic advisory group will invest in our sponsor and be eligible to share in a portion of the appreciation in founder shares and private placement warrants, provided that we successfully complete a business combination.

We believe that the combination of our management team and strategic advisory group is an innovative approach to identifying potential high quality business combination targets and aligns incentives with our stockholders, providing us with distinctive and differentiated capabilities to create stockholder value.

We will have access to the advisory and other resources and strategic capabilities of Full Circle Capital, which we believe will give us a competitive advantage in our acquisition strategy and our ability to identify and implement value creation initiatives. Full Circle Capital was founded by Makram Azar in 2019 as a private investment and advisory group that provides financial and strategic advice to key partners and select clients within its network, leveraging its global reach and experience across a broad range of sectors and geographies, to source direct principal investment opportunities across the spectrum of private equity, including venture and buy-outs, in the UK, continental Europe, North America and the Middle East, with an emphasis on cross-sector tech, media, telecom, consumer and impact and sustainability.

 

 

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In addition, we anticipate that target business candidates will be brought to our attention from various unaffiliated sources, including investment market participants, private equity groups, investment banking firms, consultants, accounting firms and large business enterprises.

We have strong relationships on both sides of the Atlantic and believe that the networks and experience of our management team and strategic advisory group provide us with specific competitive advantages over other blank check companies in sourcing attractive targets based in Europe, Israel or the Middle East. We believe that these regions provide a compelling market opportunity for the following reasons:

 

Ø  

Attractive valuation:    stocks in these markets tend to trade at lower valuations, enhancing the multiple arbitrage available by listing the target in the U.S.;

 

Ø  

Underpenetrated:    equity markets in Europe, Israel and the Middle East are comparatively more thinly capitalized relative to the U.S. in terms of GDP, suggesting a large number of high-quality private companies that could benefit from going public; furthermore, there have been comparatively few business combinations between U.S.-listed blank check companies and targets located in Europe, Israel and the Middle East – just 18, compared to 110 with U.S. targets, from January 1, 2019 to November 30, 2020;

 

Ø  

Underrepresented:     Europe is second only to China as an exporter of goods and services to the U.S., reflecting substantial economic output and a nexus to the U.S., whereas relatively few European companies have completed initial public offerings in the U.S.;

 

Ø  

Our knowledge and experience:    our executive officers, board of directors and strategic advisory group have substantial experience in, and relationships with, the most senior decision makers across these regions, which we believe gives us substantially greater access to opportunities;

 

Ø  

Access to family or founder owned businesses:    we have strong ties with prominent families (particularly, but not exclusively, based in Europe, Israel and the Middle East) and have a history of working constructively and collaboratively with family and founder-owned businesses, which is a point of differentiation in negotiating a business combination with these companies.

 

Ø  

Technology and innovation:    these regions have emerged as technology hubs in their own right, outside of Silicon Valley; for instance, there are currently over 60 “unicorns” – private companies valued at $1 billion or more – based in Europe, Israel and the Middle East;

 

Ø  

US stock exchanges’ increasing attractiveness:    over 200 companies from Europe, Israel and the Middle East have their primary listings on NYSE or Nasdaq, compared to fewer than 20 in 2010; and

 

Ø  

Limited competition:    our on-the-ground presence in Europe as well as well as our knowledge of, relationships in, and experience investing in, Europe, Israel and the Middle East are key differentiators for us as compared to other blank check companies, the majority of which we believe are seeking business combinations exclusively in the U.S.

Upon completion of this offering, our management team and strategic advisory group will communicate with their network of relationships to articulate our initial business combination criteria, including the parameters of our search for a target business, and will begin the disciplined process of pursuing and reviewing promising leads.

BUSINESS COMBINATION CRITERIA

Consistent with our business strategy, we have identified the following general criteria and guidelines that we believe are important in evaluating prospective target businesses. We intend to use these criteria and guidelines in evaluating business combination opportunities, although we may decide to enter into our initial business combination with a target business that does not meet these criteria and guidelines.

 

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We view ourselves as rigorous, disciplined and valuation-centric investors, with a keen understanding of market value, upside and potential downside risks.

Ø  

Business with significant revenue and earnings growth potential.    We will seek to acquire one or more businesses that we believe will have multiple organic and M&A-driven growth opportunities over time and are well positioned to take advantage of secular, macroeconomic and credit trends, endure economic downturns, changes in the industry landscape and respond to evolving customer, supplier and competitor preferences. We will search for attractive, growth-oriented businesses that exhibit sound, underlying fundamentals as well as demonstrated revenue growth and an existing or a clear path to attractive profitability. This includes such potential targets that are currently, or have the potential to be, category leaders with long-term growth potential.

 

Ø  

Targets that can benefit from our relationships and experience.    While we may pursue an initial business combination opportunity in any industry or sector, we intend to capitalize on our management team’s domain expertise acquired through decades of strategic deal-making in our targeted sectors. We believe our management team’s deep network of senior management, owners of businesses, board relationships and sophisticated private and public market investors give us a number of competitive advantages and present us with a substantial number of potential business combination targets. Our management team will leverage the broad spectrum of skills and expertise of our strategic advisory group, all of whom have extensive deal making, management and operational experience. We believe our team represents an exceptionally attractive combination of investing, capital markets, and operational experience that potential combination candidates will find highly desirable and complementary to their growth plans and will have the potential to substantially enhance shareholder value.

 

Ø  

Companies with potential to benefit from the fourth industrial revolution.    We will seek to acquire one or more businesses which currently, or have the potential to, benefit from digital disruption positioning them to disintermediate or disrupt in their industry vertical, driven by the exponential increase in data generation, advances in artificial intelligence and robotics, rising processing power and/or ubiquitous global connectivity through smartphones, among other technologies. The technological impact of COVID-19 has been to accelerate trends that were already underway before the pandemic arose, including in the areas of remote working and learning, migration to cloud computing and productivity, mobile and interactive entertainment and transition from brick-and-mortar businesses to e-commerce. We believe that these trends are generating a significant market opportunity across our areas of focus in TMT and fintech.

 

Ø  

Businesses with a strong transatlantic nexus.    We intend to focus on companies in Europe, Israel and the Middle East whose current or future businesses have a nexus to the United States. These companies would benefit from having access to the deep public capital markets in the U.S. associated with a listing on the NYSE and access to capital to pursue accretive acquisitions, fund capital projects, pursue their growth strategies and/or strengthen their balances sheets. At the same time, we believe we are an attractive partner for those companies headquartered in North America seeking access and growth in Europe, Israel and the Middle East as we leverage our relationships with corporate customers and business partners to help expand their geographical footprint.

These criteria and guidelines are not intended to be exhaustive. Any evaluation relating to the merits of a particular initial business combination may be based, to the extent relevant, on these general criteria and guidelines as well as other considerations, factors and criteria that our management team may deem relevant. In the event that we decide to enter into our initial business combination with a target business that does not meet the above criteria and guidelines, we will disclose that the target business does not meet the above criteria and guidelines in our stockholder communications related to our initial business

 

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combination, which, as discussed in this prospectus, would be in the form of proxy solicitation materials or tender offer documents that we would file with the SEC. In addition to any potential business candidates we may identify on our own, we anticipate that other target business candidates will be brought to our attention from various unaffiliated sources, including investment market participants, private equity funds, and large business enterprises seeking to divest non-core assets or divisions.

INITIAL BUSINESS COMBINATION

Pursuant to the NYSE listing rules, our initial business combination must occur with one or more target businesses that together have an aggregate fair market value of at least 80% of the assets held in the trust account (excluding the deferred underwriting commissions and taxes payable on the income earned on the trust account) at the time of the agreement to enter into the initial business combination. If our board is not able to independently determine the fair market value of the target business or businesses, we will obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm or another independent entity that commonly renders valuation opinions with respect to the satisfaction of such criteria. Additionally, pursuant to the NYSE rules, any initial business combination must be approved by a majority of our independent directors. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if we are not then listed on the NYSE, these rules will not be applicable to us.

We may, at our option, pursue an acquisition opportunity jointly with members of our management team (or their affiliates), which we refer to as an “Affiliated Joint Acquisition.” Any such parties may co-invest with us in the target business at the time of our initial business combination, or we could raise additional proceeds to complete the acquisition by undertaking a specified future issuance to such parties.

The amount and other terms and conditions of any such specified future issuance would be determined at the time thereof. We are not obligated to make any specified future issuance and may determine not to do so. This is not an offer for any specified future issuance. Pursuant to the anti-dilution provisions of our Class B common stock, any such specified future issuance would result in an adjustment to the conversion ratio such that our initial stockholders and their permitted transferees, if any, would retain their aggregate percentage ownership at 20% of the sum of the total number of all shares of common stock outstanding upon completion of this offering plus all shares issued in the specified future issuance (excluding any shares or equity-linked securities issued or issuable to any seller in the initial business combination), unless the holders of a majority of the then-outstanding shares of Class B common stock agreed to waive such adjustment with respect to the specified future issuance at the time thereof. We cannot determine at this time whether a majority of the holders of our Class B common stock at the time of any such specified future issuance would agree to waive such adjustment to the conversion ratio. If such adjustment is not waived, the specified future issuance would not reduce the percentage ownership of holders of our Class B common stock, but would reduce the percentage ownership of our public stockholders. If such adjustment is waived, the specified future issuance would reduce the percentage ownership of holders of both classes of our common stock.

We are not prohibited from pursuing an initial business combination with a business that is affiliated with our initial stockholders, officers or directors, or any of their respective affiliates. In the event we seek to complete our initial business combination with a business that is affiliated with our initial stockholders, officers or directors, or any of their affiliates, we, or a committee of independent directors, will obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm or another independent entity that commonly renders valuation opinions that our initial business combination is fair to us from a financial point of view.

 

 

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Members of our management team will directly or indirectly own founder shares and/or private placement warrants following this offering and, accordingly, may have a conflict of interest in determining whether a particular target business is an appropriate business with which to effectuate our initial business combination. Further, each of our officers and directors may have a conflict of interest with respect to evaluating a particular business combination if the retention or resignation of any such officers and directors is included by a target business as a condition to our initial business combination.

Each of our officers and directors presently has, and any of them in the future may have additional, fiduciary or contractual obligations to other entities pursuant to which such officer or director is or will be required to present a business combination opportunity to such entities. Accordingly, if any of our officers or directors becomes aware of a business combination opportunity which is suitable for an entity to which he or she has then-current fiduciary or contractual obligations, he or she will honor his or her fiduciary or contractual obligations to present such opportunity to such entity. We do not believe, however, that the fiduciary duties or contractual obligations of our officers or directors will materially affect our ability complete our business combination. Our certificate of incorporation will provide that we renounce our interest in any corporate opportunity offered to any director or officer unless such opportunity is expressly offered to such person solely in his or her capacity as a director or officer of our company and such opportunity is one we are legally and contractually permitted to undertake and would otherwise be reasonable for us to pursue.

Our officers have agreed not to become an officer or director of any other special purpose acquisition company that has publicly filed a registration statement with the SEC until we have entered into a definitive agreement regarding our initial business combination or we have failed to complete our initial business combination within 24 months after the closing of this offering.

CORPORATE INFORMATION

Our executive offices are located at 850 Library Avenue, Suite 204, Newark, Delaware 19711 and our telephone number is (970) 315-2644.

We are an “emerging growth company,” as defined in Section 2(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Securities Act, as modified by the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act of 2012, or the JOBS Act. As such, we are eligible to take advantage of certain exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other public companies that are not “emerging growth companies” including, but not limited to, not being required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, or the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports and proxy statements, and exemptions from the requirements of holding a non-binding advisory vote on executive compensation and stockholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved. If some investors find our securities less attractive as a result, there may be a less active trading market for our securities and the prices of our securities may be more volatile.

In addition, Section 107 of the JOBS Act also provides that an “emerging growth company” can take advantage of the extended transition period provided in Section 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act for complying with new or revised accounting standards. In other words, an “emerging growth company” can delay the adoption of certain accounting standards until those standards would otherwise apply to private companies. We intend to take advantage of the benefits of this extended transition period.

We will remain an emerging growth company until the earlier of (1) the last day of the fiscal year (a) following the fifth anniversary of the completion of this offering, (b) in which we have total annual

 

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gross revenue of at least $1.07 billion, or (c) in which we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer, which means the market value of our shares of Class A common stock that are held by non-affiliates exceeds $700 million as of the end of that year’s second fiscal quarter; and (2) the date on which we have issued more than $1.00 billion in non-convertible debt securities during the prior three-year period. References herein to “emerging growth company” shall have the meaning associated with it in the JOBS Act.

Additionally, we are a “smaller reporting company” as defined in Item 10(f)(1) of Regulation S-K. Smaller reporting companies may take advantage of certain reduced disclosure obligations, including, among other things, providing only two years of audited financial statements. We will remain a smaller reporting company until the last day of the fiscal year in which (1) the market value of our common stock held by non-affiliates exceeds $250 million as of the end of that year’s second fiscal quarter, or (2) our annual revenues exceeded $100 million during such completed fiscal year and the market value of our common stock held by non-affiliates exceeds $700 million as of the end of that year’s second fiscal quarter.

 

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The offering

In making your decision on whether to invest in our securities, you should take into account not only the backgrounds of the members of our management team, but also the special risks we face as a blank check company and the fact that this offering is not being conducted in compliance with Rule 419 promulgated under the Securities Act. You will not be entitled to protections normally afforded to investors in Rule 419 blank check offerings. You should carefully consider these and the other risks set forth in the section of this prospectus entitled “Risk Factors.”

 

Securities offered

25,000,000 units (or 28,750,000 units if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full), at $10.00 per unit, each unit consisting of:

 

  Ø  

one share of Class A common stock; and

 

  Ø  

one-half of one redeemable warrant.

 

Proposed NYSE symbols

Units: “GFX.U”

 

  Class A Common Stock: “GFX”

 

  Warrants: “GFX WS”

 

Trading commencement and separation of Class A common stock and warrants

The units are expected to begin trading on or promptly after the date of this prospectus. The Class A common stock and warrants comprising the units will begin separate trading on the 52nd day following the date of this prospectus (or, if such date is not a business day, the following business day) unless the Representatives inform us of their decision to allow earlier separate trading, subject to our having filed the Current Report on Form 8-K described below and having issued a press release announcing when such separate trading will begin. Once the shares of Class A common stock and warrants commence separate trading, holders will have the option to continue to hold units or separate their units into the component securities. Holders will need to have their brokers contact our transfer agent in order to separate the units into shares of Class A common stock and warrants. No fractional warrants will be issued upon separation of the units and only whole warrants will trade. Accordingly, unless you purchase at least two units, you will not be able to receive or trade a whole warrant.

 

  Additionally, we expect that the units will automatically separate into their component parts and will not be traded after completion of our initial business combination.

 

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Separate trading of the Class A common stock and warrants is prohibited until we have filed a Current Report on Form 8-K

In no event will the Class A common stock and warrants be traded separately until we have filed a Current Report on Form 8-K with the SEC containing an audited balance sheet reflecting our receipt of the gross proceeds at the closing of this offering. We will file the Current Report on Form 8-K promptly after the closing of this offering. If the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised following the initial filing of such Current Report on Form 8-K, a second or amended Current Report on Form 8-K will be filed to provide updated financial information to reflect the exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option.

 

Units:

 

 

Number outstanding before this offering

0

 

Number outstanding after this offering

25,000,000(1)

 

Common stock:

 

 

Number outstanding before this offering

7,187,500 shares of Class B common stock(2)(3)

 

Number outstanding after this offering

31,250,000 shares of common stock, consisting of: 25,000,000 shares of Class A common stock and

6,250,000 shares of Class B common stock(1)(3)

 

Redeemable Warrants:

 

 

Number of private placement warrants to be sold in a private placement simultaneously with this offering

7,000,000(1)

 

Number of warrants to be outstanding after this offering and the private placement

19,500,000(1)

 

(1)   Assumes no exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option and the forfeiture by our initial stockholders of an aggregate of 937,500 founder shares.
(2)   Includes up to an aggregate of 937,500 shares that are subject to forfeiture by our initial stockholders depending on the extent to which the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised.
(3)   The shares of common stock included in the units are Class A common stock. Founder shares are classified as shares of Class B common stock, which shares are convertible into shares of our Class A common stock on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment as described below adjacent to the caption “Founder shares conversion and anti-dilution.”

 

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Exercisability

Each whole warrant is exercisable to purchase one share of our Class A common stock, subject to adjustment as provided herein, and only whole warrants are exercisable. No fractional warrants will be issued upon separation of the units and only whole warrants will trade. We structured each unit to contain one-half of one redeemable warrant, with each whole warrant exercisable for one share of our Class A common stock, as compared to units issued by some other similar blank check companies which contain whole warrants exercisable for one whole share, in order to reduce the dilutive effect of the warrants upon completion of a business combination as compared to units that each contain a warrant to purchase one whole share, thus making us, we believe, a more attractive business combination partner for target businesses.

 

Exercise price

$11.50 per share, subject to adjustment as described herein. In addition, if (x) we issue additional shares or equity-linked securities for capital raising purposes in connection with the closing of our initial business combination at an issue price or effective issue price of less than $9.20 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, rights issuances, subdivisions, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) (with such issue price or effective issue price to be determined in good faith by our board of directors, and in the case of any such issuance to our initial stockholders or their affiliates, without taking into account any founder shares held by them prior to such issuance) (the “Newly Issued Price”), (y) the aggregate gross proceeds from such issuances represent more than 60% of the total equity proceeds, and interest thereon, available for the funding of our initial business combination on the date of the consummation of our initial business combination (net of redemptions), and (z) the volume weighted average trading price of our shares of Class A common stock during the 20 trading day period starting on the trading day prior to the day on which we consummate our initial business combination (such price, the “Market Value”) is below $9.20 per share, the exercise price of each warrant will be adjusted (to the nearest cent) such that the effective exercise price per full share will be equal to 115% of the higher of the Market Value and the Newly Issued

 

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Price, and the $10.00 and $18.00 per-share redemption trigger prices described adjacent to “Redemption of warrants when the price per share of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00” and “Redemption of warrants when the price per share of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $18.00” will be adjusted (to the nearest cent) to be equal to 100% and 180% of the higher of the Market Value and the Newly Issued Price, respectively.

 

Exercise period

The warrants will become exercisable on the later of:

 

  Ø  

30 days after the completion of our initial business combination; and

 

  Ø  

12 months from the closing of this offering;

 

  provided in each case that we have an effective registration statement under the Securities Act covering the issuance of the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants and a current prospectus relating to them is available and such shares are registered, qualified or exempt from registration under the securities, or blue sky, laws or the state of residence of the holder (or we permit holders to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis under the circumstances specified in the warrant agreement).

 

 

We are not registering the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants at this time. However, we have agreed that as soon as practicable, but in no event later than 15 business days after the closing of our initial business combination, we will use our reasonable best efforts to file, and within 60 business days following our initial business combination to have declared effective, a registration statement under the Securities Act covering the issuance of the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants and to maintain the effectiveness of such registration statement and a current prospectus relating to those shares of Class A common stock until the warrants expire or are redeemed; provided that, if our Class A common stock is at the time of any exercise of a warrant not listed on a national securities exchange such that it satisfies

 

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the definition of a “covered security” under Section 18(b)(1) of the Securities Act, we may, at our option, require holders of public warrants who exercise their warrants to do so on a “cashless basis” in accordance with Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act and, in the event we so elect, we will not be required to file or maintain in effect a registration statement, but we will be required to use our best efforts to register or qualify the shares under applicable blue sky laws to the extent an exemption is not available. If a registration statement covering the shares of our Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants is not effective by the 60th business day after the closing of the initial business combination, warrant holders may, until such time as there is an effective registration statement and during any period when we will have failed to maintain an effective registration statement, exercise warrants on a “cashless basis” in accordance with Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act or another exemption.

 

  The warrants will expire at 5:00 p.m., New York City time, five years after the completion of our initial business combination or earlier upon redemption or liquidation. On the exercise of any warrant, the warrant exercise price will be paid directly to us and not placed in the trust account.

 

Redemption of warrants when the price per share of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $18.00

Once the warrants become exercisable, we may redeem the outstanding warrants (except as described herein with respect to the private placement warrants):

 

  Ø  

in whole and not in part;

 

  Ø  

at a price of $0.01 per warrant;

 

  Ø  

upon a minimum of 30 days prior written notice of redemption, which we refer to as the 30-day redemption period; and

 

  Ø  

if, and only if, the last reported sale price of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $18.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) for any 20 trading days within a 30-trading day period commencing once the warrants become

 

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exercisable and ending on the third trading day prior to the date on which we send the notice of redemption to the warrant holders.

 

  We will not redeem the warrants unless a registration statement under the Securities Act covering the issuance of the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants is effective and a current prospectus relating to those shares of Class A common stock is available throughout the 30-day redemption period, except if the warrants may be exercised on a cashless basis and such cashless exercise is exempt from registration under the Securities Act. If and when the warrants become redeemable by us, we may exercise our redemption right even if we are unable to register or qualify the underlying securities for sale under all applicable state securities laws. As a result, we may redeem the warrants as set forth above even if the holders are otherwise unable to exercise the warrants.

 

 

If we call the warrants for redemption as described above, our management will have the option to require all holders that wish to exercise warrants to do so on a “cashless basis.” In determining whether to require all holders to exercise their warrants on a “cashless basis,” our management will consider, among other factors, our cash position, the number of warrants that are outstanding and the dilutive effect on our stockholders of issuing the maximum number of shares of Class A common stock issuable upon the exercise of our warrants. In such event, each holder would pay the exercise price by surrendering the warrants for that number of shares of Class A common stock equal to the quotient obtained by dividing (x) the product of the number of shares of Class A common stock underlying the warrants, multiplied by the excess of the “fair market value” (defined below) over the exercise price of the warrants by (y) the fair market value. The “fair market value” of our Class A common stock for this purpose shall mean the average last reported sale price of the Class A common stock for the 10 trading days ending on the third trading day prior to the date on which the notice of redemption is sent to the holders of warrants. Please see the section of this prospectus

 

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entitled “Description of Securities—Redeemable Warrants—Public Stockholders’ Warrants” for additional information.

 

  None of the private placement warrants will be redeemable by us (except as set forth under “Redemption of warrants when the price per share of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00”) so long as they are held by our sponsor or its permitted transferees.

 

Redemption of warrants when the price per share of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00

Commencing ninety days after the warrants become exercisable, we may redeem the outstanding warrants:

 

  Ø  

in whole and not in part;

 

  Ø  

at $0.10 per warrant upon a minimum of 30 days’ prior written notice of redemption provided that holders will be able to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis prior to redemption and receive that number of shares of Class A common stock to be determined by reference to the table set forth under “Description of Securities—Redeemable Warrants—Public Stockholders’ Warrants” based on the redemption date and the “fair market value” of our Class A common stock (as defined below) except as otherwise described in “Description of Securities—Redeemable Warrants—Public Stockholders’ Warrants”;

 

  Ø  

if, and only if, the last reported sale price of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) on the trading day prior to the date on which we send the notice of redemption to the warrant holders;

 

  Ø  

if, and only if, the private placement warrants are also concurrently called for redemption on the same terms as the outstanding public warrants, as described above; and

 

  Ø  

if, and only if, there is an effective registration statement covering the issuance of the shares of Class A common stock (or a security other than the Class A common stock into which the Class A common stock has been converted or exchanged for in the event we are not the

 

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surviving company in our initial business combination) issuable upon exercise of the warrants and a current prospectus relating thereto available throughout the 30-day period after written notice of redemption is given.

 

  The “fair market value” of our Class A common stock for this purpose shall mean the average last reported sale price of our Class A common stock for the 10 trading days ending on the third trading day prior to the date on which the notice of redemption is sent to the holders of warrants. This redemption feature differs from the typical warrant redemption features used in other blank check offerings.

 

  No fractional shares of Class A common stock will be issued upon exercise. If, upon exercise in connection with any redemption, a holder would be entitled to receive a fractional interest in a share, we will round up to the nearest whole number of the number of shares of Class A common stock to be issued to the holder. Please see “Description of Securities—Redeemable Warrants—Public Stockholders’ Warrants” for additional information.

 

Founder shares

In September 2020, we issued 7,187,500 founder shares for a purchase price of $25,000, or approximately $0.003 per share. In November 2020, our sponsor transferred an aggregate of 150,000 founder shares to our independent director nominees. Prior to the initial investment in the company of $25,000, we had no assets, tangible or intangible. The per share purchase price of the founder shares was determined by dividing the amount of cash contributed to the company by the aggregate number of founder shares issued. The number of founder shares issued was determined based on the expectation that the founder shares would represent 20% of the outstanding shares after this offering. As such, our initial stockholders will collectively own 20% of our issued and outstanding shares of common stock upon the consummation of this offering (assuming they do not purchase any units in this offering). If we increase the size of this offering, we will effect a stock dividend or other appropriate mechanism with respect to our Class B common stock immediately prior to the consummation of

 

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this offering in such amount as to maintain the number of founder shares at 20% of the issued and outstanding shares of our common stock upon the consummation of this offering. Up to an aggregate of 937,500 founder shares will be subject to forfeiture by our initial stockholders depending on the extent to which the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised so that the number of founder shares will remain equal to 20% of our common stock after this offering.

 

  The founder shares are designated as Class B common stock and are identical to the shares of our Class A common stock included in the units being sold in this offering, except that:

 

  Ø  

the founder shares are shares of Class B common stock that will automatically convert into shares of our Class A common stock at the time of our initial business combination, or earlier at the option of the holder, on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment pursuant to certain anti-dilution rights, as described herein;

 

  Ø  

the founder shares are subject to certain transfer restrictions, as described in more detail below;

 

  Ø  

our initial stockholders, officers and directors have entered into agreements with us, pursuant to which they have agreed to waive (i) their redemption rights with respect to any founder shares and any public shares held by them in connection with the completion of our initial business combination, (ii) their redemption rights with respect to any founder shares and any public shares held by them in connection with a stockholder vote to approve an amendment to our certificate of incorporation (A) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or certain amendments to our certificate of incorporation or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering or (B) with respect to any other provision relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity and (iii) their rights to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to any founder

 

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shares held by them if we fail to complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering or during any extended time that we have to consummate a business combination beyond 24 months as a result of a stockholder vote to amend our certificate of incorporation (an “Extension Period”), although they will be entitled to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to any public shares they hold if we fail to complete our initial business combination within the prescribed time frame;

 

  Ø  

Our initial stockholders, officers and directors have agreed to vote any founder shares and any public shares held by them in favor of our initial business combination; and

 

  Ø  

the founder shares are entitled to registration rights.

 

Transfer restrictions on founder shares

Our initial stockholders have agreed not to transfer, assign or sell any of their founder shares, and any Class A common stock issued upon conversion thereof, until the earlier to occur of: (A) one year after the completion of our initial business combination and (B) subsequent to our initial business combination, (x) if the last reported sale price of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $12.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations) for any 20 trading days within any 30-trading day period commencing at least 150 days after our initial business combination, or (y) the date on which we complete a liquidation, merger, capital stock exchange, reorganization or other similar transaction that results in all of our stockholders having the right to exchange their shares of common stock for cash, securities or other property (except to certain permitted transferees and under certain circumstances as described herein under the section of this prospectus entitled “Principal Stockholders—Restrictions on Transfers of Founder Shares and Private Placement Warrants”). Any permitted transferees will be subject to the same restrictions and other agreements of our initial stockholders with respect to any founder shares. We refer to such transfer restrictions throughout this prospectus as the lock-up.

 

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Founder shares conversion and anti-dilution rights

The founder shares are designated as shares of our Class B common stock and will automatically convert into shares of our Class A common stock at the time of our initial business combination, or earlier at the option of the holder, on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like, and subject to further adjustment as described herein. In the case that additional shares of Class A common stock, or equity-linked securities, are issued or deemed issued in excess of the amounts issued in this offering and related to the closing of our initial business combination, including pursuant to a specified future issuance, the ratio at which shares of Class B common stock shall convert into shares of Class A common stock will be adjusted (unless the holders of a majority of the then-outstanding shares of Class B common stock agree to waive such adjustment with respect to any such issuance or deemed issuance, including pursuant to a specified future issuance) so that the number of shares of Class A common stock issuable upon conversion of all shares of Class B common stock will equal, in the aggregate, on an as-converted basis, 20% of the sum of the total number of all shares of common stock outstanding upon the completion of this offering plus all shares of Class A common stock and equity-linked securities issued or deemed issued in connection with our initial business combination (excluding any shares or equity-linked securities issued or issuable to any seller in the initial business combination).

 

Voting

Holders of the Class A common stock and holders of the Class B common stock will vote together as a single class on all matters submitted to a vote of our stockholders, except as required by law. Each share of common stock will have one vote on all such matters.

 

Private placement warrants

Our sponsor has agreed, pursuant to a written agreement, that it will purchase an aggregate of 7,000,000 private placement warrants (or 7,750,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full), each exercisable to purchase one share of our Class A common stock at $11.50 per share, subject to

 

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adjustment as provided herein, at a price of $1.00 per warrant ($7,000,000 in the aggregate or $7,750,000 in the aggregate if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) in a private placement that will occur simultaneously with the closing of this offering. The private placement warrants are identical to the warrants sold as part of the units in this offering, subject to limited exceptions.

 

  A portion of the purchase price of the private placement warrants will be added to the proceeds from this offering to be held in the trust account such that at the time of closing $250.0 million (or $287.5 million if the underwriters exercise their over-allotment option in full) will be held in the trust account. If we do not complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering or during any Extension Period, the proceeds from the sale of the private placement warrants held in the trust account will be used to fund the redemption of our public shares (subject to the requirements of applicable law) and the private placement warrants will expire worthless.

 

  The private placement warrants will be non-redeemable (except as set forth under “Redemption of warrants when the price per share of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00”) and exercisable on a cashless basis so long as they are held by our sponsor or its permitted transferees. If the private placement warrants are held by holders other than our sponsor or its permitted transferees, the private placement warrants will be redeemable by us in all redemption scenarios and exercisable by the holders on the same basis as the warrants included in the units being sold in this offering.

 

Transfer restrictions on private placement warrants

The private placement warrants (and the Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the private placement warrants) will not be transferable, assignable or salable until 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination (except as described under the section of this prospectus entitled “Principal Stockholders—Restrictions on Transfers of Founder Shares and Private Placement Warrants”).

 

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Cashless exercise of private placement warrants

In addition to the cashless exercise described above adjacent to “Redemption of warrants when the price per share of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00,” if holders of private placement warrants elect to exercise them on a cashless basis, they would pay the exercise price by surrendering their warrants for that number of shares of Class A common stock equal to the quotient obtained by dividing (x) the product of the number of shares of Class A common stock underlying the warrants, multiplied by the excess of the “private warrant fair market value” (defined below) over the exercise price of the warrants by (y) the private warrant fair market value. The “private warrant fair market value” shall mean the average last reported sale price of the Class A common stock for the 10 trading days ending on the third trading day prior to the date on which the notice of warrant exercise is sent to the warrant agent.

 

  The reason that we have agreed that these warrants will be exercisable on a cashless basis so long as they are held by our sponsor or its permitted transferees is because it is not known at this time whether they will be affiliated with us following an initial business combination. If they remain affiliated with us, their ability to sell our securities in the open market will be significantly limited. We expect to have policies in place that prohibit insiders from selling our securities except during specific periods of time. Even during such periods of time when insiders will be permitted to sell our securities, an insider cannot trade in our securities if he or she is in possession of material non-public information. Accordingly, unlike public stockholders who could sell the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants freely in the open market, the insiders could be significantly restricted from doing so. As a result, we believe that allowing the holders to exercise such warrants on a cashless basis is appropriate.

 

Proceeds to be held in trust account

The rules of the NYSE provide that at least 90% of the gross proceeds from this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants be deposited in a trust account. Of the net proceeds of this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants, $250,000,000, or $10.00 per unit ($287,500,000, or $10.00 per unit, if the

 

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underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) will be placed into a U.S.-based trust account, with Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company acting as trustee. These proceeds include $8,750,000 (or $10,062,500 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) in deferred underwriting commissions. The funds in the trust account will be held as cash or invested only in specified U.S. government treasury bills or in specified money market funds.

 

  Except with respect to interest earned on the funds held in the trust account that may be released to us to pay our tax obligations, the proceeds from this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants held in the trust account will not be released from the trust account until the earliest of (a) the completion of our initial business combination, (b) the redemption of any public shares properly submitted in connection with a stockholder vote to amend our certificate of incorporation (i) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or certain amendments to our certificate of incorporation or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering or (ii) with respect to any other provisions relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity and (c) the redemption of our public shares if we have not completed our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering, subject to applicable law. Stockholders who do not exercise their rights to the funds in connection with an amendment to our certificate of incorporation would still have rights to the funds in connection with a subsequent business combination. The proceeds deposited in the trust account could become subject to the claims of our creditors, if any, which could have priority over the claims of our public stockholders.

 

Anticipated expenses and funding sources

Except as described above with respect to the payment of taxes and in connection with redemptions of our public shares in connection with certain amendments to our certificate of incorporation, unless and until we complete our initial business combination, no proceeds held in

 

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the trust account will be available for our use. The proceeds held in the trust account will be held as cash or invested only in U.S. government securities with a maturity of 185 days or less or in money market funds meeting certain conditions under Rule 2a-7 under the Investment Company Act which invest only in direct U.S. government treasury obligations. We will disclose in each quarterly and annual report filed with the SEC prior to our initial business combination whether the proceeds deposited in the trust account are invested in U.S. government treasury obligations or money market funds or a combination thereof. Based upon a current interest rate of 0.1%, we expect the trust account to generate approximately $250,000 of interest annually.

 

  Unless and until we complete our initial business combination, we may pay our expenses only from:

 

  Ø  

the net proceeds of this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants not held in the trust account, which will be approximately $1,000,000 in working capital after the payment of approximately $1,000,000 in expenses relating to this offering; and

 

  Ø  

any loans or additional investments from our initial stockholders, members of our management team or their affiliates or other third parties (which may be converted into warrants upon consummation of an initial business combination, as described in this prospectus), although they are under no obligation to advance funds to, or invest in, us, and provided that any such loans will not have any claim on the proceeds held in the trust account unless such proceeds are released to us upon completion of our initial business combination.

 

Conditions to completing our initial business combination

There is no limitation on our ability to raise funds privately, including pursuant to any specified future issuance, or through loans in connection with our initial business combination. Pursuant to the NYSE listing rules, our initial business combination must occur with one or more target businesses that together have an aggregate fair market value of at least 80% of our assets held in the trust account (excluding the deferred

 

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underwriting commissions and taxes payable on the income earned on the trust account) at the time of the agreement to enter into the initial business combination.

 

  If our board is not able to independently determine the fair market value of the target business or businesses, we will obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm or another independent entity that commonly renders valuation opinions with respect to the satisfaction of such criteria. We anticipate structuring our initial business combination so that the post-transaction company in which our public stockholders own or acquire shares will own or acquire 100% of the outstanding equity interests or assets of the target business or businesses. Additionally, pursuant to the NYSE rules, any initial business combination must be approved by a majority of our independent directors.

 

 

We may, however, structure our initial business combination such that the post-transaction company owns or acquires less than 100% of such interests or assets of the target business in order to meet certain objectives of the target management team or stockholders or for other reasons, including an Affiliated Joint Acquisition. However, we will only complete such business combination if the post-transaction company owns or acquires 50% or more of the outstanding voting securities of the target or otherwise acquires a controlling interest in the target business sufficient for the post-transaction company not to be required to register as an investment company under the Investment Company Act. Even if the post-transaction company owns or acquires 50% or more of the outstanding voting securities of the target, our stockholders prior to the business combination may collectively own a minority interest in the post-business combination company, depending on valuations ascribed to the target and us in the business combination transaction. If less than 100% of the outstanding equity interests or assets of a target business or businesses are owned or acquired by the post-transaction company, the portion of such business or businesses that is owned or acquired by us is what will be valued for purposes of the 80% fair market value test,

 

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provided that in the event that the business combination involves more than one target business, the 80% fair market value test will be based on the aggregate value of all of the target businesses and we will treat the target businesses together as the initial business combination for purposes of a tender offer or for seeking stockholder approval, as applicable.

 

Permitted purchases of, and other transactions with respect to, our securities by our affiliates

If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination and we do not conduct redemptions in connection with our initial business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, our initial stockholders, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates may purchase public shares or public warrants or a combination thereof in privately negotiated transactions or in the open market either prior to or following the completion of our initial business combination, although they are under no obligation to do so. There is no limit on the number of our securities that may be purchased in such transactions, subject to compliance with applicable law and the rules of the NYSE. Any such price per share may be different than the amount per share a public stockholder would receive if it elected to redeem its shares in connection with our initial business combination. Additionally, at any time at or prior to our initial business combination, subject to applicable securities laws (including with respect to material nonpublic information), our initial stockholders, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates may enter into transactions with investors and others to provide them with incentives to acquire public shares, vote their public shares in favor of our initial business combination or not redeem their public shares. However, they have no current commitments, plans or intentions to engage in such transactions and have not formulated any terms or conditions for any such transactions. Such persons will be subject to restrictions in making any such purchases when they are in possession of any material non-public information or if such purchases are prohibited by Regulation M under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or the Exchange Act. We do not currently anticipate that such purchases, if any, would constitute a tender offer subject to the tender offer rules under the Exchange Act or a going-private transaction

 

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subject to the going-private rules under the Exchange Act; however, if the purchasers determine at the time of any such purchases that the purchases are subject to such rules, the purchasers will be required to comply with such rules.

 

Redemption rights for public stockholders upon completion of our initial business combination

We will provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their public shares upon the completion of our initial business combination at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, calculated as of two business days prior to the consummation of our initial business combination, including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes, divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, subject to the limitations described herein. The amount in the trust account is initially anticipated to be $10.00 per public share. The per-share amount we will distribute to investors who properly redeem their shares will not be reduced by the deferred underwriting commissions we will pay to the Representatives. The redemption rights may include the requirement that a beneficial holder must identify itself in order to validly redeem its shares. There will be no redemption rights upon the completion of our initial business combination with respect to our warrants. Our initial stockholders, officers and directors have entered into agreements with us, pursuant to which they have agreed to waive (i) their redemption rights with respect to any founder shares and any public shares held by them in connection with the completion of our initial business combination and (ii) their redemption rights with respect to any founder shares and any public shares held by them in connection with a stockholder vote to approve an amendment to our certificate of incorporation (A) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination and certain amendments to our certificate of incorporation or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering or (B) with respect to any other provision relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity.

 

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Manner of conducting redemptions

We will provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their public shares upon the completion of our initial business combination either (i) in connection with a stockholder meeting called to approve the business combination or (ii) by means of a tender offer. Except as required by applicable law, the decision as to whether we will seek stockholder approval of a proposed business combination or conduct a tender offer will be made by us, solely in our discretion, and will be based on a variety of factors such as the timing of the transaction and whether the terms of the transaction would otherwise require us to seek stockholder approval under stock exchange listing requirements. Asset acquisitions and stock purchases would not typically require stockholder approval, while direct mergers with our company where we do not survive and any transactions where we issue more than 20% of our outstanding common stock or seek to amend our certificate of incorporation would typically require stockholder approval.

 

  If a stockholder vote is not required and we do not decide to hold a stockholder vote for business or other reasons, we will, pursuant to our certificate of incorporation:

 

  Ø  

conduct the redemptions pursuant to Rule 13e-4 and Regulation 14E of the Exchange Act, which regulate issuer tender offers, and

 

  Ø  

file tender offer documents with the SEC prior to completing our initial business combination which contain substantially the same financial and other information about the initial business combination and the redemption rights as is required under Regulation 14A of the Exchange Act, which regulates the solicitation of proxies.

 

  Upon the public announcement of our initial business combination, if we elect to conduct redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules, we and our initial stockholders will terminate any plan established in accordance with Rule 10b5-1 under the Exchange Act to purchase shares of our Class A common stock in the open market, in order to comply with Rule 14e-5 under the Exchange Act.

 

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  In the event that we conduct redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules, our offer to redeem will remain open for at least 20 business days, in accordance with Rule 14e-1(a) under the Exchange Act, and we will not be permitted to complete our initial business combination until the expiration of the tender offer period. In addition, the tender offer will be conditioned on public stockholders not tendering more than a specified number of public shares, which number will be based on the requirement that we will only redeem our public shares so long as (after such redemption) our net tangible assets will be at least $5,000,001 either immediately prior to or upon consummation of our initial business combination (so that we do not then become subject to the SEC’s “penny stock” rules) or any greater net tangible asset or cash requirement which may be contained in the agreement relating to our initial business combination. If public stockholders tender more shares than we have offered to purchase, we will withdraw the tender offer and not complete the initial business combination, and instead may search for an alternative business combination.

 

  If, however, stockholder approval of the transaction is required by applicable law or stock exchange listing requirements, or we decide to obtain stockholder approval for business or other reasons, we will:

 

  Ø  

conduct the redemptions in conjunction with a proxy solicitation pursuant to Regulation 14A of the Exchange Act, which regulates the solicitation of proxies, and not pursuant to the tender offer rules, and

 

  Ø  

file proxy materials with the SEC.

 

 

If we seek stockholder approval, we will complete our initial business combination only if a majority of the outstanding shares of common stock voted are voted in favor of the business combination. A quorum for such meeting will consist of the holders present in person or by proxy of shares of outstanding capital stock of the company representing a majority of the voting power of all outstanding shares of capital stock of the company entitled to vote at such meeting. Our initial stockholders will count towards this quorum and have agreed to vote any founder shares and any

 

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public shares held by them in favor of our initial business combination. As a result, in addition to their founder shares, we would need only 9,375,001, or 37.5% (assuming all outstanding shares are voted), of the 25,000,000 public shares sold in this offering to be voted in favor of a transaction in order to have our initial business combination approved (assuming the underwriters’ over-allotment option is not exercised). However, because we generally only need a majority of the outstanding shares to be voted in favor of a proposed business combination to have such transaction approved, the number of public shares needed to be voted in favor of any transaction decreases as the overall number of public shares voted decreases. Accordingly, we would need only 1,562,501, or approximately 6.3%, of the 25,000,000 public shares sold in this offering to be voted in favor of a transaction if only the minimum number of shares representing a quorum are voted in order to have our initial business combination approved (assuming the underwriters’ over-allotment option is not exercised).

 

  Pursuant to Delaware law, we will not give less than 10 days nor more than 60 days prior written notice of any such meeting, if required, at which a vote shall be taken to approve our initial business combination. These quorum and voting thresholds, and the voting agreements of our initial stockholders, may make it more likely that we will consummate our initial business combination. Each public stockholder may elect to redeem its public shares irrespective of whether they vote for or against the proposed transaction or do not vote at all.

 

 

We may require our public stockholders seeking to exercise their redemption rights, whether they are record holders or hold their shares in “street name,” to either tender their certificates to our transfer agent prior to the date set forth in the proxy materials mailed to such holders, or up to two business days prior to the vote on the proposal to approve the business combination, or to deliver their shares to the transfer agent electronically. The proxy materials that we will furnish to holders of our public shares in connection with our initial business combination will indicate whether we are requiring public stockholders to satisfy such

 

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delivery requirements. If the proposed business combination is not approved and we continue to search for a target company, we will promptly return any certificates delivered, or shares tendered electronically, by public stockholders who elected to redeem their shares.

 

  Our certificate of incorporation will provide that we will only redeem our public shares so long as (after such redemption) our net tangible assets will be at least $5,000,001 either immediately prior to or upon consummation of our initial business combination (so that we do not then become subject to the SEC’s “penny stock” rules) or any greater net tangible asset or cash requirement which may be contained in the agreement relating to our initial business combination. For example, the proposed business combination may require: (i) cash consideration to be paid to the target or its owners, (ii) cash to be transferred to the target for working capital or other general corporate purposes or (iii) the retention of cash to satisfy other conditions in accordance with the terms of the proposed business combination. In the event the aggregate cash consideration we would be required to pay for all shares of Class A common stock that are validly submitted for redemption plus any amount required to satisfy cash conditions pursuant to the terms of the proposed business combination exceed the aggregate amount of cash available to us, we will not complete the business combination or redeem any shares, and all shares of Class A common stock submitted for redemption will be returned to the holders thereof, and instead may search for an alternative business combination.

 

Limitation on redemption rights of stockholders holding more than 15% of the shares sold in this offering if we hold stockholder vote

Notwithstanding the foregoing redemption rights, if we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination and we do not conduct redemptions in connection with our initial business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, our certificate of incorporation will provide that a public stockholder, together with any affiliate of such stockholder or any other person with whom such stockholder is acting in concert or as a “group” (as defined under Section 13 of the Exchange Act), will be restricted from redeeming

 

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its shares with respect to more than an aggregate of 15% of the shares sold in this offering, which we refer to herein as the “Excess Shares,” without our prior consent. Absent this provision, a public stockholder holding more than an aggregate of 15% of the shares sold in this offering could threaten to exercise its redemption rights against a business combination if such holder’s shares are not purchased by us or our management at a premium to the then-current market price or on other undesirable terms. By limiting our stockholders’ ability to redeem to no more than 15% of the shares sold in this offering, we believe we will limit the ability of a small group of stockholders to unreasonably attempt to block our ability to complete our initial business combination, particularly in connection with a business combination with a target that requires as a closing condition that we have a minimum net worth or a certain amount of cash. However, we would not be restricting our stockholders’ ability to vote all of their shares (including all shares held by those stockholders that hold more than 15% of the shares sold in this offering) for or against our initial business combination.

 

Redemption rights in connection with proposed amendments to our certificate of incorporation

Some other blank check companies have a provision in their charter which prohibits the amendment of certain charter provisions. Our certificate of incorporation will provide that any of its provisions related to pre-business combination activity (including the requirement to deposit proceeds of this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants into the trust account and not release such amounts except in specified circumstances, and to provide redemption rights to public stockholders as described herein) may be amended if approved by holders of at least 65% of our outstanding common stock entitled to vote thereon, and corresponding provisions of the trust agreement governing the release of funds from our trust account may be amended if approved by holders of at least 65% of our outstanding common stock entitled to vote thereon. In all other instances, our certificate of incorporation may be amended by holders of a majority of our outstanding common stock entitled to vote thereon, subject to applicable provisions of the Delaware General Corporation Law, or DGCL, or

 

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applicable stock exchange listing requirements. We may not issue additional securities that would entitle the holders thereof, prior to our initial business combination, to (1) receive funds from the trust account or (2) vote as a class with our public shares (a) on any initial business combination or (b) to approve an amendment to our certificate of incorporation. Our initial stockholders, who will collectively beneficially own 20.0% of our common stock upon the closing of this offering (assuming they do not purchase any units in this offering), may participate in any vote to amend our certificate of incorporation and/or trust agreement and will have the discretion to vote in any manner they choose. Our initial stockholders, officers and directors have agreed, pursuant to letter agreements with us that they will not propose any amendment to our certificate of incorporation (A) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or certain amendments to our certificate of incorporation or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering or (B) with respect to any other provision relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity, unless we provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their public shares upon approval of any such amendment at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, including interest (which interest shall be net of taxes payable) divided by the number of then outstanding public shares. Our initial stockholders, officers and directors have also agreed to waive (i) their redemption rights with respect to any founder shares and any public shares held by them in connection with the completion of our initial business combination and (ii) their redemption rights with respect to any founder shares and any public shares held by them in connection with a stockholder vote to approve an amendment to our certificate of incorporation (A) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or certain amendments to our certificate of incorporation or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within

 

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24 months from the closing of this offering or (B) with respect to any other provision relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity.

 

Release of funds in trust account on closing of our initial business combination

On the completion of our initial business combination, all amounts held in the trust account will be disbursed directly by the trustee or released to us to pay amounts due to any public stockholders who properly exercise their redemption rights as described above under “Redemption rights for public stockholders upon completion of our initial business combination,” to pay the Representatives their deferred underwriting commissions, to pay all or a portion of the consideration payable to the target or owners of the target of our initial business combination and to pay other expenses associated with our initial business combination. If our initial business combination is paid for using equity or debt, or not all of the funds released from the trust account are used for payment of the consideration in connection with our initial business combination or used for redemption of our public shares, we may apply the balance of the cash released to us from the trust account for general corporate purposes, including for maintenance or expansion of operations of post-transaction businesses, the payment of principal or interest due on indebtedness incurred in completing our initial business combination, to fund the purchase of other assets, companies or for working capital.

 

Redemption of public shares and distribution and liquidation if no initial business combination

Our certificate of incorporation provides that we will have only 24 months from the closing of this offering to complete our initial business combination. If we have not completed our initial business combination within such time period or during any Extension Period, we will: (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up; (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than ten business days thereafter, redeem the public shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses),

 

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divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidating distributions, if any); and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining stockholders and our board of directors, dissolve and liquidate, subject in the case of clauses (ii) and (iii) to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. There will be no redemption rights or liquidating distributions with respect to our warrants, which will expire worthless if we fail to complete our business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering.

 

  Our initial stockholders, officers and directors have waived their rights to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to any founder shares held by them if we fail to complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering or during any Extension Period. However, if they acquire public shares in or after this offering, they will be entitled to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to such public shares if we fail to complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering.

 

  The Representatives have agreed to waive their rights to their deferred underwriting commission held in the trust account in the event we do not complete our initial business combination and subsequently liquidate and, in such event, such amounts will be included with the funds held in the trust account that will be available to fund the redemption of our public shares.

 

Limited payments to insiders

There will be no finder’s fees, reimbursements or cash payments made by us to our initial stockholders, officers or directors, or our or their affiliates, for services rendered to us prior to or in connection with the completion of our initial business combination. However, the following payments will be made to our initial stockholders, officers or directors, or our or their affiliates, none of which will be made from the proceeds of this

 

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offering and the sale of the private placement warrants held in the trust account prior to the completion of our initial business combination:

 

  Ø  

Repayment of an aggregate of up to $200,000 in loans made to us by our sponsor under a note to cover offering-related and organizational expenses;

 

  Ø  

Payments to an affiliate of our sponsor of up to $10,000 per month, for up to 24 months, for certain administrative, research, transaction and other support services;

 

  Ø  

Reimbursement for any out-of-pocket expenses related to identifying, investigating and completing an initial business combination;

 

  Ø  

Repayment of non-interest bearing loans which may be made to us to finance working capital and transaction costs in connection with an intended initial business combination. Up to $1,500,000 of such loans may be convertible into warrants, at a price of $1.00 per warrant at the option of the lender. The warrants would be identical to the private placement warrants; and

 

  Ø  

At the closing of our initial business combination, we may pay customary financial consulting fees. We may pay such financial consulting fees in the event our initial stockholders, officers, directors, sponsor or members of our strategic advisory group provide us with specific target company, industry, financial or market expertise, as well as insights, relationships, services or resources in order to assess, negotiate and consummate an initial business combination. The amount of any such financial consulting fee we pay will be based upon the prevailing market for similar services for comparable transactions at such time, and will be subject to the review of our audit committee pursuant to the audit committee’s policies and procedures relating to transactions that may present conflicts of interest. We would disclose any such fee in the proxy or tender offer materials used in connection with a proposed business combination.

 

 

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  Our audit committee will review on a quarterly basis all payments that were made by us to our initial stockholders, officers or directors, or our or their affiliates.

 

Audit Committee

We will establish and maintain an audit committee, which will be composed entirely of independent directors to, among other things, monitor compliance with the terms described above and the other terms relating to this offering. If any noncompliance is identified, then the audit committee will be charged with the responsibility to promptly take all action necessary to rectify such noncompliance or otherwise to cause compliance with the terms of this offering. For more information, see the section of this prospectus entitled “Management—Committees of the Board of Directors—Audit Committee.”

 

Conflicts of Interest

Each of our officers and directors presently has, and any of them in the future may have additional, fiduciary or contractual obligations to other entities pursuant to which such officer or director is or will be required to present a business combination opportunity to such entities. Accordingly, if any of our officers or directors becomes aware of a business combination opportunity which is suitable for an entity to which he or she has then-current fiduciary or contractual obligations, he or she will honor his or her fiduciary or contractual obligations to present such opportunity to such entity. We do not believe, however, that the fiduciary duties or contractual obligations of our officers or directors will materially affect our ability complete our business combination. Our certificate of incorporation will provide that we renounce our interest in any corporate opportunity offered to any director or officer unless such opportunity is expressly offered to such person solely in his or her capacity as a director or officer of our company and such opportunity is one we are legally and contractually permitted to undertake and would otherwise be reasonable for us to pursue.

 

Indemnity

Our sponsor has agreed that it will be liable to us if and to the extent any claims by a third party for services rendered or products sold to us, or by a prospective target business with which we have discussed entering into a transaction agreement,

 

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reduce the amount of funds in the trust account to below (i) $10.00 per public share or (ii) such lesser amount per public share held in the trust account as of the date of the liquidation of the trust account due to reductions in the value of the trust assets, in each case net of the amount of interest which may be withdrawn to pay taxes. This liability will not apply with respect to any claims by a third party who executed a waiver of any and all rights to seek access to the trust account and except as to any claims under our indemnity of the underwriters of this offering against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. Moreover, in the event that an executed waiver is deemed to be unenforceable against a third party, then our sponsor will not be responsible to the extent of any liability for such third-party claims. Our independent registered public accounting firm will not execute agreements with us waiving such claims to the monies held in the trust account, nor will the underwriters of this offering. We have not independently verified whether our sponsor, which is a newly formed entity, has sufficient funds to satisfy its indemnity obligations and believe that our sponsor’s only assets are securities of our company. We have not asked our sponsor to reserve for such indemnification obligations. Therefore, we believe it is unlikely our sponsor would be able to satisfy those obligations. None of our officers or directors will indemnify us for claims by third parties including, without limitation, claims by vendors and prospective target businesses.

RISKS

Summary of Risk Factors

An investment in our securities involves a high degree of risk. The occurrence of one or more of the events or circumstances described in the section titled “Risk Factors,” alone or in combination with other events or circumstances, may materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and operating results. In that event, the trading price of our securities could decline, and you could lose all or part of your investment. Such risks include, but are not limited to:

 

Ø  

We are a newly formed company with no operating history and no revenues, and you have no basis on which to evaluate our ability to achieve our business objective.

 

Ø  

Our independent registered public accounting firm’s report contains an explanatory paragraph that expresses substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a “going concern.”

 

 

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Ø  

Our public stockholders may not be afforded an opportunity to vote on our proposed business combination, which means we may complete our initial business combination even though a majority of our public stockholders do not support such a combination.

 

Ø  

Your only opportunity to affect the investment decision regarding a potential business combination will be limited to the exercise of your right to redeem your shares from us for cash, unless we seek stockholder approval of the business combination.

 

Ø  

If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination, our initial stockholders, officers and directors have agreed to vote their shares in favor of such initial business combination, regardless of how our public stockholders vote.

 

Ø  

The ability of our public stockholders to redeem their shares for cash may make our financial condition unattractive to potential target businesses, which may make it difficult for us to enter into a business combination with a target.

 

Ø  

The ability of our public stockholders to exercise redemption rights with respect to a large number of our shares may not allow us to complete the most desirable business combination, if at all, or optimize our capital structure.

 

Ø  

The requirement that we complete our initial business combination within the prescribed time frame may give potential target businesses leverage over us in negotiating a business combination and may limit the time we have in which to conduct due diligence on potential business combination targets, in particular as we approach our dissolution deadline, which could undermine our ability to complete our initial business combination on terms that would produce value for our stockholders.

 

Ø  

Our search for a business combination, and any target business with which we ultimately consummate a business combination, may be materially adversely affected by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and other events, and the status of debt and equity markets.

 

Ø  

Past performance by our management team and their respective affiliates may not be indicative of future performance of an investment in us.

 

Ø  

If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination, our initial stockholders, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates may enter into certain transactions, including purchasing shares or warrants from the public, which may influence the outcome of a proposed business combination and reduce the public “float” of our securities.

 

Ø  

If a stockholder fails to receive notice of our offer to redeem our public shares in connection with our initial business combination, or fails to comply with the procedures for tendering its shares, such shares may not be redeemed.

 

Ø  

You will not have any rights or interests in funds from the trust account, except under certain limited circumstances. To liquidate your investment, therefore, you may be forced to sell your public shares or warrants, potentially at a loss.

 

Ø  

The NYSE may delist our securities from trading on its exchange, which could limit investors’ ability to make transactions in our securities and subject us to additional trading restrictions.

 

Ø  

You will not be entitled to protections normally afforded to investors of many other blank check companies.

 

Ø  

Because of our limited resources and the significant competition for business combination opportunities, it may be more difficult for us to complete our initial business combination. If we are

 

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unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.00 per share on our redemption of our public shares, or less than such amount in certain circumstances, and our warrants will expire worthless.

 

Ø  

If the net proceeds of this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants not being held in the trust account are insufficient to allow us to operate for at least the next 24 months, it could limit the amount available to fund our search for a target business or businesses and complete our initial business combination, and we will depend on loans from our sponsor or management team to fund our search and to complete our initial business combination.

 

Ø  

The warrants may become exercisable and redeemable for a security other than the shares of our Class A common stock, and you will not have any information regarding such other security at this time.

 

Ø  

Unlike some other similarly structured blank check companies, our initial stockholders will receive additional shares of our Class A common stock if we issue shares to complete an initial business combination.

 

Ø  

Certain of our officers and directors are now, and all of them may in the future become, affiliated with entities engaged in business activities similar to those intended to be conducted by us (and they may also become an officer or director of any other special purpose acquisition company) and, accordingly, may have conflicts of interest in allocating their time and determining to which entity a particular business opportunity should be presented.

 

Ø  

Provisions in our certificate of incorporation and Delaware law may inhibit a takeover of us, which could limit the price investors might be willing to pay in the future for our Class A common stock and could entrench management.

 

SUMMARY FINANCIAL DATA

The following table summarizes the relevant financial data for our business and should be read with our financial statements, which are included in this prospectus. We have not had any significant operations to date, so only balance sheet data is presented.

 

      September 3, 2020  

Balance Sheet Data:

  

Working capital (deficiency)

   $ (30,422

Total assets

   $ 80,000  

Total liabilities

   $ 55,422  

Stockholder’s equity

   $ 24,578  

If no business combination is completed within 24 months from the closing of this offering, the proceeds then on deposit in the trust account including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses), will be used to fund the redemption of our public shares. Our initial stockholders have agreed to waive their rights to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to any founder shares held by them if we fail to complete our initial business combination within such time period.

 

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Risk factors

An investment in our securities involves a high degree of risk. You should consider carefully all of the risks described below, together with the other information contained in this prospectus, before making a decision to invest in our units. If any of the following events occur, our business, financial condition and operating results may be materially adversely affected. In that event, the trading price of our securities could decline, and you could lose all or part of your investment.

RISKS RELATING TO OUR SEARCH FOR, CONSUMMATION OF, OR INABILITY TO CONSUMMATE, A BUSINESS COMBINATION AND POST-BUSINESS COMBINATION RISKS

We are a newly formed company with no operating history and no revenues, and you have no basis on which to evaluate our ability to achieve our business objective.

We are a newly formed company with no operating results, and we will not commence operations until obtaining funding through this offering. Because we lack an operating history, you have no basis upon which to evaluate our ability to achieve our business objective of completing our initial business combination with one or more target businesses. We have no plans, arrangements or understandings with any prospective target business concerning a business combination with our company and may be unable to complete our initial business combination. If we fail to complete our business combination, we will never generate any operating revenues.

Our independent registered public accounting firm’s report contains an explanatory paragraph that expresses substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a “going concern.”

As of September 3, 2020, we had $25,000 in cash and a working capital deficit of $30,422. Further, we have incurred and expect to continue to incur significant costs in pursuit of our acquisition plans. Management’s plans to address this need for capital through this offering are discussed in the section of this prospectus titled “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.” Our plans to raise capital and to consummate our initial business combination may not be successful. These factors, among others, raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern. The financial statements contained elsewhere in this prospectus do not include any adjustments that might result from our inability to consummate this offering or our inability to continue as a going concern.

Our public stockholders may not be afforded an opportunity to vote on our proposed business combination, which means we may complete our initial business combination even though a majority of our public stockholders do not support such a combination.

We may not hold a stockholder vote to approve our initial business combination unless the business combination would require stockholder approval under applicable law or stock exchange listing requirements or if we decide to hold a stockholder vote for business or other reasons. Except as required by applicable law, the decision as to whether we will seek stockholder approval of a proposed business combination or will allow stockholders to sell their shares to us in a tender offer will be made by us, solely in our discretion, and will be based on a variety of factors, such as the timing of the transaction and whether the terms of the transaction would otherwise require us to seek stockholder approval under stock exchange listing requirements. Accordingly, we may complete our initial business combination even if holders of a majority of our public shares do not approve of the business combination we complete. Please see the section of this prospectus entitled “Proposed Business—Stockholders May Not Have the Ability to Approve our Initial Business Combination” for additional information.

 

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If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination, our initial stockholders, officers and directors have agreed to vote their shares in favor of such initial business combination, regardless of how our public stockholders vote.

Our initial stockholders, officers and directors have agreed to vote any founder shares and any public shares held by them in favor of our initial business combination. As a result, in addition to their founder shares, we would need only 9,375,001, or 37.5% (assuming all outstanding shares are voted), of the 25,000,000 public shares sold in this offering to be voted in favor of a transaction in order to have our initial business combination approved (assuming the underwriters’ over-allotment option is not exercised). However, because we generally only need a majority of the outstanding shares to be voted in favor of a proposed business combination to have such transaction approved, the number of public shares needed to be voted in favor of any transaction decreases as the overall number of public shares voted decreases. Accordingly, we would need only 1,562,501, or 6.3%, of the 25,000,000 public shares sold in this offering to be voted in favor of a transaction if only the minimum number of shares representing a quorum are voted in order to have our initial business combination approved (assuming the underwriters’ over-allotment option is not exercised). Our initial stockholders will own shares representing at least 20.0% of our outstanding shares of common stock immediately following the completion of this offering. Accordingly, if we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination, it is more likely that the necessary stockholder approval will be received than would be the case if our initial stockholders, officers and directors agreed to vote their founder shares in accordance with the majority of the votes cast by our public stockholders.

Your only opportunity to affect the investment decision regarding a potential business combination will be limited to the exercise of your right to redeem your shares from us for cash, unless we seek stockholder approval of the business combination.

At the time of your investment in us, you will not be provided with an opportunity to evaluate the specific merits or risks of any target businesses. Since our board of directors may complete a business combination without seeking stockholder approval, public stockholders may not have the right or opportunity to vote on the business combination. Accordingly, if we do not seek stockholder approval, your only opportunity to affect the investment decision regarding a potential business combination may be limited to exercising your redemption rights in connection with the consummation of an initial business combination.

The ability of our public stockholders to redeem their shares for cash may make our financial condition unattractive to potential target businesses, which may make it difficult for us to enter into a business combination with a target.

We may seek to enter into a business combination transaction agreement with a prospective target that requires as a closing condition that we have a minimum net worth or a certain amount of cash. If too many public stockholders exercise their redemption rights, we would not be able to meet such closing condition and, as a result, would not be able to proceed with the business combination. Furthermore, we will only redeem our public shares so long as (after such redemption) our net tangible assets will be at least $5,000,001 immediately prior to or upon consummation of our initial business combination (so that we do not then become subject to the SEC’s “penny stock” rules) or any greater net tangible asset or cash requirement which may be contained in the agreement relating to our initial business combination. Consequently, if accepting all properly submitted redemption requests would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001 immediately prior to or upon completion of our initial business combination or such greater amount necessary to satisfy a closing condition, each as described above, we would not proceed with such redemption and the related business combination and may instead search

 

 

 

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for an alternate business combination. Prospective targets will be aware of these risks and, thus, may be reluctant to enter into a business combination transaction with us.

The ability of our public stockholders to exercise redemption rights with respect to a large number of our shares may not allow us to complete the most desirable business combination, if at all, or optimize our capital structure.

At the time we enter into an agreement for our initial business combination, we will not know how many stockholders may exercise their redemption rights, and therefore will need to structure the transaction based on our expectations as to the number of shares that will be submitted for redemption. If our initial business combination agreement requires us to use a portion of the cash in the trust account to pay the purchase price, or requires us to have a minimum amount of cash at closing, we will need to reserve a portion of the cash in the trust account to meet such requirements, or arrange for third-party financing. In addition, if a larger number of shares is submitted for redemption than we initially expected, we may need to restructure the transaction to reserve a greater portion of the cash in the trust account or arrange for third-party financing. Raising additional third-party financing may involve dilutive equity issuances or the incurrence of indebtedness at higher than desirable levels. The above considerations may limit our ability to complete the most desirable business combination available to us or optimize our capital structure. The amount of the deferred underwriting commissions payable to the Representatives will not be adjusted for any shares that are redeemed in connection with a business combination. The per-share amount we will distribute to stockholders who properly exercise their redemption rights will not be reduced by the deferred underwriting commission and after such redemptions, the per-share value of shares held by non-redeeming stockholders will reflect our obligation to pay the deferred underwriting commissions.

Additionally, if our initial business combination agreement requires us to use a portion of the cash in the trust account to pay the purchase price, or requires us to have a minimum amount of cash at closing, the probability that our initial business combination would be unsuccessful is increased. If our initial business combination is unsuccessful, you would not receive your pro rata portion of the trust account until we liquidate the trust account. If you are in need of immediate liquidity, you could attempt to sell your stock in the open market; however, at such time our stock may trade at a discount to the pro rata amount per share in the trust account. In either situation, you may suffer a material loss on your investment or lose the benefit of funds expected in connection with our redemption until we liquidate or you are able to sell your stock in the open market.

The requirement that we complete our initial business combination within the prescribed time frame may give potential target businesses leverage over us in negotiating a business combination and may limit the time we have in which to conduct due diligence on potential business combination targets, in particular as we approach our dissolution deadline, which could undermine our ability to complete our initial business combination on terms that would produce value for our stockholders.

Any potential target business with which we enter into negotiations concerning a business combination will be aware that we must complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering. Consequently, such target business may obtain leverage over us in negotiating a business combination, knowing that if we do not complete our initial business combination with that particular target business, we may be unable to complete our initial business combination with any target business. This risk will increase as we get closer to the end of the timeframe described above. In addition, we may have limited time to conduct due diligence. As a result, we may be forced to enter into an agreement for an initial business combination on terms that we would have rejected had we had more time to complete a transaction.

 

 

 

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We may not be able to complete our initial business combination within the prescribed time frame, in which case we would cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up and we would redeem our public shares and liquidate, in which case our public stockholders may only receive $10.00 per share, or less than such amount in certain circumstances, and our warrants will expire worthless.

Our certificate of incorporation provides that we must complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering. We may not be able to find a suitable target business and complete our initial business combination within such time period. Our ability to complete our initial business combination may be negatively impacted by general market conditions, volatility in the capital and debt markets and the other risks described herein. For example, the outbreak of COVID-19 continues to grow both in the U.S. and globally and, while the extent of the impact of the outbreak on us will depend on future developments, it could limit our ability to complete our initial business combination, including as a result of increased market volatility, decreased market liquidity and third-party financing being unavailable on terms acceptable to us or at all. Additionally, the outbreak of the COVID-19 coronavirus and other events (such as terrorist attacks, natural disasters or a significant outbreak of other infectious diseases) may negatively impact businesses we may seek to acquire. If we have not completed our initial business combination within such time period or during any Extension Period, we will: (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up; (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than ten business days thereafter, redeem the public shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidating distributions, if any); and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining stockholders and our board of directors, dissolve and liquidate, subject in the case of clauses (ii) and (iii) to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. In such case, our public stockholders may only receive $10.00 per share, and our warrants will expire worthless. In certain circumstances, our public stockholders may receive less than $10.00 per share on the redemption of their shares. See “—If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in the trust account could be reduced and the per-share redemption amount received by stockholders may be less than $10.00 per share” and other risk factors in this section.

If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination, our initial stockholders, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates may enter into certain transactions, including purchasing shares or warrants from the public, which may influence the outcome of a proposed business combination and reduce the public “float” of our securities.

If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination and we do not conduct redemptions in connection with our initial business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, our initial stockholders, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates may purchase public shares or public warrants or a combination thereof in privately negotiated transactions or in the open market either prior to or following the completion of our initial business combination, although they are under no obligation to do so. Such a purchase may include a contractual acknowledgement that such stockholder, although still the record holder of our shares is no longer the beneficial owner thereof and therefore agrees not to exercise its redemption rights. In the event that our initial stockholders, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates purchase shares in privately negotiated transactions from public stockholders who have already elected to exercise their redemption rights, such selling stockholders would be required to revoke

 

 

 

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their prior elections to redeem their shares. Additionally, at any time at or prior to our initial business combination, subject to applicable securities laws (including with respect to material nonpublic information), our initial stockholders, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates may enter into transactions with investors and others to provide them with incentives to acquire public shares, vote their public shares in favor of our initial business combination or not redeem their public shares. However, they have no current commitments, plans or intentions to engage in such transactions and have not formulated any terms or conditions for any such transactions. The purpose of any such transaction could be to (1) vote such shares in favor of the initial business combination and thereby increase the likelihood of obtaining stockholder approval of the initial business combination, (2) reduce the number of public warrants outstanding or to vote such warrants on any matters submitted to the warrant holders for approval in connection with our initial business combination or (3) satisfy a closing condition in an agreement with a target that requires us to have a minimum net worth or a certain amount of cash at the closing of our initial business combination, where it appears that such requirement would otherwise not be met. This may result in the completion of our initial business combination that may not otherwise have been possible.

In addition, if such purchases are made, the public “float” of our Class A common stock or warrants and the number of beneficial holders of our securities may be reduced, possibly making it difficult to obtain or maintain the quotation, listing or trading of our securities on a national securities exchange.

If the net proceeds of this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants not being held in the trust account are insufficient to allow us to operate for at least the next 24 months, it could limit the amount available to fund our search for a target business or businesses and complete our initial business combination, and we will depend on loans from our sponsor or management team to fund our search and to complete our initial business combination.

The funds available to us outside of the trust account to fund our working capital requirements may not be sufficient to allow us to operate for at least the next 24 months, assuming that our initial business combination is not completed during that time. We believe that, upon closing of this offering, the funds available to us outside of the trust account, together with funds available from loans from our sponsor will be sufficient to allow us to operate for at least the next 24 months; however, we cannot assure you that our estimate is accurate. Of the funds available to us, we expect to use a portion of the funds available to us to pay fees to consultants to assist us with our search for a target business. We could also use a portion of the funds as a down payment or to fund a “no-shop” provision (a provision in letters of intent designed to keep target businesses from “shopping” around for transactions with other companies or investors on terms more favorable to such target businesses) with respect to a particular proposed business combination, although we do not have any current intention to do so. If we entered into a letter of intent where we paid for the right to receive exclusivity from a target business and were subsequently required to forfeit such funds (whether as a result of our breach or otherwise), we might not have sufficient funds to continue searching for, or conduct due diligence with respect to, a target business. If we do not complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.00 per share on the liquidation of our trust account and our warrants will expire worthless. In certain circumstances, our public stockholders may receive less than $10.00 per share upon our liquidation. See “— If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in the trust account could be reduced and the per-share redemption amount received by stockholders may be less than $10.00 per share” and other risk factors below.

Of the net proceeds of this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants, only approximately $1,000,000 will be available to us initially outside the trust account to fund our working capital

 

 

 

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requirements. In the event that our offering expenses exceed our estimate of $1,000,000, we may fund such excess with funds not to be held in the trust account. In such case, the amount of funds we intend to be held outside the trust account would decrease by a corresponding amount. Conversely, in the event that the offering expenses are less than our estimate of $1,000,000, the amount of funds we intend to be held outside the trust account would increase by a corresponding amount. If we are required to seek additional capital, we would need to borrow funds from our initial stockholders, management team or other third parties to operate, or we may be forced to liquidate. None of our initial stockholders, members of our management team nor any of their affiliates is under any obligation to advance funds to, or invest in, us in such circumstances. If we do not have sufficient funds to continue searching for, or conduct due diligence with respect to, a target business, we may not be able to consummate an initial business combination. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.00 per share on the liquidation of our trust account and our warrants will expire worthless. In certain circumstances, our public stockholders may receive less than $10.00 per share upon our liquidation. See “—If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in the trust account could be reduced and the per-share redemption amount received by stockholders may be less than $10.00 per share” and other risk factors in this section.

Subsequent to the completion of our initial business combination, we may be required to take write-downs or write-offs, restructuring and impairment or other charges that could have a significant negative effect on our financial condition, results of operations and the price of our securities, which could cause you to lose some or all of your investment.

Even if we conduct extensive due diligence on a target business with which we combine, we cannot assure you that this diligence will identify all material issues that may be present with a particular target business, that it would be possible to uncover all material issues through a customary amount of due diligence, or that factors outside of the target business and outside of our control will not later arise. As a result of these factors, we may be forced to later write-down or write-off assets, restructure our operations, or incur impairment or other charges that could result in our reporting losses. Even if our due diligence successfully identifies certain risks, unexpected risks may arise and previously known risks may materialize in a manner not consistent with our preliminary risk analysis. Even though these charges may be non-cash items and not have an immediate impact on our liquidity, the fact that we report charges of this nature could contribute to negative market perceptions about us or our securities. In addition, charges of this nature may cause us to violate net worth or other covenants to which we may be subject as a result of assuming pre-existing debt held by a target business or by virtue of our obtaining post-combination debt financing. Accordingly, any stockholders or warrant holders who choose to remain a stockholder or warrant holder following our initial business combination could suffer a reduction in the value of their securities. Such security holders are unlikely to have a remedy for such reduction in value unless they are able to successfully claim that the reduction was due to the breach by our officers or directors of a duty of care or other fiduciary duty owed to them, or if they are able to successfully bring a private claim under securities laws that the proxy solicitation or tender offer materials, as applicable, relating to the business combination contained an actionable material misstatement or material omission.

 

 

 

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If we are deemed to be an investment company under the Investment Company Act, we may be required to institute burdensome compliance requirements and our activities may be restricted, which may make it difficult for us to complete our initial business combination.

If we are deemed to be an investment company under the Investment Company Act, our activities may be restricted, including:

 

Ø  

restrictions on the nature of our investments; and

 

Ø  

restrictions on the issuance of securities, each of which may make it difficult for us to complete our initial business combination.

In addition, we may have imposed upon us burdensome requirements, including:

 

Ø  

registration as an investment company with the SEC;

 

Ø  

adoption of a specific form of corporate structure; and

 

Ø  

reporting, record keeping, voting, proxy and disclosure requirements and compliance with other rules and regulations that we are currently not subject to.

In order not to be regulated as an investment company under the Investment Company Act, unless we can qualify for an exclusion, we must ensure that we are engaged primarily in a business other than investing, reinvesting or trading of securities and that our activities do not include investing, reinvesting, owning, holding or trading “investment securities” constituting more than 40% of our total assets (exclusive of U.S. government securities and cash items) on an unconsolidated basis. Our business will be to identify and complete a business combination and thereafter to operate the post-transaction business or assets for the long term. We do not plan to buy businesses or assets with a view to resale or profit from their resale. We do not plan to buy unrelated businesses or assets or to be a passive investor.

We do not believe that our anticipated principal activities will subject us to the Investment Company Act. To this end, the proceeds held in the trust account may only be invested in United States “government securities” within the meaning of Section 2(a)(16) of the Investment Company Act having a maturity of 185 days or less or in money market funds meeting certain conditions under Rule 2a-7 promulgated under the Investment Company Act which invest only in direct U.S. government treasury obligations. Pursuant to the trust agreement, the trustee is not permitted to invest in other securities or assets. By restricting the investment of the proceeds to these instruments, and by having a business plan targeted at acquiring and growing businesses for the long term (rather than on buying and selling businesses in the manner of a merchant bank or private equity fund), we intend to avoid being deemed an “investment company” within the meaning of the Investment Company Act. This offering is not intended for persons who are seeking a return on investments in government securities or investment securities. The trust account is intended as a holding place for funds pending the earliest to occur of: (i) the completion of an initial business combination; (ii) the redemption of any public shares properly submitted in connection with a stockholder vote to amend our certificate of incorporation (A) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or certain amendments to our certificate of incorporation or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering or (B) with respect to any other provisions relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity; and (iii) absent a business combination, our return of the funds held in the trust account to our public stockholders as part of our redemption of the public shares. Stockholders who do not exercise their rights to the funds in connection with an amendment to our certificate of incorporation would still

 

 

 

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have rights to the funds in connection with a subsequent business combination. If we do not invest the proceeds as discussed above, we may be deemed to be subject to the Investment Company Act. If we were deemed to be subject to the Investment Company Act, compliance with these additional regulatory burdens would require additional expenses for which we have not allotted funds and may hinder our ability to complete a business combination. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.00 per share on the liquidation of our trust account and our warrants will expire worthless. In certain circumstances, our public stockholders may receive less than $10.00 per share on the redemption of their shares. See “—If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in the trust account could be reduced and the per-share redemption amount received by stockholders may be less than $10.00 per share” and other risk factors in this section.

If we have not completed an initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering, our public stockholders may be forced to wait beyond such 24 months before redemption from our trust account.

If we have not completed an initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering, the proceeds then on deposit in the trust account, including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes, if any (less up to $100,000 of the interest to pay dissolution expenses), will be used to fund the redemption of our public shares, as further described herein. Any redemption of public stockholders from the trust account will be effected automatically by function of our certificate of incorporation prior to any voluntary winding up. If we are required to wind-up, liquidate the trust account and distribute such amount therein, pro rata, to our public stockholders, as part of any liquidation process, such winding up, liquidation and distribution must comply with the applicable provisions of the DGCL. In that case, investors may be forced to wait beyond 24 months from the closing of this offering before the redemption proceeds of our trust account become available to them, and they receive the return of their pro rata portion of the proceeds from our trust account. We have no obligation to return funds to investors prior to the date of our redemption or liquidation unless we complete our initial business combination prior thereto and only then in cases where investors have sought to redeem their Class A common stock. Only upon our redemption or any liquidation will public stockholders be entitled to distributions if we do not complete our initial business combination.

Our stockholders may be held liable for claims by third parties against us to the extent of distributions received by them upon redemption of their shares.

Under the DGCL, stockholders may be held liable for claims by third parties against a corporation to the extent of distributions received by them in a dissolution. The pro rata portion of our trust account distributed to our public stockholders upon the redemption of our public shares in the event we do not complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering may be considered a liquidating distribution under Delaware law. If a corporation complies with certain procedures set forth in Section 280 of the DGCL intended to ensure that it makes reasonable provision for all claims against it, including a 60-day notice period during which any third-party claims can be brought against the corporation, a 90-day period during which the corporation may reject any claims brought, and an additional 150-day waiting period before any liquidating distributions are made to stockholders, any liability of stockholders with respect to a liquidating distribution is limited to the lesser of such stockholder’s pro rata share of the claim or the amount distributed to the stockholder, and any liability of the stockholder would be barred after the third anniversary of the dissolution. However, it is our intention to redeem our public shares as soon as reasonably possible following the 24th month from the closing of this offering (or the end of any Extension Period) in the event we do not complete our initial business combination and, therefore, we do not intend to comply with the foregoing procedures.

 

 

 

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Because we will not be complying with Section 280, Section 281(b) of the DGCL requires us to adopt a plan, based on facts known to us at such time that will provide for our payment of all existing and pending claims or claims that may be potentially brought against us within the 10 years following our dissolution. However, because we are a blank check company, rather than an operating company, and our operations will be limited to searching for prospective target businesses to acquire, the only likely claims to arise would be from our vendors (such as lawyers, investment bankers, etc.) or prospective target businesses. If our plan of distribution complies with Section 281(b) of the DGCL, any liability of stockholders with respect to a liquidating distribution is limited to the lesser of such stockholder’s pro rata share of the claim or the amount distributed to the stockholder, and any liability of the stockholder would likely be barred after the third anniversary of the dissolution. We cannot assure you that we will properly assess all claims that may be potentially brought against us. As such, our stockholders could potentially be liable for any claims to the extent of distributions received by them (but no more) and any liability of our stockholders may extend beyond the third anniversary of such date. Furthermore, if the pro rata portion of our trust account distributed to our public stockholders upon the redemption of our public shares in the event we do not complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering is not considered a liquidating distribution under Delaware law and such redemption distribution is deemed to be unlawful, then pursuant to Section 174 of the DGCL, the statute of limitations for claims of creditors could then be six years after the unlawful redemption distribution, instead of three years, as in the case of a liquidating distribution.

We may not hold an annual meeting of stockholders until after the consummation of our initial business combination, which could delay the opportunity for our stockholders to elect directors.

In accordance with the NYSE corporate governance requirements, we are not required to hold an annual meeting until one year after our first fiscal year end following our listing on the NYSE. Under Section 211(b) of the DGCL, we are, however, required to hold an annual meeting of stockholders for the purposes of electing directors in accordance with our bylaws unless such election is made by written consent in lieu of such a meeting. We may not hold an annual meeting of stockholders to elect new directors prior to the consummation of our initial business combination, and thus we may not be in compliance with Section 211(b) of the DGCL, which requires an annual meeting. Therefore, if our stockholders want us to hold an annual meeting prior to the consummation of our initial business combination, they may attempt to force us to hold one by submitting an application to the Delaware Court of Chancery in accordance with Section 211(c) of the DGCL.

 

Because we are not limited to a particular industry, sector or geographic area nor have we selected any specific target businesses with which to pursue our initial business combination, you will be unable to ascertain the merits or risks of any particular target business’ operations.

We will not, under our certificate of incorporation, be permitted to complete our initial business combination solely with another blank check company or similar company with nominal operations. Because we have not yet selected or approached any specific target business with respect to a business combination, there is no basis to evaluate the possible merits or risks of any particular target business’s operations, results of operations, cash flows, liquidity, financial condition or prospects. To the extent we complete our initial business combination, we may be affected by numerous risks inherent in the business operations with which we combine. For example, if we combine with a financially unstable business or an entity lacking an established record of revenues or earnings, we may be affected by the risks inherent in the business and operations of a financially unstable or a development stage entity. Although our officers and directors will endeavor to evaluate the risks inherent in a particular target business, we

 

 

 

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cannot assure you that we will properly ascertain or assess all the significant risk factors relevant to such acquisition or that we will have adequate time to complete due diligence. Furthermore, some of these risks may be outside of our control and leave us with no ability to control or reduce the chances that those risks will adversely impact a target business. We also cannot assure you that an investment in our units will ultimately prove to be more favorable to investors than a direct investment, if such opportunity were available, in a target business. Accordingly, any stockholders or warrant holders who choose to remain a stockholder or warrant holder following our initial business combination could suffer a reduction in the value of their securities. Such security holders are unlikely to have a remedy for such reduction in value.

Although we have identified general criteria and guidelines that we believe are important in evaluating prospective target businesses, we may enter into our initial business combination with a target that does not meet such criteria and guidelines, and as a result, the target business with which we enter into our initial business combination may not have attributes entirely consistent with our general criteria and guidelines.

Although we have identified general criteria and guidelines for evaluating prospective target businesses, it is possible that a target business with which we enter into our initial business combination will not have all of these positive attributes. If we complete our initial business combination with a target that does not meet some or all of these criteria and guidelines, such combination may not be as successful as a combination with a business that does meet all of our general criteria and guidelines. In addition, if we announce a prospective business combination with a target that does not meet our general criteria and guidelines, a greater number of stockholders may exercise their redemption rights, which may make it difficult for us to meet any closing condition with a target business that requires us to have a minimum net worth or a certain amount of cash. In addition, if stockholder approval of the transaction is required by applicable law or stock exchange listing requirements, or we decide to obtain stockholder approval for business or other reasons, it may be more difficult for us to attain stockholder approval of our initial business combination if the target business does not meet our general criteria and guidelines. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.00 per share, or less in certain circumstances, on the liquidation of our trust account and our warrants will expire worthless. In certain circumstances, our public stockholders may receive less than $10.00 per share on the redemption of their shares. See “—If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in the trust account could be reduced and the per-share redemption amount received by stockholders may be less than $10.00 per share” and other risk factors in this section.

We may seek acquisition opportunities with an early stage company, a private company, a financially unstable business or an entity lacking an established record of revenue or earnings, which could subject us to volatile revenues or earnings or difficulty in retaining key personnel.

To the extent we complete our initial business combination with an early stage company, a financially unstable business or an entity lacking an established record of revenues or earnings, we may be affected by numerous risks inherent in the operations of the business with which we combine. These risks include investing in a business without a proven business model and with limited historical financial data, volatile revenues or earnings and difficulties in obtaining and retaining key personnel. Although our officers and directors will endeavor to evaluate the risks inherent in a particular target business, we may not be able to properly ascertain or assess all the significant risk factors relevant to such acquisition and we may not have adequate time to complete due diligence. Furthermore, some of these risks may be outside of our control and leave us with no ability to control or reduce the chances that those risks will

 

 

 

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adversely impact a target business. We may also seek to complete our initial business combination with a privately held company. Very little public information generally exists about private companies, and we could be required to make our decision on whether to pursue a potential initial business combination on the basis of limited information, which may result in a business combination with a company that is not as profitable as we suspected, if at all.

We may not obtain an opinion from an independent valuation provider, and consequently, you may have no assurance from an independent source that our initial business combination is fair to our company from a financial point of view.

Unless we complete our business combination with an affiliated entity, we are not required to obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm or from another independent entity that commonly renders valuation opinions that our initial business combination is fair to our company from a financial point of view. If no opinion is obtained, our stockholders will be relying on the judgment of our board of directors, who will determine fair market value based on standards generally accepted by the financial community. Such standards used will be disclosed in our proxy solicitation or tender offer materials, as applicable, related to our initial business combination.

Resources could be wasted in researching acquisitions that are not completed, which could materially adversely affect subsequent attempts to locate and acquire or merge with another business. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.00 per share, or less than such amount in certain circumstances, on the liquidation of our trust account and our warrants will expire worthless.

We anticipate that the investigation of each specific target business and the negotiation, drafting and execution of relevant agreements, disclosure documents and other instruments will require substantial management time and attention and substantial costs for accountants, attorneys and others. If we decide not to complete a specific initial business combination, the costs incurred up to that point for the proposed transaction likely would not be recoverable. Furthermore, if we reach an agreement relating to a specific target business, we may fail to complete our initial business combination for any number of reasons including those beyond our control. Any such event will result in a loss to us of the related costs incurred which could materially adversely affect subsequent attempts to locate and acquire or merge with another business. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.00 per share on the liquidation of our trust account and our warrants will expire worthless. In certain circumstances, our public stockholders may receive less than $10.00 per share on the redemption of their shares. See “—If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in the trust account could be reduced and the per-share redemption amount received by stockholders may be less than $10.00 per share” and other risk factors in this section.

We may issue notes or other debt securities, or otherwise incur substantial debt, to complete a business combination, which may adversely affect our leverage and financial condition and thus negatively impact the value of our stockholders’ investment in us.

Although we have no commitments as of the date of this prospectus to issue any notes or other debt securities, or to otherwise incur outstanding debt following this offering, we may choose to incur substantial debt to complete our initial business combination. We have agreed that we will not incur any indebtedness unless we have obtained from the lender a waiver of any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to the monies held in the trust account. As such, no issuance of debt will affect the

 

 

 

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per-share amount available for redemption from the trust account. Nevertheless, the incurrence of debt could have a variety of negative effects, including:

 

Ø  

default and foreclosure on our assets if our operating revenues after an initial business combination are insufficient to repay our debt obligations;

 

Ø  

acceleration of our obligations to repay the indebtedness even if we make all principal and interest payments when due if we breach certain covenants that require the maintenance of certain financial ratios or reserves without a waiver or renegotiation of that covenant;

 

Ø  

our immediate payment of all principal and accrued interest, if any, if the debt is payable on demand;

 

Ø  

our inability to obtain necessary additional financing if the debt contains covenants restricting our ability to obtain such financing while the debt is outstanding;

 

Ø  

our inability to pay dividends on our common stock;

 

Ø  

using a substantial portion of our cash flow to pay principal and interest on our debt, which will reduce the funds available for dividends on our common stock if declared, our ability to pay expenses, make capital expenditures and acquisitions, and fund other general corporate purposes;

 

Ø  

limitations on our flexibility in planning for and reacting to changes in our business and in the industry in which we operate;

 

Ø  

increased vulnerability to adverse changes in general economic, industry and competitive conditions and adverse changes in government regulation;

 

Ø  

limitations on our ability to borrow additional amounts for expenses, capital expenditures, acquisitions, debt service requirements, and execution of our strategy; and

 

Ø  

other purposes and other disadvantages compared to our competitors who have less debt.

We may only be able to complete one business combination with the proceeds of this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants, which will cause us to be solely dependent on a single business which may have a limited number of products or services. This lack of diversification may negatively impact our operations and profitability.

Of the net proceeds from this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants, up to $250,000,000 (or $287,500,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) will be available to complete our initial business combination and pay related fees and expenses (which includes $8,750,000, or up to $10,062,500 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full, for the payment of deferred underwriting commissions).

We may complete our initial business combination with a single target business or multiple target businesses simultaneously or within a short period of time. However, we may not be able to complete our initial business combination with more than one target business because of various factors, including the existence of complex accounting issues and the requirement that we prepare and file pro forma financial statements with the SEC that present operating results and the financial condition of several target businesses as if they had been operated on a combined basis. By completing our initial business combination with only a single entity, our lack of diversification may subject us to numerous economic, competitive and regulatory risks. Further, we would not be able to diversify our operations or benefit from the possible spreading of risks or offsetting of losses, unlike other entities which may have the

 

 

 

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resources to complete several business combinations in different industries or different areas of a single industry. Accordingly, the prospects for our success may be:

 

Ø  

solely dependent upon the performance of a single business, property or asset; or

 

Ø  

dependent upon the development or market acceptance of a single or limited number of products, processes or services.

This lack of diversification may subject us to numerous economic, competitive and regulatory risks, any or all of which may have a substantial adverse impact upon the particular industry in which we may operate subsequent to our initial business combination.

We may attempt to simultaneously complete business combinations with multiple prospective targets, which may hinder our ability to complete our initial business combination and give rise to increased costs and risks that could negatively impact our operations and profitability.

If we determine to simultaneously acquire several businesses that are owned by different sellers, we will need for each of such sellers to agree that our purchase of its business is contingent on the simultaneous closings of the other business combinations, which may make it more difficult for us, and delay our ability, to complete our initial business combination. With multiple business combinations, we could also face additional risks, including additional burdens and costs with respect to possible multiple negotiations and due diligence investigations (if there are multiple sellers) and the additional risks associated with the subsequent assimilation of the operations and services or products of the acquired companies in a single operating business. If we are unable to adequately address these risks, it could negatively impact our profitability and results of operations.

We may seek business combination opportunities with a high degree of complexity that require significant operational improvements, which could delay or prevent us from achieving our desired results.

We may seek business combination opportunities with large, highly complex companies that we believe would benefit from operational improvements. While we intend to implement such improvements, to the extent that our efforts are delayed or we are unable to achieve the desired improvements, the business combination may not be as successful as we anticipate.

To the extent we complete our initial business combination with a large complex business or entity with a complex operating structure, we may also be affected by numerous risks inherent in the operations of the business with which we combine, which could delay or prevent us from implementing our strategy. Although our management team will endeavor to evaluate the risks inherent in a particular target business and its operations, we may not be able to properly ascertain or assess all of the significant risk factors until we complete our business combination. If we are not able to achieve our desired operational improvements, or the improvements take longer to implement than anticipated, we may not achieve the gains that we anticipate. Furthermore, some of these risks and complexities may be outside of our control and leave us with no ability to control or reduce the chances that those risks and complexities will adversely impact a target business. Such combination may not be as successful as a combination with a smaller, less complex organization.

 

 

 

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Our management may not be able to maintain control of a target business after our initial business combination. We cannot provide assurance that, upon loss of control of a target business, new management will possess the skills, qualifications or abilities necessary to profitably operate such business.

We may structure our initial business combination so that the post-transaction company in which our public stockholders own or acquire shares will own less than 100% of the outstanding equity interests or assets of a target business, but we will only complete such business combination if the post-transaction company owns or acquires 50% or more of the outstanding voting securities of the target or otherwise acquires a controlling interest in the target business sufficient for the post-transaction company not to be required to register as an investment company under the Investment Company Act. Even if the post-transaction company owns or acquires 50% or more of the outstanding voting securities of the target, our stockholders prior to our initial business combination may collectively own a minority interest in the post business combination company, depending on valuations ascribed to the target and us in our initial business combination. For example, we could pursue a transaction in which we issue a substantial number of new shares of common stock in exchange for all of the outstanding capital stock of a target, or issue a substantial number of new shares to third-parties in connection with financing our initial business combination. In such cases, we would acquire a 100% interest in the target. However, as a result of the issuance of a substantial number of new shares of common stock, our stockholders immediately prior to such transaction could own less than a majority of our outstanding shares of common stock subsequent to such transaction. In addition, other minority stockholders may subsequently combine their holdings resulting in a single person or group obtaining a larger share of the company’s stock than we initially acquired. Accordingly, this may make it more likely that our management will not be able to maintain our control of the target business. We cannot provide assurance that, upon loss of control of a target business, new management will possess the skills, qualifications or abilities necessary to profitably operate such business.

We do not have a specified maximum redemption threshold. The absence of such a redemption threshold may make it possible for us to complete our initial business combination with which a substantial majority of our stockholders do not agree.

Our certificate of incorporation will not provide a specified maximum redemption threshold, except that we will only redeem our public shares so long as (after such redemption) our net tangible assets will be at least $5,000,001 either immediately prior to or upon consummation of our initial business combination (such that we do not then become subject to the SEC’s “penny stock” rules). As a result, we may be able to complete our initial business combination even though a substantial majority of our public stockholders do not agree with the transaction and have redeemed their shares or, if we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination and do not conduct redemptions in connection with our business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, have entered into privately negotiated agreements to sell their shares to our initial stockholders, officers, directors, advisors or their affiliates. In the event the aggregate cash consideration we would be required to pay for all shares of Class A common stock that are validly submitted for redemption plus any amount required to satisfy cash conditions pursuant to the terms of the proposed business combination exceed the aggregate amount of cash available to us, we will not complete the business combination or redeem any shares, all shares of Class A common stock submitted for redemption will be returned to the holders thereof, and we instead may search for an alternate business combination.

 

 

 

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In order to complete our initial business combination, we may seek to amend our certificate of incorporation or other governing instruments, including our warrant agreement, in a manner that will make it easier for us to complete our initial business combination but that our stockholders or warrant holders may not support.

In order to complete a business combination, blank check companies have, in the recent past, amended various provisions of their charters and governing instruments, including their warrant agreements. For example, blank check companies have amended the definition of business combination, increased redemption thresholds, extended the time to consummate an initial business combination and, with respect to their warrants, amended their warrant agreements to require the warrants to be exchanged for cash and/or other securities. We cannot assure you that we will not seek to amend our certificate of incorporation or other governing instruments, including to extend the time we have to consummate an initial business combination in order to complete our initial business combination.

The provisions of our certificate of incorporation that relate to our pre-business combination activity (and corresponding provisions of the agreement governing the release of funds from our trust account) may be amended with the approval of holders of at least 65% of our outstanding common stock, which is a lower amendment threshold than that of some other blank check companies. It may be easier for us, therefore, to amend our certificate of incorporation and the trust agreement to facilitate the completion of an initial business combination that some of our stockholders may not support.

Some other blank check companies have a provision in their charter which prohibits the amendment of certain of its provisions, including those which relate to a company’s pre-business combination activity, without approval by holders of a certain percentage of the company’s stockholders. In those companies, amendment of these provisions typically requires approval by holders holding between 90% and 100% of the company’s public shares. Our certificate of incorporation will provide that any of its provisions related to pre-business combination activity (including the requirement to deposit proceeds of this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants into the trust account and not release such amounts except in specified circumstances, and to provide redemption rights to public stockholders as described herein) may be amended if approved by holders of at least 65% of our outstanding common stock entitled to vote thereon, and corresponding provisions of the trust agreement governing the release of funds from our trust account may be amended if approved by holders of at least 65% of our outstanding common stock entitled to vote thereon. In all other instances, our certificate of incorporation may be amended by holders of a majority of our outstanding common stock entitled to vote thereon, subject to applicable provisions of the DGCL or applicable stock exchange rules. We may not issue additional securities that would entitle the holders thereof, prior to our initial business combination, to (1) receive funds from the trust account or (2) vote as a class with our public shares (a) on any initial business combination or (b) to approve an amendment to our certificate of incorporation. Our initial stockholders, who will collectively beneficially own at least 20.0% of our common stock upon the closing of this offering (assuming they do not purchase any units in this offering), may participate in any vote to amend our certificate of incorporation and/or trust agreement and will have the discretion to vote in any manner they choose. As a result, we may be able to amend the provisions of our certificate of incorporation which will govern our pre-business combination behavior more easily than some other blank check companies, and this may increase our ability to complete our initial business combination with which you do not agree. Our stockholders may pursue remedies against us for any breach of our certificate of incorporation.

Our initial stockholders, officers and directors have agreed, pursuant to letter agreements with us, that they will not propose any amendment to our certificate of incorporation (A) to modify the substance or

 

 

 

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timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or certain amendments to our certificate of incorporation or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering or (B) with respect to any other provision relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity, unless we provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their public shares upon approval of any such amendment at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, including interest (which interest shall be net of taxes payable) divided by the number of then outstanding public shares. Our stockholders are not parties to, or third-party beneficiaries of, these agreements and, as a result, will not have the ability to pursue remedies against our initial stockholders, officers or directors for any breach of these agreements. As a result, in the event of a breach, our public stockholders would need to pursue a stockholder derivative action, subject to applicable law.

We may be unable to obtain additional financing to complete our initial business combination or to fund the operations and growth of a target business, which could compel us to restructure or abandon a particular business combination. If we do not complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may only receive their pro rata portion of the funds in the trust account that are available for distribution to public stockholders, and our warrants will expire worthless.

Although we believe that the net proceeds of this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants will be sufficient to allow us to complete our initial business combination, because we have not yet selected any prospective target business we cannot ascertain the capital requirements for any particular transaction. If the net proceeds of this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants prove to be insufficient, either because of the size of our initial business combination, the depletion of the available net proceeds in search of a target business, the obligation to redeem for cash a significant number of shares from stockholders who elect redemption in connection with our initial business combination or the terms of negotiated transactions to purchase shares in connection with our initial business combination, we may be required to seek additional financing or to abandon the proposed business combination. We cannot assure you that such financing will be available on acceptable terms, if at all. The current economic environment may make it difficult for companies to obtain acquisition financing. To the extent that additional financing proves to be unavailable when needed to complete our initial business combination, we would be compelled to either restructure the transaction or abandon that particular business combination and seek an alternative target business candidate. If we do not complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may only receive their pro rata portion of the funds in the trust account that are available for distribution to public stockholders and not previously released to us to pay our taxes on the liquidation of our trust account, and our warrants will expire worthless. In addition, even if we do not need additional financing to complete our initial business combination, we may require such financing to fund the operations or growth of the target business. The failure to secure additional financing could have a material adverse effect on the continued development or growth of the target business. None of our officers, directors or stockholders is required to provide any financing to us in connection with or after our initial business combination. If we do not complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may only receive approximately $10.00 per share on the liquidation of our trust account, and our warrants will expire worthless.

Our initial stockholders may exert a substantial influence on actions requiring a stockholder vote, potentially in a manner that you do not support.

Upon the closing of this offering, our initial stockholders will own shares representing 20.0% of our issued and outstanding shares of common stock (assuming they do not purchase any units in this

 

 

 

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offering). Accordingly, they may exert a substantial influence on actions requiring a stockholder vote, potentially in a manner that you do not support, including amendments to our certificate of incorporation and approval of major corporate transactions. If our initial stockholders purchase any units in this offering or if our initial stockholders purchase any additional shares of common stock in the aftermarket or in privately negotiated transactions, this would increase their control. Factors that would be considered in making such additional purchases would include consideration of the current trading price of our Class A common stock. In addition, our board of directors, whose members were elected by certain of our initial stockholders, is and will be divided into three classes, each of which will generally serve for a term of three years with only one class of directors being elected in each year. We may not hold an annual meeting of stockholders to elect new directors prior to the completion of our business combination, in which case all of the current directors will continue in office until at least the completion of the business combination. If there is an annual meeting, as a consequence of our “staggered” board of directors, only a minority of the board of directors will be considered for election and our initial stockholders, because of their ownership position, will have considerable influence regarding the outcome. Accordingly, our initial stockholders will continue to exert control at least until the completion of our business combination.

A provision of our warrant agreement may make it more difficult for us to consummate an initial business combination.

If:

 

Ø  

we issue additional shares or equity-linked securities for capital raising purposes in connection with the closing of our initial business combination at a Newly Issued Price of less than $9.20 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like), the aggregate gross proceeds from such issuances represent more than 60% of the total equity proceeds, and interest thereon, available for the funding of our initial business combination on the date of the consummation of our initial business combination (net of redemptions), and

 

Ø  

the Market Value is below $9.20 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like),

then the exercise price of each warrant will be adjusted such that the effective exercise price per full share will be equal to 115% of the higher of the Market Value and the Newly Issued Price, and the $10.00 and $18.00 per-share redemption trigger prices will be adjusted (to the nearest cent) to be equal to 100% and 180% of the higher of the Market Value and the Newly Issued Price, respectively. This may make it more difficult for us to consummate an initial business combination with a target business.

Our search for a business combination, and any target business with which we ultimately consummate a business combination, may be materially adversely affected by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and other events, and the status of debt and equity markets.

The COVID-19 pandemic has adversely affected, and other events (such as terrorist attacks, natural disasters or a significant outbreak of other infectious diseases) could adversely affect, the economies and financial markets worldwide, and the business of any potential target business with which we consummate a business combination could be materially and adversely affected. Furthermore, we may be unable to complete a business combination if concerns relating to COVID-19 continue to restrict travel, limit the ability to have meetings with potential investors or the target company’s personnel, vendors and services providers are unavailable to negotiate and consummate a transaction in a timely manner. The extent to which COVID-19 impacts our search for a business combination will depend on future

 

 

 

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developments, which are highly uncertain and cannot be predicted, including new information which may emerge concerning the severity of COVID-19 and the actions to contain COVID-19 or treat its impact, among others. If the disruptions posed by COVID-19 or other events (such as terrorist attacks, natural disasters or a significant outbreak of other infectious diseases) continue for an extensive period of time, our ability to consummate a business combination, or the operations of a target business with which we ultimately consummate a business combination, may be materially adversely affected.

In addition, our ability to consummate a transaction may be dependent upon its ability to raise equity and debt financing which may be impacted by COVID-19 and other events (such as terrorist attacks, natural disasters or a significant outbreak of other infectious diseases), including as a result of increased market volatility, decreased market liquidity in third-party financing being unavailable on terms acceptable to us or at all.

Because we must furnish our stockholders with target business financial statements, we may lose the ability to complete an otherwise advantageous initial business combination with some prospective target businesses.

The federal proxy rules require that a proxy statement with respect to a vote on a business combination meeting certain financial significance tests include target historical and/or pro forma financial statement disclosure. We will include the same financial statement disclosure in connection with our tender offer documents, whether or not they are required under the tender offer rules. These financial statements may be required to be prepared in accordance with, or be reconciled to, accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America, or GAAP, or international financial reporting standards as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board, or IFRS, depending on the circumstances and the historical financial statements may be required to be audited in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States), or PCAOB. These financial statement requirements may limit the pool of potential target businesses we may acquire because some targets may be unable to provide such financial statements in time for us to disclose such financial statements in accordance with federal proxy rules and complete our initial business combination within the prescribed time frame.

Compliance obligations under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act may make it more difficult for us to complete our initial business combination, require substantial financial and management resources, and increase the time and costs of completing an acquisition.

Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires that we evaluate and report on our system of internal controls beginning with our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ending December 31, 2021. Only in the event we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer or an accelerated filer, and no longer qualify as an emerging growth company, will we be required to comply with the independent registered public accounting firm attestation requirement on our internal control over financial reporting. Further, for as long as we remain an emerging growth company, we will not be required to comply with the independent registered public accounting firm attestation requirement on our internal control over financial reporting. The fact that we are a blank check company makes compliance with the requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act particularly burdensome on us as compared to other public companies because a target business with which we seek to complete our initial business combination may not be in compliance with the provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act regarding adequacy of its internal controls. The development of the internal control of any such entity to achieve compliance with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act may increase the time and costs necessary to complete any such acquisition.

 

 

 

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Our certificate of incorporation will require, to the fullest extent permitted by law, that derivative actions brought in our name, actions against our directors, officers, other employees or stockholders for breach of fiduciary duty and other similar actions may be brought only in the Court of Chancery in the State of Delaware and, if brought outside of Delaware, the stockholder bringing the suit will be deemed to have consented to service of process on such stockholder’s counsel, which may have the effect of discouraging lawsuits against our directors, officers, other employees or stockholders.

Our certificate of incorporation will require, to the fullest extent permitted by law, that derivative actions brought in our name, actions against our directors, officers and employees for breach of fiduciary duty and certain other actions may be brought only in the Court of Chancery in the State of Delaware, except any action (A) as to which the Court of Chancery in the State of Delaware determines that there is an indispensable party not subject to the jurisdiction of the Court of Chancery (and the indispensable party does not consent to the personal jurisdiction of the Court of Chancery within ten days following such determination), (B) which is vested in the exclusive jurisdiction of a court or forum other than the Court of Chancery or (C) for which the Court of Chancery does not have subject matter jurisdiction. Any person or entity purchasing or otherwise acquiring any interest in shares of our capital stock shall be deemed to have notice of and consented to the forum provisions in our certificate of incorporation.

This choice of forum provision may make it more costly, or limit a stockholder’s ability, to bring a claim in a judicial forum that it finds favorable for disputes with us or any of our directors, officers or employees, which may discourage lawsuits with respect to such claims. We cannot be certain that a court will decide that this provision is either applicable or enforceable, and if a court were to find the choice of forum provision contained in our certificate of incorporation to be inapplicable or unenforceable in an action, we may incur additional costs associated with resolving such action in other jurisdictions, which could harm our business, operating results and financial condition.

Our certificate of incorporation will provide that the exclusive forum provision will be applicable to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, subject to certain exceptions. Section 27 of the Exchange Act creates exclusive federal jurisdiction over all suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Exchange Act or the rules and regulations thereunder. As a result, the exclusive forum provision will not apply to suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Exchange Act or any other claim for which the federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction. In addition, the exclusive forum provision will not apply to actions brought under the Securities Act, or the rules and regulations thereunder.

If we complete our initial business combination with a company with operations or opportunities outside of the United States, we would be subject to a variety of additional risks that may negatively impact our operations.

If we complete our initial business combination with a company with operations or opportunities outside of the United States, we would be subject to any special considerations or risks associated with companies operating in an international setting, including any of the following:

 

Ø  

higher costs and difficulties inherent in managing cross-border business operations and complying with different commercial and legal requirements of overseas markets;

 

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rules and regulations regarding currency redemption;

 

Ø  

complex corporate withholding taxes on individuals;

 

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laws governing the manner in which future business combinations may be effected;

 

 

 

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exchange listing and/or delisting requirements;

 

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tariffs and trade barriers;

 

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regulations related to customs and import/export matters;

 

Ø  

local or regional economic policies and market conditions;

 

Ø  

underdeveloped or unpredictable legal or regulatory systems and unexpected changes in regulatory requirements;

 

Ø  

longer payment cycles and challenges in collecting accounts receivable;

 

Ø  

tax issues, such as tax law changes and variations in tax laws as compared to the United States;

 

Ø  

currency fluctuations and exchange controls;

 

Ø  

rates of inflation;

 

Ø  

cultural and language differences;

 

Ø  

employment regulations;

 

Ø  

regime changes and political upheaval;

 

Ø  

corruption, crime, strikes, riots, civil disturbances, terrorist attacks, natural disasters and wars;

 

Ø  

deterioration of political relations with the United States; and

 

Ø  

government appropriation of assets.

We may not be able to adequately address these additional risks. If we were unable to do so, we may be unable to complete such initial business combination, or, if we complete such combination, our operations might suffer, either of which may adversely impact our business, financial condition and results of operations.

If we effect a business combination with a company located outside of the United States, the laws applicable to such company will likely govern all of our material agreements and we may not be able to enforce our legal rights.

If we effect a business combination with a company located outside of the United States, the laws of the country in which such company operates will likely govern almost all of the material agreements relating to its operations. We cannot assure you that the target business will be able to enforce any of its material agreements or that remedies will be available in this new jurisdiction. The system of laws and the enforcement of existing laws in such jurisdiction may not be as certain in implementation and interpretation as in the United States. The inability to enforce or obtain a remedy under any of our future agreements could result in a significant loss of business, business opportunities or capital.

RISKS RELATING TO OUR SECURITIES

The NYSE may delist our securities from trading on its exchange, which could limit investors’ ability to make transactions in our securities and subject us to additional trading restrictions.

We intend to apply to have our units listed on the NYSE on or promptly after the date of this prospectus

and our Class A common stock and warrants on or promptly after their date of separation. Although

after giving effect to this offering we expect to meet, on a pro forma basis, the minimum initial listing

 

 

 

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standards set forth in the NYSE listing standards, we cannot assure you that our securities will continue to be listed on the NYSE in the future or prior to our initial business combination. In order to continue listing our securities on the NYSE prior to our initial business combination, we must maintain certain financial, distribution and stock price levels. Generally, we must maintain a minimum market capitalization (generally $50,000,000) and a minimum number of holders of our securities (generally 300 public holders).

Additionally, in connection with our initial business combination, we will be required to demonstrate compliance with the NYSE’s initial listing requirements, which are more rigorous than the NYSE’s continued listing requirements, in order to continue to maintain the listing of our securities on the NYSE. For instance, our share price would generally be required to be at least $4.00 per share, our global market capitalization would be required to be at least $200 million, the aggregate market value of our publicly-held shares would be required to be at least $40 million and we would be required to have a minimum of 400 round lot holders and 1,100,000 publicly held shares . We cannot assure you that we will be able to meet those initial listing requirements at that time.

If the NYSE delists any of our securities from trading on its exchange and we are not able to list such securities on another national securities exchange, we expect such securities could be quoted on an over-the-counter market. If this were to occur, we could face significant material adverse consequences, including:

 

Ø  

a limited availability of market quotations for our securities;

 

Ø  

reduced liquidity for our securities;

 

Ø  

a determination that our Class A common stock is a “penny stock” which will require brokers trading

 

Ø  

in our Class A common stock to adhere to more stringent rules and possibly result in a reduced level of trading activity in the secondary trading market for our securities;

 

Ø  

a limited amount of news and analyst coverage; and

 

Ø  

a decreased ability to issue additional securities or obtain additional financing in the future.

The National Securities Markets Improvement Act of 1996, which is a federal statute, prevents or preempts the states from regulating the sale of certain securities, which are referred to as “covered securities.” Because we expect that our units and eventually our Class A common stock and warrants will be listed on the NYSE, our units, Class A common stock and warrants will qualify as covered securities under such statute. Although the states are preempted from regulating the sale of covered securities, the federal statute does allow the states to investigate companies if there is a suspicion of fraud, and, if there is a finding of fraudulent activity, then the states can regulate or bar the sale of covered securities in a particular case. While we are not aware of a state having used these powers to prohibit or restrict the sale of securities issued by blank check companies, other than the State of Idaho, certain state securities regulators view blank check companies unfavorably and might use these powers, or threaten to use these powers, to hinder the sale of securities of blank check companies in their states. Further, if we were no longer listed on the NYSE, our securities would not qualify as covered securities under such statute and we would be subject to regulation in each state in which we offer our securities.

 

 

 

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If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination and we do not conduct redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules, and if you or a “group” of stockholders are deemed to hold in excess of 15% of our Class A common stock, you will lose the ability to redeem all such shares in excess of 15% of our Class A common stock.

If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination and we do not conduct redemptions in connection with our initial business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, our certificate of incorporation will provide that a public stockholder, together with any affiliate of such stockholder or any other person with whom such stockholder is acting in concert or as a “group” (as defined under Section 13 of the Exchange Act), will be restricted from redeeming its shares with respect to more than an aggregate of 15% of the shares sold in this offering, without our prior consent. However, our certificate of incorporation does not restrict our stockholders’ ability to vote all of their shares (including Excess Shares) for or against our initial business combination. Your inability to redeem the Excess Shares will reduce your influence over our ability to complete our initial business combination and you could suffer a material loss on your investment in us if you sell Excess Shares in open market transactions. Additionally, you will not receive redemption distributions with respect to the Excess Shares if we complete our initial business combination. And as a result, you will continue to hold that number of shares exceeding 15% and, in order to dispose of such shares, would be required to sell your stock in

open market transactions, potentially at a loss.

We are not registering the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of

the warrants under the Securities Act or any state securities laws at this time, and such registration may not be in place when an investor desires to exercise warrants, thus precluding such investor from being able to exercise its warrants except on a cashless basis and potentially causing such warrants to expire worthless.

We are not registering the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants under the Securities Act or any state securities laws at this time. However, under the terms of the warrant agreement, we have agreed that as soon as practicable, but in no event later than 15 business days after the closing of our initial business combination, we will use our reasonable best efforts to file, and within 60 business days following our initial business combination to have declared effective, a registration statement covering the issuance of the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants. We will use our reasonable best efforts to maintain the effectiveness of such registration statement and a current prospectus relating to those shares of Class A common stock until the warrants expire or are redeemed. We cannot assure you that we will be able to do so if, for example, any facts or events arise which represent a fundamental change in the information set forth in the registration statement or prospectus, the financial statements contained or incorporated by reference therein are not current, complete or correct or the SEC issues a stop order.

If the shares of our Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants are not registered under the Securities Act, we will be required to permit holders to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis in which case the number of shares of our Class A common stock that you will receive upon cashless exercise will be based on a formula subject to a maximum number of shares equal to 0.361 shares of our Class A common stock per warrant (subject to adjustment). However, no such warrant will be exercisable for cash or on a cashless basis, and we will not be obligated to issue any shares to holders seeking to exercise their warrants, unless the issuance of the shares upon such exercise is registered or qualified under the securities laws of the state of the exercising holder, or an exemption from registration is available.

Notwithstanding the above, if our Class A common stock is at the time of any exercise of a warrant not listed on a national securities exchange such that it satisfies the definition of a “covered security” under

 

 

 

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Section 18(b)(1) of the Securities Act, we may, at our option, require holders of public warrants who exercise their warrants to do so on a “cashless basis” in accordance with Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act and, in the event we so elect, we will not be required to file or maintain in effect a registration statement, but we will be required to use our best efforts to register or qualify the shares under applicable blue sky laws to the extent an exemption is not available.

In no event will we be required to net cash settle any warrant. If the issuance of the shares upon exercise of the warrants is not so registered or qualified or exempt from registration or qualification, the holder of such warrant shall not be entitled to exercise such warrant and such warrant may have no value and expire worthless. In such event, holders who acquired their warrants as part of a purchase of units will have paid the full unit purchase price solely for the shares of Class A common stock included in the units. There may be a circumstance where an exemption from registration exists for holders of our private placement warrants to exercise their warrants while a corresponding exemption does not exist for holders of the public warrants included as part of units sold in this offering. In such an instance, our sponsor and its permitted transferees (which may include our directors, members of our strategic advisory group and executive officers) would be able to exercise their warrants and sell the common stock underlying their warrants while holders of our public warrants would not be able to exercise their warrants and sell the underlying common stock. If and when the warrants become redeemable by us, we may exercise our redemption right even if we are unable to register or qualify the underlying shares of Class A common stock for sale under all applicable state securities laws. As a result, we may redeem the warrants as set forth above even if the holders are otherwise unable to exercise their warrants.

Our ability to require holders of our warrants to exercise such warrants on a cashless basis after we call the warrants for redemption or if there is no effective registration statement covering the shares of our Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of these warrants will cause holders to receive fewer shares of our Class A common stock upon their exercise of the warrants than they would have received had they been able to pay the exercise price of their warrants in cash.

If we call the warrants for redemption, we will have the option, in our sole discretion, to require all holders that wish to exercise warrants to do so on a cashless basis in the circumstances described in “Description of Securities—Redeemable Warrants—Redemption of warrants when the price per share of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00.” If we choose to require holders to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis or if holders elect to do so when there is no effective registration statement, the number of shares of our Class A common stock received by a holder upon exercise will be fewer than it would have been had such holder exercised his or her warrant for cash. For example, if the holder is exercising 875 public warrants at $11.50 per share through a cashless exercise when the shares of our Class A common stock have a fair market value of $17.50 per share when there is no effective registration statement, then upon the cashless exercise, the holder will receive 300 shares of our Class A common stock. The holder would have received 875 shares of our Class A common stock if the exercise price was paid in cash. This will have the effect of reducing the potential “upside” of the holder’s investment in our company because the warrant holder will hold a smaller number of shares of our Class A common stock upon a cashless exercise of the warrants they hold.

The warrants may become exercisable and redeemable for a security other than the shares of our Class A common stock, and you will not have any information regarding such other security at this time.

In certain situations, including if we are not the surviving entity in our initial business combination, the warrants may become exercisable for a security other than the shares of our Class A common stock. As a

 

 

 

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result, if the surviving company redeems your warrants for securities pursuant to the warrant agreement, you may receive a security in a company of which you do not have information at this time. Pursuant to the warrant agreement, the surviving company will be required to use reasonable best efforts to register the issuance of the security underlying the warrants within fifteen business days of the closing of an

initial business combination.

The grant of registration rights to our initial stockholders may make it more difficult to complete our initial business combination, and the future exercise of such rights may adversely affect the market price of our Class A common stock.

Pursuant to an agreement to be entered into on or prior to the closing of this offering, our initial stockholders and their permitted transferees can demand that we register the resale of their founder shares, after those shares convert to shares of our Class A common stock. In addition, holders of our private placement warrants and their permitted transferees can demand that we register the resale of the private placement warrants and the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the private placement warrants, and holders of warrants that may be issued upon conversion of working capital loans may demand that we register the resale of such warrants or the Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of such warrants. We will bear the cost of registering these securities. The registration and availability of such a significant number of securities for trading in the public market may have an adverse effect on the market price of our Class A common stock. In addition, the existence of the registration rights may make our initial business combination more costly or difficult to conclude. This is because the shareholders of the target business may increase the equity stake they seek in the combined entity or ask for more cash consideration to offset the negative impact on the market price of our Class A common stock that is expected when the common stock owned by our initial stockholders, holders of our private placement warrants or holders of our working capital loans or their respective permitted transferees are registered for resale.

We may issue additional shares of our Class A common stock or preferred stock to

complete our initial business combination or under an employee incentive plan after completion of our initial business combination. We may also issue shares of Class A common stock upon the conversion of the Class B common stock at a ratio greater than one-to-one at the time of our initial business combination as a result of the antidilution provisions contained in our certificate of incorporation. Any such issuances would dilute the interest of our stockholders and likely present other risks.

Our certificate of incorporation will authorize the issuance of up to 200,000,000 shares of Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 per share, 20,000,000 shares of Class B common stock, par value $0.0001 per share, and 1,000,000 shares of preferred stock, par value $0.0001 per share. Immediately after this offering, there will be 175,000,000 and 13,750,000 authorized but unissued shares of Class A common stock and Class B common stock, respectively, available for issuance (assuming, in each case, that the underwriters have not exercised their over-allotment option), which amount does not take into account the shares of Class A common stock reserved for issuance upon exercise of any outstanding warrants or the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon conversion of Class B common stock. Immediately after the consummation of this offering, there will be no shares of preferred stock issued and outstanding. Shares of Class B common stock are convertible into shares of our Class A common stock initially at a one-for-one ratio but subject to adjustment as set forth herein, including in certain circumstances in which we issue Class A common stock or equity-linked securities related to our initial business combination.

We may issue a substantial number of additional shares of common or preferred stock to complete our initial business combination (including pursuant to a specified future issuance) or under an employee

 

 

 

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incentive plan after completion of our initial business combination. We may also issue shares of Class A common stock to redeem the warrants as described in “Description of Securities—Redeemable Warrants—Public Stockholders’ Warrants—Redemption of warrants when the price per share of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00” or upon conversion of the Class B common stock at a ratio greater than one-to-one at the time of our initial business combination as a result of the antidilution provisions contained in our certificate of incorporation. Our Class B common stock shall only be convertible at the time of our initial business combination. However, our certificate of incorporation will provide, among other things, that prior to our initial business combination, we may not issue additional securities that would entitle the holders thereof, to (1) receive funds from the trust account or (2) vote as a class with our public shares (a) on any initial business combination or (b) to approve an amendment to our certificate of incorporation. The restriction on issuing additional shares of capital stock described in the prior sentence will expire upon consummation of our initial business combination. The issuance of additional shares of common or preferred stock:

 

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may significantly dilute the equity interest of investors in this offering, which dilution would increase if the anti-dilution provisions in the Class B common stock resulted in the issuance of Class A shares on a greater than one-to-one basis upon conversion of the Class B common stock;

 

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may subordinate the rights of holders of our common stock if preferred stock is issued with rights senior to those afforded our common stock;

 

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could cause a change of control if a substantial number of shares of our common stock is issued, which may affect, among other things, our ability to use our net operating loss carry forwards, if any, and could result in the resignation or removal of our present officers and directors;

 

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may have the effect of delaying or preventing a change of control of us by diluting the stock ownership or voting rights of a person seeking to obtain control of us;

 

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may adversely affect prevailing market prices for our units, Class A common stock and/or warrants; and

 

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may not result in adjustment to the exercise price of our warrants.

Unlike some other similarly structured blank check companies, our initial stockholders will receive additional shares of our Class A common stock if we issue shares to complete an initial business combination.

The founder shares will automatically convert into shares of our Class A common stock at the time of our initial business combination, or earlier at the option of the holder, on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment pursuant to certain antidilution rights as described herein.

The founder shares will automatically convert into shares of our Class A common stock at the time of our initial business combination, or earlier at the option of the holder, on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like, and subject to further adjustment as described herein. In the case that additional shares of Class A common stock, or equity-linked securities, are issued or deemed issued in excess of the amounts issued in this offering and related to the closing of our initial business combination, including pursuant to a specified future issuance, the ratio at which shares of Class B common stock shall convert into shares of Class A common stock will be adjusted (unless the holders of a majority of the then-outstanding shares of Class B common stock agree to waive such adjustment with respect to any such issuance or deemed issuance, including pursuant to a specified future issuance) so that the number of shares of Class A common stock issuable upon conversion of all shares of Class B common stock will equal, in the aggregate, on an as-converted basis, 20% of the sum of the total number of all shares of common stock outstanding upon the completion of this offering plus all shares of Class A common stock and equity-linked securities issued or

 

 

 

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deemed issued in connection with our initial business combination (excluding any shares or equity-linked securities issued or issuable to any seller in the initial business combination). This is different than other similarly structured blank check companies in which the initial stockholders will only be issued an aggregate of 20% of the total number of shares to be outstanding prior to the initial business combination.

Our initial stockholders contributed an aggregate of approximately $25,000, or approximately $0.003 per founder share, and, accordingly, you will experience immediate and substantial dilution from the purchase of our Class A common stock.

The difference between the public offering price per share (allocating all of the unit purchase price to the Class A common stock and none to the warrant included in the unit) and the pro forma net tangible book value per share of our Class A common stock after this offering constitutes the dilution to you and the other investors in this offering. Our initial stockholders acquired the founder shares at a nominal price, significantly contributing to this dilution.

Upon the closing of this offering, and assuming no value is ascribed to the warrants included in the units, you and the other public stockholders will incur an immediate and substantial dilution of approximately 93.4% (or $9.34 per share, assuming no exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option), the difference between the pro forma net tangible book value per share of $0.66 and the initial offering price of $10.00 per unit. In addition, because of the anti-dilution rights of the founder shares, any equity or equity-linked securities issued in connection with our initial business combination would be disproportionately dilutive to our Class A common stock.

We may amend the terms of the warrants in a manner that may be adverse to holders of public warrants with the approval by the holders of at least 50% of the then outstanding public warrants. As a result, the exercise price of your warrants could be increased, the exercise period could be shortened and the number of shares of our Class A common stock purchasable upon exercise of a warrant could be decreased, all without your approval.

Our warrants will be issued in registered form under a warrant agreement between Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, as warrant agent, and us. The warrant agreement provides that the terms of the warrants may be amended without the consent of any holder to cure any ambiguity or correct any defective provision, but requires the approval by the holders of at least 50% of the then outstanding public warrants to make any change that adversely affects the interests of the registered holders of public warrants. Accordingly, we may amend the terms of the public warrants in a manner adverse to a holder if holders of at least 50% of the then outstanding public warrants approve of such amendment. Although our ability to amend the terms of the public warrants with the consent of at least 50% of the then outstanding public warrants is unlimited, examples of such amendments could be amendments to, among other things, increase the exercise price of the warrants, convert the warrants into cash or stock, shorten the exercise period or decrease the number of shares of our Class A common stock purchasable upon exercise of a warrant.

We may redeem your unexpired warrants prior to their exercise at a time that is disadvantageous to you, thereby making your warrants worthless.

We have the ability to redeem outstanding warrants at any time after they become exercisable and prior to their expiration, at a price of $0.01 per warrant, provided that the last reported sales price of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $18.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) for any 20 trading days within a 30 trading-day period commencing once the warrants become exercisable and ending on the third trading day prior to the date

 

 

 

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on which we send the notice of redemption to the warrant holders and provided certain other conditions are met. If and when the warrants become redeemable by us, we may exercise our redemption right even if we are unable to register or qualify the underlying securities for sale under all applicable state securities laws. As a result, we may redeem the public warrants as set forth above even if the holders are otherwise unable to exercise the warrants. Redemption of the outstanding warrants could force you (i) to exercise your warrants and pay the exercise price therefor at a time when it may be disadvantageous for you to do so, (ii) to sell your warrants at the then-current market price when you might otherwise wish to hold your warrants or (iii) to accept the nominal redemption price which, at the time the outstanding warrants are called for redemption, we expect would be substantially less than the market value of your warrants. None of the private placement warrants will be redeemable by us (except as set forth under “Description of Securities—Redeemable Warrants—Public Stockholders’ Warrants—Redemption of warrants when the price per share of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00”) so long as they are held by our sponsor and its permitted transferees.

In addition, unlike many other similarly structured blank check companies, we have the ability to redeem outstanding warrants 90 days after they become exercisable for $0.10 per warrant upon a minimum of 30 days’ prior written notice of redemption provided that holders will be able to exercise their warrants prior to redemption for a number of Class A common stock determined based on the redemption date and the fair market value of our Class A common stock and provided certain other conditions are met. Please see “Description of Securities—Redeemable Warrants—Public Stockholders’ Warrants—Redemption of warrants when the price per share of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00.” We would redeem the warrants in this manner when we believe it is in our best interest to update our capital structure to remove the warrants and pay fair market value to the warrant holders. Any such redemption may have similar consequences to the redemption described in the above paragraph. In addition, such redemption may occur at a time when the warrants are “out-of-the-money,” in which case you would lose any potential embedded value from a subsequent increase in the value of the Class A common stock had your warrants remained outstanding. Finally, this redemption feature provides a ceiling to the value of your warrants since it locks in the redemption price in the number of Class A common stock to be received if we choose to redeem the warrants for common stock. This redemption feature may cause our warrants to be worth less than other blank check companies which do not have this feature.

Our warrants and founder shares may have an adverse effect on the market price of our Class A common stock and make it more difficult to complete our initial business combination.

We will be issuing warrants to purchase 12,500,000 shares of our Class A common stock (or up to 14,375,000 shares of Class A common stock if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) as part of the units offered by this prospectus and, simultaneously with the closing of this offering, we will be issuing private placement warrants to purchase an aggregate of 7,000,000 (or up to 7,750,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) shares of Class A common stock. Our initial stockholders currently own an aggregate of 7,187,500 founder shares. The founder shares are convertible into shares of Class A common stock on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment as set forth herein. In addition, if our initial stockholders, officers, directors or their affiliates makes any working capital loans, up to $1,500,000 of such loans may be convertible into warrants, at a price of $1.00 per warrant at the option of the lender. The warrants would be identical to the private placement warrants.

To the extent we issue shares of Class A common stock to complete a business combination, the potential for the issuance of a substantial number of additional shares of Class A common stock upon

 

 

 

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exercise of these warrants and conversion rights could make us a less attractive acquisition vehicle to a target business. Any such issuance will increase the number of issued and outstanding shares of our Class A common stock and reduce the value of the shares of Class A common stock issued to complete the business combination. Therefore, our warrants and founder shares may make it more difficult to complete a business combination or increase the cost of acquiring the target business. The private placement warrants are identical to the warrants sold as part of the units in this offering except that, so long as they are held by our sponsor and its permitted transferees, (i) they will not be redeemable by us (except as described under “Description of Securities—Redeemable Warrants—Public Stockholders’ Warrants—Redemption of warrants when the price per share of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00”), (ii) they (including the Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of these warrants) may not, subject to certain limited exceptions, be transferred, assigned or sold until 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination, (iii) they may be exercised by the holders on a cashless basis and (iv) the holders thereof (including with respect to the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of these warrants) are entitled to registration rights. The private placement warrants will not vote on any amendments to the warrant agreement discussed elsewhere in this prospectus.

Because each unit contains one-half of one redeemable warrant and only a whole warrant may be exercised, the units may be worth less than units of other blank check companies.

Each unit contains one-half of one warrant. Because, pursuant to the warrant agreement, the warrants may only be exercised for a whole number of shares, only a whole warrant may be exercised at any given time. This is different from other offerings similar to ours whose units include one share of common stock and one whole warrant to purchase one whole share. We have established the components of the units in this way in order to reduce the dilutive effect of the warrants upon completion of a business combination since the warrants will be exercisable in the aggregate for one half of the number of shares compared to units that each contain a warrant to purchase one whole share, thus making us, we believe, a more attractive business combination partner for target businesses. Nevertheless, this unit structure may cause our units to be worth less than if they included a warrant to purchase one whole share.

The determination of the offering price of our units and the size of this offering is more arbitrary than the pricing of securities and size of an offering of an operating company in a particular industry. You may have less assurance, therefore, that the offering price of our units properly reflects the value of such units than you would have in a typical offering of an operating company.

Prior to this offering there has been no public market for any of our securities. The public offering price of the units and the terms of the warrants were negotiated between us and the underwriters. In determining the size of this offering, management held customary organizational meetings with the underwriters with respect to the state of capital markets, generally, and the amount the underwriters believed they reasonably could raise on our behalf. Factors considered in determining the size of this offering, prices and terms of the units, including the Class A common stock and warrants underlying the units, include:

 

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the history and prospects of companies whose principal business is the acquisition of other companies;

 

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prior offerings of those companies;

 

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our prospects for acquiring an operating business;

 

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a review of debt to equity ratios in leveraged transactions;

 

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our capital structure;

 

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an assessment of our management and their experience in identifying operating companies;

 

 

 

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general conditions of the securities markets at the time of this offering; and

 

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other factors as were deemed relevant.

Although these factors were considered, the determination of our offering price is more arbitrary than the pricing of securities of an operating company in a particular industry since we have no historical operations or financial results.

There is currently no market for our securities and a market for our securities may not develop, which would adversely affect the liquidity and price of our securities.

There is currently no market for our securities. Stockholders therefore have no access to information about prior market history on which to base their investment decision. Following this offering, the price of our securities may vary significantly due to one or more potential business combinations and general market or economic conditions, including as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak and other events (such as terrorist attacks, natural disasters or a significant outbreak of other infectious diseases). Furthermore, an active trading market for our securities may never develop or, if developed, it may not be sustained. You may be unable to sell your securities unless a market can be established and sustained.

Provisions in our certificate of incorporation and Delaware law may inhibit a takeover of us, which could limit the price investors might be willing to pay in the future for our Class A common stock and could entrench management.

Our certificate of incorporation will contain provisions that may discourage unsolicited takeover proposals that stockholders may consider to be in their best interests. These provisions include a staggered board of directors and the ability of the board of directors to designate the terms of and issue new series of preferred shares, which may make the removal of management more difficult and may discourage transactions that otherwise could involve payment of a premium over prevailing market prices for our securities.

We are also subject to anti-takeover provisions under Delaware law, which could delay or prevent a change of control. Together these provisions may make the removal of management more difficult and may discourage transactions that otherwise could involve payment of a premium over prevailing market prices for our securities.

If a stockholder fails to receive notice of our offer to redeem our public shares in connection with our initial business combination, or fails to comply with the procedures for tendering its shares, such shares may not be redeemed.

We will comply with the tender offer rules or proxy rules, as applicable, when conducting redemptions in connection with our initial business combination. Despite our compliance with these rules, if a stockholder fails to receive our tender offer or proxy materials, as applicable, such stockholder may not become aware of the opportunity to redeem its shares. In addition, the tender offer documents or proxy materials, as applicable, that we will furnish to holders of our public shares in connection with our initial business combination will describe the various procedures that must be complied with in order to validly tender or redeem public shares. For example, if we hold a stockholder meeting to approve a transaction, we may require our public stockholders seeking to exercise their redemption rights, whether they are record holders or hold their shares in “street name,” to either tender their certificates to our transfer agent prior to the date set forth in the proxy materials mailed to such holders, or up to two business days prior to the vote on the proposal to approve the business combination, or to deliver their shares to the transfer agent electronically. In the event that a stockholder fails to comply with these or any other

 

 

 

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procedures, its shares may not be redeemed. See the section of this prospectus entitled “Proposed Business—Redemption Rights for Public Stockholders upon Completion of our Initial Business Combination—Tendering Stock Certificates in Connection with a Stockholder Meeting.”

You will not have any rights or interests in funds from the trust account, except under certain limited circumstances. To liquidate your investment, therefore, you may be forced to sell your public shares or warrants, potentially at a loss.

Our public stockholders will be entitled to receive funds from the trust account only upon the earliest to occur of: (a) the completion of our initial business combination, and then only in connection with those shares of Class A common stock that such stockholder properly elected to redeem, subject to the limitations described herein, (b) the redemption of any public shares properly submitted in connection with a stockholder vote to amend our certificate of incorporation (i) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or certain amendments to our charter or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering or (ii) with respect to any other provisions relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity and (c) the redemption of our public shares if we have not completed our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering, subject to applicable law. Stockholders who do not exercise their rights to the funds in connection with an amendment to our certificate of incorporation would still have rights to the funds in connection with a subsequent business combination. In no other circumstances will a public stockholder have any right or interest of any kind in the trust account. Holders of warrants will not have any right to the proceeds held in the trust account with respect to the warrants. Accordingly, to liquidate your investment, you may be forced to sell your public shares or warrants, potentially at a loss.

You will not be entitled to protections normally afforded to investors of many other blank check companies.

Since the net proceeds of this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants are intended to be used to complete an initial business combination with a target business that has not been selected, we may be deemed to be a “blank check” company under the United States securities laws. However, because we will have net tangible assets in excess of $5,000,000 upon the successful completion of this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants and will file a Current Report on Form 8-K, including an audited balance sheet demonstrating this fact, we are exempt from rules promulgated by the SEC to protect investors in blank check companies, such as Rule 419. Accordingly, investors will not be afforded the benefits or protections of those rules. Among other things, this means our units will be immediately tradable and we will have a longer period of time to complete our initial business combination than do companies subject to Rule 419. Moreover, if this offering were subject to Rule 419, that rule would prohibit the release of any interest earned on funds held in the trust account to us unless and until the funds in the trust account were released to us in connection with our completion of an initial business combination. For a more detailed comparison of our offering to offerings that comply with Rule 419, please see the section of this prospectus entitled “Proposed Business—Comparison of This Offering to Those of Blank Check Companies Subject to Rule 419.”

 

 

 

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Because of our limited resources and the significant competition for business combination opportunities, it may be more difficult for us to complete our initial business combination. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.00 per share on our redemption of our public shares, or less than such amount in certain circumstances, and our warrants will expire worthless.

We expect to encounter intense competition from other entities having a business objective similar to ours, including private investors (which may be individuals or investment partnerships), other blank check companies and other entities, domestic and international, competing for the types of businesses we intend to acquire. Many of these individuals and entities are well-established and have extensive experience in identifying and effecting, directly or indirectly, acquisitions of companies operating in or providing services to various industries. Many of these competitors possess greater technical, human and other resources or more local industry knowledge than we do and our financial resources will be relatively limited when contrasted with those of many of these competitors. While we believe there are numerous target businesses we could potentially acquire with the net proceeds of this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants, our ability to compete with respect to the acquisition of certain target businesses that are sizable will be limited by our available financial resources. This inherent competitive limitation gives others an advantage in pursuing the acquisition of certain target businesses.

Furthermore, because we are obligated to pay cash for the shares of Class A common stock which our public stockholders redeem in connection with our initial business combination, target companies will be aware that this may reduce the resources available to us for our initial business combination. Additionally, our outstanding warrants, and the future dilution they potentially represent, may not be viewed favorably by target businesses. This may place us at a competitive disadvantage in successfully negotiating and completing an initial business combination. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.00 per share on the liquidation of our trust account and our warrants will expire worthless. In certain circumstances, our public stockholders may receive less than $10.00 per share upon our liquidation. See “—If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in the trust account could be reduced and the per-share redemption amount received by stockholders may be less than $10.00 per share” and other risk factors in this section.

RISKS RELATING TO OUR MANAGEMENT TEAM

Past performance by our management team, members of our strategic advisory group and their respective affiliates may not be indicative of future performance of an investment in us.

Information regarding performance by, or businesses associated with, our management team and their respective affiliates is presented for informational purposes only. Past performance by our management team and their respective affiliates is not a guarantee either (i) that we will be able to locate a suitable candidate for our initial business combination or (ii) of success with respect to any business combination we may consummate. Our officers and directors have not had management experience with special purpose acquisition corporations in the past. You should not rely on the historical performance of our management team and their respective affiliates as an indication of the future performance of an investment in our company or the returns we will, or are likely to, generate going forward. In addition, an investment in our company is not an investment in any other entities affiliated with our management team.

 

 

 

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We may not have sufficient funds to satisfy indemnification claims of our directors and executive officers.

We have agreed to indemnify our officers and directors to the fullest extent permitted by law. However, our officers and directors have agreed to waive any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to any monies in the trust account and to not seek recourse against the trust account for any reason whatsoever (except to the extent they are entitled to funds from the trust account due to their ownership of public shares). Accordingly, any indemnification provided will be able to be satisfied by us only if (i) we have sufficient funds outside of the trust account or (ii) we complete an initial business combination. Our obligation to indemnify our officers and directors may discourage stockholders from bringing a lawsuit against our officers or directors for breach of their fiduciary duty. These provisions also may have the effect of reducing the likelihood of derivative litigation against our officers and directors, even though such an action, if successful, might otherwise benefit us and our stockholders. Furthermore, a stockholder’s investment may be adversely affected to the extent we pay the costs of settlement and damage awards against our officers and directors pursuant to these indemnification provisions.

Members of our management team may in the future be involved in governmental investigations and civil litigation relating to the business affairs of companies with which they are, were, or may in the future be, affiliated. This may negatively affect our ability to consummate an initial business combination.

Members of our management team may in the future be involved in governmental investigations and civil litigation relating to the business affairs of companies with which they are, were or may in the future be affiliated with. Any such investigations or litigations may divert our management team’s attention and resources away from searching for an initial business combination, may be detrimental to our reputation, and thus may negatively affect our ability to complete an initial business combination.

We may seek acquisition opportunities in industries or sectors which may or may not be outside of our management’s area of expertise.

We will consider a business combination outside of our management’s area of expertise if a business combination candidate is presented to us and we determine that such candidate offers an attractive acquisition opportunity for our company. Although our management will endeavor to evaluate the risks inherent in any particular business combination candidate, we cannot assure you that we will adequately ascertain or assess all the significant risk factors relevant to such acquisition. We also cannot assure you that an investment in our units will not ultimately prove to be less favorable to investors in this offering than a direct investment, if an opportunity were available, in a business combination candidate. In the event we elect to pursue an acquisition outside of the areas of our management’s expertise, our management’s expertise may not be directly applicable to its evaluation or operation, and the information contained in this prospectus regarding the areas of our management’s expertise would not be relevant to an understanding of the business that we elect to acquire. As a result, our management may not be able to adequately ascertain or assess all the significant risk factors relevant to such acquisition.

Accordingly, any stockholders or warrant holders who choose to remain a stockholder or warrant holder following our initial business combination could suffer a reduction in the value of their securities. Such security holders are unlikely to have a remedy for such reduction in value.

 

 

 

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Our ability to successfully complete our initial business combination and to be successful thereafter will be totally dependent upon the efforts of members of our management team, some of whom may join us following our initial business combination. The loss of such people could negatively impact the operations and profitability of our post-combination business.

Our ability to successfully complete our business combination is dependent upon the efforts of members of our management team. The role of members of our management team in the target business, however, cannot presently be ascertained. Although some members of our management team may remain with the target business in senior management or advisory positions following our initial business combination, it is likely that some or all of the management of the target business will remain in place. While we intend to closely scrutinize any individuals we engage after our initial business combination, we cannot assure you that our assessment of these individuals will prove to be correct. These individuals may be unfamiliar with the requirements of operating a company regulated by the SEC, which could cause us to have to expend time and resources helping them become familiar with such requirements.

In addition, the officers and directors of an acquisition candidate may resign upon completion of our initial business combination. The departure of a target business’s key personnel could negatively impact the operations and profitability of our post-combination business. The role of an acquisition candidate’s key personnel upon the completion of our initial business combination cannot be ascertained at this time. Although we contemplate that certain members of an acquisition candidate’s management team will remain associated with the acquisition candidate following our initial business combination, it is possible that members of the management of an acquisition candidate will not wish to remain in place. The loss of key personnel could negatively impact the operations and profitability of our post-combination business.

Members of our management team may negotiate employment or consulting agreements with a target business in connection with a particular business combination. These agreements may provide for them to receive compensation following our business combination and as a result, may cause them to have conflicts of interest in determining whether a particular business combination is the most advantageous.

Members of our management team may be able to remain with the company after the completion of our initial business combination only if they are able to negotiate employment or consulting agreements in connection with the business combination. Such negotiations would take place simultaneously with the negotiation of the business combination and could provide for such individuals to receive compensation in the form of cash payments and/or our securities for services they would render to us after the completion of the business combination. The personal and financial interests of such individuals may influence their motivation in identifying and selecting a target business and completing a business combination. However, we believe the ability of such individuals to remain with us after the completion of our initial business combination will not be the determining factor in our decision as to whether or not we will proceed with any potential business combination. There is no certainty, however, that any members of our management team will remain with us after the completion of our initial business combination. We cannot assure you that any members of our management team will remain in senior management or advisory positions with us. The determination as to whether any members of our management team will remain with us will be made at the time of our initial business combination.

 

 

 

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We may have a limited ability to assess the management of a prospective target business and, as a result, may complete our initial business combination with a target business whose management may not have the skills, qualifications or abilities to manage a public company, which could, in turn, negatively impact the value of our stockholders’ investment in us.

When evaluating the desirability of effecting our initial business combination with a prospective target business, our ability to assess the target business’s management may be limited due to a lack of time, resources or information. Our assessment of the capabilities of the target’s management, therefore, may prove to be incorrect and such management may lack the skills, qualifications or abilities we suspected. Should the target’s management not possess the skills, qualifications or abilities necessary to manage a public company, the operations and profitability of the post-combination business may be negatively impacted. Accordingly, any stockholders or warrant holders who choose to remain a stockholder or warrant holder following our initial business combination could suffer a reduction in the value of their securities. Such security holders are unlikely to have a remedy for such reduction in value. The officers and directors of an acquisition candidate may resign upon completion of our initial business combination. The departure of a target business’s key personnel could negatively impact the operations and profitability of our post-combination business. The role of an acquisition candidate’s key personnel upon the completion of our initial business combination cannot be ascertained at this time. Although we contemplate that certain members of an acquisition candidate’s management team will remain associated with the acquisition candidate following our initial business combination, it is possible that members of the management of an acquisition candidate will not wish to remain in place.

Our officers and directors may allocate their time to other businesses, thereby causing conflicts of interest in their determination as to how much time to devote to our affairs. This conflict of interest could have a negative impact on our ability to complete our initial business combination.

None of our officers or directors is required to commit his or her full time to our affairs, which may result in a conflict of interest in allocating their time between our operations and our search for a business combination and their other businesses, including other business endeavors for which he or she may be entitled to substantial compensation. We do not intend to have any full-time employees prior to the completion of our initial business combination. Our independent directors also serve as officers or board members for other entities. If our officers’ and directors’ other business affairs require them to devote substantial amounts of time to such affairs in excess of their current commitment levels, it could limit their ability to devote time to our affairs, which may have a negative impact on our ability to complete our initial business combination. For a complete discussion of our officers’ and directors’ other business affairs, please see the section of this prospectus entitled “Management—Conflicts of Interest.”

Certain of our officers and directors are now, and all of them may in the future become, affiliated with entities engaged in business activities similar to those intended to be conducted by us (and they may also become an officer or director of any other special purpose acquisition company) and, accordingly, may have conflicts of interest in allocating their time and determining to which entity a particular business opportunity should be presented.

Following the completion of this offering and until we consummate our initial business combination, we intend to engage in the business of identifying and combining with one or more businesses or entities. Our initial stockholders and officers and directors are, and may in the future become, affiliated with entities (such as operating companies or investment vehicles) that are engaged in a similar business, although our officers may not become an officer or director of any other special purpose acquisition

 

 

 

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company that has publicly filed a registration statement with the SEC until we have entered into a definitive agreement regarding our initial business combination or we have failed to complete our initial business combination within 24 months after the closing of this offering.

Our officers and directors also may become aware of business opportunities which may be appropriate for presentation to us and the other entities in the future to which they owe certain fiduciary or contractual duties. Accordingly, they may have conflicts of interest in determining to which entity a particular business opportunity should be presented. These conflicts may not be resolved in our favor and a potential target business may be presented to another entity prior to its presentation to us. For a complete discussion of our officers’ and directors’ business affiliations and the potential conflicts of interest that you should be aware of, please see the sections of this prospectus entitled “Management—Officers, Directors and Director Nominees,” “Management—Conflicts of Interest” and “Certain Relationships and Related Party Transactions.”

Our officers, directors, security holders and their respective affiliates may have competitive pecuniary interests that conflict with our interests.

We have not adopted a policy that expressly prohibits our directors, officers, security holders or affiliates from having a direct or indirect pecuniary or financial interest in any investment to be acquired or disposed of by us or in any transaction to which we are a party or have an interest. In fact, we may enter into a business combination with a target business that is affiliated with our initial stockholders, directors or officers, or any of their affiliates although we do not currently intend to do so, or we may acquire a target business through an Affiliated Joint Acquisition. We do not have a policy that expressly prohibits any such persons from engaging for their own account in business activities of the types conducted by us. Accordingly, such persons or entities may have a conflict between their interests and ours.

Despite our agreement that, in the event we seek to complete our initial business combination with a company business that is affiliated with our initial stockholders, officers or directors, or any of their affiliates, we, or a committee of independent directors, will obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm or another independent entity that commonly renders valuation opinions that our initial business combination is fair to us from a financial point of view, potential conflicts of interest still may exist. As a result, the terms of the business combination may not be as advantageous to our company and our public stockholders as they would be absent any conflicts of interest.

Since our initial stockholders, officers and directors will lose their entire investment in us if our business combination is not completed, a conflict of interest may arise in determining whether a particular target business is appropriate for our initial business combination.

Our initial stockholders, including our officers and directors, acquired the 7,187,500 founder shares in exchange for a capital contribution of $25,000. Prior to the initial investment in the company of $25,000, we had no assets, tangible or intangible. The number of founder shares issued was determined based on the expectation that such founder shares would represent 20% of the outstanding shares after this offering. The founder shares will be worthless if we do not complete an initial business combination. In addition, our sponsor has agreed that it will purchase an aggregate of 7,000,000 (or 7,750,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) private placement warrants, each exercisable for one share of our Class A common stock at $11.50 per share, subject to adjustment, for a purchase price of $7,000,000 (or $7,750,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full), or $1.00 per warrant, that will also be worthless if we do not complete our initial business combination within the allocated time period. In addition, we may obtain loans from our initial stockholders, officers, directors

 

 

 

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or their affiliates. The personal and financial interests of our officers and directors may influence their motivation in identifying and selecting a target business combination, completing an initial business combination and influencing the operation of the business following the initial business combination. This risk may become more acute as the 24-month anniversary of the closing of this offering nears, which is the deadline for completing our initial business combination.

RISKS RELATING TO THE TRUST ACCOUNT

If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in the trust account could be reduced and the per-share redemption amount received by stockholders may be less than $10.00 per share.

Our placing of funds in the trust account may not protect those funds from third-party claims against us. Although we will seek to have all vendors, service providers (other than our independent registered public accounting firm), prospective target businesses and other entities with which we do business execute agreements with us waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to any monies held in the trust account for the benefit of our public stockholders, such parties may not execute such agreements, or even if they execute such agreements they may not be prevented from bringing claims against the trust account, including, but not limited to, fraudulent inducement, breach of fiduciary responsibility or other similar claims, as well as claims challenging the enforceability of the waiver, in each case in order to gain an advantage with respect to a claim against our assets, including the funds held in the trust account. If any third party refuses to execute an agreement waiving such claims to the monies held in the trust account, our management will perform an analysis of the alternatives available to it and will only enter into an agreement with a third party that has not executed a waiver if management believes that such third party’s engagement would be significantly more beneficial to us than any alternative. Making such a request of potential target businesses may make our acquisition proposal less attractive to them and, to the extent prospective target businesses refuse to execute such a waiver, it may limit the field of potential target businesses that we might pursue. Our independent registered public accounting firm will not execute agreements with us waiving such claims to the monies held in the trust account, nor will the underwriters of this offering. Our independent registered public accounting firm will not execute agreements with us waiving such claims to the monies held in the trust account, nor will the underwriters of this offering.

Examples of possible instances where we may engage a third party that refuses to execute a waiver include the engagement of a third party consultant whose particular expertise or skills are believed by management to be significantly superior to those of other consultants that would agree to execute a waiver or in cases where management is unable to find a service provider willing to execute a waiver. In addition, there is no guarantee that such entities will agree to waive any claims they may have in the future as a result of, or arising out of, any negotiations, contracts or agreements with us and will not seek recourse against the trust account for any reason. Upon redemption of our public shares, if we have not completed our initial business combination within the prescribed timeframe, or upon the exercise of a redemption right in connection with our initial business combination, we will be required to provide for payment of claims of creditors that were not waived that may be brought against us within the 10 years following redemption. Accordingly, the per-share redemption amount received by public stockholders could be less than the $10.00 per share initially held in the trust account, due to claims of such creditors. Our sponsor has agreed that it will be liable to us if and to the extent any claims by a third party for services rendered or products sold to us, or by a prospective target business with which we have discussed entering into a transaction agreement, reduce the amount of funds in the trust account to below (i) $10.00 per public share or (ii) such lesser amount per public share held in the trust account as

 

 

 

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of the date of the liquidation of the trust account due to reductions in the value of the trust assets, in each case net of the amount of interest which may be withdrawn to pay taxes. This liability will not apply with respect to any claims by a third party who executed a waiver of any and all rights to seek access to the trust account and except as to any claims under our indemnity of the underwriters of this offering against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. Moreover, in the event that an executed waiver is deemed to be unenforceable against a third party, then our sponsor will not be responsible to the extent of any liability for such third-party claims. We have not independently verified whether our sponsor, which is a newly formed entity, has sufficient funds to satisfy its indemnity obligations and believe that our sponsor’s only assets are securities of our company. We have not asked our sponsor to reserve for such indemnification obligations. Therefore, we believe it is unlikely our sponsor would be able to satisfy those obligations. As a result, if any such claims were successfully made against the trust account, the funds available for our initial business combination and redemptions could be reduced to less than $10.00 per public share. In such event, we may not be able to complete our initial business combination, and you would receive such lesser amount per public share in connection with any redemption of your public shares. None of our officers or directors will indemnify us for claims by third parties including, without limitation, claims by vendors and prospective target businesses.

Our independent directors may decide not to enforce the indemnification obligations of our sponsor, resulting in a reduction in the amount of funds in the trust account available for distribution to our public stockholders.

In the event that the proceeds in the trust account are reduced below the lesser of (i) $10.00 per public share or (ii) such lesser amount per public share held in the trust account as of the date of the liquidation of the trust account due to reductions in the value of the trust assets, in each case net of the amount of interest which may be withdrawn to pay taxes, and our sponsor asserts that it is unable to satisfy its obligations or that it has no indemnification obligations related to a particular claim, our independent directors would determine whether to take legal action against our sponsor to enforce its indemnification obligations.

While we currently expect that our independent directors would take legal action on our behalf against our sponsor to enforce its indemnification obligations to us, it is possible that our independent directors in exercising their business judgment may choose not to do so if, for example, the cost of such legal action is deemed by the independent directors to be too high relative to the amount recoverable or if the independent directors determine that a favorable outcome is not likely. If our independent directors choose not to enforce these indemnification obligations, the amount of funds in the trust account available for distribution to our public stockholders may be reduced below $10.00 per share.

The securities in which we invest the funds held in the trust account could bear a negative rate of interest, which could reduce the value of the assets held in trust such that the per-share redemption amount received by public stockholders may be less than $10.00 per share.

The proceeds held in the trust account will be held as cash or invested only in U.S. government treasury obligations with a maturity of 185 days or less or in money market funds meeting certain conditions under Rule 2a-7 under the Investment Company Act, which invest only in direct U.S. government treasury obligations. While short-term U.S. government treasury obligations currently yield a positive rate of interest, they have briefly yielded negative interest rates in recent years. Central banks in Europe and Japan pursued interest rates below zero in recent years, and the Open Market Committee of the Federal Reserve has not ruled out the possibility that it may in the future adopt similar policies in the United States. In the event that we are unable to complete our initial business combination or make

 

 

 

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certain amendments to our certificate of incorporation, our public stockholders are entitled to receive their pro-rata share of the proceeds held in the trust account, plus any interest income, net of taxes paid or payable (less, in the case we are unable to complete our initial business combination, $100,000 of interest). Negative interest rates could reduce the value of the assets held in trust such that the per-share redemption amount received by public stockholders may be less than $10.00 per share.

If, after we distribute the proceeds in the trust account to our public stockholders, we file a bankruptcy or winding-up petition or an involuntary bankruptcy or winding-up petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, a bankruptcy court may seek to recover such proceeds, and the members of our board of directors may be viewed as having breached their fiduciary duties to our creditors, thereby exposing the members of our board of directors and us to claims of punitive damages.

If, after we distribute the proceeds in the trust account to our public stockholders, we file a bankruptcy or winding-up petition or an involuntary bankruptcy or winding-up petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, any distributions received by stockholders could be viewed under applicable debtor/creditor and/or bankruptcy or insolvency laws as either a “preferential transfer” or a “fraudulent conveyance.” As a result, a bankruptcy or insolvency court could seek to recover some or all amounts received by our stockholders. In addition, our board of directors may be viewed as having breached its fiduciary duty to our creditors and/or having acted in bad faith, by paying public stockholders from the trust account prior to addressing the claims of creditors, thereby exposing itself and us to claims of punitive damages.

If, before distributing the proceeds in the trust account to our public stockholders, we file a bankruptcy or winding-up petition or an involuntary bankruptcy or winding-up petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, the claims of creditors in such proceeding may have priority over the claims of our stockholders and the per-share amount that would otherwise be received by our stockholders in connection with our liquidation may be reduced.

If, before distributing the proceeds in the trust account to our public stockholders, we file a bankruptcy or winding-up petition or an involuntary bankruptcy or winding-up petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, the proceeds held in the trust account could be subject to applicable bankruptcy or insolvency law, and may be included in our bankruptcy estate and subject to the claims of third parties with priority over the claims of our stockholders. To the extent any bankruptcy claims deplete the trust account, the per-share amount that would otherwise be received by our stockholders in connection with our liquidation may be reduced.

RISKS RELATING TO TAXATION

An investment in this offering may result in uncertain or adverse U.S. federal income

tax consequences.

An investment in this offering may result in uncertain U.S. federal income tax consequences. For instance, because there are no authorities that directly address instruments similar to the units we are issuing in this offering, the allocation an investor makes with respect to the purchase price of a unit between the share of Class A common stock and the one-half of one redeemable warrant to purchase one share of our Class A common stock included in each unit could be challenged by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service, or “IRS,” or the courts. Furthermore, the U.S. federal income tax consequences of a cashless exercise of the warrants included in the units we are issuing in this offering are unclear under current law, and the adjustment to the exercise price and/or redemption price of the warrants could give

 

 

 

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rise to dividend income to investors without a corresponding payment of cash. Finally, it is unclear whether the redemption rights with respect to our shares of common stock suspend the running of a U.S. holder’s holding period for purposes of determining whether any gain or loss realized by such holder on the sale or exchange of common stock is long-term capital gain or loss and for determining whether any dividend we pay would be considered “qualified dividends” for U.S. federal income tax purposes. See the section titled “United States federal income tax considerations” for a summary of the material U.S. federal income tax considerations applicable to an investment in our securities. Prospective investors are urged to consult their tax advisors with respect to these and other tax consequences applicable to their specific circumstances when purchasing, holding or disposing of our securities.

We may be subject to an increased rate of tax on our income if we are treated as a personal holding company.

Depending on the date and size of our initial business combination, it is possible that we could be treated as a “personal holding companyö for U.S. federal income tax purposes. A U.S. corporation generally will be classified as a personal holding company for U.S. federal income tax purposes in a given taxable year if more than 50% of its ownership (by value) is concentrated, within a certain period of time, in five or fewer individuals (without regard to their citizenship or residency and including as individuals for this purpose certain entities such as certain tax-exempt organizations, pension funds, and charitable trusts), and at least 60% of its income is comprised of certain passive items. See the section titled “United States federal income tax considerations—Personal Holding Company Status” for more detailed information.

GENERAL RISK FACTORS

We are a newly formed company with no operating history and no revenues, and you have no basis on which to evaluate our ability to achieve our business objective.

We are a newly formed company with no operating results, and we will not commence operations until obtaining funding through this offering. Because we lack an operating history, you have no basis upon which to evaluate our ability to achieve our business objective of completing our initial business combination with one or more target businesses. We have no plans, arrangements or understandings with any prospective target business concerning a business combination with our company and may be unable to complete our initial business combination. If we fail to complete our business combination, we will never generate any operating revenues.

Changes in laws or regulations, or a failure to comply with any laws and regulations, may adversely affect our business, investments and results of operations.

We are subject to laws and regulations enacted by national, regional and local governments. In particular, we will be required to comply with certain SEC and other legal requirements. Compliance with, and monitoring of, applicable laws and regulations may be difficult, time consuming and costly. Those laws and regulations and their interpretation and application may also change from time to time and those changes could have a material adverse effect on our business, investments and results of operations. In addition, a failure to comply with applicable laws or regulations, as interpreted and applied, could have a material adverse effect on our business, including our ability to negotiate and complete our initial business combination, and results of operations.

 

 

 

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We are an emerging growth company and a smaller reporting company within the meaning of the Securities Act, and if we take advantage of certain exemptions from disclosure requirements available to emerging growth companies and smaller reporting companies, this could make our securities less attractive to investors and may make it more difficult to compare our performance with other public companies.

We are an “emerging growth company” within the meaning of the Securities Act, as modified by the JOBS Act, and we may take advantage of certain exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other public companies that are not emerging growth companies including, but not limited to, not being required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports and proxy statements, and exemptions from the requirements of holding a nonbinding advisory vote on executive compensation and stockholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved. As a result, our stockholders may not have access to certain information they may deem important. We could be an emerging growth company for up to five years, although circumstances could cause us to lose that status earlier, including if the market value of our common stock held by non-affiliates exceeds $700 million as of the end of any second quarter of a fiscal year, in which case we would no longer be an emerging growth company as of the end of such fiscal year. We cannot predict whether investors will find our securities less attractive because we will rely on these exemptions. If some investors find our securities less attractive as a result of our reliance on these exemptions, the trading prices of our securities may be lower than they otherwise would be, there may be a less active trading market for our securities and the trading prices of our securities may be more volatile.

Further, Section 102(b)(1) of the JOBS Act exempts emerging growth companies from being required to comply with new or revised financial accounting standards until private companies (that is, those that have not had a Securities Act registration statement declared effective or do not have a class of securities registered under the Exchange Act) are required to comply with the new or revised financial accounting standards. The JOBS Act provides that a company can elect to opt out of the extended transition period and comply with the requirements that apply to non-emerging growth companies but any such an election to opt out is irrevocable. We have elected not to opt out of such extended transition period, which means that when a standard is issued or revised and it has different application dates for public or private companies, we, as an emerging growth company, can adopt the new or revised standard at the time private companies adopt the new or revised standard. This may make comparison of our financial statements with another public company which is neither an emerging growth company nor an emerging growth company which has opted out of using the extended transition period difficult or impossible because of the potential differences in accounting standards used.

Additionally, we are a “smaller reporting company” as defined in Item 10(f)(1) of Regulation S-K. Smaller reporting companies may take advantage of certain reduced disclosure obligations, including, among other things, providing only two years of audited financial statements. We will remain a smaller reporting company until the last day of the fiscal year in which (1) the market value of our common stock held by non-affiliates exceeds $250 million as of the end of that year’s second fiscal quarter, or (2) our annual revenues exceeded $100 million during such completed fiscal year and the market value of our common stock held by non-affiliates exceeds $700 million as of the end of that year’s second fiscal quarter. To the extent we take advantage of such reduced disclosure obligations, it may also make comparison of our financial statements with other public companies difficult or impossible.

 

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Cautionary note regarding forward-looking statements

Certain statements in this prospectus may constitute “forward-looking statements” for purposes of the federal securities laws. Our forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding our or our management team’s expectations, hopes, beliefs, intentions or strategies regarding the future. In addition, any statements that refer to projections, forecasts or other characterizations of future events or circumstances, including any underlying assumptions, are forward-looking statements. The words “anticipate,” “believe,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “may,” “might,” “plan,” “possible,” “potential,” “predict,” “project,” “should,” “would” and similar expressions may identify forward-looking statements, but the absence of these words does not mean that a statement is not forward-looking. Forward-looking statements in this prospectus may include, for example, statements about:

 

Ø  

our ability to select an appropriate target business or businesses;

 

Ø  

our ability to complete our initial business combination;

 

Ø  

our expectations around the performance of the prospective target business or businesses;

 

Ø  

our expectations regarding our business strategy, including our beliefs regarding the combined ability of our management team and strategic advisory group to provide distinctive and differentiated capabilities to create stockholder value;

 

Ø  

our success in retaining or recruiting, or changes required in, our officers, key employees or directors following our initial business combination;

 

Ø  

our officers and directors allocating their time to other businesses and potentially having conflicts of interest with our business or in approving our initial business combination;

 

Ø  

our potential ability to obtain additional financing to complete our initial business combination;

 

Ø  

our pool of prospective target businesses;

 

Ø  

our ability to consummate an initial business combination due to the uncertainty resulting from the recent COVID-19 pandemic;

 

Ø  

the ability of our officers and directors to generate a number of potential business combination opportunities;

 

Ø  

our public securities’ potential liquidity and trading;

 

Ø  

the lack of a market for our securities;

 

Ø  

the use of proceeds not held in the trust account or available to us from interest income on the trust account balance;

 

Ø  

the trust account not being subject to claims of third parties; or

 

Ø  

our financial performance following this offering or an initial business combination.

The forward-looking statements contained in this prospectus are based on our current expectations and beliefs concerning future developments and their potential effects on us. There can be no assurance that future developments affecting us will be those that we have anticipated. These forward-looking statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties (some of which are beyond our control) or other assumptions that may cause actual results or performance to be materially different from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, those factors described in the section of this prospectus entitled “Risk Factors.” Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should any of our assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary in material respects from those projected in these forward-looking statements. We undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required under applicable securities laws.

 

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Use of proceeds

We are offering 25,000,000 units at an offering price of $10.00 per unit. We estimate that the net proceeds of this offering together with the funds we will receive from the sale of the private placement warrants will be used as set forth in the following table.

 

      Without
Over-Allotment
Option
    Over-Allotment
Option Fully
Exercised
 

Gross proceeds

    

Gross proceeds from units offered to public

   $ 250,000,000     $ 287,500,000  

Gross proceeds from private placement warrants offered in the private placement

     7,000,000       7,750,000  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Total gross proceeds

   $ 257,000,000     $ 295,250,000  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Estimated offering expenses(1)

    

Underwriting commissions (2% of gross proceeds from units offered to public, excluding deferred portion)(2)

   $ 5,000,000     $ 5,750,000  

Legal fees and expenses

     275,000       275,000  

Accounting fees and expenses

     30,000       30,000  

SEC/FINRA expenses

     75,000       75,000  

Travel and road show

     25,000       25,000  

NYSE listing and filing fees

     85,000       85,000  

Director and Officer liability insurance premiums(3)

     400,000       400,000  

Printing and engraving expenses

     36,000       36,000  

Miscellaneous

     74,000       74,000  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Total estimated offering expenses (excluding underwriting commissions)

   $ 1,000,000     $ 1,000,000  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Proceeds after estimated offering expenses

   $ 251,000,000     $ 288,500,000  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Held in trust account

   $ 250,000,000     $ 287,500,000  

% of public offering size

     100     100

Not held in trust account

   $ 1,000,000     $ 1,000,000  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

The following table shows the use of the approximately $1,000,000 of net proceeds not held in the trust account.(4)

 

      Amount      % of Total  

Legal, accounting, due diligence, travel, and other expenses in connection with any business combination

   $ 325,000        32.5

Due diligence of prospective target businesses by officers, directors and sponsor

     200,000        20.0

Payment for certain administrative, research, transaction and other support services (up to $10,000 per month for up to 24 months)

     240,000        24.0

Legal and accounting fees related to regulatory reporting obligations

     100,000        10.0

Consulting, travel and miscellaneous expenses incurred during search for a target business

     50,000        5.0

Working capital to cover miscellaneous expenses and reserves

     85,000        8.5

Total

   $ 1,000,000        100.0

 

(1)  

A portion of the offering expenses will be paid from the proceeds of loans from our sponsor of up to $200,000 to cover offering-related and organizational expenses as described in this prospectus. This

 

 

 

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  amount will be repaid upon completion of this offering out of the $1,000,000 of offering proceeds that has been allocated for the payment of offering expenses (other than underwriting commissions) and amounts not to be held in the trust account. In the event that offering expenses are less than set forth in this table, any such amounts will be used for post-closing working capital expenses. These expenses are estimates only. In the event that the offering expenses are more than as set forth in this table, we may fund such excess with funds not held in the trust account.
(2)   The underwriters have agreed to defer underwriting commissions equal to 3.5% of the gross proceeds of this offering. Upon completion of our initial business combination, $8,750,000, which constitutes the underwriters’ deferred commissions (or $10,062,500 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) will be paid to the Representatives from the funds held in the trust account, and the remaining funds, less amounts released to the trustee to pay redeeming stockholders, will be released to us and can be used to pay all or a portion of the purchase price of the business or businesses with which our initial business combination occurs or for general corporate purposes, including payment of principal or interest on indebtedness incurred in connection with our initial business combination, to fund the purchases of other companies or for working capital. The Representatives will not be entitled to any interest accrued on the deferred underwriting discounts and commissions.
(3)   This amount represents the approximate amount of annual director and officer liability insurance premiums we anticipate paying following the completion of this offering and until we complete our initial business combination.
(4)   These expenses are estimates only. Our actual expenditures for some or all of these items may differ from the estimates set forth herein. For example, we may incur greater legal and accounting expenses than our current estimates in connection with negotiating and structuring our initial business combination based upon the level of complexity of such business combination. In the event we identify a target business in a specific industry subject to specific regulations, we may incur additional expenses associated with legal due diligence and the engagement of special legal counsel. In addition, our staffing needs may vary and as a result, we may engage a number of consultants to assist with legal and financial due diligence. We do not anticipate any change in our intended use of proceeds, other than fluctuations among the current categories of allocated expenses, which fluctuations, to the extent they exceed current estimates for any specific category of expenses, would not be available for our expenses.

The rules of the NYSE provide that at least 90% of the gross proceeds from this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants be deposited in a trust account. Of the net proceeds of this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants, $250,000,000 (or $287,500,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full), including $8,750,000 (or $10,062,500 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) of deferred underwriting commissions, will be placed in a U.S.-based trust account, with Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company acting as trustee, and will be held as cash or invested only in U.S. government treasury bills with a maturity of 185 days or less or in money market funds meeting certain conditions under Rule 2a-7 under the Investment Company Act which invest only in direct U.S. government treasury obligations. We estimate that the interest earned on the trust account will be approximately $250,000 per year, assuming an interest rate of 0.1% per year; however, we can provide no assurance regarding this amount. Except with respect to interest earned on the funds held in the trust account that may be released to us to pay our tax obligations, the proceeds from this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants held in the trust account will not be released from the trust account until the earliest to occur of: (a) the completion of our initial business combination, (b) the redemption of any public shares properly submitted in connection with a stockholder vote to amend certain provisions of our certificate of incorporation as described herein and (c) the redemption of our public shares if we have not completed our business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering, subject to applicable law. Stockholders who do not exercise

 

 

 

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their rights to the funds in connection with an amendment to our certificate of incorporation would still have rights to the funds in connection with a subsequent business combination.

The net proceeds held in the trust account may be used as consideration to pay the sellers of a target business with which we ultimately complete our initial business combination. If our initial business combination is paid for using equity or debt, or not all of the funds released from the trust account are used for payment of the consideration in connection with our initial business combination or used for redemption of our public shares, we may apply the balance of the cash released from the trust account for general corporate purposes, including for maintenance or expansion of operations of the post-transaction company, the payment of principal or interest due on indebtedness incurred in completing our initial business combination, to fund the purchase of other assets, companies or for working capital.

We believe that amounts not held in trust will be sufficient to pay the costs and expenses to which such proceeds are allocated. This belief is based on the fact that while we may begin preliminary due diligence of a target business in connection with an indication of interest, we intend to undertake in-depth due diligence, depending on the circumstances of the relevant prospective acquisition, only after we have negotiated and signed a letter of intent or other preliminary agreement that addresses the terms of a business combination. However, if our estimate of the costs of undertaking in-depth due diligence and negotiating a business combination is less than the actual amount necessary to do so, we may be required to raise additional capital, the amount, availability and cost of which is currently unascertainable. If we are required to seek additional capital, we could seek such additional capital through loans or additional investments from our initial stockholders, members of our management team or their affiliates, but such persons are not under any obligation to advance funds to, or invest in, us.

We will enter into an Administrative Services Agreement pursuant to which we will pay an affiliate of our sponsor up to $10,000 per month, for up to 24 months, for certain administrative, research, transaction and other support services. Upon completion of our initial business combination or our liquidation, we will cease paying these monthly fees.

Our sponsor has agreed to loan us up to $200,000 to be used for a portion of the expenses of this offering. This loan is non-interest bearing, unsecured and is due at the earliest of December 31, 2020, the closing of this offering and our determination to not proceed with this offering. As of September 3, 2020, there was no outstanding balance under the note. The loan and advances will be repaid upon the closing of this offering out of the offering proceeds not held in the trust account.

In addition, in order to fund working capital deficiencies or finance transaction costs in connection with an intended initial business combination, our initial stockholders, officers, directors or their affiliates may, but are not obligated to, loan us funds on a non-interest basis as may be required. If we complete our initial business combination, we may repay such loaned amounts out of the proceeds of the trust account released to us. Otherwise, such loans would be repaid only out of funds held outside the trust account. In the event that our initial business combination does not close, we may use a portion of the working capital held outside the trust account to repay such loaned amounts but no proceeds from our trust account would be used to repay such loaned amounts. Up to $1,500,000 of such loans may be convertible into warrants, at a price of $1.00 per warrant at the option of the lender. The warrants would be identical to the private placement warrants. Except as described above, the terms of such loans, if any, have not been determined and no written agreements exist with respect to such loans. Prior to the completion of our initial business combination, we do not expect to seek loans from parties other than our initial stockholders, officers, directors or their affiliates as we do not believe third parties will be

 

 

 

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willing to loan such funds and provide a waiver against any and all rights to seek access to funds in our trust account.

If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination and we do not conduct redemptions in connection with our initial business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, our initial stockholders, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates may purchase public shares or public warrants or a combination thereof in privately negotiated transactions or in the open market either prior to or following the completion of our initial business combination. There is no limit on the number of our securities that may be purchased, subject to compliance with applicable law and the rules of the NYSE. However, they have no current commitments, plans or intentions to engage in such transactions and have not formulated any terms or conditions for any such transactions. If they engage in such transactions, they will be subject to restrictions in making any such purchases when they are in possession of any material non-public information or if such purchases are prohibited by Regulation M under the Exchange Act. We do not currently anticipate that such purchases, if any, would constitute a tender offer subject to the tender offer rules under the Exchange Act or a going-private transaction subject to the going-private rules under the Exchange Act; however, if the purchasers determine at the time of any such purchases that the purchases are subject to such rules, the purchasers will be required to comply with such rules.

We will only redeem our public shares so long as (after such redemption) our net tangible assets will be at least $5,000,001 either immediately prior to or upon consummation of our initial business combination (so that we do not then become subject to the SEC’s “penny stock” rules) and the agreement for our business combination may require as a closing condition that we have a minimum net worth or a certain amount of cash. If too many public stockholders exercise their redemption rights so that we cannot satisfy the net tangible asset requirement or any net worth or cash requirements, we would not proceed with the redemption of our public shares or the business combination, and instead may search for an alternate business combination.

A public stockholder will be entitled to receive funds from the trust account only upon the earliest to occur of: (a) the completion of our initial business combination and then, only in connection with those public shares that such stockholder has properly elected to redeem, subject to the limitations described in this prospectus, (b) the redemption of any public shares properly submitted in connection with a stockholder vote to amend certain provisions of our certificate of incorporation as described herein and (c) the redemption of our public shares if we have not completed our business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering, subject to applicable law. Stockholders who do not exercise their rights to the funds in connection with an amendment to our certificate of incorporation would still have rights to the funds in connection with a subsequent business combination. In no other circumstances will a public stockholder have any right or interest of any kind to or in the trust account. Holders of warrants will not have any rights of proceeds held in the trust account with respect to the warrants.

Our initial stockholders, officers and directors have entered into agreements with us pursuant to which they have agreed to waive (i) their redemption rights with respect to any founder shares and any public shares held by them in connection with the completion of our initial business combination and (ii) their redemption rights with respect to any founder shares and any public shares held by them in connection with a stockholder vote to approve an amendment to our certificate of incorporation (A) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or certain amendments to our certificate of incorporation or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering or (B) with respect to any other provision relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business

 

 

 

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combination activity. In addition, our initial stockholders have agreed to waive their rights to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to any founder shares held by them if we fail to complete our business combination within the prescribed time frame. However, if our initial stockholders or any of our officers, directors or affiliates acquires public shares in or after this offering, they will be entitled to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to such public shares if we fail to complete our initial business combination within the prescribed time frame. Permitted transferees of the founder shares held by our initial stockholders, officers and directors will be subject to the same restrictions applicable to our initial stockholders, officers and directors.

 

 

 

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Dividend policy

We have not paid any cash dividends on our common stock to date and do not intend to pay cash dividends prior to the completion of our initial business combination. The payment of cash dividends in the future will be dependent upon our revenues and earnings, if any, capital requirements and general financial condition subsequent to completion of our initial business combination. Further, if we incur any indebtedness in connection with our initial business combination, our ability to declare dividends may be limited by restrictive covenants we may agree to in connection therewith. If we increase the size of this offering, we will effect a stock dividend or other appropriate mechanism with respect to our Class B common stock immediately prior to the consummation of this offering in such amount as to maintain the number of founder shares at 20% of the issued and outstanding shares of our common stock upon the consummation of this offering (assuming they do not purchase any units in this offering).

 

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Dilution

The difference between the public offering price per share of Class A common stock, assuming no value is attributed to the warrants included in the units we are offering pursuant to this prospectus or the private placement warrants, and the pro forma net tangible book value per share of our common stock after this offering constitutes the dilution to investors in this offering. Such calculation does not reflect any dilution associated with the sale and exercise of warrants, including the private placement warrants, which would cause the actual dilution to the public stockholders to be higher, particularly where a cashless exercise is utilized. Net tangible book value per share is determined by dividing our net tangible book value, which is our total tangible assets less total liabilities (including the value of Class A common stock which may be redeemed for cash), by the number of outstanding shares of our Class A common stock.

At September 3, 2020, our net tangible book deficit was $30,422 or approximately $(0.00) per share of common stock. After giving effect to the sale of 25,000,000 shares of Class A common stock included in the units we are offering by this prospectus, the sale of the private placement warrants and the deduction of underwriting commissions and estimated expenses of this offering, our pro forma net tangible book value at September 3, 2020 would have been $5,000,008, or approximately $0.66 per share, representing an immediate increase in net tangible book value (as decreased by the value of 23,727,457 shares of Class A common stock that may be redeemed for cash and assuming no exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option) of $0.66 per share to our initial stockholders as of the date of this prospectus and an immediate dilution of $9.34 per share or 93.4% to our public stockholders. The dilution to new investors if the underwriters exercise the over-allotment option in full would be an immediate dilution of $9.42 per share or 94.2%.

The following table illustrates the dilution to the public stockholders on a per-share basis, assuming no value is attributed to the warrants included in the units or the private placement warrants (assuming no exercise and full exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option):

 

      Without
Over-allotment
    With
Over-allotment
 

Public offering price

     $ 10.00       $ 10.00  

Net tangible book deficit before this offering

     (0.00       (0.00  

Increase attributable to public stockholders

     0.66         0.58    
  

 

 

     

 

 

   

Pro forma net tangible book value after this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants

       0.66         0.58  
    

 

 

     

 

 

 

Dilution to public stockholders

     $ 9.34       $ 9.42  
    

 

 

     

 

 

 

Percentage of dilution to public stockholders

       93.4       94.2

For purposes of presentation, we have reduced our pro forma net tangible book value after this offering (assuming no exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option) by $237,274,570 because holders of up to approximately 94.9% of our public shares may redeem their shares for a pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account at a per-share redemption price equal to the amount in the trust account, calculated as of two business days prior to our initial business combination, including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes, divided by the number of shares of Class A common stock sold in this offering. The actual amount of shares that can be redeemed may exceed this amount so long as we satisfy the minimum net tangible asset threshold of at least $5,000,001 immediately prior to or upon consummation of our initial business combination.

 

 

 

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The following table sets forth information with respect to our initial stockholders and the public stockholders:

 

      Shares Purchased     Total Consideration     Average Price
Per Share
 
   Number      Percentage     Amount      Percentage  

Initial Stockholders(1)

     6,250,000        20.0   $ 25,000        0.01   $ 0.004  

Public Stockholders

     25,000,000        80.0     250,000,000        99.99   $ 10.00  
  

 

 

    

 

 

   

 

 

    

 

 

   
     31,250,000        100.0   $ 250,025,000        100.00  
  

 

 

    

 

 

   

 

 

    

 

 

   

 

(1)   Assumes no exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option and the corresponding forfeiture of an aggregate of 937,500 shares of Class B common stock held by our initial stockholders.

The pro forma net tangible book value per share after the offering is calculated as follows (assuming no exercise and full exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option):

 

      Without
Over-allotment
    With
Over-allotment
 

Numerator:

    

Net tangible book deficit before this offering

   $ (30,422   $ (30,422

Net proceeds from this offering and sale of the private placement warrants

     251,000,000       288,500,000  

Plus: Offering costs paid in advance, excluded from tangible book value before this offering

     55,000       55,000  

Less: Deferred underwriting commissions

     (8,750,000     (10,062,500

Less: Proceeds held in trust subject to redemption

     (237,274,570     (273,462,070
  

 

 

   

 

 

 
   $ 5,000,008     $ 5,000,008  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Denominator:

    

Class B common stock outstanding prior to this offering

     7,187,500       7,187,500  

Class B common stock forfeited if over-allotment is not exercised

     (937,500     —    

Class A common stock included in the units offered

     25,000,000       28,750,000  

Less: Shares subject to redemption

     (23,727,457     (27,346,207
  

 

 

   

 

 

 
     7,522,543       8,591,293  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Capitalization

The following table sets forth our capitalization at September 3, 2020, and as adjusted to give effect to the sale of our units and the private placement warrants and the application of the estimated net proceeds derived from the sale of such securities:

 

     September 3, 2020  
      Actual     As Adjusted(1)  

Note payable to related party(2)

   $ —       $ —    

Deferred underwriting commissions

     —         8,750,000  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Class A common stock, $0.0001 par value, 200,000,000 shares
authorized; -0- and 23,727,457 shares are subject to possible redemption, actual and as adjusted, respectively(3)

     —         237,274,570  

Preferred stock, $0.0001 par value, 1,000,000 shares authorized;
none issued and outstanding, actual and as adjusted

     —         —    

Class A common stock, $0.0001 par value, 200,000,000 shares
authorized; -0- and 1,272,543 shares issued and outstanding
(excluding -0- and 23,727,457 shares subject to possible redemption), actual and as adjusted, respectively(3)

     —         127  

Class B common stock, $0.0001 par value, 20,000,000 shares
authorized; 7,187,500 and 6,250,000 shares issued and
outstanding, actual and as adjusted, respectively(4)

     719       625  

Additional paid-in capital

     24,281       4,999,678  

Accumulated deficit

     (422     (422
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Total stockholders’ equity

   $ 24,578     $ 5,000,008  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Total capitalization

   $ 24,578     $ 251,024,578  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

 

(1)   Assumes the underwriters’ over-allotment option has not been exercised and the resulting forfeiture of an aggregate of 937,500 founder shares held by our initial stockholders has occurred.
(2)   Our sponsor has agreed to loan us up to $200,000 to cover offering-related and organizational expenses. As of September 3, 2020, we had no borrowings under the note.
(3)   Upon the completion of our initial business combination, we will provide our stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their public shares for cash equal to their pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, calculated as of two business days prior to the consummation of the initial business combination including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes, subject to the limitations described herein whereby our net tangible assets will be maintained at a minimum of $5,000,001 immediately prior to or upon completion of our initial business combination and any limitations (including, but not limited to, cash requirements) created by the terms of the proposed business combination. The number of shares that may be redeemed may exceed this number so long as it would not cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001 either immediately prior to or upon consummation of our initial business combination.
(4)   Actual share amount is prior to any forfeiture of founder shares by our initial stockholders and as adjusted amount assumes no exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option.

 

 

 

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Management’s discussion and analysis of financial condition and results of operations

OVERVIEW

We are a blank check company incorporated as a Delaware corporation and formed for the purpose of effecting an initial business combination with a target business. We have not selected any specific target business and we have not, nor has anyone on our behalf, initiated any substantive discussions directly or indirectly, with any target business regarding a business combination with our company. We intend to complete our initial business combination using cash from the proceeds of this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants, our capital stock, debt or a combination of cash, stock and debt.

The issuance of additional shares of our stock in a business combination:

 

Ø  

may significantly dilute the equity interest of investors in this offering, which dilution would increase if the anti-dilution provisions in the Class B common stock resulted in the issuance of Class A shares on a greater than one-to-one basis upon conversion of the Class B common stock;

 

Ø  

may subordinate the rights of holders of our common stock if preferred stock is issued with rights senior to those afforded our common stock;

 

Ø  

could cause a change of control if a substantial number of shares of our common stock is issued, which may affect, among other things, our ability to use our net operating loss carry forwards, if any, and could result in the resignation or removal of our present officers and directors;

 

Ø  

may have the effect of delaying or preventing a change of control of us by diluting the stock ownership or voting rights of a person seeking to obtain control of us;

 

Ø  

may adversely affect prevailing market prices for our units, Class A common stock and/or warrants; and

 

Ø  

may not result in adjustment to the exercise price of our warrants.

Similarly, if we issue debt securities or otherwise incur significant debt to bank or other lenders or owners of a target, it could result in:

 

Ø  

default and foreclosure on our assets if our operating revenues after an initial business combination are insufficient to repay our debt obligations;

 

Ø  

acceleration of our obligations to repay the indebtedness even if we make all principal and interest payments when due if we breach certain covenants that require the maintenance of certain financial ratios or reserves without a waiver or renegotiation of that covenant;

 

Ø  

our immediate payment of all principal and accrued interest, if any, if the debt is payable on demand;

 

Ø  

our inability to obtain necessary additional financing if the debt contains covenants restricting our ability to obtain such financing while the debt is outstanding;

 

Ø  

our inability to pay dividends on our common stock;

 

Ø  

using a substantial portion of our cash flow to pay principal and interest on our debt, which will reduce the funds available for dividends on our common stock if declared, our ability to pay expenses, make capital expenditures and acquisitions, and fund other general corporate purposes;

 

 

 

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Ø  

limitations on our flexibility in planning for and reacting to changes in our business and in the industry in which we operate;

 

Ø  

increased vulnerability to adverse changes in general economic, industry and competitive conditions and adverse changes in government regulation;

 

Ø  

limitations on our ability to borrow additional amounts for expenses, capital expenditures, acquisitions, debt service requirements, and execution of our strategy; and

 

Ø  

other purposes and other disadvantages compared to our competitors who have less debt.

As indicated in the accompanying financial statements, at September 3, 2020, we had $25,000 in cash and deferred offering costs of $55,000. Further, we expect to continue to incur significant costs in the pursuit of our acquisition plans. We cannot assure you that our plans to raise capital or to complete our initial business combination will be successful.

RESULTS OF OPERATIONS AND KNOWN TRENDS OR FUTURE EVENTS

We have neither engaged in any operations nor generated any revenues to date. Our only activities since inception have been organizational activities and those necessary to prepare for this offering. Following this offering, we will not generate any operating revenues until after completion of our initial business combination. We will generate non-operating income in the form of interest income on cash and cash equivalents after this offering. There has been no significant change in our financial or trading position and no material adverse change has occurred since the date of our audited financial statements. After this offering, we expect to incur increased expenses as a result of being a public company (for legal, financial reporting, accounting and auditing compliance), as well as for due diligence expenses. We expect our expenses to increase substantially after the closing of this offering.

LIQUIDITY AND CAPITAL RESOURCES

Our liquidity needs have been satisfied prior to the completion of this offering through receipt of $25,000 from the sale of the founder shares to our sponsor and up to $200,000 in loans from our sponsor under a note. Further, we have incurred and expect to continue to incur significant costs in pursuit of our financing and acquisition plans. Management’s plans to address this uncertainty through this offering are discussed above. We cannot assure you that our plans to raise capital or to complete an initial business combination will be successful. These factors, among others, raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern.

We estimate that the net proceeds from (i) the sale of the units in this offering, after deducting offering expenses of approximately $1,000,000, underwriting commissions of $5,000,000 ($5,750,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) (excluding deferred underwriting commissions of $8,750,000 (or $10,062,500 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full)), and (ii) the sale of the private placement warrants for a purchase price of $7,000,000 (or $7,750,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full), will be $251,000,000 (or $288,500,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full). Of this amount, $250,000,000 (or $287,500,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) will be held in the trust account, which includes $8,750,000 (or $10,062,500 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) of deferred underwriting commissions. The remaining approximately $1,000,000 will not be held in the trust account. In the event that our offering expenses exceed our estimate of $1,000,000, we may fund such excess with funds not to be held in the trust account. In such case, the amount of funds we intend to be held outside the trust account would decrease by a corresponding amount.

 

 

 

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Conversely, in the event that the offering expenses are less than our estimate of $1,000,000, the amount of funds we intend to be held outside the trust account would increase by a corresponding amount.

We intend to use substantially all of the funds held in the trust account, including any amounts representing interest earned on the trust account (less amounts released to us for taxes payable and deferred underwriting commissions) to complete our initial business combination. We may withdraw interest to pay taxes. We estimate our annual franchise tax obligations, based on the number of shares of our common stock authorized and outstanding after the completion of this offering, to be $200,000, which is the maximum amount of annual franchise taxes payable by us as a Delaware corporation per annum. Our annual income tax obligations will depend on the amount of interest and other income earned on the amounts held in the trust account. To the extent that our capital stock or debt is used, in whole or in part, as consideration to complete our initial business combination, the remaining proceeds held in the trust account will be used as working capital to finance the operations of the target business or businesses, make other acquisitions and pursue our growth strategies.

Prior to the completion of our initial business combination, we will have available to us the approximately $1,000,000 of proceeds held outside the trust account. We will use these funds primarily to identify and evaluate target businesses, perform business due diligence on prospective target businesses, travel to and from the offices, plants or similar locations of prospective target businesses or their representatives or owners, review corporate documents and material agreements of prospective target businesses, and structure, negotiate and complete a business combination.

We expect our primary liquidity requirements during that period to include approximately $525,000 for legal, accounting, due diligence, travel and other expenses in connection with any business combination; $100,000 for legal and accounting fees related to regulatory reporting requirements; $240,000 for administrative, research, transaction and other support services; $50,000 for consulting, travel and miscellaneous expenses incurred during the search for a target business; and approximately $85,000 for working capital that will be used for miscellaneous expenses and reserves. These amounts are estimates and may differ materially from our actual expenses.

We do not believe we will need to raise additional funds following this offering in order to meet the expenditures required for operating our business. However, if our estimates of the costs of identifying a target business, undertaking in-depth due diligence and negotiating an initial business combination are less than the actual amount necessary to do so, we may have insufficient funds available to operate our business prior to our business combination. Moreover, we may need to obtain additional financing either to complete our business combination or because we become obligated to redeem a significant number of our public shares upon completion of our business combination, in which case we may issue additional securities or incur debt in connection with such business combination, which may include a specified future issuance. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination because we do not have sufficient funds available to us, we will be forced to cease operations and liquidate the trust account. In addition, following our initial business combination, if cash on hand is insufficient, we may need to obtain additional financing in order to meet our obligations.

In order to fund working capital deficiencies or finance transaction costs in connection with an intended initial business combination, our initial stockholders, officers, directors or their affiliates may, but are not obligated to, loan us funds on a non-interest basis as may be required. If we complete our initial business combination, we may repay such loaned amounts out of the proceeds of the trust account released to us. In the event that our initial business combination does not close, we may use a portion of the working capital held outside the trust account to repay such loaned amounts but no proceeds from

 

 

 

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our trust account would be used for such repayment. Up to $1,500,000 of such loans may be convertible into warrants, at a price of $1.00 per warrant at the option of the lender. The warrants would be identical to the private placement warrants. Prior to the completion of our initial business combination, we do not expect to seek loans from parties other than our initial stockholders, officers, directors or their affiliates as we do not believe third parties will be willing to loan such funds and provide a waiver against any and all rights to seek access to funds in our trust account.

CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES

We are not currently required to maintain an effective system of internal controls as defined by Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. We will be required to comply with the internal control reporting requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2021. Only in the event that we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer or an accelerated filer, and no longer qualify as an emerging growth company, will we be required to comply with the independent registered public accounting firm attestation requirement on our internal control over financial reporting. Further, for as long as we remain an emerging growth company as defined in the JOBS Act, we intend to take advantage of certain exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other public companies that are not emerging growth companies including, but not limited to, not being required to comply with the independent registered public accounting firm attestation requirement.

Prior to the closing of this offering, we have not completed an assessment, nor have our auditors tested our systems, of internal controls. We expect to assess the internal controls of our target business or businesses prior to the completion of our initial business combination and, if necessary, to implement and test additional controls as we may determine are necessary in order to state that we maintain an effective system of internal controls. A target business may not be in compliance with the provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act regarding the adequacy of internal controls. Many small and mid-sized target businesses we may consider for our initial business combination may have internal controls that need improvement in areas such as:

 

Ø  

staffing for financial, accounting and external reporting areas, including segregation of duties;

 

Ø  

reconciliation of accounts;

 

Ø  

proper recording of expenses and liabilities in the period to which they relate;

 

Ø  

evidence of internal review and approval of accounting transactions;

 

Ø  

documentation of processes, assumptions and conclusions underlying significant estimates; and

 

Ø  

documentation of accounting policies and procedures.

Because it will take time, management involvement and perhaps outside resources to determine what internal control improvements are necessary for us to meet regulatory requirements and market expectations for our operation of a target business, we may incur significant expense in meeting our public reporting responsibilities, particularly in the areas of designing, enhancing, or remediating internal and disclosure controls. Doing so effectively may also take longer than we expect, thus increasing our exposure to financial fraud or erroneous financing reporting.

Once our management’s report on internal controls is complete, we will retain our independent auditors to audit and render an opinion on such report when required by Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. The independent auditors may identify additional issues concerning a target business’s internal controls while performing their audit of internal control over financial reporting.

 

 

 

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QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK

The net proceeds of this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants held in the trust account will be invested in U.S. government treasury bills with a maturity of 185 days or less or in money market funds meeting certain conditions under Rule 2a-7 under the Investment Company Act which invest only in direct U.S. government treasury obligations. Due to the short-term nature of these investments, we believe there will be no associated material exposure to interest rate risk.

RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS

In September 2020, we issued 7,187,500 founder shares in exchange for a capital contribution of $25,000. Prior to this initial investment, we had no assets, tangible or intangible. Up to an aggregate of 937,500 founder shares are subject to forfeiture by our initial stockholders depending on the extent to which the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised. The number of founder shares issued was determined based on the expectation that such founder shares would represent 20% of the outstanding shares upon completion of this offering. The per share purchase price of the founder shares was determined by dividing the amount of cash contributed to the company by the aggregate number of founder shares issued. If we increase or decrease the size of this offering, we will effect a stock dividend or a share contribution back to capital or other appropriate mechanism, as applicable, with respect to our Class B common stock immediately prior to the consummation of this offering in such amount as to maintain the number of founder shares at 20% of the issued and outstanding shares of our common stock upon the consummation of this offering (assuming they do not purchase any units in this offering).

Commencing on the date of this prospectus, we will enter into an Administrative Services Agreement pursuant to which we will pay an affiliate of our sponsor up to $10,000 per month, for up to 24 months, for certain administrative, research, transaction and other support services. Upon completion of our initial business combination or our liquidation, we will cease paying these monthly fees.

Our initial stockholders, officers and directors, or any of their respective affiliates, will be reimbursed for any out-of-pocket expenses incurred in connection with activities on our behalf such as identifying potential target businesses and performing due diligence on suitable business combinations. Our audit committee will review on a quarterly basis all payments that were made by us to our initial stockholders, officers, directors or our or their affiliates and will determine which expenses and the amount of expenses that will be reimbursed. There is no cap or ceiling on the reimbursement of out-of-pocket expenses incurred by such persons in connection with activities on our behalf.

Our sponsor has agreed to loan us up to $200,000 to be used for a portion of the expenses of this offering. This loan is non-interest bearing, unsecured and is due at the earliest of December 31, 2020, the closing of this offering and our determination to not proceed with the offering. As of September 3, 2020, there was no outstanding balance under the note. The loan and advances will be repaid upon the closing of this offering out of the offering proceeds not held in the trust account.

In addition, in order to fund working capital deficiencies or finance transaction costs in connection with an intended initial business combination, our initial stockholders, officers, directors or their affiliates may, but are not obligated to, loan us funds on a non-interest basis as may be required. If we complete our initial business combination, we may repay such loaned amounts out of the proceeds of the trust account released to us. Otherwise, such loans would be repaid only out of funds held outside the trust account. In the event that our initial business combination does not close, we may use a portion of the working capital held outside the trust account to repay such loaned amounts but no proceeds from our trust account would be used to repay such loaned amounts. Up to $1,500,000 of such loans may be convertible into

 

 

 

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warrants, at a price of $1.00 per warrant at the option of the lender. The warrants would be identical to the private placement warrants. Except as described above, the terms of such loans, if any, have not been determined and no written agreements exist with respect to such loans. Prior to the completion of our initial business combination, we do not expect to seek loans from parties other than our initial stockholders, officers, directors or their affiliates as we do not believe third parties will be willing to loan such funds and provide a waiver against any and all rights to seek access to funds in our trust account.

Our sponsor has agreed that it will purchase an aggregate of 7,000,000 private placement warrants (or 7,750,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) at a price of $1.00 per warrant ($7,000,000 in the aggregate or $7,750,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) in a private placement that will occur simultaneously with the closing of this offering. Each private placement warrant is exercisable for one share of our Class A common stock at $11.50 per share, subject to adjustment as provided herein. The purchasers will be permitted to transfer the private placement warrants held by them to certain permitted transferees, including our officers, directors and members of our strategic advisory group and other persons or entities affiliated with or related to them, but the transferees receiving such securities will be subject to the same agreements with respect to such securities as our sponsor. Otherwise, these warrants will not, subject to certain limited exceptions, be transferable or salable until 30 days after the completion of our business combination. The private placement warrants will be non-redeemable so long as they are held by our sponsor and its permitted transferees (except as described under “Description of Securities—Redeemable Warrants—Public Stockholders’ Warrants—Redemption of warrants when the price per share of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00”). The private placement warrants may also be exercised by our sponsor and its permitted transferees for cash or on a cashless basis. Otherwise, the private placement warrants have terms and provisions that are identical to those of the warrants being sold as part of the units in this offering, including as to exercise price, exercisability and exercise period.

Pursuant to a registration rights agreement that we will enter into with our initial stockholders on or prior to the closing of this offering, we may be required to register certain securities for sale under the Securities Act. These holders, the holders of private placement warrants (and the underlying shares of Class A common stock) and holders of warrants (and the underlying shares of Class A common stock) issued upon conversion of working capital loans, if any, are entitled under the registration rights agreement to make up to three demands that we register certain of our securities held by them for sale under the Securities Act and to have the securities covered thereby registered for resale pursuant to Rule 415 under the Securities Act. In addition, these holders have the right to include their securities in other registration statements filed by us. However, the registration rights agreement will provide that we will not permit any registration statement filed under the Securities Act to become effective until the securities covered thereby are released from their lock-up restrictions, as described herein. We will bear the costs and expenses of filing any such registration statements. See the section of this prospectus entitled “Certain Relationships and Related Party Transactions.”

OFF-BALANCE SHEET ARRANGEMENTS; COMMITMENTS AND CONTRACTUAL OBLIGATIONS; QUARTERLY RESULTS

As of September 3, 2020, we did not have any off-balance sheet arrangements as defined in Item 303(a)(4)(ii) of Regulation S-K and did not have any commitments or contractual obligations. No unaudited quarterly operating data is included in this prospectus, as we have conducted no operations to date.

 

 

 

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JOBS ACT

On April 5, 2012, the JOBS Act was signed into law. The JOBS Act contains provisions that, among other things, relax certain reporting requirements for qualifying public companies. We will qualify as an “emerging growth company” and under the JOBS Act will be allowed to comply with new or revised accounting pronouncements based on the effective date for private (not publicly traded) companies. We are electing to delay the adoption of new or revised accounting standards, and as a result, we may not comply with new or revised accounting standards on the relevant dates on which adoption of such standards is required for non-emerging growth companies. As a result, our financial statements may not be comparable to companies that comply with new or revised accounting pronouncements as of public company effective dates.

Additionally, we are in the process of evaluating the benefits of relying on the other reduced reporting requirements provided by the JOBS Act. Subject to certain conditions set forth in the JOBS Act, if, as an “emerging growth company”, we choose to rely on such exemptions we may not be required to, among other things, (i) provide an auditor’s attestation report on our system of internal controls over financial reporting pursuant to Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, (ii) provide all of the compensation disclosure that may be required of non-emerging growth public companies under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, (iii) comply with any requirement that may be adopted by the PCAOB regarding mandatory audit firm rotation or a supplement to the auditor’s report providing additional information about the audit and the financial statements (auditor discussion and analysis), and (iv) disclose certain executive compensation related items such as the correlation between executive compensation and performance and comparisons of the CEO’s compensation to median employee compensation. These exemptions will apply for a period of five years following the completion of this offering or until we are no longer an “emerging growth company,” whichever is earlier.

 

 

 

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GENERAL

We are a newly organized Delaware corporation structured as a blank check company formed for the purpose of effecting a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses or entities. To date, our efforts have been limited to organizational activities and activities related to this offering. We have not selected any potential business combination target, and we have not, nor has anyone on our behalf, initiated any substantive discussions, directly or indirectly, with any potential target regarding entering into a business combination with us.

We will seek to leverage our management team’s proprietary global network of strong relationships with private equity sponsors, entrepreneurs, venture and growth capital funds, family offices, large corporations, sovereign wealth funds and their owners and most senior officers to identify, structure, finance, acquire and support the operation of a business combination target. In pursuing our strategy we will take advantage of our management team’s extensive experience in investing in and operating businesses across a wide range of sectors and geographies.

While we may pursue an initial business combination with any target business and in any sector or geographical location, we intend to focus our search on companies operating in the TMT and fintech sectors that are headquartered in Europe, Israel, the Middle East or North America.

We believe that this combination of relationships, experience and expertise puts us in a strong position to source an attractive target and complete an initial business combination and makes us a preferred partner for potential business combination targets.

MANAGEMENT TEAM

Makram Azar,    our Chief Executive Officer and a member of our board of directors, has over 30 years of investment banking and private equity experience. Mr. Azar is Chief Executive Officer and director of Full Circle Capital Limited, a private investment and advisory group, which he founded in 2019. Since 2019, Mr. Azar has also served as Chief Executive Officer and director of Full Circle Capital, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Full Circle Capital Limited. Previously, from 2010 to 2019, he was at Barclays Bank PLC, where among other roles, he served as Chairman of Banking EMEA and Chairman of Barclays Bank PLC, MENA. Since 2019, he has continued his relationship with Barclays Bank PLC, serving as Senior Advisor. Before this, Mr. Azar served as Managing Director and Head of MENA for KKR from 2008 to 2010. Prior to joining KKR, Mr. Azar had spent 18 years at Lehman Brothers, latterly as Global Head of Sovereign Wealth Funds and Chairman of Media Investment Banking EMEA. Previously he led the Media, Consumer & Retail Investment Banking businesses of Lehman Brothers in EMEA. Mr. Azar has completed over 200 M&A, equity capital markets, debt capital markets and private equity deals with an aggregate value in excess of $350 billion, across a broad spectrum of geographies and industries, including TMT, consumer, sustainable energy, retail, hospitality, financial services, industrials and real estate. His clients have included some of the largest institutional investors, multinational corporations, sovereign wealth funds and governments. Mr. Azar holds a BA in Applied Economics from the University Paris-IX Dauphine and a Master’s degree in Management and Finance from École des Hautes Études Commerciales (HEC) in Paris.

 

 

 

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Scott J. Freidheim,    our Chairman and a member of our board of directors, is the Managing Partner at Freidheim Capital and Co-Chairman of ettain group. Mr. Freidheim has experience as a NYSE traded company Chief Executive Officer and as a board member for profit and not-for-profit institutions. He has served on senior leadership teams across multiple industries including financial services, mass merchandising, brand management, private equity, engineering and staffing, including serving on the global executive committees of Lehman Brothers (Chief Administrative Officer), Investcorp (CEO, Europe), Sears Holdings Corporation (Executive Vice President, Operating & Support Businesses, and President Kenmore, Craftsman & Diehard) and CDI Corporation (Chief Executive Officer) and serving on the boards of directors of ettain group (Charlotte, NC, USA), N+W Global Vending (Milan, Italy), Icopal (Herlev, Denmark), GL Education (London, England) and Lands’ End (Dodgeville, WI, USA). He has also served on the boards of directors of several not-for-profit institutions including: Institute of International Education (NYC, NY, USA), which administers the Fulbright Scholarship program and Spelman College (Atlanta, GA, USA). Mr. Freidheim is a member of The Economic Club of New York and The Council on Foreign Relations. In 2005, he was named a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum and was a member of the WEF’s inaugural Global Agenda Council. He is a member of the Board of Trustees of the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee Foundation (Colorado Springs, CO, USA). Mr. Freidheim holds a BA from Northwestern University and a Master’s degree in Management with concentration in Finance from Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management.

Eli Muraidekh,    our Chief Financial Officer and a member of our board of directors, is Founder, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer of Telamon Capital, a credit opportunity fund founded in 2014. Prior to this, from 2009 to 2014, Mr. Muraidekh was the Investment Manager at Windmill Hill Asset Management. While there, Mr. Muraidekh managed the assets of the philanthropic foundations of Lord Jacob Rothschild totaling over $2.0 billion. He invested across multiple asset classes globally, ranking the endowment in the top five percentile of over 400 endowments tracked by Cambridge Associates. Previously, Mr. Muraidekh was Executive Director of the Value Recovery Fund at Blue Bay Asset Management, leading financial and operational restructurings on behalf of this distressed debt fund. Prior to that, Mr. Muraidekh was Co-Founder of Elwin Capital Partners a growth capital private equity fund, and Executive Director of the Principal Investment Area of Goldman Sachs, evaluating and executing investment opportunities for GS Capital Partners, GS Mezzanine Partners, and Whitehall Real Estate Partners, which were, at the time, all of the firm’s major long-term investment vehicles. Mr. Muraidekh holds a BA in Economics summa cum laude from Yale University, where he graduated first in his class, and an MBA with distinction from the Harvard Business School.

John M. Basnage de Beauval,    our General Counsel and Secretary, is Managing Director of Full Circle Capital Limited. From February 2018 to March 2020, Mr. Basnage de Beauval served as Founder and Managing Partner of Anthem Legal Services LLC, an advisory firm that provided legal and commercial advice to financial institutions and other companies. Prior to joining Full Circle Capital, Mr. Basnage de Beauval co-founded and was a partner at Epena Law from October 2019 to March 2020, where he provided legal advice in connection with structuring private equity investments in Sub-Saharan Africa. Prior to this, Mr. Basnage de Beauval spent more than 25 years advising on capital markets, M&A and private equity transactions in New York, London and Paris, most recently, from November 2003 to February 2018, as a partner at Hogan Lovells, where he headed the US corporate securities practice in London, and was co-head of equity capital markets in Europe. Mr. Basnage de Beauval has advised acquirors and targets on numerous large and complex cross-border M&A transactions and has written extensively on the subject. Before joining Hogan Lovells, he practiced at Freshfields from 1996 to 2001 and Rogers & Wells from 1992 to 1996. Mr. Basnage de Beauval received a BA from the University of Pennsylvania, magna cum laude, where he was a Benjamin Franklin Scholar and Phi Beta Kappa, and has law degrees from Oxford University and Columbia University. He completed an executive leadership course at Stanford University School of Business.

 

 

 

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Xavier Rolet, KBE    will serve as one of our directors as of the effective date of the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part. From January 2019 to January 2020, Mr. Rolet served as Chief Executive Officer of CQS, a global hedge fund. Previously, from 2009 to 2018, Mr. Rolet was the Chief Executive Officer of the London Stock Exchange (“LSE”). Mr. Rolet was named as one of the 100 Best CEOs in the World in the 2017 Harvard Business Review. In his decade at the helm of the LSE, the LSE’s market valuation rose from £800 million to more than £15 billion. He is currently the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Phosagro PJSC, Chairman of the Board of Shore Capital Markets, a member of the Board of Overseers of Columbia Business School, a member of the Board of Directors of the Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul), an External Director – Portfolio Companies of the Public Investment Fund (PIF), a Non Executive Member of the Board of Seplat Petroleum Development Cy Plc, an Expert Adviser to the Shanghai Institute of Finance for the Real Economy (SIFRE), a Member of the Senior Advisory Board at Towerbrook Capital Partners LP, and a Founder and Director of a number of other privately held companies. He has held various senior positions in the financial services industry throughout his career, including Chief Executive Officer of Banque Lehman Brothers in Paris; co-head of Global Equity & Derivatives Trading at Lehman Brothers New York; Global Head of Risk and Trading at Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein; Vice-President, International Equity Risk Arbitrage at Goldman Sachs New York; and co-Head of European Equities Sales and Trading at Goldman Sachs International Ltd. in London. Mr. Rolet holds an MSc from the KEDGE Business School, an MBA from Columbia Business School and a post-graduate degree from Paris-based IHEDN (Institute of Advanced Studies in National Defense).

Dominique D’Hinnin will serve as one of our directors as of the effective date of the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part. Mr. D’Hinnin is chairman of the board of EUTELSAT Communications, a French satellite service company. He is also a board member of PRISA, the world’s leading Spanish and Portuguese-language media group, EDENRED, a French Corporate Services Company, Technicolor, a French technology Company, and Louis Delhaize SA, a Belgium private retail group. Mr. D’Hinnin was formerly a board member of EADS-Airbus, the Deputy Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Canal+ France, Vice Chairman at Atari, and he sat on the Strategic Council at PricewaterhouseCoopers France. From 2009 to 2016, Mr. D’Hinnin served as Co-Managing Partner of Lagardère Group. Previously, he was Chief Financial Officer of Lagardère Group, Executive Vice President of Grolier Inc., where he undertook the overhaul and development of Grolier in the U.S., UK and Asia, and the launch of Grolier Interactive Europe, and Chief Financial Officer of the publisher Hachette Livre, following his active role in the financial and legal restructuring of the Lagardère Group where he oversaw the merger of Matra with Hachette. Mr. D’Hinnin has also held board positions at Marie Claire Album, Holding Evelyne Prouvost, Editions Amaury, and Le Monde. Mr. D’Hinnin received his undergraduate degree from École Normale Supérieure (in classical culture) and a graduate degree from Ecole Nationale d’Administration, the premier graduate school in the country which the majority of government and private sector leaders attend.

I. Martin Pompadur will serve as one of our directors as of the effective date of the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part. Mr. Pompadur is currently an investor and advisor to various companies, and a board member of Nexstar Media Group, Inc. and Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment, Inc., both publicly traded companies. Previously, from 2009 to 2016, he served as Global Vice Chairman, Media and Entertainment at Macquarie Capital, an investment bank and financial services company. From 1998 to 2008, Mr. Pompadur held several positions at News Corporation, a multinational mass media corporation, including Executive Vice President of News Corporation, President of News Corporation Eastern and Central Europe and a member of News Corporation’s Executive Management Committee. In January 2000, Mr. Pompadur was appointed Chairman of News Corporation Europe. In 1985, as advisor to News Corporation, Mr. Pompadur helped acquire for News

 

 

 

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Corporation the Metromedia television station group and wrote the business plan for the start-up of the Fox Television Network. From 1982 to 2007, Mr. Pompadur was Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of RP Media Management which operated 12 television stations, 25 radio stations and numerous cable television systems totaling 500,000 subscribers. From 1977 to 1982, Mr. Pompadur served as President of Ziff Corporation, then a holding company for Ziff-Davis Publishing Company. Prior to that, from 1960 to 1977, Mr. Pompadur worked at American Broadcasting Companies, Inc. (“ABC, Inc.”) where he held several positions, including General Manager of the Television Network, Vice President of the Broadcast Division, President of the Leisure Activities Group and Vice President of ABC, Inc. Mr. Pompadur was also previously a Managing General Partner at Northeastern Television Investors LP and was Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of GP Station Partners and of Multivision Cable TV. Mr. Pompadur previously served as a director of IMAX Corporation and Truli Media Group, Inc., both publicly traded companies, and as a director of ABC. Inc, BSkyB, Sky Italia, Premier World, Fox Kids Europe, Metromedia International and Elong. Mr. Pompadur holds a BA from Williams College and a law degree from the University of Michigan Law School.

Isabelle Amiel Azoulai will serve as one of our directors as of the effective date of the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part. Ms. Azoulai is Co-Founder and Managing Partner at La Maison SA, a private equity and venture capital investment group formed in 2014, where she has led more than 50 direct technology-focused investments in Israel, the United States, Europe and China. Ms. Azoulai also serves as the personal advisor to several ultra-high net worth European entrepreneurs. From 2014 to 2019, Ms. Azoulai was also a Senior Banker and Partner at Banque Leonardo, SA, a banking company. Ms. Azoulai was formerly an investment partner at Credit Suisse, where she managed the Ultra High Net Worth Individuals department. Prior to that, she managed the investment consulting department of Credit Suisse Private Banking in Paris. Ms. Azoulai is a founding member of the benefit committee of Institut Imagine, the French institute for genetic diseases. Ms. Azoulai holds a Master’s degree in Business from Lincoln International Business School.

Mikael Breuer-Weil will serve as one of our directors as of the effective date of the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part. Mr. Breuer-Weil co-founded Marylebone Partners LLP, an investment management boutique, in September 2013 and served as founding partner and Chief Investment Officer until March 2020, when he stepped down from his executive roles. Previously, from 1994 to 2012, he was the Principal Investment Adviser to philanthropic and family foundations connected to Lord Jacob Rothschild, and in 2007 became Investment Director for RIT Capital Partners plc, an investment trust with a current market value of approximately £2.8 billion. Additionally, he has held various non-executive and investment advisory roles and he remains an adviser to a number of charitable and family organizations. Mr. Breuer-Weil started his career at Mercury Asset Management in 1986 and worked as a fund manager including a period of secondment with Odyssey Partners LLP in New York. Mr. Breuer-Weil graduated from the London School of Economics with a degree in law.

The past performance of our management team and strategic advisory group is not a guarantee either (i) that we will be able to identify a suitable candidate for our initial business combination or (ii) of success with respect to any business combination we may consummate. You should not rely on the historical record of our management team’s or their respective affiliates’ performance as indicative of our future performance.

BUSINESS STRATEGY

Our business strategy is to identify and complete our initial business combination with a company that can benefit from: (i) the global capital markets and operating experience of our management team and strategic advisory group, (ii) additional capital to achieve its growth strategy and (iii) access to public securities markets.

 

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Our management team has access to a wide range of companies operating in TMT and fintech sectors that are headquartered in Europe, Israel, the Middle East or North America.

Our executive officers’ combined experience includes over 100 years of investment banking, private equity and executive management experience and over 440 transactions with an aggregate value of over $550 billion globally. Our management team’s network has been developed through its:

 

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experience in sourcing, structuring, acquiring, operating, developing, growing, financing and selling businesses;

 

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relationships with business owners, financing providers and target management teams; and

 

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extensive experience in both investing in and operating businesses across a wide range of sectors.

Our management team will leverage these capabilities, networks and expertise together with those of our strategic advisory group.

We have chosen our independent board members and established a strategic advisory group for the purposes of assisting our executive officers with sourcing and evaluating business combination opportunities and developing plans and strategies to optimize any business that we acquire.

Our independent board members have been selected for their extensive sector and geographic expertise, operating experience, access to proprietary deal flow, strong relationships with business leaders and entrepreneurs and their ability to source an attractive target and assist us in implementing our business combination strategy. They have held senior leadership positions with companies where they have a proven strong track record of creating shareholder value, organically and through transformational acquisitions or corporate restructurings, as well as extensive relationships with owners and operators of companies within their respective industries.

Our strategic advisory group consists of individuals who have complementary sourcing and operational expertise in our sectors of focus. Specifically, they have experience in:

 

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operating companies, devising and implementing strategies and identifying, monitoring and recruiting world-class talent;

 

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developing and growing companies organically by expanding their product range and geographic footprint;

 

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acquiring companies, leading transformational transactions or corporate restructurings and managing corporate integration with success;

 

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investing in equity and fixed income assets in both public and private markets across various sectors, jurisdictions and economic cycles; and

 

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developing and maintaining extensive relationships with owners and operators of companies, as well as with a wide range of financial and legal advisers.

Our strategic advisory group currently includes:

 

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Francois Barrault, Chairman & Founder, FDB Partners; formerly CEO, BT Global Services; President, BT International; President & CEO, Lucent EMEA; CEO, Lucent Mobile International; Founder, DigiWorld Summit;

 

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Joseph Berardino, Managing Director, Alvarez & Marsal; formerly Partner, Arthur Andersen; CEO, Andersen Worldwide;

 

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Matthew Bronfman, Chairman & CEO, BHB Holdings; Chairman, Lincoln Avenue Capital; formerly Chairman, Bronfman Rothschild; Partner, ACI Capital;

 

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David Gardner, OBE, Co-founder and General Partner of London Venture Partners; formerly CEO of Atari; Executive Vice President of Electronic Arts; Board of Directors of Embracer Group and Double Loop Games;

 

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Arjun Gupta, founder and managing partner of TeleSoft Partners; Chairman, Nexant Inc.; Chairman, Calient Technologies Inc.; Board of Directors of Larsen & Toubro Infotech Ltd; Board of Directors of L&T Technology Services Limited;

 

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Travis Katz, Entrepreneur-in-Residence, Redpoint Ventures; formerly Vice President of Products, Skyscanner; Co-Founder & CEO, Trip.com; Co-Founder, Fox Interactive Media;

 

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Gerrit Meier, Global CEO, Red Bull Media Network; Managing Director, Red Bull Media House; formerly President, International WWE; Global General Manager for Distribution and Partnerships, Spotify; COO, iHeartMedia’s Digital Division;

 

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Tom Mockridge, former CEO, Virgin Media; Deputy Chairman, BSkyB; CEO, News Corp UK & Ireland; CEO, European TV News Corp; CEO, Sky Italia; Chairman, Star TV;

 

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Lionel de Saint-Exupéry, Executive Board Member and Chairman of the Strategic Committee, China Development Financial Holdings; CEO & Chairman, Investment Committee of CDIB Capital; and

 

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Kenneth I. Tuchman, former Vice-Chairman, Bank of Montreal; Vice-Chairman, Bank of America Merrill Lynch; Co-Head Global M&A, Lehman Brothers; Chairman, Global Americas, Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein.

We may add additional members to the strategic advisory group from time to time. Unlike our management team, members of our strategic advisory group are not responsible for managing our day-to-day affairs and have no authority to engage in substantive discussions with business combination targets on our behalf. Members of our strategic advisory group will not be paid, but may be reimbursed for any out-of-pocket expenses incurred by them, in connection with the search for business combination targets before or after the consummation of our initial business combination. We have not currently entered into any formal arrangements or agreements with the members of our strategic advisory group to provide services to us and they will have no fiduciary obligations to present business opportunities to us.

To align the incentives of members of the strategic advisory group with our stockholders, a majority of the members of the strategic advisory group will invest in our sponsor and be eligible to share in a portion of the appreciation in founder shares and private placement warrants, provided that we successfully complete a business combination.

We believe that the combination of our management team and strategic advisory group is an innovative approach to identifying potential high quality business combination targets and aligns incentives with our stockholders, providing us with distinctive and differentiated capabilities to create stockholder value.

We will have access to the advisory and other resources and strategic capabilities of Full Circle Capital, which we believe will give us a competitive advantage in our acquisition strategy and our ability to identify and implement value creation initiatives. Full Circle Capital was founded by Makram Azar in 2019 as a private investment and advisory group that provides financial and strategic advice to key partners and select clients within its network, leveraging its global reach and experience across a broad range of sectors and geographies, to source direct principal investment opportunities across the spectrum

 

 

 

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of private equity, including venture and buy-outs, in the UK, continental Europe, North America and the Middle East, with an emphasis on cross-sector tech, media, telecom, consumer and impact and sustainability.

 

In addition, we anticipate that target business candidates will be brought to our attention from various unaffiliated sources, including investment market participants, private equity groups, investment banking firms, consultants, accounting firms and large business enterprises.

We have strong relationships on both sides of the Atlantic and believe that the networks and experience of our management team and strategic advisory group provide us with specific competitive advantages over other blank check companies in sourcing attractive targets based in Europe, Israel or the Middle East. We believe that these regions provide a compelling market opportunity for the following reasons:

 

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Attractive valuation:    stocks in these markets tend to trade at lower valuations, enhancing the multiple arbitrage available by listing the target in the U.S.;

 

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Underpenetrated:    equity markets in Europe, Israel and the Middle East are comparatively more thinly capitalized relative to the U.S. in terms of GDP, suggesting a large number of high-quality private companies that could benefit from going public; furthermore, there have been comparatively few business combinations between U.S.-listed blank check companies and targets located in Europe, Israel and the Middle East – just 18, compared to 110 with U.S. targets, from January 1, 2019 to November 30, 2020;

 

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Underrepresented:    Europe is second only to China as an exporter of goods and services to the U.S., reflecting substantial economic output and a nexus to the U.S., whereas relatively few European companies have completed initial public offerings in the U.S.;

 

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Our knowledge and experience:    our executive officers, board of directors and strategic advisory group have substantial experience in, and relationships with, the most senior decision makers across these regions, which we believe gives us substantially greater access to opportunities;

 

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Access to family or founder owned businesses:    we have strong ties with prominent families (particularly, but not exclusively, based in Europe, Israel and the Middle East) and have a history of working constructively and collaboratively with family and founder-owned businesses, which is a point of differentiation in negotiating a business combination with these companies.

 

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Technology and innovation:    these regions have emerged as technology hubs in their own right, outside of Silicon Valley; for instance, there are currently over 60 “unicorns” – private companies valued at $1 billion or more – based in Europe, Israel and the Middle East;

 

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US stock exchanges’ increasing attractiveness:    over 200 companies from Europe, Israel and the Middle East have their primary listings on NYSE or Nasdaq, compared to fewer than 20 in 2010; and

 

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Limited competition:    our on-the-ground presence in Europe as well as well as our knowledge of, relationships in, and experience investing in, Europe, Israel and the Middle East are key differentiators for us as compared to other blank check companies, the vast majority of which we believe are seeking business combinations exclusively in the U.S.

Upon completion of this offering, our management team and strategic advisory group will communicate with their network of relationships to articulate our initial business combination criteria, including the parameters of our search for a target business, and will begin the disciplined process of pursuing and reviewing promising leads.

BUSINESS COMBINATION CRITERIA

Consistent with our business strategy, we have identified the following general criteria and guidelines that we believe are important in evaluating prospective target businesses. We intend to use these criteria and guidelines in evaluating business combination opportunities, although we may decide to enter into our initial business combination with a target business that does not meet these criteria and guidelines.

 

 

 

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We view ourselves as rigorous, disciplined and valuation-centric investors, with a keen understanding of market value, upside and potential downside risks.

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Business with significant revenue and earnings growth potential.    We will seek to acquire one or more businesses that we believe will have multiple organic and M&A-driven growth opportunities over time and are well positioned to take advantage of secular, macroeconomic and credit trends, endure economic downturns, changes in the industry landscape and respond to evolving customer, supplier and competitor preferences. We will search for attractive, growth-oriented businesses that exhibit sound, underlying fundamentals as well as demonstrated revenue growth and an existing or a clear path to attractive profitability. This includes such potential targets that are currently, or have the potential to be, category leaders with long-term growth potential.

 

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Targets that can benefit from our relationships and experience.    While we may pursue an initial business combination opportunity in any industry or sector, we intend to capitalize on our management team’s domain expertise acquired through decades of strategic deal-making in our targeted sectors. We believe our management team’s deep network of senior management, owners of businesses, board relationships and sophisticated private and public market investors give us a number of competitive advantages and present us with a substantial number of potential business combination targets. Our management team will leverage the broad spectrum of skills and expertise of our strategic advisory group, all of whom have extensive deal making, management and operational experience. We believe our team represents an exceptionally attractive combination of investing, capital markets, and operational experience that potential combination candidates will find highly desirable and complementary to their growth plans and will have the potential to substantially enhance shareholder value.

 

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Companies with potential to benefit from the fourth industrial revolution.    We will seek to acquire one or more businesses which currently, or have the potential to, benefit from digital disruption positioning them to disintermediate or disrupt in their industry vertical, driven by the exponential increase in data generation, advances in artificial intelligence and robotics, rising processing power and/or ubiquitous global connectivity through smartphones, among other technologies. The technological impact of COVID-19 has been to accelerate trends that were already underway before the pandemic arose, including in the areas of remote working and learning, migration to cloud computing and productivity, mobile and interactive entertainment and transition from brick-and-mortar businesses to e-commerce. We believe that these trends are generating a significant market opportunity across our areas of focus in TMT and fintech.

 

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Businesses with a strong transatlantic nexus.    We intend to focus on companies in Europe, Israel and the Middle East whose current or future businesses have a nexus to the United States. These companies would benefit from having access to the deep public capital markets in the U.S. associated with a listing on the NYSE and access to capital to pursue accretive acquisitions, fund capital projects, pursue their growth strategies and/or strengthen their balances sheets. At the same time, we believe we are an attractive partner for those companies headquartered in North America seeking access and growth in Europe, Israel and the Middle East as we leverage our relationships with corporate customers and business partners to help expand their geographical footprint.

 

These criteria and guidelines are not intended to be exhaustive. Any evaluation relating to the merits of a particular initial business combination may be based, to the extent relevant, on these general criteria and guidelines as well as other considerations, factors and criteria that our management team may deem relevant. In the event that we decide to enter into our initial business combination with a target business that does not meet the above criteria and guidelines, we will disclose that the target business does not

 

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meet the above criteria and guidelines in our stockholder communications related to our initial business combination, which, as discussed in this prospectus, would be in the form of proxy solicitation materials or tender offer documents that we would file with the SEC. In addition to any potential business candidates we may identify on our own, we anticipate that other target business candidates will be brought to our attention from various unaffiliated sources, including investment market participants, private equity funds, and large business enterprises seeking to divest non-core assets or divisions.

INITIAL BUSINESS COMBINATION

Pursuant to the NYSE listing rules, our initial business combination must occur with one or more target businesses that together have an aggregate fair market value of at least 80% of the assets held in the trust account (excluding the deferred underwriting commissions and taxes payable on the income earned on the trust account) at the time of the agreement to enter into the initial business combination. If our board is not able to independently determine the fair market value of the target business or businesses, we will obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm or another independent entity that commonly renders valuation opinions with respect to the satisfaction of such criteria. Additionally, pursuant to the NYSE rules, any initial business combination must be approved by a majority of our independent directors. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if we are not then listed on the NYSE, these rules will not be applicable to us.

We anticipate structuring our initial business combination so that the post-transaction company in which our public stockholders own or acquire shares will own or acquire 100% of the equity interests or assets of the target business or businesses. We may, however, structure our initial business combination such that the post-transaction company owns or acquires less than 100% of such interests or assets of the target business in order to meet certain objectives of the target management team or stockholders or for other reasons, including an Affiliated Joint Acquisition as described above. However, we will only complete such business combination if the post-transaction company owns or acquires 50% or more of the outstanding voting securities of the target or otherwise acquires a controlling interest in the target business sufficient for the post-transaction company not to be required to register as an investment company under the Investment Company Act. Even if the post-transaction company owns or acquires 50% or more of the outstanding voting securities of the target, our stockholders prior to the business combination may collectively own a minority interest in the post-business combination company, depending on valuations ascribed to the target and us in the business combination transaction. For example, we could pursue a transaction in which we issue a substantial number of new shares in exchange for all of the outstanding capital stock of a target. In this case, we would acquire a 100% controlling interest in the target. However, as a result of the issuance of a substantial number of new shares, our stockholders immediately prior to our initial business combination could own less than a majority of our outstanding shares subsequent to our initial business combination. If less than 100% of the outstanding equity interests or assets of a target business or businesses are owned or acquired by the post-transaction company, the portion of such business or businesses that is owned or acquired by us is what will be valued for purposes of the 80% fair market value test. If the business combination involves more than one target business, the 80% fair market value test will be based on the aggregate value of all of the target businesses and we will treat the target businesses together as the initial business combination for purposes of a tender offer or for seeking stockholder approval, as applicable.

We may, at our option, pursue an Affiliated Joint Acquisition. Any members of our management team or their affiliates may co-invest with us in the target business at the time of our initial business combination, or we could raise additional proceeds to complete the acquisition by undertaking a specified future issuance to such parties.

 

 

 

 

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The amount and other terms and conditions of any such specified future issuance would be determined at the time thereof. We are not obligated to make any specified future issuance and may determine not to do so. This is not an offer for any specified future issuance. Pursuant to the anti-dilution provisions of our Class B common stock, any such specified future issuance would result in an adjustment to the conversion ratio such that our initial stockholders and their permitted transferees, if any, would retain their aggregate percentage ownership at 20% of the sum of the total number of all shares of common stock outstanding upon completion of this offering plus all shares issued in the specified future issuance (excluding any shares or equity-linked securities issued or issuable to any seller in the initial business combination), unless the holders of a majority of the then-outstanding shares of Class B common stock agreed to waive such adjustment with respect to the specified future issuance at the time thereof. We cannot determine at this time whether a majority of the holders of our Class B common stock at the time of any such specified future issuance would agree to waive such adjustment to the conversion ratio. If such adjustment is not waived, the specified future issuance would not reduce the percentage ownership of holders of our Class B common stock, but would reduce the percentage ownership of our public stockholders. If such adjustment is waived, the specified future issuance would reduce the percentage ownership of holders of both classes of our common stock.

Members of our management team will directly or indirectly own founder shares and/or private placement warrants following this offering and, accordingly, may have a conflict of interest in determining whether a particular target business is an appropriate business with which to effectuate our initial business combination. Further, each of our officers and directors may have a conflict of interest with respect to evaluating a particular business combination if the retention or resignation of any such officers and directors is included by a target business as a condition to our initial business combination.

OUR ACQUISITION PROCESS

We believe that conducting comprehensive due diligence on prospective investments is important . We expect to utilize the diligence, rigor, and expertise of our management team to evaluate potential targets’ strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities to identify the relative risk and return profile of any potential target for our initial business combination. Given our management team’s extensive investment experience, we will believe we will often be familiar with the prospective target’s end-market, competitive landscape and business model.

In evaluating a prospective target business, we expect to conduct a due diligence review which may encompass, among other things, meetings with incumbent management and employees, document reviews, interviews of customers and suppliers, inspections of facilities, as well as reviewing financial and other information which will be made available to us.

We are not prohibited from pursuing an initial business combination with a business that is affiliated with our initial stockholders, officers directors, or any of their respective affiliates. In the event we seek to complete our initial business combination with a business that is affiliated with our initial stockholders, officers or directors, or any of their affiliates, we, or a committee of independent directors, will obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm or another independent entity that commonly renders valuation opinions that our initial business combination is fair to us from a financial point of view.

Each of our officers and directors presently has, and any of them in the future may have additional, fiduciary or contractual obligations to other entities pursuant to which such officer or director is or will be required to present a business combination opportunity to such entities. Accordingly, if any of our officers or directors becomes aware of a business combination opportunity which is suitable for an entity

 

 

 

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to which he or she has then-current fiduciary or contractual obligations, he or she will honor his or her fiduciary or contractual obligations to present such opportunity to such entity. In addition, we may, at our option, pursue an Affiliated Joint Acquisition with an entity to which an officer or director has a fiduciary or contractual obligation. Any such parties may co-invest with us in the target business at the time of our initial business combination, or we could raise additional proceeds to complete the acquisition by undertaking a specified future issuance to such parties. We do not believe, however, that the fiduciary duties or contractual obligations of our officers or directors will materially affect our ability complete our business combination. Our certificate of incorporation will provide that we renounce our interest in any corporate opportunity offered to any director or officer unless such opportunity is expressly offered to such person solely in his or her capacity as a director or officer of our company and such opportunity is one we are legally and contractually permitted to undertake and would otherwise be reasonable for us to pursue.

Our officers have agreed not to become an officer or director of any other special purpose acquisition company that has publicly filed a registration statement with the SEC until we have entered into a definitive agreement regarding our initial business combination or we have failed to complete our initial business combination within 24 months after the closing of this offering.

STATUS AS A PUBLIC COMPANY

We believe our structure will make us an attractive business combination partner to target businesses. As an existing public company, we offer a target business an alternative to the traditional initial public offering through a merger or other business combination. In this situation, the owners of the target business would exchange their shares of stock in the target business for shares of our stock or for a combination of shares of our stock and cash, allowing us to tailor the consideration to the specific needs of the sellers. Although there are various costs and obligations associated with being a public company, we believe target businesses will find this method a more certain and cost effective method to becoming a public company than the typical initial public offering. In a typical initial public offering, there are additional expenses incurred in marketing, road show and public reporting efforts that may not be present to the same extent in connection with a business combination with us.

Furthermore, once a proposed business combination is completed, the target business will have effectively become public, whereas an initial public offering is always subject to the underwriters’ ability to complete the offering, as well as general market conditions, which could delay or prevent the offering from occurring or could have negative valuation consequences. Once public, we believe the target business would then have greater access to capital and an additional means of providing management incentives consistent with stockholders’ interests. It can offer further benefits by augmenting a company’s profile among potential new customers and vendors and aid in attracting talented employees.

FINANCIAL POSITION

With funds available for a business combination initially in the amount of $242,250,000, after payment of $8,750,000 of deferred underwriting fees (or $278,437,500 after payment of up to $10,062,500 of deferred underwriting fees if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full), in each case before fees and expenses associated with our initial business combination, we offer a target business a variety of options such as creating a liquidity event for its owners, providing capital for the potential growth and expansion of its operations or strengthening its balance sheet by reducing its debt or leverage ratio. Because we are able to complete our initial business combination using our cash, debt or equity securities, or a combination of the foregoing, we have the flexibility to use the most efficient combination that will allow us to tailor the consideration to be paid to the target business to fit its needs and desires.

 

 

 

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However, we have not taken any steps to secure third-party financing and there can be no assurance it will be available to us.

EFFECTING OUR INITIAL BUSINESS COMBINATION

We are not presently engaged in, and we will not engage in, any operations for an indefinite period of time following this offering. We intend to complete our initial business combination using cash from the proceeds of this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants, our capital stock, debt or a combination of these as the consideration to be paid in our initial business combination. We may seek to complete our initial business combination with a company or business that may be financially unstable or in its early stages of development or growth, which would subject us to the numerous risks inherent in such companies and businesses.

If our initial business combination is paid for using equity or debt, or not all of the funds released from the trust account are used for payment of the consideration in connection with our initial business combination or used for redemptions of our Class A common stock, we may apply the balance of the cash released to us from the trust account for general corporate purposes, including for maintenance or expansion of operations of the post-transaction company, the payment of principal or interest due on indebtedness incurred in completing our initial business combination, to fund the purchase of other assets, companies or for working capital.

We may seek to raise additional funds through a private offering of debt or equity in connection with the completion of our initial business combination (which may include a specified future issuance), and we may complete our initial business combination using the proceeds of such offering rather than using the amounts held in the trust account. In the case of an initial business combination funded with assets other than the trust account assets, our tender offer documents or proxy materials disclosing the business combination would disclose the terms of the financing and, only if required by applicable law or we decide to do so for business or other reasons, we would seek stockholder approval of such financing. There are no prohibitions on our ability to raise funds privately, including pursuant to any specified future issuance, or through loans in connection with our initial business combination. At this time, we are not a party to any arrangement or understanding with any third party with respect to raising any additional funds through the sale of securities or otherwise.

The time required to select and evaluate a target business and to structure and complete our initial business combination, and the costs associated with this process, are not currently ascertainable with any degree of certainty. Any costs incurred with respect to the identification and evaluation of a prospective target business with which our business combination is not ultimately completed will result in our incurring losses and will reduce the funds we can use to complete another business combination.

SOURCES OF TARGET BUSINESSES

We expect to receive a number of proprietary transaction opportunities to originate as a result of the business relationships, direct outreach, and deal sourcing activities of our management team. In addition to the proprietary deal flow, we anticipate that target business candidates will be brought to our attention from various unaffiliated sources, including investment banking firms, consultants, accounting firms, private equity groups, large business enterprises, and other market participants. These sources may also introduce us to target businesses in which they think we may be interested on an unsolicited basis, since many of these sources will have read this prospectus and know what types of businesses we are targeting. Our management team or strategic advisory group, as well as some of their affiliates, may also bring to our attention target business candidates that they become aware of through their business

 

 

 

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contacts as a result of formal or informal inquiries or discussions they may have, as well as attending trade shows or conventions. Some of our officers and directors may enter into employment or consulting agreements with the post-transaction company following our initial business combination. The presence or absence of any such fees or arrangements will not be used as a criterion in our selection process of an acquisition candidate. In no event will our initial stockholders or any of our existing officers, directors or members of our strategic advisory group, or any entity with which they are affiliated, be paid any finder’s fee, consulting fee or other compensation prior to, or for any services they render in order to effectuate, the completion of our initial business combination (regardless of the type of transaction that it is), except that at the closing of our initial business combination, we may pay a customary financial consulting fee to our initial stockholders, officers, directors, members of our strategic advisory group or their affiliates, which will not be made from the proceeds of this offering held in the trust account prior to the completion of our initial business combination. We may pay such financial consulting fee in the event such party or parties provide us with specific target company, industry, financial or market expertise, as well as insights, relationships, services or resources in order to assess, negotiate and consummate an initial business combination. The amount of any such financial consulting fee we pay will be based upon the prevailing market for similar services for comparable transactions at such time, and will be subject to the review of our audit committee pursuant to the audit committee’s policies and procedures relating to transactions that may present conflicts of interest. We would disclose any such fee in the proxy or tender offer materials used in connection with a proposed business combination.

We are not prohibited from pursuing an initial business combination with a business that is affiliated with our initial stockholders, officers or directors, or any of their respective affiliates. In the event we seek to complete our initial business combination with a business that is affiliated with our initial stockholders, officers or directors, or any of their affiliates, we, or a committee of independent directors, will obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm or another independent entity that commonly renders valuation opinions that our initial business combination is fair to us from a financial point of view. We are not required to obtain such an opinion in any other context. Additionally, pursuant to the NYSE rules, any initial business combination must be approved by a majority of our independent directors. As more fully discussed in the section of this prospectus entitled “Management—Conflicts of Interest,” if any of our officers or directors becomes aware of a business combination opportunity that falls within the line of business of any entity to which he or she has pre-existing fiduciary or contractual obligations, he or she may be required to present such business combination opportunity to such entity prior to presenting such business combination opportunity to us. Any such entity may co-invest with us in the target business at the time of our initial business combination, or we could raise additional proceeds to complete the acquisition by making a specified future issuance to any such entity.

LACK OF BUSINESS DIVERSIFICATION

For an indefinite period of time after the completion of our initial business combination, the prospects for our success may depend entirely on the future performance of a single business. Unlike other entities that have the resources to complete business combinations with multiple entities in one or several industries, it is probable that we will not have the resources to diversify our operations and mitigate the risks of being in a single line of business. By completing our business combination with only a single entity, our lack of diversification may:

 

Ø  

subject us to negative economic, competitive and regulatory risks, any or all of which may have a substantial adverse impact on the particular industry in which we operate after our initial business combination, and

 

Ø  

cause us to depend on the marketing and sale of a single product or limited number of products or services.

 

 

 

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LIMITED ABILITY TO EVALUATE THE TARGET’S MANAGEMENT TEAM

Although we intend to closely scrutinize the management of a prospective target business when evaluating the desirability of effecting our initial business combination with that business, our assessment of the target business’ management may not prove to be correct. In addition, the future management may not have the necessary skills, qualifications or abilities to manage a public company. Furthermore, the future role of members of our management team, if any, in the target business cannot presently be stated with any certainty. While it is possible that one or more of our directors will remain associated in some capacity with us following our initial business combination, it is presently unknown if any of them will devote their full efforts to our affairs subsequent to our business combination. Moreover, we cannot assure you that members of our management team will have significant experience or knowledge relating to the operations of the particular target business. The determination as to whether any members of our management team will remain with the combined company will be made at the time of our initial business combination.

Following our initial business combination, to the extent that we deem it necessary, we may seek to recruit additional managers to supplement the incumbent management team of the target business. We cannot assure you that we will have the ability to recruit additional managers, or that additional managers will have the requisite skills, knowledge or experience necessary to enhance the incumbent management.

STOCKHOLDERS MAY NOT HAVE THE ABILITY TO APPROVE OUR INITIAL BUSINESS COMBINATION

We may conduct redemptions without a stockholder vote pursuant to the tender offer rules of the SEC. However, we will seek stockholder approval if it is required by applicable law or stock exchange listing requirements, or we may decide to seek stockholder approval for business or other reasons. Presented in the table below is a graphic explanation of the types of initial business combinations we may consider and whether stockholder approval is currently required under Delaware law for each such transaction.

 

Type of Transaction    Whether
Stockholder
Approval is
Required
 

Purchase of assets

     No  

Purchase of stock of target not involving a merger with the company

     No  

Merger of target into a subsidiary of the company

     No  

Merger of the company with a target

     Yes  

Under the NYSE’s listing rules, stockholder approval would typically be required for our initial business combination if, for example:

 

Ø  

we issue (other than in a public offering for cash) shares of common stock that will either (a) be equal to or in excess of 20% of the number of shares of common stock then outstanding or (b) have voting power equal to or in excess of 20% of the voting power then outstanding;

 

Ø  

any of our directors, officers or substantial security holders (as defined by the rules of the NYSE) has a 5% or greater interest, directly or indirectly, in the target business or assets to be acquired and if the number of shares of common stock to be issued, or if the number of shares of common stock into which the securities may be convertible or exercisable, exceeds either (a) 1% of the number of shares of common stock or 1% of the voting power outstanding before the issuance in the case of any of our directors and officers or (b) 5% of the number of shares of common stock or 5% of the voting power outstanding before the issuance in the case of any substantial security holders; or

 

Ø  

the issuance or potential issuance of common stock will result in our undergoing a change of control.

 

 

 

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The decision as to whether we will seek stockholder approval of a proposed business combination in those instances in which stockholder approval is not required by law will be made by us, solely in our discretion, and will be based on business and legal reasons, which include a variety of factors, including, but not limited to:

 

Ø  

the timing of the transaction, including in the event we determine stockholder approval would require additional time and there is either not enough time to seek stockholder approval or doing so would place the company at a disadvantage in the transaction or result in other additional burdens on the company;

 

Ø  

the expected cost of holding a stockholder vote;

 

Ø  

the risk that the stockholders would fail to approve the proposed business combination;

 

Ø  

other time and budget constraints of the company; and

 

Ø  

additional legal complexities of a proposed business combination that would be time-consuming and burdensome to present to stockholders.

PERMITTED PURCHASES OF, AND OTHER TRANSACTIONS WITH RESPECT TO, OUR SECURITIES

In the event we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination and we do not conduct redemptions in connection with our initial business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, our initial stockholders, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates may purchase public shares or public warrants or a combination thereof in privately negotiated transactions or in the open market either prior to or following the completion of our initial business combination. There is no limit on the number of securities such persons may purchase. Additionally, at any time at or prior to our initial business combination, subject to applicable securities laws (including with respect to material nonpublic information), our initial stockholders, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates may enter into transactions with investors and others to provide them with incentives to acquire public shares, vote their public shares in favor of our initial business combination or not redeem their public shares. However, they have no current commitments, plans or intentions to engage in such purchases or other transactions and have not formulated any terms or conditions for any such purchases or other transactions. None of the funds held in the trust account will be used to purchase public shares or warrants in such transactions. Such persons will be subject to restrictions in making any such purchases when they are in possession of any material non-public information or if such purchases are prohibited by Regulation M under the Exchange Act. Such a purchase may include a contractual acknowledgement that such stockholder, although still the record holder of our shares, is no longer the beneficial owner thereof and therefore agrees not to exercise its redemption rights.

In the event that our initial stockholders, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates purchase public shares in privately negotiated transactions from public stockholders who have already elected to exercise their redemption rights or submitted a proxy to vote against our initial business combination, such selling stockholders would be required to revoke their prior elections to redeem their shares and any proxy to vote against our initial business combination. We do not currently anticipate that such purchases, if any, would constitute a tender offer subject to the tender offer rules under the Exchange Act or a going-private transaction subject to the going-private rules under the Exchange Act; however, if the purchasers determine at the time of any such purchases that the purchases are subject to such rules, the purchasers will be required to comply with such rules.

The purpose of any such transaction could be to (i) vote such shares in favor of the initial business combination and thereby increase the likelihood of obtaining stockholder approval of the initial business

 

 

 

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combination, (ii) reduce the number of public warrants outstanding or to vote such warrants on any matters submitted to the warrant holders for approval in connection with our initial business combination or (iii) satisfy a closing condition in an agreement with a target that requires us to have a minimum net worth or a certain amount of cash at the closing of our initial business combination, where it appears that such requirement would otherwise not be met. Any such transactions may result in the completion of our initial business combination that may not otherwise have been possible.

In addition, if such purchases are made, the public “float” of our Class A common stock or warrants and the number of beneficial holders of our securities may be reduced, possibly making it difficult to obtain or maintain the quotation, listing or trading of our securities on a national securities exchange.

It is likely that our initial stockholders, officers, directors and/or their affiliates would identify the stockholders with whom they may pursue privately negotiated transactions by either the stockholders contacting us or them directly or by our receipt of redemption requests submitted by stockholders (in the case of public shares) following our mailing of proxy materials in connection with our initial business combination. To the extent that our initial stockholders, officers, directors, advisors or their affiliates enter into a private transaction, they would identify and contact only potential selling or redeeming stockholders who have expressed their election to redeem their shares for a pro rata share of the trust account or vote against our initial business combination. Our initial stockholders, officers, directors, advisors or their affiliates will be restricted from purchasing shares if such purchases comply with Regulation M under the Exchange Act and the other federal securities laws.

REDEMPTION RIGHTS FOR PUBLIC STOCKHOLDERS UPON COMPLETION OF OUR INITIAL BUSINESS COMBINATION

We will provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their shares of Class A common stock upon the completion of our initial business combination at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, calculated as of two business days prior to the consummation of the initial business combination including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes, divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, subject to the limitations described herein. The amount in the trust account is initially anticipated to be approximately $10.00 per public share. The per-share amount we will distribute to investors who properly redeem their shares will not be reduced by the deferred underwriting commissions we will pay to the Representatives. The redemption rights may include the requirement that a beneficial holder must identify itself in order to validly redeem its shares. There will be no redemption rights upon the completion of our initial business combination with respect to our warrants. Our initial stockholders, officers and directors have entered into agreements with us, pursuant to which they have agreed to waive their redemption rights with respect to any founder shares and any public shares held by them in connection with the completion of our initial business combination.

MANNER OF CONDUCTING REDEMPTIONS

We will provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their shares of Class A common stock upon the completion of our initial business combination either (i) in connection with a stockholder meeting called to approve the business combination or (ii) by means of a tender offer. Except as required by applicable law, the decision as to whether we will seek stockholder approval of a proposed business combination or will allow stockholders to sell their shares to us in a tender offer will be made by us, solely in our discretion, and will be based on a variety of factors, such as the timing of the transaction and whether the terms of the transaction would otherwise require us to seek stockholder approval under stock exchange listing requirements. Asset acquisitions and stock purchases

 

 

 

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would not typically require stockholder approval while direct mergers with our company where we do not survive and any transactions where we issue more than 20% of our outstanding common stock or seek to amend our certificate of incorporation would typically require stockholder approval. If we structure a business combination transaction with a target company in a manner that requires stockholder approval, we will not have discretion as to whether to seek a stockholder vote to approve the proposed business combination.

If a stockholder vote is not required and we do not decide to hold a stockholder vote for business or other reasons, we will, pursuant to our certificate of incorporation:

 

Ø  

conduct the redemptions pursuant to Rule 13e-4 and Regulation 14E of the Exchange Act, which regulate issuer tender offers, and

 

Ø  

file tender offer documents with the SEC prior to completing our initial business combination which contain substantially the same financial and other information about the initial business combination and the redemption rights as is required under Regulation 14A of the Exchange Act, which regulates the solicitation of proxies.

Upon the public announcement of our initial business combination, if we elect to conduct redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules, we and our initial stockholders will terminate any plan established in accordance with Rule 10b5-1 under the Exchange Act to purchase shares of our Class A common stock in the open market, in order to comply with Rule 14e-5 under the Exchange Act.

In the event that we conduct redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules, our offer to redeem will remain open for at least 20 business days, in accordance with Rule 14e-1(a) under the Exchange Act, and we will not be permitted to complete our initial business combination until the expiration of the tender offer period. In addition, the tender offer will be conditioned on public stockholders not tendering more than a specified number of public shares which are not purchased by our initial stockholders, which number will be based on the requirement that we will only redeem our public shares so long as (after such redemption) our net tangible assets will be at least $5,000,001 either immediately prior to or upon consummation of our initial business combination (so that we do not then become subject to the SEC’s “penny stock” rules) or any greater net tangible asset or cash requirement which may be contained in the agreement relating to our initial business combination. If public stockholders tender more shares than we have offered to purchase, we will withdraw the tender offer and not complete the initial business combination, and instead may search for an alternate business combination.

If, however, stockholder approval of the transaction is required by applicable law or stock exchange listing requirement, or we decide to obtain stockholder approval for business or other reasons, we will, pursuant to our certificate of incorporation:

 

Ø  

conduct the redemptions in conjunction with a proxy solicitation pursuant to Regulation 14A of the Exchange Act, which regulates the solicitation of proxies, and not pursuant to the tender offer rules, and

 

Ø  

file proxy materials with the SEC.

In the event that we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination, we will distribute proxy materials and, in connection therewith, provide our public stockholders with the redemption rights described above upon completion of the initial business combination.

If we seek stockholder approval, we will complete our initial business combination only if a majority of the outstanding shares of common stock voted are voted in favor of the business combination. A quorum

 

 

 

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for such meeting will consist of the holders present in person or by proxy of shares of outstanding capital stock of the company representing a majority of the voting power of all outstanding shares of capital stock of the company entitled to vote at such meeting. Our initial stockholders, officers and directors will count toward this quorum and have agreed to vote any founder shares and any public shares held by them in favor of our initial business combination. As a result, in addition to their founder shares, we would need only 9,375,001, or 37.5% (assuming all outstanding shares are voted), of the 25,000,000 public shares sold in this offering to be voted in favor of a transaction in order to have our initial business combination approved (assuming the underwriters’ over-allotment option is not exercised). However, because we generally only need a majority of the outstanding shares to be voted in favor of a proposed business combination to have such transaction approved, the number of public shares needed to be voted in favor of any transaction decreases as the overall number of public shares voted decreases. Accordingly, we would need only 1,562,501, or 6.3%, of the 25,000,000 public shares sold in this offering to be voted in favor of a transaction if only the minimum number of shares representing a quorum are voted in order to have our initial business combination approved (assuming the underwriters’ over-allotment option is not exercised). These quorum and voting thresholds, and the voting agreements of our initial stockholders, officers and directors, may make it more likely that we will consummate our initial business combination. Each public stockholder may elect to redeem its public shares irrespective of whether they vote for or against the proposed transaction or do not vote at all.

Our certificate of incorporation will provide that we will only redeem our public shares so long as (after such redemption) our net tangible assets will be at least $5,000,001 either immediately prior to or upon consummation of our initial business combination (so that we do not then become subject to the SEC’s “penny stock” rules) or any greater net tangible asset or cash requirement which may be contained in the agreement relating to our initial business combination. For example, the proposed business combination may require: (i) cash consideration to be paid to the target or its owners, (ii) cash to be transferred to the target for working capital or other general corporate purposes or (iii) the retention of cash to satisfy other conditions in accordance with the terms of the proposed business combination. In the event the aggregate cash consideration we would be required to pay for all shares of Class A common stock that are validly submitted for redemption plus any amount required to satisfy cash conditions pursuant to the terms of the proposed business combination exceed the aggregate amount of cash available to us, we will not complete the business combination or redeem any shares, and all shares of Class A common stock submitted for redemption will be returned to the holders thereof, and instead may search for an alternate business combination.

Limitation on Redemption Upon Completion of Our Initial Business Combination If We Seek Stockholder Approval

Notwithstanding the foregoing, if we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination and we do not conduct redemptions in connection with our initial business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, our certificate of incorporation will provide that a public stockholder, together with any affiliate of such stockholder or any other person with whom such stockholder is acting in concert or as a “group” (as defined under Section 13 of the Exchange Act), will be restricted from redeeming its shares with respect to any Excess Shares owned by them, without our prior consent. Absent this provision, a public stockholder holding more than an aggregate of 15% of the shares sold in this offering could threaten to exercise its redemption rights if such holder’s shares are not purchased by us or our management at a premium to the then-current market price or on other undesirable terms. By limiting our stockholders’ ability to redeem no more than 15% of the shares sold in this offering, we believe we will limit the ability of a small group of stockholders to unreasonably attempt to block our ability to complete our initial business combination, particularly in connection with a business combination with a

 

 

 

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target that requires as a closing condition that we have a minimum net worth or a certain amount of cash. However, our certificate of incorporation does not restrict our stockholders’ ability to vote all of their shares (including Excess Shares) for or against our initial business combination.

Tendering Stock Certificates in Connection with a Stockholder Meeting

If we seek stockholder approval of a proposed business combination, we may require our public stockholders seeking to exercise their redemption rights, whether they are record holders or hold their shares in “street name,” to either tender their certificates to our transfer agent prior to the date set forth in the proxy materials mailed to such holders, or up to two business days prior to the vote on the proposal to approve the business combination, or to deliver their shares to the transfer agent electronically using The Depository Trust Company’s DWAC (Deposit/Withdrawal At Custodian) System, at the holder’s option. The proxy materials that we will furnish to holders of our public shares in connection with our initial business combination will indicate whether we are requiring public stockholders to satisfy such delivery requirements, which may include the requirement that a beneficial holder must identify itself in order to validly redeem its shares. Accordingly, a public stockholder would have from the time we send out our proxy materials until up to two business days prior to the vote on the business combination to tender its shares if it wishes to seek to exercise its redemption rights. Given the relatively short exercise period, it is advisable for stockholders to use electronic delivery of their public shares.

There is a nominal cost associated with the above-referenced tendering process and the act of certificating the shares or delivering them through the DWAC System. The transfer agent will typically charge the tendering broker a nominal fee and it would be up to the broker whether or not to pass this cost on to the redeeming holder. However, this fee would be incurred regardless of whether or not we require holders seeking to exercise redemption rights to tender their shares. The need to deliver shares is a requirement of exercising redemption rights regardless of the timing of when such delivery must be effectuated.

The foregoing is different from the procedures used by some blank check companies. In order to perfect redemption rights in connection with their business combinations, some blank check companies would distribute proxy materials for the stockholders’ vote on an initial business combination, and a holder could simply vote against a proposed business combination and check a box on the proxy card indicating such holder was seeking to exercise his or her redemption rights. After the business combination was approved, the company would contact such stockholder to arrange for him or her to deliver his or her certificate to verify ownership. As a result, the stockholder then had an “option window” after the completion of the business combination during which he or she could monitor the price of the company’s stock in the market. If the price rose above the redemption price, he or she could sell his or her shares in the open market before actually delivering his or her shares to the company for cancellation. As a result, the redemption rights, to which stockholders were aware they needed to commit before the stockholder meeting, would become “option” rights surviving past the completion of the business combination until the redeeming holder delivered its certificate. The requirement for physical or electronic delivery prior to the meeting ensures that a redeeming holder’s election to redeem is irrevocable once the business combination is approved.

Any request to redeem such shares, once made, may be withdrawn at any time up to two business days prior to the date of the stockholder meeting set forth in our proxy materials (unless we elect to allow additional withdrawal rights. Furthermore, if a holder of a public share delivered its certificate in connection with an election of redemption rights and subsequently decides prior to the applicable date

 

 

 

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not to elect to exercise such rights, such holder may simply request that the transfer agent return the certificate (physically or electronically). It is anticipated that the funds to be distributed to holders of our public shares electing to redeem their shares will be distributed promptly after the completion of our initial business combination.

If our initial business combination is not approved or completed for any reason, then our public stockholders who elected to exercise their redemption rights would not be entitled to redeem their shares for the applicable pro rata share of the trust account. In such case, we will promptly return any certificates delivered by public holders who elected to redeem their shares.

If our initial proposed business combination is not completed, we may continue to try to complete a different business combination until 24 months from the closing of this offering or during any Extension Period.

Redemption of Public Shares and Liquidation If No Initial Business Combination

Our certificate of incorporation provides that we will have only 24 months from the closing of this offering to complete our initial business combination. If we have not completed our initial business combination within such time period or during any Extension Period, we will: (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up; (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than ten business days thereafter, redeem the public shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidating distributions, if any); and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining stockholders and our board of directors, dissolve and liquidate, subject in the case of clauses (ii) and (iii) to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. There will be no redemption rights or liquidating distributions with respect to our warrants, which will expire worthless if we fail to complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering.

Our initial stockholders, officers and directors have waived their rights to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to any founder shares held by them if we fail to complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering. However, if they acquire public shares in or after this offering, they will be entitled to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to such public shares if we fail to complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering.

We will not propose any amendment to our certificate of incorporation (A) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or certain amendments to our certificate of incorporation or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering or (B) with respect to any other provision relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity, unless we provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their public shares upon approval of any such amendment at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, including interest (which interest shall be net of taxes payable) divided by the number of then outstanding public shares. However, we will only redeem our public shares so long as (after such redemption) our net tangible assets will be at least $5,000,001 either

 

 

 

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immediately prior to or upon consummation of our initial business combination (so that we do not then become subject to the SEC’s “penny stock” rules). If this optional redemption right is exercised with respect to an excessive number of public shares such that we cannot satisfy the net tangible asset requirement (described above) we would not proceed with the amendment or the related redemption of our public shares.

We expect that all costs and expenses associated with implementing our plan of dissolution, as well as payments to any creditors, will be funded from amounts remaining out of the approximately $1,000,000 of proceeds held outside the trust account, although we cannot assure you that there will be sufficient funds for such purpose. However, if those funds are not sufficient to cover the costs and expenses associated with implementing our plan of dissolution, to the extent that there is any interest accrued in the trust account not required to pay taxes on interest income earned on the trust account balance, we may request the trustee to release to us an additional amount of up to $100,000 of such accrued interest to pay those costs and expenses.

If we were to expend all of the net proceeds of this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants, other than the proceeds deposited in the trust account, and without taking into account interest, if any, earned on the trust account and any tax payments or expenses for dissolution of the trust, the per-share redemption amount received by stockholders upon our dissolution would be $10.00. The proceeds deposited in the trust account could, however, become subject to the claims of our creditors which would have higher priority than the claims of our public stockholders. We cannot assure you that the actual per-share redemption amount received by stockholders will not be substantially less than $10.00. Under Section 281(b) of the DGCL, our plan of dissolution must provide for all claims against us to be paid in full or make provision for payments to be made in full, as applicable, if there are sufficient assets. These claims must be paid or provided for before we make any distribution of our remaining assets to our stockholders. While we intend to pay such amounts, if any, we cannot assure you that we will have funds sufficient to pay or provide for all creditors’ claims.

Although we will seek to have all vendors, service providers, prospective target businesses and other entities with which we do business execute agreements with us waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to any monies held in the trust account for the benefit of our public stockholders, there is no guarantee that they will execute such agreements or even if they execute such agreements that they would be prevented from bringing claims against the trust account including but not limited to fraudulent inducement, breach of fiduciary responsibility or other similar claims, as well as claims challenging the enforceability of the waiver, in each case in order to gain an advantage with respect to a claim against our assets, including the funds held in the trust account. If any third party refuses to execute an agreement waiving such claims to the monies held in the trust account, our management will perform an analysis of the alternatives available to it and will only enter into an agreement with a third party that has not executed a waiver if management believes that such third party’s engagement would be significantly more beneficial to us than any alternative. Examples of possible instances where we may engage a third party that refuses to execute a waiver include the engagement of a third party consultant whose particular expertise or skills are believed by management to be significantly superior to those of other consultants that would agree to execute a waiver or in cases where management is unable to find a service provider willing to execute a waiver. Our independent registered public accounting firm will not execute agreements with us waiving such claims to the monies held in the trust account, nor will the underwriters of this offering.

In addition, there is no guarantee that such entities will agree to waive any claims they may have in the future as a result of, or arising out of, any negotiations, contracts or agreements with us and will not seek

 

 

 

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recourse against the trust account for any reason. Our sponsor has agreed that it will be liable to us if and to the extent any claims by a third party for services rendered or products sold to us, or by a prospective target business with which we have discussed entering into a transaction agreement, reduce the amount of funds in the trust account to below (i) $10.00 per public share or (ii) such lesser amount per public share held in the trust account as of the date of the liquidation of the trust account, due to reductions in the value of the trust assets, in each case net of the amount of interest which may be withdrawn to pay taxes, except as to any claims by a third party who executed a waiver of any and all rights to seek access to the trust account and except as to any claims under our indemnity of the underwriters of this offering against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. In the event that an executed waiver is deemed to be unenforceable against a third party, then our sponsor will not be responsible to the extent of any liability for such third-party claims. We have not independently verified whether our sponsor, which is a newly formed entity, has sufficient funds to satisfy its indemnity obligations and believe that our sponsor’s only assets are securities of our company. We have not asked our sponsor to reserve for such indemnification obligations. Therefore, we believe it is unlikely that our sponsor would be able to satisfy those obligations. As a result, if any such claims were successfully made against the trust account, the funds available for our initial business combination and redemptions could be reduced to less than $10.00 per public share. In such event, we may not be able to complete our initial business combination, and you would receive such lesser amount per public share in connection with any redemption of your public shares. None of our officers or directors will indemnify us for claims by third parties including, without limitation, claims by vendors and prospective target businesses.

In the event that the proceeds in the trust account are reduced below (i) $10.00 per public share or (ii) such lesser amount per public share held in the trust account as of the date of the liquidation of the trust account, due to reductions in the value of the trust assets, in each case net of the amount of interest which may be withdrawn to pay taxes, and our sponsor asserts that it is unable to satisfy its indemnification obligations or that it has no indemnification obligations related to a particular claim, our independent directors would determine whether to take legal action against our sponsor to enforce its indemnification obligations. While we currently expect that our independent directors would take legal action on our behalf against our sponsor to enforce its indemnification obligations to us, it is possible that our independent directors in exercising their business judgment may choose not to do so if, for example, the cost of such legal action is deemed by the independent directors to be too high relative to the amount recoverable or if the independent directors determine that a favorable outcome is not likely. We have not asked our sponsor to reserve for such indemnification obligations. Therefore, we believe it is unlikely our sponsor would be able to satisfy those obligations. Accordingly, we cannot assure you that due to claims of creditors the actual value of the per-share redemption price will not be less than $10.00 per public share.

We will seek to reduce the possibility that our sponsor will have to indemnify the trust account due to claims of creditors by endeavoring to have all vendors, service providers (other than our independent registered public accounting firm), prospective target businesses and other entities with which we do business execute agreements with us waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to monies held in the trust account. Our sponsor will also not be liable as to any claims under our indemnity of the underwriters of this offering against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. We will have access to up to approximately $1,000,000 from the proceeds of this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants with which to pay any such potential claims. In the event that we liquidate and it is subsequently determined that the reserve for claims and liabilities is insufficient, stockholders who received funds from our trust account could be liable for claims made by creditors. In the event that our offering expenses exceed our estimate of $1,000,000, we may fund such excess with funds from the funds not to be held in the trust account. In such case, the amount of funds we intend to be held outside

 

 

 

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the trust account would decrease by a corresponding amount. Conversely, in the event that the offering expenses are less than our estimate of $1,000,000, the amount of funds we intend to be held outside the trust account would increase by a corresponding amount.

Under the DGCL, stockholders may be held liable for claims by third parties against a corporation to the extent of distributions received by them in a dissolution. The pro rata portion of our trust account distributed to our public stockholders upon the redemption of our public shares in the event we do not complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering may be considered a liquidating distribution under Delaware law. If the corporation complies with certain procedures set forth in Section 280 of the DGCL intended to ensure that it makes reasonable provision for all claims against it, including a 60-day notice period during which any third-party claims can be brought against the corporation, a 90-day period during which the corporation may reject any claims brought, and an additional 150-day waiting period before any liquidating distributions are made to stockholders, any liability of stockholders with respect to a liquidating distribution is limited to the lesser of such stockholder’s pro rata share of the claim or the amount distributed to the stockholder, and any liability of the stockholder would be barred after the third anniversary of the dissolution.

Furthermore, if the pro rata portion of our trust account distributed to our public stockholders upon the redemption of our public shares in the event we do not complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering, is not considered a liquidating distribution under Delaware law and such redemption distribution is deemed to be unlawful, then pursuant to Section 174 of the DGCL, the statute of limitations for claims of creditors could then be six years after the unlawful redemption distribution, instead of three years, as in the case of a liquidating distribution. If we have not completed our initial business combination within such time period or during any Extension Period, we will: (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up; (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than ten business days thereafter, redeem the public shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidating distributions, if any); and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining stockholders and our board of directors, dissolve and liquidate, subject in the case of clauses (ii) and (iii) to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. Accordingly, it is our intention to redeem our public shares as soon as reasonably possible following the end of our acquisition period and, therefore, we do not intend to comply with those procedures. As such, our stockholders could potentially be liable for any claims to the extent of distributions received by them (but no more) and any liability of our stockholders may extend well beyond the third anniversary of such date.

Because we will not be complying with Section 280, Section 281(b) of the DGCL requires us to adopt a plan, based on facts known to us at such time that will provide for our payment of all existing and pending claims or claims that may be potentially brought against us within the subsequent 10 years. However, because we are a blank check company, rather than an operating company, and our operations will be limited to searching for prospective target businesses to acquire, the only likely claims to arise would be from our vendors (such as lawyers, investment bankers, etc.) or prospective target businesses. As described above, pursuant to the obligation contained in our underwriting agreement, we will seek to have all vendors, service providers (other than our independent registered public accounting firm), prospective target businesses and other entities with which we do business execute agreements with us waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to any monies held in the trust account. As a

 

 

 

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result of this obligation, the claims that could be made against us are significantly limited and the likelihood that any claim that would result in any liability extending to the trust account is remote. Further, our sponsor may be liable only to the extent necessary to ensure that the amounts in the trust account are not reduced below (i) $10.00 per public share or (ii) such lesser amount per public share held in the trust account as of the date of the liquidation of the trust account, due to reductions in value of the trust assets, in each case net of the amount of interest withdrawn to pay taxes. This liability will not apply with respect to any claims by a third party who executed a waiver of any and all rights to seek access to the trust account and except as to any claims under our indemnity of the underwriters of this offering against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. In the event that an executed waiver is deemed to be unenforceable against a third party, our sponsor will not be responsible to the extent of any liability for such third-party claims.

If we file a bankruptcy petition or an involuntary bankruptcy petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, the proceeds held in the trust account could be subject to applicable bankruptcy law, and may be included in our bankruptcy estate and subject to the claims of third parties with priority over the claims of our stockholders. To the extent any bankruptcy claims deplete the trust account, we cannot assure you we will be able to return $10.00 per share to our public stockholders. Additionally, if we file a bankruptcy petition or an involuntary bankruptcy petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, any distributions received by stockholders could be viewed under applicable debtor/creditor and/or bankruptcy laws as either a “preferential transfer” or a “fraudulent conveyance.” As a result, a bankruptcy court could seek to recover some or all amounts received by our stockholders. Furthermore, our board of directors may be viewed as having breached its fiduciary duty to our creditors and/or may have acted in bad faith, thereby exposing itself and our company to claims of punitive damages, by paying public stockholders from the trust account prior to addressing the claims of creditors. We cannot assure you that claims will not be brought against us for these reasons.

Our public stockholders will be entitled to receive funds from the trust account only on the earliest of (a) the completion of our initial business combination and then, only in connection with those public shares that such stockholder has properly elected to redeem, subject to the limitations described in this prospectus, (b) the redemption of any public shares properly submitted in connection with a stockholder vote to amend our certificate of incorporation (i) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering or (ii) with respect to any other provisions relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity and (c) the redemption of our public shares if we have not completed our business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering, subject to applicable law. Stockholders who do not exercise their rights to the funds in connection with an amendment to our certificate of incorporation would still have rights to the funds in connection with a subsequent business combination. In no other circumstances will a stockholder have any right or interest of any kind to or in the trust account. In the event we seek stockholder approval in connection with our initial business combination, a stockholder’s voting in connection with the business combination alone will not result in a stockholder’s redeeming its shares to us for an applicable pro rata share of the trust account. Such stockholder must have also exercised its redemption rights as described above. Holders of warrants will not have any rights of proceeds held in the trust account with respect to the warrants.

 

 

 

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Comparison of This Offering to Those of Blank Check Companies Subject to Rule 419

The following table compares the terms of this offering to the terms of an offering by a blank check company subject to the provisions of Rule 419. This comparison assumes that the gross proceeds, underwriting commissions and underwriting expenses of our offering would be identical to those of an offering undertaken by a company subject to Rule 419, and that the underwriters will not exercise their over-allotment option. None of the provisions of Rule 419 apply to our offering.

 

                                                            

Terms of Our Offering

  

Terms Under a Rule 419 Offering

Escrow of offering proceeds

  

$250,000,000 of the net proceeds of this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants will be deposited into a U.S.-based trust account, with Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company acting as trustee.

  

Approximately $212,625,000 of the offering proceeds would be deposited into either an escrow account with an insured depositary institution or in a separate bank account established by a broker-dealer in which the broker-dealer acts as trustee for persons having the beneficial interests in the account.

Investment of net proceeds

  

$250,000,000 of the net offering proceeds and the sale of the private placement warrants held in trust will be held as cash or invested only in U.S. government treasury bills with a maturity of 185 days or less or in money market funds meeting certain conditions under Rule 2a-7 under the Investment Company Act which invest only in direct U.S. government treasury obligations.

  

Proceeds could be invested only in specified securities such as a money market fund meeting conditions of the Investment Company Act or in securities that are direct obligations of, or obligations guaranteed as to principal or interest by, the United States.

Receipt of interest on escrowed funds

  

 

Interest on proceeds from the trust account to be paid to stockholders is reduced by (i) any taxes paid or payable; and (ii) in the event of our liquidation for failure to complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering, up to $100,000 of net interest that may be released to us should we have no or insufficient working capital to fund the costs and expenses of our dissolution and liquidation.

  

 

Interest on funds in escrow account would be held for the sole benefit of investors, unless and only after the funds held in escrow were released to us in connection with our completion of a business combination.

 

 

 

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Terms of Our Offering

  

Terms Under a Rule 419 Offering

Limitation on fair value or net assets of target business

  

 

 

Our initial business combination must occur with one or more target businesses that together have an aggregate fair market value of at least 80% of the assets held in the trust account (excluding the deferred underwriting commissions and taxes payable on the income earned on the trust account) at the time of the agreement to enter into the initial business combination.

  

 

 

The fair value or net assets of a target business must represent at least 80% of the maximum offering proceeds.

Trading of securities issued

  

The units will begin trading on or promptly after the date of this prospectus. The Class A common stock and warrants comprising the units will begin separate trading on the 52nd day following the date of this prospectus (or, if such date is not a business day, the following business day) unless the Representatives inform us of their decision to allow earlier separate trading, subject to our having filed the Current Report on Form 8-K described below and having issued a press release announcing when such separate trading will begin. We will file the Current Report on Form 8-K promptly after the closing of this offering. If the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised following the initial filing of such Current Report on Form 8-K, an additional or amended Current Report on Form 8-K will be filed to provide updated financial information to reflect the exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option.

  

No trading of the units or the underlying Class A common stock and warrants would be permitted until the completion of a business combination. During this period, the securities would be held in the escrow or trust account.

 

 

 

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Terms of Our Offering

  

Terms Under a Rule 419 Offering

Exercise of the
warrants

  

 

The warrants cannot be exercised until the later of 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination and 12 months from the closing of this offering.

  

 

The warrants could be exercised prior to the completion of a business combination, but securities received and cash paid in connection with the exercise would be deposited in the escrow or trust account.

Election to remain an investor

  

 

We will provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their public shares for cash equal to their pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, calculated as of two business days prior to the consummation of our initial business combination, including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes, upon the completion of our initial business combination, subject to the limitations described herein. We may not be required by applicable law or stock exchange listing requirements to hold a stockholder vote. If we are not required by applicable law or stock exchange listing requirements and do not otherwise decide to hold a stockholder vote, we will, pursuant to our certificate of incorporation, conduct the redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules of the SEC and file tender offer documents with the SEC which will contain substantially the same financial and other information about the initial business combination and the redemption rights as is required under the SEC’s proxy rules. If, however, we hold a stockholder vote, we will, like many blank check companies, offer to redeem shares in conjunction with a proxy solicitation pursuant to proxy rules and not pursuant to the tender offer

  

 

A prospectus containing information pertaining to the business combination required by the SEC would be sent to each investor. Each investor would be given the opportunity to notify the company in writing, within a period of no less than 20 business days and no more than 45 business days from the effective date of a post-effective amendment to the company’s registration statement, to decide if it elects to remain a stockholder of the company or require the return of its investment. If the company has not received the notification by the end of the 45th business day, funds and interest or dividends, if any, held in the trust or escrow account are automatically returned to the stockholder. Unless a sufficient number of investors elect to remain investors, all funds on deposit in the escrow account must be returned to all of the investors and none of the securities are issued.

 

 

 

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Terms of Our Offering

  

Terms Under a Rule 419 Offering

   rules. If we seek stockholder approval, we will complete our initial business combination only if a majority of the outstanding shares of common stock voted are voted in favor of the business combination. Additionally, each public stockholder may elect to redeem their public shares irrespective of whether they vote for or against the proposed transaction or do not vote at all. A quorum for such meeting will consist of the holders present in person or by proxy of shares of outstanding capital stock of the company representing a majority of the voting power of all outstanding shares of capital stock of the company entitled to vote at such meeting.   

Business combination deadline

  

 

If we have not completed our initial business combination within such time period or during any Extension Period, we will: (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up; (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than ten business days thereafter, redeem the public shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidating distributions, if any); and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining

  

 

If an acquisition has not been completed within 18 months after the effective date of the company’s registration statement, funds held in the trust or escrow account are returned to investors.

 

 

 

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Terms of Our Offering

  

Terms Under a Rule 419 Offering

   stockholders and our board of directors, dissolve and liquidate, subject in the case of clauses (ii) and (iii) to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law.   

Release of funds

   Except with respect to interest earned on the funds held in the trust account that may be released to us to pay our tax obligations, the proceeds from this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants held in the trust account held in the trust account will not be released from the trust account until the earliest to occur of: (i) the completion of our initial business combination, (ii) the redemption of any public shares properly submitted in connection with a stockholder vote to amend our certificate of incorporation (a) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or certain amendments to our certificate of incorporation or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering or    The proceeds held in the escrow account are not released until the earlier of the completion of a business combination or the failure to effect a business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering.
   (b) with respect to any other provisions relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity and (iii) the redemption of 100% of our public shares if we have not completed a business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering (subject to the requirements of applicable law). Stockholders who do not exercise their rights to the funds in connection with an amendment to our certificate of incorporation would still have rights   

 

 

 

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Terms Under a Rule 419 Offering

   to the funds in connection with a subsequent business combination. We will use these funds to pay amounts due to any public stockholders who exercise their redemption rights as described above under “Redemption rights for public stockholders upon completion of our initial business combination,” to pay the Representatives their deferred underwriting commissions, to pay all or a portion of the consideration payable to the target or owners of the target of our initial business combination and to pay other expenses associated with our initial business combination.   

COMPETITION

In identifying, evaluating and selecting a target business for our business combination, we may encounter intense competition from other entities having a business objective similar to ours, including other blank check companies, private equity groups and leveraged buyout funds, and operating businesses seeking strategic acquisitions. Many of these entities are well established and have extensive experience identifying and effecting business combinations directly or through affiliates. Moreover, many of these competitors possess greater financial, technical, human and other resources than we do. Our ability to acquire larger target businesses will be limited by our available financial resources. This inherent limitation gives others an advantage in pursuing the acquisition of a target business. Furthermore, our obligation to pay cash in connection with our public stockholders who exercise their redemption rights may reduce the resources available to us for our initial business combination and our outstanding warrants, and the future dilution they potentially represent, may not be viewed favorably by certain target businesses. Either of these factors may place us at a competitive disadvantage in successfully negotiating an initial business combination.

FACILITIES

Our executive offices are located at 850 Library Avenue, Suite 204, Newark, Delaware 19711 and our telephone number is (970) 315-2644. We consider our current office space adequate for our current operations.

EMPLOYEES

We currently have three executive officers. These individuals are not obligated to devote any specific number of hours to our matters but they intend to devote as much of their time as they deem necessary to our affairs until we have completed our initial business combination. The amount of time they will devote in any time period will vary based on whether a target business has been selected for our initial business combination and the stage of the initial business combination process we are in. We do not intend to have any full time employees prior to the completion of our initial business combination.

 

 

 

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PERIODIC REPORTING AND FINANCIAL INFORMATION

We will register our units, Class A common stock and warrants under the Exchange Act and have reporting obligations, including the requirement that we file annual, quarterly and current reports with the SEC. In accordance with the requirements of the Exchange Act, our annual reports will contain financial statements audited and reported on by our independent registered public accountants.

We will provide stockholders with audited financial statements of the prospective target business as part of the tender offer materials or proxy solicitation materials sent to stockholders to assist them in assessing the target business. In all likelihood, these financial statements will need to be prepared in accordance with GAAP and the historical financial statements may be required to be audited in accordance with PCAOB standards. We cannot assure you that any particular target business selected by us as a potential acquisition candidate will have financial statements prepared in accordance with GAAP and PCAOB standards or that the potential target business will be able to prepare its financial statements in accordance with GAAP and PCAOB standards. To the extent that this requirement cannot be met, we may not be able to acquire the proposed target business. While this may limit the pool of potential business combination candidates, we do not believe that this limitation will be material.

We will be required to evaluate our internal control procedures for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2021 as required by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Only in the event we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer or an accelerated filer, and no longer qualify as an emerging growth company, will we be required to comply with the independent registered public accounting firm attestation requirements on our internal control over financial reporting. A target business may not be in compliance with the provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act regarding adequacy of their internal controls. The development of the internal controls of any such entity to achieve compliance with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act may increase the time and costs necessary to complete any such acquisition.

LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

There is no material litigation, arbitration or governmental proceeding currently pending against us or any members of our management team in their capacity as such.

 

 

 

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OFFICERS, DIRECTORS AND DIRECTOR NOMINEES

Our officers, directors and director nominees are as follows:

 

Name    Age    Position
Scott J. Freidheim    55    Chairman of the Board of Directors
Makram Azar    53    Chief Executive Officer and Director
Eli Muraidekh    52    Chief Financial Officer and Director
John M. Basnage de Beauval    55    General Counsel and Secretary
Xavier Rolet, KBE    61    Independent Director Nominee

Dominique D’Hinnin

   61    Independent Director Nominee
I. Martin Pompadur    85    Independent Director Nominee
Isabelle Amiel Azoulai    45    Independent Director Nominee
Mikael Breuer-Weil    56    Independent Director Nominee

Scott J. Freidheim    has served as Chairman of our board of directors since our inception. Since October 2016, Mr. Freidheim has served as Founder and Managing Partner of Freidheim Capital LLC, an investment family office. Since 2019, Mr. Freidheim has been Co-Chairman of the board of ettain group. Previously, from September 2014 to September 2016, Mr. Freidheim served as Chief Executive Officer and as a director of CDI Corp., a publicly traded staffing and engineering company. Mr. Freidheim has served on senior leadership teams across multiple industries including financial services, mass merchandising, brand management and private equity. From 2011 to 2014, he served as Chief Executive Officer of Investcorp International, an alternative investment firm in London. From 2010 to 2011, he served as Executive Vice President and President of Kenmore Craftsman & Diehard for Sears Holdings Corporation (“Sears”). Prior to that, from 2009 to 2010, he served as Executive Vice President, Operating & Support Businesses at Sears. From 1991 to 2008, Mr. Freidheim served in several roles at Lehman Brothers, the most recent of which was Chief Administrative Officer and Executive Vice President. In addition, he currently serves, or has served, on several boards, including N+W Global Vending (Milan, Italy), Icopal (Herlev, Denmark), GL Education (London, England) and Lands’ End (Dodgeville, WI, USA). Mr. Freidheim currently serves, or has served, on a number of not-for-profit boards. In 2005, he was named a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum and was a member of the WEF’s inaugural Global Agenda Council. Mr. Freidheim holds a BA from Northwestern University and a Master’s degree in Management with concentration in Finance from Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management.

We believe that Mr. Freidheim is well qualified to serve as Chairman of our board as he brings significant executive and operational leadership and experience due to his service on senior management teams and boards of multiple large corporations, including as chief executive officer and director of a publicly traded company.

Makram Azar    has served as our Chief Executive Officer and as a member of our board of directors since our inception. Mr. Azar is Chief Executive Officer and director of Full Circle Capital Limited, a private investment and advisory group, which he founded in January 2019. Since May 2019, Mr. Azar has also served as Chief Executive Officer and director of Full Circle Capital, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Full Circle Capital Limited. Previously, from 2010 to January 2019, he was at Barclays Bank PLC, where among other roles, he served as Chairman of Banking EMEA

 

 

 

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and Chairman of Barclays Bank PLC, MENA. Since January 2019, he has continued his relationship with Barclays Bank PLC, serving as Senior Advisor. Before this, Mr. Azar served as Managing Director and Head of MENA at KKR from 2008 to 2010. Prior to joining KKR, Mr. Azar had spent 18 years at Lehman Brothers, latterly as Global Head of Sovereign Wealth Funds and Chairman of Media Investment Banking EMEA. Previously he led the Media, Consumer & Retail Investment Banking businesses of Lehman Brothers in EMEA. Mr. Azar has completed a very large number of M&A, equity capital markets, debt capital markets and private equity deals with an aggregate value in excess of $350 billion, across a broad spectrum of geographies and industries, including telecoms, media, technology, consumer, sustainable energy, retail, hospitality, financial services, industrials and real estate. His clients have included some of the largest institutional investors, multinational corporations, sovereign wealth funds and governments. Mr. Azar holds a BA in Applied Economics from the University Paris-IX Dauphine and a Master’s degree in Management and Finance from École des Hautes Études Commerciales (HEC) in Paris.

We believe that Mr. Azar is well qualified to serve as a director due to his over 30 years of extensive banking and investment experience in a broad range of industries.

Eli Muraidekh    has served as our Chief Financial Officer and as a member of our board of directors since our inception. Since 2014, Mr. Muraidekh has served as the Founder, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer, and as a director, of Telamon Capital LLP, a credit opportunity fund. Prior to this, from 2009 to 2014, Mr. Muraidekh served as Executive Board Director, Investment Committee Member and Investment Director at Windmill Hill Asset Management, a financial services company. While there, Mr. Muraidekh managed the assets of the philanthropic foundations of Lord Jacob Rothschild totaling over $2.0 billion. He invested across multiple asset classes globally, ranking the endowment in the top five percentile of over 400 endowments tracked by Cambridge Associates. Previously, Mr. Muraidekh was Executive Director of the Value Recovery Fund at Blue Bay Asset Management. Prior to that, Mr. Muraidekh was Co-Founder of Elwin Capital Partners and Executive Director at Goldman Sachs. Mr. Muraidekh has also worked at McKinsey in London and Morgan Stanley in New York. Mr. Muraidekh holds a BA in Economics summa cum laude from Yale University, where he graduated first in his class, and an MBA with distinction from the Harvard Business School.

We believe that Mr. Muraidekh is well qualified to serve as a director due to his 25 years of investment management experience across multiple asset classes and in-depth specialized expertise investing in public and private credit and equity markets.

John M. Basnage de Beauval    has served as our General Counsel and Secretary since our inception. Since April 2020, he has served as Managing Director of Full Circle Capital Limited. From February 2018 to March 2020, Mr. Basnage de Beauval served as Founder and Managing Partner of Anthem Legal Services LLC, an advisory firm that provided legal and commercial advice to financial institutions and other companies. Prior to joining Full Circle Capital, Mr. Basnage de Beauval co-founded and was a partner at Epena Law from October 2019 to March 2020, where he provided legal advice in connection with structuring private equity investments in Sub-Saharan Africa. Prior to this, Mr. Basnage de Beauval spent more than 25 years advising on capital markets, M&A and private equity transactions in New York, London and Paris, most recently, from November 2003 to February 2018, as a partner at Hogan Lovells, where he headed the US corporate securities practice in London, and was co-head of equity capital markets in Europe. Mr. Basnage de Beauval has advised acquirors and targets on numerous large and complex cross-border M&A transactions and has written extensively on the subject. Before joining Hogan Lovells, he practiced at Freshfields from 1996 to 2001 and Rogers & Wells from 1992 to 1996. Mr. Basnage de Beauval received a BA from the University of Pennsylvania, magna cum laude, where he was a Benjamin Franklin Scholar and Phi Beta Kappa, and has law degrees from Oxford University and Columbia University. He completed an executive leadership course at Stanford University School of Business.

 

 

 

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Xavier Rolet, KBE    has agreed to serve on our board of directors as an independent director upon the closing of this offering. From January 2019 to January 2020, Mr. Rolet served as Chief Executive Officer of CQS, a global hedge fund. Previously, from 2009 to 2018, Mr. Rolet was the Chief Executive Officer of the London Stock Exchange (“LSE”). Mr. Rolet was named as one of the 100 Best CEOs in the World in the 2017 Harvard Business Review. In his decade at the helm of the LSE, the LSE’s market valuation rose from £800 million to more than £15 billion. He is currently the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Phosagro PJSC, Chairman of the Board of Shore Capital Markets, a member of the Board of Overseers of Columbia Business School, a member of the Board of Directors of the Saudi Stock Exchange (Tadawul), an External Director – Portfolio Companies of the Public Investment Fund (PIF), a Non Executive Member of the Board of Seplat Petroleum Development Cy Plc, an Expert Adviser to the Shanghai Institute of Finance for the Real Economy (SIFRE), a Member of the Senior Advisory Board at Towerbrook Capital Partners LP, and a Founder and Director of a number of other privately held companies. He has held various senior positions in the financial services industry throughout his career, including Chief Executive Officer of Banque Lehman Brothers in Paris; co-head of Global Equity & Derivatives Trading at Lehman Brothers New York; Global Head of Risk and Trading at Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein; Vice-President, International Equity Risk Arbitrage at Goldman Sachs New York; and co-Head of European Equities Sales and Trading at Goldman Sachs International Ltd. in London. Mr. Rolet holds an MSc in management science and finance from the KEDGE Business School, an MBA from Columbia Business School and a post-graduate degree from Paris-based IHEDN (Institute of Advanced Studies in National Defense).

We believe that Mr. Rolet is well qualified to serve as a director due to his wealth of past executive experience, including as Chief Executive Officer of the London Stock Exchange, and his depth of knowledge and experience in the financial services industry.

Dominique D’Hinnin    has agreed to serve on our board of directors as an independent director upon the closing of this offering.Since 2017 Mr. D’Hinnin has been chairman of the board of EUTELSAT Communications, a French satellite service company. From 2009 to 2016, Mr. D’Hinnin served as Co-Managing Partner of Lagardère Group. Previously, he was Chief Financial Officer of Lagardère Group, Executive Vice President of Grolier Inc., and Chief Financial Officer of the publisher Hachette Livre, following his active role in the financial and legal restructuring of the Lagardère Group where he oversaw the merger of Matra with Hachette. Mr. D’Hinnin is also a board member of PRISA, the world’s leading Spanish and Portuguese-language media group, EDENRED, a French corporate services company, Technicolor, a French technology company, and Louis Delhaize SA, a Belgium private retail group. Mr. D’Hinnin was formerly a board member of EADS-Airbus, the Deputy Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Canal+ France, Vice Chairman at Atari, and he sat on the Strategic Council at PricewaterhouseCoopers France. Mr. D’Hinnin has also held board positions at Marie Claire Album, Holding Evelyne Prouvost, Editions Amaury, and Le Monde. Mr. D’Hinnin received his undergraduate degree from École Normale Supérieure (in classical culture) and a graduate degree from Ecole Nationale d’Administration.

We believe that Mr. D’Hinnin is well qualified to serve as a director due to his substantial experience serving on boards, including of media and technology companies, as well as his past executive experience in the media sector.

I. Martin Pompadur    has agreed to serve on our board of directors as an independent director upon the closing of this offering. Mr. Pompadur is currently an investor and advisor to various companies, and a board member of Nexstar Media Group, Inc. and Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment, Inc., both publicly traded companies. Previously, from 2009 to 2016, he served as Global Vice Chairman, Media and Entertainment at Macquarie Capital, an investment bank and financial services company. From June

 

 

 

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1998 to November 2008, Mr. Pompadur held several positions at News Corporation, a multinational mass media corporation, including Executive Vice President of News Corporation, President of News Corporation Eastern and Central Europe and a member of News Corporation’s Executive Management Committee. In January 2000, Mr. Pompadur was appointed Chairman of News Corporation Europe. In 1985, as advisor to News Corporation, Mr. Pompadur helped acquire for News Corporation the Metromedia television station group and wrote the business plan for the start-up of the Fox Television Network. From 1982 to April 2007, Mr. Pompadur was Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of RP Media Management which operated 12 television stations, 25 radio stations and numerous cable television systems totaling 500,000 subscribers. From 1977 to 1982, Mr. Pompadur served as President of Ziff Corporation, then a holding company for Ziff-Davis Publishing Company. Prior to that, from 1960 to 1977, Mr. Pompadur worked at ABC, Inc. where he held several positions, including General Manager of the Television Network, Vice President of the Broadcast Division, President of the Leisure Activities Group and Vice President of ABC, Inc. Mr. Pompadur was also previously a Managing General Partner at Northeastern Television Investors LP and was Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of GP Station Partners and of Multivision Cable TV. Mr. Pompadur previously served as a director of IMAX Corporation and Truli Media Group, Inc., both publicly traded companies, and as a director of ABC. Inc, BSkyB, Sky Italia, Premier World, Fox Kids Europe, Metromedia International and Elong. Mr. Pompadur holds a BA from Williams College and a law degree from the University of Michigan Law School.

We believe that Mr. Pompadur is well qualified to serve as a director due to his extensive executive level expertise in the media industry and experience serving on public company boards.

 

Isabelle Amiel Azoulai    has agreed to serve on our board of directors as an independent director upon the closing of this offering. Ms. Azoulai is Co-Founder and Managing Partner at La Maison SA, a private equity and venture capital investment group formed in 2014, where she has led more than 50 direct technology-focused investments in Israel, the United States, Europe and China. Ms. Azoulai also serves as the personal advisor to several ultra-high net worth European entrepreneurs. From 2014 to 2019, Ms. Azoulai was also a Senior Banker and Partner at Banque Leonardo, SA, a banking company. Ms. Azoulai was formerly an investment partner at Credit Suisse, where she managed the Ultra High Net Worth Individuals department. Prior to that, she managed the investment consulting department of Credit Suisse Private Banking in Paris. Ms. Azoulai is a founding member of the benefit committee of Institut Imagine, the French institute for genetic diseases. Ms. Azoulai holds a Master’s degree in Business from Lincoln International Business School.

We believe that Ms. Azoulai is well qualified to serve as a director due to her substantial investment experience in growth technology companies in multiple geographic locations.

Mikael Breuer-Weil    has agreed to serve on our board of directors as an independent director upon the closing of this offering. Mr. Breuer-Weil co-founded Marylebone Partners LLP, an investment management boutique, in September 2013 and served as founding partner and Chief Investment Officer until March 2020, when he stepped down from his executive roles. Previously, from 1994 to 2012, he was the Principal Investment Adviser to philanthropic and family foundations connected to Lord Jacob Rothschild, and in 2007 became Investment Director for RIT Capital Partners plc, an investment trust with a current market value of approximately £2.8 billion. Additionally, he has held various non-executive and investment advisory roles and he remains an adviser to a number of charitable and family organizations. Mr. Breuer-Weil started his career at Mercury Asset Management in 1986 and worked as a fund manager including a period of secondment with Odyssey Partners LLP in New York. Mr. Breuer-Weil graduated from the London School of Economics with a degree in law.

We believe that Mr. Breuer-Weil is well qualified to serve as a director due to his wealth of experience in investment management.

 

 

 

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NUMBER AND TERMS OF OFFICE OF OFFICERS AND DIRECTORS

We intend to have seven directors upon completion of this offering. Our board of directors will be divided into three classes with only one class of directors being elected in each year and each class (except for those directors appointed prior to our first annual meeting of stockholders) serving a three-year term. The term of office of the first class of directors, consisting of                and                , will expire at our first annual meeting of stockholders. The term of office of the second class of directors, consisting of                and                , will expire at the second annual meeting of stockholders. The term of office of the third class of directors, consisting of                ,                and                 will expire at the third annual meeting of stockholders. We may not hold an annual meeting of stockholders until after we consummate our initial business combination.

Our officers are appointed by the board of directors and serve at the discretion of the board of directors, rather than for specific terms of office. Our board of directors is authorized to appoint persons to the offices set forth in our bylaws as it deems appropriate. Our bylaws provide that our officers may consist of one or more Chairmen of the Board, one or more Chief Executive Officers, a President, a Chief Financial Officer, Chief Investment Officer, Vice Presidents, Secretary, Treasurer and such other offices as may be determined by the board of directors.

DIRECTOR INDEPENDENCE

The NYSE listing standards require that a majority of our board of directors be independent. An “independent director” is defined generally as a person other than an officer or employee of the company or its subsidiaries or any other individual having a relationship which, in the opinion of the company’s board of directors, would interfere with the director’s exercise of independent judgment in carrying out the responsibilities of a director. Our board of directors has determined that Messrs. Breuer-Weil, D’Hinnin, Pompadur and Rolet and Ms. Azoulai are “independent directors” as defined in the NYSE listing standards and applicable SEC rules. Our audit committee will be entirely composed of independent directors meeting the NYSE’s additional requirements applicable to members of the audit committee. Our independent directors will have regularly scheduled meetings at which only independent directors are present.

OFFICER AND DIRECTOR COMPENSATION

None of our officers, directors or members of our strategic advisory group has received any cash compensation for services rendered to us. We will pay an affiliate of our sponsor for administrative, research, transaction and other support services provided to us in the amount of up to $10,000 per month, for up to 24 months. No compensation of any kind, including finder’s and consulting fees, will be paid by us to our initial stockholders, officers, directors or members of our strategic advisory group, or any of their respective affiliates, for services rendered prior to or in connection with the completion of our initial business combination, except that at the closing of our initial business combination, we may pay a customary financial consulting fee to our initial stockholders, officers, directors, members of our strategic advisory group or their affiliates which will not be made from the proceeds of this offering held in the trust account prior to the completion of our initial business combination. We may pay such financial consulting fee in the event such party or parties provide us with specific target company, industry, financial or market expertise, as well as insights, relationships, services or resources in order to assess, negotiate and consummate an initial business combination. The amount of any such financial consulting fee we pay will be based upon the prevailing market for similar services for comparable transactions at such time, and will be subject to the review of our audit committee pursuant to the audit

 

 

 

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committee’s policies and procedures relating to transactions that may present conflicts of interest. We would disclose any such fee in the proxy or tender offer materials used in connection with a proposed business combination. However, these individuals will be reimbursed for any out-of-pocket expenses incurred in connection with activities on our behalf such as identifying potential target businesses and performing due diligence on suitable business combinations. Our audit committee will review on a quarterly basis all payments that were made by us to our initial stockholders, officers or directors, or our or their affiliates.

After the completion of our initial business combination, directors or members of our management team who remain with us may be paid consulting or management fees from the combined company. All of these fees will be fully disclosed to stockholders, to the extent then known, in the tender offer materials or proxy solicitation materials furnished to our stockholders in connection with a proposed business combination. We have not established any limit on the amount of such fees that may be paid by the combined company to our directors or members of management. It is unlikely the amount of such compensation will be known at the time of the proposed business combination, because the directors of the post-combination business will be responsible for determining officer and director compensation. Any compensation to be paid to our officers will be determined, or recommended to the board of directors for determination, either by a compensation committee constituted solely by independent directors or by a majority of the independent directors on our board of directors.

Following a business combination, to the extent we deem it necessary, we may seek to recruit additional managers to supplement the incumbent management team of the target business. We cannot assure you that we will have the ability to recruit additional managers, or that additional managers will have the requisite skills, knowledge or experience necessary to enhance the incumbent management.

COMMITTEES OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Following the consummation of this offering, our board of directors will have three standing committees: an audit committee, a compensation committee and a nominating and corporate governance committee. The rules of the NYSE and Rule 10A-3 of the Exchange Act generally require that the audit committee of a listed company be comprised solely of independent directors. Subject to phase-in rules and a limited exception, the rules of the NYSE require that the compensation committee and the nominating and corporate governance committee of a listed company be comprised solely of independent directors.

Audit Committee

Prior to the consummation of this offering, we will establish an audit committee of the board of directors.                 ,                and                 will serve as members of our audit committee. Under the NYSE listing standards and applicable SEC rules, we are required to have at least three members of the audit committee, all of whom must be independent, subject to certain phase-in provisions which we are not taking advantage of.                ,                and                 meet the independent director standard under the NYSE listing standards and under Rule 10-A-3(b)(1) of the Exchange Act.

Each member of the audit committee is financially literate and our board of directors has determined                  that                qualifies as an “audit committee financial expert” as defined in applicable SEC rules.

We will adopt an audit committee charter, which details the principal functions of the audit committee, including:

 

Ø  

the appointment, compensation, retention and oversight of the work of the independent auditors and any other independent registered public accounting firm engaged by us;

 

 

 

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Ø  

overseeing the integrity of our financial statements and our compliance with legal and regulatory requirements,

 

Ø  

overseeing the independent auditors’ qualifications and independence and the performance of the internal audit function and independent auditors;

 

Ø  

assisting with oversight of the design and implementation of the internal audit function;

 

Ø  

reviewing and approving the annual audit plan for the Company;

 

Ø  

discussing earnings press releases and financial information provided to analysts and rating agencies;

 

Ø  

discussing with management our policies and practices with respect to risk assessment and risk management;

 

Ø  

reviewing any audit problems or difficulties and management’s response with the independent auditors;

 

Ø  

meeting periodically with each of management, internal auditors and the independent auditors;

 

Ø  

pre-approving all audit and permitted non-audit services to be provided by the independent auditors or any other registered public accounting firm engaged by us, including the fees and terms of the services to be performed;

 

Ø  

reviewing and discussing our annual audited financial statements and quarterly financial statements with management and the independent auditor;

 

Ø  

reviewing and discussing with the independent auditors all relationships the auditors have with us in order to evaluate their continued independence;

 

Ø  

setting clear hiring policies for employees or former employees of the independent auditors;

 

Ø  

setting clear policies for audit partner rotation in compliance with applicable laws and regulations;

 

Ø  

obtaining and reviewing a report, at least annually, from the independent auditors describing (i) the independent auditor’s internal quality-control procedures and (ii) any material issues raised by the most recent internal quality-control review, or peer review, of the audit firm, or by any inquiry or investigation by governmental or professional authorities within the preceding five years respecting one or more independent audits carried out by the firm and any steps taken to deal with such issues;

 

Ø  

establishing procedures for (i) the receipt, retention and treatment of complaints received by us regarding accounting, internal accounting controls, or auditing matters and (ii) the confidential, anonymous submission by our employees of concerns regarding questionable accounting or auditing matters;

 

Ø  

reviewing and approving any related party transaction required to be disclosed pursuant to Item 404 of Regulation S-K promulgated by the SEC prior to us entering into such transaction; and

 

Ø  

evaluating, on an annual basis, the audit committee’s performance and reporting regularly to the board of directors.

Compensation Committee

Prior to the consummation of this offering, we will establish a compensation committee of the board of directors.                ,                and                 will serve as members of our compensation committee. Under the NYSE listing standards and applicable SEC rules, we are required to have at least two members of the compensation committee, all of whom must be independent, subject to certain phase-in provisions which we are not taking advantage of.                ,                and                 meet the independent director standard under the NYSE listing standards applicable to members of the compensation committee.

 

 

 

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We will adopt a compensation committee charter, which details the principal functions of the compensation committee, including:

 

Ø  

reviewing and approving on an annual basis the corporate goals and objectives relevant to our Chief Executive Officer’s compensation, evaluating our Chief Executive Officer’s performance in light of such goals and objectives and, either as a committee or together with the other independent directors (as directed by the board), determining and approving the compensation level (if any) of our Chief Executive Officer based on such evaluation;

 

Ø  

setting salaries and approving incentive compensation awards and equity compensation plan awards for all Section 16 officers as designated by the board;

 

Ø  

reviewing on an annual basis our executive compensation policies and plans;

 

Ø  

implementing and administering our incentive compensation plans;

 

Ø  

assisting management in complying with our proxy statement and annual report disclosure requirements;

 

Ø  

if required, producing a report on executive compensation to be included in our annual proxy statement;

 

Ø  

reviewing, evaluating and recommending changes, if appropriate, to the compensation for directors; and

 

Ø  

evaluating, on an annual basis, the compensation committee’s performance.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, as indicated above, other than reimbursement of expenses, no compensation of any kind, including finders, consulting or other similar fees, will be paid to any of our initial stockholders, officers, directors, members of our strategic advisory group or any of their respective affiliates, prior to, or for any services they render in order to complete the consummation of a business combination, except that at the closing of our initial business combination, we may pay a customary financial consulting fee, which will not be made from the proceeds of this offering held in the trust account prior to the completion of our initial business combination. We may pay such financial consulting fee in the event such party or parties provide us with specific target company, industry, financial or market expertise, as well as insights, relationships, services or resources in order to assess, negotiate and consummate an initial business combination. The amount of any such financial consulting fee we pay will be based upon the prevailing market for similar services for comparable transactions at such time, and will be subject to the review of our audit committee pursuant to the audit committee’s policies and procedures relating to transactions that may present conflicts of interest. We would disclose any such fee in the proxy or tender offer materials used in connection with a proposed business combination. Accordingly, it is likely that prior to the consummation of an initial business combination, the compensation committee will only be responsible for the review and recommendation of any compensation arrangements to be entered into in connection with such initial business combination.

The charter will also provide that the compensation committee may, in its sole discretion, retain or obtain the advice of a compensation consultant, legal counsel or other adviser and will be directly responsible for the appointment, compensation and oversight of the work of any such adviser. However, before engaging or receiving advice from a compensation consultant, external legal counsel or any other adviser, the compensation committee will consider the independence of each such adviser, including the factors required by the NYSE and the SEC.

 

 

 

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DIRECTOR NOMINATIONS

Prior to the consummation of this offering, we will establish a nominating and corporate governance committee of the board of directors, which will consist of                ,                and                 , each of whom is an independent director under the NYSE’s listing standards. The nominating and corporate governance committee is responsible for overseeing the selection of persons to be nominated to serve on our board of directors. The nominating and corporate governance committee considers persons identified by its members, management, stockholders, investment bankers and others.

We will adopt a nominating and corporate governance committee charter, which details the principal functions of the nominating and corporate governance committee, including:

 

Ø  

identifying individuals qualified to become members of the board of directors;

 

Ø  

recruiting, reviewing and making recommendations to the board of directors regarding nominees for election or to fill vacancies on the board;

 

Ø  

developing the criteria and qualifications for membership on the board of directors;

 

Ø  

reviewing candidates proposed by stockholders, and conducting appropriate inquiries into the background and qualifications of any such candidates;

 

Ø  

reviewing the independence of each director and making a recommendation to the board of directors with respect to each director’s independence;

 

Ø  

developing and recommending to the board of directors the corporate governance guidelines applicable to us and reviewing our corporate governance guidelines at least annually;

 

Ø  

making recommendations to the board of directors with respect to the membership of the audit, compensation and nominating and corporate governance committees;

 

Ø  

overseeing the evaluation of the performance of the board of directors and its committees and management, on a continuing basis, including an annual self-evaluation of the performance of the nominating and corporate governance committee;

 

Ø  

reviewing our overall corporate governance and reporting to the board of directors on its findings and any recommendations; and

 

Ø  

monitoring and making recommendations regarding committee functions, contributions, and composition.

Guidelines for Selecting Director Nominees

The guidelines for selecting nominees, which are specified in the nominating and corporate governance committee charter, generally provide that persons to be nominated:

 

Ø  

should have demonstrated notable or significant achievements in business, education or public service;

 

Ø  

should possess the requisite intelligence, education and experience to make a significant contribution to the board of directors and bring a range of skills, diverse perspectives and backgrounds to its deliberations; and

 

Ø  

should have the highest ethical standards, a strong sense of professionalism and intense dedication to serving the interests of the stockholders.

The nominating and corporate governance committee will consider a number of qualifications relating to management and leadership experience, background and integrity and professionalism in evaluating a

 

 

 

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person’s candidacy for membership on the board of directors. The nominating and corporate governance committee may require certain skills or attributes, such as financial or accounting experience, to meet specific board needs that arise from time to time and will also consider the overall experience and makeup of its members to obtain a broad and diverse mix of board members. The nominating and corporate governance committee will not distinguish among nominees recommended by stockholders and other persons.

COMPENSATION COMMITTEE INTERLOCKS AND INSIDER PARTICIPATION

None of our officers currently serves, and in the past year have not served, as a member of the board of directors or compensation committee of any entity that has one or more officers serving on our board of directors.

CODE OF ETHICS

Prior to the consummation of this offering, we will adopt a code of ethics applicable to our directors, officers and employees. We will file a copy of our code of ethics as an exhibit to the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part. You will be able to review our code of ethics by accessing our public filings at the SEC’s web site at www.sec.gov. In addition, a copy of the code of ethics will be provided without charge upon request from us. We intend to disclose any amendments to or waivers of certain provisions of our code of ethics in a Current Report on Form 8-K.

CONFLICTS OF INTEREST

Each of our officers and directors presently has, and any of them in the future may have additional, fiduciary or contractual obligations to other entities pursuant to which such officer or director is or will be required to present a business combination opportunity to such entities. Accordingly, if any of our officers or directors becomes aware of a business combination opportunity which is suitable for an entity to which he or she has then-current fiduciary or contractual obligations, he or she will honor his or her fiduciary or contractual obligations to present such opportunity to such entity. In addition, we may, at our option, pursue an Affiliated Joint Acquisition with an entity to which an officer or director has a fiduciary or contractual obligation. Any such parties may co-invest with us in the target business at the time of our initial business combination, or we could raise additional proceeds to complete the acquisition by undertaking a specified future issuance to such parties. We do not believe, however, that the fiduciary duties or contractual obligations of our officers or directors will materially affect our ability complete our business combination. Our certificate of incorporation will provide that we renounce our interest in any corporate opportunity offered to any director or officer unless such opportunity is expressly offered to such person solely in his or her capacity as a director or officer of our company and such opportunity is one we are legally and contractually permitted to undertake and would otherwise be reasonable for us to pursue.

Our officers have agreed not to become an officer or director of any other special purpose acquisition company that has publicly filed a registration statement with the SEC until we have entered into a definitive agreement regarding our initial business combination or we have failed to complete our initial business combination within 24 months after the closing of this offering.

Potential investors should also be aware of the following other potential conflicts of interest:

 

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None of our officers or directors is required to commit his or her full time to our affairs and, accordingly, may have conflicts of interest in allocating his or her time among various business activities.

 

 

 

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In the course of their other business activities, our officers and directors may become aware of investment and business opportunities which may be appropriate for presentation to us as well as the other entities with which they are affiliated. Our management may have conflicts of interest in determining to which entity a particular business opportunity should be presented.

 

Ø  

Our initial stockholders, officers and directors have agreed to waive their redemption rights with respect to any founder shares and any public shares held by them in connection with the consummation of our initial business combination. Additionally, our initial stockholders, officers and directors have agreed to waive their redemption rights with respect to any founder shares held by them if we fail to consummate our initial business combination within 24 months after the closing of this offering or during any Extension Period, although they will be entitled to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to any public shares they hold if we fail to complete our initial business combination within the prescribed time frame. If we do not complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering, the proceeds of the sale of the private placement warrants held in the trust account will be used to fund the redemption of our public shares, and the private placement warrants will expire worthless. With certain limited exceptions, the founder shares will not be transferable, assignable or salable by our initial stockholders until the earlier of: (A) one year after the completion of our initial business combination and (B) subsequent to our initial business combination, (x) if the last reported sale price of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $12.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) for any 20 trading days within any 30-trading day period commencing at least 150 days after our initial business combination, or (y) the date on which we complete a liquidation, merger, capital stock exchange, reorganization or other similar transaction that results in all of our stockholders having the right to exchange their shares of common stock for cash, securities or other property. With certain limited exceptions, the private placement warrants, the warrants that may be issued upon conversion of working capital loans and the Class A common stock underlying such warrants, will not be transferable, assignable or salable by our sponsor or its permitted transferees until 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination. Since our officers and directors may directly or indirectly own common stock and warrants following this offering, our officers and directors may have a conflict of interest in determining whether a particular target business is an appropriate business with which to complete our initial business combination.

 

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Our officers and directors may have a conflict of interest with respect to evaluating a particular business combination if the retention or resignation of any such officers and directors was included by a target business as a condition to any agreement with respect to our initial business combination.

 

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Our officers or directors may have a conflict of interest with respect to evaluating a business combination and financing arrangements as we may obtain loans from them or their affiliates to finance transaction costs in connection with an intended initial business combination. Up to $1,500,000 of such loans may be convertible into warrants at a price of $1.00 per warrant at the option of the lender. Such warrants would be identical to the private placement warrants, including as to exercise price, exercisability and exercise period.

In general, officers and directors of a corporation incorporated under the laws of the State of Delaware are required to present business opportunities to a corporation if:

 

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the corporation could financially undertake the opportunity;

 

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the opportunity is within the corporation’s line of business; and

 

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it would not be fair to the corporation and its stockholders for the opportunity not to be brought to the attention of the corporation.

 

 

 

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Accordingly, as a result of multiple business affiliations, our officers and directors may have similar legal obligations relating to presenting business opportunities meeting the above-listed criteria to multiple entities. Furthermore, our certificate of incorporation will provide that we renounce our interest in any corporate opportunity offered to any director or officer unless such opportunity is expressly offered to such person solely in his or her capacity as a director or officer of our company and such opportunity is one we are legally and contractually permitted to undertake and would otherwise be reasonable for us to pursue.

Below is a table summarizing the entities to which our executive officers and directors currently have fiduciary duties or contractual obligations:

 

Individual    Entity    Entity’s Business    Affiliation
Makram Azar    Full Circle Capital Limited    Corporate finance   

Chief Executive Officer and

Director

  

 

Full Circle Capital Services Limited

  

 

Investment management and corporate finance

  

 

Chief Executive Officer and Director

Scott J. Freidheim    Freidheim Capital LLC    Family office (investment)    Managing Partner
   ettain group    IT staffing and solutions    Co-Chairman
Eli Muraidekh    Telamon Capital LLP    Investment    Chief Executive Officer, Chief Investment Officer and Director
John M. Basnage de Beauval   

Full Circle Capital Limited

 

Full Circle Capital Services Limited

  

Corporate finance

 

Investment management and corporate finance

  

Managing Director

 

Director

Xavier Rolet, KBE    Phosagro PJSC    Chemicals    Chairman and Director
  

 

Shore Capital Markets

  

 

Private equity

  

 

Chairman

  

 

Saudi Stock Exchange

  

 

Trading platform

  

 

Director

  

 

Seplat Petroleum Development Cy Plc

  

 

Petroleum

  

 

Director

  

 

Towerbrook Capital Partners LP

  

 

Investment management

  

 

Senior Advisory Board Member

  

 

Public Investment Fund

  

 

Investment fund

  

 

External Director – Portfolio Companies

  

 

Grayling Centennial LLC

  

 

Real Estate

  

 

Managing Member

   SCEA Dom de la Verriere    Winery    Director
   SCI La Verriere    Real Estate    Director
   SAS La Verriere    Hospitality    Director

 

 

 

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Individual    Entity    Entity’s Business    Affiliation
Dominique D’Hinnin    EUTELSAT Communications    Satellite service company    Chairman of the Board
   PRISA    Media group    Director
   EDENRED    Corporate services    Director
   Technicolor    Technology company    Director
   Louis Delhaize    Private retail    Director
I. Martin Pompadur   

Nexstar Media

Group, Inc.

   Television and media    Director
   Chicken Soup for the Soul Entertainment, Inc.    Media    Director
Isabelle Amiel Azoulai    La Maison    Private equity and venture capital    Founding & Managing Partner
   La Maison Israeli Technology Fund I    Venture Capital Fund    Director
   La Maison Israeli Technology Fund    Venture Capital Fund    Director
   La Maison Silicon Valley    Venture Capital Fund    Board Member/Advisory Committee
Mikael Breuer-Weil   

Marylebone

Partners LLP

   Asset management    Founding Partner and Chief Investment Officer

We are not prohibited from pursuing an initial business combination with a business that is affiliated with our initial stockholders, officers, or directors, or any of their respective affiliates. In the event we seek to complete our initial business combination with a business that is affiliated with our initial stockholders, officers or directors, or any of their affiliates, we, or a committee of independent directors, will obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm or another independent entity that commonly renders valuation opinions that our initial business combination is fair to us from a financial point of view.

In the event that we submit our initial business combination to our public stockholders for a vote, our initial stockholders, officers and directors have agreed to vote any founder shares and any public shares held by them in favor of our initial business combination.

LIMITATION ON LIABILITY AND INDEMNIFICATION OF OFFICERS AND DIRECTORS

Our certificate of incorporation will provide that our officers and directors will be indemnified by us to the fullest extent authorized by Delaware law, as it now exists or may in the future be amended. In addition, our certificate of incorporation will provide that our directors will not be personally liable for monetary damages to us or our stockholders for breaches of their fiduciary duty as directors, unless they violated their duty of loyalty to us or our stockholders, acted in bad faith, knowingly or intentionally violated the law, authorized unlawful payments of dividends, unlawful stock purchases or unlawful redemptions, or derived an improper personal benefit from their actions as directors.

 

 

 

 

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We will enter into agreements with our officers and directors to provide contractual indemnification in addition to the indemnification provided for in our certificate of incorporation. Our bylaws also will permit us to secure insurance on behalf of any officer, director or employee for any liability arising out of his or her actions, regardless of whether Delaware law would permit such indemnification. We expect to purchase a policy of directors’ and officers’ liability insurance that insures our officers and directors against the cost of defense, settlement or payment of a judgment in some circumstances and insures us against our obligations to indemnify our officers and directors. Our officers and directors have agreed to waive any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to any monies in the trust account, and have agreed to waive any right, title, interest or claim of any kind they may have in the future as a result of, or arising out of, any services provided to us and will not seek recourse against the trust account for any reason whatsoever (except to the extent they are entitled to funds from the trust account due to their ownership of public shares). Accordingly, any indemnification provided will only be able to be satisfied by us if (i) we have sufficient funds outside of the trust account or (ii) we complete an initial business combination.

Our indemnification obligations may discourage stockholders from bringing a lawsuit against our officers or directors for breach of their fiduciary duty. These provisions also may have the effect of reducing the likelihood of derivative litigation against our officers and directors, even though such an action, if successful, might otherwise benefit us and our stockholders. Furthermore, a stockholder’s investment may be adversely affected to the extent we pay the costs of settlement and damage awards against officers and directors pursuant to these indemnification provisions.

We believe that these provisions, the directors’ and officers’ liability insurance and the indemnification agreements are necessary to attract and retain talented and experienced officers and directors.

 

 

 

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The following table sets forth information regarding the beneficial ownership of our common stock as of the date of this prospectus, and as adjusted to reflect the sale of our common stock included in the units offered by this prospectus, and assuming no purchase of units in this offering, by:

 

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each person known by us to be the beneficial owner of more than 5% of our outstanding shares of common stock;

 

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each of our executive officers, directors and director nominees; and

 

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all our executive officers, directors and director nominees as a group.

Unless otherwise indicated, we believe that all persons named in the table have sole voting and investment power with respect to all shares of common stock beneficially owned by them. The following table does not reflect record or beneficial ownership of the private placement warrants as these warrants are not exercisable within 60 days of the date of this prospectus.

The post-offering numbers and percentages presented assume that the underwriters do not exercise their over-allotment option, that our initial stockholders forfeit an aggregate of 937,500 founder shares and that there are 31,250,000 shares of our common stock issued and outstanding after this offering.

 

     Before Offering     After Offering  
Name and Address of Beneficial Owner(1)    Number
of Shares
Beneficially
Owned(2)
     Approximate
Percentage of
Outstanding
Common Stock
    Number
of Shares
Beneficially
Owned(2)
     Approximate
Percentage of
Outstanding
Common Stock
 

Golden Falcon Sponsor Group, LLC(3)

     7,037,500        97.9     6,100,000        19.5

Scott J. Freidheim

     —          —         —          —    

Makram Azar

     —          —         —          —    

Eli Muraidekh

     —          —         —          —    

John M. Basnage de Beauval

     —          —         —          —    

Xavier Rolet, KBE

     30,000        *       30,000        *  

Dominique D’Hinnin

     30,000        *       30,000        *  

I. Martin Pompadur

     30,000        *       30,000        *  

Isabelle Amiel Azoulai

     30,000        *       30,000        *  

Mikael Breuer-Weil

     30,000        *       30,000        *  

All executive officers, directors and director nominees as a group (9 individuals)(4)

     7,187,500        100.0     6,250,000        20.0

 

*   Less than 1%.
(1)   Unless otherwise noted, the business address of each of the following entities or individuals is c/o Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp., 850 Library Avenue, Suite 204, Newark, Delaware 19711.
(2)   Interests shown consist solely of founder shares, classified as shares of Class B common stock. Shares of Class B common stock are convertible into shares of Class A common stock on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment, as described in the section of this prospectus entitled “Description of Securities.”
(3)  

Our sponsor is the record holder of such shares. Makram Azar, Scott J. Freidheim and Eli Muraidekh are the three managers of our sponsor. Any action by our sponsor with respect to the founder shares held by it, including voting and dispositive decisions, requires a majority vote of the board of managers. Accordingly, under the so-called “rule of three,” because voting and dipositive decisions are made by a majority of our sponsor’s managers, none of the managers of our sponsor is

 

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  deemed to be a beneficial owner of our sponsor’s securities, even those in which such manager holds a pecuniary interest. Accordingly, none of such individuals is deemed to have or share beneficial ownership of the founder shares held by our sponsor.
(4)   Although Messrs. Azar, Freidheim and Muraidekh disclaim beneficial ownership of the shares, for presentation purposes, such shares are included in the totals set forth in the table.

Immediately after this offering, our initial stockholders will beneficially own 20.0% of the then-issued and outstanding shares of our common stock (assuming they do not purchase any units in this offering). If we increase or decrease the size of this offering, we will effect a stock dividend or a share contribution back to capital or other appropriate mechanism, as applicable, with respect to our Class B common stock immediately prior to the consummation of this offering in such amount as to maintain the number of founder shares at 20% of the issued and outstanding shares of our common stock upon the consummation of this offering (assuming they do not purchase any units in this offering). Because of this ownership block, our initial stockholders may be able to effectively influence the outcome of all matters requiring approval by our stockholders, including the election of directors, amendments to our certificate of incorporation and approval of significant corporate transactions, including approval of our initial business combination.

Our sponsor, officers and directors have agreed (A) to vote any shares owned by them in favor of any proposed business combination and (B) not to redeem any shares in connection with a stockholder vote to approve a proposed initial business combination or amendment to our certificate of incorporation.

Our officers, directors and sponsor are deemed to be our “promoters” as such term is defined under the federal securities laws.

RESTRICTIONS ON TRANSFERS OF FOUNDER SHARES AND PRIVATE PLACEMENT WARRANTS

The founder shares and private placement warrants and any shares of Class A common stock issued upon conversion or exercise thereof are subject to transfer restrictions pursuant to lock-up provisions in agreements with us to be entered into by our initial stockholders, officers and directors. Those lock-up provisions provide that such securities are not transferable or salable (i) in the case of the founder shares, until the earlier of (A) one year after the completion of our initial business combination and (B) subsequent to our initial business combination, (x) if the last reported sale price of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $12.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) for any 20 trading days within any 30-trading day period commencing at least 150 days after our initial business combination, or (y) the date on which we complete a liquidation, merger, capital stock exchange, reorganization or other similar transaction that results in all of our stockholders having the right to exchange their shares of common stock for cash, securities or other property, and (ii) in the case of the private placement warrants, the warrants that may be issued upon conversion of working capital loans and the Class A common stock underlying such warrants, until 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination, except in each case (a) to our initial stockholders, officers, directors or members of our strategic advisory group, any affiliates or family members of any of our initial stockholders, officers, directors or members of our strategic advisory group or any affiliate of our initial stockholders, officers, directors or members of our strategic advisory group, (b) in the case of an individual, by gift to a member of the individual’s immediate family, to a trust, the beneficiary of which is a member of the individual’s immediate family or an affiliate of such person, or to a charitable organization; (c) in the case of an individual, by virtue of laws of descent and distribution upon death of the individual; (d) in the case of an individual, pursuant to a qualified domestic relations order; (e) by private sales or transfers made in connection with the

 

 

 

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consummation of a business combination at prices no greater than the price at which the securities were originally purchased; (f) in the event of our liquidation prior to the completion of our initial business combination; or (g) in the case of an entity, by virtue of the laws of its jurisdiction or operating agreement upon dissolution; provided, however, that in the case of clauses (a) through (g) these permitted transferees must enter into a written agreement agreeing to be bound by these transfer restrictions and the other restrictions contained in the letter agreement and by the same agreements entered into by our initial stockholders with respect to such securities (including provisions relating to voting, the trust account and liquidation distributions described elsewhere in this prospectus).

 

 

 

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Certain relationships and related party transactions

In September 2020, we issued 7,187,500 founder shares to our sponsor in exchange for a capital contribution of $25,000. Prior to the initial investment in the company of $25,000, we had no assets, tangible or intangible. The number of founder shares issued was determined based on the expectation that such founder shares would represent 20% of the outstanding shares upon completion of this offering. In November 2020, our sponsor transferred an aggregate of 150,000 founder shares to our independent director nominees. If we increase or decrease the size of this offering, we will effect a stock dividend or a share contribution back to capital or other appropriate mechanism, as applicable, with respect to our Class B common stock immediately prior to the consummation of this offering in such amount as to maintain the number of founder shares at 20% of the issued and outstanding shares of our common stock upon the consummation of this offering (assuming they do not purchase any units in this offering). Up to an aggregate of 937,500 founder shares are subject to forfeiture by our initial stockholders depending on the extent to which the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised. The founder shares (including the Class A common stock issuable upon exercise thereof) may not, subject to certain limited exceptions, be transferred, assigned or sold by the holder.

Our sponsor has agreed, pursuant to a written agreement, that it will purchase an aggregate of 7,000,000 (or 7,750,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) private placement warrants for a purchase price of $1.00 per warrant in a private placement that will occur simultaneously with the closing of this offering. As such, its interest in this transaction is valued at between $7,000,000 and $7,750,000, depending on the number of private placement warrants purchased. Each private placement warrant entitles the holder to purchase one share of our Class A common stock at $11.50 per share, subject to adjustment as provided herein. The private placement warrants (and the Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of such warrants) may not, subject to certain limited exceptions, be transferred, assigned or sold by the holder. There will be no redemption rights or liquidating distributions with respect to our founder shares or warrants, which will expire worthless if we fail to complete our business combination within the 24-month time period or during any Extension Period.

Commencing on the date that our securities are first listed on the NYSE through the earlier of completion of our initial business combination and our liquidation, we will reimburse Full Circle Capital Services Limited, an affiliate of our sponsor, for certain administrative, research, transaction and other support services provided to us in the total amount of up to $10,000 per month, for up to 24 months.

No compensation of any kind, including finder’s and consulting fees, will be paid by us to our initial stockholders, officers, directors and members of our strategic advisory group, or any of their respective affiliates, for services rendered prior to or in connection with the completion of an initial business combination, except that at the closing of our initial business combination, we may pay any of such individuals or entities a customary financial consulting fee, which will not be made from the proceeds of this offering held in the trust account prior to the completion of our initial business combination. We may pay such financial consulting fee in the event such party or parties provide us with specific target company, industry, financial or market expertise, as well as insights, relationships, services or resources in order to assess, negotiate and consummate an initial business combination. The amount of any such financial consulting fee we pay will be based upon the prevailing market for similar services for comparable transactions at such time, and will be subject to the review of our audit committee pursuant to the audit committee’s policies and procedures relating to transactions that may present conflicts of interest. We would disclose any such fee in the proxy or tender offer materials used in connection with a proposed business combination. However, these individuals will be reimbursed for any out-of-pocket expenses incurred in connection with activities on our behalf such as identifying potential

 

 

 

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target businesses and performing due diligence on suitable business combinations. Our audit committee will review on a quarterly basis all payments that were made by us to our initial stockholders, officers, directors or our or their affiliates and will determine which expenses and the amount of expenses that will be reimbursed. There is no cap or ceiling on the reimbursement of out-of-pocket expenses incurred by such persons in connection with activities on our behalf.

Our sponsor has agreed to loan us up to $200,000 to be used for a portion of the expenses of this offering. This loan is non-interest bearing, unsecured and is due at the earliest of December 31, 2020, the closing of this offering and our determination not to proceed with the offering. As of September 3, 2020, there was no outstanding balance under the note. The loan and advances will be repaid upon the closing of this offering out of the offering proceeds not held in the trust account.

In addition, in order to fund working capital deficiencies or finance transaction costs in connection with an intended initial business combination, our initial stockholders, officers, directors or their affiliates may, but are not obligated to, loan us funds on a non-interest basis as may be required. If we complete our initial business combination, we may repay such loaned amounts out of the proceeds of the trust account released to us. Otherwise, such loans would be repaid only out of funds held outside the trust account. In the event that our initial business combination does not close, we may use a portion of the working capital held outside the trust account to repay such loaned amounts but no proceeds from our trust account would be used to repay such loaned amounts. Up to $1,500,000 of such loans may be convertible into warrants, at a price of $1.00 per warrant at the option of the lender. The warrants would be identical to the private placement warrants. Except as described above, the terms of such loans, if any, have not been determined and no written agreements exist with respect to such loans. Prior to the completion of our initial business combination, we do not expect to seek loans from parties other than our initial stockholders, officers, directors or their affiliates as we do not believe third parties will be willing to loan such funds and provide a waiver against any and all rights to seek access to funds in our trust account.

After our initial business combination, members of our management team who remain with us, if any, may be paid consulting, management or other fees from the combined company with any and all amounts being fully disclosed to our stockholders, to the extent then known, in the tender offer or proxy solicitation materials, as applicable, furnished to our stockholders. It is unlikely the amount of such compensation will be known at the time of distribution of such tender offer materials or at the time of a stockholder meeting held to consider our initial business combination, as applicable, as it will be up to the directors of the post-combination business to determine executive and director compensation.

We will enter into indemnification agreements with each of our officers and directors. These agreements will require us to indemnify these individuals to the fullest extent permitted under Delaware law against liabilities that may arise by reason of their service to us, and to advance expenses incurred as a result of any proceeding against them as to which they could be indemnified.

We will enter into a registration rights agreement with respect to the founder shares, private placement warrants, and warrants that may be issued upon conversion of working capital loans (and their respective component securities) and the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the foregoing and upon conversion of the founder shares, which is described under the section of this prospectus entitled “Description of Securities—Registration Rights.”

RELATED PARTY POLICY

We have not yet adopted a formal policy for the review, approval or ratification of related party transactions. Accordingly, the transactions discussed above were not reviewed, approved or ratified in accordance with any such policy.

 

 

 

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Prior to the consummation of this offering, we will adopt a code of ethics requiring us to avoid, wherever possible, all conflicts of interests, except under guidelines or resolutions approved by our board of directors (or the appropriate committee of our board) or as disclosed in our public filings with the SEC. Under our code of ethics, conflict of interest situations will include any financial transaction, arrangement or relationship (including any indebtedness or guarantee of indebtedness) involving the company. A form of the code of ethics that we plan to adopt prior to the consummation of this offering will be filed as an exhibit to the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part.

In addition, our audit committee, pursuant to a written charter that we will adopt prior to the consummation of this offering, will be responsible for reviewing and approving related party transactions to the extent that we enter into such transactions. An affirmative vote of a majority of the members of the audit committee present at a meeting at which a quorum is present will be required in order to approve a related party transaction. A majority of the members of the entire audit committee will constitute a quorum. Without a meeting, the unanimous written consent of all of the members of the audit committee will be required to approve a related party transaction. A form of the audit committee charter that we plan to adopt prior to the consummation of this offering will be filed as an exhibit to the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part. We also require each of our directors and executive officers to complete a directors’ and officers’ questionnaire that solicits information about related party transactions.

These procedures are intended to determine whether any such related party transaction impairs the independence of a director or presents a conflict of interest on the part of a director, employee or officer.

In light of the involvement of our initial stockholders, officers and directors with other entities, we may decide to acquire one or more businesses or entities affiliated with them or otherwise acquire a business that later becomes affiliated with them or otherwise carry out non-arm’s length transactions with any of such parties. To minimize conflicts of interest, we have agreed not to consummate an initial business combination with an entity that is affiliated with any of our initial stockholders, officers or directors unless we, or a committee of independent directors, obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm or another independent entity that commonly renders valuation opinions that our initial business combination is fair to us from a financial point of view.

 

 

 

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Description of securities

We are a Delaware corporation and our affairs are governed by our certificate of incorporation and the DGCL. Pursuant to our certificate of incorporation, our authorized capital stock consists of 200,000,000 shares of Class A common stock, $0.0001 par value, 20,000,000 shares of Class B common stock, $0.0001 par value, and 1,000,000 shares of undesignated preferred stock, $0.0001 par value. The following description summarizes the material terms of our capital stock. Because it is only a summary, it may not contain all the information that is important to you.

UNITS

Each unit has an offering price of $10.00 and consists of one share of Class A common stock and one-half of one redeemable warrant. Each whole warrant entitles the holder thereof to purchase one share of our Class A common stock at a price of $11.50 per share, subject to adjustment as described in this prospectus. Pursuant to the warrant agreement, a warrant holder may exercise its warrants only for a whole number of shares of Class A common stock. This means that only a whole warrant may be exercised at any given time by a warrant holder. No fractional warrants will be issued upon separation of the units and only whole warrants will trade. Accordingly, unless you purchase at least two units, you will not be able to receive or trade a whole warrant.

The Class A common stock and warrants comprising the units will begin separate trading on the 52nd day following the date of this prospectus (or, if such date is not a business day, the following business day) unless UBS Securities LLC and Moelis & Co. inform us of their decision (based upon, among other things, their assessment of the relative strengths of the securities markets, of comparably capitalized companies and of blank check companies in general, and the trading pattern of, and demand for, our securities in particular) to allow earlier separate trading, subject to our having filed the Current Report on Form 8-K described below and having issued a press release announcing when such separate trading will begin. Once the shares of Class A common stock and warrants commence separate trading, holders will have the option to continue to hold units or separate their units into the component securities. Holders will need to have their brokers contact our transfer agent in order to separate the units into shares of Class A common stock and warrants. Additionally, we expect that the units will automatically separate into their component parts and will not be traded after completion of our initial business combination.

In no event will the Class A common stock and warrants be traded separately until we have filed with the SEC a Current Report on Form 8-K which includes an audited balance sheet reflecting our receipt of the gross proceeds at the closing of this offering. We will file a Current Report on Form 8-K which includes this audited balance sheet promptly after the completion of this offering. If the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised following the initial filing of such Current Report on Form 8-K, a second or amended Current Report on Form 8-K will be filed to provide updated financial information to reflect the exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option.

COMMON STOCK

Upon the closing of this offering, 31,250,000 shares of our common stock will be outstanding (assuming no exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option and the corresponding forfeiture of an aggregate of 937,500 founder shares by our initial stockholders), consisting of:

 

Ø  

25,000,000 shares of our Class A common stock underlying the units being offered in this offering; and

 

Ø  

6,250,000 shares of Class B common stock held by our initial stockholders.

 

 

 

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If we increase or decrease the size of this offering, we will effect a stock dividend or a share contribution back to capital or other appropriate mechanism, as applicable, with respect to our Class B common stock immediately prior to the consummation of this offering in such amount as to maintain the number of founder shares at 20% of the issued and outstanding shares of our common stock upon the consummation of this offering (assuming they do not purchase any units in this offering).

Common stockholders of record are entitled to one vote for each share held on all matters to be voted on by stockholders. Holders of the Class A common stock and holders of the Class B common stock will vote together as a single class on all matters submitted to a vote of our stockholders, except as required by law. Unless specified in our certificate of incorporation or bylaws, or as required by applicable provisions of the DGCL or applicable stock exchange rules, the affirmative vote of a majority of our shares of common stock that are voted is required to approve any such matter voted on by our stockholders. Our board of directors will be divided into three classes, each of which will generally serve for a term of three years with only one class of directors being elected in each year. There is no cumulative voting with respect to the election of directors, with the result that the holders of more than 50% of the shares voted for the election of directors can elect all of the directors. Our stockholders are entitled to receive ratable dividends when, as and if declared by the board of directors out of funds legally available therefor.

Because our certificate of incorporation authorizes the issuance of up to 200,000,000 shares of Class A common stock, if we were to enter into a business combination, we may (depending on the terms of such a business combination) be required to increase the number of shares of Class A common stock which we are authorized to issue at the same time as our stockholders vote on the business combination to the extent we seek stockholder approval in connection with our initial business combination.

In accordance with the NYSE corporate governance requirements, we are not required to hold an annual meeting until one year after our first fiscal year end following our listing on the NYSE. Under Section 211(b) of the DGCL, we are, however, required to hold an annual meeting of stockholders for the purposes of electing directors in accordance with our bylaws, unless such election is made by written consent in lieu of such a meeting. We may not hold an annual meeting of stockholders to elect new directors prior to the consummation of our initial business combination, and thus we may not be in compliance with Section 211(b) of the DGCL, which requires an annual meeting. Therefore, if our stockholders want us to hold an annual meeting prior to the consummation of our initial business combination, they may attempt to force us to hold one by submitting an application to the Delaware Court of Chancery in accordance with Section 211(c) of the DGCL.

We will provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their public shares upon the completion of our initial business combination at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, calculated as of two business days prior to the consummation of our initial business combination including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes, divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, subject to the limitations described herein. The amount in the trust account is initially anticipated to be $10.00 per public share. The per-share amount we will distribute to investors who properly redeem their shares will not be reduced by the deferred underwriting commissions we will pay to the Representatives. The redemption rights may include the requirement that a beneficial owner must identify itself in order to validly redeem its shares. Our initial stockholders, officers and directors have entered into agreements with us, pursuant to which they have agreed to waive their redemption rights with respect to any founder shares and any public shares held by them in connection with the completion of our initial business combination. If a stockholder vote is not required

 

 

 

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by applicable law or stock exchange listing requirements and we do not decide to hold a stockholder vote for business or other reasons, we will, pursuant to our certificate of incorporation, conduct the redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules of the SEC, and file tender offer documents with the SEC prior to completing our initial business combination. Our certificate of incorporation will require these tender offer documents to contain substantially the same financial and other information about the initial business combination and the redemption rights as is required under the SEC’s proxy rules. If, however, stockholder approval of the transaction is required by applicable law or stock exchange listing requirements, or we decide to obtain stockholder approval for business or other reasons, we will, like many blank check companies, offer to redeem shares in conjunction with a proxy solicitation pursuant to the proxy rules and not pursuant to the tender offer rules. If we seek stockholder approval, we will complete our initial business combination only if a majority of the outstanding shares of common stock voted are voted in favor of the business combination. A quorum for such meeting will consist of the holders present in person or by proxy of shares of outstanding capital stock of the company representing a majority of the voting power of all outstanding shares of capital stock of the company entitled to vote at such meeting.

If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination and we do not conduct redemptions in connection with our initial business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, our certificate of incorporation will provide that a public stockholder, together with any affiliate of such stockholder or any other person with whom such stockholder is acting in concert or as a “group” (as defined under Section 13 of the Exchange Act), will be restricted from redeeming any Excess Shares, without our consent. However, we would not be restricting our stockholders’ ability to vote all of their shares (including Excess Shares) for or against our initial business combination. Our stockholders’ inability to redeem the Excess Shares will reduce their influence over our ability to complete our initial business combination, and such stockholders could suffer a material loss in their investment if they sell such Excess Shares on the open market. Additionally, such stockholders will not receive redemption distributions with respect to the Excess Shares if we complete the business combination. And, as a result, such stockholders will continue to hold that number of shares exceeding 15% and, in order to dispose such shares would be required to sell their stock in open market transactions, potentially at a loss.

If we seek stockholder approval in connection with our initial business combination, our initial stockholders, officers and directors have agreed to vote any founder shares and any public shares held by them in favor of our initial business combination. As a result, in addition to their founder shares, we would need only 9,375,001, or 37.5% (assuming all outstanding shares are voted), of the 25,000,000 public shares sold in this offering to be voted in favor of a transaction in order to have our initial business combination approved (assuming the underwriters’ over-allotment option is not exercised). However, because we generally only need a majority of the outstanding shares to be voted in favor of a proposed business combination to have such transaction approved, the number of public shares needed to be voted in favor of any transaction decreases as the overall number of public shares voted decreases. Accordingly, we would need only 1,562,501, or 6.3%, of the 25,000,000 public shares sold in this offering to be voted in favor of a transaction if only the minimum number of shares representing a quorum are voted in order to have our initial business combination approved (assuming the underwriters’ over-allotment option is not exercised). Additionally, each public stockholder may elect to redeem its public shares irrespective of whether they vote for or against the proposed transaction or do not vote at all (subject to the limitation described in the preceding paragraph).

Pursuant to our certificate of incorporation, if we have not completed our initial business combination within such time period or during any Extension Period, we will: (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up; (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than ten business days

 

 

 

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thereafter, redeem the public shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidating distributions, if any); and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining stockholders and our board of directors, dissolve and liquidate, subject in the case of clauses (ii) and (iii) to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. Our initial stockholders have agreed to waive their rights to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to any founder shares held by them if we fail to complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering or during any Extension Period. However, if our initial stockholders acquire public shares in or after this offering, they will be entitled to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to such public shares if we fail to complete our business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering.

In the event of a liquidation, dissolution or winding up of the company after a business combination, our stockholders are entitled to share ratably in all assets remaining available for distribution to them after payment of liabilities and after provision is made for each class of stock, if any, having preference over the common stock. Our stockholders have no preemptive or other subscription rights. There are no sinking fund provisions applicable to the common stock, except that we will provide our stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their public shares for cash equal to their pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, upon the completion of our initial business combination, subject to the limitations described herein.

FOUNDER SHARES

The founder shares designated as Class B common stock and are identical to the shares of Class A common stock included in the units being sold in this offering, and holders of founder shares have the same stockholder rights as public stockholders, except that (i) the founder shares are subject to certain transfer restrictions, as described in more detail below, (ii) our initial stockholders, officers and directors have entered into agreements with us, pursuant to which they have agreed to waive (A) their redemption rights with respect to any founder shares and any public shares held by them in connection with the completion of our initial business combination, (B) their redemption rights with respect to any founder shares and any public shares held by them in connection with a stockholder vote to approve an amendment to our certificate of incorporation (x) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or certain amendments to our certificate of incorporation or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering or (y) with respect to any other provision relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity and (C) their rights to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to any founder shares held by them if we fail to complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering or during any Extension Period, although they will be entitled to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to any public shares they hold if we fail to complete our initial business combination within such time period, (iii) the founder shares are shares of our Class B common stock that will automatically convert into shares of our Class A common stock at the time of our initial business combination, or earlier at the option of the holder, on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment pursuant to certain anti-dilution rights as described herein and (iv) the holders are entitled to registration rights. If we submit our initial business combination to our public stockholders for a vote, our initial stockholders, officers and directors have agreed pursuant to the letter agreement to vote any founder

 

 

 

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shares and any public shares held by them in favor of our initial business combination. Permitted transferees of the founder shares and private placement warrants and their component securities will be subject to the same restrictions described herein applicable to the holders of such securities.

The shares of Class B common stock will automatically convert into shares of Class A common stock at the time of our initial business combination, or earlier at the option of the holder, on a one-for-one basis (subject to adjustment for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like, and subject to further adjustment as described herein). In the case that additional shares of Class A common stock, or equity-linked securities, are issued or deemed issued in excess of the amounts issued in this offering and related to the closing of our initial business combination (including pursuant to a specified future issuance), the ratio at which shares of Class B common stock shall convert into shares of Class A common stock will be adjusted (unless the holders of a majority of the then-outstanding shares of Class B common stock agree to waive such adjustment with respect to any such issuance or deemed issuance, including pursuant to a specified future issuance) so that the number of shares of Class A common stock issuable upon conversion of all shares of Class B common stock will equal, in the aggregate, on an as-converted basis, 20% of the sum of the total number of all shares of common stock outstanding upon the completion of this offering plus all shares of Class A common stock and equity-linked securities issued or deemed issued in connection with our initial business combination (excluding any shares or equity-linked securities issued or issuable to any seller in the initial business combination). We cannot determine at this time whether a majority of the holders of our Class B common stock at the time of any future issuance would agree to waive such adjustment to the conversion ratio. They may waive such adjustment due to (but not limited to) the following: (i) closing conditions which are part of the agreement for our initial business combination; (ii) negotiation with Class A stockholders on structuring an initial business combination; or (iii) negotiation with parties providing financing which would trigger the anti-dilution provisions of the Class B common stock. If such adjustment is not waived, the issuance would not reduce the percentage ownership of holders of our Class B common stock, but would reduce the percentage ownership of our public stockholders. If such adjustment is waived, the issuance would reduce the percentage ownership of holders of both classes of our common stock. Securities could be “deemed issued” for purposes of the conversion rate adjustment if such shares are issuable upon the conversion or exercise of convertible securities, warrants or similar securities.

With certain limited exceptions, the founder shares are not transferable, assignable or salable (except to our initial stockholders, officers and directors or their affiliates, each of whom will be subject to the same transfer restrictions) until the earlier of (A) one year after the completion of our initial business combination and (B) subsequent to our initial business combination, (x) if the last reported sale price of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $12.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) for any 20 trading days within any 30-trading day period commencing at least 150 days after our initial business combination, or (y) the date on which we complete a liquidation, merger, capital stock exchange, reorganization or other similar transaction that results in all of our stockholders having the right to exchange their shares of common stock for cash, securities or other property.

PREFERRED STOCK

Our certificate of incorporation will provide that shares of preferred stock may be issued from time to time in one or more series. Our board of directors will be authorized to fix the voting rights, if any, designations, powers, preferences, the relative, participating, optional or other special rights and any qualifications, limitations and restrictions thereof, applicable to the shares of each series. Our board of directors will be able to, without stockholder approval, issue preferred stock with voting and other rights that could adversely affect the voting power and other rights of the holders of the common stock and

 

 

 

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could have anti-takeover effects. The ability of our board of directors to issue preferred stock without stockholder approval could have the effect of delaying, deferring or preventing a change of control of us or the removal of existing management. We have no preferred stock outstanding at the date hereof. Although we do not currently intend to issue any shares of preferred stock, we cannot assure you that we will not do so in the future. No shares of preferred stock are being issued or registered in this offering.

REDEEMABLE WARRANTS

Public Stockholders’ Warrants

Each whole warrant entitles the registered holder to purchase one share of our Class A common stock at a price of $11.50 per share, subject to adjustment as discussed below, at any time commencing on the later of 12 months from the closing of this offering and 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination, except as described below. Pursuant to the warrant agreement, a warrant holder may exercise its warrants only for a whole number of shares of Class A common stock. This means that only a whole warrant may be exercised at any given time by a warrant holder. No fractional warrants will be issued upon separation of the units and only whole warrants will trade. Accordingly, unless you purchase at least two units, you will not be able to receive or trade a whole warrant. The warrants will expire five years after the completion of our initial business combination, at 5:00 p.m., New York City time, or earlier upon redemption or liquidation.

We will not be obligated to deliver any shares of Class A common stock pursuant to the exercise of a warrant and will have no obligation to settle such warrant exercise unless a registration statement under the Securities Act covering the issuance of the shares of Class A common stock underlying the warrants is then effective and a prospectus relating thereto is current, subject to our satisfying our obligations described below with respect to registration, or a valid exemption is available. No warrant will be exercisable and we will not be obligated to issue shares of Class A common stock upon exercise of a warrant unless Class A common stock issuable upon such warrant exercise has been registered, qualified or deemed to be exempt under the securities laws of the state of residence of the registered holder of the warrants. In the event that the conditions in the two immediately preceding sentences are not satisfied with respect to a warrant, the holder of such warrant will not be entitled to exercise such warrant and such warrant may have no value and expire worthless. In no event will we be required to net cash settle any warrant. In the event that a registration statement is not effective for the exercised warrants, the purchaser of a unit containing such warrant will have paid the full purchase price for the unit solely for the share of Class A common stock underlying such unit.

We have agreed that as soon as practicable, but in no event later than 15 business days after the closing of our initial business combination, we will use our reasonable best efforts to file, and within 60 business days following our initial business combination to have declared effective, a registration statement under the Securities Act covering the issuance of the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants. We will use our reasonable best efforts to maintain the effectiveness of such registration statement and a current prospectus relating to those shares of Class A common stock until the warrants expire or are redeemed. If a registration statement covering the issuance of the shares of our Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants is not effective by the 60th business day after the closing of the initial business combination, warrant holders may, until such time as there is an effective registration statement and during any period when we will have failed to maintain an effective registration statement, exercise warrants on a “cashless basis” in accordance with Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act or another exemption. In addition, if our Class A common stock is at the time of any exercise of a warrant not listed on a national securities exchange such that it satisfies the definition of a “covered security” under Section 18(b)(1) of the Securities Act, we may, at our option, require holders of

 

 

 

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public warrants who exercise their warrants to do so on a “cashless basis” in accordance with Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act and, in the event we so elect, we will not be required to file or maintain in effect a registration statement, but we will be required to use our best efforts to register or qualify the shares under applicable blue sky laws to the extent an exemption is not available.

Redemption of warrants when the price per share of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $18.00.     Once the warrants become exercisable, we may redeem the outstanding warrants (except as described herein with respect to the private placement warrants):

 

Ø  

in whole and not in part;

 

Ø  

at a price of $0.01 per warrant;

 

Ø  

upon not less than 30 days’ prior written notice of redemption (the “30-day redemption period”) to each warrant holder; and

 

Ø  

if, and only if, the last reported sale price of the Class A common stock equals or exceeds $18.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) for any 20 trading days within a 30-trading day period commencing once the warrants become exercisable and ending on the third trading day prior to the date on which we send the notice of redemption to the warrant holders.

If and when the warrants become redeemable by us, we may exercise our redemption right even if we are unable to register or qualify the underlying securities for sale under all applicable state securities laws. As a result, we may redeem the warrants as set forth above even if the holders are otherwise unable to exercise the warrants.

We have established the $18.00 per share (subject to adjustment) redemption criteria discussed above to prevent a redemption call unless there is at the time of the call a significant premium to the warrant exercise price. If the foregoing conditions are satisfied and we issue a notice of redemption of the warrants, each warrant holder will be entitled to exercise its warrant prior to the scheduled redemption date. However, the price of the Class A common stock may fall below the $18.00 redemption trigger price (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) as well as the $11.50 (for whole shares) warrant exercise price after the redemption notice is issued.

If we call the warrants for redemption for cash as described above, our management will have the option to require any holder that wishes to exercise its warrant to do so on a “cashless basis.” In determining whether to require all holders to exercise their warrants on a “cashless basis,” our management will consider, among other factors, our cash position, the number of warrants that are outstanding and the dilutive effect on our stockholders of issuing the maximum number of shares of Class A common stock issuable upon the exercise of our warrants. If our management takes advantage of this option, all holders of warrants would pay the exercise price by surrendering their warrants for that number of shares of Class A common stock equal to the quotient obtained by dividing (x) the product of the number of shares of Class A common stock underlying the warrants, multiplied by the excess of the “fair market value” (defined below) over the exercise price of the warrants by (y) the fair market value. The “fair market value” for this purpose shall mean the average last reported sale price of the Class A common stock for the 10 trading days ending on the third trading day prior to the date on which the notice of redemption is sent to the holders of warrants. If our management takes advantage of this option, the notice of redemption will contain the information necessary to calculate the number of shares of Class A common stock to be received upon exercise of the warrants, including the “fair market value” in such case. Requiring a cashless exercise in this manner will reduce the number of shares to be issued and

 

 

 

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thereby lessen the dilutive effect of a warrant redemption. We believe this feature is an attractive option to us if we do not need the cash from the exercise of the warrants after our initial business combination. If we call our warrants for redemption and our management does not take advantage of this option, our sponsor and its permitted transferees would still be entitled to exercise the private placement warrants for cash or on a cashless basis using the same formula described above that other warrant holders would have been required to use had all warrant holders been required to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis, as described in more detail below.

Redemption of warrants when the price per share of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00.     Commencing ninety days after the warrants become exercisable, we may redeem the outstanding warrants:

 

Ø  

in whole and not in part;

 

Ø  

at $0.10 per warrant upon a minimum of 30 days’ prior written notice of redemption provided that holders will be able to exercise their warrants prior to redemption and receive that number of shares of Class A common stock to be determined by reference to the table below, based on the redemption date and the “fair market value” of our Class A common stock (as defined below) except as otherwise described below;

 

Ø  

if, and only if, the last reported sale price of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) on the trading day prior to the date on which we send the notice of redemption to the warrant holders;

 

Ø  

if, and only if, the private placement warrants are also concurrently called for redemption on the same terms as the outstanding public warrants, as described above; and

 

Ø  

if, and only if, there is an effective registration statement covering the issuance of the shares of Class A common stock (or a security other than the Class A common stock into which the Class A common stock has been converted or exchanged for in the event we are not the surviving company in our initial business combination) issuable upon exercise of the warrants and a current prospectus relating thereto available throughout the 30-day period after written notice of redemption is given.

The numbers in the table below represent the number of shares of Class A common stock that a warrant holder will receive upon exercise in connection with a redemption by us pursuant to this redemption feature, based on the “fair market value” of our Class A common stock on the corresponding redemption date (assuming holders elect to exercise their warrants and such warrants are not redeemed for $0.10 per warrant), determined based on the average of the last reported sales price for the 10 trading days ending on the third trading day prior to the date on which the notice of redemption is sent to the holders of warrants, and the number of months that the corresponding redemption date precedes the expiration date of the warrants, each as set forth in the table below. Pursuant to the warrant agreement, references above to Class A common stock shall include a security other than Class A common stock into which the Class A common stock has been converted or exchanged for in the event we are not the surviving company in our initial business combination. The numbers in the tables below will not be adjusted solely as a result of us not being the surviving entity following our initial business combination.

The stock prices set forth in the column headings of the table below will be adjusted as of any date on which the number of shares issuable upon exercise of a warrant is adjusted as set forth in the first three paragraphs under the heading “—Anti-dilution Adjustments” below. The adjusted stock prices in the column headings will equal the stock prices immediately prior to such adjustment, multiplied by a

 

 

 

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fraction, the numerator of which is the number of shares deliverable upon exercise of a warrant immediately prior to such adjustment and the denominator of which is the number of shares deliverable upon exercise of a warrant as so adjusted. The number of shares in the table below shall be adjusted in the same manner and at the same time as the number of shares issuable upon exercise of a warrant.

 

Redemption
Date (period to
expiration of
warrants)

 

  Fair Market Value of Class A Common Stock  
  £$10.00     $11.00     $12.00     $13.00      $14.00      $15.00      $16.00      $17.00      ³$18.00  

57 months

    0.233       0.255       0.275       0.293        0.309        0.324        0.338        0.350        0.361  

54 months

    0.229       0.251       0.272       0.291        0.307        0.323        0.337        0.350        0.361  

51 months

    0.225       0.248       0.269       0.288        0.305        0.321        0.336        0.349        0.361  

48 months

    0.220       0.243       0.265       0.285        0.303        0.320        0.335        0.349        0.361  

45 months

    0.214       0.239       0.261       0.282        0.301        0.318        0.334        0.348        0.361  

42 months

    0.208       0.234       0.257       0.278        0.298        0.316        0.333        0.348        0.361  

39 months

    0.202       0.228       0.252       0.275        0.295        0.314        0.331        0.347        0.361  

36 months

    0.195       0.222       0.247       0.271        0.292        0.312        0.330        0.346        0.361  

33 months

    0.187       0.215       0.241       0.266        0.288        0.309        0.328        0.345        0.361  

30 months

    0.179       0.208       0.235       0.261        0.284        0.306        0.326        0.345        0.361  

27 months

    0.170       0.199       0.228       0.255        0.280        0.303        0.324        0.343        0.361  

24 months

    0.159       0.190       0.220       0.248        0.274        0.299        0.322        0.342        0.361  

21 months

    0.148       0.179       0.210       0.240        0.268        0.295        0.319        0.341        0.361  

18 months

    0.135       0.167       0.200       0.231        0.261        0.289        0.315        0.339        0.361  

15 months

    0.120       0.153       0.187       0.220        0.253        0.283        0.311        0.337        0.361  

12 months

    0.103       0.137       0.172       0.207        0.242        0.275        0.306        0.335        0.361  

9 months

    0.083       0.117       0.153       0.191        0.229        0.266        0.300        0.332        0.361  

6 months

    0.059       0.092       0.130       0.171        0.213        0.254        0.292        0.328        0.361  

3 months

    0.030       0.060       0.100       0.145        0.193        0.240        0.284        0.324        0.361  

0 months

    0.000       0.000       0.042       0.115        0.179        0.233        0.281        0.324        0.361  

For example, if the average last reported sale price of our Class A common stock for the 10 trading days ending on the third trading date prior to the date on which the notice of redemption is sent to the holders of the warrants is $11 per share, and at such time there are 57 months until the expiration of the warrants, holders may choose to, in connection with this redemption feature, exercise their warrants for 0.255 shares of Class A common stock for each whole warrant. However, the exact fair market value and redemption date may not be set forth in the table above, in which case, if the fair market value is between two values in the table or the redemption date is between two redemption dates in the table, the number of shares of Class A common stock to be issued for each warrant exercised will be determined by a straight-line interpolation between the number of shares set forth for the higher and lower fair market values and the earlier and later redemption dates, as applicable, based on a 365 or 366-day year, as applicable. For an example where the exact fair market value and redemption date are not as set forth in the table above, if the average last reported sale price of our Class A common stock for the 10 trading days ending on the third trading date prior to the date on which the notice of redemption is sent to the holders of the warrants is $13.50 per share, and at such time there are 38 months until the expiration of the warrants, holders may choose to, in connection with this redemption feature, exercise their warrants for 0.284 shares of Class A common stock for each whole warrant. In no event will the warrants be exercisable in connection with this redemption feature for more than 0.361 shares of Class A common stock per warrant. Once the average last reported sale price of our Class A common stock exceeds $18.00, we will have the option to redeem the warrants using this method or as described above under the heading “Redemption of warrants when the price per share of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $18.00.”

 

 

 

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This redemption feature differs from the typical warrant redemption features used in other blank check offerings, which typically only provide for a redemption of warrants only when the trading price for the Class A common stock exceeds $18.00 per share for a specified period of time. This redemption feature is structured to allow for all of the outstanding warrants to be redeemed when the Class A common stock is trading at or above $10.00 per share, which may be at a time when the trading price of our Class A common stock is below the exercise price of the warrants. We have established this redemption feature to provide us with the flexibility to redeem the warrants without the warrants having to reach the $18.00 per share threshold set forth above under “—Redemption of warrants when the price per share of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $18.00.” Holders choosing to exercise their warrants in connection with a redemption pursuant to this feature will, in effect, receive a number of shares representing the applicable redemption price for their warrants based on an option pricing model with a fixed volatility input as of the date of this prospectus. This redemption right provides us with an additional mechanism by which to redeem all of the outstanding warrants, and therefore have certainty as to our capital structure. As such, we would redeem the warrants in this manner when we believe it is in our best interest to update our capital structure to remove the warrants.

As stated above, we can redeem the warrants when the Class A common stock is trading at a price starting at $10.00, which is below the exercise price of $11.50, because it will provide certainty with respect to our capital structure and cash position while providing warrant holders with the opportunity to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis for the applicable number of shares. If we choose to redeem the warrants when the Class A common stock is trading at a price below the exercise price of the warrants, this could result in the warrant holders receiving fewer shares of Class A common stock than they would have received if they had exercised their warrants for shares of Class A common stock if and when the Class A common stock trades at a price higher than the exercise price of $11.50.

No fractional shares of Class A common stock will be issued upon exercise. If, upon exercise, a holder would be entitled to receive a fractional interest in a share, we will round up to the nearest whole number of the number of shares of Class A common stock to be issued to the holder. If, at the time of redemption, the warrants are exercisable for a security other than the shares of Class A common stock pursuant to the warrant agreement (for instance, if we are not the surviving company in our initial business combination), the warrants may be exercised for such security.

Exercise Limitations.    A holder of a warrant may notify us in writing in the event it elects to be subject to a requirement that such holder will not have the right to exercise such warrant, to the extent that after giving effect to such exercise, such person (together with such person’s affiliates), to the warrant agent’s actual knowledge, would beneficially own in excess of 4.8% or 9.8% (or such other amount as a holder may specify) of the shares of Class A common stock outstanding immediately after giving effect to such exercise.

Anti-Dilution Adjustments.    If the number of outstanding shares of Class A common stock is increased by a stock dividend payable in shares of Class A common stock, or by a split-up of shares of Class A common stock or other similar event, then, on the effective date of such stock dividend, split-up or similar event, the number of shares of Class A common stock issuable on exercise of each warrant will be increased in proportion to such increase in the outstanding shares of Class A common stock. A rights offering to holders of Class A common stock entitling holders to purchase shares of Class A common stock at a price less than the fair market value will be deemed a stock dividend of a number of shares of Class A common stock equal to the product of (i) the number of shares of Class A common stock actually sold in such rights offering (or issuable under any other equity securities sold in such rights offering that are convertible into or exercisable for Class A common stock) multiplied by (ii) one

 

 

 

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(1) minus the quotient of (x) the price per share of Class A common stock paid in such rights offering divided by (y) the fair market value. For these purposes (i) if the rights offering is for securities convertible into or exercisable for Class A common stock, in determining the price payable for Class A common stock, there will be taken into account any consideration received for such rights, as well as any additional amount payable upon exercise or conversion and (ii) fair market value means the volume weighted average price of Class A common stock as reported during the ten (10) trading day period ending on the trading day prior to the first date on which the shares of Class A common stock trade on the applicable exchange or in the applicable market, regular way, without the right to receive such rights.

In addition, if we, at any time while the warrants are outstanding and unexpired, pay a dividend or make a distribution in cash, securities or other assets to the holders of Class A common stock on account of such shares of Class A common stock (or other shares of our capital stock into which the warrants are convertible), other than (a) as described above, (b) certain ordinary cash dividends, (c) to satisfy the redemption rights of the holders of Class A common stock in connection with a proposed initial business combination, (d) to satisfy the redemption rights of the holders of Class A common stock in connection with a stockholder vote to amend our certificate of incorporation (i) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we have not completed our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering or (ii) with respect to any other provision relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity, or (e) in connection with the redemption of our public shares upon our failure to complete our initial business combination, then the warrant exercise price will be decreased, effective immediately after the effective date of such event, by the amount of cash and/or the fair market value of any securities or other assets paid on each share of Class A common stock in respect of such event.

If the number of outstanding shares of our Class A common stock is decreased by a consolidation, combination, reverse stock split or reclassification of shares of Class A common stock or other similar event, then, on the effective date of such consolidation, combination, reverse stock split, reclassification or similar event, the number of shares of Class A common stock issuable on exercise of each warrant will be decreased in proportion to such decrease in outstanding shares of Class A common stock.

Whenever the number of shares of Class A common stock purchasable upon the exercise of the warrants is adjusted, as described above, the warrant exercise price will be adjusted by multiplying the warrant exercise price immediately prior to such adjustment by a fraction (x) the numerator of which will be the number of shares of Class A common stock purchasable upon the exercise of the warrants immediately prior to such adjustment, and (y) the denominator of which will be the number of shares of Class A common stock so purchasable immediately thereafter.

In case of any reclassification or reorganization of the outstanding shares of Class A common stock (other than those described above or that solely affects the par value of such shares of Class A common stock), or in the case of any merger or consolidation of us with or into another corporation (other than a consolidation or merger in which we are the continuing corporation and that does not result in any reclassification or reorganization of our outstanding shares of Class A common stock), or in the case of any sale or conveyance to another corporation or entity of the assets or other property of us as an entirety or substantially as an entirety in connection with which we are dissolved, the holders of the warrants will thereafter have the right to purchase and receive, upon the basis and upon the terms and conditions specified in the warrants and in lieu of the shares of our Class A common stock immediately theretofore purchasable and receivable upon the exercise of the rights represented thereby, the kind and amount of shares of stock or other securities or property (including cash) receivable upon such

 

 

 

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reclassification, reorganization, merger or consolidation, or upon a dissolution following any such sale or transfer, that the holder of the warrants would have received if such holder had exercised their warrants immediately prior to such event. If less than 70% of the consideration receivable by the holders of Class A common stock in such a transaction is payable in the form of common stock in the successor entity that is listed for trading on a national securities exchange or is quoted in an established over-the-counter market, or is to be so listed for trading or quoted immediately following such event, and if the registered holder of the warrant properly exercises the warrant within thirty days following public disclosure of such transaction, the warrant exercise price will be reduced as specified in the warrant agreement based on the Black-Scholes value (as defined in the warrant agreement) of the warrant. The warrants will be issued in registered form under a warrant agreement between Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, as warrant agent, and us. You should review a copy of the warrant agreement, which will be filed as an exhibit to the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part, for a complete description of the terms and conditions applicable to the warrants. The warrant agreement provides that the terms of the warrants may be amended without the consent of any holder to cure any ambiguity or correct any defective provision, but requires the approval by the holders of at least 50% of the then outstanding public warrants to make any change that adversely affects the interests of the registered holders of public warrants.

In addition, if (x) we issue additional shares or equity-linked securities for capital raising purposes in connection with the closing of our initial business combination at a Newly Issued Price of less than $9.20 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, rights issuances, subdivisions, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like), (y) the aggregate gross proceeds from such issuances represent more than 60% of the total equity proceeds, and interest thereon, available for the funding of our initial business combination on the date of the consummation of our initial business combination (net of redemptions), and the Market Value is below $9.20 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, rights issuances, subdivisions, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like), then the exercise price of each warrant will be adjusted (to the nearest cent) such that the effective exercise price per full share will be equal to 115% of the higher of the Market Value and the Newly Issued Price, and the $10.00 and $18.00 per-share redemption trigger price described under “—Redeemable Warrants—Public Stockholders’ Warrants—Redemption of warrants when the price per share of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $18.00” and “—Redeemable Warrants—Public Stockholders’ Warrants—Redemption of warrants when the price per share of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00” will be adjusted (to the nearest cent) to be equal to 100% and 180% of the higher of the Market Value and the Newly Issued Price. This may make it more difficult for us to consummate an initial business combination with a target business.

The warrant holders do not have the rights or privileges of holders of Class A common stock or any voting rights until they exercise their warrants and receive shares of Class A common stock. After the issuance of shares of Class A common stock upon exercise of the warrants, each holder will be entitled to one (1) vote for each share held of record on all matters to be voted on by stockholders.

No fractional shares will be issued upon exercise of the warrants. If, upon exercise of the warrants, a holder would be entitled to receive a fractional interest in a share, we will, upon exercise, round up to the nearest whole number of shares of Class A common stock to be issued to the warrant holder.

Private Placement Warrants

The private placement warrants (including the warrants that may be issued upon conversion of working capital loans and the Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of such warrants) will not be transferable, assignable or salable until 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination

 

 

 

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(except as described under the section of this prospectus entitled “Principal Stockholders—Restrictions on Transfers of Founder Shares and Private Placement Warrants,” each of which will be subject to the same transfer restrictions) and they will not be redeemable by us so long as they are held by our sponsor or its permitted transferees (except as described under “Description of Securities—Redeemable Warrants—Public Stockholders’ Warrants—Redemption of warrants when the price per share of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00”). Our sponsor, or its permitted transferees, have the option to exercise the private placement warrants on a cashless basis and our sponsor or its permitted transferees will also have certain registration rights related to the private placement warrants (including the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the private placement warrants), as described below. Otherwise, the private placement warrants have terms and provisions that are identical to those of the warrants being sold as part of the units in this offering, including as to exercise price, exercisability and exercise period. If the private placement warrants are held by holders other than our sponsor or its permitted transferees, the private placement warrants will be redeemable by us in all redemption scenarios and exercisable by the holders on the same basis as the warrants included in the units being sold in this offering. Each of the warrants that may be issued upon conversion of working capital loans shall be identical to the private placement warrants.

If holders of the private placement warrants elect to exercise them on a cashless basis other than in connection with the above $10.00 redemption, they would pay the exercise price by surrendering their warrants for that number of shares of Class A common stock equal to the quotient obtained by dividing (x) the product of the number of shares of Class A common stock underlying the warrants, multiplied by the excess of the “private warrant fair market value” (defined below) over the exercise price of the warrants by (y) the private warrant fair market value. The “private warrant fair market value” shall mean the average last reported sale price of the Class A common stock for the 10 trading days ending on the third trading day prior to the date on which the notice of warrant exercise is sent to the warrant agent. The reason that we have agreed that these warrants will be exercisable on a cashless basis so long as they are held by our sponsor or its permitted transferees is because it is not known at this time whether they will be affiliated with us following an initial business combination. If they remain affiliated with us, their ability to sell our securities in the open market will be significantly limited. We expect to have policies in place that prohibit insiders from selling our securities except during specific periods of time. Even during such periods of time when insiders will be permitted to sell our securities, an insider cannot trade in our securities if he or she is in possession of material non-public information. Accordingly, unlike public stockholders who could sell the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants freely in the open market, the insiders could be significantly restricted from doing so. As a result, we believe that allowing the holders to exercise such warrants on a cashless basis is appropriate.

In order to fund working capital deficiencies finance transaction costs in connection with an intended initial business combination, our initial stockholders, officers and directors may, but are not obligated to, loan us funds on a non-interest basis as may be required. Up to $1,500,000 of such loans may be convertible into warrants, at a price of $1.00 per warrant at the option of the lender. The warrants would be identical to the private placement warrants.

DIVIDENDS

We have not paid any cash dividends on our common stock to date and do not intend to pay cash dividends prior to the completion of our initial business combination. The payment of cash dividends in the future will be dependent upon our revenues and earnings, if any, capital requirements and general financial condition subsequent to completion of our initial business combination. Further, if we incur any indebtedness in connection with our initial business combination, our ability to declare dividends may be

 

 

 

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limited by restrictive covenants we may agree to in connection therewith. If we increase the size of this offering, we will effect a stock dividend or other appropriate mechanism with respect to our Class B common stock immediately prior to the consummation of this offering in such amount as to maintain the number of founder shares at 20% of the issued and outstanding shares of our common stock upon the consummation of this offering (assuming they do not purchase any units in this offering).

OUR TRANSFER AGENT AND WARRANT AGENT

The transfer agent for our common stock and warrant agent for our warrants is Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company. We have agreed to indemnify Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company in its roles as transfer agent and warrant agent, its agents and each of its stockholders, directors, officers and employees against all claims and losses that may arise out of acts performed or omitted for its activities in that capacity, except for any liability due to any gross negligence, willful misconduct or bad faith of the indemnified person or entity.

OUR CERTIFICATE OF INCORPORATION

Our certificate of incorporation will contain certain requirements and restrictions relating to this offering that will apply to us until the completion of our initial business combination. These provisions cannot be amended without the approval of the holders of at least 65% of our outstanding common stock. Our initial stockholders, who will collectively beneficially own 20.0% of our common stock upon the closing of this offering (assuming they do not purchase any units in this offering), may participate in any vote to amend our certificate of incorporation and will have the discretion to vote in any manner they choose. Specifically, our certificate of incorporation provides, among other things, that:

 

Ø  

If we have not completed our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering, we will: (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up; (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than ten business days thereafter, redeem the public shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidating distributions, if any); and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining stockholders and our board of directors, dissolve and liquidate, subject in the case of clauses (ii) and (iii) to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law;

 

Ø  

We may not issue additional securities that would entitle the holders thereof, prior to our initial business combination, to (1) receive funds from the trust account or (2) vote as a class with our public shares (a) on any initial business combination or (b) to approve an amendment to our certificate of incorporation;

 

Ø  

In the event we seek to complete our initial business combination with a business that is affiliated with our initial stockholders, officers or directors, or any of their affiliates, we, or a committee of independent directors, will obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm or another independent entity that commonly renders valuation opinions that our initial business combination is fair to us from a financial point of view;

 

Ø  

If a stockholder vote on our initial business combination is not required by applicable law and we do not decide to hold a stockholder vote for business or other reasons, we will offer to redeem our public shares pursuant to Rule 13e-4 and Regulation 14E of the Exchange Act, and will file tender offer

 

 

 

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  documents with the SEC prior to completing our initial business combination which contain substantially the same financial and other information about our initial business combination and the redemption rights as is required under Regulation 14A of the Exchange Act;

 

Ø  

Our initial business combination must occur with one or more target businesses that together have an aggregate fair market value of at least 80% of the assets held in the trust account (excluding the deferred underwriting commissions and taxes payable on the income earned on the trust account) at the time of the agreement to enter into the initial business combination;

 

Ø  

If our stockholders approve an amendment to our certificate of incorporation (i) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or any amendments to our certificate of incorporation specified in this paragraph or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering or (ii) with respect to any other provisions relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity, we will provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their shares of Class A common stock upon such approval at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes, divided by the number of then outstanding public shares; and

 

Ø  

We will not complete our initial business combination solely with another blank check company or a similar company with nominal operations.

In addition, our certificate of incorporation will provide that we will only redeem our public shares so long as (after such redemption) our net tangible assets will be at least $5,000,001 either immediately prior to or upon consummation of our initial business combination.

CERTAIN ANTI-TAKEOVER PROVISIONS OF DELAWARE LAW AND OUR CERTIFICATE OF INCORPORATION AND BYLAWS

We will be subject to the provisions of Section 203 of the DGCL regulating corporate takeovers upon completion of this offering. This statute prevents certain Delaware corporations, under certain circumstances, from engaging in a “business combination” with:

 

Ø  

a stockholder who owns 15% or more of our outstanding voting stock (otherwise known as an “interested stockholder”);

 

Ø  

an affiliate of an interested stockholder; or

 

Ø  

an associate of an interested stockholder, for three years following the date that the stockholder became an interested stockholder.

A “business combination” includes a merger or sale of more than 10% of our assets. However, the above provisions of Section 203 do not apply if:

 

Ø  

our board of directors approves the transaction that made the stockholder an “interested stockholder,” prior to the date of the transaction;

 

Ø  

after the completion of the transaction that resulted in the stockholder becoming an interested stockholder, that stockholder owned at least 85% of our voting stock outstanding at the time the transaction commenced, other than statutorily excluded shares of common stock; or

 

Ø  

on or subsequent to the date of the transaction, the business combination is approved by our board of directors and authorized at a meeting of our stockholders, and not by written consent, by an

 

 

 

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  affirmative vote of at least two-thirds of the outstanding voting stock not owned by the interested stockholder.

Our certificate of incorporation will provide that our board of directors will be classified into three classes of directors. As a result, in most circumstances, a person can gain control of our board only by successfully engaging in a proxy contest at two or more annual meetings.

Our authorized but unissued common stock and preferred stock will be available for future issuances without stockholder approval (including a specified future issuance) and could be utilized for a variety of corporate purposes, including future offerings to raise additional capital, acquisitions and employee benefit plans. The existence of authorized but unissued and unreserved common stock and preferred stock could render more difficult or discourage an attempt to obtain control of us by means of a proxy contest, tender offer, merger or otherwise.

Exclusive Forum For Certain Lawsuits

Our certificate of incorporation will require, unless we consent in writing to the selection of an alternative forum, that (i) any derivative action or proceeding brought on our behalf, (ii) any action asserting a claim of breach of a fiduciary duty owed by any director, officer or other employee to us or our stockholders, (iii) any action asserting a claim against us, our directors, officers or employees arising pursuant to any provision of the DGCL or our certificate of incorporation or bylaws, or (iv) any action asserting a claim against us, our directors, officers or employees governed by the internal affairs doctrine may be brought only in the Court of Chancery in the State of Delaware, except any claim (A) as to which the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware determines that there is an indispensable party not subject to the jurisdiction of the Court of Chancery (and the indispensable party does not consent to the personal jurisdiction of the Court of Chancery within ten days following such determination), (B) which is vested in the exclusive jurisdiction of a court or forum other than the Court of Chancery, (C) for which the Court of Chancery does not have subject matter jurisdiction, or (D) any action arising under the Securities Act, as to which the Court of Chancery and the federal district court for the District of Delaware shall have concurrent jurisdiction. If an action is brought outside of Delaware, the stockholder bringing the suit will be deemed to have consented to service of process on such stockholder’s counsel. Although we believe this provision benefits us by providing increased consistency in the application of Delaware law in the types of lawsuits to which it applies, a court may determine that this provision is unenforceable, and to the extent it is enforceable, the provision may have the effect of discouraging lawsuits against our directors and officers, although our stockholders will not be deemed to have waived our compliance with federal securities laws and the rules and regulations thereunder.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, our certificate of incorporation will provide that the exclusive forum provision will not apply to suits brought to enforce a duty or liability created by the Exchange Act or any other claim for which the federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction. Section 27 of the Exchange Act creates exclusive federal jurisdiction over all suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Exchange Act or the rules and regulations thereunder.

Special Meeting of Stockholders

Our bylaws provide that special meetings of our stockholders may be called only by a majority vote of our board of directors, by our Chief Executive Officer or by our Chairman.

Advance Notice Requirements for Stockholder Proposals and Director Nominations

Our bylaws provide that stockholders seeking to bring business before our annual meeting of stockholders, or to nominate candidates for election as directors at our annual meeting of stockholders,

 

 

 

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must provide timely notice of their intent in writing. To be timely, a stockholder’s notice will need to be received by the company secretary at our principal executive offices not later than the close of business on the 90th day nor earlier than the close of business on the 120th day prior to the anniversary date of the immediately preceding annual meeting of stockholders. Pursuant to Rule 14a-8 of the Exchange Act, proposals seeking inclusion in our annual proxy statement must comply with the notice periods contained therein. Our bylaws also specify certain requirements as to the form and content of a stockholders’ meeting. These provisions may preclude our stockholders from bringing matters before our annual meeting of stockholders or from making nominations for directors at our annual meeting of stockholders.

Action by Written Consent

Subsequent to the consummation of the offering, any action required or permitted to be taken by our common stockholders must be effected by a duly called annual or special meeting of such stockholders and may not be effected by written consent of the stockholders other than with respect to our Class B common stock.

Classified Board of Directors

Our board of directors will initially be divided into three classes, Class I, Class II and Class III, with members of each class serving staggered three-year terms. Our certificate of incorporation will provide that the authorized number of directors may be changed only by resolution of the board of directors. Subject to the terms of any preferred stock, any or all of the directors may be removed from office at any time, but only for cause and only by the affirmative vote of holders of a majority of the voting power of all then outstanding shares of our capital stock entitled to vote generally in the election of directors, voting together as a single class. Any vacancy on our board of directors, including a vacancy resulting from an enlargement of our board of directors, may be filled only by vote of a majority of our directors then in office.

Class B Common Stock Consent Right

For so long as any shares of Class B common stock remain outstanding, we may not, without the prior vote or written consent of the holders of a majority of the shares of Class B common stock then outstanding, voting separately as a single class, amend, alter or repeal any provision of our certificate of incorporation, whether by merger, consolidation or otherwise, if such amendment, alteration or repeal would alter or change the powers, preferences or relative, participating, optional or other or special rights of the Class B common stock. Any action required or permitted to be taken at any meeting of the holders of Class B common stock may be taken without a meeting, without prior notice and without a vote, if a consent or consents in writing, setting forth the action so taken, shall be signed by the holders of the outstanding Class B common stock having not less than the minimum number of votes that would be necessary to authorize or take such action at a meeting at which all shares of Class B common stock were present and voted.

SECURITIES ELIGIBLE FOR FUTURE SALE

Immediately after the consummation of this offering (assuming no exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option) we will have 31,250,000 (or 35,937,500 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) shares of common stock outstanding. Of these shares, the 25,000,000 shares (or 28,750,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) sold in this offering will be freely tradable without restriction or further registration under the Securities Act, except for any shares purchased by one of our affiliates within the meaning of Rule 144 under the Securities Act. All of the

 

 

 

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remaining shares and all private placement warrants are restricted securities under Rule 144, in that they were issued in private transactions not involving a public offering, and the shares of Class B common stock and private placement warrants are subject to transfer restrictions as set forth elsewhere in this prospectus. These restricted securities will be subject to registration rights as more fully described below under “—Registration Rights.”

RULE 144

Pursuant to Rule 144, a person who has beneficially owned restricted shares of our common stock or warrants for at least six months would be entitled to sell their securities provided that (i) such person is not deemed to have been one of our affiliates at the time of, or at any time during the three months preceding, a sale and (ii) we are subject to the Exchange Act periodic reporting requirements for at least three months before the sale and have filed all required reports under Section 13 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act during the 12 months (or such shorter period as we were required to file reports) preceding the sale.

Persons who have beneficially owned restricted shares of our common stock or warrants for at least six months but who are our affiliates at the time of, or at any time during the three months preceding, a sale, would be subject to additional restrictions, by which such person would be entitled to sell within any three-month period only a number of securities that does not exceed the greater of:

 

Ø  

1% of the total number of shares of Class A common stock then outstanding, which will equal 312,500 shares immediately after this offering (or 359,375 if the underwriters exercise their over-allotment option in full); or

 

Ø  

the average weekly reported trading volume of the Class A common stock during the four calendar weeks preceding the filing of a notice on Form 144 with respect to the sale.

Sales by our affiliates under Rule 144 are also limited by manner of sale provisions and notice requirements and to the availability of current public information about us.

RESTRICTIONS ON THE USE OF RULE 144 BY SHELL COMPANIES OR FORMER SHELL COMPANIES

Rule 144 is not available for the resale of securities initially issued by shell companies (other than business combination related shell companies) or issuers that have been at any time previously a shell company. However, Rule 144 also includes an important exception to this prohibition if the following conditions are met:

 

Ø  

the issuer of the securities that was formerly a shell company has ceased to be a shell company;

 

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the issuer of the securities is subject to the reporting requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act;

 

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the issuer of the securities has filed all Exchange Act reports and materials required to be filed, as applicable, during the preceding 12 months (or such shorter period that the issuer was required to file such reports and materials), other than Current Reports on Form 8-K; and

 

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at least one year has elapsed from the time that the issuer filed current Form 10 type information with the SEC reflecting its status as an entity that is not a shell company.

As a result, our initial stockholders will be able to sell their founder shares and private placement warrants, as applicable, pursuant to Rule 144 without registration one year after we have completed our initial business combination.

 

 

 

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REGISTRATION RIGHTS

We will enter into a registration rights agreement with the holders of the founder shares and private placement warrants. The holders will have registration rights to require us to register the sale of any of our securities held by them pursuant to a registration rights agreement to be signed prior to or on the effective date of this offering. The holders of the majority of these securities will be entitled to make up to three demands, excluding short form registration demands, that we register such securities for sale under the Securities Act. In addition, these holders will have certain “piggy-back” registration rights to include their securities in other registration statements filed subsequent to our completion of our initial business combination and rights to require us to register for resale such securities pursuant to Rule 415 under the Securities Act. However, the registration rights agreement provides that we will not permit any registration statement filed under the Securities Act to become effective until termination of the applicable lockup period, which occurs (i) in the case of the founder shares, as described in the following paragraph, and (ii) in the case of the private placement warrants and the respective shares of our Class A common stock underlying such warrants, 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination. We will bear the expenses incurred in connection with the filing of any such registration statements.

Except as described herein, our sponsor and our directors and officers have agreed not to transfer, assign or sell any of their founder shares until the earlier to occur of (A) one year after the completion of our initial business combination and (B) subsequent to our initial business combination, (x) if the last reported sale price of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $12.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) for any 20 trading days within any 30-trading day period commencing at least 150 days after our initial business combination, or (y) the date on which we complete a liquidation, merger, capital stock exchange, reorganization or other similar transaction that results in all of our stockholders having the right to exchange their shares of common stock for cash, securities or other property. Any permitted transferees will be subject to the same restrictions and other agreements of our sponsor with respect to any founder shares. We refer to such transfer restrictions throughout this prospectus as the lock-up.

LISTING OF SECURITIES

We intend to apply to have our units listed on the NYSE under the symbol “GFX.U” on or promptly after the date of this prospectus. Following the date the shares of our Class A common stock and public warrants are eligible to trade separately, we anticipate that our Class A common stock and public warrants will be separately listed on the NYSE under the symbols “GFX” and “GFX WS”, respectively. We cannot assure you that our securities will be approved for listing on the NYSE.

 

 

 

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United States federal income tax considerations

The following is a discussion of certain U.S. federal income tax considerations generally applicable to the ownership and disposition of our units, shares of Class A common stock and warrants, which we refer to collectively as our securities. Because the components of a unit are separable at the option of the holder, the holder of a unit generally should be treated, for U.S. federal income tax purposes, as the owner of the underlying Class A common stock and one-half of one redeemable warrant components of the unit, as the case may be. As a result, the discussion below with respect to actual holders of Class A common stock and warrants should also apply to holders of units (as the deemed owners of the underlying Class A common stock and warrants that comprise the units). This discussion applies only to securities that are held as capital assets for U.S. federal income tax purposes and is applicable only to holders who purchased units in this offering.

This discussion is a summary only and does not describe all of the tax consequences that may be relevant to you in light of your particular circumstances, including but not limited to the alternative minimum tax, the Medicare tax on certain investment income and the different consequences that may apply if you are subject to special rules that apply to certain types of investors, including but not limited to:

 

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financial institutions or financial services entities;

 

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broker-dealers;

 

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governments or agencies or instrumentalities thereof;

 

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regulated investment companies;

 

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real estate investment trusts;

 

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expatriates or former long-term residents of the United States;

 

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persons that actually or constructively own five percent or more of our voting shares;

 

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insurance companies;

 

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dealers or traders subject to a mark-to-market method of accounting with respect to the securities;

 

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persons holding the securities as part of a “straddle,” hedge, integrated transaction or similar transaction;

 

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U.S. holders (as defined below) whose functional currency is not the U.S. dollar;

 

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partnerships or other pass-through entities for U.S. federal income tax purposes and any beneficial owners of such entities; and

 

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tax-exempt entities.

If a partnership (including an entity or arrangement treated as a partnership for U.S. federal income tax purposes) holds our securities, the tax treatment of a partner, member or other beneficial owner in such partnership will generally depend upon the status of the partner, member or other beneficial owner, the activities of the partnership and certain determinations made at the partner, member or other beneficial owner level. If you are a partner, member or other beneficial owner of a partnership holding our securities, you are urged to consult your tax advisor regarding the tax consequences of the ownership and disposition of our securities.

This discussion is based on the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”), and administrative pronouncements, judicial decisions and final, temporary and proposed Treasury regulations as of the date

 

 

 

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hereof, which are subject to change, possibly on a retroactive basis, and changes to any of which subsequent to the date of this prospectus may affect the tax consequences described herein. This discussion does not address any aspect of state, local or non-U.S. taxation, or any U.S. federal taxes other than income taxes (such as gift and estate taxes).

We have not sought, and will not seek, a ruling from the IRS as to any U.S. federal income tax consequence described herein. The IRS may disagree with the discussion herein, and its determination may be upheld by a court. Moreover, there can be no assurance that future legislation, regulations, administrative rulings or court decisions will not adversely affect the accuracy of the statements in this discussion. You are urged to consult your tax advisor with respect to the application of U.S. federal tax laws to your particular situation, as well as any tax consequences arising under the laws of any state, local or foreign jurisdiction.

PERSONAL HOLDING COMPANY STATUS

We could be subject to a second level of U.S. federal income tax on a portion of our income if we are determined to be a personal holding company, or PHC, for U.S. federal income tax purposes. A U.S. corporation generally will be classified as a PHC for U.S. federal income tax purposes in a given taxable year if (i) at any time during the last half of such taxable year, five or fewer individuals (without regard to their citizenship or residency and including as individuals for this purpose certain entities such as certain tax-exempt organizations, pension funds and charitable trusts) own or are deemed to own (pursuant to certain constructive ownership rules) more than 50% of the stock of the corporation by value and (ii) at least 60% of the corporation’s adjusted ordinary gross income, as determined for U.S. federal income tax purposes, for such taxable year consists of PHC income (which includes, among other things, dividends, interest, certain royalties, annuities and, under certain circumstances, rents).

Depending on the date and size of our initial business combination, it is possible that at least 60% of our adjusted ordinary gross income may consist of PHC income. In addition, depending on the concentration of our stock in the hands of individuals, including the members of our initial stockholders and certain tax-exempt organizations, pension funds and charitable trusts, it is possible that more than 50% of our stock may be owned or deemed owned (pursuant to the constructive ownership rules) by such persons during the last half of a taxable year. Thus, no assurance can be given that we will not be a PHC following this offering or in the future. If we are or were to become a PHC in a given taxable year, we would be subject to an additional PHC tax, currently 20%, on our undistributed PHC income, which generally includes our taxable income, subject to certain adjustments.

ALLOCATION OF PURCHASE PRICE AND CHARACTERIZATION OF A UNIT

No statutory, administrative or judicial authority directly addresses the treatment of a unit or instruments similar to a unit for U.S. federal income tax purposes and, therefore, that treatment is not entirely clear. The acquisition of a unit should be treated for U.S. federal income tax purposes as the acquisition of one share of our Class A common stock and one-half of one warrant to acquire one share of our Class A common stock. For U.S. federal income tax purposes, each holder of a unit must allocate the purchase price paid by such holder for such unit between the one share of Class A common stock and the one-half of one warrant based on the relative fair market value of each at the time of issuance. Under U.S. federal income tax law, each investor must make his or her own determination of such value based on all the relevant facts and circumstances. Therefore, we strongly urge each investor to consult his or her tax advisor regarding the determination of value for these purposes. The price allocated to each share of Class A common stock and the one-half of one warrant should be the stockholder’s tax basis in such share or one-half of one warrant, as the case may be. Any disposition of a unit should be treated for U.S.

 

 

 

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federal income tax purposes as a disposition of the share of Class A common stock and one-half of one warrant comprising the unit, and the amount realized on the disposition should be allocated between the Class A common stock and the one-half of one warrant based on their respective relative fair market values (as determined by each such unit holder based on all the relevant facts and circumstances) at the time of disposition. The separation of shares of Class A common stock and warrants comprising units should not be a taxable event for U.S. federal income tax purposes.

The foregoing treatment of the shares of Class A common stock and warrants and a holder’s purchase price allocation are not binding on the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) or the courts. Because there are no authorities that directly address instruments that are similar to the units, no assurance can be given that the IRS or the courts will agree with the characterization described above or the discussion below. Accordingly, each prospective investor is urged to consult its own tax advisors regarding the tax consequences of an investment in a unit (including alternative characterizations of a unit). The balance of this discussion assumes that the characterization of the units described above is respected for U.S. federal income tax purposes.

U.S. HOLDERS

This section applies to you if you are a “U.S. holder.” A U.S. holder is a beneficial owner of our units, shares of Class A common stock or warrants who or that is, for U.S. federal income tax purposes:

 

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an individual who is a citizen or resident of the United States;

 

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a corporation (or other entity taxable as a corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes) organized in or under the laws of the United States, any state thereof or the District of Columbia;

 

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an estate the income of which is includible in gross income for U.S. federal income tax purposes regardless of its source; or

 

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a trust, if (i) a court within the United States is able to exercise primary supervision over the administration of the trust and one or more United States persons (as defined in the Code) have authority to control all substantial decisions of the trust or (ii) it has a valid election in effect under Treasury Regulations to be treated as a United States person.

Taxation of Distributions.    If we pay distributions in cash or other property (other than certain distributions of our stock or rights to acquire our stock) to U.S. holders of shares of our Class A common stock, such distributions generally will constitute dividends for U.S. federal income tax purposes to the extent paid from our current or accumulated earnings and profits, as determined under U.S. federal income tax principles. Distributions in excess of current and accumulated earnings and profits will constitute a return of capital that will be applied against and reduce (but not below zero) the U.S. holder’s adjusted tax basis in our Class A common stock. Any remaining excess will be treated as gain realized on the sale or other disposition of the Class A common stock and will be treated as described under “U.S. Holders—Gain or Loss on Sale, Taxable Exchange or Other Taxable Disposition of Class A Common Stock and Warrants” below.

Dividends we pay to a U.S. holder that is a taxable corporation generally will qualify for the dividends received deduction if the requisite holding period is satisfied. With certain exceptions (including, but not limited to, dividends treated as investment income for purposes of investment interest deduction limitations), and provided certain holding period requirements are met, dividends we pay to a non-corporate U.S. holder generally will constitute “qualified dividends” that will be subject to tax at preferential long-term capital gains rates. It is unclear whether the redemption rights with respect to the Class A common stock described in this prospectus may prevent a U.S. holder from satisfying the

 

 

 

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applicable holding period requirements with respect to the dividends received deduction or the preferential tax rate on qualified dividend income, as the case may be. If the holding period requirements are not satisfied, then a corporation may not be able to qualify for the dividends received deduction and would have taxable income equal to the entire dividend amount, and non-corporate holders may be subject to tax on such dividend at regular ordinary income tax rates instead of the preferential rate that applies to qualified dividend income.

Gain or Loss on Sale, Taxable Exchange or Other Taxable Disposition of Class A Common Stock and Warrants.    Upon a sale or other taxable disposition of our Class A common stock or warrants which, in general, would include a redemption of Class A common stock or warrants that is treated as a sale of such securities as described below, and including as a result of a dissolution and liquidation in the event we do not consummate an initial business combination within the required time period, a U.S. holder generally will recognize capital gain or loss in an amount equal to the difference between the amount realized and the U.S. holder’s adjusted tax basis in the Class A common stock or warrants. Any such capital gain or loss generally will be long-term capital gain or loss if the U.S. holder’s holding period for the Class A common stock or warrants so disposed of exceeds one year. It is unclear, however, whether the redemption rights with respect to the Class A common stock described in this prospectus may suspend the running of the applicable holding period for this purpose. If the running of the holding period for the Class A common stock is suspended, then non-corporate U.S. holders may not be able to satisfy the one-year holding period requirement for long-term capital gain treatment, in which case any gain on a sale or taxable disposition of the shares or warrants would be subject to short-term capital gain treatment and would be taxed at regular ordinary income tax rates. Long-term capital gains recognized by non-corporate U.S. holders will be eligible to be taxed at reduced rates. The deductibility of capital losses is subject to limitations.

Generally, the amount of gain or loss recognized by a U.S. holder is an amount equal to the difference between (i) the sum of the amount of cash and the fair market value of any property received in such disposition (or, if the Class A common stock or warrants are held as part of units at the time of the disposition, the portion of the amount realized on such disposition that is allocated to the Class A common stock or the warrants based upon the then fair market values of the Class A common stock and the warrants included in the units) and (ii) the U.S. holder’s adjusted tax basis in its Class A common stock or warrants so disposed of. A U.S. holder’s adjusted tax basis in its Class A common stock or warrants generally will equal the U.S. holder’s acquisition cost (that is, as discussed above, the portion of the purchase price of a unit allocated to a share of Class A common stock or one-half of one warrant or, as discussed below, the U.S. holder’s initial basis for Class A common stock received upon exercise of warrants) less, in the case of a share of Class A common stock, any prior distributions treated as a return of capital.

Redemption of Class A Common Stock.    In the event that a U.S. holder’s Class A common stock is redeemed pursuant to the redemption provisions described in this prospectus under the section of this prospectus entitled “Description of Securities—Common Stock” or if we purchase a U.S. holder’s Class A common stock in an open market transaction (each of which we refer to as a “redemption”), the treatment of the transaction for U.S. federal income tax purposes will depend on whether the redemption qualifies as a sale of the Class A common stock under Section 302 of the Code. If the redemption qualifies as a sale of common stock, the U.S. holder will be treated as described under “U.S. Holders—Gain or Loss on Sale, Taxable Exchange or Other Taxable Disposition of Class A Common Stock and Warrants” above. If the redemption does not qualify as a sale of common stock, the U.S. holder will be treated as receiving a corporate distribution with the tax consequences described above under “U.S. Holders—Taxation of Distributions”. Whether a redemption qualifies for sale treatment will depend

 

 

 

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largely on the total number of shares of our stock treated as held by the U.S. holder (including any stock constructively owned by the U.S. holder as a result of owning warrants) relative to all of our shares outstanding both before and after the redemption. The redemption of Class A common stock generally will be treated as a sale of the Class A common stock (rather than as a corporate distribution) if the redemption (i) is “substantially disproportionate” with respect to the U.S. holder, (ii) results in a “complete termination” of the U.S. holder’s interest in us or (iii) is “not essentially equivalent to a dividend” with respect to the U.S. holder. These tests are explained more fully below.

In determining whether any of the foregoing tests are satisfied, a U.S. holder takes into account not only stock actually owned by the U.S. holder, but also shares of our stock that are constructively owned by it. A U.S. holder may constructively own, in addition to stock owned directly, stock owned by certain related individuals and entities in which the U.S. holder has an interest or that have an interest in such U.S. holder, as well as any stock the U.S. holder has a right to acquire by exercise of an option, which would generally include Class A common stock which could be acquired pursuant to the exercise of the warrants. In order to meet the substantially disproportionate test, the percentage of our outstanding voting stock actually and constructively owned by the U.S. holder immediately following the redemption of Class A common stock must, among other requirements, be less than 80% of the percentage of our outstanding voting stock actually and constructively owned by the U.S. holder immediately before the redemption. There will be a complete termination of a U.S. holder’s interest if either (i) all of the shares of our stock actually and constructively owned by the U.S. holder are redeemed or (ii) all of the shares of our stock actually owned by the U.S. holder are redeemed and the U.S. holder is eligible to waive, and effectively waives in accordance with specific rules, the attribution of stock owned by certain family members and the U.S. holder does not constructively own any other shares of our stock. The redemption of the Class A common stock will not be essentially equivalent to a dividend if the redemption results in a “meaningful reduction” of the U.S. holder’s proportionate interest in us. Whether the redemption will result in a meaningful reduction in a U.S. holder’s proportionate interest in us will depend on the particular facts and circumstances.

However, the IRS has indicated in a published ruling that even a small reduction in the proportionate interest of a small minority stockholder in a publicly held corporation who exercises no control over corporate affairs may constitute such a “meaningful reduction.” A U.S. holder should consult with its own tax advisors as to the tax consequences of a redemption.

If none of the foregoing tests is satisfied, then the redemption will be treated as a corporate distribution and the tax effects will be as described under “U.S. Holders—Taxation of Distributions,” above. After the application of those rules, any remaining tax basis of the U.S. holder in the redeemed Class A common stock will be added to the U.S. holder’s adjusted tax basis in its remaining stock, or, if it has none, to the U.S. holder’s adjusted tax basis in its warrants or possibly in other stock constructively owned by it.

Exercise Lapse or Redemption of a Warrant.    Except as discussed below with respect to the cashless exercise of a warrant, a U.S. holder generally will not recognize taxable gain or loss on the acquisition of common stock upon exercise of a warrant for cash. The U.S. holder’s tax basis in the share of our Class A common stock received upon exercise of the warrant generally will be an amount equal to the sum of the U.S. holder’s initial investment in the warrant (i.e., the portion of the U.S. holder’s purchase price for a unit that is allocated to the warrant, as described above under “—Allocation of Purchase Price and Characterization of a Unit”) and the exercise price. It is unclear whether the U.S. holder’s holding period for the Class A common stock received upon exercise of the warrants will begin on the date following the date of exercise or on the date of exercise of the warrants; in either case, the holding period

 

 

 

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will not include the period during which the U.S. holder held the warrants. If a warrant is allowed to lapse unexercised, a U.S. holder generally will recognize a capital loss equal to such holder’s tax basis in the warrant.

The tax consequences of a cashless exercise of a warrant are not clear under current tax law. A cashless exercise may be tax-free, either because the exercise is not a realization event or because the exercise is treated as a recapitalization for U.S. federal income tax purposes. In either tax-free situation, a U.S. holder’s basis in the Class A common stock received would equal the holder’s basis in the warrants exercised therefor. If the cashless exercise were treated as not being a realization event, it is unclear when a U.S. holder’s holding period in the Class A common stock would be treated as commencing. If the cashless exercise were treated as a recapitalization, the holding period of the Class A common stock would include the holding period of the warrants exercised therefor.

It is also possible that a cashless exercise could be treated in whole or in part as a taxable exchange in which gain or loss would be recognized. In such event, a U.S. holder could be deemed to have surrendered a number of warrants having an aggregate fair market value equal to the exercise price for the total number of warrants to be exercised. The U.S. holder would recognize capital gain or loss in an amount equal to the difference between the fair market value of the Class A common stock received in respect of the warrants deemed surrendered and the U.S. holder’s tax basis in such warrants. Such gain or loss would be long-term or short-term, depending on the U.S. holder’s holding period in the warrants deemed surrendered. In this case, a U.S. holder’s tax basis in the Class A common stock received would equal the sum of the U.S. holder’s initial investment in the warrants exercised (i.e., the portion of the U.S. holder’s purchase price for a unit that is allocated to the warrant, as described above under “—Allocation of Purchase Price and Characterization of a Unit”) and the exercise price of such warrants. It is unclear whether a U.S. holder’s holding period for the Class A common stock would commence on the date following the date of exercise or on the date of exercise of the warrant; in either case, the holding period would not include the period during which the U.S. holder held the warrant. There may also be alternative characterizations of any such taxable exchange that would result in similar tax consequences, except that a U.S. Holder’s gain or loss would be short-term.

Due to the absence of authority on the U.S. federal income tax treatment of a cashless exercise, including when a U.S. holder’s holding period would commence with respect to the Class A common stock received, there can be no assurance which, if any, of the alternative tax consequences and holding periods described above would be adopted by the IRS or a court of law. Accordingly, U.S. holders should consult their tax advisors regarding the tax consequences of a cashless exercise.

We intend to treat a cashless exercise of a warrant occurring after our giving notice of an intention to redeem the warrant for $0.10 as described in this prospectus under “Description of Securities—Redeemable Warrants—Public Stockholders’ Warrants—Redemption of warrants when the price per share of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00” as a redemption for U.S. federal income tax purposes. While not free from doubt, such redemption should be treated as a “recapitalization” within the meaning of Section 368(a)(1)(E) of the Code. Accordingly, a U.S. holder should not recognize any gain or loss on the redemption of warrants for shares of Class A common stock. In such event, a U.S. holder’s aggregate tax basis in the shares of Class A common stock received in the redemption generally should equal the U.S. holder’s aggregate tax basis in the warrants redeemed and the holding period for the shares of Class A common stock received should include the U.S. holder’s holding period for the surrendered warrants. However, there is some uncertainty regarding this tax treatment and it is possible such a redemption could be treated in part as a taxable exchange in which gain or loss would be recognized in a manner similar to that discussed above for a cashless exercise of warrants. Accordingly, a

 

 

 

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U.S. holder is urged to consult its tax advisor regarding the tax consequences of a redemption of warrants for shares of Class A common stock.

If we redeem warrants for cash pursuant to the redemption provisions described in the section of this prospectus entitled “Description of Securities—Redeemable Warrants—Public Stockholders’ Warrants—Redemption of warrants when the price per share of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00” or if we purchase warrants in an open market transaction, such redemption or purchase generally will be treated as a taxable disposition to the U.S. holder, taxed as described above under “—Gain or Loss on Sale, Taxable Exchange or Other Taxable Disposition of Class A Common Stock and Warrants.”

Possible Constructive Distributions.    The terms of each warrant provide for an adjustment to the number of shares of Class A common stock for which the warrant may be exercised or to the exercise price of the warrant in certain events, as discussed in the section of this prospectus entitled “Description of Securities—Redeemable Warrants—Public Stockholders’ Warrants.” An adjustment which has the effect of preventing dilution generally is not taxable. The U.S. holders of the warrants would, however, be treated as receiving a constructive distribution from us if, for example, the adjustment to the number of such shares or to such exercise price increases the warrant holders’ proportionate interest in our assets or earnings and profits (e.g., through an increase in the number of shares of Class A common stock that would be obtained upon exercise or through a decrease in the exercise price of the warrant) as a result of a distribution of cash or other property, such as other securities, to the holders of shares of our Class A common stock, or as a result of the issuance of a stock dividend to holders of shares of our Class A common stock, in each case which is taxable to the U.S. holders of such shares as a distribution. Such constructive distribution would be subject to tax in the same manner as if the U.S. holders of the warrants received a cash distribution from us equal to the fair market value of such increased interest resulting from the adjustment.

Information Reporting and Backup Withholding.    In general, information reporting requirements may apply to dividends paid to a U.S. holder and to the proceeds of the sale or other disposition of our units, shares of Class A common stock and warrants, unless the U.S. holder is an exempt recipient. Backup withholding may apply to such payments if the U.S. holder fails to provide a taxpayer identification number, a certification of exempt status or has been notified by the IRS that it is subject to backup withholding (and such notification has not been withdrawn). Backup withholding is not an additional tax. Any amounts withheld under the backup withholding rules will be allowed as a refund or a credit against a U.S. holder’s U.S. federal income tax liability provided the required information is timely furnished to the IRS. All U.S. holders should consult their tax advisors regarding the application of information reporting and backup withholding to them.

NON-U.S. HOLDERS

This section applies to you if you are a “Non-U.S. holder.” As used herein, the term “Non-U.S. holder” means a beneficial owner of our units, Class A common stock or warrants who or that is for U.S. federal income tax purposes:

 

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a non-resident alien individual (other than certain former citizens and residents of the United States subject to U.S. tax as expatriates);

 

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a foreign corporation or

 

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an estate or trust that is not a U.S. holder;

but generally does not include an individual who is present in the United States for 183 days or more in the taxable year of disposition. If you are such an individual, you should consult your tax advisor

 

 

 

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regarding the U.S. federal income tax consequences of the acquisition, ownership or sale or other disposition of our securities.

Taxation of Distributions.    In general, any distributions (including constructive distributions) we make to a Non-U.S. holder of shares of our Class A common stock, to the extent paid out of our current or accumulated earnings and profits (as determined under U.S. federal income tax principles), will constitute dividends for U.S. federal income tax purposes and, provided such dividends are not effectively connected with the Non-U.S. holder’s conduct of a trade or business within the United States, we will be required to withhold tax from the gross amount of the dividend at a rate of 30%, unless such Non-U.S. holder is eligible for a reduced rate of withholding tax under an applicable income tax treaty and provides proper certification of its eligibility for such reduced rate (usually on an IRS Form W-8BEN or W-8BEN-E). In the case of any constructive dividend, it is possible that this tax would be withheld from any amount owed to a Non-U.S. holder by the applicable withholding agent, including cash distributions on other property or sales proceeds from warrants or other property subsequently paid or credited to such holder. Any distribution not constituting a dividend will be treated first as reducing (but not below zero) the Non-U.S. holder’s adjusted tax basis in its shares of our Class A common stock and, to the extent such distribution exceeds the Non-U.S. holder’s adjusted tax basis, as gain realized from the sale or other disposition of the Class A common stock, which will be treated as described under “Non-U.S. Holders—Gain on Sale, Taxable Exchange or Other Taxable Disposition of Class A Common Stock and Warrants” below. In addition, if we determine that we are classified as a “United States real property holding corporation” (see “Non-U.S. Holders—Gain on Sale, Taxable Exchange or Other Taxable Disposition of Class A Common Stock and Warrants” below), we will withhold 15% of any distribution that exceeds our current and accumulated earnings and profits.

The withholding tax does not apply to dividends paid to a Non-U.S. holder who provides a Form W-8ECI, certifying that the dividends are effectively connected with the Non-U.S. holder’s conduct of a trade or business within the United States. Instead, the effectively connected dividends will be subject to regular U.S. federal income tax as if the Non-U.S. holder were a United States resident, subject to an applicable income tax treaty providing otherwise. A Non-U.S. corporation receiving effectively connected dividends may also be subject to an additional “branch profits tax” imposed at a rate of 30% (or a lower applicable treaty rate).

Gain on Sale, Taxable Exchange or Other Taxable Disposition of Class A Common Stock and Warrants.    A Non-U.S. holder generally will not be subject to U.S. federal income or withholding tax in respect of gain recognized on a sale, taxable exchange or other taxable disposition of our Class A common stock, which would include a dissolution and liquidation in the event we do not complete an initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering, or warrants (including an expiration or redemption of our warrants), in each case without regard to whether those securities were held as part of a unit, unless:

 

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the gain is effectively connected with the conduct of a trade or business by the Non-U.S. holder within the United States (and, under certain income tax treaties, is attributable to a United States permanent establishment or fixed base maintained by the Non-U.S. holder); or

 

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we are or have been a “United States real property holding corporation” for U.S. federal income tax purposes at any time during the shorter of the five-year period ending on the date of disposition or the period that the Non-U.S. holder held our Class A common stock, and, in the case where shares of our Class A common stock are regularly traded on an established securities market, the Non-U.S. holder has owned, directly or constructively, more than 5% of our Class A common stock at any time within the shorter of the five-year period preceding the disposition or such Non-U.S. holder’s holding period

 

 

 

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  for the shares of our Class A common stock. There can be no assurance that our Class A common stock will be treated as regularly traded on an established securities market for this purpose.

Unless an applicable treaty provides otherwise, gain described in the first bullet point above will be subject to tax at generally applicable U.S. federal income tax rates as if the Non-U.S. holder were a United States resident. Any gains described in the first bullet point above of a Non-U.S. holder that is a foreign corporation may also be subject to an additional “branch profits tax” at a 30% rate (or lower treaty rate).

If the second bullet point above applies to a Non-U.S. holder, gain recognized by such holder on the sale, exchange or other disposition of our Class A common stock or warrants will be subject to tax at generally applicable U.S. federal income tax rates. In addition, a buyer of our Class A common stock or warrants from such holder may be required to withhold U.S. federal income tax at a rate of 15% of the amount realized upon such disposition. We cannot determine whether we will be a United States real property holding corporation in the future until we complete an initial business combination. We will be classified as a United States real property holding corporation if the fair market value of our “United States real property interests” equals or exceeds 50 percent of the sum of the fair market value of our worldwide real property interests plus our other assets used or held for use in a trade or business, as determined for U.S. federal income tax purposes.

Redemption of Class A Common Stock.    The characterization for U.S. federal income tax purposes of the redemption of a Non-U.S. holder’s Class A common stock generally will correspond to the U.S. federal income tax characterization of such a redemption of a U.S. holder’s Class A common stock, as described under “U.S. Holders—Redemption of Class A Common Stock” above, and the consequences of the redemption to the Non-U.S. holder will be as described above under “Non-U.S. Holders—Taxation of Distributions” and “Non-U.S. Holders—Gain on Sale, Taxable Exchange or Other Taxable Disposition of Class A Common Stock and Warrants,” as applicable.

Exercise or Redemption of a Warrant.    The U.S. federal income tax treatment of a Non-U.S. holder’s exercise of a warrant, or the lapse of a warrant held by a Non-U.S. holder, generally will correspond to the U.S. federal income tax treatment of the exercise or lapse of a warrant by a U.S. holder, as described under “U.S. holders—Exercise, Lapse or Redemption of a Warrant” above, although to the extent a cashless exercise results in a taxable exchange, the consequences would be similar to those described above in “Non-U.S. Holders—Gain on Sale, Taxable Exchange or Other Taxable Disposition of Class A Common Stock and Warrants.”

We intend to treat a cashless exercise of a warrant occurring after our giving notice of an intention to redeem the warrant for $0.10 as described in this prospectus under “Description of Securities—Redeemable Warrants—Public Stockholders’ Warrants—Redemption of warrants when the price per share of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00” as a redemption for U.S. federal income tax purposes. While not free from doubt, such redemption should be treated as a “recapitalization” within the meaning of Section 368(a)(1)(E) of the Code. Accordingly, a Non-U.S. holder should not recognize any gain or loss on the redemption of warrants for shares of Class A common stock.

In such event, a Non-U.S. holder’s aggregate tax basis in the shares of Class A common stock received in the redemption generally should equal the Non-U.S. holder’s aggregate tax basis in the warrants redeemed and the holding period for the shares of Class A common stock received should include the Non-U.S. holder’s holding period for the surrendered warrants. However, there is some uncertainty regarding this tax treatment and it is possible such a redemption could be treated in part as a taxable

 

 

 

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exchange in which gain or loss would be recognized in a manner similar to that discussed above for a cashless exercise of warrants. Accordingly, a Non-U.S. holder is urged to consult its tax advisor regarding the tax consequences of a redemption of warrants for shares of Class A common stock.

The U.S. federal income tax treatment for a Non-U.S. holder of a redemption of warrants for cash described in the section of this prospectus entitled “Description of Securities—Redeemable Warrants—Public Stockholders’ Warrants—Redemption of warrants when the price per share of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00” (or if we purchase warrants in an open market transaction) would be similar to those described above in “Non-U.S. Holders—Gain on Sale, Taxable Exchange or Other Taxable Disposition of Class A Common Stock and Warrants.”

Possible Constructive Distributions.    The terms of each warrant provide for an adjustment to the number of shares of Class A common stock for which the warrant may be exercised or to the exercise price of the warrant in certain events, as discussed in the section of this prospectus entitled “Description of Securities—Redeemable Warrants—Public Stockholders’ Warrants.” An adjustment which has the effect of preventing dilution generally is not taxable. The Non-U.S. holders of the warrants would, however, be treated as receiving a constructive distribution from us if, for example, the adjustment to the number of such shares or to such exercise price increases the warrantholders’ proportionate interest in our assets or earnings and profits (e.g., through an increase in the number of shares of Class A common stock that would be obtained upon exercise or through a decrease in the exercise price of the warrant) as a result of a distribution of cash or other property, such as other securities, to the holders of shares of our Class A common stock, or as a result of the issuance of a stock dividend to holders of shares of our Class A common stock, in each case which is taxable to the holders of such shares as a distribution. Such constructive distribution would be subject to tax in the same manner as if the Non-U.S. holders of the warrants received a cash distribution from us equal to the fair market value of such increased interest resulting from the adjustment.

Information Reporting and Backup Withholding.    Information returns will be filed with the IRS in connection with payments of dividends and the proceeds from a sale or other disposition of our units, shares of Class A common stock and warrants. A Non-U.S. holder may have to comply with certification procedures to establish that it is not a United States person in order to avoid information reporting and backup withholding requirements. The certification procedures required to claim a reduced rate of withholding under a treaty generally will satisfy the certification requirements necessary to avoid the backup withholding as well.

Backup withholding is not an additional tax.    The amount of any backup withholding from a payment to a Non-U.S. holder will be allowed as a credit against such holder’s U.S. federal income tax liability and may entitle such holder to a refund, provided that the required information is timely furnished to the IRS.

All Non-U.S. holders should consult their tax advisors regarding the application of information reporting and backup withholding to them.

FATCA Withholding Taxes.    Sections 1471 through 1474 of the Code and the Treasury Regulations and administrative guidance promulgated thereunder (commonly referred as the “Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act” or “FATCA”) generally impose withholding at a rate of 30% in certain circumstances on dividends in respect of our securities which are held by or through certain foreign financial institutions (including investment funds), unless any such institution (1) enters into, and complies with, an agreement with the IRS to report, on an annual basis, information with respect to interests in, and

 

 

 

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accounts maintained by, the institution that are owned by certain U.S. persons and by certain non-U.S. entities that are wholly or partially owned by U.S. persons and to withhold on certain payments, or (2) if required under an intergovernmental agreement between the United States and an applicable foreign country, reports such information to its local tax authority, which will exchange such information with the U.S. authorities. An intergovernmental agreement between the United States and an applicable foreign country may modify these requirements. Accordingly, the entity through which our securities are held will affect the determination of whether such withholding is required. Similarly, dividends in respect of our securities held by an investor that is a non-financial non-U.S. entity that does not qualify under certain exceptions will generally be subject to withholding at a rate of 30%, unless such entity either (1) certifies to us or the applicable withholding agent that such entity does not have any “substantial United States owners” or (2) provides certain information regarding the entity’s “substantial United States owners,” which will in turn be provided to the U.S. Department of Treasury. All prospective investors should consult their tax advisors regarding the possible implications of FATCA on their investment in our securities.

 

 

 

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Underwriting

UBS Securities LLC and Moelis & Co. are acting as joint book-running managers of this offering and as representatives of the underwriters named below. Subject to the terms and conditions of the underwriting agreement dated the date of this prospectus, each underwriter named below has severally agreed to purchase, and we have agreed to sell to such underwriter, the number of units set forth opposite the underwriter’s name.

 

Underwriter    Number of Units  

UBS Securities LLC

  

Moelis & Co.

  

EarlyBirdCapital, Inc.

  

Total

     25,000,000  

The underwriting agreement provides that the obligations of the underwriters to purchase the units included in this offering are subject to approval of legal matters by counsel and to other conditions. The underwriters are obligated to purchase all of the units (other than those covered by the underwriters’ over-allotment option described below) if they purchase any of the units.

The offering of the units by the underwriters is subject to receipt and acceptance and subject to the underwriters’ right to reject any order in whole or in part.

Units sold by the underwriters to the public will initially be offered at the initial public offering price set forth on the cover of this prospectus. Any units sold by the underwriters to securities dealers may be sold at a discount from the initial public offering price not to exceed $         per unit. If all of the units are not sold at the initial offering price, the underwriters may change the offering price and the other selling terms after completion of the initial public offering. The Representative has advised us that the underwriters do not intend to make sales to discretionary accounts.

If the underwriters sell more units than the total number set forth in the table above, we have granted to the underwriters an option, exercisable for 45 days from the date of this prospectus, to purchase up to 3,750,000 additional units at the public offering price less the underwriting discount. The underwriters may exercise this option solely for the purpose of covering over-allotments, if any, in connection with this offering. To the extent the option is exercised, each underwriter must purchase a number of additional units approximately proportionate to that underwriter’s initial purchase commitment. Any units issued or sold under the option will be issued and sold on the same terms and conditions as the other units that are the subject of this offering.

We, our initial stockholders and our officers and directors have agreed that, for a period of 180 days from the date of this prospectus, we and they will not, without the prior written consent of UBS Securities LLC and Moelis & Co., offer, sell, contract to sell, pledge or otherwise dispose of, directly or indirectly, any units, warrants, shares of common stock or any other securities convertible into, or exercisable, or exchangeable for, shares of common stock, subject to certain exceptions. UBS Securities LLC and Moelis & Co. in their sole discretion may release any of the securities subject to these lock-up agreements at any time without notice, other than in the case of the officers and directors, which shall be with notice. Our initial stockholders, officers and directors are also subject to separate transfer restrictions on their founder shares and private placement warrants pursuant to the letter agreement described herein.

Our initial stockholders have agreed not to transfer, assign or sell any of their founder shares, and any Class A common stock issued upon conversion thereof, until the earlier to occur of (A) one year after the completion of our initial business combination and (B) subsequent to our initial business combination, (x) if the last reported sale price of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $12.00 per share (as

 

 

 

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adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) for any 20 trading days within any 30-trading day period commencing at least 150 days after our initial business combination, or (y) the date on which we complete a liquidation, merger, capital stock exchange, reorganization or other similar transaction that results in all of our stockholders having the right to exchange their shares of common stock for cash, securities or other property (except with respect to permitted transferees as described in the section of this prospectus entitled “Principal Stockholders—Restrictions on Transfers of Founder Shares and Private Placement Warrants”). The private placement warrants and the warrants that may be issued upon conversion of working capital loans (including the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of such warrants) will not be transferable, assignable or salable by the holders or their permitted transferees until 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination (except with respect to permitted transferees as described herein under the section of this prospectus entitled “Principal Stockholders—Restrictions on Transfers of Founder Shares and Placement Warrants”). Any permitted transferees would be subject to the same restrictions and other agreements of our initial stockholders with respect to any founder shares.

Prior to this offering, there has been no public market for our securities. Consequently, the initial public offering price for the units was determined by negotiations between us and the Representatives. Among the factors considered in determining the initial public offering price were the history and prospects of companies whose principal business is the acquisition of other companies, prior offerings of those companies, our management, our capital structure, and currently prevailing general conditions in equity securities markets, including current market valuations of publicly traded companies considered comparable to our company. We cannot assure you, however, that the price at which the units, Class A common stock or warrants will sell in the public market after this offering will not be lower than the initial public offering price or that an active trading market in our units, Class A common stock or warrants will develop and continue after this offering.

We intend to apply to have our units listed on the NYSE under the symbol “GFX.U.” We expect that our Class A common stock and warrants will be listed under the symbols “GFX” and “GFX WS,” respectively, once the Class A common stock and warrants begin separate trading.

The following table shows the underwriting discounts and commissions that we are to pay to the underwriters in connection with this offering. These amounts are shown assuming both no exercise and full exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option.

 

     Payable by Golden Falcon
Acquisition Corp.
 
      No Exercise      Full Exercise  

Per Unit (1)

   $ 0.55      $ 0.55  

Total (1)

   $ 13,750,000      $ 15,812,500  

 

(1)   Includes $0.35 per unit, or $8,750,000 (or $10,062,500 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) in the aggregate payable to the Representative for deferred underwriting commissions to be placed in a trust account located in the United States as described herein. The deferred commissions will be released to the Representative only on completion of an initial business combination, in an amount equal to $0.35 multiplied by the number of shares of Class A common stock sold as part of the units in this offering, as described in this prospectus.

If we do not complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of this offering or during any Extension Period and subsequently liquidate, the trustee and the Representatives have agreed that (i) they will forfeit any rights or claims to their deferred underwriting discounts and commissions,

 

 

 

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including any accrued interest thereon, then in the trust account upon liquidation, and (ii) that the deferred underwriting discounts and commissions will be distributed on a pro rata basis, including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes, to the public stockholders.

In connection with the offering, the underwriters may purchase and sell units in the open market. Purchases and sales in the open market may include short sales, purchases to cover short positions, which may include purchases pursuant to the over-allotment option and stabilizing purchases, in accordance with Regulation M under the Exchange Act.

 

Ø  

Short sales involve secondary market sales by the underwriters of a greater number of units than they are required to purchase in the offering.

 

Ø  

“Covered” short sales are sales of units in an amount up to the number of units represented by the underwriters’ over-allotment option.

 

Ø  

“Naked” short sales are sales of units in an amount in excess of the number of units represented by the underwriters’ over-allotment option.

 

Ø  

Covering transactions involve purchases of units either pursuant to the over-allotment option or in the open market after the distribution has been completed in order to cover short positions.

 

Ø  

To close a naked short position, the underwriters must purchase units in the open market after the distribution has been completed. A naked short position is more likely to be created if the underwriters are concerned that there may be downward pressure on the price of the units in the open market after pricing that could adversely affect investors who purchase in the offering.

 

Ø  

To close a covered short position, the underwriters must purchase units in the open market after the distribution has been completed or must exercise the over-allotment option. In determining the source of units to close the covered short position, the underwriters will consider, among other things, the price of units available for purchase in the open market as compared to the price at which they may purchase units through the over-allotment option.

 

Ø  

Stabilizing transactions involve bids to purchase units so long as the stabilizing bids do not exceed a specified maximum.

Purchases to cover short positions and stabilizing purchases, as well as other purchases by the underwriters for their own accounts, may have the effect of preventing or retarding a decline in the market price of the units. They may also cause the price of the units to be higher than the price that would otherwise exist in the open market in the absence of these transactions. The underwriters may conduct these transactions in the over-the-counter market or otherwise. If the underwriters commence any of these transactions, they may discontinue them at any time.

The underwriters may also impose a penalty bid. This occurs when a particular underwriter repays to the underwriters a portion of the underwriting discount received by it because the representative has repurchased units sold by or for the account of such underwriter in stabilizing or short covering transactions.

We estimate that our portion of the total expenses of this offering payable by us will be $1,000,000, excluding underwriting discounts and commissions. We have agreed to reimburse the underwriters for all expenses and fees related to the review by FINRA, including counsel fees which will not exceed $25,000.

We have agreed to indemnify the several underwriters against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act, or to contribute to payments the underwriters may be required to make because of any of those liabilities.

 

 

 

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We are not under any contractual obligation to engage any of the underwriters to provide any services for us after this offering, and have no present intent to do so. However, we expect affiliates of UBS Securities LLC and Moelis & Co. will manage the funds placed in the trust account upon consummation of this offering and may therefore have an ongoing relationship with us. Additionally, any of the underwriters may introduce us to potential target businesses or assist us in raising additional capital in the future. If any of the underwriters provide services to us after this offering, we may pay such underwriter fair and reasonable fees that would be determined at that time in an arm’s length negotiation; provided that no agreement will be entered into with any of the underwriters and no fees for such services will be paid to any of the underwriters prior to the date that is 90 days from the date of this prospectus, unless FINRA determines that such payment would not be deemed underwriters’ compensation in connection with this offering and we may pay the underwriters of this offering or any entity with which they are affiliated a finder’s fee or other compensation for services rendered to us in connection with the completion of a business combination.

The underwriters and their respective affiliates are full service financial institutions engaged in various activities, which may include sales and trading, commercial and investment banking, advisory, investment management, investment research, principal investment, hedging, market making, brokerage and other financial and non-financial activities and services. Some of the underwriters and their affiliates have engaged in, and may in the future engage in, investment banking and other commercial dealings in the ordinary course of business with us or our affiliates, including in connection with acting in an advisory capacity or as a potential financing source in conjunction with our potential acquisition of a company. They have received, or may in the future receive, customary fees and commissions for these transactions.

In the ordinary course of their various business activities, the underwriters and their respective affiliates, officers, directors and employees may purchase, sell or hold a broad array of investments and actively trade securities, derivatives, loans, commodities, currencies, credit default swaps and other financial instruments for their own account and for the accounts of their customers, and such investment and trading activities may involve or relate to assets, securities and/or instruments of the issuer (directly, as collateral securing other obligations or otherwise) and/or persons and entities with relationships with the issuer. The underwriters and their respective affiliates may also communicate independent investment recommendations, market color or trading ideas and/or publish or express independent research views in respect of such assets, securities or instruments and may at any time hold, or recommend to clients that they should acquire, long and/or short positions in such assets, securities and instruments.

We have agreed that until the earlier of (i) September 15, 2023 and (ii) the consummation of our initial business combination, UBS Securities LLC shall have a right of first refusal to act as exclusive capital markets advisor, placement agent, or book-running lead manager, as the case may be, in connection with any private placement or public offering of equity, equity-linked or debt (including, without limitation, asset-backed) securities.

Two members of our sponsor are affiliated with one of the underwriters participating in this offering and will be allocated an aggregate of 80,000 founder shares and 40,000 private placement warrants as a result of their membership in the sponsor. The securities allocated to these members have been deemed compensation by FINRA and are therefore subject to a lock-up for a period of 180 days immediately following the date of the effectiveness of the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part pursuant to Rule 5110(e)(1) of the FINRA Manual. Pursuant to FINRA Rule 5110(e)(1), these securities will not be sold during the offering, or sold, transferred, assigned, pledged, or

 

 

 

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hypothecated, or be the subject of any hedging, short sale, derivative, put or call transaction that would result in the economic disposition of the securities by any person for a period of 180 days immediately following the effective date of the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part or commencement of sales of the public offering, except to any underwriter and selected dealer participating in the offering and their bona fide officers or partners, provided that all securities so transferred remain subject to the lockup restriction above for the remainder of the time period. We have granted certain registration rights relating to such securities as described under the section “Securities Eligible for Future Sale -- Registration Rights.” The demand and piggyback registration rights being granted with respect to such securities will be subject to FINRA Rule 5110.05.

NOTICE TO PROSPECTIVE INVESTORS IN THE EUROPEAN ECONOMIC AREA

In relation to each member state of the European Economic Area that has implemented the Prospectus Directive (each, a “relevant member state”), with effect from and including the date on which the Prospectus Directive is implemented in that relevant member state (the “relevant implementation date”), an offer of units described in this prospectus may not be made to the public in that relevant member state prior to the publication of a prospectus in relation to the units that has been approved by the competent authority in that relevant member state or, where appropriate, approved in another relevant member state and notified to the competent authority in that relevant member state, all in accordance with the Prospectus Directive, except that, with effect from and including the relevant implementation date, an offer of our units may be made to the public in that relevant member state at any time:

 

Ø  

to any legal entity which is a qualified investor as defined in the Prospectus Directive;

 

Ø  

to fewer than 100, or, if the relevant member state has implemented the relevant provisions of the 2010 PD Amending Directive, 150 natural or legal persons (other than qualified investors as defined in the Prospectus Directive), as permitted under the Prospectus Directive, subject to obtaining the prior consent of the relevant Dealer or Dealers nominated by the issuer for any such offer; or natural or legal persons (other than qualified investors as defined below) subject to obtaining the prior consent of the underwriter for any such offer; or

 

Ø  

in any other circumstances that do not require the publication by us of a prospectus pursuant to Article 3 of the Prospectus Directive.

provided that no such offer of units referred to in the bullet points above shall require us or any underwriter to publish a prospectus pursuant to Article 3 of the Prospectus Directive or supplement a prospectus pursuant to Article 16 of the Prospectus Directive.

Each purchaser of units described in this prospectus located within a relevant member state will be deemed to have represented, acknowledged and agreed that it is a “qualified investor” within the meaning of Article 2(1)(e) of the Prospectus Directive.

For the purpose of this provision, the expression an “offer of units to the public” in any relevant member state means the communication in any form and by any means of sufficient information on the terms of the offer and the units to be offered so as to enable an investor to decide to purchase or subscribe for the units, as the expression may be varied in that member state by any measure implementing the Prospectus Directive in that member state, and the expression “Prospectus Directive” means Directive 2003/71/EC (and amendments thereto, including the 2010 PD Amending Directive to the extent implemented by the relevant member state) and includes any relevant implementing measure in each relevant member state. The expression 2010 PD Amending Directive means Directive 2010/73/EU.

 

 

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We have not authorized and do not authorize the making of any offer of units through any financial intermediary on their behalf, other than offers made by the underwriters with a view to the final placement of the units as contemplated in this prospectus. Accordingly, no purchaser of the units, other than the underwriters, is authorized to make any further offer of the units on behalf of us or the underwriters.

Furthermore, the units are not intended to be offered, sold or otherwise made available to and should not be offered, sold or otherwise made available by any person to any retail investor in the European Economic Area (the “EEA”). For these purposes, a retail investor means a person who is one (or more) of: (i) a retail client as defined in point (11) of Article 4(1) of Directive 2014/65/EU (as amended, “MiFID II”); (ii) a customer within the meaning of Directive 2002/92/EC, as amended, where that customer would not qualify as a professional client as defined in point (10) of Article 4(1) of MiFID II or (iii) not a qualified investor as defined in Directive 2003/71/EC (as amended, including by Directive 2010/73/EU, the “Prospectus Directive”). Consequently, no key information document required by Regulation (EU) No 1286/2014 (as amended, the “PRIIPs Regulation”) for offering or selling the units or otherwise making them available to retail investors in the EEA has been prepared and therefore offering or selling the units or otherwise making them available to any retail investor in the EEA may be unlawful under the PRIIPs Regulation. This prospectus has been prepared on the basis that any offer of units in any member state of the EEA will be made pursuant to an exemption under the Prospectus Directive from the requirement to publish a prospectus for offers of units. This prospectus is not a prospectus for the purposes of the Prospectus Directive.

NOTICE TO PROSPECTIVE INVESTORS IN THE UNITED KINGDOM

This prospectus is only being distributed to, and is only directed at, persons in the United Kingdom that are qualified investors within the meaning of Article 2(1)(e) of the Prospectus Directive that are also (i) investment professionals falling within Article 19(5) of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Financial Promotion) Order 2005 (the “Order”) or (ii) high net worth entities, and other persons to whom it may lawfully be communicated, falling within Article 49(2)(a) to (d) of the Order (each such person being referred to as a “relevant person”). The units are only available to, and any invitation, offer or agreement to purchase or otherwise acquire such units will be engaged in only with, relevant persons. This prospectus and its contents are confidential and should not be distributed, published or reproduced (in whole or in part) or disclosed by recipients to any other persons in the United Kingdom. Any person in the United Kingdom that is not a relevant person should not act or rely on this document or any of its contents.

NOTICE TO PROSPECTIVE INVESTORS IN FRANCE

Neither this prospectus nor any other offering material relating to the units described in this prospectus has been submitted to the clearance procedures of the Autorité des Marchés Financiers (“AMF”) or by the competent authority of another member state of the European Economic Area and notified to the AMF. The units have not been offered or sold and will not be offered or sold, directly or indirectly, to the public in France. Neither this prospectus nor any other offering material relating to the units has been or will be:

 

Ø  

released, issued, distributed or caused to be released, issued or distributed to the public in France; or

 

Ø  

used in connection with any offer for subscription or sale of the units to the public in France.

Such offers, sales and distributions will be made in France only:

 

Ø  

to qualified investors (investisseurs qualifiés) and/or to a restricted circle of investors (cercle restreint d’investisseurs), in each case investing for their own account, all as defined in, and in accordance with, articles L.411-2, D.411-1, D.411-2, D.734-1, D.744-1, D.754-1 and D.764-1 of the French Code monétaire et financier;

 

 

 

 

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Ø  

to investment services providers authorized to engage in portfolio management on behalf of third parties; or

 

Ø  

in a transaction that, in accordance with article L.411-2-II-1° -or-2° -or  3° of the French Code monétaire et financier and article 211-2 of the General Regulations (Règlement Général) of the AMF, does not constitute a public offer (appel public à l’épargne).

The units may be resold directly or indirectly, only in compliance with articles L.411-1, L.411-2, L.412-1 and L.621-8 through L.621-8-3 of the French Code monétaire et financier.

NOTICE TO PROSPECTIVE INVESTORS IN HONG KONG

The units may not be offered or sold in Hong Kong by means of any document other than (i) in circumstances which do not constitute an offer to the public within the meaning of the Companies Ordinance (Cap. 32, Laws of Hong Kong), or (ii) to “professional investors” within the meaning of the Securities and Futures Ordinance (Cap. 571, Laws of Hong Kong) and any rules made thereunder, or (iii) in other circumstances which do not result in the document being a “prospectus” within the meaning of the Companies Ordinance (Cap. 32, Laws of Hong Kong) and no advertisement, invitation or document relating to the units may be issued or may be in the possession of any person for the purpose of issue (in each case whether in Hong Kong or elsewhere), which is directed at, or the contents of which are likely to be accessed or read by, the public in Hong Kong (except if permitted to do so under the laws of Hong Kong) other than with respect to units which are or are intended to be disposed of only to persons outside Hong Kong or only to “professional investors” within the meaning of the Securities and Futures Ordinance (Cap. 571, Laws of Hong Kong) and any rules made thereunder.

NOTICE TO PROSPECTIVE INVESTORS IN SINGAPORE

This prospectus has not been registered as a prospectus with the Monetary Authority of Singapore. Accordingly, this prospectus and any other document or material in connection with the offer or sale, or invitation for subscription or purchase, of the units may not be circulated or distributed, nor may the units be offered or sold, or be made the subject of an invitation for subscription or purchase, whether directly or indirectly, to persons in Singapore other than (i) to an institutional investor under Section 274 of the Securities and Futures Act, Chapter 289 of Singapore (the “SFA”), (ii) to a relevant person pursuant to Section 275(1), or any person pursuant to Section 275(1A), and in accordance with the conditions specified in Section 275 of the SFA or (iii) otherwise pursuant to, and in accordance with the conditions of, any other applicable provision of the SFA, in each case subject to compliance with conditions set forth in the SFA.

Where the units are subscribed or purchased under Section 275 of the SFA by a relevant person which is

 

Ø  

a corporation (which is not an accredited investor (as defined in Section 4A of the SFA)) the sole business of which is to hold investments and the entire share capital of which is owned by one or more individuals, each of whom is an accredited investor; or

 

Ø  

a trust (where the trustee is not an accredited investor) whose sole purpose is to hold investments and each beneficiary is an accredited investor, shares, debentures and units of shares and debentures of that corporation or the beneficiaries’ rights and interest (howsoever described) in that trust shall not be transferred within six months after that corporation or that trust has acquired the shares pursuant to an offer made under Section 275 of the SFA except:

 

 

 

 

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Underwriting

 

 

Ø  

to an institutional investor (for corporations, under Section 274 of the SFA) or to a relevant person defined in Section 275(2) of the SFA, or to any person pursuant to an offer that is made on terms that such shares, debentures and units of shares and debentures of that corporation or such rights and interest in that trust are acquired at a consideration of not less than $200,000 (or its equivalent in a foreign currency) for each transaction, whether such amount is to be paid for in cash or by exchange of securities or other assets, and further for corporations, in accordance with the conditions specified in Section 275 of the SFA;

 

Ø  

where no consideration is or will be given for the transfer; or

 

Ø  

where the transfer is by operation of law.

Notification under Section 309B of the Securities and Futures Act, Chapter 289 of Singapore: The units are prescribed capital markets products (as defined in the Securities and Futures (Capital Markets Products) Regulations 2018 and Excluded Investment Products (as defined in MAS Notice SFA 04-N12: Notice on the Sale of Investment Products and MAS Notice FAA-N16: Notice on Recommendations on Investment Products).

NOTICE TO PROSPECTIVE INVESTORS IN JAPAN

The securities have not been and will not be registered under the Financial Instruments and Exchange Law of Japan (the Financial Instruments and Exchange Law) and each underwriter has agreed that it will not offer or sell any securities, directly or indirectly, in Japan or to, or for the benefit of, any resident of Japan (which term as used herein means any person resident in Japan, including any corporation or other entity organized under the laws of Japan), or to others for re-offering or resale, directly or indirectly, in Japan or to a resident of Japan, except pursuant to an exemption from the registration requirements of, and otherwise in compliance with, the Financial Instruments and Exchange Law and any other applicable laws, regulations and ministerial guidelines of Japan.

NOTICE TO PROSPECTIVE INVESTORS IN CANADA

The units may be sold in Canada only to purchasers purchasing, or deemed to be purchasing, as principal that are accredited investors, as defined in National Instrument 45-106 Prospectus Exemptions or subsection 73.3(1) of the Securities Act (Ontario), and are permitted clients, as defined in National Instrument 31-103 Registration Requirements, Exemptions and Ongoing Registrant Obligations. Any resale of the units must be made in accordance with an exemption from, or in a transaction not subject to, the prospectus requirements of applicable securities laws.

Securities legislation in certain provinces or territories of Canada may provide a purchaser with remedies for rescission or damages if this prospectus (including any amendment thereto) contains a misrepresentation, provided that the remedies for rescission or damages are exercised by the purchaser within the time limit prescribed by the securities legislation of the purchaser’s province or territory. The purchaser should refer to any applicable provisions of the securities legislation of the purchaser’s province or territory for particulars of these rights or consult with a legal advisor.

Pursuant to section 3A.3 of National Instrument 33-105 Underwriting Conflicts (NI 33-105), the underwriters are not required to comply with the disclosure requirements of NI 33-105 regarding underwriter conflicts of interest in connection with this offering.

 

 

 

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Legal matters

Greenberg Traurig, LLP, New York, New York, is acting as counsel in connection with the registration of our securities under the Securities Act, and as such, will pass upon the validity of the securities offered in this prospectus. In connection with this offering, Graubard Miller, New York, New York, is acting as counsel to the underwriters.

Experts

The financial statements of Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp. as of September 3, 2020 and for the period from August 24, 2020 (inception) through September 3, 2020 appearing in this prospectus have been audited by Marcum LLP, independent registered public accounting firm, as set forth in their report, thereon (which contains an explanatory paragraph relating to substantial doubt about the ability of Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp. to continue as a going concern as described in Note 1 to the financial statements), appearing elsewhere in this prospectus, and are included in reliance on such report given on the authority of such firm as an experts in auditing and accounting.

Where you can find additional information

We have filed with the SEC a registration statement on Form S-1 under the Securities Act with respect to the securities we are offering by this prospectus. This prospectus does not contain all of the information included in the registration statement. For further information about us and our securities, you should refer to the registration statement and the exhibits and schedules filed with the registration statement. Whenever we make reference in this prospectus to any of our contracts, agreements or other documents, the references are materially complete but may not include a description of all aspects of such contracts, agreements or other documents, and you should refer to the exhibits attached to the registration statement for copies of the actual contract, agreement or other document.

Upon completion of this offering, we will be subject to the information requirements of the Exchange Act and will file annual, quarterly and current event reports, proxy statements and other information with the SEC. You can read our SEC filings, including the registration statement, over the Internet at the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov.

 

 

 

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Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

 

 

INDEX TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

 

 

     Page  

Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

     F-2  

Financial Statements:

  

Balance Sheet

     F-4  

Statement of Operations

     F-5  

Statement of Changes in Stockholder’s Equity

     F-6  

Statement of Cash Flows

     F-7  

Notes to Financial Statements

     F-8  

 

 

 

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Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

To the Stockholder and the Board of Directors of

Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

OPINION ON THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

We have audited the accompanying balance sheet of Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp. (the “Company”) as of September 3, 2020, the related statements of operations, changes in stockholder’s equity and cash flows for the period from August 24, 2020 (inception) through September 3, 2020, and the related notes (collectively referred to as the “financial statements”). In our opinion, the financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Company as of September 3, 2020, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for the period from August 24, 2020 (inception) through September 3, 2020, in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.

EXPLANATORY PARAGRAPH—GOING CONCERN

The accompanying financial statements have been prepared assuming that the Company will continue as a going concern. As more fully described in Note 1 to the financial statements, the Company’s ability to execute its business plan is dependent on the completion of the proposed initial public offering described in Note 3 to the financial statements. The Company has a working capital deficit as of September 3, 2020 and lacks the financial resources it needs to sustain operations for a reasonable period of time, which is considered to be one year from the issuance date of the financial statements. These conditions raise substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern. Management’s plans with regard to these matters are also described in Notes 1 and 3. The financial statements do not include any adjustments that might become necessary should the Company be unable to continue as a going concern.

BASIS FOR OPINION

These financial statements are the responsibility of the Company’s management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Company’s financial statements based on our audit. We are a public accounting firm registered with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (“PCAOB”) and are required to be independent with respect to the Company in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.

We conducted our audit in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud. The Company is not required to have, nor were we engaged to perform, an audit of its internal control over financial reporting. As part of our audit we are required to obtain an understanding of internal control over financial reporting but not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the Company’s internal control over financial reporting. Accordingly, we express no such opinion.

 

 

 

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Our audit included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to error or fraud, and performing procedures that respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. Our audit also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial statements. We believe that our audit provides a reasonable basis for our opinion.

/s/ Marcum LLP

Marcum LLP

We have served as the Company’s auditor since 2020.

New York, NY

September 15, 2020

 

 

 

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Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

 

 

BALANCE SHEET

September 3, 2020

 

ASSETS   

Current asset—cash

   $ 25,000  

Deferred offering costs

     55,000  
  

 

 

 

TOTAL ASSETS

   $ 80,000  
  

 

 

 
LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDER’S EQUITY   

Current liabilities:

  

Accrued expenses

   $ 422  

Accrued offering costs

     55,000  
  

 

 

 

Total Current Liabilities

     55,422  
  

 

 

 

Commitments

  
Stockholder’s Equity   

Preferred stock, $0.0001 par value; 1,000,000 shares authorized; none issued and outstanding

     —    

Class A common stock, $0.0001 par value; 200,000,000 shares authorized; no shares issued and outstanding

     —    

Class B common stock, $0.0001 par value; 20,000,000 shares authorized; 7,187,500 shares issued and outstanding(1)

     719  

Additional paid-in capital

     24,281  

Accumulated deficit

     (422
  

 

 

 

Total Stockholder’s Equity

     24,578  
  

 

 

 

TOTAL LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDER’S EQUITY

   $ 80,000  
  

 

 

 

 

(1)   Includes 937,500 shares of Class B common stock subject to forfeiture if the over-allotment option is not exercised in full or in part by the underwriters (see Note 5).

 

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.

 

 

 

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Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

 

 

STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS

For the period from August 24, 2020 (inception) through

September 3, 2020

 

Formation and operating costs

   $ 422  
  

 

 

 

Net Loss

   $ (422
  

 

 

 

Weighted average shares outstanding, basic and diluted(1)

     6,250,000  
  

 

 

 

Basic and diluted net loss per common stock

   $ (0.00
  

 

 

 

 

(1)   Excludes 937,500 shares of Class B common stock subject to forfeiture if the over-allotment option is not exercised in full or in part by the underwriters (see Note 5).

 

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.

 

 

 

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Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

 

 

STATEMENT OF STOCKHOLDER’S EQUITY

For the period from August 24, 2020 (inception) through

September 3, 2020

 

     Class B
Common Stock
    

Additional
Paid-in

Capital

    

Accumulated

Deficit

   

Total
Stockholder’s

Equity

 
      Shares      Amount  

Balance—August 24, 2020 (inception)

     —        $ —        $ —        $ —       $ —    

Issuance of Class B common stock to Sponsor(1)

     7,187,500        719        24,281        —         25,000  

Net loss

     —          —          —          (422     (422
  

 

 

    

 

 

    

 

 

    

 

 

   

 

 

 

Balance—September 3, 2020

     7,187,500      $ 719      $ 24,281      $ (422   $ 24,578  
  

 

 

    

 

 

    

 

 

    

 

 

   

 

 

 

 

(1)   Includes 937,500 shares of Class B common stock subject to forfeiture if the over-allotment option is not exercised in full or in part by the underwriters (see Note 5).

 

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.

 

 

 

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Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

 

 

STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS

For the period from August 24, 2020 (inception) through

September 3, 2020

 

Cash Flows from Operating Activities:   

Net loss

   $ (422

Changes in operating assets and liabilities:

  

Accrued expenses

     422  
  

 

 

 

Net cash used in operating activities

     —    
  

 

 

 
Cash Flows from Financing Activities:   

Proceeds from sale of Class B common stock to Sponsor

     25,000  
  

 

 

 

Net cash provided by financing activities

     25,000  
  

 

 

 

Net Change in Cash

     25,000  

Cash—Beginning of period

     —    
  

 

 

 

Cash—End of period

   $ 25,000  
  

 

 

 
Non-cash investing and financing activities:   

Deferred offering costs included in accrued offering costs

   $ 55,000  
  

 

 

 

 

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.

 

 

 

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Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

 

 

NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

Note 1—Description of Organization and Business Operations

Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp. (the “Company”) was incorporated in Delaware on August 24, 2020. The Company was formed for the purpose of entering into a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses (a “Business Combination”).

The Company is not limited to a particular industry or geographic region for purposes of consummating a Business Combination. The Company is an early stage and emerging growth company and, as such, the Company is subject to all of the risks associated with early stage and emerging growth companies.

As of September 3, 2020, the Company had not commenced any operations. All activity for the period from August 24, 2020 (inception) through September 3, 2020 relates to the Company’s formation and the proposed initial public offering (“Proposed Public Offering”), which is described below. The Company will not generate any operating revenues until after the completion of a Business Combination, at the earliest. The Company will generate non-operating income in the form of interest income from the proceeds derived from the Proposed Public Offering. The Company has selected December 31 as its fiscal year end.

The Company’s ability to commence operations is contingent upon obtaining adequate financial resources through a Proposed Public Offering of 25,000,000 units (the “Units” and, with respect to the shares of Class A common stock included in the Units being offered, the “Public Shares”) at $10.00 per Unit (or 28,750,000 Units if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full), which is discussed in Note 3, and the sale of 7,000,000 warrants (or 7,750,000 warrants if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) (the “Private Placement Warrants”), at a price of $1.00 per Private Placement Warrant, in a private placement to Golden Falcon Sponsor Group, LLC (the “Sponsor”), that will close simultaneously with the Proposed Public Offering.

The Company’s management has broad discretion with respect to the specific application of the net proceeds of the Proposed Public Offering and the sale of the Private Placement Warrants, although substantially all of the net proceeds are intended to be applied generally toward consummating a Business Combination. There is no assurance that the Company will be able to complete a Business Combination successfully. The Company must complete a Business Combination with one or more target businesses that together have an aggregate fair market value of at least 80% of the value of the Trust Account (as defined below) (excluding the deferred underwriting commissions and taxes payable on income earned on the Trust Account) at the time of the agreement to enter into an initial Business Combination. The Company will only complete a Business Combination if the post-transaction company owns or acquires 50% or more of the outstanding voting securities of the target or otherwise acquires a controlling interest in the target sufficient for it not to be required to register as an investment company under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Investment Company Act”). Upon the closing of the Proposed Public Offering, management has agreed that an amount equal to at least $10.00 per Unit sold in the Proposed Public Offering, including the proceeds from the sale of the Private Placement Warrants, will be held in a trust account (“Trust Account”), located in the United States and invested only in U.S. government securities, within the meaning set forth in Section 2(a)(16) of the Investment Company Act, with a maturity of 185 days or less or in any open-ended investment company that holds itself out as a money market fund selected by the Company meeting the conditions of Rule 2a-7 of the Investment Company Act, as determined by the Company, until the earlier of: (i) the completion of a Business Combination and (ii) the distribution of the funds held in the Trust Account, as described below.

 

 

 

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Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

 

NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS — (Continued)

 

The Company will provide its holders of the outstanding Public Shares (the “public stockholders”) with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their Public Shares upon the completion of a Business Combination either (i) in connection with a stockholder meeting called to approve the Business Combination or (ii) by means of a tender offer. The decision as to whether the Company will seek stockholder approval of a Business Combination or conduct a tender offer will be made by the Company, solely in its discretion. The public stockholders will be entitled to redeem their Public Shares for a pro rata portion of the amount then in the Trust Account (initially anticipated to be $10.00 per Public Share, plus any pro rata interest earned on the funds held in the Trust Account and not previously released to the Company to pay its tax obligations). There will be no redemption rights upon the completion of a Business Combination with respect to the Company’s warrants. The Public Shares subject to redemption will be recorded at redemption value and classified as temporary equity upon the completion of the Proposed Public Offering in accordance with the Financial Accounting Standards Board’s (“FASB”) Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) Topic 480 “Distinguishing Liabilities from Equity.”

The Company will proceed with a Business Combination only if the Company has net tangible assets of at least $5,000,001 either prior to or upon such consummation of a Business Combination and, if the Company seeks stockholder approval, a majority of the shares voted are voted in favor of the Business Combination. If a stockholder vote is not required by law and the Company does not decide to hold a stockholder vote for business or other reasons, the Company will, pursuant to its Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation (the “Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation”), conduct the redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) and file tender offer documents with the SEC prior to completing a Business Combination. If, however, stockholder approval of the transaction is required by law, or the Company decides to obtain stockholder approval for business or other reasons, the Company will offer to redeem shares in conjunction with a proxy solicitation pursuant to the proxy rules and not pursuant to the tender offer rules. If the Company seeks stockholder approval in connection with a Business Combination, the Sponsor has agreed to vote its Founder Shares (as defined in Note 5) and any Public Shares purchased during or after the Proposed Public Offering in favor of approving a Business Combination. Additionally, each public stockholder may elect to redeem their Public Shares irrespective of whether they vote for or against the proposed transaction or don’t vote at all.

Notwithstanding the above, if the Company seeks stockholder approval of a Business Combination and it does not conduct redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules, the Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation provides that a public stockholder, together with any affiliate of such stockholder or any other person with whom such stockholder is acting in concert or as a “group” (as defined under Section 13 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”)), will be restricted from redeeming its shares with respect to more than an aggregate of 15% or more of the Public Shares, without the prior consent of the Company.

The Sponsor has agreed (a) to waive its redemption rights with respect to its Founder Shares and Public Shares held by it in connection with the completion of a Business Combination and (b) not to propose an amendment to the Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation (i) to modify the substance or timing of the Company’s obligation to allow redemption in connection with the Company’s initial Business Combination or to redeem 100% of its Public Shares if the Company does not complete a Business Combination or (ii) with respect to any other provision relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity, unless the Company provides the public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their Public Shares in conjunction with any such amendment.

 

 

 

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Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

 

NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS — (Continued)

 

The Company will have until 24 months from the closing of the Proposed Public Offering to complete a Business Combination (the “Combination Period”). If the Company is unable to complete a Business Combination within the Combination Period, the Company will (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up, (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than ten business days thereafter, redeem the Public Shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the Trust Account including interest earned on the funds held in the Trust Account and not previously released to the Company to pay its tax obligations (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of then outstanding Public Shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidating distributions, if any), and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of the Company’s remaining stockholders and the Company’s board of directors, dissolve and liquidate, subject in each case to the Company’s obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. There will be no redemption rights or liquidating distributions with respect to the Company’s warrants, which will expire worthless if the Company fails to complete a Business Combination within the Combination Period.

The Sponsor has agreed to waive its liquidation rights with respect to the Founder Shares if the Company fails to complete a Business Combination within the Combination Period. However, if the Sponsor acquires Public Shares in or after the Proposed Public Offering, such Public Shares will be entitled to liquidating distributions from the Trust Account if the Company fails to complete a Business Combination within the Combination Period. The underwriters have agreed to waive their rights to their deferred underwriting commission (see Note 6) held in the Trust Account in the event the Company does not complete a Business Combination within the Combination Period and, in such event, such amounts will be included with the other funds held in the Trust Account that will be available to fund the redemption of the Public Shares. In the event of such distribution, it is possible that the per share value of the assets remaining available for distribution will be less than the Proposed Public Offering price per Unit ($10.00).

In order to protect the amounts held in the Trust Account, the Sponsor has agreed to be liable to the Company if and to the extent any claims by a third party for services rendered or products sold to the Company, or a prospective target business with which the Company has discussed entering into a transaction agreement, reduce the amount of funds in the Trust Account to below (1) $10.00 per Public Share or (2) the actual amount per Public Share held in the Trust Account as of the date of the liquidation of the Trust Account due to reductions in the value of the trust assets, in each case net of the interest which may be withdrawn to pay taxes. This liability will not apply with respect to any claims by a third party who executed a waiver of any and all rights to seek access to the Trust Account and except as to any claims under the Company’s indemnity of the underwriters of the Proposed Public Offering against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”). Moreover, in the event that an executed waiver is deemed to be unenforceable against a third party, the Sponsor will not be responsible to the extent of any liability for such third-party claims. The Company will seek to reduce the possibility that the Sponsor will have to indemnify the Trust Account due to claims of creditors by endeavoring to have all vendors, service providers (except the Company’s independent registered public accounting firm), prospective target businesses or other entities with which the Company does business, execute agreements with the Company waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to monies held in the Trust Account.

 

 

 

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Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

 

NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS — (Continued)

 

Going Concern Consideration

At September 3, 2020, the Company had $25,000 in cash and a working capital deficit of $30,422. The Company has incurred and expects to continue to incur significant costs in pursuit of its financing and acquisition plans. These conditions raise substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern within one year after the date that the financial statements are issued. Management plans to address this uncertainty through a Proposed Public Offering as discussed in Note 3. There is no assurance that the Company’s plans to raise capital or to consummate a Business Combination will be successful within the Combination Period. The financial statements do not include any adjustments that might result from the outcome of this uncertainty.

Note 2—Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

Basis of Presentation

The accompanying financial statements are presented in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“U.S. GAAP”) and pursuant to the rules and regulations of the SEC.

Emerging Growth Company

The Company is an “emerging growth company,” as defined in Section 2(a) of the Securities Act, as modified by the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act of 2012 (the “JOBS Act”), and it may take advantage of certain exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other public companies that are not emerging growth companies including, but not limited to, not being required to comply with the independent registered public accounting firm attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in its periodic reports and proxy statements, and exemptions from the requirements of holding a nonbinding advisory vote on executive compensation and stockholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved.

Further, Section 102(b)(1) of the JOBS Act exempts emerging growth companies from being required to comply with new or revised financial accounting standards until private companies (that is, those that have not had a Securities Act registration statement declared effective or do not have a class of securities registered under the Exchange Act) are required to comply with the new or revised financial accounting standards. The JOBS Act provides that a company can elect to opt out of the extended transition period and comply with the requirements that apply to non-emerging growth companies but any such election to opt out is irrevocable. The Company has elected not to opt out of such extended transition period which means that when a standard is issued or revised and it has different application dates for public or private companies, the Company, as an emerging growth company, can adopt the new or revised standard at the time private companies adopt the new or revised standard. This may make comparison of the Company’s financial statements with another public company which is neither an emerging growth company nor an emerging growth company which has opted out of using the extended transition period difficult or impossible because of the potential differences in accounting standards used.

Use of Estimates

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires the Company’s management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and

 

 

 

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Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

 

NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS — (Continued)

 

disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of expenses during the reporting period.

Making estimates requires management to exercise significant judgment. It is at least reasonably possible that the estimate of the effect of a condition, situation or set of circumstances that existed at the date of the financial statements, which management considered in formulating its estimate, could change in the near term due to one or more future confirming events. Accordingly, the actual results could differ from those estimates.

Cash and Cash Equivalents

The Company considers all short-term investments with an original maturity of three months or less when purchased to be cash equivalents. The Company did not have any cash equivalents as of September 3, 2020.

Deferred Offering Costs

Deferred offering costs consist of legal, accounting and other costs incurred through the balance sheet date that are directly related to the Proposed Public Offering and that will be charged to stockholder’s equity upon the completion of the Proposed Public Offering. Should the Proposed Public Offering prove to be unsuccessful, these deferred costs, as well as additional expenses to be incurred, will be charged to operations.

Income Taxes

The Company follows the asset and liability method of accounting for income taxes under ASC 740, “Income Taxes.” Deferred tax assets and liabilities are recognized for the estimated future tax consequences attributable to differences between the financial statements carrying amounts of existing assets and liabilities and their respective tax bases. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are measured using enacted tax rates expected to apply 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 in the period that included the enactment date. Valuation allowances are established, when necessary, to reduce deferred tax assets to the amount expected to be realized.

FASB ASC 740 prescribes a recognition threshold and a measurement attribute for the financial statement recognition and measurement of tax positions taken or expected to be taken in a tax return. For those benefits to be recognized, a tax position must be more likely than not to be sustained upon examination by taxing authorities. The Company recognizes accrued interest and penalties related to unrecognized tax benefits as income tax expense. There were no unrecognized tax benefits and no amounts accrued for interest and penalties as of September 3, 2020. The Company is currently not aware of any issues under review that could result in significant payments, accruals or material deviation from its position. The Company is subject to income tax examinations by major taxing authorities since inception.

The provision for income taxes was deemed to be de minimis for the period from August 24, 2020 (inception) through September 3, 2020.

 

 

 

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Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

 

NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS — (Continued)

 

Net Loss Per Common Share

Net loss per share is computed by dividing net loss by the weighted average number of shares of common stock outstanding during the period, excluding common stock subject to forfeiture. Weighted average shares were reduced for the effect of an aggregate of 937,500 shares of common stock that are subject to forfeiture if the over-allotment option is not exercised by the underwriters (see Note 5). At September 3, 2020, the Company did not have any dilutive securities or other contracts that could, potentially, be exercised or converted into shares of common stock and then share in the earnings of the Company. As a result, diluted loss per share is the same as basic loss per share for the period presented.

Concentration of credit risk

Financial instruments that potentially subject the Company to concentrations of credit risk consist of a cash account in a financial institution which, at times may exceed the Federal Depository Insurance Coverage of $250,000. The Company has not experienced losses on this account.

Fair Value of Financial Instruments

The fair value of the Company’s assets and liabilities, which qualify as financial instruments under FASB ASC Topic 820, “Fair Value Measurement,” approximates the carrying amounts represented in the accompanying balance sheet, primarily due to their short-term nature.

Recent Accounting Standards

Management does not believe that any recently issued, but not yet effective, accounting standards, if currently adopted, would have a material effect on the Company’s financial statements.

Note 3—Proposed Public Offering

Pursuant to the Proposed Public Offering, the Company will offer for sale 25,000,000 Units (or 28,750,000 Units if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) at a purchase price of $10.00 per Unit. Each Unit will consist of one share of Class A common stock and one-half of one redeemable warrant (“Public Warrant”). Each whole Public Warrant will entitle the holder to purchase one share of Class A common stock at an exercise price of $11.50 per share (see Note 7).

Note 4—Private Placement

The Sponsor has agreed to purchase an aggregate of 7,000,000 Private Placement Warrants (or 7,750,000 warrants if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) at a price of $1.00 per Private Placement Warrant, for an aggregate purchase price of $7,000,000 (or $7,750,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full), in a private placement that will occur simultaneously with the closing of the Proposed Public Offering. Each Private Placement Warrant is exercisable to purchase one share of Class A common stock at a price of $11.50 per share. The proceeds from the Private Placement Warrants will be added to the proceeds from the Proposed Public Offering to be held in the Trust Account. If the Company does not complete a Business Combination within the Combination Period, the proceeds of the sale of the Private Placement Warrants will be used to fund the redemption of the Public Shares (subject to the requirements of applicable law) and the Private Placement Warrants will expire worthless. There will be no redemption rights or liquidating distributions from the Trust Account with respect to the Private Placement Warrants.

 

 

 

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Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

 

NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS — (Continued)

 

Note 5—Related Party Transactions

Founder Shares

On September 2, 2020, the Company issued an aggregate of 7,187,500 shares of Class B common stock (the “Founder Shares”) to the Sponsor for an aggregate purchase price of $25,000 in cash. The Founder Shares include an aggregate of up to 937,500 shares of Class B common stock subject to forfeiture by the Sponsor to the extent that the underwriters’ over-allotment option is not exercised in full or in part, so that the Sponsor will own, on an as-converted basis, 20% of the Company’s issued and outstanding shares after the Proposed Public Offering (assuming the Sponsor does not purchase any Public Shares in the Proposed Public Offering).

The Sponsor has agreed that, subject to certain limited exceptions, the Founder Shares will not be transferred, assigned, sold or released from escrow until the earlier of (A) one year after the completion of a Business Combination or (B) subsequent to a Business Combination, (x) if the last reported sale price of the Class A common stock equals or exceeds $12.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock capitalizations, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) for any 20 trading days within any 30-trading day period commencing at least 150 days after a Business Combination or (y) the date on which the Company completes a liquidation, merger, capital stock exchange or other similar transaction that results in all of the Company’s stockholders having the right to exchange their shares of common stock for cash, securities or other property.

Promissory Notes—Related Party

On September 2, 2020, the Company issued an unsecured promissory note to the Sponsor (the “Promissory Note”), pursuant to which the Company may borrow up to an aggregate principal amount of $200,000. The Promissory Note is non-interest bearing and payable on the earlier of (i) December 31, 2020 or (i) the consummation of the Proposed Public Offering. As of September 3, 2020, there was no outstanding balance under the Promissory Note.

Administrative Services Agreement

The Company intends to enter into an agreement pursuant to which the Company will pay an affiliate of the Sponsor a total of up to $10,000 per month, for up to 24 months, for certain administrative, research, transaction and other support services. Upon completion of the Business Combination or the Company’s liquidation, the Company will cease paying these monthly fees.

Related Party Loans

In order to finance transaction costs in connection with a Business Combination, the initial stockholders or an affiliate of the initial stockholders or certain of the Company’s directors and officers may, but are not obligated to, loan the Company funds as may be required (“Working Capital Loans”). If the Company completes a Business Combination, the Company would repay the Working Capital Loans out of the proceeds of the Trust Account released to the Company. Otherwise, the Working Capital Loans would be repaid only out of funds held outside the Trust Account. In the event that a Business Combination does not close, the Company may use a portion of proceeds held outside the Trust Account to repay the Working Capital Loans, but no proceeds held in the Trust Account would be used to repay the Working Capital Loans. Except for the foregoing, the terms of such Working Capital Loans, if any,

 

 

 

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Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

 

NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS — (Continued)

 

have not been determined and no written agreements exist with respect to such loans. The Working Capital Loans would either be repaid upon consummation of a Business Combination, without interest, or, at the lender’s discretion, up to $1,500,000 of such Working Capital Loans may be convertible into warrants of the post-Business Combination entity at a price of $1.00 per warrant. The warrants would be identical to the Private Placement Warrants.

Note 6—Commitments

Registration Rights Agreement

The holders of the Founder Shares, Private Placement Warrants and warrants that may be issued upon conversion of Working Capital Loans (and any Class A common stock issuable upon the exercise of the Private Placement Warrants and warrants issued upon conversion of the Working Capital Loans) will have registration rights to require the Company to register the sale of any of its securities held by them pursuant to a registration rights agreement to be signed prior to or on the effective date of the Proposed Public Offering. The holders of the majority of these securities will be entitled to make up to three demands, excluding short form registration demands, that the Company register such securities for sale under the Securities Act. In addition, these holders will have certain “piggy-back” registration rights to include the securities in other registration statements filed subsequent to completion of a Business Combination and rights to require the Company to register for resale such securities pursuant to Rule 415 under the Securities Act. However, the registration rights agreement provides that the Company will not permit any registration statement filed under the Securities Act to become effective until termination of the applicable lockup period. The registration rights agreement does not contain liquidating damages or other cash settlement provisions resulting from delays in registering the Company’s securities. The Company will bear the expenses incurred in connection with the filing of any such registration statements.

Underwriting Agreement

The Company will grant the underwriters a 45-day option from the date of the Proposed Public Offering to purchase up to 3,750,000 additional Units to cover over-allotments, if any, at the Proposed Public Offering price less the underwriting discounts and commissions.

The underwriters will be entitled to a cash underwriting discount of $0.20 per Unit, or $5,000,000 in the aggregate (or $5,750,000 in the aggregate if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full), payable upon the closing of the Proposed Public Offering. In addition, the underwriters will be entitled to a deferred fee of $0.35 per Unit, or $8,750,000 in the aggregate (or $10,062,500 in the aggregate if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full). The deferred fee will become payable to the underwriters from the amounts held in the Trust Account solely in the event that the Company completes a Business Combination, subject to the terms of the underwriting agreement.

Right of First Refusal

The Company has agreed that until the earlier of (i) September 15, 2023 and (ii) the consummation of a Business Combination, UBS Securities LLC shall have a right of first refusal to act as exclusive capital markets advisor, placement agent, or book-running lead manager, as the case may be, in connection with any private placement or public offering of equity, equity-linked or debt (including, without limitation, asset-backed) securities.

 

 

 

 

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Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

 

NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS — (Continued)

 

Allocation of Securities to Affiliates of Underwriters

Two members of the Sponsor are affiliated with one of the underwriters participating in the Proposed Public Offering and will be allocated an aggregate of 80,000 Founder Shares and 40,000 Private Placement Warrants as a result of their membership in the Sponsor. The securities allocated to these members have been deemed compensation by FINRA and are therefore subject to a lock-up for a period of 180 days immediately following the effective date of the Proposed Public Offering pursuant to Rule 5110(e)(1) of the FINRA Manual. Pursuant to FINRA Rule 5110(e)(1), these securities will not be sold during the Proposed Public Offering or sold, transferred, assigned, pledged, or hypothecated, or be the subject of any hedging, short sale, derivative, put or call transaction that would result in the economic disposition of the securities by any person for a period of 180 days immediately following the effective date of the Proposed Public Offering or commencement of sales of the Proposed Public Offering, except to any underwriter and selected dealer participating in the Proposed Public Offering and their bona fide officers or partners, provided that all securities so transferred remain subject to the lockup restriction above for the remainder of the time period.

Note 7—Stockholder’s Equity

Preferred Stock—The Company is authorized to issue 1,000,000 shares of preferred stock with a par value of $0.0001 per share with such designations, voting and other rights and preferences as may be determined from time to time by the Company’s board of directors. At September 3, 2020, there were no shares of preferred stock issued or outstanding.

Class A Common Stock—The Company is authorized to issue 200,000,000 shares of Class A common stock with a par value of $0.0001 per share. Holders of Class A common stock are entitled to one vote for each share. At September 3, 2020, there were no shares of Class A common stock issued or outstanding.

Class B Common Stock—The Company is authorized to issue 20,000,000 shares of Class B common stock with a par value of $0.0001 per share. Holders of Class B common stock are entitled to one vote for each share. At September 3, 2020, there were 7,187,500 shares of Class B common stock issued and outstanding, of which an aggregate of up to 937,500 shares are subject to forfeiture to the extent that the underwriters’ over-allotment option is not exercised in full or in part, so that the Sponsor will collectively own 20% of the Company’s issued and outstanding common stock after the Proposed Public Offering (assuming the Sponsor does not purchase any Public Shares in the Proposed Public Offering).

Holders of Class A common stock and Class B common stock will vote together as a single class on all other matters submitted to a vote of stockholders except as required by law.

The shares of Class B common stock will automatically convert into shares of Class A common stock at the time of a Business Combination, or earlier at the option of the holder, on a one-for-one basis (subject to adjustment for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like). In the case that additional shares of Class A common stock, or equity-linked securities, are issued or deemed issued in excess of the amounts issued in the Proposed Public Offering and related to the closing of a Business Combination, the ratio at which shares of Class B common stock shall convert into shares of Class A common stock will be adjusted (unless the holders of a majority of the then-outstanding shares of Class B common stock agree to waive such adjustment with respect to any such issuance or deemed issuance, including pursuant to a specified future issuance) so that the number of shares of Class A common stock issuable upon conversion of all shares of Class B common stock will equal, in the aggregate, on an

 

 

 

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Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

 

NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS — (Continued)

 

as-converted basis, 20% of the sum of the total number of all shares of common stock outstanding upon the completion of the Proposed Public Offering plus all shares of Class A common stock and equity-linked securities issued or deemed issued in connection with a Business Combination (excluding any shares or equity-linked securities issued or issuable to any seller in a Business Combination).

Warrants—Public Warrants may only be exercised for a whole number of shares. No fractional shares will be issued upon exercise of the Public Warrants. The Public Warrants will become exercisable on the later of (a) 30 days after the completion of a Business Combination or (b) 12 months from the closing of the Proposed Public Offering. The Public Warrants will expire five years after the completion of a Business Combination or earlier upon redemption or liquidation.

The Company will not be obligated to deliver any Class A common stock pursuant to the exercise of a warrant and will have no obligation to settle such warrant exercise unless a registration statement under the Securities Act with respect to the Class A common stock underlying the warrants is then effective and a prospectus relating thereto is current, subject to the Company satisfying its obligations with respect to registration, or a valid exemption from registration is available. No warrant will be exercisable and the Company will not be obligated to issue a share of Class A common stock upon exercise of a warrant unless the share of Class A common stock issuable upon such warrant exercise has been registered, qualified or deemed to be exempt under the securities laws of the state of residence of the registered holder of the warrants.

The Company has agreed that as soon as practicable, but in no event later than 15 business days after the closing of a Business Combination, the Company will use its reasonable best efforts to file, and within 60 business days following a Business Combination to have declared effective, a registration statement under the Securities Act covering the issuance of the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants. The Company will use its reasonable best efforts to maintain the effectiveness of such registration statement and a current prospectus relating to those shares of Class A common stock until the warrants expire or are redeemed. If a registration statement covering the issuance of the shares of our Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants is not effective by the 60th business day after the closing of a Business Combination, warrant holders may, until such time as there is an effective registration statement and during any period when the Company will have failed to maintain an effective registration statement, exercise warrants on a “cashless basis” in accordance with Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act or another exemption. In addition, if the Class A common stock is at the time of any exercise of a warrant not listed on a national securities exchange such that it satisfies the definition of a “covered security” under Section 18(b)(1) of the Securities Act, the Company may, at its option, require holders of Public Warrants who exercise their warrants to do so on a “cashless basis” in accordance with Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act and, in the event the Company so elect, it will not be required to file or maintain in effect a registration statement, but it will be required to use its best efforts to register or qualify the shares under applicable blue sky laws to the extent an exemption is not available.

Redemption of warrants when the price per share of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $18.00. Once the Public Warrants become exercisable, the Company may redeem the Public Warrants (except with respect to the Private Placement Warrants):

 

Ø  

in whole and not in part;

 

Ø  

at a price of $0.01 per warrant;

 

Ø  

upon not less than 30 days’ prior written notice of redemption to each warrant holder; and

 

 

 

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Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

 

NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS — (Continued)

 

Ø  

if, and only if, the last reported sale price of the Class A common stock equals or exceeds $18.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like and certain issuances of Class A common stock and equity-linked securities) for any 20 trading days within a 30-trading day period commencing once the warrants become exercisable and ending on the third trading day prior to the date on which the Company sends the notice of redemption to the warrant holders.

If and when the warrants become redeemable by the Company, the Company may exercise its redemption right even if the Company is unable to register or qualify the underlying securities for sale under all applicable state securities laws.

Redemption of warrants when the price per share of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00. Once the Public Warrants become exercisable, the Company may redeem the Public Warrants:

 

Ø  

in whole and not in part;

 

Ø  

at $0.10 per warrant upon a minimum of 30 days’ prior written notice of redemption provided that holders will be able to exercise their warrants prior to redemption and receive that number of shares of Class A common stock, based on the redemption date and the fair market value of the Class A common stock;

 

Ø  

if, and only if, the last reported sale price of the Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like and certain issuances of Class A common stock and equity-linked securities) on the trading day prior to the date on which the Company sends the notice of redemption to the warrant holders;

 

Ø  

if, and only if, the Private Placement Warrants are also concurrently called for redemption on the same terms as the outstanding Public Warrants, as described above; and

 

Ø  

if, and only if, there is an effective registration statement covering the issuance of the shares of Class A common issuable upon exercise of the warrants and a current prospectus relating thereto available throughout the 30-day period after written notice of redemption is given.

If the Company calls the Public Warrants for redemption, management will have the option to require all holders that wish to exercise the Public Warrants to do so on a “cashless basis,” as described in the warrant agreement. The exercise price and number of shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants may be adjusted in certain circumstances including in the event of a stock dividend, or recapitalization, reorganization, merger or consolidation. However, except as described below, the warrants will not be adjusted for issuances of Class A common stock at a price below its exercise price. Additionally, in no event will the Company be required to net cash settle the warrants. If the Company is unable to complete a Business Combination within the Combination Period and the Company liquidates the funds held in the Trust Account, holders of warrants will not receive any of such funds with respect to their warrants, nor will they receive any distribution from the Company’s assets held outside of the Trust Account with the respect to such warrants. Accordingly, the warrants may expire worthless.

In addition, if (x) the Company issues additional shares of Class A common stock or equity-linked securities for capital raising purposes in connection with the closing of a Business Combination at an issue price or effective issue price of less than $9.20 per Class A common (with such issue price or

 

 

 

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Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

 

NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS — (Continued)

 

effective issue price to be determined in good faith by the Company’s board of directors and, in the case of any such issuance to the Sponsor or its affiliates, without taking into account any Founder Shares held by the Sponsor or such affiliates, as applicable, prior to such issuance) (the “Newly Issued Price”), (y) the aggregate gross proceeds from such issuances represent more than 60% of the total equity proceeds, and interest thereon, available for the funding of a Business Combination on the date of the consummation of a Business Combination (net of redemptions), and (z) the volume weighted average trading price of the Company’s Class A common stock during the 20 trading day period starting on the trading day prior to the day on which the Company consummates a Business Combination (such price, the “Market Value”) is below $9.20 per share, the exercise price of the warrants will be adjusted (to the nearest cent) to be equal to 115% of the higher of the Market Value and the Newly Issued Price, and the $10.00 and $18.00 per share redemption trigger prices will be adjusted (to the nearest cent) to be equal to 100% and 180% of the higher of the Market Value and the Newly Issued Price, respectively.

The Private Placement Warrants will be identical to the Public Warrants underlying the Units being sold in the Proposed Public Offering, except that the Private Placement Warrants and the Class A common stock issuable upon the exercise of the Private Placement Warrants will not be transferable, assignable or saleable until 30 days after the completion of a Business Combination, subject to certain limited exceptions. Additionally, the Private Placement Warrants will be exercisable on a cashless basis and be non-redeemable so long as they are held by the Sponsor or its permitted transferees. If the Private Placement Warrants are held by someone other than the Sponsor or its permitted transferees, the Private Placement Warrants will be redeemable by the Company and exercisable by such holders on the same basis as the Public Warrants.

Note 8—Subsequent Events

The Company evaluated subsequent events and transactions that occurred after the balance sheet date up to September 15, 2020, the date that the financial statements were available to be issued. Based upon this review, the Company did not identify any subsequent events that would have required adjustment or disclosure in the financial statements.

 

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$250,000,000

25,000,000 Units

Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

 

 

 

PROSPECTUS

            , 2020

 

 

 

UBS Investment Bank    Moelis & Co.

EarlyBirdCapital, Inc.

Until                , 2021 (25 days after the date of this prospectus), all dealers that buy, sell or trade shares of our securities, whether or not participating in this offering, may be required to deliver a prospectus. This is in addition to the dealers’ obligation to deliver a prospectus when acting as underwriters and with respect to their unsold allotments or subscriptions.

 

 

 


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PART II

INFORMATION NOT REQUIRED IN PROSPECTUS

Item 13. Other Expenses of Issuance and Distribution.

The estimated expenses payable by us in connection with the offering described in this registration statement (other than the underwriting discount and commissions) will be as follows:

 

SEC expenses

   $ 31,370  

FINRA expenses

     43,630  

Accounting fees and expenses

     30,000  

Printing and engraving expenses

     36,000  

Travel and road show expenses

     25,000  

Legal fees and expenses

     275,000  

NYSE listing and filing fees

     85,000  

Director & Officer liability insurance premiums(1)

     400,000  

Miscellaneous

     74,000  
  

 

 

 

Total

   $ 1,000,000  
  

 

 

 

 

(1)   This amount represents the approximate amount of annual director and officer liability insurance premiums the registrant anticipates paying following the completion of its initial public offering and until it completes a business combination.

Item 14. Indemnification of Directors and Officers.

Our certificate of incorporation will provide that all of our directors, officers, employees and agents shall be entitled to be indemnified by us to the fullest extent permitted by Section 145 of the Delaware General Corporation Law.

Section 145 of the Delaware General Corporation Law concerning indemnification of officers, directors, employees and agents is set forth below.

“Section 145. Indemnification of officers, directors, employees and agents; insurance.

(a) A corporation shall have power to indemnify any person who was or is a party or is threatened to be made a party to any threatened, pending or completed action, suit or proceeding, whether civil, criminal, administrative or investigative (other than an action by or in the right of the corporation) by reason of the fact that the person is or was a director, officer, employee or agent of the corporation, or is or was serving at the request of the corporation as a director, officer, employee or agent of another corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust or other enterprise, against expenses (including attorneys’ fees), judgments, fines and amounts paid in settlement actually and reasonably incurred by the person in connection with such action, suit or proceeding if the person acted in good faith and in a manner the person reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the corporation, and, with respect to any criminal action or proceeding, had no reasonable cause to believe the person’s conduct was unlawful. The termination of any action, suit or proceeding by judgment, order, settlement, conviction, or upon a plea of nolo contendere or its equivalent, shall not, of itself, create a presumption that the person did not act in good faith and in a manner which the person reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the corporation, and, with respect to any criminal action or proceeding, had reasonable cause to believe that the person’s conduct was unlawful.

 

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(b) A corporation shall have power to indemnify any person who was or is a party or is threatened to be made a party to any threatened, pending or completed action or suit by or in the right of the corporation to procure a judgment in its favor by reason of the fact that the person is or was a director, officer, employee or agent of the corporation, or is or was serving at the request of the corporation as a director, officer, employee or agent of another corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust or other enterprise against expenses (including attorneys’ fees) actually and reasonably incurred by the person in connection with the defense or settlement of such action or suit if the person acted in good faith and in a manner the person reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the corporation and except that no indemnification shall be made in respect of any claim, issue or matter as to which such person shall have been adjudged to be liable to the corporation unless and only to the extent that the Court of Chancery or the court in which such action or suit was brought shall determine upon application that, despite the adjudication of liability but in view of all the circumstances of the case, such person is fairly and reasonably entitled to indemnity for such expenses which the Court of Chancery or such other court shall deem proper.

(c) To the extent that a present or former director or officer of a corporation has been successful on the merits or otherwise in defense of any action, suit or proceeding referred to in subsections (a) and (b) of this section, or in defense of any claim, issue or matter therein, such person shall be indemnified against expenses (including attorneys’ fees) actually and reasonably incurred by such person in connection therewith.

(d) Any indemnification under subsections (a) and (b) of this section (unless ordered by a court) shall be made by the corporation only as authorized in the specific case upon a determination that indemnification of the present or former director, officer, employee or agent is proper in the circumstances because the person has met the applicable standard of conduct set forth in subsections (a) and (b) of this section. Such determination shall be made, with respect to a person who is a director or officer at the time of such determination, (1) by a majority vote of the directors who are not parties to such action, suit or proceeding, even though less than a quorum, or (2) by a committee of such directors designated by majority vote of such directors, even though less than a quorum, or (3) if there are no such directors, or if such directors so direct, by independent legal counsel in a written opinion, or (4) by the stockholders.

(e) Expenses (including attorneys’ fees) incurred by an officer or director in defending any civil, criminal, administrative or investigative action, suit or proceeding may be paid by the corporation in advance of the final disposition of such action, suit or proceeding upon receipt of an undertaking by or on behalf of such director or officer to repay such amount if it shall ultimately be determined that such person is not entitled to be indemnified by the corporation as authorized in this section. Such expenses (including attorneys’ fees) incurred by former officers and directors or other employees and agents may be so paid upon such terms and conditions, if any, as the corporation deems appropriate.

(f) The indemnification and advancement of expenses provided by, or granted pursuant to, the other subsections of this section shall not be deemed exclusive of any other rights to which those seeking indemnification or advancement of expenses may be entitled under any bylaw, agreement, vote of stockholders or disinterested directors or otherwise, both as to action in such person’s official capacity and as to action in another capacity while holding such office. A right to indemnification or to advancement of expenses arising under a provision of the certificate of incorporation or a bylaw shall not be eliminated or impaired by an amendment to such provision after the occurrence of the act or omission that is the subject of the civil, criminal, administrative or investigative action, suit or proceeding for which indemnification or advancement of expenses is sought, unless the provision in effect at the time of such act or omission explicitly authorizes such elimination or impairment after such action or omission has occurred.

(g) A corporation shall have power to purchase and maintain insurance on behalf of any person who is or was a director, officer, employee or agent of the corporation, or is or was serving at the request of the corporation as a director, officer, employee or agent of another corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust or other enterprise against any liability asserted against such person and incurred by such person in any such capacity, or arising out of such person’s status as such, whether or not the corporation would have the power to indemnify such person against such liability under this section.

 

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(h) For purposes of this section, references to “the corporation” shall include, in addition to the resulting corporation, any constituent corporation (including any constituent of a constituent) absorbed in a consolidation or merger which, if its separate existence had continued, would have had power and authority to indemnify its directors, officers, and employees or agents, so that any person who is or was a director, officer, employee or agent of such constituent corporation, or is or was serving at the request of such constituent corporation as a director, officer, employee or agent of another corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust or other enterprise, shall stand in the same position under this section with respect to the resulting or surviving corporation as such person would have with respect to such constituent corporation if its separate existence had continued.

(i) For purposes of this section, references to “other enterprises” shall include employee benefit plans; references to “fines” shall include any excise taxes assessed on a person with respect to any employee benefit plan; and references to “serving at the request of the corporation” shall include any service as a director, officer, employee or agent of the corporation which imposes duties on, or involves services by, such director, officer, employee or agent with respect to an employee benefit plan, its participants or beneficiaries; and a person who acted in good faith and in a manner such person reasonably believed to be in the interest of the participants and beneficiaries of an employee benefit plan shall be deemed to have acted in a manner “not opposed to the best interests of the corporation” as referred to in this section.

(j) The indemnification and advancement of expenses provided by, or granted pursuant to, this section shall, unless otherwise provided when authorized or ratified, continue as to a person who has ceased to be a director, officer, employee or agent and shall inure to the benefit of the heirs, executors and administrators of such a person.

(k) The Court of Chancery is hereby vested with exclusive jurisdiction to hear and determine all actions for advancement of expenses or indemnification brought under this section or under any by law, agreement, vote of stockholders or disinterested directors, or otherwise. The Court of Chancery may summarily determine a corporation’s obligation to advance expenses (including attorneys’ fees).

Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act may be permitted to our directors, officers, and controlling persons pursuant to the foregoing provisions, or otherwise, we have been advised that, in the opinion of the SEC, such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and is, therefore, unenforceable. In the event that a claim for indemnification against such liabilities (other than the payment of expenses incurred or paid by a director, officer or controlling person in a successful defense of any action, suit or proceeding) is asserted by such director, officer or controlling person in connection with the securities being registered, we will, unless in the opinion of its counsel the matter has been settled by controlling precedent, submit to the court of appropriate jurisdiction the question whether such indemnification by it is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and will be governed by the final adjudication of such issue.

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will also provide that we will, to the fullest extent authorized or permitted by applicable law, indemnify our current and former officers and directors, as well as those persons who, while directors or officers of our corporation, are or were serving as directors, officers, employees or agents of another entity, trust or other enterprise, including service with respect to an employee benefit plan, in connection with any threatened, pending or completed proceeding, whether civil, criminal, administrative or investigative, against all expense, liability and loss (including, without limitation, attorney’s fees, judgments, fines, ERISA excise taxes and penalties and amounts paid in settlement) reasonably incurred or suffered by any such person in connection with any such proceeding.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, a person eligible for indemnification pursuant to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will be indemnified by us in connection with a proceeding initiated by such person only if such proceeding was authorized by our board of directors, except for proceedings to enforce rights to indemnification.

The right to indemnification which will be conferred by our amended and restated certificate of incorporation is a contract right that includes the right to be paid by us the expenses incurred in defending or otherwise participating in any proceeding referenced above in advance of its final disposition, provided, however, that if the DGCL requires, an advancement of expenses incurred by our officer or director (solely in the capacity as an officer or director of our corporation) will be made only upon delivery to us of an undertaking, by or on behalf of such officer or director, to repay all amounts so advanced if it is ultimately determined that such person is not entitled to be indemnified for such expenses under our amended and restated certificate of incorporation or otherwise.

 

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The rights to indemnification and advancement of expenses will not be deemed exclusive of any other rights which any person covered by our amended and restated certificate of incorporation may have or hereafter acquire under law, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, our bylaws, an agreement, vote of stockholders or disinterested directors, or otherwise.

Any repeal or amendment of provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation affecting indemnification rights, whether by our stockholders or by changes in law, or the adoption of any other provisions inconsistent therewith, will (unless otherwise required by law) be prospective only, except to the extent such amendment or change in law permits us to provide broader indemnification rights on a retroactive basis, and will not in any way diminish or adversely affect any right or protection existing at the time of such repeal or amendment or adoption of such inconsistent provision with respect to any act or omission occurring prior to such repeal or amendment or adoption of such inconsistent provision. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will also permit us, to the extent and in the manner authorized or permitted by law, to indemnify and to advance expenses to persons other that those specifically covered by our amended and restated certificate of incorporation.

Our bylaws include the provisions relating to advancement of expenses and indemnification rights consistent with those which will be set forth in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation. In addition, our bylaws provide for a right of indemnity to bring a suit in the event a claim for indemnification or advancement of expenses is not paid in full by us within a specified period of time. Our bylaws also permit us to purchase and maintain insurance, at our expense, to protect us and/or any director, officer, employee or agent of our corporation or another entity, trust or other enterprise against any expense, liability or loss, whether or not we would have the power to indemnify such person against such expense, liability or loss under the DGCL.

Any repeal or amendment of provisions of our bylaws affecting indemnification rights, whether by our board of directors, stockholders or by changes in applicable law, or the adoption of any other provisions inconsistent therewith, will (unless otherwise required by law) be prospective only, except to the extent such amendment or change in law permits us to provide broader indemnification rights on a retroactive basis, and will not in any way diminish or adversely affect any right or protection existing thereunder with respect to any act or omission occurring prior to such repeal or amendment or adoption of such inconsistent provision.

We will enter into indemnification agreements with each of our officers and directors a form of which is to be filed as an exhibit to this Registration Statement. These agreements will require us to indemnify these individuals to the fullest extent permitted under Delaware law against liabilities that may arise by reason of their service to us, and to advance expenses incurred as a result of any proceeding against them as to which they could be indemnified.

Pursuant to the Underwriting Agreement filed as Exhibit 1.1 to this Registration Statement, we have agreed to indemnify the Underwriter and the Underwriter has agreed to indemnify us against certain civil liabilities that may be incurred in connection with this offering, including certain liabilities under the Securities Act.

Item 15. Recent Sales of Unregistered Securities.

 

(a)   During the past three years, we sold the following shares of Class B common stock without registration under the Securities Act:

 

Stockholders

   Number of Shares  

Golden Falcon Sponsor Group, LLC

     7,187,500  

Such shares were issued in September 2020 in connection with our organization pursuant to the exemption from registration contained in Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act as the shares were sold to an accredited investor. The shares issued were sold for an offering price of $25,000 at an average purchase price of approximately $0.003 per share.

 

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In November 2020, our sponsor transferred an aggregate of 150,000 founder shares to our independent director nominees. The Company’s sponsor has agreed that it will purchase 7,000,000 warrants at $1.00 per private warrant (for an aggregate purchase price of $7,000,000), or 7,750,000 (for $7,750,000) if the underwriter’s option to purchase additional units is exercised in full. This purchase will take place on a private placement basis simultaneously with the consummation of the initial public offering. The issuance will be made pursuant to the exemption from registration contained in Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act.

No underwriting discounts or commissions were paid with respect to such sales.

Item 16. Exhibits and Financial Statement Schedules.

(a) The following exhibits are filed as part of this Registration Statement:

 

Exhibit No.

    

Description

  1.1     

Form of Underwriting Agreement.*

  3.1     

Certificate of Incorporation.*

  3.2     

Form of Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation.*

  3.3     

Bylaws.*

  4.1     

Specimen Unit Certificate.*

  4.2     

Specimen Common Stock Certificate.*

  4.3     

Specimen Warrant Certificate.*

  4.4     

Form of Warrant Agreement between Continental Stock Transfer  & Trust Company and the Registrant.*

  5.1     

Opinion of Greenberg Traurig, LLP.*

  10.1     

Form of Letter Agreement between the Registrant and the Sponsor.*

  10.2     

Form of Letter Agreement among the Registrant and each officer, director and director nominee.*

  10.3     

Form of Investment Management Trust Agreement between Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company and the Registrant.*

  10.4     

Promissory Note.*

  10.5     

Subscription Agreement, dated September  2, 2020, between the Registrant and the Sponsor.*

  10.6     

Form of Registration Rights Agreement.*

  10.7     

Form of Private Placement Warrants Purchase Agreement.*

  10.8     

Form of Indemnity Agreement.*

  10.9     

Form of Administrative Services Agreement.*

  14     

Form of Code of Ethics.*

  23.1     

Consent of Marcum LLP.*

  23.2     

Consent of Greenberg Traurig, LLP (included in Exhibit 5.1).*

  24     

Power of Attorney (included on signature page of the initial filing of this Registration Statement).

  99.1     

Form of Audit Committee Charter.*

  99.2     

Form of Compensation Committee Charter.*

  99.3     

Form of Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee Charter.*

  99.4     

Consent of Isabelle Amiel Azoulai.*

  99.5     

Consent of Mikael Breuer-Weil.*

  99.6     

Consent of Dominique D’Hinnin.*

  99.7     

Consent of I. Martin Pompadur.*

  99.8     

Consent of Xavier Rolet KBE.*

 

*   Filed herewith.

 

(b)   Financial Statements. See page F-1 for an index to the financial statements and schedules included in the registration statement.

 

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Item 17. Undertakings.

 

(a)   The undersigned registrant hereby undertakes to provide to the underwriters at the closing specified in the underwriting agreements, certificates in such denominations and registered in such names as required by the underwriters to permit prompt delivery to each purchaser.

 

(b)   Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act of 1933 may be permitted to directors, officers and controlling persons of the registrant pursuant to the foregoing provisions, or otherwise, the registrant has been advised that in the opinion of the Securities and Exchange Commission such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Act and is, therefore, unenforceable. In the event that a claim for indemnification against such liabilities (other than the payment by the registrant of expenses incurred or paid by a director, officer or controlling person of the registrant in the successful defense of any action, suit or proceeding) is asserted by such director, officer or controlling person in connection with the securities being registered, the registrant will, unless in the opinion of its counsel the matter has been settled by controlling precedent, submit to a court of appropriate jurisdiction the question whether such indemnification by it is against public policy as expressed in the Act and will be governed by the final adjudication of such issue.

 

(c)   The undersigned registrant hereby undertakes that:

 

  (1)   For purposes of determining any liability under the Securities Act of 1933, the information omitted from the form of prospectus filed as part of this registration statement in reliance upon Rule 430A and contained in a form of prospectus filed by the registrant pursuant to Rule 424(b)(1) or (4) or 497(h) under the Securities Act shall be deemed to be part of this registration statement as of the time it was declared effective.

 

  (2)   For the purpose of determining any liability under the Securities Act of 1933, each post-effective amendment that contains a form of prospectus shall be deemed to be a new registration statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering thereof.

 

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SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, the registrant has duly caused this registration statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, in the city of London, United Kingdom, on the 1st day of December, 2020.

 

GOLDEN FALCON ACQUISITION CORP.

BY:

  /s/ Makram Azar
  Name: Makram Azar
  Title: Chief Executive Officer

POWER OF ATTORNEY

KNOW ALL MEN BY THESE PRESENTS, that each person whose signature appears below constitutes and appoints Makram Azar and Scott J. Freidheim his true and lawful attorney-in-fact, and agent with full power of substitution and resubstitution for him and in his name, place and stead, in any and all capacities to sign any and all amendments including pre- and post-effective amendments to this registration statement, any subsequent registration statement for the same offering which may be filed pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and pre- or post-effective amendments thereto, and to file the same, with all exhibits thereto, and other documents in connection therewith, with the Securities and Exchange Commission granting unto said attorneys-in-fact and agents, each acting alone, full power and authority to do and perform each and every act and thing requisite and necessary to be done in and about the premises, as fully to all intents and purposes as he might or could do in person, hereby ratifying and confirming all that said attorney-in-fact and agent or his substitute or substitutes, may lawfully do or cause to be done by virtue thereof.

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, this Registration Statement has been signed by the following persons in the capacities and on the dates indicated.

 

Name

  

Position

  

Date

 

/s/ Scott J. Freidheim

Scott J. Freidheim

  

Chairman of the Board of Directors

 

  

December 1, 2020

 

/s/ Makram Azar

Makram Azar

  

Chief Executive Officer and Director

(Principal Executive Officer)

   December 1, 2020

/s/ Eli Muraidekh

Eli Muraidekh

  

Chief Financial Officer and Director

(Principal Financial and Accounting Officer)

   December 1, 2020

 

II-7

Exhibit 1.1

GOLDEN FALCON ACQUISITION CORP.

25,000,000 Units

Underwriting Agreement

[•], 2020

UBS Securities LLC

Moelis & Co.

As Representatives of the

several Underwriters listed

in Schedule 1 hereto

c/o UBS Securities LLC

1285 Avenue of the Americas

New York, New York 10019

c/o Moelis & Co.

399 Park Avenue, 5th Floor

New York, New York 10022

Ladies and Gentlemen:

Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), proposes to issue and sell to the several underwriters listed in Schedule 1 hereto (collectively, the “Underwriters”), for whom you are acting as representatives (the “Representatives”), an aggregate of 25,000,000 units of the Company (the “Underwritten Units”) and, at the option of the Underwriters, up to an additional 3,750,000 units of the Company (the “Option Units”). The Underwritten Units and the Option Units are herein referred to as the “Units.” To the extent that there are no additional Underwriters listed on Schedule 1 other than you, the term Representatives as used herein shall mean you, as Underwriters, and the term Underwriters shall mean either the singular or plural as the context requires.

Each Unit consists of one share of the Company’s Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 per share (the “Common Stock”), and one-half of one redeemable warrant, where each whole warrant entitles the holder to purchase one share of Common Stock (the “Warrant(s)”). The shares of Common Stock and the Warrants included in the Units will not trade separately until the 52nd day following the date of the Prospectus (as defined below) (or if such date is not a business day (as defined below), the following business day) (unless the Representatives inform the Company of their decision to allow earlier separate trading), subject to (a) the Company’s preparation of an audited balance sheet reflecting the receipt by the Company of the proceeds of the Offering (as defined below), (b) the filing of such audited balance sheet with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) on a Current Report on Form 8-K that includes such audited balance sheet and (c) the Company having issued a press release announcing when such separate trading will begin. No fractional Warrants will be issued upon separation of the Units, and only whole Warrants will trade. Each whole Warrant entitles its holder, upon exercise, to purchase one share of Common Stock at a price of $11.50 per share during the period commencing on the later of thirty days after the completion of the Company’s initial Business Combination (as defined below) and twelve months from the date of the consummation of the Offering and terminating on the five-year anniversary of the date of the completion of such initial Business Combination or earlier upon redemption or Liquidation (as defined below); provided, however, that pursuant to the Warrant Agreement (as defined below), a fractional Warrant may not be exercised, so that only a whole Warrant may be exercised at any given time by a holder thereof. As used herein, the term “Business Combination” (as described more fully in the Prospectus) shall mean a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses or entities involving the Company.


The Company has entered into an Investment Management Trust Agreement, effective as of the date hereof (the “Trust Agreement”), with Continental Stock Transfer& Trust Company (“CST”), as trustee (the “Trustee”), in substantially the form filed as Exhibit 10.3 to the Registration Statement (as defined below), pursuant to which proceeds from the sale of the Private Placement Warrants (as defined below) and proceeds of the Offering will be deposited and held in a trust account (the “Trust Account”) for the benefit of the Company, the Underwriters and the Public Stockholders (as defined below).

The Company has entered into a Warrant Agreement, effective as of the date hereof (the “Warrant Agreement”), with respect to the Warrants and the Private Placement Warrants with CST, as warrant agent, in substantially the form filed as Exhibit 4.4 to the Registration Statement, pursuant to which CST will act as warrant agent in connection with the issuance, registration, transfer, exchange, redemption, and exercise of the Warrants and the Private Placement Warrants.

The Company has entered into a letter agreement, dated as of September 2, 2020 (the “Founder’s Purchase Agreement”), with Golden Falcon Sponsor Group (the “Sponsor”), pursuant to which the Sponsor purchased an aggregate of 7,187,500 shares of the Company’s Class B common stock, par value $0.0001 per share, for an aggregate purchase price of $25,000 (including the shares of Common Stock issuable upon conversation thereof, the “Founder Shares”). The Sponsor subsequently transferred certain of the Founder Shares to the Company’s other officers and directors for the same per share price originally paid for such shares. Up to 937,500 Founder Shares are subject to forfeiture depending on the extent to which the Underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised. The Founder Shares are substantially similar to the shares of Common Stock included in the Units, except as described in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package (as defined below) and the Prospectus.

The Company has entered into a Private Placement Warrants Purchase Agreement, effective as of the date hereof (the “Warrant Purchase Agreement”), with the Sponsor in substantially the form filed as Exhibit 10.7 to the Registration Statement, pursuant to which the Sponsor agreed to purchase an aggregate of 7,000,000 warrants (or up to 7,750,000 warrants if the over-allotment option is exercised in full), each warrant entitling its holder, upon exercise, to purchase one share of Common Stock (the “Private Placement Warrants”), for $1.00 per Private Placement Warrant.

 

2


The Company has entered into a Registration Rights Agreement, effective as of the date hereof (the “Registration Rights Agreement”), with the Sponsor and the other parties thereto in substantially the form filed as Exhibit 10.6 to the Registration Statement, pursuant to which the Company has granted certain registration rights in respect of the Private Placement Warrants and the shares of Common Stock underlying the Private Placement Warrants, the Founder Shares and certain warrants (which will be substantially similar to the Private Placement Warrants), if any, that may be issued upon conversion of working capital loans.

The Company has caused to be duly executed and delivered letter agreements, dated as of the date hereof (collectively, the “Insider Letters”), by and between the Sponsor and by and among each of the Company’s officers, directors and director nominees, in substantially the forms filed as Exhibit 10.1 and 10.2 to the Registration Statement, as applicable.

The Company has entered into an Administrative Services Agreement, dated as of the date hereof (the “Administrative Services Agreement” and, collectively with this Agreement (as defined below), the Trust Agreement, the Warrant Agreement, the Founder’s Purchase Agreement, the Warrant Purchase Agreement, and the Registration Rights Agreement and the Insider Letters, the “Transaction Documents”), with an affiliate of the Sponsor, in substantially the form filed as Exhibit 10.9 to the Registration Statement, pursuant to which an affiliate of the Sponsor will, subject to the terms of the Administrative Services Agreement, provide certain administrative, research, transaction and other support services at a cost of up to $10,000 per month, for up to 24 months.

 

3


The Company hereby confirms its agreement with the several Underwriters concerning the purchase and sale of the Units, as follows:

1. Registration Statement. The Company has prepared and filed with the Commission under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder (collectively, the “Securities Act”), a registration statement (File No. 333-_______), including a prospectus, relating to the Units and the Warrants and shares of Common Stock included therein. Such registration statement, as amended at the time it became effective, including the information, if any, deemed pursuant to Rule 430A, 430B or 430C under the Securities Act to be part of the registration statement at the time of its effectiveness (“Rule 430 Information”), is referred to herein as the “Registration Statement”; and as used herein, the term “Preliminary Prospectus” means each prospectus included in such registration statement (and any amendments thereto) before effectiveness, any prospectus filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(a) under the Securities Act and the prospectus included in the Registration Statement at the time of its effectiveness that omits Rule 430 Information, and the term “Prospectus” means the prospectus in the form first used (or made available upon request of purchasers pursuant to Rule 173 under the Securities Act) in connection with confirmation of sales of the Units. If the Company has filed an abbreviated registration statement pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act (the “Rule 462 Registration Statement”), then any reference herein to the term “Registration Statement” shall be deemed to include such Rule 462 Registration Statement.

At or prior to the Applicable Time (as defined below), the Company had prepared the following information (collectively with the pricing information set forth on Annex A, the “Pricing Disclosure Package”): a Preliminary Prospectus dated ______, 2020.

“Applicable Time” means [*] A.M., New York City time, on _______, 2020.

2. Purchase of the Units.

(a) The Company agrees to issue and sell the Underwritten Units to the several Underwriters as provided in this underwriting agreement (this “Agreement”), and each Underwriter, on the basis of the representations, warranties and agreements set forth herein and subject to the conditions set forth herein, agrees, severally and not jointly, to purchase at a price per Unit of $9.80 (the “Purchase Price”) from the Company the respective number of Underwritten Units set forth opposite such Underwriter’s name in Schedule 1 hereto.

(b) In addition, the Company agrees to issue and sell the Option Units to the several Underwriters as provided in this Agreement, and the Underwriters, on the basis of the representations, warranties and agreements set forth herein and subject to the conditions set forth herein, shall have the option to purchase, severally and not jointly, from the Company the Option Units at a price per Unit of $9.80 less an amount per unit equal to any dividends or distributions declared by the Company and payable on the Underwritten Units but not payable on the Option Units.

 

4


If any Option Units are to be purchased, the number of Option Units to be purchased by each Underwriter shall be the number of Option Units which bears the same ratio to the aggregate number of Option Units being purchased as the number of Underwritten Units set forth opposite the name of such Underwriter in Schedule 1 hereto (or such number increased as set forth in Section 10 hereof) bears to the aggregate number of Underwritten Units being purchased from the Company by the several Underwriters, subject, however, to such adjustments to eliminate any fractional Units as the Representatives in their sole discretion shall make.

The Underwriters may exercise the option to purchase Option Units at any time in whole, or from time to time in part, on or before the 45th day following the date of the Prospectus, by written notice from the Representatives to the Company. Such notice shall set forth the aggregate number of Option Units as to which the option is being exercised and the date and time when the Option Units are to be delivered and paid for, which may be the same date and time as the Closing Date (as defined below) but shall not be earlier than the Closing Date nor later than the tenth full business day after the date of such notice (unless such time and date are postponed in accordance with the provisions of Section 10 hereof). Any such notice shall be given at least two business days prior to the date and time of delivery specified therein.

(c) In addition to the discount from the public offering price represented by the Purchase Price, the Company hereby agrees to pay to the Underwriters a deferred discount of $0.35 per Unit (including both Underwritten Units and Option Units) purchased hereunder (the “Deferred Discount”). The Deferred Discount will be paid directly to the Representatives, on behalf of the Underwriters, by the Trustee from amounts on deposit in the Trust Account (without accrued interest) by wire transfer payable in same-day funds if and when the Company consummates an initial Business Combination. The Underwriters hereby agree that if no Business Combination is consummated within the time period provided in the Company’s Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, as such time period may be extended, and the funds held under the Trust Agreement are distributed to the holders of the shares of Common Stock included in the Units sold pursuant to this Agreement (the “Public Stockholders”), (i) the Underwriters will forfeit any rights or claims to the Deferred Discount and (ii) the Trustee is authorized to distribute the Deferred Discount to the Public Stockholders on a pro rata basis.

(d) The Company understands that the Underwriters intend to make a public offering of the Units (the “Offering”), and initially to offer the Units on the terms set forth in the Pricing Disclosure Package. The Company acknowledges and agrees that the Underwriters may offer and sell Units to or through any affiliate of an Underwriter.

(e) Payment for the Units shall be made by wire transfer in immediately available funds to the account specified by the Company to the Representatives in the case of the Underwritten Units, at the offices of Graubard Miller, 405 Lexington Avenue, New York, New York 10174 at 10:00 A.M. New York City time on _______, 2020, or at such other time or place on the same or such other date, not later than the fifth business day thereafter, as the Representatives and the Company may agree upon in writing or, in the case of the Option Units, on the date and at the time and place specified by the Representatives in the written notice of the Underwriters’ election to purchase such Option Units. The Company shall not be obligated to sell or deliver any of the Underwritten Units, except upon tender of payment by the Representatives for all Underwritten Units. The time and date of such payment for the Underwritten Units is referred to herein as the “Closing Date,” and the time and date for such payment for the Option Units, if other than the Closing Date, is herein referred to as the “Additional Closing Date.”

 

5


Payment for the Units to be purchased on the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, shall be made against delivery to the Representatives for the respective accounts of the several Underwriters of the Units to be purchased on such date in definitive or book-entry form registered in such names and in such denominations as the Representatives shall request in writing not later than two full business days prior to the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, with any transfer taxes payable in connection with the sale of such Units duly paid by the Company. Delivery of the Units shall be made through the facilities of The Depository Trust Company unless the Representatives shall otherwise instruct.

(f) The Company acknowledges and agrees that the Representatives and the other Underwriters are acting solely in the capacity of an arm’s length contractual counterparty to the Company with respect to the Offering contemplated hereby (including in connection with determining the terms of the Offering) and not as a financial advisor or a fiduciary to, or an agent of, the Company or any other person. Additionally, neither the Representatives nor any other Underwriter is advising the Company or any other person as to any legal, tax, investment, accounting or regulatory matters in any jurisdiction. The Company shall consult with its own advisors concerning such matters and shall be responsible for making its own independent investigation and appraisal of the transactions contemplated hereby, and neither the Representatives nor the other Underwriters shall have any responsibility or liability to the Company with respect thereto. Any review by the Representatives and the other Underwriters of the Company, the transactions contemplated hereby or other matters relating to such transactions will be performed solely for the benefit of the Underwriters and shall not be on behalf of the Company. The Company agrees that it will not claim that the Underwriters, or any of them, has rendered advisory services of any nature or respect, or owes a fiduciary or similar duty to it, in connection with the transactions contemplated hereby or the process leading thereto.

3. Representations and Warranties of the Company. The Company represents and warrants to each Underwriter that:

(a) Preliminary Prospectus. No order preventing or suspending the use of any Preliminary Prospectus has been issued by the Commission, and each Preliminary Prospectus included in the Pricing Disclosure Package, at the time of filing thereof, complied in all material respects with the Securities Act, and no Preliminary Prospectus, at the time of filing thereof, contained any untrue statement of a material fact or omitted to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading; provided, however, that the Company makes no representation or warranty with respect to any statements or omissions made in reliance upon and in conformity with information relating to any Underwriter furnished to the Company in writing by such Underwriter through the Representatives expressly for use in any Preliminary Prospectus, it being understood and agreed that the only such information furnished by any Underwriter consists of the information described as such in Section 7(b) hereof.

 

6


(b) Pricing Disclosure Package. The Pricing Disclosure Package as of the Applicable Time did not, and as of the Closing Date and as of the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, will not, contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading; provided, however, that the Company makes no representation or warranty with respect to any statements or omissions made in reliance upon and in conformity with information relating to any Underwriter furnished to the Company in writing by such Underwriter through the Representatives expressly for use in such Pricing Disclosure Package, it being understood and agreed that the only such information furnished by any Underwriter consists of the information described as such in Section 7(b) hereof. No statement of material fact included in the Prospectus has been omitted from the Pricing Disclosure Package and no statement of material fact included in the Pricing Disclosure Package that is required to be included in the Prospectus has been omitted therefrom.

(c) Issuer Free Writing Prospectus. Other than the Registration Statement, the Preliminary Prospectus and the Prospectus, the Company (including its agents and representatives, other than the Underwriters in their capacity as such) has not prepared, made, used, authorized, approved or referred to and will not prepare, make, use, authorize, approve or refer to any “written communication” (as defined in Rule 405 under the Securities Act) that constitutes an offer to sell or solicitation of an offer to buy the Units other than any document not constituting a prospectus pursuant to Section 2(a)(10)(a) of the Securities Act or Rule 134 under the Securities Act.

(d) Form 8-A. The Company has filed with the Commission a Form 8-A (file number 001-[____]) providing for the registration under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), of the Units, the Common Stock and the Warrants, which registration is currently effective on the date hereof. The Units and the shares of Common Stock and the Warrants included as part of the Units have been authorized for listing, subject to official notice of issuance and evidence of satisfactory distribution, on the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”), and the Company knows of no reason or set of facts that is likely to adversely affect such authorization.

(e) Emerging Growth Company. From the time of the initial confidential submission of the Registration Statement to the Commission (or, if earlier, the first date on which the Company engaged directly or through any person authorized to act on its behalf in any Testing-the-Waters Communication) through the date hereof, the Company has been and is an “emerging growth company,” as defined in Section 2(a) of the Securities Act (an “Emerging Growth Company”). “Testing-the-Waters Communication” means any oral or written communication with potential investors undertaken in reliance on Section 5(d) of the Securities Act or Rule 163B under the Securities Act.

 

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(f) Testing-the-Waters Materials. The Company (i) has not alone engaged in any Testing-the-Waters Communications other than Testing-the-Waters Communications with the consent of the Representatives with entities that are qualified institutional buyers within the meaning of Rule 144A under the Securities Act or institutions that are accredited investors within the meaning of Rule 501 under the Securities Act and (ii) has not authorized anyone other than the Underwriters to engage in Testing-the-Waters Communications. The Company reconfirms that the Underwriters have been authorized to act on its behalf in undertaking Testing-the-Waters Communications. The Company has not distributed or approved for distribution any Written Testing-the-Waters Communications other than those listed on Annex B hereto. “Written Testing-the-Waters Communication” means any Testing-the-Waters Communication that is a written communication within the meaning of Rule 405 under the Securities Act. Any individual Written Testing-the-Waters Communication does not conflict with the information contained in the Registration Statement or the Pricing Disclosure Package, complied in all material respects with the Securities Act, and when taken together with the Pricing Disclosure Package as of the Applicable Time, did not, and as of the Closing Date and as of the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, will not, contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading.

(g) Registration Statement and Prospectus. The Registration Statement has been declared effective by the Commission. No order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement has been issued by the Commission, and no proceeding for that purpose or pursuant to Section 8A of the Securities Act against the Company or related to the Offering has been initiated, or to the Company’s knowledge, or threatened by the Commission; as of the applicable effective date of the Registration Statement and any post-effective amendment thereto, the Registration Statement and any such post-effective amendment complied and will comply in all material respects with the Securities Act, and did not and will not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary in order to make the statements therein not misleading; and as of the date of the Prospectus and any amendment or supplement thereto and as of the Closing Date and as of the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, the Prospectus will comply in all material respects with the Securities Act and will not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading; provided, however, that the Company makes no representation or warranty with respect to any statements or omissions made in reliance upon and in conformity with information relating to any Underwriter furnished to the Company in writing by such Underwriter through the Representatives expressly for use in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus and any amendment or supplement thereto, it being understood and agreed that the only such information furnished by any Underwriter consists of the information described as such in Section 7(b) hereof.

 

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(h) Financial Statements. The financial statements (including the related notes thereto) of the Company included in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus comply in all material respects with the applicable requirements of the Securities Act and present fairly the financial position of the Company as of the dates indicated and the results of their operations and the changes in their cash flows for the periods specified; such financial statements have been prepared in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”) in the United States applied on a consistent basis throughout the periods covered thereby, and any supporting schedules included in the Registration Statement present fairly the information required to be stated therein; and the other financial information included in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus has been derived from the accounting records of the Company and presents fairly the information shown thereby; all disclosures included in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus regarding “non-GAAP financial measures” (as such term is defined by the rules and regulations of Commission), if any, comply with Regulation G of the Exchange Act and Item 10 of Regulation S-K of the Securities Act, to the extent applicable.

(i) No Material Adverse Change. Since the date of the most recent financial statements of the Company included in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, (i) there has not been any change in the capital stock, short-term debt or long-term debt of the Company, or any dividend or distribution of any kind declared, set aside for payment, paid or made by the Company on any class of capital stock, or any material adverse change, or any development involving a prospective material adverse change, in or affecting the business, properties, management, financial position, stockholders’ equity, results of operations or prospects of the Company; (ii) the Company has not entered into any transaction or agreement (whether or not in the ordinary course of business) that is material to the Company or incurred any liability or obligation, direct or contingent, that is material to the Company; and (iii) the Company has not sustained any loss or interference with its business that is material to the Company and that is either from fire, explosion, flood or other calamity, whether or not covered by insurance, or from any labor disturbance or dispute or any action, order or decree of any court or arbitrator or governmental or regulatory authority, except in each case as otherwise disclosed in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus.

(j) Organization and Good Standing. The Company has been duly organized and is validly existing and in good standing under the laws of its jurisdiction of organization, is duly qualified to do business and is in good standing in each jurisdiction in which its ownership or lease of property or the conduct of its business requires such qualification, and has all power and authority necessary to own or hold its properties and to conduct the business in which it is engaged, except where the failure to be so qualified or in good standing or have such power or authority would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a material adverse effect on the business, properties, management, financial position, stockholders’ equity, results of operations or prospects of the Company or on the performance by the Company of its obligations under the Transaction Documents (a “Material Adverse Effect”).

 

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(k) Capitalization. The Company has an authorized capitalization as set forth in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus under the heading “Capitalization”; all the outstanding shares of capital stock of the Company have been duly and validly authorized and issued and are fully paid and non-assessable and are not subject to any pre-emptive or similar rights; except as described in or expressly contemplated by the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, there are no outstanding rights (including, without limitation, pre-emptive rights), warrants or options to acquire, or instruments convertible into or exchangeable for, any shares of capital stock or other equity interest in the Company or any contract, commitment, agreement, understanding or arrangement of any kind relating to the issuance of any capital stock of the Company, any such convertible or exchangeable securities or any such rights, warrants or options; the capital stock of the Company conforms in all material respects to the description thereof contained in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus. The offers and sales of the outstanding securities of the Company were at all relevant times either registered under the Securities Act, the applicable state securities and blue sky laws or, based in part on the representations and warranties of the purchasers of such securities, exempt from such registration requirements.

(l) Due Authorization. The Company has full right, power and authority to execute and deliver this Agreement and the other Transaction Documents and to perform its obligations hereunder and thereunder; and all action required to be taken for the due and proper authorization, execution and delivery by it of this Agreement and each of the other Transaction Documents and the consummation by it of the transactions contemplated hereby and thereby has been duly and validly taken.

(m) Underwriting Agreement. This Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company.

(n) The Units. The Units to be issued and sold by the Company hereunder have been duly authorized by the Company and, when issued and delivered and paid for as provided herein, will be duly and validly issued, will constitute valid and legally binding obligations of the Company enforceable against the Company in accordance with their terms, except as enforceability may be limited by applicable bankruptcy, insolvency or similar laws affecting the enforcement of creditors’ rights generally or by equitable principles relating to enforceability, and will conform to the descriptions thereof in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus; and the issuance of the Units is not subject to any preemptive or similar rights.

(o) The Unit Shares. The shares of Common Stock included in the Units have been duly authorized by the Company and, when issued and delivered against payment for the Units by the Underwriters pursuant to this Agreement, will be duly and validly issued and delivered, will be fully paid and nonassessable, and will conform to the descriptions thereof in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus.

 

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(p) The Unit Warrants. The Warrants included in the Units to be issued and sold by the Company hereunder have been duly authorized by the Company and, when issued and delivered in the manner set forth in the Warrant Agreement against payment for the Units by the Underwriters pursuant to this Agreement, will be duly and validly issued and delivered, will constitute valid and legally binding obligations of the Company enforceable against the Company in accordance with their terms, except as enforceability may be limited by applicable bankruptcy, insolvency or similar laws affecting the enforcement of creditors’ rights generally or by equitable principles relating to enforceability, and will conform to the descriptions thereof in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus.

(q) The Warrant Shares. The shares of Common Stock issuable upon exercise of the Warrants included in the Units and the Private Placement Warrants (the “Warrant Shares”) have been duly authorized by the Company and, when issued and delivered against payment therefor pursuant to the Warrants and the Private Placement Warrants, as applicable, and the Warrant Agreement, will be duly and validly issued and delivered, will be fully paid and nonassessable; and such Warrant Shares have been duly authorized by the Company and validly reserved for issuance. The holders of such Warrant Shares will not be subject to personal liability by reason of being such holders; such Warrant Shares, at the time such shares are issued, will not be subject to any preemptive or other similar contractual rights granted by the Company; and all corporate action required to be taken for the authorization, issuance and sale of such Warrant Shares (other than such delivery at the time of issuance) has been duly and validly taken.

(r) The Private Placement Warrants. The Private Placement Warrants to be issued and sold by the Company under the Warrant Purchase Agreement have been duly authorized by the Company and, when issued and delivered in the manner set forth in the Warrant Agreement against payment therefor pursuant to the Warrant Purchase Agreement will be duly and validly issued and delivered, will constitute valid and legally binding obligations of the Company enforceable against the Company in accordance with their terms, except as enforceability may be limited by applicable bankruptcy, insolvency or similar laws affecting the enforcement of creditors’ rights generally or by equitable principles relating to enforceability, and will conform to the descriptions thereof in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus.

(s) The Trust Agreement. The Trust Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company and constitutes a valid and legally binding obligation of the Company enforceable against the Company in accordance with its terms, except as enforceability may be limited by applicable bankruptcy, insolvency or similar laws affecting the enforcement of creditors’ rights generally or by equitable principles relating to enforceability.

 

 

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(t) The Warrant Agreement. The Warrant Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company and constitutes a valid and legally binding obligation of the Company enforceable against the Company in accordance with its terms, except as enforceability may be limited by applicable bankruptcy, insolvency or similar laws affecting the enforcement of creditors’ rights generally or by equitable principles relating to enforceability.

(u) The Founder’s Purchase Agreement. The Founder’s Purchase Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company and constitutes a valid and legally binding obligation of the Company enforceable against the Company in accordance with its terms, except as enforceability may be limited by applicable bankruptcy, insolvency or similar laws affecting the enforcement of creditors’ rights generally or by equitable principles relating to enforceability.

(v) The Warrant Purchase Agreement. The Warrant Purchase Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company and constitutes a valid and legally binding obligation of the Company enforceable against the Company in accordance with its terms, except as enforceability may be limited by applicable bankruptcy, insolvency or similar laws affecting the enforcement of creditors’ rights generally or by equitable principles relating to enforceability.

(w) The Registration Rights Agreement. The Registration Rights Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company and constitutes a valid and legally binding obligation of the Company enforceable against the Company in accordance with its terms, except as enforceability may be limited by applicable bankruptcy, insolvency or similar laws affecting the enforcement of creditors’ rights generally or by equitable principles relating to enforceability.

 

 

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(x) The Insider Letters. The Insider Letters have been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company and, to the Company’s knowledge, the Sponsor and each officer, director and director nominee of the Company and constitutes a valid and legally binding obligation of the Company and, to the Company’s knowledge, the Sponsor and each officer, director and director nominee of the Company enforceable against the Company and, to the Company’s knowledge, the Sponsor and each officer, director and director nominee of the Company in accordance with its terms, except as enforceability may be limited by applicable bankruptcy, insolvency or similar laws affecting the enforcement of creditors’ rights generally or by equitable principles relating to enforceability.

(y) The Administrative Services Agreement. The Administrative Services Agreement has been duly authorized, executed and delivered by the Company and constitutes a valid and legally binding obligation of the Company enforceable against the Company in accordance with its terms, except as enforceability may be limited by applicable bankruptcy, insolvency or similar laws affecting the enforcement of creditors’ rights generally or by equitable principles relating to enforceability.

(z) Descriptions of the Transaction Documents. Each Transaction Document conforms in all material respects to the description thereof contained in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus.

(aa) No Violation or Default. The Company is not (i) in violation of any provision in its charter or by-laws or similar organizational documents; (ii) in default, and no event has occurred that, with notice or lapse of time or both, would constitute such a default, in the due performance or observance of any term, covenant or condition contained in any indenture, mortgage, deed of trust, loan agreement or other agreement or instrument to which the Company is a party or by which the Company is bound or to which any property or asset of the Company is subject; or (iii) in violation of any law or statute or any judgment, order, rule or regulation of any court or arbitrator or governmental or regulatory authority, except, in the case of clauses (ii) and (iii) above, for any such default or violation that would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect.

(bb) No Conflicts. The execution, delivery and performance by the Company of each of the Transaction Documents, the issuance and sale of the Units and the consummation of the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents or the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus will not (i) conflict with or result in a breach or violation of any of the terms or provisions of, or constitute a default under, result in the termination, modification or acceleration of, or result in the creation or imposition of any lien, charge or encumbrance upon any property, right or asset of the Company pursuant to, any indenture, mortgage, deed of trust, loan agreement or other agreement or instrument to which the Company is a party or by which the Company is bound or to which any property, right or asset of the Company is subject, (ii) result in any violation of the provisions of the charter or by-laws or similar organizational documents of the Company or (iii) result in the violation of any law or statute or any judgment, order, rule or regulation of any court or arbitrator or governmental or regulatory authority, except, in the case of clauses (i) and (iii) above, for any such conflict, breach, violation, default, lien, charge or encumbrance that would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect.

 

 

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(cc) No Consents Required. No consent, approval, authorization, order, registration or qualification of or with any court or arbitrator or governmental or regulatory authority is required for the execution, delivery and performance by the Company of each of the Transaction Documents, the issuance and sale of the Units and the consummation of the transactions contemplated by the Transaction Documents, except for the registration of the Units and the shares of Common Stock and the Warrants included in the Units under the Securities Act and such consents, approvals, authorizations, orders and registrations or qualifications as may be required by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc. (“FINRA”) and under applicable state securities laws in connection with the purchase and distribution of the Units by the Underwriters.

(dd) Legal Proceedings. There are no legal, governmental or regulatory investigations, actions, demands, claims, suits, arbitrations, inquiries or proceedings (“Actions”) pending to which the Company is or may be a party or to which any property of the Company is or may be the subject that, individually or in the aggregate, if determined adversely to the Company, could reasonably be expected to have a Material Adverse Effect; no such Actions are, to the Company’s knowledge, threatened or contemplated by any governmental or regulatory authority or threatened by others; and (i) there are no current or pending Actions that are required under the Securities Act to be described in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package or the Prospectus that are not so described in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus and (ii) there are no statutes, regulations or contracts or other documents that are required under the Securities Act to be filed as exhibits to the Registration Statement or described in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package or the Prospectus that are not so filed as exhibits to the Registration Statement or described in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus.

(ee) Independent Accountants. Marcum LLP, who have certified certain financial statements of the Company, is an independent registered public accounting firm with respect to the Company within the applicable rules and regulations adopted by the Commission and the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) and as required by the Securities Act.

(ff) Disclosure. There is no franchise, contract or other document of a character required to be described in the Registration Statement or Prospectus, or to be filed as an exhibit thereto, which is not described or filed as required (and the Pricing Disclosure Package contains in all material respects the same description of the foregoing matters contained in the Prospectus); and the statements in the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus under the headings “Principal Stockholders,” “Certain Relationships and Related Party Transactions,” “Description of Securities,” “Underwriting” and “United States Federal Income Tax Considerations” insofar as such statements summarize legal matters, agreements, documents or proceedings discussed therein, are in all material respects accurate and fair summaries of such legal matters, agreements, documents or proceedings. There are no business relationships or related party transactions involving the Company or any other person required by the Securities Act to be described in the Registration Statement or Prospectus that have not been described as required.

 

 

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(gg) Investment Company Act. The Company is not and, after giving effect to the offering and sale of the Units and the application of the proceeds thereof as described in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, will not be required to register as an “investment company” or an entity “controlled” by an “investment company” within the meaning of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, and the rules and regulations of the Commission thereunder (collectively, the “Investment Company Act”).

(hh) Taxes. The Company has paid all federal, state, local and foreign taxes and filed all tax returns required to be paid or filed through the date hereof; and except as otherwise disclosed in each of the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, there is no tax deficiency that has been, or could reasonably be expected to be, asserted against the Company or any of its properties or assets.

(ii) Licenses and Permits. The Company possesses all licenses, sub-licenses, certificates, permits and other authorizations issued by, and has made all declarations and filings with, the appropriate federal, state, local or foreign governmental or regulatory authorities that are necessary for the ownership or lease of its properties or the conduct of its business as described in each of the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, except where the failure to possess or make the same would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect; and except as described in each of the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, the Company has not received notice of any revocation or modification of any such license, sub-license, certificate, permit or authorization or has any reason to believe that any such license, sub-license, certificate, permit or authorization will not be renewed in the ordinary course.

(jj) Disclosure Controls. The Company maintains an effective system of “disclosure controls and procedures” (as defined in Rule 13a-15(e) of the Exchange Act) that complies with the requirements of the Exchange Act to the extent required by Rule 13a-15(e) of the Exchange Act.

(kk) IT Systems. To the Company’s knowledge, there have been no breaches, violations, outages or unauthorized uses of or accesses to same, except for those that have been remedied without material cost or liability or the duty to notify any other person, nor any incidents under internal review or investigations relating to the Company’s information technology and computer systems, networks, hardware, software, data (including the data of its customers, employees, suppliers, vendors and any third-party data maintained by or on behalf of the Company), equipment or technology (collectively, “IT Systems”). The Company is presently in material compliance with all applicable laws or statutes and all judgments, orders, rules and regulations of any court or arbitrator or governmental or regulatory authority, internal policies and contractual obligations relating to the privacy and security of IT Systems and all personal, personally identifiable, sensitive, confidential or regulated data (“Personal Data”) and to the protection of such IT Systems and Personal Data from unauthorized use, access, misappropriation or modification, except where the failure to be in compliance would not, individually or in the aggregate, have a Material Adverse Effect.

 

 

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(ll) No Unlawful Payments. Neither the Company nor, to the knowledge of the Company, any director, director nominee, officer or employee of the Company nor, to the knowledge of the Company, any agent, affiliate or other person associated with or acting on behalf of the Company has (i) used any corporate funds for any unlawful contribution, gift, entertainment or other unlawful expense relating to political activity; (ii) made or taken an act in furtherance of an offer, promise or authorization of any direct or indirect unlawful payment or benefit to any foreign or domestic government official or employee, including of any government-owned or controlled entity or of a public international organization, or any person acting in an official capacity for or on behalf of any of the foregoing, or any political party or party official or candidate for political office; (iii) violated or is in violation of any provision of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977, as amended, or any applicable law or regulation implementing the OECD Convention on Combating Bribery of Foreign Public Officials in International Business Transactions, or committed an offence under the Bribery Act 2010 of the United Kingdom or any other applicable anti-bribery or anti-corruption law; or (iv) made, offered, agreed, requested or taken an act in furtherance of any unlawful bribe or other unlawful benefit, including, without limitation, any rebate, payoff, influence payment, kickback or other unlawful or improper payment or benefit. The Company has instituted, maintains and enforces, and will continue to maintain and enforce policies and procedures designed to promote and ensure compliance with all applicable anti-bribery and anti-corruption laws.

(mm) Compliance with Anti-Money Laundering Laws. The operations of the Company are and have been conducted at all times in compliance with applicable financial recordkeeping and reporting requirements, including those of the Currency and Foreign Transactions Reporting Act of 1970, as amended, the applicable money laundering statutes of all jurisdictions where the Company conducts business, the rules and regulations thereunder and any related or similar rules, regulations or guidelines issued, administered or enforced by any governmental agency (collectively, the “Anti-Money Laundering Laws”) and no action, suit or proceeding by or before any court or governmental agency, authority or body or any arbitrator involving the Company with respect to the Anti-Money Laundering Laws is pending or, to the knowledge of the Company, threatened.

 

 

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(nn) No Conflicts with Sanctions Laws. Neither the Company nor, to the knowledge of the Company, any of its directors, director nominees, officers, or employees, nor, to the knowledge of the Company, any agent, affiliate or other person associated with or acting on behalf of the Company is currently the subject or the target of any sanctions administered or enforced by the U.S. government, (including, without limitation, the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the U.S. Department of the Treasury or the U.S. Department of State and including, without limitation, the designation as a “specially designated national” or “blocked person”), the United Nations Security Council, the European Union, Her Majesty’s Treasury or other relevant sanctions authority (collectively, “Sanctions”), nor is the Company located, organized or resident in a country or territory that is the subject or target of Sanctions, including, without limitation, Crimea, Cuba, Iran, North Korea and Syria (each, a “Sanctioned Country”); and the Company will not directly or indirectly use the proceeds of the Offering hereunder, or lend, contribute or otherwise make available such proceeds to any subsidiary, joint venture partner or other person or entity (i) to fund or facilitate any activities of or business with any person that, at the time of such funding or facilitation, is the subject or target of Sanctions, (ii) to fund or facilitate any activities of or business in any Sanctioned Country or (iii) in any other manner that will result in a violation by any person (including any person participating in the transaction, whether as underwriter, advisor, investor or otherwise) of Sanctions. For the past five years, the Company has not knowingly engaged in and are not now knowingly engaged in any dealings or transactions with any person that at the time of the dealing or transaction is or was the subject or the target of Sanctions or with any Sanctioned Country.

(oo) No Registration Rights. No person has the right to require the Company to register any securities for sale under the Securities Act by reason of the filing of the Registration Statement with the Commission or the issuance and sale of the Units.

(pp) Compliance with NYSE Listing Standards. There is and has been no failure on the part of the Company or, to the knowledge of the Company, any of the Company’s officers, directors or director nominees, in their capacities as such, to comply with (as and when applicable), and immediately following the initial effective date of the Registration Statement the Company will be in compliance with, the applicable requirements of the NYSE Listed Company Manual Section 303A.

(qq) Taxes. There are no transfer, stamp, issue, registration, documentary or other similar taxes, duties, fees or charges under U.S. federal law or the laws of any state, or any political subdivision thereof, or under the laws of any non-U.S. jurisdiction, required to be paid in connection with the execution and delivery of this Agreement or the issuance or sale by the Company of the Units.

 

 

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(rr) Questionnaires. All information contained in the questionnaires (the “Questionnaires”) completed by the Company and the Sponsor and, to the knowledge of the Company, the Company’s officers, directors and director nominees and provided to the Underwriters, is true and correct and the Company has not become aware of any information that would cause the information disclosed in the Questionnaires completed by the Company, the Sponsor or the Company’s officers, directors and director nominees to become inaccurate and incorrect.

(ss) Acquisition Target Not Selected. Prior to the date hereof, the Company has not selected any Business Combination target and has not, nor, to its knowledge, has anyone on its behalf, initiated any substantive discussions, directly or indirectly, with respect to any Business Combination with the Company.

(tt) No Broker’s Fees. Except as described in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, there are no claims, payments, arrangements, contracts, agreements or understandings relating to the payment of a brokerage commission or finder’s, consulting, origination or similar fee by the Company, the Sponsor or any officer, director or director nominee of the Company with respect to the sale of the Units hereunder or any other arrangements, agreements or understandings of the Company, the Sponsor or any such officer, director or director nominee of the Company, or their respective affiliates, that may affect the Underwriters’ compensation, as determined by the FINRA.

(uu) No Direct or Indirect Payments. Except as described in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, the Company has not made any direct or indirect payments (in cash, securities or any other item of value pursuant to Rule 5110 of FINRA’s Conduct Rules): (i) to any person, as a finder’s fee, consulting fee or otherwise, in consideration of such person raising capital for the Company or introducing to the Company persons who raised or provided capital to the Company; (ii) to any person that, to the Company’s knowledge, has been accepted by FINRA as a member of FINRA (a “Member”); or (iii) to any person or entity that, to the Company’s knowledge, has any direct or indirect affiliation or association with any Member, within the twelve months prior to the initial effective date of the Registration Statement, other than payments to the Underwriters pursuant to this Agreement.

(vv) No Investment Banking, Financial Advisory and/or Consulting Services. Except as described in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, during the period beginning 180 days prior to the initial confidential submission of the Registration Statement and ending on the initial effective date of the Registration Statement, no Member and/or any person associated or affiliated with a Member has provided any investment banking, financial advisory and/or consulting services to the Company.

(ww) Affiliation with FINRA. Except as disclosed in the Questionnaires provided to the Representatives, to the Company’s knowledge, no officer, director, director nominee or beneficial owner of 5% or more of any class of the Company’s securities (whether debt or equity, registered or unregistered, regardless of the time acquired or the source from which derived) (any such individual or entity, a “Company Affiliate”) is a Member or a person associated or affiliated with a Member.

 

 

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(xx) Ownership of FINRA Member Securities. Except as disclosed in the Questionnaires provided to the Representatives, to the Company’s knowledge, no Company Affiliate is an owner of stock or other securities of any Member (other than securities purchased on the open market).

(yy) Subordinated Loans to FINRA Members. To the Company’s knowledge, no Company Affiliate has made a subordinated loan to any Member.

(zz) Non-Compete/Non-Solicitation. Except as described in the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, to the Company’s knowledge, none of the Sponsor, officers, directors or director nominees of the Company is subject to a non-competition agreement or non-solicitation agreement with any employer, prior employer or other entity that could materially affect its, his or her ability to be and act in the capacity of stockholder, officer, director or director nominees of the Company, as applicable.

(aaa) Related Party Transactions. No relationship, direct or indirect, exists between or among any of the Company or any affiliate of the Company, on the one hand, and any director, director nominee, officer, stockholder or special advisor of the Company or any affiliate of the Company, on the other hand, which is required by the Securities Act or the Exchange Act to be described in the Registration Statement, Pricing Disclosure Package or the Prospectus that is not described as required. There are no outstanding loans, advances (except normal advances for business expenses in the ordinary course of business) or guarantees of indebtedness by the Company to or for the benefit of any of the officers, directors or director nominees of the Company or any of their respective family members. The Company has not extended or maintained credit, arranged for the extension of credit, or renewed an extension of credit, in the form of a personal loan to or for any officer, director or director nominee of the Company.

(bbb) No Unlawful Influence. The Company has not offered, or caused the Underwriters to offer, the Units to any person or entity with the intention of unlawfully influencing: (a) a customer or supplier of the Company or any affiliate of the Company to alter the customer’s or supplier’s level or type of business with the Company or such affiliate or (b) a journalist or publication to write or publish favorable information about the Company or any such affiliate.

(ccc) Applicability of Rule 419. Upon delivery and payment for the Units on the Closing Date and each Additional Closing Date, the Company will not be subject to Rule 419 under the Securities Act and none of the Company’s outstanding securities will be deemed to be a “penny stock” as defined in Rule 3a51-1 under the Exchange Act.

(ddd) Absence of Manipulation. The Company has not taken, directly or indirectly, any action designed to or that would constitute or that might reasonably be expected to cause or result in, under the Exchange Act or otherwise, stabilization or manipulation of the price of any security of the Company to facilitate the sale or resale of the Units.

 

 

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(eee) Margin Rules. Neither the issuance, sale and delivery of the Units nor the application of the proceeds thereof by the Company as described in each of the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus will violate Regulation T, U or X of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System or any other regulation of such Board of Governors.

(fff) Statistical and Market Data. Nothing has come to the attention of the Company that has caused the Company to believe that the statistical and market-related data included in each of the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus is not based on or derived from sources that are reliable and accurate in all material respects.

(ggg) Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Solely to the extent that the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, as amended, and the rules and regulations promulgated by the Commission thereunder (the “Sarbanes-Oxley Act”) have been applicable to the Company, there is and has been no failure on the part of the Company or any of the Company’s directors, director nominees or officers, in their capacities as such, to comply with any provision of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, including Section 402 related to loans and Sections 302 and 906 related to certifications.

(hhh) Status under the Securities Act. At the time of filing the Registration Statement and any post-effective amendment thereto the Company was an “ineligible issuer,” as defined in Rule 405 under the Securities Act solely because of subclause (B) of clause (ii) of the definition thereof. The Company has paid the registration fee for the Offering pursuant to Rule 456 under the Securities Act.

(iii) No Ratings. There are (and prior to the Closing Date, will be) no debt securities, convertible securities or preferred stock issued or guaranteed by the Company that are rated by a “nationally recognized statistical rating organization,” as such term is defined in Section 3(a)(62) under the Exchange Act.

(jjj) Company Ownership of Other Entities. The Company does not own, and since its incorporation has not owned, an interest in any corporation, partnership, limited liability company, joint venture, trust or other entity.

4. Further Agreements of the Company. The Company covenants and agrees with each Underwriter that:

(a) Required Filings. The Company will file the final Prospectus with the Commission within the time periods specified by Rule 424(b) and Rule 430A, 430B or 430C under the Securities Act; and the Company will furnish copies of the Prospectus (to the extent not previously delivered) to the Underwriters in New York City prior to 10:00 A.M., New York City time, on the business day next succeeding the date of this Agreement in such quantities as the Representatives may reasonably request, unless the Underwriters otherwise consent to a later date.

 

 

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(b) Delivery of Copies. The Company will deliver, upon request, without charge, (i) to the Representatives, signed copies of the Registration Statement as originally filed and each amendment thereto, in each case including all exhibits and consents filed therewith; and (ii) to each Underwriter (A) a conformed copy of the Registration Statement as originally filed and each amendment thereto (without exhibits) and (B) during the Prospectus Delivery Period (as defined below), as many copies of the Prospectus (including all amendments and supplements thereto) as the Representatives may reasonably request. As used herein, the term “Prospectus Delivery Period” means such period of time after the first date of the public offering of the Units as in the opinion of counsel for the Underwriters a prospectus relating to the Units is required by law to be delivered (or required to be delivered but for Rule 172 under the Securities Act) in connection with sales of the Units by any Underwriter or dealer.

(c) Amendments or Supplements. Before making, preparing, using, authorizing, approving, referring to or filing any amendment or supplement to the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package or the Prospectus, the Company will furnish to the Representatives and counsel for the Underwriters a copy of the proposed amendment or supplement for review and will not make, prepare, use, authorize, approve, refer to or file any such proposed amendment or supplement to which the Representatives reasonably object.

(d) Notice to the Representatives. The Company will advise the Representatives promptly, and confirm such advice in writing, (i) when the Registration Statement has become effective; (ii) when any amendment to the Registration Statement has been filed or becomes effective; (iii) when any supplement to the Pricing Disclosure Package, the Prospectus or any Written Testing-the-Waters Communication or any amendment to the Prospectus has been filed or distributed; (iv) of any request by the Commission for any amendment to the Registration Statement or any amendment or supplement to the Prospectus or the receipt of any comments from the Commission relating to the Registration Statement or any other request by the Commission for any additional information, including, but not limited to, any request for information concerning any Testing-the-Waters Communication; (v) of the issuance by the Commission or any other governmental or regulatory authority of any order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement or preventing or suspending the use of any Preliminary Prospectus, any of the Pricing Disclosure Package, the Prospectus or any Written Testing-the-Waters Communication or the initiation or threatening of any proceeding for that purpose or pursuant to Section 8A of the Securities Act; (vi) of the occurrence of any event or development within the Prospectus Delivery Period as a result of which the Prospectus, any of the Pricing Disclosure Package or any Written Testing-the-Waters Communication as then amended or supplemented would include any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances existing when the Prospectus, the Pricing Disclosure Package or any Written Testing-the-Waters Communication is delivered to a purchaser, not misleading; and (vii) of the receipt by the Company of any notice with respect to any suspension of the qualification of the Units for offer and sale in any jurisdiction or the initiation or threatening of any proceeding for such purpose; and the Company will use its reasonable best efforts to prevent the issuance of any such order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement, preventing or suspending the use of any Preliminary Prospectus, any of the Pricing Disclosure Package or the Prospectus or any Written Testing-the-Waters Communication or suspending any such qualification of the Units and, if any such order is issued, will obtain as soon as possible the withdrawal thereof.

 

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(e) Ongoing Compliance. (1) If during the Prospectus Delivery Period (i) any event or development shall occur or condition shall exist as a result of which the Prospectus as then amended or supplemented would include any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances existing when the Prospectus is delivered to a purchaser, not misleading or (ii) it is necessary to amend or supplement the Prospectus to comply with law, the Company will promptly notify the Underwriters thereof and forthwith prepare and, subject to paragraph (c) above, file with the Commission and furnish to the Underwriters and to such dealers as the Representatives may designate such amendments or supplements to the Prospectus as may be necessary so that the statements in the Prospectus as so amended or supplemented will not, in the light of the circumstances existing when the Prospectus is delivered to a purchaser, be misleading or so that the Prospectus will comply with law and (2) if at any time prior to the Closing Date (i) any event or development shall occur or condition shall exist as a result of which the Pricing Disclosure Package as then amended or supplemented would include any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in the light of the circumstances existing when the Pricing Disclosure Package is delivered to a purchaser, not misleading or (ii) it is necessary to amend or supplement the Pricing Disclosure Package to comply with law, the Company will promptly notify the Underwriters thereof and forthwith prepare and, subject to paragraph (c) above, file with the Commission (to the extent required) and furnish to the Underwriters and to such dealers as the Representatives may designate such amendments or supplements to the Pricing Disclosure Package as may be necessary so that the statements in the Pricing Disclosure Package as so amended or supplemented will not, in the light of the circumstances existing when the Pricing Disclosure Package is delivered to a purchaser, be misleading or so that the Pricing Disclosure Package will comply with law.

(f) Blue Sky Compliance. The Company will qualify the Units for offer and sale under the securities or Blue Sky laws of such jurisdictions as the Representatives shall reasonably request and will continue such qualifications in effect so long as required for distribution of the Units; provided that the Company shall not be required to (i) qualify as a foreign corporation or other entity or as a dealer in securities in any such jurisdiction where it would not otherwise be required to so qualify, (ii) file any general consent to service of process in any such jurisdiction or (iii) subject itself to taxation in any such jurisdiction if it is not otherwise so subject.

 

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(g) Earning Statement. The Company will make generally available to its security holders and the Representatives as soon as practicable an earning statement that satisfies the provisions of Section 11(a) of the Securities Act and Rule 158 of the Commission promulgated thereunder covering a period of at least twelve months beginning with the first fiscal quarter of the Company occurring after the “effective date” (as defined in Rule 158) of the Registration Statement.

(h) Clear Market. For a period of 180 days after the date of the Prospectus, the Company will not (i) offer, pledge, sell, contract to sell, sell any option or contract to purchase, purchase any option or contract to sell, grant any option, right or warrant to purchase, lend, or otherwise transfer or dispose of, directly or indirectly, or submit to, or file with, the Commission a registration statement under the Securities Act relating to, any Units, shares of Common Stock, Founder Shares, Warrants or any securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for any Units, Common Stock, Founder Shares or Warrants, or publicly disclose the intention to undertake any of the foregoing, or (ii) enter into any swap or other arrangement that transfers, in whole or in part, any of the economic consequences of ownership of any Units, shares of Common Stock, Founder Shares or Warrants or any such other securities, whether any such transaction described in clause (i) or (ii) above is to be settled by delivery of Units or such other securities, in cash or otherwise, without the prior written consent of the Representatives, except, in each case, that the Company may (A) issue and sell the Private Placement Warrants, (B) issue and sell the Option Units on exercise of the option provided for in Section 2(b) hereof, (C) register with the Commission pursuant to the Registration Rights Agreement, in accordance with the terms of the Registration Rights Agreement, the resale of the Founder Shares, the Private Placement Warrants and warrants that may be issued upon conversion of working capital loans (and any shares of Common Stock issued or issuable upon the exercise of any such Private Placement Warrants or warrants issued upon conversion of the working capital loans and upon conversion of the Founder Shares), (D) issue securities in connection with a Business Combination and (E) effectuate the forfeiture of any Founder Shares pursuant to the terms of the Insider Letters.

(i) Use of Proceeds. The Company will apply the net proceeds from the sale of the Private Placement Warrants received by it in a manner materially consistent with the applications described under the caption “Use of Proceeds” in the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus.

 

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(j) No Stabilization. Neither the Company nor its affiliates will take, directly or indirectly, any action designed to or that could reasonably be expected to cause or result in any stabilization or manipulation of the price of the Units.

(k) Exchange Listing. The Company will use its reasonable best efforts to list, subject to notice of issuance, the Units, the Common Stock and the Warrants on the NYSE.

(l) Reports. For a period commencing on the initial effective date of the Registration Statement and ending five years from the date of the consummation of the Business Combination or until such earlier time at which the Liquidation occurs, the Company shall, to the extent such information or documents are not otherwise publicly available, upon written request from the Representatives, furnish to the Representatives copies of such financial statements and other periodic and special reports as the Company from time to time furnishes generally to holders of any class of securities, and, to the extent such information or documents are not otherwise publicly available, upon written request from the Representatives, promptly furnish to the Representatives: (i) a copy of such registration statements, financial statements and periodic and special reports as the Company shall be required to file with the Commission and from time to time furnishes generally to holders of any such class of its securities in their capacities as such; and (ii) such additional documents and information with respect to the Company and the affairs of any future subsidiaries of the Company as the Representatives may from time to time reasonably request, all subject to the execution of a satisfactory confidentiality agreement. Any registration statements, financial statements, periodic and special reports or other additional documents referred to in the preceding sentence filed or furnished on the Commission’s EDGAR website and publicly available will be considered furnished for the purposes of this Section 4(l).

(m) Filings. The Company will file with the Commission such reports as may be required by Rule 463 under the Securities Act.

(n) Emerging Growth Company. The Company will promptly notify the Representatives if the Company ceases to be an Emerging Growth Company at any time prior to the later of (i) completion of the distribution of Units within the meaning of the Securities Act and (ii) completion of the 180-day restricted period referred to in Section 4(h) hereof.

(o) Exchange Act Registration. For a period commencing on the initial effective date of the Registration Statement and ending five years from the date of the consummation of the Business Combination or until such earlier time at which the Liquidation occurs, the Company will use commercially reasonable efforts to maintain the registration of the Common Stock (or such other security into which such Common Stock may be exchanged in connection with a Business Combination) under the provisions of the Exchange Act, except after giving effect to a going private transaction after the completion of an initial Business Combination. For a period commencing on the initial effective date of the Registration Statement and ending upon the consummation of the Business Combination or until such earlier time at which the Liquidation occurs, the Company will use commercially reasonable efforts to maintain the registration of the Units and Warrants under the provisions of the Exchange Act. During such applicable period, the Company will not deregister the Units, Common Stock or Warrants under the Exchange Act (except in connection with an exchange pursuant to a Business Combination or a going private transaction after the completion of an initial Business Combination) without the prior written consent of the Representatives.

 

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(p) Current Report on Form 8-K. The Company has, as of the date hereof, retained its independent registered public accounting firm to audit the balance sheet of the Company as of the Closing Date (the “Audited Balance Sheet”) reflecting the receipt by the Company of the proceeds of the Offering on the Closing Date. As soon as the Audited Balance Sheet becomes available, the Company shall promptly, but not later than four business days after the Closing Date, file a Current Report on Form 8-K with the Commission, which Current Report shall contain the Company’s Audited Balance Sheet. Additionally, upon the Company’s receipt of the proceeds from the exercise of all or any portion of the option provided for in Section 2(b) hereof, the Company shall promptly, but not later than four business days after the receipt of such proceeds, file a Current Report on Form 8-K with the Commission, which report shall disclose the Company’s sale of the Option Units and its receipt of the proceeds therefrom, unless the receipt of such proceeds are reflected in the Current Report on Form 8-K referenced in the immediately prior sentence.

(q) Quarterly Review. For a period commencing on the initial effective date of the Registration Statement and ending five years from the date of the consummation of the Business Combination or until such earlier time at which the Liquidation occurs or the Common Stock and Warrants cease to be publicly traded, the Company, at its expense, shall cause its regularly engaged independent registered public accounting firm to review (but not audit) the Company’s financial statements for each of the first three fiscal quarters prior to the announcement of quarterly financial information, the filing of the Company’s Form 10-Q quarterly report and the mailing, if any, of quarterly financial information to stockholders.

(r) Rule 462(b) Registration Statement. If the Company elects to rely upon Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act, the Company shall file a Rule 462(b) Registration Statement with the Commission in compliance with Rule 462(b) by 10:00 P.M., Washington, D.C. time, on the date of this Agreement, and the Company shall at the time of filing either pay to the Commission the filing fee for the Rule 462(b) Registration Statement or give irrevocable instructions for the payment of such fee pursuant to Rule 111 under the Securities Act.

(s) Transfer and Warrant Agent. For a period commencing on the initial effective date of the Registration Statement and ending five years from the date of the consummation of the Business Combination or until such earlier time at which the Liquidation occurs or the Common Stock and Warrants cease to be publicly traded, the Company shall retain a transfer and warrant agent.

 

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(t) Initial Business Combination. In the event that the Company seeks to consummate an initial Business Combination with any entity that is affiliated with the Company’s initial stockholders, officers, directors or director nominees, or any of their respective affiliates, it, or a committee of independent and disinterested members of its board of directors, will obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm or another independent entity that commonly renders valuation opinions that such initial Business Combination is fair to the Company from a financial point of view. The Company shall not pay any of the Company’s initial stockholders, officers, directors, director nominees or any of their respective affiliates any fees or compensation of any kind for services rendered to the Company prior to, or in connection with, the consummation of an initial Business Combination except as disclosed in the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus, none of which payments will be made from the proceeds held in the Trust Account prior to completion of the initial Business Combination.

(u) FINRA Submissions. For a period of 90 days following the effective date of the Registration Statement, in the event any person or entity (regardless of any FINRA affiliation or association) is engaged to assist the Company in its search for a merger candidate or to provide any other merger and acquisition services, or has provided or will provide any investment banking, financial, advisory and/or consulting services to the Company, the Company agrees that it shall promptly provide to FINRA (via a FINRA submission), the Representatives and their counsel a notification prior to entering into the agreement or transaction relating to a potential Business Combination: (i) the identity of the person or entity providing any such services; (ii) complete details of all such services and copies of all agreements governing such services prior to entering into the agreement or transaction; and (iii) justification as to why the value received by any person or entity for such services is not underwriting compensation for the Offering. The Company also agrees that proper disclosure of such arrangement or potential arrangement will be made in the tender offer materials or proxy statement, as applicable, which the Company may file in connection with the Business Combination for purposes of offering redemption of shares held by its stockholders or for soliciting stockholder approval, as applicable.

(v) Affiliates or Associated Persons of Members. The Company shall advise FINRA, the Representatives and their counsel if it is aware that any 5% or greater stockholder of the Company becomes an affiliate or associated person of a Member participating in the distribution of the Units.

(w) Trust Account Investments. The Company shall cause the proceeds of the Offering and the sale of the Private Placement Warrants to be held in the Trust Account to be held as cash items or invested only in United States government treasury bills with a maturity of 185 days or less or in money market funds meeting certain conditions under Rule 2a-7 under the Investment Company Act as set forth in the Trust Agreement and disclosed in the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus. The Company will otherwise conduct its business in a manner so that it will not become subject to the Investment Company Act. Furthermore, once the Company consummates an initial Business Combination, it will not be required to register as an investment company under the Investment Company Act.

 

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(x) Use of Funds in Trust Account. During the period prior to the Company’s initial Business Combination or Liquidation, the Company will only utilize the funds in the Trust Account in accordance with the Trust Agreement.

(y) Availability of Authorized but Unissued Securities. The Company will reserve and keep available that maximum number of its authorized but unissued securities that are issuable upon the exercise of any of the Warrants and the Private Placement Warrants outstanding from time to time and upon the conversion of the Founder Shares.

(z) No Additional Issuances prior to the Business Combination. Prior to the earlier of the consummation of an initial Business Combination and the Liquidation, the Company shall not issue (other than in replacement for lost, stolen or mutilated certificates) any shares of Common Stock, Warrants or any options or other securities convertible into shares of Common Stock, or any preferred stock, in each case, that (1) receive funds from the Trust Account or (2) vote as a class with the Public Shares (a) on any initial Business Combination or (b) to approve an amendment to the Company’s Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation.

(aa) Audit Committee Review. Prior to the earlier of the consummation of an initial Business Combination and the Liquidation, the Company’s audit committee will review on a quarterly basis all payments made by the Company to the Sponsor, to the Company’s officers, directors or director nominees, or to the Company’s or any of such other persons’ respective affiliates.

(bb) Penny Stock. The Company agrees that it will use commercially reasonable efforts to prevent the Company from becoming subject to Rule 419 under the Securities Act prior to the consummation of any Business Combination, including, but not limited to, using its best efforts to prevent any of the Company’s outstanding securities from being deemed to be a “penny stock” as defined in Rule 3a51-1 under the Exchange Act during such period.

 

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(cc) Internal Controls. To the extent required by Rule 13a-15(e) under the Exchange Act, the Company will maintain “disclosure controls and procedures” (as defined under Rule 13a-15(e) under the Exchange Act) and a system of internal accounting controls sufficient to provide reasonable assurances that (i) transactions are executed in accordance with management’s general or specific authorization, (ii) transactions are recorded as necessary in order to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance with GAAP and to maintain accountability for assets, (iii) access to assets is permitted only in accordance with management’s general or specific authorization, and (iv) the recorded accountability for assets is compared with existing assets at reasonable intervals and appropriate action is taken with respect to any differences.

(dd) Maintenance of Listing. The Company will use commercially reasonable efforts to effect and maintain the listing of (x) the Units and Warrants on the NYSE (or another national securities exchange) until the consummation of the Business Combination or until such earlier time at which the Liquidation occurs, and (y) the Common Stock on the NYSE (or another national securities exchange) until five years from the date of the consummation of the Business Combination or until such earlier time at which Liquidation occurs.

(ee) Sarbanes Oxley. As soon as legally required to do so, the Company and its directors, director nominees and officers, in their capacities as such, shall take all actions necessary to comply with any applicable provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, including Section 402 related to loans and Sections 302 and 906 related to certifications, and to comply with the NYSE Listing Company Manual.

(ff) Certificate of Incorporation. The Company shall not take any action or omit to take any action that would cause the Company to be in breach or violation of its Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation.

 

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(gg) Consummate the Initial Business Combination. The Company, subject to any applicable provision of the Company’s Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, may consummate the initial Business Combination and conduct redemptions of Public Shares for cash upon consummation of such Business Combination without a stockholder vote pursuant to Rule 13e-4 and Regulation 14E under the Exchange Act, including the filing of tender offer documents with the Commission. Such tender offer documents will contain substantially the same financial and other information about the initial Business Combination and the redemption rights as is required under the Commission’s proxy rules and will provide each stockholder of the Company with the opportunity prior to the consummation of the initial Business Combination to redeem the shares of Common Stock held by such stockholder for an amount of cash equal to (A) the aggregate amount then on deposit in the Trust Account, calculated as of two business days prior to the consummation of the initial Business Combination, representing (x) the proceeds held in the Trust Account from the Offering and the sale of the Private Placement Warrants and (y) any interest income earned on the funds held in the Trust Account and not previously released to the Company to pay taxes (which interest shall be net of taxes payable), divided by (B) the total number of shares of Common Stock sold as part of the Units in the Offering (the “Public Shares”) then outstanding. If, however, a stockholder vote is required by applicable law or stock exchange listing requirement in connection with the initial Business Combination, or the Company decides to hold a stockholder vote for business or other reasons, the Company will submit such Business Combination to the Company’s stockholders for their approval (“Business Combination Vote”). With respect to the initial Business Combination Vote, if any, each of the Sponsor and the Company’s directors, director nominees and officers has agreed to vote all of the Founder Shares and Public Shares it then holds, if any, in favor of the Company’s initial Business Combination. If the Company seeks stockholder approval of the initial Business Combination, the Company will offer to each Public Stockholder the right to have its shares redeemed in conjunction with a proxy solicitation pursuant to the proxy rules of the Commission at a per share redemption price (the “Redemption Price”) equal to (I) the aggregate amount then on deposit in the Trust Account, calculated as of two business days prior to the consummation of the initial Business Combination, representing (1) the proceeds held in the Trust Account from the Offering and the sale of the Private Placement Warrants and (2) interest income earned on the funds held in the Trust Account and not previously released to the Company to pay taxes (which interest shall be net of any taxes payable), divided by (II) the total number of Public Shares then outstanding. If the Company seeks stockholder approval of the initial Business Combination, the Company may proceed with such Business Combination only if a majority of the outstanding shares voted are voted to approve such Business Combination. If, after seeking and receiving such stockholder approval, the Company elects to so proceed, it will redeem shares, at the Redemption Price, from those Public Stockholders who validly and affirmatively requested such redemption. Only Public Stockholders who properly exercise their redemption rights, in accordance with the applicable tender offer or proxy materials related to such Business Combination and the Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, shall be entitled to receive distributions from the Trust Account in connection with an initial Business Combination, and the Company shall pay no distributions with respect to any other holders of shares of capital stock of the Company in connection therewith. In the event that the Company does not effect a Business Combination by 24 months from the closing of the Offering (or such later date as has been approved pursuant to a valid amendment to the Company’s Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation), the Company will (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up, (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than ten business days thereafter, redeem 100% of the outstanding Public Shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the Trust Account, including interest (which interest shall be net of taxes payable and less up to $100,000 of such net interest to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of then outstanding Public Shares, which redemption will completely extinguish Public Stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidation distributions, if any), and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of the Company’s remaining stockholders and the Company’s board of directors, dissolve and liquidate, subject in each case to the Company’s obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. Only Public Stockholders holding shares of Common Stock included in the Units shall be entitled to receive such redemption

 

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amounts and the Company shall pay no such redemption amounts or any distributions in liquidation with respect to any other shares of capital stock of the Company. The Sponsor and the Company’s officers, directors and director nominees have agreed that they will not propose any amendment to the Company’s Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation (A) to modify the substance or timing of the Company’s obligation to allow redemption in connection with its initial Business Combination or to redeem 100% of the outstanding Public Shares if the Company has not consummated an initial Business Combination within 24 months from the closing of the Offering or (B) with respect to any other provision relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial Business Combination activity, unless the Company offers to the Public Stockholders the right to redeem their Public Shares upon approval of such amendment, as described in the Pricing Disclosure Package and Prospectus.

 

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(hh) Business Combination Announcement. In the event that the Company desires or is required by an applicable law or regulation to cause an announcement (a “Business Combination Announcement”) to be placed in The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times or any other news or media publication or outlet or to be made via a public filing or submission with the Commission announcing the consummation of an initial Business Combination that indicates that the Underwriters were the underwriters in the Offering, the Company shall supply the Representatives with a draft of the Business Combination Announcement and provide the Representatives with a reasonable advance opportunity to comment thereon, subject to the agreement of the Underwriters to keep confidential such draft announcement in accordance with the Representatives’ standard policies regarding confidential information.

(ii) Deferred Discount Payment. Upon the consummation of the initial Business Combination, the Company will direct the Trustee to pay the Representatives, on behalf of the Underwriters, the Deferred Discount out of the proceeds of the Offering held in the Trust Account. The Underwriters shall have no claim to payment of any interest earned on the portion of the proceeds held in the Trust Account representing the Deferred Discount. If the Company fails to consummate its initial Business Combination within the time period required by its Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, the Deferred Discount will not be paid to the Representatives and will, instead, be included in the Liquidation distribution of the proceeds held in the Trust Account made to the Public Stockholders. In connection with any such Liquidation, the Underwriters forfeit any rights or claims to the Deferred Discount.

(jj) Forfeiture. Upon the earlier to occur of the expiration and termination of the Underwriters’ over-allotment option, the Company shall cancel or otherwise effect the forfeiture of Founder Shares from the holders thereof, in an aggregate amount equal to the number of Founder Shares determined by multiplying (a) 937,500 by (b) a fraction, (i) the numerator of which is 3,750,000 minus the number of Option Units purchased by the Underwriters upon the exercise of their over-allotment option, and (ii) the denominator of which is 3,750,000. For the avoidance of doubt, if the Underwriters exercise their over-allotment option in full, the Company shall not cancel or otherwise effect the forfeiture of any Founder Shares pursuant to this Section 4(jj).

 

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(kk) Written Testing-the-Waters Communication. If at any time following the distribution of any Written Testing-the-Waters Communication, there occurred or occurs an event or development as a result of which such Written Testing-the-Waters Communication included or would include any untrue statement of a material fact or omitted or would omit to state any material fact necessary to make the statements therein in the light of the circumstances existing at that subsequent time, not misleading, the Company will promptly (i) notify the Representatives so that use of the Written Testing-the-Waters Communication may cease until it is amended or supplemented; (ii) amend or supplement, at its own expense, such Written Testing-the-Waters Communication to eliminate or correct such untrue statement or omission; and (iii) supply any amendment or supplement to the Representatives in such quantities as may be reasonably requested.

(ll) Emerging Growth Company. The Company will promptly notify the Representatives if the Company ceases to be an Emerging Growth Company at any time prior to the later of (i) completion of the distribution of the Units within the meaning of the Securities Act and (ii) completion of the 180-day restricted period referred to in Section 4(h) hereof.

(mm) Delivery of Agreements. The Company will deliver to the Representatives executed copies of the Trust Agreement, the Warrant Agreement, the Founder’s Purchase Agreement, the Warrant Purchase Agreement, the Registration Rights Agreement, the Insider Letters and the Administrative Services Agreement.

(nn) Trust Account Waiver. The Company will seek to have all vendors, service providers (other than its independent registered public accounting firm), prospective target businesses and other entities with which it does business enter into an agreement waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to any monies held in the Trust Account for the benefit of the Public Stockholders. The Company may forego obtaining such waivers only if the Company’s management shall have determined that such third party’s engagement would be significantly more beneficial to the Company than any alternative.

(oo) Certification of Beneficial Ownership. The Company will deliver to each Underwriter (or its agent), on the date of execution of this Agreement, a properly completed and executed Certification Regarding Beneficial Owners and Key Controllers of Legal Entity Customers, together with copies of identifying documentation, and the Company undertakes to provide such additional supporting documentation as each Underwriter may reasonably request in connection with the verification of the foregoing Certification.

(pp) Right of First Refusal. UBS Securities LLC is hereby granted a right of first refusal for a period commencing on the consummation of this Offering and continuing until the earlier of September 15, 2023 and the consummation of an initial Business Combination (or the liquidation of the Trust Account in the event that the Company fails to consummate an initial Business Combination within the prescribed time period) to act as exclusive capital markets advisor, placement agent or book-running lead manager for all financings where the Company seeks to raise equity, equity-linked or debt (including, without limitation, asset-backed) securities of the Company. If UBS Securities LLC or its affiliates provides any such services, the Company and UBS Securities LLC or such affiliates will enter into a separate agreement containing terms and conditions, including appropriate indemnification and fee provisions, customary for UBS Securities LLC and mutually agreed upon by the Company and UBS Securities LLC. The foregoing notwithstanding, under no circumstance shall UBS Securities LLC be obligated to accept any offer to act as placement agent, underwriter or advisor to the Company and nothing contained herein shall constitute the agreement of UBS Securities LLC to do so.

5. Certain Agreements of the Underwriters. Each Underwriter hereby represents and agrees that it is not subject to any pending proceeding under Section 8A of the Securities Act with respect to the Offering (and will promptly notify the Company if any such proceeding against it is initiated during the Prospectus Delivery Period).

 

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6. Conditions of Underwriters’ Obligations. The obligation of each Underwriter to purchase the Underwritten Units on the Closing Date or the Option Units on the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, as provided herein is subject to the performance by the Company of its covenants and other obligations hereunder and to the following additional conditions:

(a) Registration Compliance; No Stop Order. No order suspending the effectiveness of the Registration Statement shall be in effect, and no proceeding for such purpose or pursuant to Section 8A under the Securities Act shall be pending before or threatened by the Commission; the Prospectus shall have been timely filed with the Commission under the Securities Act and in accordance with Section 4(a) hereof; and all requests by the Commission for additional information shall have been complied with to the reasonable satisfaction of the Representatives.

(b) Representations and Warranties. The representations and warranties of the Company contained herein shall be true and correct on the date hereof and on and as of the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be; and the statements of the Company and its officers made in any certificates delivered pursuant to this Agreement shall be true and correct on and as of the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be.

(c) No Material Adverse Change. No event or condition of a type described in Section 3(i) hereof shall have occurred or shall exist, which event or condition is not described in the Pricing Disclosure Package (excluding any amendment or supplement thereto) and the Prospectus (excluding any amendment or supplement thereto) and the effect of which in the judgment of the Representatives makes it impracticable or inadvisable to proceed with the offering, sale or delivery of the Units on the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, on the terms and in the manner contemplated by this Agreement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus.

(d) Officers’ Certificate. The Representatives shall have received on and as of the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, a certificate of the chief financial officer or chief accounting officer of the Company and one additional senior executive officer of the Company who is satisfactory to the Representatives (i) confirming that such officers have carefully reviewed the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus and, to the knowledge of such officers, the representations set forth in Sections 3(b) and 3(c) hereof are true and correct, (ii) confirming that the other representations and warranties of the Company in this Agreement are true and correct and that the Company has complied with all agreements and satisfied all conditions on its part to be performed or satisfied hereunder at or prior to the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, and (iii) to the effect set forth in paragraphs (a) and (c) above.

 

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(e) Comfort Letters. On the date of this Agreement and on the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, Marcum LLP shall have furnished to the Representatives, at the request of the Company, letters, dated the respective dates of delivery thereof and addressed to the Underwriters, in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Representatives, containing statements and information of the type customarily included in accountants’ “comfort letters” to underwriters with respect to the financial statements and certain financial information contained in each of the Registration Statement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus; provided, that the letter delivered on the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, shall use a “cut-off” date no more than two business days prior to such Closing Date or such Additional Closing Date, as the case may be.

(f) Opinion and 10b-5 Statement of Counsel for the Company. Greenberg Traurig, LLP, counsel for the Company, shall have furnished to the Representatives, at the request of the Company, their written opinion and 10b-5 statement, dated the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, and addressed to the Underwriters, in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to the Representatives.

(g) Opinion and 10b-5 Statement of Counsel for the Underwriters. The Representatives shall have received on and as of the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, an opinion and 10b-5 statement, addressed to the Underwriters, of Graubard Miller, counsel for the Underwriters, with respect to such matters as the Representatives may reasonably request, and such counsel shall have received such documents and information as they may reasonably request to enable them to pass upon such matters.

(h) No Legal Impediment to Issuance and Sale. No action shall have been taken and no statute, rule, regulation or order shall have been enacted, adopted or issued by any federal, state or foreign governmental or regulatory authority that would, as of the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, prevent the issuance or sale of the Units; and no injunction or order of any federal, state or foreign court shall have been issued that would, as of the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, prevent the issuance or sale of the Units.

(i) Good Standing. The Representatives shall have received on and as of the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, satisfactory evidence of the good standing of the Company in its jurisdiction of organization and its good standing in such other jurisdictions as the Representatives may reasonably request, in each case in writing or any standard form of telecommunication from the appropriate governmental authorities of such jurisdictions.

(j) Exchange Listing. The Units to be delivered on the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, shall have been approved for listing on the NYSE, subject to official notice of issuance.

(k) Delivery of Transaction Documents. On or prior to the Closing Date, the Company shall have delivered to the Representatives executed copies of the Trust Agreement, the Warrant Agreement, the Founder’s Purchase Agreement, the Warrant Purchase Agreement, the Registration Rights Agreement, and the Insider Letters, and each of the Transaction Documents shall be in full force and effect on the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be.

 

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(l) Funding of Private Placement Warrants. At least one business day prior to the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as applicable, the proceeds from the sale of the Private Placement Warrants shall have been delivered to Greenberg Traurig, LLP, counsel for the Company, to hold in a non-interest bearing account. On the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as applicable, the Company shall have caused Greenberg Traurig, LLP to deposit the required proceeds into the Trust Account such that the cumulative amount deposited into the Trust Account as of such Closing Date or Additional Closing Date shall equal the product of the number of Units sold in the public offering as of such Closing Date or Additional Closing Date and the public offering price per Unit as set forth on the cover of the Prospectus.

(m) Additional Documents. On or prior to the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, the Company shall have furnished to the Representatives such further certificates and documents as the Representatives may reasonably request.

All opinions, letters, certificates and evidence mentioned above or elsewhere in this Agreement shall be deemed to be in compliance with the provisions hereof only if they are in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to counsel for the Underwriters.

7. Indemnification and Contribution.

(a) Indemnification of the Underwriters. The Company agrees to indemnify and hold harmless each Underwriter, its affiliates, directors and officers and each person, if any, who controls such Underwriter within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act, from and against any and all losses, claims, damages and liabilities (including, without limitation, legal fees and other expenses incurred in connection with any suit, action or proceeding or any claim asserted, as such fees and expenses are incurred), joint or several, that arise out of, or are based upon, (i) any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in the Registration Statement or caused by any omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary in order to make the statements therein, not misleading, or (ii) any untrue statement or alleged untrue statement of a material fact contained in the Prospectus (or any amendment or supplement thereto), any Preliminary Prospectus, any Written Testing-the-Waters Communication, any road show as defined in Rule 433(h) under the Securities Act (a “road show”) or any Pricing Disclosure Package (including any Pricing Disclosure Package that has subsequently been amended), or caused by any omission or alleged omission to state therein a material fact necessary in order to make the statements therein, in light of the circumstances under which they were made, not misleading, in each case except insofar as such losses, claims, damages or liabilities arise out of, or are based upon, any untrue statement or omission or alleged untrue statement or omission made in reliance upon and in conformity with any information relating to any Underwriter furnished to the Company in writing by such Underwriter through the Representatives expressly for use therein, it being understood and agreed that the only such information furnished by any Underwriter consists of the information described as such in paragraph (b) below.

 

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(b) Indemnification of the Company. Each Underwriter agrees, severally and not jointly, to indemnify and hold harmless the Company, its directors, its officers who signed the Registration Statement and each person, if any, who controls the Company within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act to the same extent as the indemnity set forth in paragraph (a) above, but only with respect to any losses, claims, damages or liabilities that arise out of, or are based upon, any untrue statement or omission or alleged untrue statement or omission made in reliance upon and in conformity with any information relating to such Underwriter furnished to the Company in writing by such Underwriter through the Representatives expressly for use in the Registration Statement, the Prospectus (or any amendment or supplement thereto), any Preliminary Prospectus, any Written Testing-the-Waters Communication, any road show or any Pricing Disclosure Package (including any Pricing Disclosure Package that has subsequently been amended), it being understood and agreed upon that the only such information furnished by any Underwriter consists of the following information in the Prospectus furnished on behalf of each Underwriter: (y) the concession figure appearing in the fourth paragraph under the caption “Underwriting” and (z) the twelfth through fourteenth paragraphs under the caption “Underwriting.”

(c) Notice and Procedures. If any suit, action, proceeding (including any governmental or regulatory investigation), claim or demand shall be brought or asserted against any person in respect of which indemnification may be sought pursuant to the preceding paragraphs of this Section 7, such person (the “Indemnified Person”) shall promptly notify the person against whom such indemnification may be sought (the “Indemnifying Person”) in writing; provided that the failure to notify the Indemnifying Person shall not relieve it from any liability that it may have under the preceding paragraphs of this Section 7 except to the extent that it has been materially prejudiced (through the forfeiture of substantive rights or defenses) by such failure; and provided, further, that the failure to notify the Indemnifying Person shall not relieve it from any liability that it may have to an Indemnified Person otherwise than under the preceding paragraphs of this Section 7. If any such proceeding shall be brought or asserted against an Indemnified Person and it shall have notified the Indemnifying Person thereof, the Indemnifying Person shall retain counsel reasonably satisfactory to the Indemnified Person (who shall not, without the consent of the Indemnified Person, be counsel to the Indemnifying Person) to represent the Indemnified Person and any others entitled to indemnification pursuant to this Section that the Indemnifying Person may designate in such proceeding and shall pay the fees and expenses in such proceeding and shall pay the fees and expenses of such counsel related to such proceeding, as incurred. In any such proceeding, any Indemnified Person shall have the right to retain its own counsel, but the fees and expenses of such counsel shall be at the expense of such Indemnified Person unless (i) the Indemnifying Person and the Indemnified Person shall have mutually agreed to the contrary; (ii) the Indemnifying Person has failed within a reasonable time to retain counsel reasonably satisfactory to the Indemnified Person; (iii) the Indemnified Person shall have reasonably concluded that there may be legal defenses available to it that are different from or in addition to those available to the Indemnifying Person; or (iv) the named parties in any such proceeding (including any impleaded parties) include both the Indemnifying Person and the Indemnified Person and representation of both parties by the same counsel would be inappropriate due to actual or potential differing interests between them. It is understood and agreed that the Indemnifying Person shall not, in connection with any proceeding or related proceeding in the same jurisdiction, be liable for the fees and expenses of more than one separate firm (in addition to any local counsel) for all Indemnified Persons, and that all such fees and expenses shall be paid or reimbursed as they are incurred. Any such separate firm for any Underwriter, its affiliates, directors and officers and any control persons of such Underwriter shall be designated in writing by the Representatives and any such separate firm for the Company, its directors, its officers who signed the Registration Statement and any control persons of the Company shall be designated in writing by the Company. The Indemnifying Person shall not be liable for any settlement of any proceeding effected without its written consent, but if settled with such consent, the Indemnifying Person agrees to indemnify each Indemnified Person from and against any loss or liability by reason of such settlement. Notwithstanding the foregoing sentence, if at any time an Indemnified Person shall have requested that an Indemnifying Person reimburse the Indemnified Person for fees and expenses of counsel as contemplated by this paragraph, the Indemnifying Person shall be liable for any settlement of any proceeding effected without its written consent if (i) such settlement is entered into more than 30 days after receipt by the Indemnifying Person of such request and (ii) the Indemnifying Person shall not have reimbursed the Indemnified Person in accordance with such request prior to the date of such settlement. No Indemnifying Person shall, without the written consent of the Indemnified Person, effect any settlement of any pending or threatened proceeding in respect of which any Indemnified Person is or could have been a party and indemnification could have been sought hereunder by such Indemnified Person, unless such settlement (x) includes an unconditional release of such Indemnified Person, in form and substance reasonably satisfactory to such Indemnified Person, from all liability on claims that are the subject matter of such proceeding and (y) does not include any statement as to or any admission of fault, culpability or a failure to act by or on behalf of any Indemnified Person.

 

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(d) Contribution. If the indemnification provided for in paragraphs (a) or (b) above is unavailable to an Indemnified Person or insufficient in respect of any losses, claims, damages or liabilities referred to therein, then each Indemnifying Person under such paragraph, in lieu of indemnifying such Indemnified Person thereunder, shall contribute to the amount paid or payable by such Indemnified Person as a result of such losses, claims, damages or liabilities (i) in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect the relative benefits received by the Company, on the one hand, and the Underwriters on the other, from the Offering or (ii) if the allocation provided by clause (i) is not permitted by applicable law, in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect not only the relative benefits referred to in clause (i) but also the relative fault of the Company, on the one hand, and the Underwriters on the other, in connection with the statements or omissions that resulted in such losses, claims, damages or liabilities, as well as any other relevant equitable considerations. The relative benefits received by the Company, on the one hand, and the Underwriters on the other, shall be deemed to be in the same respective proportions as the net proceeds (before deducting expenses) received by the Company from the sale of the Units and the total underwriting discounts and commissions received by the Underwriters in connection therewith, in each case as set forth in the table on the cover of the Prospectus, bear to the aggregate offering price of the Units. The relative fault of the Company, on the one hand, and the Underwriters on the other, shall be determined by reference to, among other things, whether the untrue or alleged untrue statement of a material fact or the omission or alleged omission to state a material fact relates to information supplied by the Company or by the Underwriters and the parties’ relative intent, knowledge, access to information and opportunity to correct or prevent such statement or omission.

(e) Limitation on Liability. The Company and the Underwriters agree that it would not be just and equitable if contribution pursuant to paragraph (d) above were determined by pro rata allocation (even if the Underwriters were treated as one entity for such purpose) or by any other method of allocation that does not take account of the equitable considerations referred to in paragraph (d) above. The amount paid or payable by an Indemnified Person as a result of the losses, claims, damages and liabilities referred to in paragraph (d) above shall be deemed to include, subject to the limitations set forth above, any legal or other expenses incurred by such Indemnified Person in connection with any such action or claim. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraphs (d) and (e), in no event shall an Underwriter be required to contribute any amount in excess of the amount by which the total underwriting discounts and commissions received by such Underwriter with respect to the Offering exceeds the amount of any damages that such Underwriter has otherwise been required to pay by reason of such untrue or alleged untrue statement or omission or alleged omission. No person guilty of fraudulent misrepresentation (within the meaning of Section 11(f) of the Securities Act) shall be entitled to contribution from any person who was not guilty of such fraudulent misrepresentation. The Underwriters’ obligations to contribute pursuant to paragraphs (d) and (e) are several in proportion to their respective purchase obligations hereunder and not joint.

(f) Non-Exclusive Remedies. The remedies provided for in this Section 7 are not exclusive and shall not limit any rights or remedies which may otherwise be available to any Indemnified Person at law or in equity.

8. Effectiveness of Agreement. This Agreement shall become effective as of the date first written above.

9. Termination. This Agreement may be terminated in the absolute discretion of the Representatives, by notice to the Company, if after the execution and delivery of this Agreement and on or prior to the Closing Date or, in the case of the Option Units, prior to the Additional Closing Date (i) trading generally shall have been suspended or materially limited on or by any of the New York Stock Exchange or Nasdaq; (ii) trading of any securities issued or guaranteed by the Company shall have been suspended on any exchange or in any over-the-counter market; (iii) a general moratorium on commercial banking activities shall have been declared by federal or New York State authorities; or (iv) there shall have occurred any outbreak or escalation of hostilities or any change in financial markets or any calamity or crisis, either within or outside the United States, that, in the judgment of the Representatives, is material and adverse and makes it impracticable or inadvisable to proceed with the offering, sale or delivery of the Units on the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, on the terms and in the manner contemplated by this Agreement, the Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus.

 

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10. Defaulting Underwriter.

(a) If, on the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, any Underwriter defaults on its obligation to purchase the Units that it has agreed to purchase hereunder on such date, the non-defaulting Underwriters may in their discretion arrange for the purchase of such Units by other persons satisfactory to the Company on the terms contained in this Agreement. If, within 36 hours after any such default by any Underwriter, the non-defaulting Underwriters do not arrange for the purchase of such Units, then the Company shall be entitled to a further period of 36 hours within which to procure other persons satisfactory to the non-defaulting Underwriters to purchase such Units on such terms. If other persons become obligated or agree to purchase the Units of a defaulting Underwriter, either the non-defaulting Underwriters or the Company may postpone the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, for up to five full business days in order to effect any changes that in the opinion of counsel for the Company or counsel for the Underwriters may be necessary in the Registration Statement and the Prospectus or in any other document or arrangement, and the Company agrees to promptly prepare any amendment or supplement to the Registration Statement and the Prospectus that effects any such changes. As used in this Agreement, the term “Underwriter” includes, for all purposes of this Agreement unless the context otherwise requires, any person not listed in Schedule 1 hereto that, pursuant to this Section 10, purchases Units that a defaulting Underwriter agreed but failed to purchase.

(b) If, after giving effect to any arrangements for the purchase of the Units of a defaulting Underwriter or Underwriters by the non-defaulting Underwriters and the Company as provided in paragraph (a) above, the aggregate number of Units that remain unpurchased on the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, does not exceed one-eleventh of the aggregate number of Units to be purchased on such date, then the Company shall have the right to require each non-defaulting Underwriter to purchase the number of Units that such Underwriter agreed to purchase hereunder on such date plus such Underwriter’s pro rata share (based on the number of Units that such Underwriter agreed to purchase on such date) of the Units of such defaulting Underwriter or Underwriters for which such arrangements have not been made.

(c) If, after giving effect to any arrangements for the purchase of the Units of a defaulting Underwriter or Underwriters by the non-defaulting Underwriters and the Company as provided in paragraph (a) above, the aggregate number of Units that remain unpurchased on the Closing Date or the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, exceeds one-eleventh of the aggregate amount of Units to be purchased on such date, or if the Company shall not exercise the right described in paragraph (b) above, then this Agreement or, with respect to any Additional Closing Date, the obligation of the Underwriters to purchase Units on the Additional Closing Date, as the case may be, shall terminate without liability on the part of the non-defaulting Underwriters. Any termination of this Agreement pursuant to this Section 10 shall be without liability on the part of the Company, except that the Company will continue to be liable for the payment of expenses as set forth in Section 11 hereof and except that the provisions of Section 7 hereof shall not terminate and shall remain in effect.

 

 

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(d) Nothing contained herein shall relieve a defaulting Underwriter of any liability it may have to the Company or any non-defaulting Underwriter for damages caused by its default.

11. Payment of Expenses.

(a) Whether or not the transactions contemplated by this Agreement are consummated or this Agreement is terminated, the Company will pay or cause to be paid all costs and expenses incident to the performance of its obligations hereunder, including without limitation, (i) the costs incident to the authorization, issuance, sale, preparation and delivery of the Units and any taxes payable in that connection; (ii) the costs incident to the preparation, printing and filing under the Securities Act of the Registration Statement, the Preliminary Prospectus, any Pricing Disclosure Package and the Prospectus (including all exhibits, amendments and supplements thereto) and the distribution thereof; (iii) the costs of reproducing and distributing each of the Transaction Documents; (iv) the fees and expenses of the Company’s counsel and independent accountants; (v) the fees and expenses incurred in connection with the registration or qualification and determination of eligibility for investment of the Units under the laws of such jurisdictions as the Representatives may designate and the preparation, printing and distribution of a Blue Sky Memorandum (including the related fees and expenses of counsel for the Underwriters); (vi) the cost of preparing stock certificates; (vii) the costs and charges of any transfer agent, trustee, warrant agent and registrar; (viii) all expenses and application fees incurred in connection with any filing with, and clearance of the offering by, FINRA (including the reasonable and documented fees and expenses of counsel for the Underwriters relating to such filings up to $25,000); (ix) all expenses incurred by the Company in connection with any “road show” presentation to potential investors; and (x) all expenses and application fees related to the listing of the Units on the NYSE.

(b) If (i) this Agreement is terminated pursuant to Section 9 (other than clauses (iii) and (iv)), (ii) the Company for any reason fails to tender the Units for delivery to the Underwriters or (iii) the Underwriters decline to purchase the Units for any reason permitted under this Agreement, the Company agrees to reimburse the Underwriters for all out-of-pocket costs and expenses (including the fees and expenses of their counsel) reasonably incurred by the Underwriters in connection with this Agreement and the Offering.

12. Persons Entitled to Benefit of Agreement. This Agreement shall inure to the benefit of and be binding upon the parties hereto and their respective successors and the officers and directors and any controlling persons referred to herein, and the affiliates of each Underwriter referred to in Section 7 hereof. Nothing in this Agreement is intended or shall be construed to give any other person any legal or equitable right, remedy or claim under or in respect of this Agreement or any provision contained herein. No purchaser of Units from any Underwriter shall be deemed to be a successor merely by reason of such purchase.

 

 

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13. Survival. The respective indemnities, rights of contribution, representations, warranties and agreements of the Company and the Underwriters contained in this Agreement or made by or on behalf of the Company or the Underwriters pursuant to this Agreement or any certificate delivered pursuant hereto shall survive the delivery of and payment for the Units and shall remain in full force and effect, regardless of any termination of this Agreement or any investigation made by or on behalf of the Company or the Underwriters or the directors, officers, controlling persons or affiliates referred to in Section 7 hereof.

14. Certain Defined Terms. For purposes of this Agreement, (a) except where otherwise expressly provided, the term “affiliate” has the meaning set forth in Rule 405 under the Securities Act; and (b) the term “business day” means any day other than a day on which banks are permitted or required to be closed in New York City; and (c) the term “Liquidation” means the distributions of the Trust Account to the Public Stockholders in connection with the redemption of the Common Stock held by the Public Stockholders pursuant to the terms of the Company’s Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, as amended, if the Company fails to consummate a Business Combination with the time period provided therein.

15. Compliance with USA Patriot Act. In accordance with the requirements of the USA Patriot Act (Title III of Pub. L. 107-56 (signed into law October 26, 2001)), the Underwriters are required to obtain, verify and record information that identifies their respective clients, including the Company, which information may include the name and address of their respective clients, as well as other information that will allow the Underwriters to properly identify their respective clients.

16. Miscellaneous.

(a) Notices. All notices and other communications hereunder shall be in writing and shall be deemed to have been duly given if mailed or transmitted and confirmed by any standard form of telecommunication.

Notices to the Underwriters shall be given to the Representatives:

UBS Securities LLC

1285 Avenue of the Americas

New York, New York 10019

Attention: Syndicate

and

Moelis & Co.

399 Park Avenue, 5th Floor

New York, New York 10022

Attention: Syndicate

with a copy to:

Graubard Miller

405 Lexington Avenue, 11th Floor

New York, New York 10174

Attention: David Alan Miller and Jeffrey M. Gallant

 

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Notices to the Company shall be given to it at

Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

[•]

Attention: [•]

with a copy to:

Greenberg Traurig, LLP

1750 Tysons Boulevard, Suite 1000

McLean, Virginia 22102

Attention: Alan I Annex and Jason T. Simon

(b) Governing Law. This Agreement and any claim, controversy or dispute arising under or related to this Agreement shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of New York.

(c) Submission to Jurisdiction. The Company hereby submits to the exclusive jurisdiction of the U.S. federal and New York state courts in the Borough of Manhattan in The City of New York in any suit or proceeding arising out of or relating to this Agreement or the transactions contemplated hereby. The Company waives any objection which it may now or hereafter have to the laying of venue of any such suit or proceeding in such courts. The Company agrees that final judgment in any such suit, action or proceeding brought in such court shall be conclusive and binding upon the Company and may be enforced in any court to the jurisdiction of which Company is subject by a suit upon such judgment.

(d) Waiver of Jury Trial. EACH OF THE PARTIES HERETO HEREBY WAIVES ANY RIGHT TO TRIAL BY JURY IN ANY SUIT OR PROCEEDING ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THIS AGREEMENT.

(e) Recognition of the U.S. Special Resolution Regimes.

(i) In the event that any Underwriter that is a Covered Entity (as defined below) becomes subject to a proceeding under a U.S. Special Resolution Regime (as defined below), the transfer from such Underwriter of this Agreement, and any interest and obligation in or under this Agreement, will be effective to the same extent as the transfer would be effective under the U.S. Special Resolution Regime if this Agreement, and any such interest and obligation, were governed by the laws of the United States or a state of the United States.

 

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(ii) In the event that any Underwriter that is a Covered Entity or a BHC Act Affiliate (as defined below) of such Underwriter becomes subject to a proceeding under a U.S. Special Resolution Regime, Default Rights (as defined below) under this Agreement that may be exercised against such Underwriter are permitted to be exercised to no greater extent than such Default Rights could be exercised under the U.S. Special Resolution Regime if this Agreement were governed by the laws of the United States or a state of the United States.

As used in this Section 16(e):

“BHC Act Affiliate” has the meaning assigned to the term “affiliate” in, and shall be interpreted in accordance with, 12 U.S.C. § 1841(k).

“Covered Entity” means any of the following:

(i) a “covered entity” as that term is defined in, and interpreted in accordance with, 12 C.F.R. § 252.82(b);

(ii) a “covered bank” as that term is defined in, and interpreted in accordance with, 12 C.F.R. § 47.3(b); or

(iii) a “covered FSI” as that term is defined in, and interpreted in accordance with, 12 C.F.R. § 382.2(b).

“Default Right” has the meaning assigned to that term in, and shall be interpreted in accordance with, 12 C.F.R. §§ 252.81, 47.2 or 382.1, as applicable.

“U.S. Special Resolution Regime” means each of (i) the Federal Deposit Insurance Act and the regulations promulgated thereunder and (ii) Title II of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act and the regulations promulgated thereunder.

(f) Counterparts. This Agreement may be signed in counterparts (which may include counterparts delivered by any standard form of telecommunication), each of which shall be an original and all of which together shall constitute one and the same instrument.

(g) Amendments or Waivers. No amendment or waiver of any provision of this Agreement, nor any consent or approval to any departure therefrom, shall in any event be effective unless the same shall be in writing and signed by the parties hereto.

(h) Headings. The headings herein are included for convenience of reference only and are not intended to be part of, or to affect the meaning or interpretation of, this Agreement.

(i) Integration. This Agreement supersedes all prior agreements and understandings (whether written or oral) between the Company and the Underwriters, or any of them, with respect to the subject matter hereof.

 

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If the foregoing is in accordance with your understanding, please indicate your acceptance of this Agreement by signing in the space provided below.

 

Very truly yours,
GOLDEN FALCON ACQUISITION CORP.
By:    
  Name: Makram Azar
  Title: Chief Executive Officer

 

Accepted: As of the date first written above
UBS SECURITIES LLC and MOELIS & CO.
For themselves and on behalf of the several Underwriters listed in Schedule 1 hereto.
UBS SECURITIES LLC
By:    
  Name:
  Title:

 

MOELIS & CO.
By:    
  Name:
  Title:

[Signature Page to Underwriting Agreement]


Schedule 1

 

Underwriter

   Number of Units  

UBS Securities LLC

     [ •]

Moelis & Co.

     [ •]

EarlyBirdCapital, Inc.

     [ •]

Total

     25,000,000
  

 

 

 


Annex A

Pricing Information Provided Orally by Underwriters

The initial public offering price per Unit for the Units is $10.00.

The number of Units purchased by the Underwriters is 25,000,000. The Underwriters have an option to purchase an additional 3,750,000 Units to cover over-allotments, if any.


Annex B

Written Testing-the-Waters Communications

Reference is made to the materials used in the testing the waters presentation made to potential investors by the Company, to the extent such materials are deemed to be a “written communication” within the meaning of Rule 405 under the Securities Act.

Exhibit 3.1

CERTIFICATE OF INCORPORATION

OF

GOLDEN FALCON ACQUISITION CORP.

THE UNDERSIGNED, acting as the incorporator of a corporation under and in accordance with the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware, as the same exists or may hereafter be amended from time to time (the “DGCL”), hereby adopts the following Certificate of Incorporation (the “Certificate”) for such corporation:

ARTICLE I

NAME

The name of the corporation is Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp. (the “Corporation”).

ARTICLE II

REGISTERED AGENT

The street address of the initial registered office of the Corporation in the State of Delaware is 251 Little Falls Drive, Wilmington, New Castle County, Delaware, 19808, and the name of the Corporation’s initial registered agent at such address is Corporation Service Company.

ARTICLE III

PURPOSE

The purpose for which the Corporation is organized is to engage in any lawful act or activity for which corporations may be organized under the DGCL.

ARTICLE IV

CAPITALIZATION

Section 4.1    Authorized Capital Stock. The total number of shares of all classes of capital stock which the Corporation is authorized to issue is 221,000,000 shares, consisting of (a) 220,000,000 shares of common stock, par value $0.0001 per share (the “Common Stock”), including (i) 200,000,000 shares of Class A Common Stock (the “Class A Common Stock”) and (ii) 20,000,000 shares of Class B Common Stock (the “Class B Common Stock”), and (b) 1,000,000 shares of preferred stock, par value $0.0001 per share (the “Preferred Stock”). The powers, preferences and relative, participating, optional and other special rights of the respective classes of the Corporation’s capital stock or the holders thereof and the qualifications, limitations and restrictions thereof are set forth below.

Section 4.2    Preferred Stock.

(a)    The Preferred Stock may be issued in one or more series from time to time, with each such series to consist of such number of shares and to have such voting powers, full or limited, or no voting powers, and such designations, preferences and relative, participating, optional or other special rights, and the qualifications, limitations or restrictions

 

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thereof, as shall be stated in the resolution or resolutions providing for the issuance of such series adopted by the board of directors of the Corporation (the “Board”) and included in a certificate of designations (a “Preferred Stock Designation”) filed pursuant to the DGCL, and the Board is hereby expressly vested with the authority, to the full extent now or hereafter provided by law, to adopt any such resolution or resolutions.

(b)    The number of authorized shares of Preferred Stock may be increased or decreased (but not below the number of shares thereof then outstanding) by the affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of the outstanding shares of Common Stock, without a vote of the holders of the Preferred Stock, or any series thereof, unless a vote of any such holders of Preferred Stock is required pursuant to another provision of this Certificate, including any Preferred Stock Designation.

Section 4.3    Common Stock.

(a)    Voting.

(1)    Except as otherwise required by law or this Certificate (including any Preferred Stock Designation), the holders of the Common Stock shall exclusively possess all voting power with respect to the Corporation.

(2)    Except as otherwise required by law or this Certificate (including any Preferred Stock Designation), the holders of shares of Common Stock shall be entitled to one vote for each such share on each matter properly submitted to the stockholders on which the holders of the Common Stock are entitled to vote.

(3)    Except as otherwise required by law or this Certificate (including any Preferred Stock Designation), at any annual or special meeting of the stockholders of the Corporation, holders of the Class A Common Stock and holders of the Class B Common Stock, voting together as a single class, shall have the exclusive right to vote for the election of directors and on all other matters properly submitted to a vote of the stockholders. Notwithstanding the foregoing, except as otherwise required by law or this Certificate (including any Preferred Stock Designation), holders of shares of any series of Common Stock shall not be entitled to vote on any amendment to this Certificate (including any amendment to any Preferred Stock Designation) that relates solely to the terms of one or more outstanding series of Preferred Stock or other series of Common Stock if the holders of such affected series of Preferred Stock or Common Stock, as applicable, are entitled, either separately or together with the holders of one or more other such series, to vote thereon pursuant to this Certificate (including any Preferred Stock Designation) or the DGCL.

(b)    Class B Common Stock.

(1)    Shares of Class B Common Stock shall be convertible into shares of Class A Common Stock on a one-for-one basis (the “Initial Conversion Ratio”) (A) at any time and from time to time at the option of the holder thereof and (B) automatically on the business day following the closing of the Business Combination (as defined below).

 

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(2)    Notwithstanding the Initial Conversion Ratio, in the case that additional shares of Class A Common Stock, or equity-linked securities, are issued or deemed issued in excess of the amounts sold in the Corporation’s initial public offering of securities and related to the closing of the initial Business Combination, all issued and outstanding shares of Class B Common Stock shall automatically convert into shares of Class A Common Stock at the time of the closing of the Corporation’s initial merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses (the “Business Combination”) at a ratio for which:

 

                         

       (i)    

the numerator shall be equal to the sum of (A) 25% of all shares of Class A Common Stock issued or issuable (upon the conversion or exercise of any equity-linked securities or otherwise) by the Corporation, related to or in connection with the consummation of the initial Business Combination (excluding any securities issued or issuable to any seller in the initial Business Combination) plus (B) the number of shares of Class B Common Stock issued and outstanding prior to the closing of the initial Business Combination; and

  

 

 

 

(ii

 

 

 

the denominator shall be the number of shares of Class B Common Stock issued and outstanding prior to the closing of the initial Business Combination.

Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained herein, (i) the foregoing adjustment to the Initial Conversion Ratio may be waived as to any particular issuance or deemed issuance of additional shares of Class A Common Stock or equity-linked securities by the written consent or agreement of holders of a majority of the shares of Class B Common Stock then outstanding consenting or agreeing separately as a single class in the manner provided in Section 4.3(b)(iii), and (ii) in no event shall the Class B Common Stock convert into Class A Common Stock at a ratio that is less than one-for-one.

The foregoing conversion ratio shall also be adjusted to account for any subdivision (by stock split, subdivision, exchange, stock dividend, reclassification, recapitalization or otherwise) or combination (by reverse stock split, exchange, reclassification, recapitalization or otherwise) or similar reclassification or recapitalization of the outstanding shares of Class A Common Stock into a greater or lesser number of shares occurring after the original filing of this Certificate without a proportionate and corresponding subdivision, combination or similar reclassification or recapitalization of the outstanding shares of Class B Common Stock.

Each share of Class B Common Stock shall convert into its pro rata number of shares of Class A Common Stock pursuant to this Section 4.3(b). The pro rata share for each holder of Class B Common Stock will be determined as follows: Each share of Class B Common Stock shall convert into such number of shares of Class A Common Stock as is equal to the product of one (1) multiplied by a fraction, the numerator of

 

3


which shall be the total number of shares of Class A Common Stock into which all of the issued and outstanding shares of Class B Common Stock shall be converted pursuant to this Section 4.3(b) and the denominator of which shall be the total number of issued and outstanding shares of Class B Common Stock at the time of conversion.

(3)    Voting. Except as otherwise required by law or this Certificate (including any Preferred Stock Designation), for so long as any shares of Class B Common Stock shall remain outstanding, the Corporation shall not, without the prior vote or written consent of the holders of a majority of the shares of Class B Common Stock then outstanding, voting separately as a single class, amend, alter or repeal any provision of this Certificate, whether by merger, consolidation or otherwise, if such amendment, alteration or repeal would alter or change the powers, preferences or relative, participating, optional or other or special rights of the Class B Common Stock. Any action required or permitted to be taken at any meeting of the holders of Class B Common Stock may be taken without a meeting, without prior notice and without a vote, if a consent or consents in writing, setting forth the action so taken, shall be signed by the holders of the outstanding Class B Common Stock having not less than the minimum number of votes that would be necessary to authorize or take such action at a meeting at which all shares of Class B Common Stock were present and voted and shall be delivered to the Corporation by delivery to its registered office in the State of Delaware, its principal place of business, or an officer or agent of the Corporation having custody of the book in which minutes of proceedings of stockholders are recorded. Delivery made to the Corporation’s registered office shall be by hand or by certified or registered mail, return receipt requested. Prompt written notice of the taking of corporate action without a meeting by less than unanimous written consent of the holders of Class B Common Stock shall, to the extent required by law, be given to those holders of Class B Common Stock who have not consented in writing and who, if the action had been taken at a meeting, would have been entitled to notice of the meeting if the record date for notice of such meeting had been the date that written consents signed by a sufficient number of holders of Class B Common Stock to take the action were delivered to the Corporation.

(c)    Dividends. Subject to applicable law, the rights, if any, of the holders of any outstanding series of the Preferred Stock, the holders of shares of Common Stock shall be entitled to receive such dividends and other distributions (payable in cash, property or capital stock of the Corporation) when, as and if declared thereon by the Board from time to time out of any assets or funds of the Corporation legally available therefor and shall share equally on a per share basis in such dividends and distributions.

(d)    Liquidation, Dissolution or Winding Up of the Corporation. Subject to applicable law, the rights, if any, of the holders of any outstanding series of the Preferred Stock, in the event of any voluntary or involuntary liquidation, dissolution or winding up of the Corporation, after payment or provision for payment of the debts and other liabilities of the Corporation, the holders of shares of Common Stock shall be entitled to receive all the remaining assets of the Corporation available for distribution to its stockholders, ratably in proportion to the number of shares of Class A Common Stock (on an as converted basis with respect to the Class B Common Stock) held by them.

 

4


Section 4.4    Rights and Options. The Corporation has the authority to create and issue rights, warrants and options entitling the holders thereof to acquire from the Corporation any shares of its capital stock of any class or classes, with such rights, warrants and options to be evidenced by or in instrument(s) approved by the Board. The Board is empowered to set the exercise price, duration, times for exercise and other terms and conditions of such rights, warrants or options; provided, however, that the consideration to be received for any shares of capital stock issuable upon exercise thereof may not be less than the par value thereof.

ARTICLE V

INCORPORATOR

The name and mailing address of the incorporator is as follows:

 

Name

  

Address

Jason T. Simon   

Greenberg Traurig, LLP

1750 Tysons Boulevard, Suite 1000

McLean, VA 22102

ARTICLE VI

DIRECTORS

Section 6.1    Board Powers. The business and affairs of the Corporation shall be managed by, or under the direction of, the Board. In addition to the powers and authority expressly conferred upon the Board by statute, this Certificate or the By Laws (the “By Laws”) of the Corporation, the Board is hereby empowered to exercise all such powers and do all such acts and things as may be exercised or done by the Corporation, subject, nevertheless, to the provisions of the DGCL, this Certificate and any By Laws adopted by the stockholders; provided, however, that no By Laws hereafter adopted by the stockholders shall invalidate any prior act of the Board that would have been valid if such By Laws had not been adopted.

Section 6.2    Election. Unless and except to the extent that the By Laws shall so require, the election of directors need not be by written ballot.

ARTICLE VII

BY LAWS

In furtherance and not in limitation of the powers conferred upon it by law, the Board shall have the power to adopt, amend, alter or repeal the By Laws. The By Laws also may be adopted, amended, altered or repealed by the stockholders.

ARTICLE VIII

LIMITED LIABILITY; INDEMNIFICATION

Section 8.1    Limitation of Personal Liability. No person who is or was a director of the Corporation shall be personally liable to the Corporation or any of its stockholders for monetary damages for breach of fiduciary duty as a director, except to the extent such exemption from liability or limitation thereof is not permitted by the DGCL as the same exists or hereafter may

 

5


be amended. If the DGCL is hereafter amended to authorize corporate action further limiting or eliminating the liability of directors, then the liability of a director to the Corporation or its stockholders shall be limited or eliminated to the fullest extent permitted by the DGCL, as so amended. Any repeal or amendment of this Section 8.1 by the stockholders of the Corporation or by changes in law, or the adoption of any other provision of this Certificate inconsistent with this Section 8.1 will, unless otherwise required by law, be prospective only (except to the extent such amendment or change in law permits the Corporation to further limit or eliminate the liability of directors) and shall not adversely affect any right or protection of a director of the Corporation existing at the time of such repeal or amendment or adoption of such inconsistent provision with respect to acts or omissions occurring prior to such repeal or amendment or adoption of such inconsistent provision.

Section 8.2    Indemnification.

(a)    Each person who is or was made a party or is threatened to be made a party to or is otherwise involved in any threatened, pending or completed action, suit or proceeding, whether civil, criminal, administrative or investigative (hereinafter a “proceeding”) by reason of the fact that he or she is or was a director or officer, employee or agent of the Corporation or, while a director or officer, employee or agent of the Corporation, is or was serving at the request of the Corporation as a director, officer, employee or agent of another corporation or of a partnership, joint venture, trust or other enterprise, including service with respect to an employee benefit plan (hereinafter a “Covered Person”), whether the basis of such proceeding is alleged action in an official capacity as a director, officer, employee or agent, or in any other capacity while serving as a director, officer, employee or agent, shall be indemnified and held harmless by the Corporation to the fullest extent authorized or permitted by applicable law, as the same exists or may hereafter be amended, against all expense, liability and loss (including, without limitation, attorneys’ fees, judgments, fines, ERISA excise taxes and penalties and amounts paid in settlement) reasonably incurred or suffered by such Covered Person in connection with such proceeding, and such right to indemnification shall continue as to a person who has ceased to be a director, officer, employee or agent and shall inure to the benefit of his or her heirs, executors and administrators; provided, however, that, except for proceedings to enforce rights to indemnification, the Corporation shall indemnify a Covered Person in connection with a proceeding (or part thereof) initiated by such Covered Person only if such proceeding (or part thereof) was authorized by the Board. The right to indemnification conferred by this Section 8.2 shall be a contract right and shall include the right to be paid by the Corporation the expenses incurred in defending or otherwise participating in any such proceeding in advance of its final disposition.

(b)    The rights conferred on any Covered Person by this Section 8.2 shall not be exclusive of any other rights which any Covered Person may have or hereafter acquire under law, this Certificate, the By Laws, an agreement, vote of stockholders or disinterested directors, or otherwise.

(c)    Any repeal or amendment of this Section 8.2 by the stockholders of the Corporation or by changes in law, or the adoption of any other provision of this Certificate inconsistent with this Section 8.2, will, unless otherwise required by law, be prospective only (except to the extent such amendment or change in law permits the Corporation to provide

 

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broader indemnification rights on a retroactive basis than permitted prior thereto), and will not in any way diminish or adversely affect any right or protection existing at the time of such repeal or amendment or adoption of such inconsistent provision in respect of any act or omission occurring prior to such repeal or amendment or adoption of such inconsistent provision.

(d)    This Section 8.2 shall not limit the right of the Corporation, to the extent and in the manner authorized or permitted by law, to indemnify and to advance expenses to persons other than Covered Persons.

ARTICLE IX

AMENDMENT OF CERTIFICATE OF INCORPORATION

The Corporation reserves the right to amend, alter, change or repeal any provision contained in this Certificate (including any Preferred Stock Designation), in the manner now or hereafter prescribed by this Certificate and the DGCL; and except as set forth in ARTICLE VIII, all rights, preferences and privileges herein conferred upon stockholders, directors or any other persons by and pursuant to this Certificate in its present form or as hereafter amended are granted subject to the right reserved in this Article.

[Signature page follows]

 

7


IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the incorporator of the Corporation hereto has caused this Certificate of Incorporation to be duly executed as of August 24, 2020.

 

By:  

/s/ Jason T. Simon

 

Name:   Jason T. Simon

Title:     Incorporator

 

8

Exhibit 3.2

AMENDED AND RESTATED

CERTIFICATE OF INCORPORATION

OF

GOLDEN FALCON ACQUISITION CORP.

, 2020

Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp., a corporation organized and existing under the laws of the State of Delaware (the “Corporation”), DOES HEREBY CERTIFY AS FOLLOWS:

1. The name of the Corporation is “Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.”. The original certificate of incorporation of the Corporation was filed with the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware on August 24, 2020 (as subsequently amended prior to the date hereof, the “Original Certificate”).

2. This Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation (the “Amended and Restated Certificate”), which both restates and further amends the provisions of the Original Certificate, was duly adopted in accordance with Sections 242 and 245 of the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware, as amended from time to time (the “DGCL”), and by written consent of the Corporation’s stockholders in accordance with Section 228 of the DGCL.

3. This Amended and Restated Certificate shall become effective on the date of filing with the Secretary of State of Delaware.

4. The text of the Original Certificate is hereby restated and amended in its entirety to read as follows:

ARTICLE I

NAME

The name of the corporation is Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp. (the “Corporation”).

ARTICLE II

PURPOSE

The purpose of the Corporation is to engage in any lawful act or activity for which corporations may be organized under the DGCL. In addition to the powers and privileges conferred upon the Corporation by law and those incidental thereto, the Corporation shall possess and may exercise all the powers and privileges that are necessary or convenient to the conduct, promotion or attainment of the business or purposes of the Corporation, including, but not limited to, effecting a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination, involving the Corporation and one or more businesses (a “Business Combination”).

ARTICLE III

REGISTERED AGENT

The address of the Corporation’s registered office in the State of Delaware is 251 Little Falls Drive, Wilmington, New Castle County, Delaware 19808. The name of its registered agent at such address is Corporation Service Company.

ARTICLE IV

CAPITALIZATION

Section 4.1 Authorized Capital Stock. The total number of shares of all classes of capital stock, each with a par value of $0.0001 per share, which the Corporation is authorized to issue is 221,000,000 shares, consisting of (a) 220,000,000 shares of common stock (the “Common Stock”), including (i) 200,000,000 shares of Class A Common Stock (the “Class A Common Stock”) and (ii) 20,000,000 shares of Class B Common Stock (the “Class B Common Stock”), and (b) 1,000,000 shares of preferred stock (the “Preferred Stock”).


Section 4.2 Preferred Stock. Subject to Article IX of this Amended and Restated Certificate, the Board of Directors of the Corporation (the “Board”) is hereby expressly authorized to provide out of the unissued shares of the Preferred Stock for one or more series of Preferred Stock and to establish from time to time the number of shares to be included in each such series and to fix the voting rights, if any, designations, powers, preferences and relative, participating, optional, special and other rights, if any, of each such series and any qualifications, limitations and restrictions thereof, as shall be stated in the resolution or resolutions adopted by the Board providing for the issuance of such series and included in a certificate of designation (a “Preferred Stock Designation”) filed pursuant to the DGCL, and the Board is hereby expressly vested with the authority to the full extent provided by law, now or hereafter, to adopt any such resolution or resolutions.

Section 4.3 Common Stock.

(a) Voting.

(i) Except as otherwise required by law or this Amended and Restated Certificate (including any Preferred Stock Designation), the holders of the Common Stock shall exclusively possess all voting power with respect to the Corporation.

(ii) Except as otherwise required by law or this Amended and Restated Certificate (including any Preferred Stock Designation), the holders of shares of Common Stock shall be entitled to one vote for each such share on each matter properly submitted to the stockholders on which the holders of the Common Stock are entitled to vote.

(iii) Except as otherwise required by law or this Amended and Restated Certificate (including any Preferred Stock Designation), at any annual or special meeting of the stockholders of the Corporation, holders of the Class A Common Stock and holders of the Class B Common Stock, voting together as a single class, shall have the exclusive right to vote for the election of directors and on all other matters properly submitted to a vote of the stockholders. Notwithstanding the foregoing, except as otherwise required by law or this Amended and Restated Certificate (including any Preferred Stock Designation), holders of shares of any series of Common Stock shall not be entitled to vote on any amendment to this Amended and Restated Certificate (including any amendment to any Preferred Stock Designation) that relates solely to the terms of one or more outstanding series of Preferred Stock or other series of Common Stock if the holders of such affected series of Preferred Stock or Common Stock, as applicable, are entitled exclusively, either separately or together with the holders of one or more other such series, to vote thereon pursuant to this Amended and Restated Certificate (including any Preferred Stock Designation) or the DGCL.

(b) Class B Common Stock.

(i) Shares of Class B Common Stock shall be convertible into shares of Class A Common Stock on a one-for-one basis (the “Initial Conversion Ratio”) (A) at any time and from time to time at the option of the holder thereof and (B) automatically upon the closing of the Business Combination.

(ii) Notwithstanding the Initial Conversion Ratio, in the case that additional shares of Class A Common Stock, or equity-linked securities (as defined below), are issued or deemed issued in excess of the amounts sold in the Corporation’s initial public offering of securities (the “Offering”) and related to the closing of the initial Business Combination, the ratio at which shares of Class B common stock will convert into shares of Class A common stock will be adjusted so that the number of shares of Class A common stock issuable upon conversion of all shares of Class B common stock will equal, in the aggregate, on an as-converted basis, 20% of the

 

2


sum of the shares outstanding upon the completion of the Corporation’s initial public offering plus the number of shares of Class A common stock and equity-linked securities issued or deemed issued in connection with the initial Business Combination, excluding any shares of Class A common stock or equity-linked securities issued, or to be issued, to any seller in the initial Business Combination and any securities issued privately concurrently with the Corporation’s initial public offering or upon conversion of working capital loans made to the Corporation.

As used herein, the term “equity-linked securities” means any debt or equity securities of the Corporation that are convertible into, exercisable or exchangeable for Class A Common Stock issued in connection with the initial Business Combination, including but not limited to a private placement of equity or debt.

Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained herein, (i) the foregoing adjustment to the Initial Conversion Ratio may be waived as to any particular issuance or deemed issuance of additional shares of Class A Common Stock or equity-linked securities by the written consent or agreement of holders of a majority of the shares of Class B Common Stock then outstanding consenting or agreeing separately as a single class in the manner provided in Section 4.3(b)(iii), and (ii) in no event shall the Class B Common Stock convert into Class A Common Stock at a ratio that is less than one-for-one.

The foregoing conversion ratio shall also be adjusted to account for any subdivision (by stock split, subdivision, exchange, stock dividend, reclassification, recapitalization or otherwise) or combination (by reverse stock split, exchange, reclassification, recapitalization or otherwise) or similar reclassification or recapitalization of the outstanding shares of Class A Common Stock into a greater or lesser number of shares occurring after the original filing of this Amended and Restated Certificate without a proportionate and corresponding subdivision, combination or similar reclassification or recapitalization of the outstanding shares of Class B Common Stock.

Each share of Class B Common Stock shall convert into its pro rata number of shares of Class A Common Stock pursuant to this Section 4.3(b). The pro rata share for each holder of Class B Common Stock will be determined as follows: Each share of Class B Common Stock shall convert into such number of shares of Class A Common Stock as is equal to the product of one (1) multiplied by a fraction, the numerator of which shall be the total number of shares of Class A Common Stock into which all of the issued and outstanding shares of Class B Common Stock shall be converted pursuant to this Section 4.3(b) and the denominator of which shall be the total number of issued and outstanding shares of Class B Common Stock at the time of conversion.

(iii) Voting. Except as otherwise required by law or this Amended and Restated Certificate (including any Preferred Stock Designation), for so long as any shares of Class B Common Stock shall remain outstanding, the Corporation shall not, without the prior vote or written consent of the holders of a majority of the shares of Class B Common Stock then outstanding, voting separately as a single class, amend, alter or repeal any provision of this Amended and Restated Certificate, whether by merger, consolidation or otherwise, if such amendment, alteration or repeal would alter or change the powers, preferences or relative, participating, optional or other or special rights of the Class B Common Stock. Any action required or permitted to be taken at any meeting of the holders of Class B Common Stock may be taken without a meeting, without prior notice and without a vote, if a consent or consents in writing, setting forth the action so taken, shall be signed by the holders of the outstanding Class B Common Stock having not less than the minimum number of votes that would be necessary to authorize or take such action at a meeting at which all shares of Class B Common Stock were present and voted and shall be delivered to the Corporation by delivery to its registered office in the State of Delaware, its principal place of business, or an officer or agent of the Corporation having custody of the book in which minutes of proceedings of stockholders are recorded. Delivery made to the Corporation’s registered office shall be by hand or by certified or registered mail, return receipt requested. Prompt written notice of the taking of corporate action without a meeting by less than unanimous written consent of the holders of Class B Common Stock shall, to the extent required by law, be given to those holders of Class B Common Stock who have not consented in writing and who, if the action had been taken at a meeting, would have been entitled to notice of the meeting if the record date for notice of such meeting had been the date that written consents signed by a sufficient number of holders of Class B Common Stock to take the action were delivered to the Corporation.

 

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(c) Dividends. Subject to applicable law, the rights, if any, of the holders of any outstanding series of the Preferred Stock and the provisions of Article IX hereof, the holders of shares of Common Stock shall be entitled to receive such dividends and other distributions (payable in cash, property or capital stock of the Corporation) when, as and if declared thereon by the Board from time to time out of any assets or funds of the Corporation legally available therefor and shall share equally on a per share basis in such dividends and distributions.

(d) Liquidation, Dissolution or Winding Up of the Corporation. Subject to applicable law, the rights, if any, of the holders of any outstanding series of the Preferred Stock and the provisions of Article IX hereof, in the event of any voluntary or involuntary liquidation, dissolution or winding up of the Corporation, after payment or provision for payment of the debts and other liabilities of the Corporation, the holders of shares of Common Stock shall be entitled to receive all the remaining assets of the Corporation available for distribution to its stockholders, ratably in proportion to the number of shares of Class A Common Stock (on an as converted basis with respect to the Class B Common Stock) held by them.

Section 4.4 Rights and Options. The Corporation has the authority to create and issue rights, warrants and options entitling the holders thereof to acquire from the Corporation any shares of its capital stock of any class or classes, with such rights, warrants and options to be evidenced by or in instrument(s) approved by the Board. The Board is empowered to set the exercise price, duration, times for exercise and other terms and conditions of such rights, warrants or options; provided, however, that the consideration to be received for any shares of capital stock issuable upon exercise thereof may not be less than the par value thereof.

ARTICLE V

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Section 5.1 Board Powers. The business and affairs of the Corporation shall be managed by, or under the direction of, the Board. In addition to the powers and authority expressly conferred upon the Board by statute, this Amended and Restated Certificate or the Bylaws of the Corporation then in effect (the “Bylaws”), the Board is hereby empowered to exercise all such powers and do all such acts and things as may be exercised or done by the Corporation, subject, nevertheless, to the provisions of the DGCL, this Amended and Restated Certificate, and any Bylaws adopted by the stockholders of the Corporation; provided, however, that no Bylaws hereafter adopted by the stockholders of the Corporation shall invalidate any prior act of the Board that would have been valid if such Bylaws had not been adopted.

Section 5.2 Number, Election and Term.

(a) The number of directors of the Corporation, other than those who may be elected by the holders of one or more series of the Preferred Stock voting separately by class or series, shall be fixed from time to time exclusively by the Board pursuant to a resolution adopted by a majority of the Board.

(b) Subject to Section 5.5 hereof, the Board shall be divided into three classes, as nearly equal in number as possible and designated Class I, Class II and Class III. The term of the initial Class I Directors shall expire at the first annual meeting of the stockholders of the Corporation following the effectiveness of this Amended and Restated Certificate; the term of the initial Class II Directors shall expire at the second annual meeting of the stockholders of the Corporation following the effectiveness of this Amended and Restated Certificate; and the term of the initial Class III Directors shall expire at the third annual meeting of the stockholders of the Corporation following the effectiveness of this Amended and Restated Certificate. At each succeeding annual meeting of the stockholders of the Corporation, beginning with the first annual meeting of the stockholders of the Corporation following the effectiveness of this Amended and Restated Certificate, each of the successors elected to the class of directors whose term expires at that annual meeting shall be elected for a three-year term or until the election and qualification of their respective successors in office, subject to their earlier death, resignation or removal. Subject to Section 5.5 hereof, if

 

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the number of directors that constitutes the Board is changed, any increase or decrease shall be apportioned by the Board among the classes so as to maintain the number of directors in each class as nearly equal as possible, but in no case shall a decrease in the number of directors constituting the Board shorten the term of any incumbent director. Subject to any contractual rights of stockholders, in accordance with the DGCL, or the rights of the holders of one or more series of Preferred Stock, voting separately by class or series, to elect directors pursuant to the terms of one or more series of Preferred Stock, the election of directors shall be determined by a plurality of the votes cast by the stockholders present in person or represented by proxy at the meeting and entitled to vote thereon. The Board is hereby expressly authorized, by resolution or resolutions thereof, to assign members of the Board already in office to the aforesaid classes at the time this Amended and Restated Certificate (and therefore such classification) becomes effective in accordance with the DGCL.

(c) Subject to Section 5.5 hereof, a director shall hold office until the annual meeting for the year in which his or her term expires and until his or her successor has been elected and qualified, subject, however, to such director’s earlier death, resignation, retirement, disqualification or removal.

(d) Unless and except to the extent that the Bylaws shall so require, the election of directors need not be by written ballot.

Section 5.3 Newly Created Directorships and Vacancies. Subject to Section 5.5 hereof and the contractual rights of any stockholder, in accordance with the DGCL, newly created directorships resulting from an increase in the number of directors and any vacancies on the Board resulting from death, resignation, retirement, disqualification, removal or other cause may be filled solely and exclusively by a majority vote of the remaining directors then in office, even if less than a quorum, or by a sole remaining director (and not by stockholders), and any director so chosen shall hold office for the remainder of the full term of the class of directors to which the new directorship was added or in which the vacancy occurred and until his or her successor has been elected and qualified, subject, however, to such director’s earlier death, resignation, retirement, disqualification or removal.

Section 5.4 Removal. Subject to Section 5.5 hereof and the contractual rights of any stockholder, in accordance with the DGCL, any or all of the directors may be removed from office at any time, but only for cause and only by the affirmative vote of holders of a majority of the voting power of all then outstanding shares of capital stock of the Corporation entitled to vote generally in the election of directors, voting together as a single class.

Section 5.5 Preferred Stock - Directors. Notwithstanding any other provision of this Article V, and except as otherwise required by law, whenever the holders of one or more series of the Preferred Stock shall have the right, voting separately by class or series, to elect one or more directors, the term of office, the filling of vacancies, the removal from office and other features of such directorships shall be governed by the terms of such series of the Preferred Stock as set forth in this Amended and Restated Certificate (including any Preferred Stock Designation) and such directors shall not be included in any of the classes created pursuant to this Article V unless expressly provided by such terms.

ARTICLE VI

BYLAWS

In furtherance and not in limitation of the powers conferred upon it by law, the Board shall have the power and is expressly authorized to adopt, amend, alter or repeal the Bylaws. The affirmative vote of a majority of the Board shall be required to adopt, amend, alter or repeal the Bylaws. The Bylaws also may be adopted, amended, altered or repealed by the stockholders; provided, however, that in addition to any vote of the holders of any class or series of capital stock of the Corporation required by law or by this Amended and Restated Certificate (including any Preferred Stock Designation), the affirmative vote of the holders of at least a majority of the voting power of all then outstanding shares of capital stock of the Corporation entitled to vote generally in the election of directors, voting together as a single class, shall be required for the stockholders to adopt, amend, alter or repeal the Bylaws; and provided further, however, that no Bylaws hereafter adopted by the stockholders shall invalidate any prior act of the Board that would have been valid if such Bylaws had not been adopted.

 

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ARTICLE VII

MEETINGS OF STOCKHOLDERS; ACTION BY WRITTEN CONSENT

Section 7.1 Special Meetings. Subject to the rights, if any, of the holders of any outstanding series of the Preferred Stock, and to the requirements of applicable law, special meetings of stockholders of the Corporation may be called only by the Chairman of the Board, the Chief Executive Officer of the Corporation, or the Board pursuant to a resolution adopted by a majority of the Board, and the ability of the stockholders of the Corporation to call a special meeting is hereby specifically denied. Except as provided in the foregoing sentence, special meetings of stockholders of the Corporation may not be called by another person or persons.

Section 7.2 Advance Notice. Advance notice of stockholder nominations for the election of directors and of business to be brought by stockholders before any meeting of the stockholders of the Corporation shall be given in the manner provided in the Bylaws.

Section 7.3 Action by Written Consent. Except as may be otherwise provided for or fixed pursuant to this Amended and Restated Certificate (including any Preferred Stock Designation) relating to the rights of the holders of any outstanding series of Preferred Stock, subsequent to the consummation of the Offering, any action required or permitted to be taken by the stockholders of the Corporation must be effected by a duly called annual or special meeting of such stockholders and may not be effected by written consent of the stockholders other than with respect to our Class B Common Stock with respect to which action may be taken by written consent.

ARTICLE VIII

LIMITED LIABILITY; INDEMNIFICATION

Section 8.1 Limitation of Director Liability. A director of the Corporation shall not be personally liable to the Corporation or its stockholders for monetary damages for breach of fiduciary duty as a director, except to the extent such exemption from liability or limitation thereof is not permitted under the DGCL as the same exists or may hereafter be amended unless they violated their duty of loyalty to the Corporation or its stockholders, acted in bad faith, knowingly or intentionally violated the law, authorized unlawful payments of dividends, unlawful stock purchases or unlawful redemptions, or derived improper personal benefit from their actions as directors. Any amendment, modification or repeal of the foregoing sentence shall not adversely affect any right or protection of a director of the Corporation hereunder in respect of any act or omission occurring prior to the time of such amendment, modification or repeal.

Section 8.2 Indemnification and Advancement of Expenses.

(a) To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, as the same exists or may hereafter be amended, the Corporation shall indemnify and hold harmless each person who is or was made a party or is threatened to be made a party to or is otherwise involved in any threatened, pending or completed action, suit or proceeding, whether civil, criminal, administrative or investigative (a “proceeding”) by reason of the fact that he or she is or was a director or officer of the Corporation or, while a director or officer of the Corporation, is or was serving at the request of the Corporation as a director, officer, employee or agent of another corporation or of a partnership, joint venture, trust, other enterprise or nonprofit entity, including service with respect to an employee benefit plan (an “indemnitee”), whether the basis of such proceeding is alleged action in an official capacity as a director, officer, employee or agent, or in any other capacity while serving as a director, officer, employee or agent, against all liability and loss suffered and expenses (including, without limitation, attorneys’ fees, judgments, fines, ERISA excise taxes and penalties and amounts paid in settlement) reasonably incurred by such indemnitee in connection with such proceeding. The Corporation shall to the fullest extent not prohibited by applicable law pay the expenses (including attorneys’ fees) incurred by an indemnitee in defending or otherwise participating in any proceeding in advance of its final disposition; provided, however, that, to the extent required by applicable law, such payment of expenses in advance of the final disposition of the proceeding shall be made only upon receipt of an undertaking, by or on behalf of the indemnitee, to repay all amounts so advanced if it shall ultimately be determined that the indemnitee is not entitled to be indemnified under this Section 8.2 or otherwise. The rights to indemnification and advancement of expenses conferred by this Section 8.2 shall be contract rights and such rights shall continue as to an indemnitee who has ceased to be a director, officer, employee or

 

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agent and shall inure to the benefit of his or her heirs, executors and administrators. Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this Section 8.2(a), except for proceedings to enforce rights to indemnification and advancement of expenses, the Corporation shall indemnify and advance expenses to an indemnitee in connection with a proceeding (or part thereof) initiated by such indemnitee only if such proceeding (or part thereof) was authorized by the Board.

(b) The rights to indemnification and advancement of expenses conferred on any indemnitee by this Section 8.2 shall not be exclusive of any other rights that any indemnitee may have or hereafter acquire under law, this Amended and Restated Certificate, the Bylaws, an agreement, vote of stockholders or disinterested directors, or otherwise.

(c) Any repeal or amendment of this Section 8.2 by the stockholders of the Corporation or by changes in law, or the adoption of any other provision of this Amended and Restated Certificate inconsistent with this Section 8.2, shall, unless otherwise required by law, be prospective only (except to the extent such amendment or change in law permits the Corporation to provide broader indemnification rights on a retroactive basis than permitted prior thereto), and shall not in any way diminish or adversely affect any right or protection existing at the time of such repeal or amendment or adoption of such inconsistent provision in respect of any proceeding (regardless of when such proceeding is first threatened, commenced or completed) arising out of, or related to, any act or omission occurring prior to such repeal or amendment or adoption of such inconsistent provision.

(d) This Section 8.2 shall not limit the right of the Corporation, to the extent and in the manner authorized or permitted by law, to indemnify and to advance expenses to persons other than indemnitees.

ARTICLE IX

BUSINESS COMBINATION REQUIREMENTS; EXISTENCE

Section 9.1 General.

(a) The provisions of this Article IX shall apply during the period commencing upon the effectiveness of this Amended and Restated Certificate and terminating upon the consummation of the Corporation’s initial Business Combination and no amendment to this Article IX shall be effective prior to the consummation of the initial Business Combination unless approved by the affirmative vote of the holders of at least sixty-five percent (65%) of all then outstanding shares of the Common Stock.

(b) Immediately after the Offering, a certain amount of the net offering proceeds received by the Corporation in the Offering (including the proceeds of any exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option) and certain other amounts specified in the Corporation’s registration statement on Form S-1, as initially filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) on December 1, 2020, as amended (the “Registration Statement”), shall be deposited in a trust account (the “Trust Account”), established for the benefit of the Public Stockholders (as defined below) pursuant to a trust agreement described in the Registration Statement. Except for the withdrawal of interest income (if any) to pay the Corporation’s taxes, if any, none of the funds held in the Trust Account (including the interest earned on the funds held in the Trust Account) will be released from the Trust Account until the earliest to occur of (i) the completion of the initial Business Combination, (ii) the redemption of 100% of the Offering Shares (as defined below) if the Corporation does not complete its initial Business Combination within 24 months from the closing of the Offering, subject to applicable law, and (iii) the redemption of Offering Shares in connection with a stockholder vote to approve an amendment to this Amended and Restated Certificate that (A) to modify the substance or timing of the Corporation’s obligation to allow redemption in connection with the initial Business Combination or certain amendments to the Amended and Restated Certificate or to redeem 100% of the Offering Shares if the Corporation has not completed an initial Business Combination within 24 months from the closing of the Offering or (B) with respect to any other provisions relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial Business Combination activity (as described in Section 9.7). Holders of shares of the Common Stock included as part of the units sold in the Offering (the “Offering Shares”) (whether such Offering Shares were purchased in the Offering or in the secondary market following the Offering and whether or not such holders are Golden Falcon Sponsor Group, LLC (the “Sponsor”) or the officers or directors of the Corporation, or any affiliates of any of the foregoing) are referred to herein as “Public Stockholders.”

 

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Section 9.2 Redemption Rights.

(a) Prior to the consummation of the initial Business Combination, the Corporation shall provide all holders of Offering Shares with the opportunity to have their Offering Shares redeemed upon the consummation of the initial Business Combination pursuant to, and subject to the limitations of, Sections 9.2(b) and 9.2(c) (such rights of such holders to have their Offering Shares redeemed pursuant to such Sections, the “Redemption Rights”) hereof for cash equal to the applicable redemption price per share determined in accordance with Section 9.2(b) hereof (the “Redemption Price”); provided, however, that the Corporation shall not redeem Offering Shares to the extent that such redemption would result in the Corporation’s failure to have net tangible assets (as determined in accordance with Rule 3a51-1(g)(1) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”) (or any successor rule)) of at least $5,000,001 either immediately prior to or upon consummation of the initial Business Combination or any greater net tangible asset or cash requirement which may be contained in the agreement relating to such initial Business Combination (such limitation hereinafter called the “Redemption Limitation”). Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in this Amended and Restated Certificate, there shall be no Redemption Rights or liquidating distributions with respect to any warrant issued pursuant to the Offering.

(b) If the Corporation offers to redeem the Offering Shares other than in conjunction with a stockholder vote on an initial Business Combination with a proxy solicitation pursuant to Regulation 14A under the Exchange Act (or any successor rules or regulations) and filing proxy materials with the SEC, the Corporation shall offer to redeem the Offering Shares upon the consummation of the initial Business Combination, subject to lawfully available funds therefor, in accordance with the provisions of Section 9.2(a) hereof, pursuant to a tender offer in accordance with Rule 13e-4 and Regulation 14E under the Exchange Act (or any successor rule or regulation) (such rules and regulations hereinafter called the “Tender Offer Rules”) which it shall commence prior to the consummation of the initial Business Combination and shall file tender offer documents with the SEC prior to the consummation of the initial Business Combination that contain substantially the same financial and other information about the initial Business Combination and the Redemption Rights as is required under Regulation 14A under the Exchange Act (or any successor rule or regulation) (such rules and regulations hereinafter called the “Proxy Solicitation Rules”), even if such information is not required under the Tender Offer Rules; provided, however, that if a stockholder vote is required by law to approve the proposed initial Business Combination, or the Corporation decides to submit the proposed initial Business Combination to the stockholders for their approval for business or other legal reasons, the Corporation shall offer to redeem the Offering Shares, subject to lawfully available funds therefor, in accordance with the provisions of Section 9.2(a) hereof, in conjunction with a proxy solicitation pursuant to the Proxy Solicitation Rules (and not the Tender Offer Rules) at a price per share equal to the Redemption Price calculated in accordance with the following provisions of this Section 9.2(b). In the event that the Corporation offers to redeem the Offering Shares pursuant to a tender offer in accordance with the Tender Offer Rules, the Redemption Price per share of the Common Stock payable to holders of the Offering Shares tendering their Offering Shares pursuant to such tender offer shall be equal to the quotient obtained by dividing: (i) the aggregate amount then on deposit in the Trust Account calculated as of two business days prior to the completion of the initial Business Combination, including interest earned on the funds held in the Trust Account and not previously released to the Corporation to pay its taxes by (ii) the number of the then outstanding Offering Shares. If the Corporation offers to redeem the Offering Shares in conjunction with a stockholder vote on the proposed initial Business Combination pursuant to a proxy solicitation, the Redemption Price per share of the Common Stock payable to holders of the Offering Shares exercising their Redemption Rights shall be equal to the quotient obtained by dividing (a) the aggregate amount then on deposit in the Trust Account calculated as of two business days prior to the completion of the initial Business Combination, including interest earned on the funds held in the Trust Account and not previously released to the Corporation to pay its taxes by (b) the number of the then outstanding Offering Shares.

 

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(c) If the Corporation offers to redeem the Offering Shares in conjunction with a stockholder vote on an initial Business Combination pursuant to a proxy solicitation, a Public Stockholder, together with any affiliate of such stockholder or any other person with whom such stockholder is acting in concert or as a “group” (as defined under Section 13(d)(3) of the Exchange Act), shall be restricted from seeking Redemption Rights with respect to more than an aggregate of 15% of the Offering Shares without the prior consent of the Corporation.

(d) In the event that the Corporation has not completed an initial Business Combination within 24 months from the closing of the Offering, the Corporation shall (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up, (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but no more than ten business days thereafter subject to lawfully available funds therefor, redeem the Offering Shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the Trust Account, including interest earned on the funds held in the Trust Account not previously released to the Corporation to pay its taxes, if any (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of the then outstanding Offering Shares, which redemption will completely extinguish rights of the Public Stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidating distributions, if any), subject to applicable law, and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of the remaining stockholders and the Board in accordance with applicable law, dissolve and liquidate, subject in the case of clauses (ii) and (iii) to the Corporation’s obligations under the DGCL to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law.

(e) If the Corporation offers to redeem the Offering Shares in conjunction with a stockholder vote on an initial Business Combination, the Corporation shall consummate the proposed initial Business Combination only if (i) such initial Business Combination is approved by the affirmative vote of the holders of a majority of the shares of the Common Stock that are voted at a stockholder meeting held to consider such initial Business Combination and (ii) the Redemption Limitation is not exceeded.

(f) If the Corporation conducts a tender offer pursuant to Section 9.2(b), the Corporation shall consummate the proposed initial Business Combination only if the Redemption Limitation is not exceeded.

Section 9.3 Distributions from the Trust Account.

(a) A Public Stockholder shall be entitled to receive funds from the Trust Account only as provided in Sections 9.2(a), 9.2(b), 9.2(d) or 9.7 hereof. In no other circumstances shall a Public Stockholder have any right or interest of any kind in or to distributions from the Trust Account, and no stockholder other than a Public Stockholder shall have any interest in or to the Trust Account.

(b) Each Public Stockholder that does not exercise its Redemption Rights shall retain its interest in the Corporation and shall be deemed to have given its consent to the release of the remaining funds in the Trust Account to the Corporation, and following payment to any Public Stockholders exercising their Redemption Rights, the remaining funds in the Trust Account shall be released to the Corporation.

(c) The exercise by a Public Stockholder of the Redemption Rights shall be conditioned on such Public Stockholder following the specific procedures for redemptions set forth by the Corporation in any applicable tender offer or proxy materials sent to the Public Stockholders relating to the proposed initial Business Combination, including the requirement that any Public Stockholder holder that holds Offering Shares beneficially through a nominee must identify itself to the Corporation in connection with any redemption election in order to validly redeem such Offering Shares. Holders of Offering Shares seeking to exercise their Redemption Rights may be required to either tender their certificates (if any) to the Corporation’s transfer agent or to deliver their shares to the transfer agent electronically using The Depository Trust Company’s DWAC (Deposit/Withdrawal At Custodian) System, at the holder’s option, in each case up to two business days prior to the originally scheduled vote on the proposal to approve a Business Combination. Payment of the amounts necessary to satisfy the Redemption Rights properly exercised shall be made as promptly as practical after the consummation of the initial Business Combination.

 

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Section 9.4 Share Issuances. Prior to or in connection with the consummation of the Corporation’s initial Business Combination, the Corporation shall not issue any additional securities of the Corporation that would entitle the holders thereof to (i) receive funds from the Trust Account or (ii) vote on the Corporation’s initial Business Combination or any other proposal presented to the stockholders prior to or in connection with the completion of an initial Business Combination.

Section 9.5 Transactions with Affiliates. In the event the Corporation seeks to complete its initial Business Combination with a business combination target that is affiliated with the Sponsor, or the executive officers or directors of the Corporation, the Corporation, or a committee of independent directors of the Corporation, shall obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm or another independent entity that commonly renders valuation opinions that such initial Business Combination is fair to the Corporation from a financial point of view.

Section 9.6 No Transactions with Other Blank Check Companies. The Corporation shall not enter into an initial Business Combination with another blank check company or a similar company with nominal operations.

Section 9.7 Additional Redemption Rights. If, in accordance with Section 9.1(a), any amendment is made to Section 9.2(d) that would affect the substance or timing of the Corporation’s obligation to allow redemption in connection with the Corporation’s initial Business Combination or amendments to this Amended and Restated Certificate prior thereto or to redeem 100% of the Offering Shares if the Corporation does not complete an initial Business Combination within 24 months from the closing of the Offering or with respect to any other provision relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial Business Combination activity, the Public Stockholders shall be provided with the opportunity to redeem their Offering Shares upon approval of any such amendment, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the Trust Account, including interest earned on the funds held in the Trust Account and not previously released to the Corporation to pay its taxes, divided by the number of the then outstanding Offering Shares; provided, however, that any such amendment will be voided, and this Article IX will remain unchanged, if any stockholders who wish to redeem are unable to redeem due to the Redemption Limitation.

Section 9.8 Minimum Value of Target. So long as the Corporation is listed on a national securities exchange, the Corporation’s initial Business Combination must occur with one or more target businesses that together have an aggregate fair market value of at least 80% of the net assets held in the Trust Account (excluding the amount of deferred underwriting discounts held in trust and taxes payable on the interest earned on the Trust Account) at the time of the agreement to enter into the initial Business Combination.

ARTICLE X

CORPORATE OPPORTUNITY

To the extent allowed by law, the doctrine of corporate opportunity, or any other analogous doctrine, shall not apply with respect to the Corporation or any of its officers or directors, or any of their respective affiliates, in circumstances where the application of any such doctrine would conflict with any fiduciary duties or contractual obligations they may have as of the date of this Amended and Restated Certificate or in the future, and the Corporation renounces any expectancy that any of the directors or officers of the Corporation will offer any such corporate opportunity of which he or she may become aware to the Corporation, except, the doctrine of corporate opportunity shall apply with respect to any of the directors or officers of the Corporation only with respect to a corporate opportunity that was offered to such person solely in his or her capacity as a director or officer of the Corporation and (i) such opportunity is one the Corporation is legally and contractually permitted to undertake and would otherwise be reasonable for the Corporation to pursue and (ii) the director or officer is permitted to refer that opportunity to the Corporation without violating any legal obligation.

ARTICLE XI

AMENDMENT OF AMENDED AND RESTATED CERTIFICATE OF INCORPORATION

The Corporation reserves the right at any time and from time to time to amend, alter, change or repeal any provision contained in this Amended and Restated Certificate (including any Preferred Stock Designation), and other provisions authorized by the laws of the State of Delaware at the time in force that may be added or inserted,

 

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in the manner now or hereafter prescribed by this Amended and Restated Certificate and the DGCL; and, except as set forth in Article VIII, all rights, preferences and privileges of whatever nature herein conferred upon stockholders, directors or any other persons by and pursuant to this Amended and Restated Certificate in its present form or as hereafter amended are granted subject to the right reserved in this Article XI; provided, however, that Article IX of this Amended and Restated Certificate may be amended only as provided therein.

ARTICLE XII

EXCLUSIVE FORUM FOR CERTAIN LAWSUITS

Section 12.1 Forum. Unless the Corporation consents in writing to the selection of an alternative forum, the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware shall be the sole and exclusive forum for any stockholder (including a beneficial owner) to bring (i) any derivative action or proceeding brought on behalf of the Corporation, (ii) any action asserting a claim of breach of a fiduciary duty owed by any director, officer or other employee of the Corporation to the Corporation or the Corporation’s stockholders, (iii) any action asserting a claim against the Corporation, its directors, officers or employees arising pursuant to any provision of the DGCL or this Amended and Restated Certificate or the Bylaws, or (iv) any action asserting a claim against the Corporation, its directors, officers or employees governed by the internal affairs doctrine, except for, as to each of (i) through (iv) above, any claim as to which the Court of Chancery determines that there is an indispensable party not subject to the jurisdiction of the Court of Chancery (and the indispensable party does not consent to the personal jurisdiction of the Court of Chancery within ten days following such determination), which is vested in the exclusive jurisdiction of a court or forum other than the Court of Chancery, or for which the Court of Chancery does not have subject matter jurisdiction. This exclusive forum provision will not apply to suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Exchange Act, the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), or any other claim for which the federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction. Section 27 of the Exchange Act creates exclusive federal jurisdiction over all suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Exchange Act or the rules and regulations thereunder and Section 22 of the Securities Act creates concurrent jurisdiction for federal and state courts over all suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Securities Act or the rules and regulations thereunder. As a result, the exclusive forum provision will not apply to suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Exchange Act, the Securities Act, or any other claim for which the federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction.

Section 12.2 Consent to Jurisdiction. If any action the subject matter of which is within the scope of Section 12.1 is filed in a court other than a court located within the State of Delaware (a “Foreign Action”) in the name of any stockholder, such stockholder shall be deemed to have consented to (i) the personal jurisdiction of the state and federal courts located within the State of Delaware in connection with any action brought in any such court to enforce Section 12.1 (an “FSC Enforcement Action”) and (ii) having service of process made upon such stockholder in any such FSC Enforcement Action by service upon such stockholder’s counsel in the Foreign Action as agent for such stockholder.

Section 12.3 Severability. If any provision or provisions of this Article XII shall be held to be invalid, illegal or unenforceable as applied to any person or entity or circumstance for any reason whatsoever, then, to the fullest extent permitted by law, the validity, legality and enforceability of such provisions in any other circumstance and of the remaining provisions of this Article XII (including, without limitation, each portion of any sentence of this Article XII containing any such provision held to be invalid, illegal or unenforceable that is not itself held to be invalid, illegal or unenforceable) and the application of such provision to other persons or entities and circumstances shall not in any way be affected or impaired thereby. Any person or entity purchasing or otherwise acquiring any interest in shares of capital stock of the Corporation shall be deemed to have notice of and consented to the provisions of this Article XII.

[Signature Page Follows]

 

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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp. has caused this Amended and Restated Certificate to be duly executed and acknowledged in its name and on its behalf by an authorized officer as of the date first set forth above.

 

GOLDEN FALCON ACQUISITION CORP.
By:  

     

Name:  Makram Azar
Title:    Chief Executive Officer

[Signature Page to Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation]

Exhibit 3.3

BY LAWS

OF

GOLDEN FALCON ACQUISITION CORP.

(THE “CORPORATION”)

ARTICLE I

OFFICES

Section 1.1.    Registered Office. The registered office of the Corporation within the State of Delaware shall be located at either (a) the principal place of business of the Corporation in the State of Delaware or (b) the office of the corporation or individual acting as the Corporation’s registered agent in Delaware.

Section 1.2.    Additional Offices. The Corporation may, in addition to its registered office in the State of Delaware, have such other offices and places of business, both within and outside the State of Delaware, as the Board of Directors of the Corporation (the “Board”) may from time to time determine or as the business and affairs of the Corporation may require.

ARTICLE II

STOCKHOLDERS MEETINGS

Section 2.1.    Annual Meetings. The annual meeting of stockholders shall be held at such place, either within or without the State of Delaware, and time and on such date as shall be determined by the Board and stated in the notice of the meeting, provided that the Board may in its sole discretion determine that the meeting shall not be held at any place, but may instead be held solely by means of remote communication pursuant to Section 9.5(a). At each annual meeting, the stockholders shall elect those directors of the Corporation to fill any term of a directorship that expires on the date of such annual meeting and may transact any other business as may properly be brought before the meeting.

Section 2.2.    Special Meetings. Subject to the rights of the holders of any outstanding series of the Preferred Stock, special meetings of stockholders, for any purpose or purposes, may be called only by the Chairman of the Board, Chief Executive Officer, or the Board pursuant to a resolution adopted by a majority of the Board, and may not be called by any other person. Special meetings of stockholders shall be held at such place, either within or without the State of Delaware, and time and on such date as shall be determined by the Board and stated in the Corporation’s notice of the meeting, provided that the Board may in its sole discretion determine that the meeting shall not be held at any place, but may instead be held solely by means of remote communication pursuant to Section 9.5(a).

Section 2.3.    Notices. Written notice of each stockholders meeting stating the place, if any, date, and time of the meeting, and the means of remote communication, if any, by which stockholders and proxy holders may be deemed to be present in person and vote at such meeting, and the record date for determining the stockholders entitled to vote at the meeting, if such date is different from the record date for determining stockholders entitled to notice of the meeting, shall be given in the manner permitted by Section 9.3 to each stockholder entitled to vote thereat

 

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as of the record date for determining the stockholders entitled to notice of the meeting, by the Corporation not less than 10 nor more than 60 days before the date of the meeting unless otherwise required by the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware (the “DGCL”). If said notice is for a stockholders meeting other than an annual meeting, it shall in addition state the purpose or purposes for which the meeting is called, and the business transacted at such meeting shall be limited to the matters so stated in the Corporation’s notice of meeting (or any supplement thereto). Any meeting of stockholders as to which notice has been given may be postponed, and any meeting of stockholders as to which notice has been given may be cancelled, by the Board upon public announcement (as defined in Section 2.7(c)) given before the date previously scheduled for such meeting.

Section 2.4.    Quorum. Except as otherwise provided by applicable law, the Corporation’s Certificate of Incorporation, as the same may be amended or restated from time to time (the “Certificate of Incorporation”) or these By Laws, the presence, in person or by proxy, at a stockholders meeting of the holders of shares of outstanding capital stock of the Corporation representing a majority of the voting power of all outstanding shares of capital stock of the Corporation entitled to vote at such meeting shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business at such meeting, except that when specified business is to be voted on by a class or series of stock voting as a class, the holders of shares representing a majority of the voting power of the outstanding shares of such class or series shall constitute a quorum of such class or series for the transaction of such business. If a quorum shall not be present or represented by proxy at any meeting of the stockholders of the Corporation, the chairman of the meeting may adjourn the meeting from time to time in the manner provided in Section 2.6 until a quorum shall attend. The stockholders present at a duly convened meeting may continue to transact business until adjournment, notwithstanding the withdrawal of enough stockholders to leave less than a quorum. Shares of its own stock belonging to the Corporation or to another corporation, if a majority of the voting power of the shares entitled to vote in the election of directors of such other corporation is held, directly or indirectly, by the Corporation, shall neither be entitled to vote nor be counted for quorum purposes; provided, however, that the foregoing shall not limit the right of the Corporation or any such other corporation to vote shares held by it in a fiduciary capacity.

Section 2.5.    Voting of Shares.

(a)    Voting Lists. The officer who has charge of the stock ledger of the Corporation shall prepare and make, at least 10 days before every meeting of stockholders, a complete list of the stockholders of record entitled to vote at such meeting; provided, however, if the record date for determining the stockholders entitled to vote is less than 10 days before the meeting date, the list shall reflect the stockholders entitled to vote as of the tenth day before the meeting date, arranged in alphabetical order and showing the address and the number of shares registered in the name of each stockholder. Nothing contained in this Section 2.5(a) shall require the Corporation to include electronic mail addresses or other electronic contact information on such list. Such list shall be open to the examination of any stockholder, for any purpose germane to the meeting, during ordinary business hours for a period of at least 10 days prior to the meeting: (i) on a reasonably accessible electronic network, provided that the information required to gain access to such list is provided with the notice of the meeting, or (ii) during ordinary business hours, at the principal place of business of the Corporation. In the event that the Corporation

 

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determines to make the list available on an electronic network, the Corporation may take reasonable steps to ensure that such information is available only to stockholders of the Corporation. If the meeting is to be held at a place, then the list shall be produced and kept at the time and place of the meeting during the whole time thereof, and may be examined by any stockholder who is present. If a meeting of stockholders is to be held solely by means of remote communication as permitted by Section 9.5(a), the list shall be open to the examination of any stockholder during the whole time of the meeting on a reasonably accessible electronic network, and the information required to access such list shall be provided with the notice of meeting. The stock ledger shall be the only evidence as to who are the stockholders entitled to examine the list required by this Section 2.5(a) or to vote in person or by proxy at any meeting of stockholders.

(b)    Manner of Voting. At any stockholders meeting, every stockholder entitled to vote may vote in person or by proxy. If authorized by the Board, the voting by stockholders or proxy holders at any meeting conducted by remote communication may be effected by a ballot submitted by electronic transmission (as defined in Section 9.3), provided that any such electronic transmission must either set forth or be submitted with information from which the Corporation can determine that the electronic transmission was authorized by the stockholder or proxy holder. The Board, in its discretion, or the chairman of the meeting of stockholders, in such person’s discretion, may require that any votes cast at such meeting shall be cast by written ballot.

(c)    Proxies. Each stockholder entitled to vote at a meeting of stockholders or to express consent or dissent to corporate action in writing without a meeting may authorize another person or persons to act for such stockholder by proxy, but no such proxy shall be voted or acted upon after three years from its date, unless the proxy provides for a longer period. Without limiting the manner in which a stockholder may authorize another person or persons to act for such stockholder as proxy, either of the following shall constitute a valid means by which a stockholder may grant such authority.

(i)    A stockholder may execute a writing authorizing another person or persons to act for such stockholder as proxy. Execution may be accomplished by the stockholder or such stockholder’s authorized officer, director, employee or agent signing such writing or causing such person’s signature to be affixed to such writing by any reasonable means, including, but not limited to, by facsimile signature.

(ii)    A stockholder may authorize another person or persons to act for such stockholder as proxy by transmitting or authorizing the transmission of an electronic transmission to the person who will be the holder of the proxy or to a proxy solicitation firm, proxy support service organization or like agent duly authorized by the person who will be the holder of the proxy to receive such transmission, provided that any such electronic transmission must either set forth or be submitted with information from which it can be determined that the electronic transmission was authorized by the stockholder.

Any copy, facsimile telecommunication or other reliable reproduction of the writing or transmission authorizing another person or persons to act as proxy for a stockholder may be substituted or used in lieu of the original writing or transmission for any and all purposes for

 

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which the original writing or transmission could be used; provided that such copy, facsimile telecommunication or other reproduction shall be a complete reproduction of the entire original writing or transmission.

(d)    Required Vote. Subject to the rights of the holders of one or more series of preferred stock of the Corporation (“Preferred Stock”), voting separately by class or series, to elect directors pursuant to the terms of one or more series of Preferred Stock, at all meetings of stockholders at which a quorum is present, the election of directors shall be determined by a plurality of the votes cast by the stockholders present in person or represented by proxy at the meeting and entitled to vote thereon. All other matters presented to the stockholders at a meeting at which a quorum is present shall be determined by the vote of a majority of the votes cast by the stockholders present in person or represented by proxy at the meeting and entitled to vote thereon, unless the matter is one upon which, by applicable law, the Certificate of Incorporation, these By Laws or applicable stock exchange rules, a different vote is required, in which case such provision shall govern and control the decision of such matter.

(e)    Inspectors of Election. The Board may, and shall if required by law, in advance of any meeting of stockholders, appoint one or more persons as inspectors of election, who may be employees of the Corporation or otherwise serve the Corporation in other capacities, to act at such meeting of stockholders or any adjournment thereof and to make a written report thereof. The Board may designate one or more persons as alternate inspectors to replace any inspector who fails to act. If no inspectors of election or alternates are appointed by the Board, the chairman of the meeting shall appoint one or more inspectors to act at the meeting. Each inspector, before discharging his or her duties, shall take and sign an oath faithfully to execute the duties of inspector with strict impartiality and according to the best of his or her ability. The inspectors shall ascertain and report the number of outstanding shares and the voting power of each; determine the number of shares present in person or represented by proxy at the meeting and the validity of proxies and ballots; count all votes and ballots and report the results; determine and retain for a reasonable period a record of the disposition of any challenges made to any determination by the inspectors; and certify their determination of the number of shares represented at the meeting and their count of all votes and ballots. No person who is a candidate for an office at an election may serve as an inspector at such election. Each report of an inspector shall be in writing and signed by the inspector or by a majority of them if there is more than one inspector acting at such meeting. If there is more than one inspector, the report of a majority shall be the report of the inspectors.

Section 2.6.    Adjournments. Any meeting of stockholders, annual or special, may be adjourned, from time to time, whether or not there is a quorum, to reconvene at the same or some other place. Notice need not be given of any such adjourned meeting if the date, time, and place, if any, thereof, and the means of remote communication, if any, by which stockholders and proxy holders may be deemed to be present in person and vote at such adjourned meeting are announced at the meeting at which the adjournment is taken. At the adjourned meeting the stockholders, or the holders of any class or series of stock entitled to vote separately as a class, as the case may be, may transact any business that might have been transacted at the original meeting. If the adjournment is for more than 30 days, notice of the adjourned meeting shall be given to each stockholder of record entitled to vote at the meeting. If after the adjournment a new record date for stockholders entitled to vote is fixed for the adjourned meeting, the Board

 

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shall fix a new record date for notice of such adjourned meeting in accordance with Section 9.2, and shall give notice of the adjourned meeting to each stockholder of record entitled to vote at such adjourned meeting as of the record date fixed for notice of such adjourned meeting.

Section 2.7.    Advance Notice for Business.

(a)    Annual Meetings of Stockholders. No business (other than nominations of individual(s) for election to the Board) may be transacted at an annual meeting of stockholders, other than business that is either (i) specified in the Corporation’s notice of meeting (or any supplement thereto), (ii) otherwise properly brought before the annual meeting by or at the direction of the Board or (iii) otherwise properly brought before the annual meeting by any stockholder of the Corporation (x) who is a stockholder of record on the date of the giving of the notice provided for in this Section 2.7(a) and on the record date for the determination of stockholders entitled to vote at such annual meeting and (y) who complies with the notice procedures set forth in this Section 2.7(a). Notwithstanding anything in this Section 2.7(a) to the contrary, only persons nominated for election as a director to fill any term of a directorship that expires on the date of the annual meeting pursuant to Section 3.2 will be considered for election at such meeting.

(i)    In addition to any other applicable requirements, for business (other than nominations) to be properly brought before an annual meeting by a stockholder, such stockholder must have given timely notice thereof in proper written form to the Secretary of the Corporation and such business must otherwise be a proper matter for stockholder action. Subject to Section 2.7(a)(iii), a stockholder’s notice to the Secretary with respect to such business, to be timely, must be delivered to the Secretary at the principal executive offices of the Corporation not later than the close of business on the 90th day nor earlier than the close of business on the 120th day before the anniversary date of the immediately preceding annual meeting of stockholders; provided, however, that in the event that the annual meeting is more than 30 days before or more than 70 days after such anniversary date, notice by the stockholder to be timely must be so delivered not earlier than the close of business on the 120th day before the meeting and not later than the later of (x) the close of business on the 90th day before the meeting or (y) the close of business on the 10th day following the day on which public announcement of the date of the annual meeting is first made by the Corporation. The public announcement of an adjournment or postponement of an annual meeting shall not commence a new time period (or extend any time period) for the giving of a stockholder’s notice as described in this Section 2.7(a).

(ii)    To be in proper written form, a stockholder’s notice to the Secretary with respect to any business (other than nominations) must set forth as to each such matter such stockholder proposes to bring before the annual meeting (A) a brief description of the business desired to be brought before the annual meeting, the text of the proposal or business (including the text of any resolutions proposed for consideration and in the event such business includes a proposal to amend these By Laws, the language of the proposed amendment) and the reasons for conducting such business at the annual meeting, (B) the name and record address of such stockholder and the name and address of the beneficial owner, if any, on whose behalf the proposal is made, (C) the class or series and number of shares of capital stock of the Corporation that are owned beneficially and of record by such stockholder and by the beneficial owner, if

 

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any, on whose behalf the proposal is made, (D) a description of all arrangements or understandings between such stockholder and the beneficial owner, if any, on whose behalf the proposal is made and any other person or persons (including their names) in connection with the proposal of such business by such stockholder, (E) any material interest of such stockholder and the beneficial owner, if any, on whose behalf the proposal is made in such business and (F) a representation that such stockholder (or a qualified representative of such stockholder) intends to appear in person or by proxy at the annual meeting to bring such business before the meeting.

(iii)    The foregoing notice requirements of this Section 2.7(a) shall be deemed satisfied by a stockholder as to any proposal (other than nominations) if the stockholder has notified the Corporation of such stockholder’s intention to present such proposal at an annual meeting in compliance with Rule 14a-8 (or any successor thereof) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), and such stockholder has complied with the requirements of such Rule for inclusion of such proposal in a proxy statement prepared by the Corporation to solicit proxies for such annual meeting. No business shall be conducted at the annual meeting of stockholders except business brought before the annual meeting in accordance with the procedures set forth in this Section 2.7(a), provided, however, that once business has been properly brought before the annual meeting in accordance with such procedures, nothing in this Section 2.7(a) shall be deemed to preclude discussion by any stockholder of any such business. If the Board or the chairman of the annual meeting determines that any stockholder proposal was not made in accordance with the provisions of this Section 2.7(a) or that the information provided in a stockholder’s notice does not satisfy the information requirements of this Section 2.7(a), such proposal shall not be presented for action at the annual meeting. Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this Section 2.7(a), if the stockholder (or a qualified representative of the stockholder) does not appear at the annual meeting of stockholders of the Corporation to present the proposed business, such proposed business shall not be transacted, notwithstanding that proxies in respect of such matter may have been received by the Corporation.

(iv)    In addition to the provisions of this Section 2.7(a), a stockholder shall also comply with all applicable requirements of the Exchange Act and the rules and regulations thereunder with respect to the matters set forth herein. Nothing in this Section 2.7(a) shall be deemed to affect any rights of stockholders to request inclusion of proposals in the Corporation’s proxy statement pursuant to Rule 14a-8 under the Exchange Act.

(b)    Special Meetings of Stockholders. Only such business shall be conducted at a special meeting of stockholders as shall have been brought before the meeting pursuant to the Corporation’s notice of meeting. Nominations of persons for election to the Board may be made at a special meeting of stockholders at which directors are to be elected pursuant to the Corporation’s notice of meeting only pursuant to Section 3.2.

(c)    Public Announcement. For purposes of these By Laws, “public announcement” shall mean disclosure in a press release reported by the Dow Jones News Service, Associated Press or comparable national news service or in a document publicly filed by the Corporation with the Securities and Exchange Commission pursuant to Sections 13, 14 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act (or any successor thereto).

 

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Section 2.8.    Conduct of Meetings. The chairman of each annual and special meeting of stockholders shall be the Chairman of the Board or, in the absence (or inability or refusal to act) of the Chairman of the Board, the Chief Executive Officer (if he or she shall be a director) or, in the absence (or inability or refusal to act of the Chief Executive Officer or if the Chief Executive Officer is not a director, the President (if he or she shall be a director) or, in the absence (or inability or refusal to act) of the President or if the President is not a director, such other person as shall be appointed by the Board. The Board may adopt such rules and regulations for the conduct of the meeting of stockholders as it shall deem appropriate. Except to the extent inconsistent with these By Laws or such rules and regulations as adopted by the Board, the chairman of any meeting of stockholders shall have the right and authority to convene and to adjourn the meeting, to prescribe such rules, regulations and procedures and to do all such acts as, in the judgment of such chairman, are appropriate for the proper conduct of the meeting. Such rules, regulations or procedures, whether adopted by the Board or prescribed by the chairman of the meeting, may include, without limitation, the following: (a) the establishment of an agenda or order of business for the meeting; (b) rules and procedures for maintaining order at the meeting and the safety of those present; (c) limitations on attendance at or participation in the meeting to stockholders of record of the Corporation, their duly authorized and constituted proxies or such other persons as the chairman of the meeting shall determine; (d) restrictions on entry to the meeting after the time fixed for the commencement thereof; and (e) limitations on the time allotted to questions or comments by participants. Unless and to the extent determined by the Board or the chairman of the meeting, meetings of stockholders shall not be required to be held in accordance with the rules of parliamentary procedure. The secretary of each annual and special meeting of stockholders shall be the Secretary or, in the absence (or inability or refusal to act) of the Secretary, an Assistant Secretary so appointed to act by the chairman of the meeting. In the absence (or inability or refusal to act) of the Secretary and all Assistant Secretaries, the chairman of the meeting may appoint any person to act as secretary of the meeting.

Section 2.9.    Consents in Lieu of Meeting. Unless otherwise provided by the Certificate of Incorporation, until the corporation consummates an initial public offering (“Offering”), any action required to be taken at any annual or special meeting of stockholders, or any action which may be taken at any annual or special meeting of such stockholders, may be taken without a meeting, without prior notice and without a vote, if a consent in writing, setting forth the action so taken, shall be signed by the holders of outstanding stock having not less than the minimum number of votes that would be necessary to authorize or take such action at a meeting at which all shares entitled to vote thereon were present and voted, and shall be delivered to the Corporation by delivery to its registered office in the State of Delaware, its principal place of business, or an officer or agent of the Corporation having custody of the book in which proceedings of meetings of stockholders are recorded. Delivery made to the Corporation’s registered office shall be by hand or by certified or registered mail, return receipt requested.

Every written consent shall bear the date of signature of each stockholder who signs the consent, and no written consent shall be effective to take the corporate action referred to therein unless, within 60 days of the earliest dated consent delivered in the manner required by this section and the DGCL to the Corporation, written consents signed by a sufficient number of holders to take action are delivered to the Corporation by delivery to its registered office in Delaware, its principal place of business or an officer or agent of the Corporation having custody of the book

 

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in which proceedings of meetings of stockholders are recorded. Delivery made to the Corporation’s registered office shall be by hand or by certified or registered mail, return receipt requested.

ARTICLE III

DIRECTORS

Section 3.1.    Powers. The business and affairs of the Corporation shall be managed by or under the direction of the Board, which may exercise all such powers of the Corporation and do all such lawful acts and things as are not by statute or by the Certificate of Incorporation or by these By Laws required to be exercised or done by the stockholders. Directors need not be stockholders or residents of the State of Delaware.

Section 3.2.    Advance Notice for Nomination of Directors.

(a)    Only persons who are nominated in accordance with the following procedures shall be eligible for election as directors of the Corporation, except as may be otherwise provided by the terms of one or more series of Preferred Stock with respect to the rights of holders of one or more series of Preferred Stock to elect directors. Nominations of persons for election to the Board at any annual meeting of stockholders, or at any special meeting of stockholders called for the purpose of electing directors as set forth in the Corporation’s notice of such special meeting, may be made (i) by or at the direction of the Board or (ii) by any stockholder of the Corporation (x) who is a stockholder of record on the date of the giving of the notice provided for in this Section 3.2 and on the record date for the determination of stockholders entitled to vote at such meeting and (y) who complies with the notice procedures set forth in this Section 3.2.

(b)    In addition to any other applicable requirements, for a nomination to be made by a stockholder, such stockholder must have given timely notice thereof in proper written form to the Secretary of the Corporation. To be timely, a stockholder’s notice to the Secretary must be delivered to the Secretary at the principal executive offices of the Corporation (i) in the case of an annual meeting, not later than the close of business on the 90th day nor earlier than the close of business on the 120th day before the anniversary date of the immediately preceding annual meeting of stockholders; provided, however, that in the event that the annual meeting is more than 30 days before or more than 70 days after such anniversary date, notice by the stockholder to be timely must be so delivered not earlier than the close of business on the 120th day before the meeting and not later than the later of (x) the close of business on the 90th day before the meeting or (y) the close of business on the 10th day following the day on which public announcement of the date of the annual meeting was first made by the Corporation; and (ii) in the case of a special meeting of stockholders called for the purpose of electing directors, not later than the close of business on the 10th day following the day on which public announcement of the date of the special meeting is first made by the Corporation. In no event shall the public announcement of an adjournment or postponement of an annual meeting or special meeting commence a new time period (or extend any time period) for the giving of a stockholder’s notice as described in this Section 3.2.

 

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(c)    Notwithstanding anything in paragraph (b) to the contrary, in the event that the number of directors to be elected to the Board at an annual meeting is greater than the number of directors whose terms expire on the date of the annual meeting and there is no public announcement by the Corporation naming all of the nominees for the additional directors to be elected or specifying the size of the increased Board before the close of business on the 100th day prior to the anniversary date of the immediately preceding annual meeting of stockholders, a stockholder’s notice required by this Section 3.2 shall also be considered timely, but only with respect to nominees for the additional directorships created by such increase that are to be filled by election at such annual meeting, if it shall be delivered to the Secretary at the principal executive offices of the Corporation not later than the close of business on the 10th day following the date on which such public announcement was first made by the Corporation.

(d)    To be in proper written form, a stockholder’s notice to the Secretary must set forth (i) as to each person whom the stockholder proposes to nominate for election as a director (A) the name, age, business address and residence address of the person, (B) the principal occupation or employment of the person, (C) the class or series and number of shares of capital stock of the Corporation, if any, that are owned beneficially or of record by the person, (D) any other information relating to the person that would be required to be disclosed in a proxy statement or other filings required to be made in connection with solicitations of proxies for election of directors pursuant to Section 14 of the Exchange Act and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder, without regard to the application of the Exchange Act to either the nomination or the Corporation; and (ii) as to the stockholder giving the notice (A) the name and record address of such stockholder as they appear on the Corporation’s books and the name and address of the beneficial owner, if any, on whose behalf the nomination is made, (B) the class or series and number of shares of capital stock of the Corporation that are owned beneficially and of record by such stockholder and the beneficial owner, if any, on whose behalf the nomination is made, (C) a description of all arrangements or understandings relating to the nomination to be made by such stockholder among such stockholder, the beneficial owner, if any, on whose behalf the nomination is made, each proposed nominee and any other person or persons (including their names), (D) a representation that such stockholder (or a qualified representative of such stockholder) intends to appear in person or by proxy at the meeting to nominate the persons named in its notice and (E) any other information relating to such stockholder and the beneficial owner, if any, on whose behalf the nomination is made that would be required to be disclosed in a proxy statement or other filings required to be made in connection with solicitations of proxies for election of directors pursuant to Section 14 of the Exchange Act and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder. Such notice must be accompanied by a written consent of each proposed nominee to being named as a nominee and to serve as a director if elected.

(e)    If the Board or the chairman of the meeting of stockholders determines that any nomination was not made in accordance with the provisions of this Section 3.2 or that the information provided in a stockholder’s notice does not satisfy the information requirements of this Section 3.2, then such nomination shall not be considered at the meeting in question. Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this Section 3.2, if the stockholder (or a qualified representative of the stockholder) does not appear at the meeting of stockholders of the Corporation to present the nomination, such nomination shall be disregarded, notwithstanding that proxies in respect of such nomination may have been received by the Corporation.

 

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(f)    In addition to the provisions of this Section 3.2, a stockholder shall also comply with all of the applicable requirements of the Exchange Act and the rules and regulations thereunder with respect to the matters set forth herein. Nothing in this Section 3.2 shall be deemed to affect any rights of the holders of Preferred Stock to elect directors pursuant to the Certificate of Incorporation.

Section 3.3.    Compensation. Unless otherwise restricted by the Certificate of Incorporation or these By Laws, the Board shall have the authority to fix the compensation of directors, including for service on a committee of the Board. The directors may be reimbursed their expenses, if any, of attendance at each meeting of the Board. No such payment shall preclude any director from serving the Corporation in any other capacity and receiving compensation therefor. Members of committees of the Board may be allowed like reimbursement of expenses for service on the committee.

ARTICLE IV

BOARD MEETINGS

Section 4.1.    Annual Meetings. The Board shall meet as soon as practicable after the adjournment of each annual stockholders meeting at the place of the annual stockholders meeting unless the Board shall fix another time and place and give notice thereof in the manner required herein for special meetings of the Board. No notice to the directors shall be necessary to legally convene this meeting, except as provided in this Section 4.1.

Section 4.2.    Regular Meetings. Regularly scheduled, periodic meetings of the Board may be held without notice at such times, dates and places (within or without the State of Delaware) as shall from time to time be determined by the Board.

Section 4.3.    Special Meetings. Special meetings of the Board (a) may be called by the Chairman of the Board or President and (b) shall be called by the Chairman of the Board, President or Secretary on the written request of at least a majority of directors then in office, or the sole director, as the case may be, and shall be held at such time, date and place (within or without the State of Delaware) as may be determined by the person calling the meeting or, if called upon the request of directors or the sole director, as specified in such written request. Notice of each special meeting of the Board shall be given, as provided in Section 9.3, to each director (i) at least 24 hours before the meeting if such notice is oral notice given personally or by telephone or written notice given by hand delivery or by means of a form of electronic transmission and delivery; (ii) at least two days before the meeting if such notice is sent by a nationally recognized overnight delivery service; and (iii) at least five days before the meeting if such notice is sent through the United States mail. If the Secretary shall fail or refuse to give such notice, then the notice may be given by the officer who called the meeting or the directors who requested the meeting. Any and all business that may be transacted at a regular meeting of the Board may be transacted at a special meeting. Except as may be otherwise expressly provided by applicable law, the Certificate of Incorporation, or these By Laws, neither the business to be transacted at, nor the purpose of, any special meeting need be specified in the notice or waiver of notice of such meeting.

 

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Section 4.4.    Quorum; Required Vote. A majority of the Board shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business at any meeting of the Board, and the act of a majority of the directors present at any meeting at which there is a quorum shall be the act of the Board, except as may be otherwise specifically provided by applicable law, the Certificate of Incorporation or these By Laws. If a quorum shall not be present at any meeting, a majority of the directors present may adjourn the meeting from time to time, without notice other than announcement at the meeting, until a quorum is present.

Section 4.5.    Consent In Lieu of Meeting. Unless otherwise restricted by the Certificate of Incorporation or these By Laws, any action required or permitted to be taken at any meeting of the Board or any committee thereof may be taken without a meeting if all members of the Board or committee, as the case may be, consent thereto in writing or by electronic transmission, and the writing or writings or electronic transmission or transmissions (or paper reproductions thereof) are filed with the minutes of proceedings of the Board or committee. Such filing shall be in paper form if the minutes are maintained in paper form and shall be in electronic form if the minutes are maintained in electronic form.

Section 4.6.    Organization. The chairman of each meeting of the Board shall be the Chairman of the Board or, in the absence (or inability or refusal to act) of the Chairman of the Board, the Chief Executive Officer (if he or she shall be a director) or, in the absence (or inability or refusal to act) of the Chief Executive Officer or if the Chief Executive Officer is not a director, the President (if he or she shall be a director) or in the absence (or inability or refusal to act) of the President or if the President is not a director, a chairman elected from the directors present. The Secretary shall act as secretary of all meetings of the Board. In the absence (or inability or refusal to act) of the Secretary, an Assistant Secretary shall perform the duties of the Secretary at such meeting. In the absence (or inability or refusal to act) of the Secretary and all Assistant Secretaries, the chairman of the meeting may appoint any person to act as secretary of the meeting.

ARTICLE V

COMMITTEES OF DIRECTORS

Section 5.1.    Establishment. The Board may by resolution of the Board designate one or more committees, each committee to consist of one or more of the directors of the Corporation. Each committee shall keep regular minutes of its meetings and report the same to the Board when required by the resolution designating such committee. The Board shall have the power at any time to fill vacancies in, to change the membership of, or to dissolve any such committee.

Section 5.2.    Available Powers. Any committee established pursuant to Section 5.1 hereof, to the extent permitted by applicable law and by resolution of the Board, shall have and may exercise all of the powers and authority of the Board in the management of the business and affairs of the Corporation, and may authorize the seal of the Corporation to be affixed to all papers that may require it.

 

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Section 5.3.    Alternate Members. The Board may designate one or more directors as alternate members of any committee, who may replace any absent or disqualified member at any meeting of such committee. In the absence or disqualification of a member of the committee, the member or members thereof present at any meeting and not disqualified from voting, whether or not he, she or they constitute a quorum, may unanimously appoint another member of the Board to act at the meeting in place of any such absent or disqualified member.

Section 5.4.    Procedures. Unless the Board otherwise provides, the time, date, place, if any, and notice of meetings of a committee shall be determined by such committee. At meetings of a committee, a majority of the number of members of the committee (but not including any alternate member, unless such alternate member has replaced any absent or disqualified member at the time of, or in connection with, such meeting) shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business. The act of a majority of the members present at any meeting at which a quorum is present shall be the act of the committee, except as otherwise specifically provided by applicable law, the Certificate of Incorporation, these By Laws or the Board. If a quorum is not present at a meeting of a committee, the members present may adjourn the meeting from time to time, without notice other than an announcement at the meeting, until a quorum is present. Unless the Board otherwise provides and except as provided in these By Laws, each committee designated by the Board may make, alter, amend and repeal rules for the conduct of its business. In the absence of such rules each committee shall conduct its business in the same manner as the Board is authorized to conduct its business pursuant to Article IV of these By Laws.

ARTICLE VI

OFFICERS

Section 6.1.    Officers. The officers of the Corporation elected by the Board may include a Chairman of the Board, a Chief Executive Officer, a President, a Chief Financial Officer, a Treasurer, a Secretary and such other officers (including without limitation, Vice Presidents and Assistant Secretaries) as the Board from time to time may determine. Officers elected by the Board shall each have such powers and duties as generally pertain to their respective offices, subject to the specific provisions of this Article VI. Such officers shall also have such powers and duties as from time to time may be conferred by the Board. The Chief Executive Officer or President may also appoint such other officers (including without limitation one or more Vice Presidents and Controllers) as may be necessary or desirable for the conduct of the business of the Corporation. Such other officers shall have such powers and duties and shall hold their offices for such terms as may be provided in these By Laws or as may be prescribed by the Board or, if such officer has been appointed by the Chief Executive Officer or President, as may be prescribed by the appointing officer.

(a)    Chairman of the Board. The Chairman of the Board shall preside when present at all meetings of the stockholders and the Board. The Chairman of the Board shall have general supervision and control of the acquisition activities of the Corporation subject to the ultimate authority of the Board, and shall be responsible for the execution of the policies of the Board with respect to such matters. In the absence (or inability or refusal to act) of the Chairman of the Board, the Chief Executive Officer (if he or she shall be a director) shall preside when present at all meetings of the stockholders and the Board. The powers and duties of the Chairman of the

 

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Board shall not include supervision or control of the preparation of the financial statements of the Company (other than through participation as a member of the Board). The position of Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer may be held by the same person.

(b)    Chief Executive Officer. The Chief Executive Officer shall be the chief executive officer of the Corporation, shall have general supervision of the affairs of the Corporation and general control of all of its business subject to the ultimate authority of the Board, and shall be responsible for the execution of the policies of the Board with respect to such matters, except to the extent any such powers and duties have been prescribed to the Chairman of the Board pursuant to Section 6.1(a) above. In the absence (or inability or refusal to act) of the Chairman of the Board, the Chief Executive Officer (if he or she shall be a director) shall preside when present at all meetings of the stockholders and the Board. The position of Chief Executive Officer and President may be held by the same person.

(c)    President. The President shall make recommendations to the Chief Executive Officer on all operational matters that would normally be reserved for the final executive responsibility of the Chief Executive Officer. In the absence (or inability or refusal to act) of the Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, the President (if he or she shall be a director) shall preside when present at all meetings of the stockholders and the Board. The President shall also perform such duties and have such powers as shall be designated by the Board. The position of President and Chief Executive Officer may be held by the same person.

(d)    Vice Presidents. In the absence (or inability or refusal to act) of the President, the Vice President (or in the event there be more than one Vice President, the Vice Presidents in the order designated by the Board) shall perform the duties and have the powers of the President. Any one or more of the Vice Presidents may be given an additional designation of rank or function.

(e)    Chief Financial Officer. The Chief Financial Officer shall perform all duties commonly incident to that office (including, without limitation, the care and custody of the funds and securities of the Corporation, which from time to time may come into the Chief Financial Officer’s hands and the deposit of the funds of the Corporation in such banks or trust companies as the Board, the Chief Executive Officer or the President may authorize).

(f)    Treasurer. The Treasurer shall have the custody of the corporate funds and securities, except as otherwise provided by the Board, and shall keep full and accurate accounts of receipts and disbursements in books belonging to the Corporation and shall deposit all moneys and other valuable effects in the name and to the credit of the Corporation in such depositories as may be designated by the Board. The Treasurer shall disburse the funds of the Corporation as may be ordered by the Board, taking proper vouchers for such disbursements, and shall render to the president and the directors, at the regular meetings of the Board, or whenever they may require it, an account of all his or her transactions as Treasurer and of the financial condition of the Corporation.

 

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(g)    Secretary.

(i)    The Secretary shall attend all meetings of the stockholders, the Board and (as required) committees of the Board and shall record the proceedings of such meetings in books to be kept for that purpose. The Secretary shall give, or cause to be given, notice of all meetings of the stockholders and special meetings of the Board and shall perform such other duties as may be prescribed by the Board, the Chairman of the Board, Chief Executive Officer or President. The Secretary shall have custody of the corporate seal of the Corporation and the Secretary, or any Assistant Secretary, shall have authority to affix the same to any instrument requiring it, and when so affixed, it may be attested by his or her signature or by the signature of such Assistant Secretary. The Board may give general authority to any other officer to affix the seal of the Corporation and to attest the affixing thereof by his or her signature.

(ii)    The Secretary shall keep, or cause to be kept, at the principal executive office of the Corporation or at the office of the Corporation’s transfer agent or registrar, if one has been appointed, a stock ledger, or duplicate stock ledger, showing the names of the stockholders and their addresses, the number and classes of shares held by each and, with respect to certificated shares, the number and date of certificates issued for the same and the number and date of certificates cancelled.

(h)    Assistant Secretaries. The Assistant Secretary or, if there be more than one, the Assistant Secretaries in the order determined by the Board shall, in the absence (or inability or refusal to act) of the Secretary, perform the duties and have the powers of the Secretary.

Section 6.2.    Term of Office; Removal; Vacancies. The elected officers of the Corporation shall hold office until their successors are duly elected and qualified or until their earlier death, resignation, retirement, disqualification, or removal from office. Any officer may be removed, with or without cause, at any time by the Board. Any officer appointed by the Chief Executive Officer or President may also be removed, with or without cause, by the Chief Executive Officer or President, as the case may be, unless the Board otherwise provides. Any vacancy occurring in any elected office of the Corporation may be filled by the Board. Any vacancy occurring in any office appointed by the Chief Executive Officer or President may be filled by the Chief Executive Officer, or President, as the case may be, unless the Board then determines that such office shall thereupon be elected by the Board, in which case the Board shall elect such officer.

Section 6.3.    Multiple Officeholders; Stockholder and Director Officers. Any number of offices may be held by the same person unless the Certificate of Incorporation or these By Laws otherwise provide. Officers need not be stockholders or residents of the State of Delaware.

ARTICLE VII

SHARES

Section 7.1.    Certificated and Uncertificated Shares. The shares of the Corporation may be certificated or uncertificated, subject to the sole discretion of the Board and the requirements of the DGCL.

 

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Section 7.2.    Multiple Classes of Stock. If the Corporation shall be authorized to issue more than one class of stock or more than one series of any class, the Corporation shall (a) cause the powers, designations, preferences and relative, participating, optional or other special rights of each class of stock or series thereof and the qualifications, limitations or restrictions of such preferences and/or rights to be set forth in full or summarized on the face or back of any certificate that the Corporation issues to represent shares of such class or series of stock or (b) in the case of uncertificated shares, within a reasonable time after the issuance or transfer of such shares, send to the registered owner thereof a written notice containing the information required to be set forth on certificates as specified in clause (a) above; provided, however, that, except as otherwise provided by applicable law, in lieu of the foregoing requirements, there may be set forth on the face or back of such certificate or, in the case of uncertificated shares, on such written notice a statement that the Corporation will furnish without charge to each stockholder who so requests the powers, designations, preferences and relative, participating, optional or other special rights of each class of stock or series thereof and the qualifications, limitations or restrictions of such preferences or rights.

Section 7.3.    Signatures. Each certificate representing capital stock of the Corporation shall be signed by or in the name of the Corporation by (a) the Chairman of the Board, the Chief Executive Officer, the President or a Vice President and (b) the Chief Financial Officer, Treasurer, an Assistant Treasurer, the Secretary or an Assistant Secretary of the Corporation. Any or all the signatures on the certificate may be a facsimile. In case any officer, transfer agent or registrar who has signed or whose facsimile signature has been placed upon a certificate shall have ceased to be such officer, transfer agent or registrar before such certificate is issued, such certificate may be issued by the Corporation with the same effect as if such person were such officer, transfer agent or registrar on the date of issue.

Section 7.4.    Consideration and Payment for Shares.

(a)    Subject to applicable law and the Certificate of Incorporation, shares of stock may be issued for such consideration, having in the case of shares with par value a value not less than the par value thereof, and to such persons, as determined from time to time by the Board. The consideration may consist of cash, tangible or intangible property or any benefit to the Corporation or any combination thereof.

(b)    Subject to applicable law and the Certificate of Incorporation, shares may not be issued until the full amount of the consideration has been paid, unless upon the face or back of each certificate issued to represent any partly paid shares of capital stock or upon the books and records of the Corporation in the case of partly paid uncertificated shares, there shall have been set forth the total amount of the consideration to be paid therefor and the amount paid thereon up to and including the time said certificate representing certificated shares or said uncertificated shares are issued.

Section 7.5.    Lost, Destroyed or Wrongfully Taken Certificates.

(a)    If an owner of a certificate representing shares claims that such certificate has been lost, destroyed or wrongfully taken, the Corporation shall issue a new certificate representing such shares or such shares in uncertificated form if the owner: (i) requests such a

 

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new certificate before the Corporation has notice that the certificate representing such shares has been acquired by a protected purchaser; (ii) if requested by the Corporation, delivers to the Corporation a bond sufficient to indemnify the Corporation against any claim that may be made against the Corporation on account of the alleged loss, wrongful taking or destruction of such certificate or the issuance of such new certificate or uncertificated shares; and (iii) satisfies other reasonable requirements imposed by the Corporation.

(b)    If a certificate representing shares has been lost, apparently destroyed or wrongfully taken, and the owner fails to notify the Corporation of that fact within a reasonable time after the owner has notice of such loss, apparent destruction or wrongful taking and the Corporation registers a transfer of such shares before receiving notification, the owner shall be precluded from asserting against the Corporation any claim for registering such transfer or a claim to a new certificate representing such shares or such shares in uncertificated form.

Section 7.6.    Transfer of Stock.

(a)    If a certificate representing shares of the Corporation is presented to the Corporation with an endorsement requesting the registration of transfer of such shares or an instruction is presented to the Corporation requesting the registration of transfer of uncertificated shares, the Corporation shall register the transfer as requested if:

(i)    in the case of certificated shares, the certificate representing such shares has been surrendered;

(ii)    (A) with respect to certificated shares, the endorsement is made by the person specified by the certificate as entitled to such shares; (B) with respect to uncertificated shares, an instruction is made by the registered owner of such uncertificated shares; or (C) with respect to certificated shares or uncertificated shares, the endorsement or instruction is made by any other appropriate person or by an agent who has actual authority to act on behalf of the appropriate person;

(iii)    the Corporation has received a guarantee of signature of the person signing such endorsement or instruction or such other reasonable assurance that the endorsement or instruction is genuine and authorized as the Corporation may request;

(iv)    the transfer does not violate any restriction on transfer imposed by the Corporation that is enforceable in accordance with Section 7.8(a); and

(v)    such other conditions for such transfer as shall be provided for under applicable law have been satisfied.

(b)    Whenever any transfer of shares shall be made for collateral security and not absolutely, the Corporation shall so record such fact in the entry of transfer if, when the certificate for such shares is presented to the Corporation for transfer or, if such shares are uncertificated, when the instruction for registration of transfer thereof is presented to the Corporation, both the transferor and transferee request the Corporation to do so.

 

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Section 7.7.    Registered Stockholders. Before due presentment for registration of transfer of a certificate representing shares of the Corporation or of an instruction requesting registration of transfer of uncertificated shares, the Corporation may treat the registered owner as the person exclusively entitled to inspect for any proper purpose the stock ledger and the other books and records of the Corporation, vote such shares, receive dividends or notifications with respect to such shares and otherwise exercise all the rights and powers of the owner of such shares, except that a person who is the beneficial owner of such shares (if held in a voting trust or by a nominee on behalf of such person) may, upon providing documentary evidence of beneficial ownership of such shares and satisfying such other conditions as are provided under applicable law, may also so inspect the books and records of the Corporation.

Section 7.8.    Effect of the Corporation’s Restriction on Transfer.

(a)    A written restriction on the transfer or registration of transfer of shares of the Corporation or on the amount of shares of the Corporation that may be owned by any person or group of persons, if permitted by the DGCL and noted conspicuously on the certificate representing such shares or, in the case of uncertificated shares, contained in a notice sent pursuant to Section 7.2, may be enforced against the holder of such shares or any successor or transferee of the holder including an executor, administrator, trustee, guardian or other fiduciary entrusted with like responsibility for the person or estate of the holder.

(b)     A restriction imposed by the Corporation on the transfer or the registration of shares of the Corporation or on the amount of shares of the Corporation that may be owned by any person or group of persons, even if otherwise lawful, is ineffective against a person without actual knowledge of such restriction unless: (i) the shares are certificated and such restriction is noted conspicuously on the certificate; or (ii) the shares are uncertificated and such restriction was contained in a notice sent pursuant to Section 7.2.

Section 7.9.    Regulations. The Board shall have power and authority to make such additional rules and regulations, subject to any applicable requirement of law, as the Board may deem necessary and appropriate with respect to the issue, transfer or registration of transfer of shares of stock or certificates representing shares. The Board may appoint one or more transfer agents or registrars and may require for the validity thereof that certificates representing shares bear the signature of any transfer agent or registrar so appointed.

ARTICLE VIII

INDEMNIFICATION

Section 8.1.    Right to Indemnification. To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, as the same exists or may hereafter be amended, the Corporation shall indemnify and hold harmless each person who was or is made a party or is threatened to be made a party to or is otherwise involved in any threatened, pending or completed action, suit or proceeding, whether civil, criminal, administrative or investigative (hereinafter a “proceeding”), by reason of the fact that he or she is or was a director or officer of the Corporation or, while a director or officer of the Corporation, is or was serving at the request of the Corporation as a director, officer, employee or agent of another corporation or of a partnership, joint venture, trust, other enterprise

 

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or nonprofit entity, including service with respect to an employee benefit plan (hereinafter an “Indemnitee”), whether the basis of such proceeding is alleged action in an official capacity as a director, officer, employee or agent, or in any other capacity while serving as a director, officer, employee or agent, against all liability and loss suffered and expenses (including, without limitation, attorneys’ fees, judgments, fines, ERISA excise taxes and penalties and amounts paid in settlement) reasonably incurred by such Indemnitee in connection with such proceeding; provided, however, that, except as provided in Section 8.3 with respect to proceedings to enforce rights to indemnification, the Corporation shall indemnify an Indemnitee in connection with a proceeding (or part thereof) initiated by such Indemnitee only if such proceeding (or part thereof) was authorized by the Board.

Section 8.2.    Right to Advancement of Expenses. In addition to the right to indemnification conferred in Section 8.1, an Indemnitee shall also have the right to be paid by the Corporation to the fullest extent not prohibited by applicable law the expenses (including, without limitation, attorneys’ fees) incurred in defending or otherwise participating in any such proceeding in advance of its final disposition (hereinafter an “advancement of expenses”); provided, however, that, if the DGCL requires, an advancement of expenses incurred by an Indemnitee in his or her capacity as a director or officer of the Corporation (and not in any other capacity in which service was or is rendered by such Indemnitee, including, without limitation, service to an employee benefit plan) shall be made only upon the Corporation’s receipt of an undertaking (hereinafter an “undertaking”), by or on behalf of such Indemnitee, to repay all amounts so advanced if it shall ultimately be determined that such Indemnitee is not entitled to be indemnified under this Article VIII or otherwise.

Section 8.3.    Right of Indemnitee to Bring Suit. If a claim under Section 8.1 or Section 8.2 is not paid in full by the Corporation within 60 days after a written claim therefor has been received by the Corporation, except in the case of a claim for an advancement of expenses, in which case the applicable period shall be 20 days, the Indemnitee may at any time thereafter bring suit against the Corporation to recover the unpaid amount of the claim. If successful in whole or in part in any such suit, or in a suit brought by the Corporation to recover an advancement of expenses pursuant to the terms of an undertaking, the Indemnitee shall also be entitled to be paid the expense of prosecuting or defending such suit. In (a) any suit brought by the Indemnitee to enforce a right to indemnification hereunder (but not in a suit brought by an Indemnitee to enforce a right to an advancement of expenses) it shall be a defense that, and (b) in any suit brought by the Corporation to recover an advancement of expenses pursuant to the terms of an undertaking, the Corporation shall be entitled to recover such expenses upon a final judicial decision from which there is no further right to appeal (hereinafter a “final adjudication”) that, the Indemnitee has not met any applicable standard for indemnification set forth in the DGCL. Neither the failure of the Corporation (including its directors who are not parties to such action, a committee of such directors, independent legal counsel, or its stockholders) to have made a determination prior to the commencement of such suit that indemnification of the Indemnitee is proper in the circumstances because the Indemnitee has met the applicable standard of conduct set forth in the DGCL, nor an actual determination by the Corporation (including a determination by its directors who are not parties to such action, a committee of such directors, independent legal counsel, or its stockholders) that the Indemnitee has not met such applicable standard of conduct, shall create a presumption that the Indemnitee has not met the applicable standard of conduct or, in the case of such a suit brought by the Indemnitee, shall be a defense to such suit.

 

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In any suit brought by the Indemnitee to enforce a right to indemnification or to an advancement of expenses hereunder, or by the Corporation to recover an advancement of expenses pursuant to the terms of an undertaking, the burden of proving that the Indemnitee is not entitled to be indemnified, or to such advancement of expenses, under this Article VIII or otherwise shall be on the Corporation.

Section 8.4.    Non-Exclusivity of Rights. The rights provided to any Indemnitee pursuant to this Article VIII shall not be exclusive of any other right, which such Indemnitee may have or hereafter acquire under applicable law, the Certificate of Incorporation, these By Laws, an agreement, a vote of stockholders or disinterested directors, or otherwise.

Section 8.5.    Insurance. The Corporation may maintain insurance, at its expense, to protect itself and/or any director, officer, employee or agent of the Corporation or another corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust or other enterprise against any expense, liability or loss, whether or not the Corporation would have the power to indemnify such person against such expense, liability or loss under the DGCL.

Section 8.6.    Indemnification of Other Persons. This Article VIII shall not limit the right of the Corporation to the extent and in the manner authorized or permitted by law to indemnify and to advance expenses to persons other than Indemnitees. Without limiting the foregoing, the Corporation may, to the extent authorized from time to time by the Board, grant rights to indemnification and to the advancement of expenses to any employee or agent of the Corporation and to any other person who is or was serving at the request of the Corporation as a director, officer, employee or agent of another corporation or of a partnership, joint venture, trust or other enterprise, including service with respect to an employee benefit plan, to the fullest extent of the provisions of this Article VIII with respect to the indemnification and advancement of expenses of Indemnitees under this Article VIII.

Section 8.7.    Amendments. Any repeal or amendment of this Article VIII by the Board or the stockholders of the Corporation or by changes in applicable law, or the adoption of any other provision of these By Laws inconsistent with this Article VIII, will, to the extent permitted by applicable law, be prospective only (except to the extent such amendment or change in applicable law permits the Corporation to provide broader indemnification rights to Indemnitees on a retroactive basis than permitted prior thereto), and will not in any way diminish or adversely affect any right or protection existing hereunder in respect of any act or omission occurring prior to such repeal or amendment or adoption of such inconsistent provision; provided however, that amendments or repeals of this Article VIII shall require the affirmative vote of the stockholders holding at least 65% of the voting power of all outstanding shares of capital stock of the Corporation.

Section 8.8.    Certain Definitions. For purposes of this Article VIII, (a) references to “other enterprise” shall include any employee benefit plan; (b) references to “fines” shall include any excise taxes assessed on a person with respect to an employee benefit plan; (c) references to “serving at the request of the Corporation” shall include any service that imposes duties on, or involves services by, a person with respect to any employee benefit plan, its participants, or beneficiaries; and (d) a person who acted in good faith and in a manner such person reasonably believed to be in the interest of the participants and beneficiaries of an employee benefit plan shall be deemed to have acted in a manner “not opposed to the best interest of the Corporation” for purposes of Section 145 of the DGCL.

 

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Section 8.9.    Contract Rights. The rights provided to Indemnitees pursuant to this Article VIII shall be contract rights and such rights shall continue as to an Indemnitee who has ceased to be a director, officer, agent or employee and shall inure to the benefit of the Indemnitee’s heirs, executors and administrators.

Section 8.10.    Severability. If any provision or provisions of this Article VIII shall be held to be invalid, illegal or unenforceable for any reason whatsoever: (a) the validity, legality and enforceability of the remaining provisions of this Article VIII shall not in any way be affected or impaired thereby; and (b) to the fullest extent possible, the provisions of this Article VIII (including, without limitation, each such portion of this Article VIII containing any such provision held to be invalid, illegal or unenforceable) shall be construed so as to give effect to the intent manifested by the provision held invalid, illegal or unenforceable.

ARTICLE IX

MISCELLANEOUS

Section 9.1.    Place of Meetings. If the place of any meeting of stockholders, the Board or committee of the Board for which notice is required under these By Laws is not designated in the notice of such meeting, such meeting shall be held at the principal business office of the Corporation; provided, however, if the Board has, in its sole discretion, determined that a meeting shall not be held at any place, but instead shall be held by means of remote communication pursuant to Section 9.5 hereof, then such meeting shall not be held at any place.

Section 9.2.    Fixing Record Dates.

(a)    In order that the Corporation may determine the stockholders entitled to notice of any meeting of stockholders or any adjournment thereof, the Board may fix a record date, which shall not precede the date upon which the resolution fixing the record date is adopted by the Board, and which record date shall not be more than 60 nor less than 10 days before the date of such meeting. If the Board so fixes a date, such date shall also be the record date for determining the stockholders entitled to vote at such meeting unless the Board determines, at the time it fixes such record date, that a later date on or before the date of the meeting shall be the date for making such determination. If no record date is fixed by the Board, the record date for determining stockholders entitled to notice of and to vote at a meeting of stockholders shall be at the close of business on the business day next preceding the day on which notice is given, or, if notice is waived, at the close of business on the business day next preceding the day on which the meeting is held. A determination of stockholders of record entitled to notice of or to vote at a meeting of stockholders shall apply to any adjournment of the meeting; provided, however, that the Board may fix a new record date for the adjourned meeting, and in such case shall also fix as the record date for stockholders entitled to notice of such adjourned meeting the same or an earlier date as that fixed for determination of stockholders entitled to vote in accordance with the foregoing provisions of this Section 9.2(a) at the adjourned meeting.

 

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(b)    In order that the Corporation may determine the stockholders entitled to receive payment of any dividend or other distribution or allotment of any rights or the stockholders entitled to exercise any rights in respect of any change, conversion or exchange of stock, or for the purpose of any other lawful action, the Board may fix a record date, which record date shall not precede the date upon which the resolution fixing the record date is adopted, and which record date shall be not more than 60 days prior to such action. If no record date is fixed, the record date for determining stockholders for any such purpose shall be at the close of business on the day on which the Board adopts the resolution relating thereto.

Section 9.3.    Means of Giving Notice.

(a)    Notice to Directors. Whenever under applicable law, the Certificate of Incorporation or these By Laws notice is required to be given to any director, such notice shall be given either (i) in writing and sent by mail, or by a nationally recognized delivery service, (ii) by means of facsimile telecommunication or other form of electronic transmission, or (iii) by oral notice given personally or by telephone. A notice to a director will be deemed given as follows: (i) if given by hand delivery, orally, or by telephone, when actually received by the director, (ii) if sent through the United States mail, when deposited in the United States mail, with postage and fees thereon prepaid, addressed to the director at the director’s address appearing on the records of the Corporation, (iii) if sent for next day delivery by a nationally recognized overnight delivery service, when deposited with such service, with fees thereon prepaid, addressed to the director at the director’s address appearing on the records of the Corporation, (iv) if sent by facsimile telecommunication, when sent to the facsimile transmission number for such director appearing on the records of the Corporation, (v) if sent by electronic mail, when sent to the electronic mail address for such director appearing on the records of the Corporation, or (vi) if sent by any other form of electronic transmission, when sent to the address, location or number (as applicable) for such director appearing on the records of the Corporation.

(b)    Electronic Transmission. “Electronic transmission” means any form of communication, not directly involving the physical transmission of paper, that creates a record that may be retained, retrieved and reviewed by a recipient thereof, and that may be directly reproduced in paper form by such a recipient through an automated process.

(c)    Notice to Stockholders Sharing Same Address. Without limiting the manner by which notice otherwise may be given effectively by the Corporation to stockholders, any notice to stockholders given by the Corporation under any provision of the DGCL, the Certificate of Incorporation or these By Laws shall be effective if given by a single written notice to stockholders who share an address if consented to by the stockholders at that address to whom such notice is given. A stockholder may revoke such stockholder’s consent by delivering written notice of such revocation to the Corporation. Any stockholder who fails to object in writing to the Corporation within 60 days of having been given written notice by the Corporation of its intention to send such a single written notice shall be deemed to have consented to receiving such single written notice.

(d)    Exceptions to Notice Requirements. Whenever notice is required to be given, under the DGCL, the Certificate of Incorporation or these By Laws, to any person with whom communication is unlawful, the giving of such notice to such person shall not be required and

 

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there shall be no duty to apply to any governmental authority or agency for a license or permit to give such notice to such person. Any action or meeting that shall be taken or held without notice to any such person with whom communication is unlawful shall have the same force and effect as if such notice had been duly given. In the event that the action taken by the Corporation is such as to require the filing of a certificate with the Secretary of State of Delaware, the certificate shall state, if such is the fact and if notice is required, that notice was given to all persons entitled to receive notice except such persons with whom communication is unlawful.

Whenever notice is required to be given by the Corporation, under any provision of the DGCL, the Certificate of Incorporation or these By Laws, to any stockholder to whom (1) notice of two consecutive annual meetings of stockholders and all notices of stockholder meetings or of the taking of action by written consent of stockholders without a meeting to such stockholder during the period between such two consecutive annual meetings, or (2) all, and at least two payments (if sent by first-class mail) of dividends or interest on securities during a 12-month period, have been mailed addressed to such stockholder at such stockholder’s address as shown on the records of the Corporation and have been returned undeliverable, the giving of such notice to such stockholder shall not be required. Any action or meeting that shall be taken or held without notice to such stockholder shall have the same force and effect as if such notice had been duly given. If any such stockholder shall deliver to the Corporation a written notice setting forth such stockholder’s then current address, the requirement that notice be given to such stockholder shall be reinstated. In the event that the action taken by the Corporation is such as to require the filing of a certificate with the Secretary of State of Delaware, the certificate need not state that notice was not given to persons to whom notice was not required to be given pursuant to Section 230 (b) of the DGCL. The exception in subsection (1) of the first sentence of this paragraph to the requirement that notice be given shall not be applicable to any notice returned as undeliverable if the notice was given by electronic transmission.

Section 9.4.    Waiver of Notice. Whenever any notice is required to be given under applicable law, the Certificate of Incorporation, or these By Laws, a written waiver of such notice, signed by the person or persons entitled to said notice, or a waiver by electronic transmission by the person entitled to said notice, whether before or after the time stated therein, shall be deemed equivalent to such required notice. Attendance at a meeting shall constitute a waiver of notice of such meeting, except where a person attends for the express purpose of objecting to the transaction of any business on the ground that the meeting was not lawfully called or convened.

Section 9.5.    Meeting Attendance via Remote Communication Equipment.

(a)    Stockholder Meetings. If authorized by the Board in its sole discretion, and subject to such guidelines and procedures as the Board may adopt, stockholders and proxy holders not physically present at a meeting of stockholders may, by means of remote communication:

(i)    participate in a meeting of stockholders; and

(ii)    be deemed present in person and vote at a meeting of stockholders, whether such meeting is to be held at a designated place or solely by means of remote

 

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communication, provided that (A) the Corporation shall implement reasonable measures to verify that each person deemed present and permitted to vote at the meeting by means of remote communication is a stockholder or proxy holder, (B) the Corporation shall implement reasonable measures to provide such stockholders and proxy holders a reasonable opportunity to participate in the meeting and to vote on matters submitted to the stockholders, including an opportunity to read or hear the proceedings of the meeting substantially concurrently with such proceedings, and (C) if any stockholder or proxy holder votes or takes other action at the meeting by means of remote communication, a record of such votes or other action shall be maintained by the Corporation.

(b)    Board Meetings. Unless otherwise restricted by applicable law, the Certificate of Incorporation or these By Laws, members of the Board or any committee thereof may participate in a meeting of the Board or any committee thereof by means of conference telephone or other communications equipment by means of which all persons participating in the meeting can hear each other. Such participation in a meeting shall constitute presence in person at the meeting.

Section 9.6.    Dividends. The Board may from time to time declare, and the Corporation may pay, dividends (payable in cash, property or shares of the Corporation’s capital stock) on the Corporation’s outstanding shares of capital stock, subject to applicable law and the Certificate of Incorporation.

Section 9.7.    Reserves. The Board may set apart out of the funds of the Corporation available for dividends a reserve or reserves for any proper purpose and may abolish any such reserve.

Section 9.8.    Contracts and Negotiable Instruments. Except as otherwise provided by applicable law, the Certificate of Incorporation or these By Laws, any contract, bond, deed, lease, mortgage or other instrument may be executed and delivered in the name and on behalf of the Corporation by such officer or officers or other employee or employees of the Corporation as the Board may from time to time authorize. Such authority may be general or confined to specific instances as the Board may determine. The Chairman of the Board, the Chief Executive Officer, the President, the Chief Financial Officer, the Treasurer or any Vice President may execute and deliver any contract, bond, deed, lease, mortgage or other instrument in the name and on behalf of the Corporation. Subject to any restrictions imposed by the Board, the Chairman of the Board Chief Executive Officer, President, the Chief Financial Officer, the Treasurer or any Vice President may delegate powers to execute and deliver any contract, bond, deed, lease, mortgage or other instrument in the name and on behalf of the Corporation to other officers or employees of the Corporation under such person’s supervision and authority, it being understood, however, that any such delegation of power shall not relieve such officer of responsibility with respect to the exercise of such delegated power.

Section 9.9.    Fiscal Year. The fiscal year of the Corporation shall be fixed by the Board.

Section 9.10.    Seal. The Board may adopt a corporate seal, which shall be in such form as the Board determines. The seal may be used by causing it or a facsimile thereof to be impressed, affixed or otherwise reproduced.

 

23


Section 9.11.    Books and Records. The books and records of the Corporation may be kept within or outside the State of Delaware at such place or places as may from time to time be designated by the Board.

Section 9.12.    Resignation. Any director, committee member or officer may resign by giving notice thereof in writing or by electronic transmission to the Chairman of the Board, the Chief Executive Officer, the President or the Secretary. The resignation shall take effect at the time it is delivered unless the resignation specifies a later effective date or an effective date determined upon the happening of an event or events. Unless otherwise specified therein, the acceptance of such resignation shall not be necessary to make it effective.

Section 9.13.    Surety Bonds. Such officers, employees and agents of the Corporation (if any) as the Chairman of the Board, Chief Executive Officer, President or the Board may direct, from time to time, shall be bonded for the faithful performance of their duties and for the restoration to the Corporation, in case of their death, resignation, retirement, disqualification or removal from office, of all books, papers, vouchers, money and other property of whatever kind in their possession or under their control belonging to the Corporation, in such amounts and by such surety companies as the Chairman of the Board, Chief Executive Officer, President or the Board may determine. The premiums on such bonds shall be paid by the Corporation and the bonds so furnished shall be in the custody of the Secretary.

Section 9.14.    Securities of Other Corporations. Powers of attorney, proxies, waivers of notice of meeting, consents in writing and other instruments relating to securities owned by the Corporation may be executed in the name of and on behalf of the Corporation by the Chairman of the Board, Chief Executive Officer, President, or any officers authorized by the Board. Any such officer, may, in the name of and on behalf of the Corporation, take all such action as any such officer may deem advisable to vote in person or by proxy at any meeting of security holders of any corporation in which the Corporation may own securities, or to consent in writing, in the name of the Corporation as such holder, to any action by such corporation, and at any such meeting or with respect to any such consent shall possess and may exercise any and all rights and power incident to the ownership of such securities and which, as the owner thereof, the Corporation might have exercised and possessed. The Board may from time to time confer like powers upon any other person or persons.

Section 9.15.    Amendments. The Board shall have the power to adopt, amend, alter or repeal the By Laws. The affirmative vote of a majority of the Board shall be required to adopt, amend, alter or repeal the By Laws. The By Laws also may be adopted, amended, altered or repealed by the stockholders; provided, however, that in addition to any vote of the holders of any class or series of capital stock of the Corporation required by applicable law or the Certificate of Incorporation, the affirmative vote of the holders of at least a majority of the voting (except as otherwise provided in Section 8.7) power of all outstanding shares of capital stock of the Corporation entitled to vote generally in the election of directors, voting together as a single class, shall be required for the stockholders to adopt, amend, alter or repeal the By Laws.

 

24

Exhibit 4.1

 

NUMBER

U-                     

      UNITS
SEE REVERSE FOR
CERTAIN DEFINITIONS
   GOLDEN FALCON ACQUISITION CORP.

CUSIP 38102H 208

UNITS CONSISTING OF ONE SHARE OF CLASS A COMMON STOCK AND ONE-HALF OF ONE REDEEMABLE WARRANT,

EACH WHOLE WARRANT ENTITLING THE HOLDER TO PURCHASE ONE SHARE OF CLASS A COMMON STOCK

THIS CERTIFIES THAT                                                                                                                                                                     

is the owner of                                                                                                                                                                                     Units.

Each Unit (“Unit”) consists of one (1) share of Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 per share (“Common Stock”), of Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), and one-half of one redeemable warrant (“Warrant”). Each whole Warrant entitles the holder to purchase one share of Common Stock for $11.50 per share (subject to adjustment). Only whole warrants are exercisable. Each whole Warrant will become exercisable on the later of (i) thirty days after the Company’s completion of a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or other similar business combination with one or more businesses or entities (a “Business Combination”) and (ii) twelve months from the closing of the Company’s initial public offering (“IPO”), and will expire unless exercised before 5:00 p.m., New York City Time, on the fifth anniversary of the completion of an initial Business Combination, or earlier upon redemption or liquidation. The Common Stock and Warrant(s) comprising the Unit(s) represented by this certificate are not transferable separately until                 , 20        , unless UBS Securities LLC and Moelis & Co. inform the Company of their decision to allow earlier separate trading, except that in no event will the Common Stock and Warrants be separately tradeable earlier unless the Company has filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission

a Current Report on Form 8-K containing an audited balance sheet reflecting the Company’s receipt of the gross proceeds of its initial public offering and issued a press release announcing when such separate trading will begin. No fractional Warrants will be issued upon separation of the Units and only whole Warrants will trade. The terms of the Warrants are governed by a Warrant Agreement, dated as of                          , 2020, between the Company and Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, as Warrant Agent, and are subject to the terms and provisions contained therein, all of which terms and provisions the holder of this certificate consents to by acceptance hereof. Copies of the Warrant Agreement are on file at the office of the Warrant Agent at 1 State Street, 30th Floor, New York, New York 10004, and are available to any Warrant holder on written request and without cost.

This certificate is not valid unless countersigned by the Transfer Agent and Registrar of the Company.

This certificate shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the internal laws of the State of New York.

Witness the facsimile seal of the Company and the facsimile signatures of its duly authorized officers.

 

By  

 

     

 

  Chairman       Secretary


Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

The Company will furnish without charge to each unit holder who so requests, a statement of the powers, designations, preferences, and relative, participating, optional, or other special rights of each class of stock or series thereof of the Company and the qualifications, limitations, or restrictions of such preferences and/or rights.

The following abbreviations, when used in the inscription on the face of this certificate, shall be construed as though they were written out in full according to applicable laws or regulations:

 

TEN COM      as tenants in common   

UNIF GIFT

MIN ACT

           Custodian     
TEN ENT      as tenants by the entireties       (Cust)       (Minor)
JT TEN      as joint tenants with right of survivorship and not as tenants in common       under Uniform Gifts to Minors Act
     (State)

Additional abbreviations may also be used though not in the above list.

              For value received,                                                                                        hereby sells, assigns, and transfers unto

PLEASE INSERT SOCIAL SECURITY OR OTHER

IDENTIFYING NUMBER OF ASSIGNEE

 

    

    

     

 

 

(PLEASE PRINT OR TYPEWRITE NAME AND ADDRESS, INCLUDING ZIP CODE, OF ASSIGNEE)

 

 

 

 

                                                                      Units represented by the within Certificate, and do hereby irrevocably constitute and appoint                                                                                       Attorney to transfer the said Units on the books of the within named Company with full power of substitution in the premises.

Dated                     

 

  Notice:    The signature to this assignment must correspond with the name as written upon the face of the certificate in every particular, without alteration or enlargement or any change whatever.

Signature(s) Guaranteed:

 

 

THE SIGNATURE(S) SHOULD BE GUARANTEED BY AN ELIGIBLE GUARANTOR INSTITUTION (BANKS, STOCKBROKERS, SAVINGS AND LOAN ASSOCIATIONS AND CREDIT UNIONS WITH MEMBERSHIP IN AN APPROVED SIGNATURE GUARANTEE MEDALLION PROGRAM, PURSUANT TO S.E.C. RULE 17Ad-15) (OR ANY SUCCESSOR RULE) UNDER THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934, AS AMENDED).


In each case, as more fully described in the Company’s final prospectus dated                 , 2020, the holder(s) of this certificate shall be entitled to receive a pro-rata portion of certain funds held in the trust account established in connection with the Company’s initial public offering only in the event that (i) the Company redeems the shares of Class A common stock sold in its initial public offering and liquidates because it does not complete an initial business combination within the period of time set forth in the Company’s Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, as the same may be amended from time to time (the “Charter”), (ii) the Company redeems the shares of Class A common stock sold in its initial public offering in connection with a stockholder vote to amend the Company’s Charter (a) to modify the substance or timing of the Company’s obligation to allow redemption in connection with the Company’s initial business combination or certain amendments to the Charter or to redeem 100% of the Class A common stock if the Company does not complete the initial business combination or to redeem 100% of the Class A common stock if it does not consummate an initial business combination by the date set forth in the Company’s Charter or (b) with respect to any other provisions relating to the rights of holders of the Class A common stock or pre-initial business combination activity, or (iii) if the holder(s) seek(s) to redeem for cash its shares of Class A common stock in connection with a tender offer (or proxy solicitation, solely in the event the Company seeks stockholder approval of the proposed initial business combination) setting forth the details of a proposed initial business combination. In no other circumstances shall the holder(s) have any right or interest of any kind in or to the trust account.

Exhibit 4.2

 

            NUMBER    SHARES
            C   

GOLDEN FALCON ACQUISITION CORP.

INCORPORATED UNDER THE LAWS OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE

CLASS A COMMON STOCK

SEE REVERSE FOR

CERTAIN DEFINITIONS

 

This Certifies that

   CUSIP 38102H 109

is the owner of

FULLY PAID AND NON-ASSESSABLE SHARES OF CLASS A COMMON STOCK OF THE PAR

VALUE OF $0.0001 EACH OF

GOLDEN FALCON ACQUISITION CORP.

(the “Company”)

transferable on the books of the Company in person or by duly authorized attorney upon surrender of this certificate properly endorsed.

The Company will be forced to redeem all of its shares of Class A common stock if it is unable to complete an initial business combination within the time period set forth in its Certificate of Incorporation, as the same may be amended from time to time.

This certificate is not valid unless countersigned by the Transfer Agent and registered by the Registrar.

Witness the facsimile seal of the Company and the facsimile signatures of its duly authorized officers.

Dated:

 

 

CHAIRMAN

     

 

SECRETARY


The following abbreviations, when used in the inscription on the face of this certificate, shall be construed as though they were written out in full according to applicable laws or regulations:

 

TEN COM –    as tenants in common                UNIF GIFT MIN ACT -          Custodian             
TEN ENT –    as tenants by the entireties                                    (Cust)                             (Minor)
JT TEN –    as joint tenants with right of survivorship                under Uniform Gifts to Minors
   and not as tenants in common                                                 Act                            
                                                                                                                 (State)

Additional abbreviations may also be used though not in the above list.

Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

The Company will furnish without charge to each stockholder who so requests the powers, designations, preferences, and relative, participating, optional, or other special rights of each class of stock or series thereof of the Company and the qualifications, limitations, or restrictions of such preferences, and/or rights. This certificate and the shares represented thereby are issued and shall be held subject to all the provisions of the Company’s Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation and all amendments thereto and resolutions of the Board of Directors (copies of which may be obtained from the secretary of the Company), to all of which the holder of this certificate by acceptance hereof assents.

For value received,                                                       hereby sell, assign and transfer unto

PLEASE INSERT SOCIAL SECURITY OR OTHER

        IDENTIFYING NUMBER OF ASSIGNEE

 

    

(PLEASE PRINT OR TYPEWRITE NAME AND ADDRESS, INCLUDING ZIP CODE, OF ASSIGNEE)

                                                                                                                                                                                        shares

of Class A common stock represented by the within Certificate, and do hereby irrevocably constitute and appoint

                                                                                                                                                                                Attorney

to transfer the said stock on the books of the within named Company with full power of substitution in the premises.

 

Dated                                    
  

    

  

Notice:  The signature to this assignment must correspond with the name as written upon the face of the certificate in every particular, without alteration or enlargement or any change whatever.

Signature(s) Guaranteed:

 

By

    

 

    

THE SIGNATURE(S) SHOULD BE GUARANTEED BY AN ELIGIBLE GUARANTOR INSTITUTION

(BANKS, STOCKBROKERS, SAVINGS AND LOAN ASSOCIATIONS AND CREDIT UNIONS WITH

MEMBERSHIP IN AN APPROVED SIGNATURE GUARANTEE MEDALLION PROGRAM,

PURSUANT TO S.E.C. RULE 17Ad-15).


In each case, as more fully described in the Company’s final prospectus dated                , 2020, the holder(s) of this certificate shall be entitled to receive a pro-rata portion of certain funds held in the trust account established in connection with the Company’s initial public offering only in the event that (i) the Company redeems the shares of Class A common stock sold in its initial public offering and liquidates because it does not complete an initial business combination within the period of time set forth in the Company’s Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, as the same may be amended from time to time (the “Charter”), (ii) the Company redeems the shares of Class A common stock sold in its initial public offering in connection with a stockholder vote to amend the Company’s Charter (a) to modify the substance or timing of the Company’s obligation to allow redemption in connection with the Company’s initial business combination or certain amendments to the Charter or to redeem 100% of the Class A common stock if the Company does not complete the initial business combination or to redeem 100% of the Class A common stock if it does not consummate an initial business combination by the date set forth in the Company’s Charter or (b) with respect to any other provisions relating to the rights of holders of the Class A common stock or pre-initial business combination activity, or (iii) if the holder(s) seek(s) to redeem for cash its shares of Class A common stock in connection with a tender offer (or proxy solicitation, solely in the event the Company seeks stockholder approval of the proposed initial business combination) setting forth the details of a proposed initial business combination. In no other circumstances shall the holder(s) have any right or interest of any kind in or to the trust account.

Exhibit 4.3

 

NUMBER

                    -

  

(SEE REVERSE SIDE FOR LEGEND)

THIS WARRANT WILL BE VOID IF NOT

EXERCISED PRIOR TO THE EXPIRATION DATE

(DEFINED BELOW)

   WARRANTS

GOLDEN FALCON ACQUISITION CORP.

CUSIP 38102H 117

WARRANT

THIS CERTIFIES THAT, for value received                                                                                                                  

is the registered holder of a warrant or warrants (the “Warrant(s)”) of Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), expiring at 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on the five year anniversary of the Company’s completion of an initial merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or other similar business combination with one or more businesses or entities (a “Business Combination”), or earlier upon redemption or liquidation, to purchase one fully paid and non-assessable share of Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 per share (“Shares”), of the Company for each whole Warrant evidenced by this Warrant Certificate. The Warrant entitles the holder thereof to purchase from the Company, commencing on the later of (a) 12 months from the closing of the Company’s initial public offering and (b) 30 days after the Company’s completion of an initial Business Combination, such number of Shares of the Company at the Warrant Price (as defined below), upon surrender of this Warrant Certificate and payment of the Warrant Price at the office or agency of Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company (the “Warrant Agent”), subject to the conditions set forth herein and in the Warrant Agreement between the Company and the Warrant Agent. In no event will the Company be required to net cash settle any warrant exercise. The term “Warrant Price” as used in this Warrant Certificate refers to the price per Share at which Shares may be purchased at the time the Warrant is exercised. The initial Warrant Price is equal to $11.50 per share. The Warrant Agreement provides that upon the occurrence of certain events the Warrant Price, the $18.00 Redemption Trigger Price (defined below), the $10.00 Redemption Trigger Price (defined below) and the number of Shares purchasable hereunder, set forth on the face hereof, may, subject to certain conditions, be adjusted.

No fraction of a Share will be issued upon any exercise of a Warrant. If the holder of a Warrant would be entitled to receive a fraction of a Share upon any exercise of a Warrant, the Company shall, upon such exercise, round up to the nearest whole number the number of Shares to be issued to such holder.

Upon any exercise of the Warrant for less than the total number of full Shares provided for herein, there shall be issued to the registered holder hereof or the registered holder’s assignee a new Warrant Certificate covering the number of Shares for which the Warrant has not been exercised.

Warrant Certificates, when surrendered at the office or agency of the Warrant Agent by the registered holder in person or by attorney duly authorized in writing, may be exchanged in the manner and subject to the limitations provided in the Warrant Agreement, but without payment of any service charge, for another Warrant Certificate or Warrant Certificates of like tenor and evidencing in the aggregate a like number of Warrants.

Upon due presentment for registration of transfer of the Warrant Certificate at the office or agency of the Warrant Agent, a new Warrant Certificate or Warrant Certificates of like tenor and evidencing in the aggregate a like number of Warrants shall be issued to the transferee in exchange for this Warrant Certificate, subject to the limitations provided in the Warrant Agreement, without charge except for any applicable tax or other governmental charge.

The Company and the Warrant Agent may deem and treat the registered holder as the absolute owner of this Warrant Certificate (notwithstanding any notation of ownership or other writing hereon made by anyone), for the purpose of any exercise hereof, of any distribution to the registered holder, and for all other purposes, and neither the Company nor the Warrant Agent shall be affected by any notice to the contrary.


This Warrant does not entitle the registered holder to any of the rights of a stockholder of the Company.

The Company reserves the right to call the Warrant at any time prior to its exercise with a notice of call in writing to the holders of record of the Warrant, giving at least 30 days’ notice of such call (“Redemption Notice”), at any time while the Warrant is exercisable, if the last reported sale price of the Shares has been at least $18.00 per share (the “$18.00 Redemption Trigger Price”) on each of 20 trading days within any 30 trading day period (the “30-day trading period”) commencing after the Warrants become exercisable and ending on the third trading day prior to the date on which notice of such call is given and if, and only if, there is a current registration statement in effect covering the issuance of the Shares underlying the Warrants during the 30-day redemption period or the Company has elected to require the exercise of the Warrants on a “cashless basis” pursuant to subsection 3.3.1(b) of the Warrant Agreement. The call price of the Warrants is to be $0.01 per Warrant. Any Warrant either not exercised or tendered back to the Company by 5:00 p.m., New York City time on the date specified in the notice of call shall be canceled on the books of the Company and have no further value except for the $0.01 call price. The Company also reserves the right to call the Warrant at any time following 90 days after the Warrant becomes exercisable, upon delivery of the Redemption Notice, if and only if the last reported sales price of the Shares is at least $10.00 per share (the “$10.00 Redemption Trigger Price”) on the trading day prior to the date on which the Redemption Notice is given, all Private Warrants (as defined in the Warrant Agreement) issued by the Company are also concurrently called for redemption on the same terms as the Warrant, and there is a current registration statement in effect covering the issuance of the Shares underlying the Warrants during the 30-day redemption period. The call price of the Warrants in this instance is to be $0.10 per Warrant. Any Warrant either not exercised or tendered back to the Company by 5:00 p.m., New York City time on the date specified in the notice of call shall be canceled on the books of the Company and have no further value except for the $0.10 call price.

This Warrant Certificate shall not be valid unless countersigned by the Warrant Agent, as such term is used in the Warrant Agreement.

This Warrant Certificate shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the internal laws of the State of New York.

 

By  

 

     

 

  Chairman               Secretary


SUBSCRIPTION FORM

To Be Executed by the Registered Holder in Order to Exercise Warrants

The undersigned Registered Holder irrevocably elects to exercise                      Warrants represented by this Warrant Certificate, and to purchase the Class A Common Stock issuable upon the exercise of such Warrants, and requests that Certificates for such shares shall be issued in the name of

 

 

(PLEASE TYPE OR PRINT NAME AND ADDRESS)
 
 

(SOCIAL SECURITY OR TAX IDENTIFICATION NUMBER)

and be delivered to                                                                                                                                                                

(PLEASE PRINT OR TYPE NAME AND ADDRESS)

 

 

and, if such number of Warrants shall not be all the Warrants evidenced by this Warrant Certificate, that a new Warrant Certificate for the balance of such Warrants be registered in the name of, and delivered to, the Registered Holder at the address stated below:

 

Dated:                       

 

  (SIGNATURE)
 

 

  (ADDRESS)
 

 

 

 

  (TAX IDENTIFICATION NUMBER)


ASSIGNMENT

To Be Executed by the Registered Holder in Order to Assign Warrants

For Value Received,                                               hereby sells, assigns, and transfers unto

 

 

(PLEASE TYPE OR PRINT NAME AND ADDRESS)
 
 

 

 

(SOCIAL SECURITY OR TAX IDENTIFICATION NUMBER)

and be delivered to                                                                                                                                                                

(PLEASE PRINT OR TYPE NAME AND ADDRESS)

                                              of the Warrants represented by this Warrant Certificate, and hereby irrevocably constitute and appoint                                      Attorney to transfer this Warrant Certificate on the books of the Company, with full power of substitution in the premises.

 

Dated:                              

 

     (SIGNATURE)

THE SIGNATURE TO THE ASSIGNMENT OF THE SUBSCRIPTION FORM MUST CORRESPOND TO THE NAME WRITTEN UPON THE FACE OF THIS WARRANT CERTIFICATE IN EVERY PARTICULAR, WITHOUT ALTERATION OR ENLARGEMENT OR ANY CHANGE WHATSOEVER, AND MUST BE GUARANTEED BY A COMMERCIAL BANK OR TRUST COMPANY OR A MEMBER FIRM OF THE NYSE AMERICAN, NASDAQ, NEW YORK STOCK EXCHANGE, PACIFIC STOCK EXCHANGE, OR CHICAGO STOCK EXCHANGE.

Exhibit 4.4

WARRANT AGREEMENT

THIS WARRANT AGREEMENT ( “Agreement”) is made as of [●], 2020 between Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp., a Delaware corporation, with offices at 850 Library Avenue, Suite 204, Newark, Delaware 19711 (“Company”), and Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, a New York corporation, with offices at 1 State Street, New York, New York 10004 (“Warrant Agent”).

WHEREAS, the Company is engaged in an initial public offering (“Public Offering”) of up to 28,750,000 units, each unit (“Unit”) comprised of one share of Class A common stock of the Company, par value $0.0001 per share (“Common Stock”), and one-half of one redeemable warrant, where each whole warrant entitles the holder to purchase one share of Common Stock at a price of $11.50 per share, subject to adjustment as described herein, and, in connection therewith, will issue and deliver up to 14,375,000 warrants (the “Public Warrants”) to the public investors in connection with the Public Offering;

WHEREAS, the Company has filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) a Registration Statement on Form S-1, File No. 333-[●] (“Registration Statement”), and a prospectus (the “Prospectus”), for the registration, under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (“Securities Act”), of, among other securities, the Public Warrants;

WHEREAS, the Company has received a binding commitment from Golden Falcon Sponsor Group, LLC (the “Sponsor”) to purchase redeemable warrants and, in connection therewith, will issue and deliver up to 7,750,000 redeemable warrants (the “Private Warrants”) upon consummation of the Public Offering;

WHEREAS, the Company may issue up to an additional 1,500,000 redeemable warrants in satisfaction of certain working capital loans made by the Company’s officers, directors, initial stockholders (as defined in the Prospectus) and their affiliates (“Working Capital Warrants”);

WHEREAS, following consummation of the Public Offering, the Company may issue additional warrants (“Post IPO Warrants” and collectively with the Public Warrants, Private Warrants and Working Capital Warrants, the “Warrants”) in connection with, or following the consummation by the Company of, a Business Combination (defined below);

WHEREAS, the Company desires the Warrant Agent to act on behalf of the Company, and the Warrant Agent is willing to so act, in connection with the issuance, registration, transfer, exchange, redemption, and exercise of the Warrants;

WHEREAS, the Company desires to provide for the form and provisions of the Warrants, the terms upon which they shall be issued and exercised, and the respective rights, limitation of rights, and immunities of the Company, the Warrant Agent, and the holders of the Warrants; and

WHEREAS, all acts and things have been done and performed which are necessary to make the Warrants, when executed on behalf of the Company and countersigned by or on behalf of the Warrant Agent (if a physical certificate is issued), as provided herein, the valid, binding, and legal obligations of the Company, and to authorize the execution and delivery of this Agreement.

NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the mutual agreements herein contained, the parties hereto agree as follows:

1.    Appointment of Warrant Agent. The Company hereby appoints the Warrant Agent to act as agent for the Company for the Warrants, and the Warrant Agent hereby accepts such appointment and agrees to perform the same in accordance with the terms and conditions set forth in this Agreement.

 

1


2.

Warrants.

2.1    Form of Warrant. Each Warrant shall be issued in registered form only and, subject to Section 2.2, shall be in substantially the form of Exhibit A hereto, the provisions of which are incorporated herein and shall be signed by, or bear the facsimile signature of, the Chairman of the Board of Directors, the Chief Executive Officer, the Chief Financial Officer, the Secretary or other principal officer of the Company. In the event the person whose facsimile signature has been placed upon any Warrant shall have ceased to serve in the capacity in which such person signed the Warrant before such Warrant is issued, it may be issued with the same effect as if he or she had not ceased to be such at the date of issuance.

2.2    Uncertificated Warrants. Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, any Warrant, or portion thereof, may be issued as part of, and be represented by, a Unit, and any Warrant may be issued in uncertificated or book-entry form through the Warrant Agent and/or the facilities of The Depository Trust Company (the “Depositary”) or other book-entry depositary system, in each case as determined by the Board of Directors of the Company or by an authorized committee thereof. Any Warrant so issued shall have the same terms, force and effect as a certificated Warrant that has been duly countersigned by the Warrant Agent in accordance with the terms of this Agreement.

2.3    Effect of Countersignature. Except with respect to uncertificated Warrants as described above, unless and until countersigned by the Warrant Agent pursuant to this Agreement, a Warrant shall be invalid and of no effect and may not be exercised by the holder thereof.

2.4    Registration.

2.4.1    Warrant Register. The Warrant Agent shall maintain books (“Warrant Register”) for the registration of original issuance and the registration of transfer of the Warrants. Upon the initial issuance of the Warrants, the Warrant Agent shall issue and register the Warrants in the names of the respective holders thereof in such denominations and otherwise in accordance with instructions delivered to the Warrant Agent by the Company. Ownership of beneficial interests in the Public Warrants shall be shown on, and the transfer of such ownership shall be effected through, records maintained by institutions that have accounts with the Depositary.

If the Depositary subsequently ceases to make its book-entry settlement system available for the Public Warrants, the Company may instruct the Warrant Agent regarding making other arrangements for book-entry settlement. In the event that the Public Warrants are not eligible for, or it is no longer necessary to have the Public Warrants available in, book-entry form, the Warrant Agent shall provide written instructions to the Depositary to deliver to the Warrant Agent for cancellation each book-entry Public Warrant, and the Company shall instruct the Warrant Agent to deliver to the Depositary definitive certificates in physical form evidencing such Warrants which shall be in the form annexed hereto as Exhibit A.

2.4.2    Registered Holder. Prior to due presentment for registration of transfer of any Warrant, the Company and the Warrant Agent may deem and treat the person in whose name such Warrant is then registered in the Warrant Register (“registered holder”) as the absolute owner of such Warrant and of each Warrant represented thereby (notwithstanding any notation of ownership or other writing on the Warrant certificate made by anyone other than the Company or the Warrant Agent), for the purpose of any exercise thereof, and for all other purposes, and neither the Company nor the Warrant Agent shall be affected by any notice to the contrary.

2.5    Detachability of Warrants. The securities comprising the Units will not be separately transferable until the 52nd day following the date of the Prospectus or, if such 52nd day is not on a day, other than Saturday, Sunday or federal holiday, on which banks in New York City are generally open for normal business (a “Business Day”), then on the immediately succeeding Business Day following such date, or earlier with the consent of UBS Securities LLC and Moelis & Co., the representatives (the “Representatives”) of the several underwriters of the Public Offering, but in no event shall the securities comprising the Units be separately traded earlier unless (i) the Company has filed a Current Report on Form 8-K with the SEC which

 

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includes an audited balance sheet reflecting the receipt by the Company of the gross proceeds of the Public Offering including the proceeds received by the Company from the exercise of the underwriters’ option to purchase additional Units in the Public Offering, if such option is exercised prior to the filing of the Form 8-K, and (ii) the Company has issued a press release announcing when such separate trading shall begin (the “Detachment Date”).

2.6    Private Warrant and Working Capital Warrant Attributes. The Private Warrants and Working Capital Warrants shall be identical to the Public Warrants, except that, so long as they are held by the initial recipients thereof or any of their Permitted Transferees (as defined below), (i) such Warrants shall not be redeemable by the Company pursuant to Section 6.1.1 hereof, (ii) such Warrants may be exercised for cash or on a cashless basis at the holder’s option pursuant to Section 3.3.1(c) hereof and (iii) such Warrants shall be subject to the transfer restrictions contained in Section 5.6 hereof. Once a Private Warrant or Working Capital Warrant is transferred to a holder other than to a Permitted Transferee, it shall be treated as a Public Warrant hereunder for all purposes.

2.7    Post IPO Warrants. The Post IPO Warrants, when and if issued, shall have the same terms and be in the same form as the Public Warrants except as may be agreed upon by the Company.

2.8    Fractional Warrants. The Company shall not issue fractional Warrants other than as part of the Units, each of which is comprised of one share of Common Stock and one-half of one redeemable Public Warrant. If, upon the detachment of Public Warrants from the Units or otherwise, a holder of Warrants would be entitled to receive a fractional Warrant, the Company shall round up to the nearest whole number the number of Warrants to be issued to such holder.

 

3.

Terms and Exercise of Warrants.

3.1    Warrant Price. Each whole Warrant shall, when countersigned by the Warrant Agent (if certificated in physical form), entitle the registered holder thereof, subject to the provisions of such Warrant and of this Agreement, to purchase from the Company the number of shares of Common Stock stated therein, at the price of $11.50 per share, subject to the adjustments provided in Section 4 hereof and in the last sentence of this Section 3.1. The term “Warrant Price” as used in this Agreement refers to the price per share at which the shares of Common Stock may be purchased at the time a Warrant is exercised. The Company in its sole discretion may lower the Warrant Price at any time prior to the Expiration Date (as defined below) for a period of not less than twenty (20) Business Days; provided, that the Company shall provide at least three (3) days prior written notice of such reduction to registered holders of the Warrants and, provided further that any such reduction shall be applied consistently to all of the Warrants.

3.2    Duration of Warrants. A Warrant may be exercised only during the period commencing on the later of thirty (30) days from the date the Company completes a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or other similar business combination with one or more businesses or entities (“Business Combination”) (as described more fully in the Registration Statement) and twelve (12) months from the date of the closing of the Public Offering, and terminating on the earlier to occur of (i) at 5:00 p.m., New York City time on the date that is five years from the date the Company consummates its initial Business Combination, (ii) other than with respect to the Private Warrants and Working Capital Warrants then held by the initial recipients thereof or their respective Permitted Transferees with respect to a redemption pursuant to Section 6.1.1 hereof (an “Inapplicable Redemption”), at 5:00 p.m., New York City time on the Redemption Date, as provided in Section 6.2 of this Agreement and (iii) the liquidation of the Company (“Expiration Date”); provided, however, that the exercise of any Warrant shall be subject to the satisfaction of any applicable conditions, as set forth in subsection 3.3.2 below, with respect to an effective registration statement or a valid exemption therefrom being available. The period of time from the date the Warrants will first become exercisable until the expiration of the Warrants shall hereafter be referred to as the “Exercise Period.” Except with respect to the right to receive the $18.00 Redemption Price or the $10.00 Redemption Price (as set forth in Section 6 hereunder), as applicable (other than with respect to an Inapplicable Redemption), each Warrant (other than a Private Warrant or Working Capital Warrant in the event of an

 

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Inapplicable Redemption) not exercised on or before the Expiration Date shall become void, and all rights thereunder and all rights in respect thereof under this Agreement shall cease at 5:00 p.m., New York City time on the Expiration Date. The Company in its sole discretion may extend the duration of the Warrants by delaying the Expiration Date; provided, however, that the Company shall provide at least twenty (20) days prior written notice of any such extension to registered holders and, provided further that any such extension shall be applied consistently to all of the Warrants.

3.3    Exercise of Warrants.

3.3.1    Payment. Subject to the provisions of the Warrant and this Agreement, a Warrant, when countersigned by the Warrant Agent (if certificated in physical form), may be exercised by the registered holder thereof by surrendering it, at the office of the Warrant Agent, or at the office of its successor as Warrant Agent, in the Borough of Manhattan, City and State of New York (or, in the case of a Warrant represented by a book-entry, the Warrants to be exercised on the records of the Depositary to an account of the Warrant Agent at the Depositary designated for such purposes in writing by the Warrant Agent to the Depositary from time to time), with the subscription form, as set forth in the Warrant, duly executed (or, in the case of a Warrant represented by a book-entry, properly delivered by the Participant in accordance with the Depositary’s procedures), and by paying in full the Warrant Price for each share of Common Stock as to which the Warrant is exercised and any and all applicable taxes due in connection with the exercise of the Warrant, as follows:

(a)    in lawful money of the United States, by good certified check or good bank draft payable to the order of the Warrant Agent or wire transfer; or

(b)    in the event of redemption pursuant to Section 6.1.1 hereof in which the Company’s management has elected to require all holders of Warrants to exercise such Warrants on a “cashless basis,” by surrendering the Warrants for that number of shares of Common Stock equal to the quotient obtained by dividing (x) the product of the number of shares of Common Stock underlying the Warrants, multiplied by the excess of the “Fair Market Value” (defined below) over the Warrant Price by (y) the Fair Market Value; provided, however, that no cashless exercise shall be permitted unless the Fair Market Value is equal to or higher than the Warrant Price. Solely for purposes of this Section 3.3.1(b) and Section 6.1.2, the “Fair Market Value” shall mean the average last reported sale price of the Common Stock for the ten (10) trading days ending on the third trading day prior to the date on which the notice of redemption is sent to holders of the Warrants pursuant to Section 6 hereof; or

(c)    with respect to any Private Warrants or Working Capital Warrants, so long as such Private Warrants or Working Capital Warrants are held by the initial recipients or their Permitted Transferees, by surrendering such Private Warrants or Working Capital Warrants for that number of shares of Common Stock equal to the quotient obtained by dividing (x) the product of the number of shares of Common Stock underlying the Warrants, multiplied by the excess of the “Private Warrant Fair Market Value” (defined below) over the Warrant Price by (y) the Private Warrant Fair Market Value; provided, however, that no cashless exercise shall be permitted unless the Private Warrant Fair Market Value is equal to or higher than the Warrant Price. Solely for purposes of this Section 3.3.1(c), the “Private Warrant Fair Market Value” shall mean the average last reported sale price of the Common Stock for the ten (10) trading days ending on the third trading day prior to the date on which the notice of exercise is sent to the Warrant Agent; or

(d)    at any time beginning on the sixty-first (61st) Business Day after the closing of the Company’s initial Business Combination if the registration statement required by Section 7.4 hereof is not then effective and current, by surrendering such Warrants for that number of shares of Common Stock equal to the quotient obtained by dividing (x) the product of the number of shares of Common Stock underlying the Warrants, multiplied by the excess of the Warrant Price over the “Fair Market Value” by (y) the Fair Market Value; provided, however, that no cashless exercise shall be permitted unless the Fair Market Value is equal to or higher than the Warrant Price. Solely for

 

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purposes of this Section 3.3.1(d), the “Fair Market Value” shall mean the average reported last sale price of the Common Stock for the ten (10) trading days ending on the trading day prior to the date of exercise; or

(e)    as provided in Section 7.5; or

(f)    as provided in Section 6.1.2.

3.3.2    Issuance of Shares of Common Stock. As soon as practicable after the exercise of any Warrant and the clearance of the funds in payment of the Warrant Price (if any), the Company shall issue to the registered holder of such Warrant a certificate or certificates, or book entry position, as applicable, for the number of shares of Common Stock to which he, she or it is entitled, registered in such name or names as may be directed by him, her or it, and if such Warrant shall not have been exercised in full, a new countersigned Warrant, or book entry position, as applicable, for the number of shares as to which such Warrant shall not have been exercised. Notwithstanding the foregoing, in no event will the Company be required to net cash settle the Warrant exercise. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Company shall not be obligated to deliver any shares of Common Stock pursuant to the exercise of a Warrant and shall have no obligation to settle such Warrant exercise unless a registration statement under the Securities Act covering the issuance of the shares of Common Stock underlying the Warrants is then effective and a prospectus relating thereto is current, subject to the Company’s satisfying its obligations under Section 7.4 or a valid exemption from registration being available. No Warrant shall be exercisable for cash and the Company shall not be obligated to issue shares of Common Stock upon exercise of a Warrant unless the Common Stock issuable upon such Warrant exercise has been registered, qualified or deemed to be exempt under the securities laws of the state of residence of the registered holder of the Warrants. The Company may require holders of Public Warrants to settle the Warrant on a “cashless basis” pursuant to Section 7.4. If, by reason of any exercise of Warrants on a “cashless basis,” the holder of any Warrant would be entitled, upon the exercise of such Warrant, to receive a fractional interest in a share of Common Stock, the Company shall round up to the nearest whole number, the number of shares of Common Stock to be issued to such holder. Warrants may not be exercised by, or securities issued to, any registered holder in any state in which such exercise or issuance would be unlawful.

3.3.3    Valid Issuance. All shares of Common Stock issued upon the proper exercise of a Warrant in conformity with this Agreement shall be validly issued, fully paid and nonassessable.

3.3.4    Date of Issuance. Each person in whose name any book entry position or certificate for shares of Common Stock is issued shall for all purposes be deemed to have become the holder of record of such shares on the date on which the Warrant, or book entry position representing such Warrant, was surrendered and payment of the Warrant Price was made, irrespective of the date of delivery of such certificate in the case of a certificated Warrant, except that, if the date of such surrender and payment is a date when the share transfer books of the Company or book entry system of the Warrant Agent are closed, such person shall be deemed to have become the holder of such shares at the close of business on the next succeeding date on which the share transfer books or book entry system are open.

3.3.5    Maximum Percentage. A holder of a Warrant may notify the Company in writing in the event it elects to be subject to the provisions contained in this subsection 3.3.5; however, no holder of a Warrant shall be subject to this subsection 3.3.5 unless he, she or it makes such election. If the election is made by a holder, the Warrant Agent shall not effect the exercise of the holder’s Warrant, and such holder shall not have the right to exercise such Warrant, to the extent that after giving effect to such exercise, such person (together with such person’s affiliates), to the Warrant Agent’s actual knowledge, would beneficially own in excess of 4.8% or 9.8% (or such other amount as a holder may specify) (the “Maximum Percentage”) of the shares of Common Stock outstanding immediately after giving effect to such exercise. For purposes of the foregoing sentence, the aggregate number of shares of Common Stock beneficially owned by such person and its affiliates shall include the number of shares of Common Stock issuable upon exercise of the Warrant with respect to which the determination of such sentence is being made, but shall exclude shares of Common Stock that would be issuable upon (x) exercise of the remaining, unexercised portion of the Warrant beneficially

 

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owned by such person and its affiliates and (y) exercise or conversion of the unexercised or unconverted portion of any other securities of the Company beneficially owned by such person and its affiliates (including, without limitation, any convertible notes or convertible preferred stock or warrants) subject to a limitation on conversion or exercise analogous to the limitation contained herein. Except as set forth in the preceding sentence, for purposes of this paragraph, beneficial ownership shall be calculated in accordance with Section 13(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”). For purposes of the Warrant, in determining the number of outstanding shares of Common Stock, the holder may rely on the number of outstanding shares of Common Stock as reflected in (1) the Company’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, Current Report on Form 8-K or other public filing with the SEC as the case may be, (2) a more recent public announcement by the Company or (3) any other notice by the Company or the Company’s transfer agent setting forth the number of shares of Common Stock outstanding. For any reason at any time, upon the written request of the holder of the Warrant, the Company shall, within two (2) Business Days, confirm orally and in writing to such holder the number of shares of Common Stock then outstanding. In any case, the number of outstanding shares of Common Stock shall be determined after giving effect to the conversion or exercise of equity securities of the Company by the holder and its affiliates since the date as of which such number of outstanding shares of Common Stock was reported. By written notice to the Company, the holder of a Warrant may from time to time increase or decrease the Maximum Percentage applicable to such holder to any other percentage specified in such notice; provided, however, that any such increase shall not be effective until the sixty-first (61st) day after such notice is delivered to the Company.

 

4.

Adjustments.

4.1    Stock Dividends; Split Ups. If after the date hereof, and subject to the provisions of Section 4.6 below, the number of outstanding shares of Common Stock is increased by a stock dividend payable in shares of Common Stock, or by a split up of shares of Common Stock, or other similar event, then, on the effective date of such stock dividend, split up or similar event, the number of shares of Common Stock issuable on exercise of each Warrant shall be increased in proportion to such increase in outstanding shares of Common Stock. A rights offering to holders of the Common Stock entitling holders to purchase shares of Common Stock at a price less than the “Fair Market Value” (as defined below) shall be deemed a stock dividend of a number of shares of Common Stock equal to the product of (i) the number of shares of Common Stock actually sold in such rights offering (or issuable under any other equity securities sold in such rights offering that are convertible into or exercisable for the Common Stock) and (ii) one (1) minus the quotient of (x) the price per share of Common Stock paid in such rights offering divided by (y) the Fair Market Value. For purposes of this subsection 4.1, (i) if the rights offering is for securities convertible into or exercisable for Common Stock, in determining the price payable for Common Stock, there shall be taken into account any consideration received for such rights, as well as any additional amount payable upon exercise or conversion and (ii) “Fair Market Value” means the volume weighted average price of the Common Stock as reported during the ten (10) trading day period ending on the trading day prior to the first date on which the shares of Common Stock trade on the applicable exchange or in the applicable market, regular way, without the right to receive such rights.

4.2    Aggregation of Shares. If after the date hereof, the number of outstanding shares of Common Stock is decreased by a consolidation, combination, reverse stock split or reclassification of shares of Common Stock or other similar event, then, on the effective date of such consolidation, combination, reverse stock split, reclassification or similar event, the number of shares of Common Stock issuable on exercise of each Warrant shall be decreased in proportion to such decrease in outstanding shares of Common Stock.

4.3    Extraordinary Dividends. If the Company, at any time while the Warrants are outstanding and unexpired, shall pay a dividend or make a distribution in cash, securities or other assets to the holders of the shares of Common Stock on account of such shares of Common Stock (or other shares of the Company’s capital stock into which the Warrants are convertible) (an “Extraordinary Dividend”), then the Warrant Price shall be decreased, effective immediately after the effective date of such Extraordinary Dividend, by the amount of cash and/or the fair market value (as determined by the Company’s Board of Directors, in good

 

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faith) of any securities or other assets paid on each share of Common Stock in respect of such Extraordinary Dividend; provided, however, that none of the following shall be deemed an Extraordinary Dividend for purposes of this provision: (a) any adjustment described in subsection 4.1 above, (b) any cash dividends or cash distributions which, when combined on a per share basis with the per-share amount of all other cash dividends and cash distributions paid on the Common Stock during the 365-day period ending on the date of declaration of such dividend or distribution to the extent it does not exceed $0.50 (as adjusted to appropriately reflect any of the events referred to in other subsections of this Section 4 and excluding cash dividends or cash distributions that resulted in an adjustment to the Warrant Price or to the number of shares of Common Stock issuable on exercise of each Warrant), (c) any payment to satisfy the redemption rights of the holders of the Common Stock in connection with a proposed initial Business Combination, (d) any payment to satisfy the redemption rights of the holders of the Common Stock in connection with a stockholder vote to amend the Company’s amended and restated certificate of incorporation (i) to modify the substance or timing of the Company’s obligation to allow redemption in connection with the Company’s initial Business Combination or in connection with certain amendments to the Company’s Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation prior thereto or to redeem 100% of the shares of Common Stock included in the Units sold in the Offering if the Company has not completed its initial Business Combination within the time period set forth in the Company’s Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation or (ii) with respect to any other provision relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial Business Combination activity, or (e) any payment in connection with the redemption of the shares of Common Stock included in the Units sold in the Offering upon the failure of the Company to complete its initial Business Combination and any subsequent distribution of its assets upon its liquidation. Solely for purposes of illustration, if the Company, at a time while the Warrants are outstanding and unexpired, pays a cash dividend of $0.35 and previously paid an aggregate of $0.40 of cash dividends and cash distributions on the Common Stock during the 365-day period ending on the date of declaration of such $0.35 dividend, then the Warrant Price will be decreased, effectively immediately after the effective date of such $0.35 dividend, by $0.25 (the absolute value of the difference between $0.75 (the aggregate amount of all cash dividends and cash distributions paid or made in such 365-day period, including such $0.35 dividend) and $0.50 (the greater of (x) $0.50 and (y) the aggregate amount of all cash dividends and cash distributions paid or made in such 365-day period prior to such $0.35 dividend)).

4.4    Adjustments in Exercise Price.

4.4.1    Whenever the number of shares of Common Stock purchasable upon the exercise of the Warrants is adjusted, as provided in Sections 4.1 and 4.2 above, the Warrant Price shall be adjusted (to the nearest cent) by multiplying such Warrant Price immediately prior to such adjustment by a fraction (x) the numerator of which shall be the number of shares of Common Stock purchasable upon the exercise of the Warrants immediately prior to such adjustment, and (y) the denominator of which shall be the number of shares of Common Stock so purchasable immediately thereafter.

4.4.2    If (i) the Company issues additional shares of Common Stock or equity-linked securities for capital raising purposes in connection with the closing of its initial Business Combination at an issue price or effective issue price of less than $9.20 per share of Common Stock (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, rights issuances, subdivisions, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like), with such issue price or effective issue price to be determined in good faith by the Board (and in the case of any such issuance to the Sponsor or its affiliates, without taking into account any founder shares (as defined in the Prospectus) held by the Sponsor or such affiliates, as applicable, prior to such issuance) (the “Newly Issued Price”), (ii) the aggregate gross proceeds from such issuances represent more than 60% of the total equity proceeds, and interest thereon, available for the funding of the initial Business Combination on the date of the consummation thereof (net of redemptions) and (iii) the volume weighted average trading price of the Common Stock during the 20 trading day period starting on the trading day prior to the day on which the Company consummates the initial Business Combination (such price, the “Market Value”) is below $9.20 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, rights issuances, subdivisions, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like), the Warrant Price shall be adjusted (to the nearest cent) to be equal to 115% of the greater of the Market Value and the Newly Issued Price and the $10.00 Redemption Trigger Price and $18.00 Redemption Trigger Price shall be adjusted (to the nearest cent) to equal to 100% and 180% of the greater of the Market Value and the Newly Issued Price, respectively.

 

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4.5    Replacement of Securities upon Reorganization, etc. In case of any reclassification or reorganization of the outstanding shares of Common Stock (other than a change covered by Section 4.1, 4.2 or 4.3 hereof or that solely affects the par value of the Common Stock), or in the case of any merger or consolidation of the Company with or into another corporation (other than a consolidation or merger in which the Company is the continuing corporation and that does not result in any reclassification or reorganization of the outstanding Common Stock), or in the case of any sale or conveyance to another corporation or entity of the assets or other property of the Company as an entirety or substantially as an entirety in connection with which the Company is dissolved, the Warrant holders shall thereafter have the right to purchase and receive, upon the basis and upon the terms and conditions specified in the Warrants and in lieu of the shares of Common Stock of the Company immediately theretofore purchasable and receivable upon the exercise of the rights represented thereby, the kind and amount of shares of stock or other securities or property (including cash) receivable upon such reclassification, reorganization, merger or consolidation, or upon a dissolution following any such sale or transfer, that the Warrant holder would have received if such Warrant holder had exercised his, her or its Warrant(s) immediately prior to such event (the “Alternative Issuance”); provided, that if less than 70% of the consideration receivable by the holders of the Common Stock in the applicable event is payable in the form of common stock in the successor entity that is listed for trading on a national securities exchange or is quoted in an established over-the-counter market, or is to be so listed for trading or quoted immediately following such event, and if the Registered Holder properly exercises the Warrant within thirty (30) days following the public disclosure of the consummation of such applicable event by the Company pursuant to a Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Commission, the Warrant Price shall be reduced by an amount (in dollars) (but in no event less than zero) equal to the difference of (i) the Warrant Price in effect prior to such reduction minus (ii) (A) the Per Share Consideration (as defined below) minus (B) the Black-Scholes Warrant Value (as defined below). The “Black-Scholes Warrant Value” means the value of a Warrant immediately prior to the consummation of the applicable event based on the Black-Scholes Warrant Model for a Capped American Call on Bloomberg Financial Markets (“Bloomberg”). For purposes of calculating such amount, (1) Section 6 of this Agreement shall be taken into account, (2) the price of each share of Common Stock shall be the volume weighted average price of the Common Stock as reported during the ten (10) trading day period ending on the trading day prior to the effective date of the applicable event, (3) the assumed volatility shall be the 90 day volatility obtained from the HVT function on Bloomberg determined as of the trading day immediately prior to the day of the announcement of the applicable event, and (4) the assumed risk-free interest rate shall correspond to the U.S. Treasury rate for a period equal to the remaining term of the Warrant. “Per Share Consideration” means (i) if the consideration paid to holders of the Common Stock consists exclusively of cash, the amount of such cash per share of Common Stock, and (ii) in all other cases, the volume weighted average price of the Common Stock as reported during the ten (10) trading day period ending on the trading day prior to the effective date of the applicable event. If any reclassification also results in a change in the Common Stock covered by Section 4.1, 4.2 or 4.3, then such adjustment shall be made pursuant to Sections 4.1, 4.2, 4.3, 4.4 and this Section 4.5. The provisions of this Section 4.5 shall similarly apply to successive reclassifications, reorganizations, mergers or consolidations, sales or other transfers. In no event will the Warrant Price be reduced to less than the par value per share issuable upon exercise of the Warrant.

4.6    Notices of Changes in Warrant. Upon every adjustment of the Warrant Price or the number of shares issuable upon exercise of a Warrant, the Company shall give written notice thereof to the Warrant Agent, which notice shall state the Warrant Price resulting from such adjustment and the increase or decrease, if any, in the number of shares purchasable at such price upon the exercise of a Warrant, setting forth in reasonable detail the method of calculation and the facts upon which such calculation is based. Upon the occurrence of any event specified in Sections 4.1, 4.2, 4.3, 4.4 or 4.5, then, in any such event, the Company shall give written notice to each Warrant holder, at the last address set forth for such holder in the Warrant Register, of the record date or the effective date of the event. Failure to give such notice, or any defect therein, shall not affect the legality or validity of such event.

 

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4.7    No Fractional Warrants or Shares. Notwithstanding any provision contained in this Agreement to the contrary, the Company shall not issue fractional shares upon exercise of Warrants. If, by reason of any adjustment made pursuant to this Section 4, the holder of any Warrant would be entitled, upon the exercise of such Warrant, to receive a fractional interest in a share, the Company shall, upon such exercise, round up to the nearest whole number of shares of Common Stock to be issued to the Warrant holder.

4.8    Form of Warrant. The form of Warrant need not be changed because of any adjustment pursuant to this Section 4, and Warrants issued after such adjustment may state the same Warrant Price and the same number of shares as is stated in the Warrants initially issued pursuant to this Agreement. However, the Company may at any time in its sole discretion make any change in the form of Warrant that the Company may deem appropriate and that does not affect the substance thereof, and any Warrant thereafter issued or countersigned, whether in exchange or substitution for an outstanding Warrant or otherwise, may be in the form as so changed.

4.9    Other Events. In case any event shall occur affecting the Company as to which none of the provisions of preceding subsections of this Section 4 are strictly applicable, but which would require an adjustment to the terms of the Warrants in order to (i) avoid an adverse impact on the Warrants and (ii) effectuate the intent and purpose of this Section 4, then, in each such case, the Company shall appoint a firm of independent public accountants, investment banking or other appraisal firm of recognized national standing, which shall give its opinion as to whether or not any adjustment to the rights represented by the Warrants is necessary to effectuate the intent and purpose of this Section 4 and, if they determine that an adjustment is necessary, the terms of such adjustment; provided, however, that under no circumstances shall the Warrants be adjusted pursuant to this Section 4.9 as a result of any issuance of securities in connection with a Business Combination. The Company shall adjust the terms of the Warrants in a manner that is consistent with any adjustment recommended in such opinion.

4.10    No Adjustment. For the avoidance of doubt, no adjustment shall be made to the terms of the Warrants solely as a result of an adjustment to the conversion ratio of the Class B common stock of the Company (the “Class B Common Stock”) into Common Stock or the conversion of the Class B Common Stock into Common Stock, in each case, pursuant to the Company’s amended and restated certificate of incorporation, as amended from time to time.

 

5.

Transfer and Exchange of Warrants.

5.1    Registration of Transfer. The Warrant Agent shall register the transfer, from time to time, of any outstanding Warrant upon the Warrant Register, upon surrender of such Warrant for transfer, properly endorsed with signatures, in the case of certificated Warrants, properly guaranteed and accompanied by appropriate instructions for transfer. Upon any such transfer, a new Warrant representing an equal aggregate number of Warrants shall be issued and the old Warrant shall be cancelled by the Warrant Agent. In the case of certificated Warrants, the Warrants so cancelled shall be delivered by the Warrant Agent to the Company from time to time upon request.

5.2    Procedure for Surrender of Warrants. Warrants may be surrendered to the Warrant Agent, either in certificated form or in book entry position, together with a written request for exchange or transfer, and thereupon the Warrant Agent shall issue in exchange therefor one or more new Warrants, in certificate form or book entry positions, as requested by the registered holder of the Warrants so surrendered, representing an equal aggregate number of Warrants; provided, however, that in the event that a Warrant surrendered for transfer bears a restrictive legend, the Warrant Agent shall not cancel such Warrant and issue new Warrants in exchange therefor until the Warrant Agent has received an opinion of counsel for the Company stating that such transfer may be made and indicating whether the new Warrants must also bear a restrictive legend.

 

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5.3    Fractional Warrants. The Warrant Agent shall not be required to effect any registration of transfer or exchange which will result in the issuance of a warrant certificate or book-entry position for a fraction of a warrant, except as part of the Units.

5.4    Service Charges. No service charge shall be made for any exchange or registration of transfer of Warrants.

5.5    Warrant Execution and Countersignature. The Warrant Agent is hereby authorized to countersign and to deliver, in accordance with the terms of this Agreement, the Warrants required to be issued pursuant to the provisions of this Section 5, and the Company, whenever required by the Warrant Agent, shall supply the Warrant Agent with Warrants duly executed on behalf of the Company for such purpose.

5.6    Private Warrants and Working Capital Warrants. The Warrant Agent shall not register any transfer of Private Warrants or Working Capital Warrants until 30 days after the consummation by the Company of an initial Business Combination, except (a) to the Company’s initial stockholders (as defined in the Prospectus), officers, directors or advisors, any affiliates or family members of any of the Company’s initial stockholders, officers, directors or advisors or any affiliate of the Company’s initial stockholders, officers, directors or advisors, (b) in the case of an individual, transfers by gift to a member of the individual’s immediate family, to a trust, the beneficiary of which is a member of the individual’s immediate family or an affiliate of such person, or to a charitable organization; (c) in the case of an individual, transfers by virtue of laws of descent and distribution upon death of the individual; (d) in the case of an individual, transfers pursuant to a qualified domestic relations order; (e) transfers by private sales or transfers made in connection with the consummation of a Business Combination at prices no greater than the price at which the Warrants were originally purchased; (f) transfers in the event of the Company’s liquidation prior to the completion of its initial Business Combination; (g) in the case of an entity, transfers by virtue of the laws of its jurisdiction or operating agreement upon dissolution; (h) to the Company for no value for cancellation in connection with the consummation of an initial Business Combination; or (i) in the event of the Company’s liquidation, merger, capital stock exchange, reorganization or other similar transaction which results in all of the Company’s stockholders having the right to exchange their shares of common stock for cash, securities or other property subsequent to our completion of the Company’s initial Business Combination; provided, however, that in the case of clauses (a) through (g) these permitted transferees (the “Permitted Transferees”) must enter into a written agreement agreeing to be bound by these transfer restrictions and the other restrictions contained in the letter agreement, dated as of the date hereof, by and among the Company, the Sponsor and the Company’s directors and officers and by the same agreements entered into by the Sponsor with respect to such securities (including provisions relating to voting, the trust account and liquidation distributions described in the Prospectus).

5.7    Transfers prior to Detachment. Prior to the Detachment Date, the Public Warrants may be transferred or exchanged only together with the Unit in which such Warrant is included, and only for the purpose of effecting, or in conjunction with, a transfer or exchange of such Unit. Furthermore, each transfer of a Unit on the register relating to such Units shall operate also to transfer the Warrants included in such Unit. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the provisions of this Section 5.7 shall have no effect on any transfer of Warrants on or after the Detachment Date.

 

6.

Redemption.

6.1    Redemption. Subject to Section 6.4 hereof, not less than all of the outstanding Warrants may be redeemed, at the option of the Company, as follows:

6.1.1    Redemption when the Price Per Share of Common Stock Equals or Exceeds $18.00. The Company may redeem all of the outstanding Warrants at any time during the Exercise Period, at the office of the Warrant Agent, upon the notice referred to in Section 6.2, at the price of $0.01 per Warrant (the “$18.00 Redemption Price”), provided that the last reported sales price of the Common Stock equals or exceeds $18.00 per share (subject to adjustment in accordance with Section 4 hereof) (the “$18.00 Redemption

 

10


Trigger Price”), on each of twenty (20) trading days within any thirty (30) trading day period commencing after the Warrants become exercisable and ending on the third trading day prior to the date on which notice of redemption is given and provided that there is an effective registration statement covering the issuance of the shares of Common Stock issuable upon exercise of the Warrants, and a current prospectus relating thereto, available throughout the 30-day redemption period or the Company has elected to require the exercise of the Warrants on a “cashless basis” pursuant to subsection 3.3.1(b).

6.1.2    Redemption when the Price Per Share of Common Stock Equals or Exceeds $10.00. The Company may redeem all of the outstanding Warrants at any time following 90 days after the commencement of the Exercise Period, at the office of the Warrant Agent, upon the notice pursuant to Section 6.2, at the price of $0.10 per Warrant (the “$10.00 Redemption Price”), if and only if (i) the last reported sales price of the Common Stock equals or exceeds $10.00 per share (subject to adjustment in accordance with Section 4 hereof) (the “$10.00 Redemption Trigger Price”), on the trading day prior to the date on which notice of redemption is given, (ii) the Private Warrants and Working Capital Warrants, if any, are also concurrently called for redemption on the same terms as described in this Section 6, and (iii) there is an effective registration statement covering the issuance of the shares of Common Stock issuable upon exercise of the Warrants and a current prospectus relating thereto available throughout the thirty (30) day period after written notice of redemption is given (the “Redemption Period”). During the Redemption Period in connection with a redemption pursuant to this Section 6.1.2, registered holders of the Warrants may elect to exercise their Warrants on a “cashless basis” pursuant to subsection 3.3.1 and receive a number of shares of the Company’s Common Stock to be determined by reference to the table below, based on the Redemption Date (calculated for purposes of the table as the period to expiration of the Warrants) and the “Fair Market Value” of the Company’s Common Stock (as defined in Section 3.3.1(b)).

 

Redemption Date (period to
expiration of warrants)

   Fair Market Value of Class A Common Stock  
   £$10.00      $11.00      $12.00      $13.00      $14.00      $15.00      $16.00      $17.00      ³$18.00  

57 months

     0.233        0.255        0.275        0.293        0.309        0.324        0.338        0.350        0.361  

54 months

     0.229        0.251        0.272        0.291        0.307        0.323        0.337        0.350        0.361  

51 months

     0.225        0.248        0.269        0.288        0.305        0.321        0.336        0.349        0.361  

48 months

     0.220        0.243        0.265        0.285        0.303        0.320        0.335        0.349        0.361  

45 months

     0.214        0.239        0.261        0.282        0.301        0.318        0.334        0.348        0.361  

42 months

     0.208        0.234        0.257        0.278        0.298        0.316        0.333        0.348        0.361  

39 months

     0.202        0.228        0.252        0.275        0.295        0.314        0.331        0.347        0.361  

36 months

     0.195        0.222        0.247        0.271        0.292        0.312        0.330        0.346        0.361  

33 months

     0.187        0.215        0.241        0.266        0.288        0.309        0.328        0.345        0.361  

30 months

     0.179        0.208        0.235        0.261        0.284        0.306        0.326        0.345        0.361  

27 months

     0.170        0.199        0.228        0.255        0.280        0.303        0.324        0.343        0.361  

24 months

     0.159        0.190        0.220        0.248        0.274        0.299        0.322        0.342        0.361  

21 months

     0.148        0.179        0.210        0.240        0.268        0.295        0.319        0.341        0.361  

18 months

     0.135        0.167        0.200        0.231        0.261        0.289        0.315        0.339        0.361  

15 months

     0.120        0.153        0.187        0.220        0.253        0.283        0.311        0.337        0.361  

12 months

     0.103        0.137        0.172        0.207        0.242        0.275        0.306        0.335        0.361  

9 months

     0.083        0.117        0.153        0.191        0.229        0.266        0.300        0.332        0.361  

6 months

     0.059        0.092        0.130        0.171        0.213        0.254        0.292        0.328        0.361  

3 months

     0.030        0.060        0.100        0.145        0.193        0.240        0.284        0.324        0.361  

0 months

     0.000        0.000        0.042        0.115        0.179        0.233        0.281        0.324        0.361  

 

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The exact Fair Market Value and Redemption Date may not be set forth in the table above, in which case, if the Fair Market Value is between two values in the table or the Redemption Date is between two redemption dates in the table, the number of shares of Common Stock to be issued for each Warrant exercised will be determined by a straight-line interpolation between the number of shares set forth for the higher and lower Fair Market Values and the earlier and later Redemption Dates, as applicable, based on a 365 or 366-day year, as applicable.

The stock prices set forth in the column headings of the table above shall be adjusted as of any date on which the number of shares issuable upon exercise of a Warrant is adjusted pursuant to Section 4. The adjusted stock prices in the column headings shall equal the stock prices immediately prior to such adjustment, multiplied by a fraction, the numerator of which is the number of shares deliverable upon exercise of a Warrant immediately prior to such adjustment and the denominator of which is the number of shares deliverable upon exercise of a Warrant as so adjusted. The number of shares in the table above shall be adjusted in the same manner and at the same time as the number of shares issuable upon exercise of a Warrant. In no event will the number of shares issued in connection with a Make-Whole Exercise exceed 0.365 shares of Common Stock per Warrant (subject to adjustment).

6.2    Date Fixed for, and Notice of, Redemption. In the event the Company shall elect to redeem all of the Warrants that are subject to redemption pursuant to Section 6.1, the Company shall fix a date for the redemption (the “Redemption Date”). Notice of redemption shall be mailed by first class mail, postage prepaid, by the Company not less than thirty (30) days prior to the Redemption Date to the registered holders of the Warrants to be redeemed at their last addresses as they shall appear on the registration books. Any notice mailed in the manner herein provided shall be conclusively presumed to have been duly given whether or not the registered holder received such notice.

6.3    Exercise After Notice of Redemption. The Warrants may be exercised, for cash (or on a “cashless basis” in accordance with Section 6.1.2 of this Agreement or Section 3.3.1(b) of this Agreement) at any time after notice of redemption shall have been given by the Company pursuant to Section 6.2 hereof and prior to the Redemption Date. In the event the Company determines to require all holders of Public Warrants to exercise their Warrants on a “cashless basis” pursuant to Section 3.3.1(b), the notice of redemption will contain the information necessary to calculate the number of shares of Common Stock to be received upon exercise of the Warrants, including the “Fair Market Value” in such case. On and after the Redemption Date, the record holder of the Warrants shall have no further rights except to receive, upon surrender of the Warrants, the Redemption Price.

6.4    Exclusion of Certain Warrants. The Company agrees that the redemption rights provided in this Section 6 (excluding Section 6.1.2) shall not apply to (i) the Private Warrants and Working Capital Warrants if at the time of the redemption such Private Warrants or Working Capital Warrants continue to be held by the initial recipients or their Permitted Transferees or (ii) Post IPO Warrants if such warrants provide that they are non-redeemable by the Company. However, with respect to the Private Warrants or Working Capital Warrants, once such Private Warrants or Working Capital Warrants are transferred (other than to Permitted Transferees under Section 5.6), the Company may redeem the Private Warrants and Working Capital Warrants in the same manner as the Public Warrants.

 

7.

Other Provisions Relating to Rights of Holders of Warrants.

7.1    No Rights as Stockholder. A Warrant does not entitle the registered holder thereof to any of the rights of a stockholder of the Company, including, without limitation, the right to receive dividends, or other distributions, exercise any preemptive rights to vote or to consent or to receive notice as stockholders in respect of the meetings of stockholders or the election of directors of the Company or any other matter.

7.2    Lost, Stolen, Mutilated, or Destroyed Warrants. If any Warrant is lost, stolen, mutilated, or destroyed, the Company and the Warrant Agent may on such terms as to indemnity or otherwise as they may

 

12


in their discretion impose (which shall, in the case of a mutilated Warrant, include the surrender thereof), issue a new Warrant of like denomination, tenor, and date as the Warrant so lost, stolen, mutilated, or destroyed. Any such new Warrant shall constitute a substitute contractual obligation of the Company, whether or not the allegedly lost, stolen, mutilated, or destroyed Warrant shall be at any time enforceable by anyone.

7.3    Reservation of Shares of Common Stock. The Company shall at all times reserve and keep available a number of its authorized but unissued shares of Common Stock that shall be sufficient to permit the exercise in full of all outstanding Warrants issued pursuant to this Agreement.

7.4    Registration of Shares of Common Stock. The Company agrees that as soon as practicable, but in no event later than fifteen (15) Business Days, after the closing of its initial Business Combination, it shall use its reasonable best efforts to file with the SEC a registration statement for the registration, under the Securities Act, of the issuance of the shares of Common Stock issuable upon exercise of the Warrants. The Company shall use its reasonable best efforts to cause the same to become effective within sixty (60) Business Days after the closing of its initial Business Combination, and to maintain the effectiveness of such registration statement until the expiration or redemption of the Warrants in accordance with the provisions of this Agreement. If any such registration statement has not been declared effective by the 60th Business Day following the closing of the Business Combination, holders of the Warrants shall have the right, during the period beginning on the 61st Business Day after the closing of the Business Combination and ending upon such registration statement being declared effective by the SEC, and during any other period when the Company shall fail to have maintained an effective registration statement covering the shares of Common Stock issuable upon exercise of the Warrants, to exercise such Warrants on a “cashless basis” as determined in accordance with Section 3.3.1(d). The Company shall, upon request by the Warrant Agent, provide the Warrant Agent with an opinion of counsel for the Company (which shall be an outside law firm with securities law experience) stating that (i) the exercise of the Warrants on a cashless basis in accordance with this Section 7.4 is not required to be registered under the Securities Act and (ii) the shares of Common Stock issued upon such exercise shall be freely tradable under U.S. federal securities laws by anyone who is not an affiliate (as such term is defined in Rule 144 under the Securities Act (or any successor rule)) of the Company and, accordingly, shall not be required to bear a restrictive legend. Except as provided in Section 7.5, for the avoidance of any doubt, unless and until all of the Warrants have been exercised, the Company shall continue to be obligated to comply with its registration obligations under the first three sentences of this subsection 7.4.

7.5    Cashless Exercise at Company’s Option. If the Common Stock is at the time of any exercise of a Warrant not listed on a national securities exchange such that it satisfies the definition of a “covered security” under Section 18(b)(1) of the Securities Act (or any successor rule), the Company may, at its option, (i) require holders of Public Warrants who exercise Public Warrants to exercise such Public Warrants on a “cashless basis” in accordance with Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act (or any successor rule) as described in subsection 7.4 and (ii) in the event the Company so elects, the Company shall (x) not be required to file or maintain in effect a registration statement for the registration, under the Securities Act, of the Common Stock issuable upon exercise of the Warrants, notwithstanding anything in this Agreement to the contrary, and (y) use its best efforts to register or qualify for sale the Common Stock issuable upon exercise of the Public Warrants under the blue sky laws of the state of residence of the exercising Public Warrant holder to the extent an exemption is not available.

 

8.

Concerning the Warrant Agent and Other Matters.

8.1    Payment of Taxes. The Company shall from time to time promptly pay all taxes and charges that may be imposed upon the Company or the Warrant Agent in respect of the issuance or delivery of shares of Common Stock upon the exercise of Warrants, but the Company shall not be obligated to pay any transfer taxes in respect of the Warrants or such shares.

 

13


8.2    Resignation, Consolidation, or Merger of Warrant Agent.

8.2.1    Appointment of Successor Warrant Agent. The Warrant Agent, or any successor to it hereafter appointed, may resign its duties and be discharged from all further duties and liabilities hereunder after giving sixty (60) days’ notice in writing to the Company. If the office of the Warrant Agent becomes vacant by resignation or incapacity to act or otherwise, the Company shall appoint in writing a successor Warrant Agent in place of the Warrant Agent. If the Company shall fail to make such appointment within a period of thirty (30) days after it has been notified in writing of such resignation or incapacity by the Warrant Agent or by the holder of the Warrant (who shall, with such notice, submit his Warrant for inspection by the Company), then the holder of any Warrant may apply to the Supreme Court of the State of New York for the County of New York for the appointment of a successor Warrant Agent at the Company’s cost. Any successor Warrant Agent, whether appointed by the Company or by such court, shall be a corporation organized and existing under the laws of the State of New York, in good standing and having its principal office in the Borough of Manhattan, City and State of New York, and authorized under such laws to exercise corporate trust powers and subject to supervision or examination by federal or state authority. After appointment, any successor Warrant Agent shall be vested with all the authority, powers, rights, immunities, duties, and obligations of its predecessor Warrant Agent with like effect as if originally named as Warrant Agent hereunder, without any further act or deed; but if for any reason it becomes necessary or appropriate, the predecessor Warrant Agent shall execute and deliver, at the expense of the Company, an instrument transferring to such successor Warrant Agent all the authority, powers, and rights of such predecessor Warrant Agent hereunder; and upon request of any successor Warrant Agent the Company shall make, execute, acknowledge, and deliver any and all instruments in writing for more fully and effectually vesting in and confirming to such successor Warrant Agent all such authority, powers, rights, immunities, duties, and obligations.

8.2.2    Notice of Successor Warrant Agent. In the event a successor Warrant Agent shall be appointed, the Company shall give notice thereof to the predecessor Warrant Agent and the Company’s transfer agent for the Common Stock not later than the effective date of any such appointment.

8.2.3    Merger or Consolidation of Warrant Agent. Any corporation into which the Warrant Agent may be merged or with which it may be consolidated or any corporation resulting from any merger or consolidation to which the Warrant Agent shall be a party shall be the successor Warrant Agent under this Agreement without any further act.

8.3    Fees and Expenses of Warrant Agent.

8.3.1    Remuneration. The Company agrees to pay the Warrant Agent reasonable remuneration for its services as such Warrant Agent hereunder and shall reimburse the Warrant Agent upon demand for all expenditures that the Warrant Agent may reasonably incur in the execution of its duties hereunder.

8.3.2    Further Assurances. The Company agrees to perform, execute, acknowledge, and deliver or cause to be performed, executed, acknowledged, and delivered all such further and other acts, instruments, and assurances as may reasonably be required by the Warrant Agent for the carrying out or performing of the provisions of this Agreement.

8.4    Liability of Warrant Agent.

8.4.1    Reliance on Company Statement. Whenever in the performance of its duties under this Agreement, the Warrant Agent shall deem it necessary or desirable that any fact or matter be proved or established by the Company prior to taking or suffering any action hereunder, such fact or matter (unless other evidence in respect thereof be herein specifically prescribed) may be deemed to be conclusively proved and established by a statement signed by the Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer, Chairman of the Board of Directors or Secretary of the Company and delivered to the Warrant Agent. The Warrant Agent may rely upon such statement for any action taken or suffered in good faith by it pursuant to the provisions of this Agreement.

 

14


8.4.2    Indemnity. The Warrant Agent shall be liable hereunder only for its own fraud, gross negligence, willful misconduct or bad faith. The Company agrees to indemnify the Warrant Agent and save it harmless against any and all liabilities, including judgments, out-of-pocket costs and reasonable outside counsel fees, for anything done or omitted by the Warrant Agent in the execution of this Agreement except as a result of the Warrant Agent’s fraud, gross negligence, willful misconduct or bad faith.

8.4.3    Exclusions. The Warrant Agent shall have no responsibility with respect to the validity of this Agreement or with respect to the validity or execution of any Warrant (except its countersignature thereof); nor shall it be responsible for any breach by the Company of any covenant or condition contained in this Agreement or in any Warrant; nor shall it be responsible to make any adjustments required under the provisions of Section 4 hereof or responsible for the manner, method, or amount of any such adjustment or the ascertaining of the existence of facts that would require any such adjustment; nor shall it by any act hereunder be deemed to make any representation or warranty as to the authorization or reservation of any shares of Common Stock to be issued pursuant to this Agreement or any Warrant or as to whether any shares of Common Stock will, when issued, be valid and fully paid and nonassessable.

8.5    Acceptance of Agency. The Warrant Agent hereby accepts the agency established by this Agreement and agrees to perform the same upon the terms and conditions herein set forth and among other things, shall account promptly to the Company with respect to Warrants exercised and concurrently account for, and pay to the Company, all monies received by the Warrant Agent for the purchase of shares of Common Stock through the exercise of Warrants.

 

9.

Miscellaneous Provisions.

9.1    Successors. All the covenants and provisions of this Agreement by or for the benefit of the Company or the Warrant Agent shall bind and inure to the benefit of their respective successors and assigns.

9.2    Notices. Any notice, statement or demand authorized by this Agreement to be given or made by the Warrant Agent or by the holder of any Warrant to or on the Company shall be sufficiently given when so delivered if by hand or overnight delivery or if sent by certified mail or private courier service within five (5) days after deposit of such notice, postage prepaid, addressed (until another address is filed in writing by the Company with the Warrant Agent), as follows:

Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

[    ]

Attn: [    ]

Any notice, statement or demand authorized by this Agreement to be given or made by the holder of any Warrant or by the Company to or on the Warrant Agent shall be sufficiently given when so delivered if by hand or overnight delivery or if sent by certified mail or private courier service within five days after deposit of such notice, postage prepaid, addressed (until another address is filed in writing by the Warrant Agent with the Company), as follows:

Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company

1 State Street

New York, New York 10004

Attn: Compliance Department

 

15


with a copy in each case to:

Greenberg Traurig, LLP

1750 Tysons Boulevard

Suite 1000

McLean, VA 22102

Attn: Alan I. Annex, Esq. and Jason T. Simon, Esq.

and

UBS Securities LLC

11 Wall Street

New York, New York 10005

Attn: General Counsel

and

Moelis & Co.

399 Park Avenue, 5th Floor

New York, New York 10022

Attn: General Counsel

and

Graubard Miller

The Chrysler Building

405 Lexington Avenue

New York, New York 10174

Attn: David Alan Miller, Esq. and Jeffrey M. Gallant, Esq.

9.3    Applicable Law. The validity, interpretation, and performance of this Agreement and of the Warrants shall be governed in all respects by the laws of the State of New York, without giving effect to conflicts of law principles that would result in the application of the substantive laws of another jurisdiction. The Company hereby agrees that any action, proceeding or claim against it arising out of or relating in any way to this Agreement shall be brought and enforced in the courts of the State of New York or the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, and irrevocably submits to such jurisdiction. The Company hereby waives any objection that such courts represent an inconvenient forum. Any such process or summons to be served upon the Company may be served by transmitting a copy thereof by registered or certified mail, return receipt requested, postage prepaid, addressed to it at the address set forth in Section 9.2 hereof. Such mailing shall be deemed personal service and shall be legal and binding upon the Company in any action, proceeding or claim.

9.4    Persons Having Rights under this Agreement. Nothing in this Agreement expressed and nothing that may be implied from any of the provisions hereof is intended, or shall be construed, to confer upon, or give to, any person or corporation other than the parties hereto and the registered holders of the Warrants and, for the purposes of Sections 7.4, 9.4 and 9.8 hereof, the Representatives, any right, remedy, or claim under or by reason of this Agreement or of any covenant, condition, stipulation, promise, or agreement hereof. The Representatives shall be deemed to be third-party beneficiaries of this Agreement with respect to Sections 7.4, 9.4 and 9.8 hereof. All covenants, conditions, stipulations, promises, and agreements contained in this Agreement shall be for the sole and exclusive benefit of the parties hereto (and the Representatives with respect to the Sections 7.4, 9.4 and 9.8 hereof) and their successors and assigns and of the registered holders of the Warrants.

9.5    Examination of the Warrant Agreement. A copy of this Agreement shall be available at all reasonable times at the office of the Warrant Agent in the Borough of Manhattan, City and State of New York, for inspection by the registered holder of any Warrant. The Warrant Agent may require any such holder to submit his Warrant for inspection by it.

9.6    Counterparts. This Agreement may be executed in any number of original or facsimile counterparts and each of such counterparts shall for all purposes be deemed to be an original, and all such counterparts shall together constitute but one and the same instrument.

 

16


9.7    Effect of Headings. The section headings herein are for convenience only and are not part of this Agreement and shall not affect the interpretation thereof.

9.8    Amendments. This Agreement may be amended by the parties hereto without the consent of any registered holder (i) for the purpose of curing any ambiguity or to correct any mistake including to conform the provisions hereof to the description of the terms of the Warrants and this Agreement set forth in the Prospectus, or of curing, correcting or supplementing any defective provision contained herein or adding or changing any other provisions with respect to matters or questions arising under this Agreement as the parties may deem necessary or desirable and that the parties deem shall not adversely affect the interest of the registered holders and (ii) to provide for the delivery of Alternative Issuance pursuant to Section 4.4. All other modifications or amendments, including any modification or amendment to increase the Warrant Price or shorten the Exercise Period, shall require the written consent or vote of the registered holders of at least 50% of the then outstanding Public Warrants. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Company may lower the Warrant Price or extend the duration of the Exercise Period pursuant to Sections 3.1 and 3.2, respectively, without the consent of the registered holders.

9.9    Trust Account Waiver. The Warrant Agent acknowledges and agrees that it shall not make any claims or proceed against the trust account established by the Company in connection with the Public Offering (as more fully described in the Registration Statement) (“Trust Account”), including by way of set-off, and shall not be entitled to any funds in the Trust Account under any circumstance. In the event that the Warrant Agent has a claim against the Company under this Agreement, the Warrant Agent will pursue such claim solely against the Company and not against the property held in the Trust Account.

9.10    Severability. This Agreement shall be deemed severable, and the invalidity or unenforceability of any term or provision hereof shall not affect the validity or enforceability of this Agreement or of any other term or provision hereof. Furthermore, in lieu of any such invalid or unenforceable term or provision, the parties hereto intend that there shall be added as a part of this Agreement a provision as similar in terms to such invalid or unenforceable provision as may be possible and be valid and enforceable.

[Signature Page Follows]

 

17


IN WITNESS WHEREOF, this Agreement has been duly executed by the parties hereto as of the day and year first above written.

 

GOLDEN FALCON ACQUISITION CORP.
By:  

 

  Name: Makram Azar
  Title: Chief Executive Officer
CONTINENTAL STOCK TRANSFER & TRUST COMPANY
By:  

 

  Name:
  Title:

[Signature Page to Warrant Agreement]

Exhibit 5.1

 

LOGO

December 1, 2020

Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

850 Library Avenue, Suite 204

Newark, Delaware 19711

 

Re:

Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

Registration Statement on Form S-1

Ladies and Gentlemen:

Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), has filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission a Registration Statement on Form S-1, as amended (the “Registration Statement”), under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Act”). The Registration Statement relates to the underwritten public offering by the Company of up to 28,750,000 units of the Company (the “Units”) (including up to 3,750,000 Units subject to the Underwriters’ (as defined below) option to purchase additional Units), each Unit consisting of:

(i)    one share of the Company’s Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 per share (“Common Stock,” and the shares of Common Stock underlying the Units, the “Shares”), for an aggregate of up to 28,750,000 Shares (including up to 3,750,000 Shares included in the Units subject to the Underwriters’ option to purchase additional Units); and

(ii)    one-half of one redeemable warrant (each whole warrant, a “Warrant”) with each Warrant entitling the holder to purchase one share of Common Stock, for an aggregate of up to 14,375,000 Warrants (including up to 1,875,000 Warrants included in the Units subject to the Underwriters’ option to purchase additional Units) to be issued under a Warrant Agreement (the “Warrant Agreement”) to be entered into by the Company and Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, as Warrant Agent, pursuant to the terms of an underwriting agreement (the “Underwriting Agreement”) to be executed by the Company and UBS Securities LLC and Moelis & Co., as representatives of the several underwriters named therein (the “Underwriters”). We have acted as counsel to the Company in connection with the preparation and filing of the Registration Statement and this opinion is being furnished in accordance with the requirements of Item 601(b)(5) of Regulation S-K under the Act.

We have examined copies of such corporate records, agreements, documents and other instruments of the Company and other certificates and documents of officials of the Company, public officials, and others, as we have deemed appropriate for purposes of this letter. We have assumed the genuineness of all signatures, the legal capacity of all natural persons, the authenticity of all documents submitted to us as originals, and the conformity to authentic original documents of all copies submitted to us as conformed, certified, or reproduced copies. We have also assumed that (i) upon sale and delivery of the Units, the Shares, and the Warrants, the certificates representing such Units, Shares, and Warrants will conform to the specimens thereof filed as exhibits to the Registration Statement and will have been duly countersigned by the transfer agent and duly registered by the registrar or, if uncertificated, valid book-entry notations for the issuance of the Units, the Shares, and the Warrants in uncertificated form will have been duly made in the register of the Company and (ii) at the time of execution, countersigning, issuance, and delivery of the Warrants, the Warrant Agreement will be a valid and binding obligation of the Warrant Agent, enforceable against the Warrant Agent in accordance with its terms. In addition, in providing the opinions herein, we have relied, with respect to matters related to the Company’s existence, upon the certificates referenced above.

Based upon the foregoing, and subject to the assumptions, exceptions, qualifications, and limitations stated herein, we are of the opinion that:

1. When the Underwriting Agreement and the Warrant Agreement have been duly executed and delivered by the respective parties thereto and the Units, the Shares, and the Warrants have been issued and delivered in accordance with the Underwriting Agreement against payment in full of the consideration payable therefor as


determined by the Board of Directors of the Company or a duly authorized committee thereof and as contemplated by the Underwriting Agreement, the Units and the Shares and Warrants included in the Units will be duly authorized, validly issued, fully paid and non-assessable.

2. When the Underwriting Agreement and the Warrant Agreement have been duly executed and delivered by the respective parties thereto and the Warrants have been duly executed by the Company and duly countersigned by the Warrant Agent in accordance with the terms of the Warrant Agreement and delivered to and paid for by the Underwriters pursuant to the terms of the Underwriting Agreement, the Warrants will be valid and binding obligations of the Company, enforceable against the Company in accordance with their terms.

3. When the Underwriting Agreement has been duly executed and delivered by the respective parties thereto and the Units have been duly executed by the Company and delivered by Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, as transfer agent, the Units will be valid and binding obligations of the Company, enforceable against the Company in accordance with their terms.

The opinions and other matters in this letter are qualified in their entirety and subject to the following:

A. We express no opinion as to the laws of any jurisdiction other than (i) the laws of the State of New York and (ii) the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware. As used herein, the term “General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware” includes the statutory provisions contained therein and all applicable provisions of the Delaware Constitution and reported judicial decisions interpreting these laws.

B. The matters expressed in this letter are subject to and qualified and limited by (i) applicable bankruptcy, insolvency, fraudulent transfer and conveyance, reorganization, moratorium and similar laws affecting creditors’ rights and remedies generally; and (ii) general principles of equity, including without limitation, concepts of materiality, reasonableness, good faith and fair dealing and the possible unavailability of specific performance or injunctive relief (regardless of whether considered in a proceeding in equity or at law).

C. This opinion letter is limited to the matters expressly stated herein and no opinion is to be inferred or implied beyond the opinions expressly set forth herein. We undertake no, and hereby disclaim any, obligation to make any inquiry after the date hereof or to advise you of any changes in any matter set forth herein, whether based on a change in the law, a change in any fact relating to the Company or any other person or any other circumstance.

We hereby consent to the filing of this opinion as an exhibit to the Registration Statement and to the reference to us under the caption “Legal Matters” in the prospectus comprising a part of the Registration Statement. In giving this consent, we do not thereby admit that we are included within the category of persons whose consent is required by Section 7 of the Act and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder.

 

Very truly yours,

/s/ Greenberg Traurig, LLP

 

GREENBERG TRAURIG, LLP

Exhibit 10.1

[●], 2020

Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

850 Library Avenue, Suite 204

Newark, Delaware 19711

UBS Securities LLC

11 Wall Street

New York, New York 10005

Moelis & Co.

399 Park Avenue, 5th Floor

New York, New York 10022

Re:    Initial Public Offering

Gentlemen:

This letter agreement (this “Agreement”) is being delivered to you in accordance with the Underwriting Agreement (the “Underwriting Agreement”) to be entered into by and between Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), and UBS Securities LLC and Moelis & Co., as representatives (the “Representatives”) of the several Underwriters named in Schedule 1 thereto (the “Underwriters”), relating to an underwritten initial public offering (the “IPO”) of the Company’s units (the “Units”), each unit comprised of one share of the Company’s Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 per share (the “Common Stock”), and one-half of one redeemable warrant, each whole warrant exercisable for one share of Common Stock (each, a “Warrant”). Certain capitalized terms used herein are defined in paragraph 13 hereof.

In order to induce the Company and the Underwriters to enter into the Underwriting Agreement and to proceed with the IPO, and in recognition of the benefit that such IPO will confer upon the undersigned, and for other good and valuable consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of which are hereby acknowledged, the undersigned hereby agrees, severally but not jointly, with the Company as follows:

1.    If the Company solicits approval of its stockholders of a Business Combination, the undersigned shall vote all shares of Common Stock and Founder Shares (including shares of Common Stock issuable upon conversion of Founder Shares) beneficially owned by him or her, whether acquired before, in, or after the IPO, in favor of such Business Combination.

2.    In the event that the Company fails to consummate a Business Combination within the time period set forth in the Company’s Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, as the same may be amended from time to time, the undersigned will, as promptly as possible, cause the Company to (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up, (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible, but not more than 10 business days thereafter, redeem the IPO Shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the Trust Account, including interest earned on the funds held in the Trust Account and not previously released to the Company to pay its taxes (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of then outstanding IPO Shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidating distributions, if any), and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of the Company’s remaining stockholders and the Company’s board of directors, dissolve and liquidate, subject in the cases of clauses (ii) and (iii) to the Company’s obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and requirements of other applicable law. The undersigned hereby waives any and all right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to any distribution of the Trust Account and any remaining net assets of the Company as a result of such liquidation (“Claim”) with respect to the Founder Shares owned by the undersigned and hereby waives any Claim the undersigned may have in the future as a result of, or arising out of, any contracts or agreements with the Company and will not seek recourse against the Trust Account for any reason whatsoever. The undersigned acknowledges and agrees that there will be no distribution from the Trust Account with respect to any Warrants, all rights of which will terminate on the Company’s liquidation. In the event of the liquidation of the Trust Account upon the failure of the Company to


consummate its initial Business Combination within the time period set forth in the Company’s Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, as the same may be amended from time to time, the undersigned agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the Company against any and all loss, liability, claim, damage and expense whatsoever (including, but not limited to, any and all legal or other expenses reasonably incurred in investigating, preparing or defending against any litigation, whether pending or threatened) to which the Company may become subject as a result of any claim by (i) any third party for services rendered or products sold to the Company or (ii) any prospective target business with which the Company has discussed entering into a transaction agreement (a “Target”); provided, however, that such indemnification of the Company by the undersigned (x) shall apply only to the extent necessary to ensure that such claims by a third party for services rendered or products sold to the Company or a Target do not reduce the amount of funds in the Trust Account to below (i) $10.00 per IPO Share or (ii) such lesser amount per IPO Share held in the Trust Account as of the date of the liquidation of the Trust Account due to reductions in the value of the trust assets, in each case net of the amount of interest which may be withdrawn to pay taxes, (y) shall not apply to any claims by a third party who executed a waiver of any and all rights to the monies held in the Trust Account (whether or not such waiver is enforceable) and (z) shall not apply to any claims under the Company’s indemnity of the Underwriters against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.

3.    The undersigned acknowledges and agrees that prior to entering into a Business Combination with a target business that is affiliated with any Insiders of the Company or any of their affiliates, such transaction must be approved by a majority of the Company’s disinterested independent directors and the Company must obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm, or another independent entity that commonly renders valuation opinions, that such Business Combination is fair to the Company (and/or its unaffiliated stockholders) from a financial point of view.

4.    Neither the undersigned nor any affiliate of the undersigned will be entitled to receive and will not accept any finder’s fees, consulting fee, compensation or other cash payment from the Company prior to, or for services rendered in order to effectuate, the completion of the Business Combination; provided that the Company shall be allowed to make the payments set forth in the Registration Statement adjacent to the caption “Prospectus Summary – The Offering – Limited payments to insiders.

5.    (a) In order to minimize potential conflicts of interest that may arise from multiple business affiliations, the undersigned hereby agrees that until the earliest of the Company’s initial Business Combination or liquidation, the undersigned shall present to the Company for its consideration, prior to presentation to any other entity, any suitable target business, subject to any fiduciary or contractual obligations the undersigned might have.

       (b)    The undersigned hereby agrees and acknowledges that (i) each of the Underwriters and the Company may be irreparably injured in the event of a breach of any of the obligations contained in this Agreement, (ii) monetary damages may not be an adequate remedy for such breach and (iii) the non-breaching party shall be entitled to injunctive relief, in addition to any other remedy that such party may have in law or in equity, in the event of such breach.

6.    (a) The undersigned agrees that the Founder Shares and any shares of Common Stock issued upon conversion thereof may not be transferred, assigned or sold (except to the permitted transferees expressly described in the Registration Statement under “Principal Stockholders—Restrictions on Transfers of Founder Shares and Private Placement Warrants”; provided that in the case of clauses (a) through (g) thereof, such permitted transferees enter into a written agreement with the Company agreeing to be bound by the transfer restrictions and the other restrictions contained in this Agreement and by the same agreements entered into by the Company’s initial stockholders with respect to such securities (including provisions relating to voting, the Trust Account and liquidation distributions described in the Registration Statement)) until the earlier to occur of: (1) one year after the completion of an initial Business Combination and (2) subsequent to an initial Business Combination, (x) if the last reported sale price of the Company’s Common Stock equals or exceeds $12.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations) for any 20 trading days within any 30-trading day period commencing at least 150 days after the Company’s initial business combination or (y) the date on which the Company completes a liquidation, merger, capital stock exchange, reorganization or other similar transaction that results in all of its stockholders having the right to exchange their shares of Common Stock for cash, securities or other property.

 

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       (b)    The undersigned will not, without the prior written consent of the Representatives, offer, sell, contract to sell, pledge, hedge or otherwise dispose of (or enter into any transaction that is designed to, or might reasonably be expected to, result in the disposition (whether by actual disposition or effective economic disposition due to cash settlement or otherwise) by the undersigned or any affiliate of the undersigned or any person in privity with the undersigned or any affiliate of the undersigned), directly or indirectly, including the filing (or participation in the filing) of a registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) in respect of, or establish or increase a put equivalent position or liquidate or decrease a call equivalent position within the meaning of Section 16 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the rules and regulations of the SEC promulgated thereunder with respect to, any other Units, Common Stock, Warrants of the Company or any securities convertible into, or exercisable, or exchangeable for, Common Stock or publicly announce an intention to effect any such transaction, for a period of 180 days after the date of the Underwriting Agreement.

       (c)    The undersigned agrees that until 30 days after the Company completes an initial Business Combination, the undersigned’s Private Warrants will not be transferable (except to the permitted transferees expressly described in the Registration Statement under “Principal Stockholders—Restrictions on Transfers of Founder Shares and Private Placement Warrants”; provided that in the case of clauses (a) through (g) thereof, such permitted transferees enter into a written agreement with the Company agreeing to be bound by the transfer restrictions and the other restrictions contained in this Agreement and by the same agreements entered into by the Company’s initial stockholders with respect to such securities (including provisions relating to voting, the Trust Account and liquidation distributions described in the Registration Statement)).

7.    The undersigned’s FINRA Questionnaire previously furnished to the Company and the Representatives is true and accurate in all respects.

8.    To the extent that the Underwriters do not exercise their over-allotment option to purchase up to an additional 3,750,000 Units within 45 days from the date of the prospectus that forms part of the Registration Statement (“Prospectus”) (and as further described in the Prospectus), the undersigned agrees to forfeit, at no cost, a number of Founder Shares in the aggregate equal to 937,500 multiplied by a fraction, (i) the numerator of which is 3,750,000 minus the number of Units purchased by the Underwriters upon the exercise of their over-allotment option, and (ii) the denominator of which is 3,750,000. The forfeiture will be adjusted to the extent that the over-allotment option is not exercised in full by the Underwriters so that the Insiders will own an aggregate of 20% of the Company’s issued and outstanding shares of Common Stock after the IPO (assuming the Insiders do not purchase any Units in the IPO).

9.    The undersigned has full right and power, without violating any agreement by which he or she is bound, to enter into this Agreement.

10.    The undersigned hereby waives any right to exercise redemption rights with respect to any shares of the Company’s Common Stock owned or to be owned by the undersigned, directly or indirectly (or to sell such shares to the Company in a tender offer), whether such shares are Founder Shares or shares purchased by the undersigned in the IPO or in the aftermarket, and agrees that he/she will not seek redemption with respect to such shares in connection with any vote to approve a Business Combination or an Amendment (as defined below) (or sell such shares to the Company in a tender offer in connection with such a Business Combination or Amendment).

11.    The undersigned hereby agrees to not propose, or vote in favor of, an amendment (an “Amendment”) to the Company’s Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation (A) to modify the substance or timing of the Company’s obligation to allow redemption in connection with its initial Business Combination or an Amendment or to redeem 100% of the IPO Shares if the Company does not complete its initial Business Combination within 24 months from the closing of the IPO or (B) with respect to any other provision relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity, unless the Company provides public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their IPO Shares upon such approval in accordance with its Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation.

12.    This Agreement shall be governed by and construed and enforced in accordance with the laws of the State of New York, without giving effect to conflicts of law principles that would result in the application of the substantive laws of another jurisdiction. The undersigned hereby (i) agrees that any action, proceeding or claim

 

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against him/her arising out of or relating in any way to this Agreement (a “Proceeding”) shall be brought and enforced in the courts of the State of New York of the United States of America for the Southern District of New York, and irrevocably submits to such jurisdiction, which jurisdiction shall be exclusive and (ii) waives any objection to such exclusive jurisdiction and that such courts represent an inconvenient forum. If for any reason such agent is unable to act as such, the undersigned will promptly notify the Company and the Representatives and appoint a substitute agent acceptable to each of the Company and the Representatives within 30 days and nothing in this Agreement will affect the right of either party to serve process in any other manner permitted by law.

13.    As used herein, (i) a “Business Combination” means a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or other similar business combination with one or more businesses or entities; (ii) “Insiders” means all officers, directors, stockholders and sponsors of the Company immediately prior to the IPO; (iii) “Founder Shares” means shares of Class B Common Stock, par value $0.0001 per share, of the Company acquired by an Insider prior to the IPO; (iv) “IPO Shares” means the shares of Common Stock issued as part of the Units in the Company’s IPO; (v) “Private Warrants” means the warrants that are being sold privately by the Company simultaneously with the consummation of the IPO; (vi) “Trust Account” means the trust account into which a portion of the net proceeds of the Company’s IPO and sale of private placement warrants will be deposited; and (vii) “Registration Statement” means the Company’s registration statement on Form S-1 (SEC File No. 333-[●]) filed with the SEC, as amended.

14.    This Agreement constitutes the entire agreement and understanding of the parties hereto in respect of the subject matter hereof and supersedes all prior understandings, agreements, or representations by or among the parties hereto, written or oral, to the extent they relate in any way to the subject matter hereof or the transactions contemplated hereby. This Agreement may not be changed, amended, modified or waived (other than to correct a typographical error) as to any particular provision, except by a written instrument executed by all parties hereto.

15.    The undersigned acknowledges and understands that the Underwriters and the Company will rely upon the agreements, representations and warranties set forth herein in proceeding with the IPO. Nothing contained herein shall be deemed to render any of the Underwriters a representative of, or a fiduciary with respect to, the Company, its stockholders or any creditor or vendor of the Company with respect to the subject matter hereof.

16.    This Agreement shall be binding on the undersigned and such person’s respective successors, heirs, personal representatives and assigns. This Agreement shall terminate on the earlier of (i) the liquidation of the Trust Account because the Company has not consummated a Business Combination within the time allowed pursuant to the Company’s Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, as the same may be amended from time to time, and (ii) the expiration of the transfer restrictions on the Founder Shares contained in Section 6 hereof; provided, that such termination shall not relieve the undersigned from liability for any breach of this Agreement prior to its termination.

17.    This Agreement may be executed in any number of original or facsimile counterparts and each of such counterparts shall for all purposes be deemed to be an original, and all such counterparts shall together constitute but one and the same instrument.

18.    This Agreement shall be deemed severable, and the invalidity or unenforceability of any term or provision hereof shall not affect the validity or enforceability of this Agreement or of any other term or provision hereof. Furthermore, in lieu of any such invalid or unenforceable term or provision, the parties hereto intend that there shall be added as a part of this Agreement a provision as similar in terms to such invalid or unenforceable provision as may be possible and be valid and enforceable.

[Signature Page Follows]

 

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Sincerely,
  GOLDEN FALCON SPONSOR GROUP, LLC
By:  

 

  Name: Makram Azar
  Title: Manager
  Acknowledged and Agreed:
  GOLDEN FALCON ACQUISITION CORP.
By:  

 

  Name: Makram Azar
  Title: Chief Executive Officer

[Signature Page of Letter for Sponsor]

 

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Exhibit 10.2

[●], 2020

Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

850 Library Avenue, Suite 204

Newark, Delaware 19711

UBS Securities LLC

11 Wall Street

New York, New York 10005

Moelis & Co.

399 Park Avenue, 5th Floor

New York, New York 10022

Re:    Initial Public Offering

Ladies and Gentlemen:

This letter agreement (this “Agreement”) is being delivered to you in accordance with the Underwriting Agreement (the “Underwriting Agreement”) to be entered into by and between Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), and UBS Securities LLC and Moelis & Co., as representatives (the “Representatives”) of the several Underwriters named in Schedule 1 thereto (the “Underwriters”), relating to an underwritten initial public offering (the “IPO”) of the Company’s units (the “Units”), each unit comprised of one share of the Company’s Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 per share (the “Common Stock”), and one-half of one redeemable warrant, each whole warrant exercisable for one share of Common Stock (each, a “Warrant”). Certain capitalized terms used herein are defined in paragraph 12 hereof.

In order to induce the Company and the Underwriters to enter into the Underwriting Agreement and to proceed with the IPO, and in recognition of the benefit that such IPO will confer upon the undersigned, and for other good and valuable consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of which are hereby acknowledged, the undersigned hereby agrees, severally but not jointly, with the Company as follows:

1.    If the Company solicits approval of its stockholders of a Business Combination, the undersigned shall vote all shares of Common Stock and Founder Shares (including shares of Common Stock issuable upon conversion of Founder Shares) beneficially owned by him or her, whether acquired before, in, or after the IPO, in favor of such Business Combination.

2.    In the event that the Company fails to consummate a Business Combination within the time period set forth in the Company’s Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, as the same may be amended from time to time, the undersigned will, as promptly as possible, cause the Company to (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up, (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible, but not more than 10 business days thereafter, redeem the IPO Shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the Trust Account, including interest earned on the funds held in the Trust Account and not previously released to the Company to pay its taxes (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of then outstanding IPO Shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidating distributions, if any), and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of the Company’s remaining stockholders and the Company’s board of directors, dissolve and liquidate, subject in the cases of clauses (ii) and (iii) to the Company’s obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and requirements of other applicable law. The undersigned hereby waives any and all right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to any distribution of the Trust Account and any remaining net assets of the Company as a result of such liquidation (“Claim”) with respect to the Founder Shares owned by the undersigned and hereby waives any Claim the undersigned may have in the future as a result of, or arising out of, any contracts or agreements with the Company and will not seek recourse against the Trust Account for any reason whatsoever. The undersigned acknowledges and agrees that there will be no distribution from the Trust Account with respect to any Warrants, all rights of which will terminate on the Company’s liquidation.


3.    The undersigned acknowledges and agrees that prior to entering into a Business Combination with a target business that is affiliated with any Insiders of the Company or any of their affiliates, such transaction must be approved by a majority of the Company’s disinterested independent directors and the Company must obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm, or another independent entity that commonly renders valuation opinions, that such Business Combination is fair to the Company (and/or its unaffiliated stockholders) from a financial point of view.

4.    Neither the undersigned nor any affiliate of the undersigned will be entitled to receive and will not accept any finder’s fees, consulting fee, compensation or other cash payment from the Company prior to, or for services rendered in order to effectuate, the completion of the Business Combination; provided that the Company shall be allowed to make the payments set forth in the Registration Statement adjacent to the caption “Prospectus Summary – The Offering – Limited payments to insiders.

5.    (a) In order to minimize potential conflicts of interest that may arise from multiple business affiliations, the undersigned hereby agrees that until the earliest of the Company’s initial Business Combination or liquidation, the undersigned shall present to the Company for its consideration, prior to presentation to any other entity, any suitable target business, subject to any fiduciary or contractual obligations the undersigned might have.

(b)    If the undersigned is an officer of the Company, the undersigned has agreed not to participate in the formation of, or become an officer or director of, any other special purpose acquisition company that has publicly filed a registration statement with the SEC until the Company has entered into a definitive agreement regarding an initial Business Combination or the Company has failed to complete an initial Business Combination within the time period required by the Company’s Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, as the same may be amended from time to time.

(c)    The undersigned hereby agrees and acknowledges that (i) each of the Underwriters and the Company may be irreparably injured in the event of a breach of any of the obligations contained in this Agreement, (ii) monetary damages may not be an adequate remedy for such breach and (iii) the non-breaching party shall be entitled to injunctive relief, in addition to any other remedy that such party may have in law or in equity, in the event of such breach.

6.    (a) The undersigned agrees that the Founder Shares and any shares of Common Stock issued upon conversion thereof may not be transferred, assigned or sold (except to the permitted transferees expressly described in the Registration Statement under “Principal Stockholders—Restrictions on Transfers of Founder Shares and Private Placement Warrants”; provided that in the case of clauses (a) through (g) thereof, such permitted transferees enter into a written agreement with the Company agreeing to be bound by the transfer restrictions and the other restrictions contained in this Agreement and by the same agreements entered into by the Company’s initial stockholders with respect to such securities (including provisions relating to voting, the Trust Account and liquidation distributions described in the Registration Statement)) until the earlier to occur of: (1) one year after the completion of an initial Business Combination and (2) subsequent to an initial Business Combination, (x) if the last reported sale price of the Company’s Common Stock equals or exceeds $12.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations) for any 20 trading days within any 30-trading day period commencing at least 150 days after the Company’s initial business combination or (y) the date on which the Company completes a liquidation, merger, capital stock exchange, reorganization or other similar transaction that results in all of its stockholders having the right to exchange their shares of Common Stock for cash, securities or other property.

(b)    The undersigned will not, without the prior written consent of the Representatives, offer, sell, contract to sell, pledge, hedge or otherwise dispose of (or enter into any transaction that is designed to, or might reasonably be expected to, result in the disposition (whether by actual disposition or effective economic disposition due to cash settlement or otherwise) by the undersigned or any affiliate of the undersigned or any person in privity with the undersigned or any affiliate of the undersigned), directly or indirectly, including the filing (or participation in the filing) of a registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) in respect of, or establish or increase a put equivalent position or liquidate or decrease a call equivalent position within the meaning of Section 16 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the rules and regulations of the SEC promulgated thereunder with respect to, any other Units, Common Stock, Warrants of the Company or any securities convertible into, or exercisable, or exchangeable for, Common Stock or publicly announce an intention to effect any such transaction, for a period of 180 days after the date of the Underwriting Agreement.


7.    The undersigned agrees to be an Officer and/or Director of the Company until the earlier of the consummation by the Company of a Business Combination and the liquidation of the Company. The undersigned’s biographical information previously furnished to the Company and the Representatives is true and accurate in all respects and does not omit any material information with respect to the undersigned’s background. The undersigned’s FINRA Questionnaire previously furnished to the Company and the Representatives is true and accurate in all respects. The undersigned represents and warrants that:

(a)    he/she has never had a petition under the federal bankruptcy laws or any state insolvency law been filed by or against (i) him/her or any partnership in which he/she was a general partner at or within two years before the time of filing; or (ii) any corporation or business association of which he/she was an executive officer at or within two years before the time of such filing;

(b)     he/she has never had a receiver, fiscal agent or similar officer been appointed by a court for his/her business or property, or any such partnership;

(c)     he/she has never been convicted of fraud in a civil or criminal proceeding;

(d)     he/she has never been convicted in a criminal proceeding or named the subject of a pending criminal proceeding (excluding traffic violations and minor offenses);

(e)     he/she has never been the subject of any order, judgment or decree, not subsequently reversed, suspended or vacated, of any court of competent jurisdiction, permanently or temporarily enjoining or otherwise limiting him/her from (i) acting as a futures commission merchant, introducing broker, commodity trading advisor, commodity pool operator, floor broker, leverage transaction merchant, any other person regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) or an associated person of any of the foregoing, or as an investment adviser, underwriter, broker or dealer in securities, or as an affiliated person, director or employee of any investment company, bank, savings and loan association or insurance company, or from engaging in or continuing any conduct or practice in connection with any such activity; or (ii) engaging in any type of business practice; or (iii) engaging in any activity in connection with the purchase or sale of any security or commodity or in connection with any violation of federal or state securities or federal commodities laws;

(f)     he/she has never been the subject of any order, judgment or decree, not subsequently reversed, suspended or vacated, of any federal or state authority barring, suspending or otherwise limiting for more than 60 days your right to engage in any activity described in 9(e)(i) above, or to be associated with persons engaged in any such activity;

(g)     he/she has never been found by a court of competent jurisdiction in a civil action or by the SEC to have violated any federal or state securities law, where the judgment in such civil action or finding by the SEC has not been subsequently reversed, suspended or vacated;

(h)     he/she has never been found by a court of competent jurisdiction in a civil action or by the CFTC to have violated any federal commodities law, where the judgment in such civil action or finding by the CFTC has not been subsequently reversed, suspended or vacated;

(i)     he/she has never been the subject of, or a party to, any Federal or State judicial or administrative order, judgment, decree or finding, not subsequently reversed, suspended or vacated, relating to an alleged violation of (i) any Federal or State securities or commodities law or regulation, (ii) any law or regulation respecting financial institutions or insurance companies including, but not limited to, a temporary or permanent injunction, order of disgorgement or restitution, civil money penalty or temporary or permanent cease-and desist order, or removal or prohibition order or (iii) any law or regulation prohibiting mail or wire fraud or fraud in connection with any business entity;


(j)    he/she has never been the subject of, or party to, any sanction or order, not subsequently reversed, suspended or vacated, or any self-regulatory organization, any registered entity, or any equivalent exchange, association, entity or organization that has disciplinary authority over its members or persons associated with a member;

(k)     he/she has never been convicted of any felony or misdemeanor: (i) in connection with the purchase or sale of any security; (ii) involving the making of any false filing with the SEC; or (iii) arising out of the conduct of the business of an underwriter, broker, dealer, municipal securities dealer, investment advisor or paid solicitor of purchasers of securities;

(l)     he/she was never subject to a final order of a state securities commission (or an agency of officer of a state performing like functions); a state authority that supervises or examines banks, savings associations, or credit unions; a state insurance commission (or an agency or officer of a state performing like functions); an appropriate federal banking agency; the Commodity Futures Trading Commission; or the National Credit Union Administration that is based on a violation of any law or regulation that prohibits fraudulent, manipulative, or deceptive conduct;

(m)     he/she has never been subject to any order, judgment or decree of any court of competent jurisdiction, that, at the time of such sale, restrained or enjoined him/her from engaging or continuing to engage in any conduct or practice: (i) in connection with the purchase or sale of any security; (ii) involving the making of any false filing with the SEC; or (iii) arising out of the conduct of the business of an underwriter, broker, dealer, municipal securities dealer, investment adviser or paid solicitor of purchasers of securities;

(n)     he/she has never been subject to any order of the SEC that orders him/her to cease and desist from committing or causing a future violation of: (i) any scienter-based anti-fraud provision of the federal securities laws, including, but not limited to, Section 17(a)(1) of the Securities Act, Section 10(b) of the Exchange Act and Rule 10b-5 thereunder, and Section 206(1) of the Advisers Act or any other rule or regulation thereunder; or (ii) Section 5 of the Securities Act;

(o)     he/she has never been named as an underwriter in any registration statement or Regulation A offering statement filed with the SEC that was the subject of a refusal order, stop order, or order suspending the Regulation A exemption, or is, currently, the subject of an investigation or proceeding to determine whether a stop order or suspension order should be issued;

(p)     he/she has never been subject to a United States Postal Service false representation order, or is currently subject to a temporary restraining order or preliminary injunction with respect to conduct alleged by the United States Postal Service to constitute a scheme or device for obtaining money or property through the mail by means of false representations;

(q)     he/she is not subject to a final order of a state securities commission (or an agency of officer of a state performing like functions); a state authority that supervises or examines banks, savings associations, or credit unions; a state insurance commission (or an agency or officer of a state performing like functions); an appropriate federal banking agency; the Commodity Futures Trading Commission; or the National Credit Union Administration that bars the undersigned from: (i) association with an entity regulated by such commission, authority, agency or officer; (ii) engaging in the business of securities, insurance or banking; or (iii) engaging in savings association or credit union activities;

(r)     he/she is not subject to an order of the SEC entered pursuant to section 15(b) or 15B(c) of the Exchange Act or section 203(e) or 203(f) of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 that: (i) suspends or revokes the undersigned’s registration as a broker, dealer, municipal securities dealer or investment adviser; (ii) places limitations on the activities, functions or operations of, or imposes civil money penalties on, such person; or (iii) bars the undersigned from being associated with any entity or from participating in the offering of any penny stock; and


(s)     he/she has never been suspended or expelled from membership in, or suspended or barred from association with a member of, a securities self-regulatory organization (e.g., a registered national securities exchange or a registered national or affiliated securities association) for any act or omission to act constituting conduct inconsistent with just and equitable principles of trade.

8.    The undersigned has full right and power, without violating any agreement by which he or she is bound, to enter into this Agreement and to serve as an Officer and/or Director of the Company.

9.    The undersigned hereby waives any right to exercise redemption rights with respect to any shares of the Company’s Common Stock owned or to be owned by the undersigned, directly or indirectly (or to sell such shares to the Company in a tender offer), whether such shares are Founder Shares or shares purchased by the undersigned in the IPO or in the aftermarket, and agrees that he/she will not seek redemption with respect to such shares in connection with any vote to approve a Business Combination or an Amendment (as defined below) (or sell such shares to the Company in a tender offer in connection with such a Business Combination or Amendment).

10.    The undersigned hereby agrees to not propose, or vote in favor of, an amendment (an “Amendment”) to the Company’s Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation (A) to modify the substance or timing of the Company’s obligation to allow redemption in connection with its initial Business Combination or an Amendment or to redeem 100% of the IPO Shares if the Company does not complete its initial Business Combination within 24 months from the closing of the IPO or (B) with respect to any other provision relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity, unless the Company provides public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their IPO Shares upon such approval in accordance with its Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation.

11.    This Agreement shall be governed by and construed and enforced in accordance with the laws of the State of New York, without giving effect to conflicts of law principles that would result in the application of the substantive laws of another jurisdiction. The undersigned hereby (i) agrees that any action, proceeding or claim against him/her arising out of or relating in any way to this Agreement (a “Proceeding”) shall be brought and enforced in the courts of the State of New York of the United States of America for the Southern District of New York, and irrevocably submits to such jurisdiction, which jurisdiction shall be exclusive and (ii) waives any objection to such exclusive jurisdiction and that such courts represent an inconvenient forum. If for any reason such agent is unable to act as such, the undersigned will promptly notify the Company and the Representatives and appoint a substitute agent acceptable to each of the Company and the Representatives within 30 days and nothing in this Agreement will affect the right of any parties to serve process in any other manner permitted by law.

12.    As used herein, (i) a “Business Combination” means a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or other similar business combination with one or more businesses or entities; (ii) “Insiders” means all officers, directors, stockholders and sponsors of the Company immediately prior to the IPO; (iii) “Founder Shares” means shares of Class B Common Stock, par value $0.0001 per share, of the Company acquired by an Insider prior to the IPO; (iv) “IPO Shares” means the shares of Common Stock issued as part of the Units in the Company’s IPO; (v) “Private Warrants” means the warrants that are being sold privately by the Company simultaneously with the consummation of the IPO; (vi) “Trust Account” means the trust account into which a portion of the net proceeds of the Company’s IPO and sale of private placement warrants will be deposited; and (vii) “Registration Statement” means the Company’s registration statement on Form S-1 (SEC File No. 333-[•]) filed with the SEC, as amended.

13.    This Agreement constitutes the entire agreement and understanding of the parties hereto in respect of the subject matter hereof and supersedes all prior understandings, agreements, or representations by or among the parties hereto, written or oral, to the extent they relate in any way to the subject matter hereof or the transactions contemplated hereby. This Agreement may not be changed, amended, modified or waived (other than to correct a typographical error) as to any particular provision, except by a written instrument executed by all parties hereto.

14.    The undersigned acknowledges and understands that the Underwriters and the Company will rely upon the agreements, representations and warranties set forth herein in proceeding with the IPO. Nothing contained herein shall be deemed to render any of the Underwriters a representative of, or a fiduciary with respect to, the Company, its stockholders or any creditor or vendor of the Company with respect to the subject matter hereof.


15.    This Agreement shall be binding on the undersigned and such person’s respective successors, heirs, personal representatives and assigns. This Agreement shall terminate on the earlier of (i) the liquidation of the Trust Account because the Company has not consummated a Business Combination within the time allowed pursuant to the Company’s Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, as the same may be amended from time to time, and (ii) the expiration of the transfer restrictions on the Founder Shares contained in Section 6 hereof; provided, that such termination shall not relieve the undersigned from liability for any breach of this Agreement prior to its termination.

16.    This Agreement may be executed in any number of original or facsimile counterparts and each of such counterparts shall for all purposes be deemed to be an original, and all such counterparts shall together constitute but one and the same instrument.

17.    This Agreement shall be deemed severable, and the invalidity or unenforceability of any term or provision hereof shall not affect the validity or enforceability of this Agreement or of any other term or provision hereof. Furthermore, in lieu of any such invalid or unenforceable term or provision, the parties hereto intend that there shall be added as a part of this Agreement a provision as similar in terms to such invalid or unenforceable provision as may be possible and be valid and enforceable.

[Signature Page Follows]


Sincerely,
By:  

 

Name:   Makram Azar
By:  

 

Name:   Scott J. Freidheim
By:  

 

Name:   Eli Muraidekh
By:  

 

Name:   John M. Basnage de Beauval
By:  

 

Name:   Isabelle Amiel Azoulai
By:  

 

Name:   Mikael Breuer-Weil
By:  

 

Name:   Dominique D’Hinnin
By:  

 

Name:   I. Martin Pompadur
By:  

 

Name:   Xavier Rolet, KBE
  Acknowledged and Agreed:
  GOLDEN FALCON ACQUISITION CORP.
By:  

 

Name:   Makram Azar
Title:   Chief Executive Officer

[Signature Page to Letter Agreement for Directors and Officers]

Exhibit 10.3

INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT TRUST AGREEMENT

THIS INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT TRUST AGREEMENT (this “Agreement”) is made as of [●], 2020 by and between Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp. (the “Company”) and Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company (the “Trustee”).

WHEREAS, the Company’s registration statement on Form S-1, File No. [●] (“Registration Statement”) for its initial public offering of securities (“IPO”) has been declared effective as of the date hereof (“Effective Date”) by the Securities and Exchange Commission (capitalized terms used herein and not otherwise defined shall have the meanings set forth in the Registration Statement); and

WHEREAS, the Company has entered into an Underwriting Agreement (the “Underwriting Agreement”) with UBS Securities LLC and Moelis & Co., as representatives (the “Representatives”) of the several underwriters named therein (the “Underwriters”); and

WHEREAS, as described in the Registration Statement, and in accordance with the Company’s Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, as the same may be amended from time to time (the “Certificate of Incorporation”), $250,000,000 (or $287,500,000 if the Underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) will be delivered to the Trustee to be deposited and held in a segregated trust account located at all times in the United States (the “Trust Account”) for the benefit of the Company and the holders of the Company’s Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 per share (“Common Stock”), issued in the IPO as hereinafter provided (the proceeds to be delivered to the Trustee (and any income subsequently earned thereon) is referred to herein as the “Property”; the stockholders for whose benefit the Trustee shall hold the Property will be referred to as the “Public Stockholders,” and the Public Stockholders and the Company will be referred to together as the “Beneficiaries”); and

WHEREAS, pursuant to the Underwriting Agreement, a portion of the Property equal to $8,750,000, or $10,062,500 if the Underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full, is attributable to deferred underwriting discounts and commissions that may be payable by the Company to the Underwriters upon the consummation of the Business Combination (as defined below) (the “Deferred Discount”); and

WHEREAS, the Company and the Trustee desire to enter into this Agreement to set forth the terms and conditions pursuant to which the Trustee shall hold the Property.

NOW THEREFORE, IT IS AGREED:

1.    Agreements and Covenants of Trustee. The Trustee hereby agrees and covenants to:

(a)    Hold the Property in trust for the Beneficiaries in accordance with the terms of this Agreement in the Trust Account established by the Trustee in the United States initially at [●] (or at another U.S. chartered commercial bank with consolidated assets of $100 billion or more) in the United States, maintained by the Trustee, and at a brokerage institution selected by the Trustee that is reasonably satisfactory to the Company;

(b)    Manage, supervise, and administer the Trust Account subject to the terms and conditions set forth herein;

(c)    In a timely manner, upon the written instruction of the Company in a form substantially similar to that attached hereto as Exhibit A, either (a) invest and reinvest the Property in United States government securities within the meaning of Section 2(a)(16) of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Investment Company Act”), having a maturity of 185 days or less, or in money market funds meeting the conditions of paragraphs (d)(1), (d)(2), (d)(3) and (d)(4) of Rule 2a-7 promulgated under the


Investment Company Act, which invest only in direct U.S. government treasury obligations, as determined by the Company or (b) cause the brokerage institution referred to in 1(a) above to place the Property in a cash demand deposit account; the trustee may not invest in any other securities or assets, it being understood that the Trust Account will earn no interest while account funds are uninvested awaiting the Company’s instructions hereunder and the Trustee may earn bank credits or other consideration during such periods;

(d)    Collect and receive, when due, all principal, interest or other income arising from the Property, which shall become part of the “Property,” as such term is used herein;

(e)    Promptly notify the Company and the Representatives of all communications received by the Trustee with respect to any Property requiring action by the Company;

(f)    Supply any necessary information or documents as may be requested by the Company (or its authorized agents) in connection with the Company’s preparation of the tax returns relating to the assets held in the Trust Account;

(g)    Participate in any plan or proceeding for protecting or enforcing any right or interest arising from the Property if, as, and when instructed by the Company to do so;

(h)    Render to the Company monthly written statements of the activities of and amounts in the Trust Account reflecting all receipts and disbursements of the Trust Account;

(i)    Commence liquidation of the Trust Account only after and promptly after (x) receipt of, and only in accordance with, the terms of a letter from the Company (“Termination Letter”), in a form substantially similar to that attached hereto as either Exhibit B or Exhibit C, as applicable, signed on behalf of the Company by its Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer, Corporate Secretary or other authorized officer of the Company, and complete the liquidation of the Trust Account and distribute the Property in the Trust Account, including interest not previously released to the Company to pay its tax obligations (less up to $100,000 of interest that may be released to the Company to pay dissolution expenses, if applicable), only as directed in the Termination Letter and the other documents referred to therein; or (y) the later of (1) 24 months after the closing of the IPO and (2) such later date as may be approved by the Company’s stockholders in accordance with the Company’s Certificate of Incorporation, if a Termination Letter has not been received by the Trustee prior to such date, in which case, the Trust Account shall be liquidated in accordance with the procedures set forth in the Termination Letter attached as Exhibit C hereto and the Property in the Trust Account, including interest not previously released to the Company to pay its tax obligations (less up to $100,000 of interest that may be released to the Company to pay dissolution expenses, if applicable), shall be distributed to the Public Stockholders of record as of such date (excluding up to $100,000 of interest which may be used for dissolution expenses); provided further, that the Trustee has no obligation to monitor or question the Company’s position that an allocation has been made for taxes payable;

(j)    Upon receipt of a letter (an “Amendment Notification Letter”) in the form of Exhibit D, signed on behalf of the Company by an authorized officer, distribute to Public Stockholders who properly exercised their redemption rights in connection with an amendment to the Company’s Certificate of Incorporation (an “Amendment”) (i) to modify the substance or timing of the Company’s obligation to allow redemption in connection with its initial Business Combination or an Amendment or to redeem 100% of its public shares if the Company does not complete an initial Business Combination within 24 months from the closing of the IPO or (ii) with respect to any other provisions relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity, an amount equal to the pro rata share of the Property relating to the Common Stock for which such Public Stockholders have properly exercised redemption rights in connection with such Amendment.

 

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2.    Limited Distributions of Income from Trust Account.

(a)    Upon written request from the Company, which may be given from time to time in a form substantially similar to that attached hereto as Exhibit E (a “Tax Payment Withdrawal Instruction”), the Trustee shall withdraw from the Trust Account and distribute to the Company the amount of interest earned on the Property requested by the Company to cover any tax obligation owed by the Company, which amount shall be delivered directly to the Company by electronic funds transfer or other method of prompt payment, and the Company shall forward such payment to the relevant taxing authority; provided, however, that to the extent there is not sufficient cash in the Trust Account to pay such tax obligation, the Trustee shall liquidate such assets held in the Trust Account as shall be designated by the Company in writing to make such distribution, so long as there is no reduction in the principal amount per share initially deposited in the Trust Account; provided, further, that if the tax to be paid is a franchise tax, the written request by the Company to make such distribution shall be accompanied by a copy of the franchise tax bill from the State of Delaware for the Company and a written statement from the Chief Financial Officer of the Company setting forth the actual amount payable (it being acknowledged and agreed that any such amount in excess of interest income earned on the Property shall not be payable from the Trust Account). The written request of the Company referenced above shall constitute presumptive evidence that the Company is entitled to said funds, and the Trustee shall have no responsibility to look beyond said request.

(b)    The limited distributions referred to in Section 2(a) above shall be made only from income collected on the Property. Except as provided in Section 2(a) above, no other distributions from the Trust Account shall be permitted except in accordance with Sections 1(i) or 1(j) hereof.

3.    Agreements and Covenants of the Company. The Company agrees and covenants to:

(a)    Give all instructions to the Trustee hereunder in writing, signed by the Company’s Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer, Corporate Secretary or other authorized officer of the Company. In addition, except with respect to its duties under Sections 1(i), 1(j) and 2(a) above, the Trustee shall be entitled to rely on, and shall be protected in relying on, any verbal or telephonic advice or instruction which it in good faith and with reasonable care believes to be given by any one of the persons authorized above to give written instructions, provided that the Company shall promptly confirm such instructions in writing;

(b)    Subject to the provisions of Section 5 of this Agreement, hold the Trustee harmless and indemnify the Trustee from and against any and all expenses, including reasonable counsel fees and disbursements, or losses suffered by the Trustee in connection with any claim, potential claim, action, suit or other proceeding brought against the Trustee involving any claim, or in connection with any claim or demand, which in any way arises out of or relates to this Agreement, the services of the Trustee hereunder, or the Property or any interest earned on the Property, except for expenses and losses resulting from the Trustee’s fraud, gross negligence or willful misconduct. Promptly after the receipt by the Trustee of notice of demand or claim or the commencement of any action, suit, or proceeding, pursuant to which the Trustee intends to seek indemnification under this paragraph, it shall notify the Company in writing of such claim (hereinafter referred to as the “Indemnified Claim”). The Trustee shall have the right to conduct and manage the defense against such Indemnified Claim; provided, that the Trustee shall obtain the consent of the Company with respect to the selection of counsel, which consent shall not be unreasonably withheld. The Trustee may not agree to settle any Indemnified Claim without the prior written consent of the Company, which consent shall not be unreasonably withheld. The Company may participate in such action with its own counsel;

(c)    Pay the Trustee an initial acceptance fee, an annual fee and a transaction processing fee for each disbursement made pursuant to Section 2(a) as set forth on Schedule A hereto, which fees shall be subject to modification by the parties from time to time. It is expressly understood that the Property shall not be used to pay such fees and further agreed that any fees remaining owed to the Trustee at the consummation of a business combination (a “Business Combination”) shall be deducted by the Trustee pursuant to

 

3


Section 1(i) solely in connection with the consummation of the Business Combination. The Company shall pay the Trustee the initial acceptance fee and first year’s fee at the consummation of the IPO and the next annual fee on the anniversary of the Effective Date. The Company shall not be responsible for any other fees or charges of the Trustee except as set forth in this Section 3(c), Schedule A and as may be provided in Section 3(b) hereof;

(d)    In connection with any vote of the Company’s stockholders regarding a Business Combination, provide to the Trustee an affidavit or certificate of a firm regularly engaged in the business of soliciting proxies and/or tabulating stockholder votes (which firm may be the Trustee) verifying the vote of the Company’s stockholders regarding such Business Combination;

(e)    The Company agrees that it will not direct the Trustee to make any payments that are not specifically authorized by this Agreement;

(f)    If the Company has an Amendment approved by its stockholders, provide the Trustee with an Amendment Notification Letter in the form of Exhibit D providing instructions for the distribution of funds to Public Stockholders who properly exercise their redemption rights in connection with such Amendment;

(g)    Provide the Representatives with a copy of any Termination Letter, Amendment Notification Letter, and/or any other correspondence that it issues to the Trustee with respect to any proposed withdrawal from the Trust Account promptly after such issuance; and

(h)    Expressly provide in any Instruction Letter (as defined in Exhibit B) delivered in connection with a Termination Letter in a form substantially similar to that attached hereto as Exhibit B that the Deferred Discount be paid directly to the account or accounts directed by the Representatives on behalf of the Underwriters;

4.    Limitations of Liability. The Trustee shall have no responsibility or liability to:

(a)    Take any action with respect to the Property, other than as directed in Sections 1 and 2 hereof, and the Trustee shall have no liability to any party except for liability arising out of its own fraud, gross negligence or willful misconduct;

(b)    Institute any proceeding for the collection of any principal and income arising from, or institute, appear in, or defend any proceeding of any kind with respect to, any of the Property unless and until it shall have received instructions from the Company given as provided herein to do so and the Company shall have advanced or guaranteed to it funds sufficient to pay any expenses incident thereto;

(c)    Change the investment of any Property, other than in compliance with Section 1(c);

(d)    Refund any depreciation in principal of any Property;

(e)    Assume that the authority of any person designated by the Company to give instructions hereunder shall not be continuing unless provided otherwise in such designation, or unless the Company shall have delivered a written revocation of such authority to the Trustee;

(f)    The other parties hereto or to anyone else for any action taken or omitted by it, or any action suffered by it to be taken or omitted, in good faith and in the Trustee’s exercise of its own best judgment, except for its fraud, gross negligence or willful misconduct. The Trustee may rely conclusively and shall be protected in acting upon any order, notice, demand, certificate, opinion, or advice of counsel (including counsel chosen by the Trustee), statement, instrument, report, or other paper or document (not only as to its due execution and the validity and effectiveness of its provisions, but also as to the truth and

 

4


acceptability of any information therein contained) which is believed by the Trustee, in good faith and with reasonable care, to be genuine and to be signed or presented by the proper person or persons. The Trustee shall not be bound by any notice or demand, or any waiver, modification, termination or rescission of this Agreement or any of the terms hereof, unless evidenced by a written instrument delivered to the Trustee signed by the proper party or parties and, if the duties or rights of the Trustee are affected, unless it shall give its prior written consent thereto;

(g)    Verify the correctness of the information set forth in the Registration Statement or to confirm or assure that any Business Combination consummated by the Company or any other action taken by it is as contemplated by the Registration Statement;

(h)    File local, state, and/or federal tax returns or information returns with any taxing authority on behalf of the Trust Account or deliver payee statements to the Company documenting the taxes, if any, payable by the Company or the Trust Account, relating to the income earned on the Property;

(i)    Pay any taxes on behalf of the Trust Account (it being expressly understood that the Property shall not be used to pay any such taxes and that such taxes, if any, shall be paid by the Company from funds not held in the Trust Account or released to it under Section 2(a) hereof);

(j)    Imply obligations, perform duties, inquire, or otherwise be subject to the provisions of any agreement or document other than this agreement and that which is expressly set forth herein; or

(k)    Verify calculations, qualify, or otherwise approve Company requests for distributions pursuant to Sections 1(i), 1(j) or 2(a) above.

5.    Trust Account Waiver. The Trustee has no right of set-off or any right, title, interest or claim of any kind (“Claim”) to, or to any monies in, the Trust Account, and hereby irrevocably waives any Claim to, or to any monies in, the Trust Account that it may have now or in the future. In the event the Trustee has any Claim against the Company under this Agreement, including, without limitation, under Section 3(b) or Section 3(c) hereof, the Trustee shall pursue such Claim solely against the Company and its assets outside the Trust Account and not against the Property or any monies in the Trust Account.

6.    Termination. This Agreement shall terminate as follows:

(a)    If the Trustee gives written notice to the Company that it desires to resign under this Agreement, the Company shall use its reasonable efforts to locate a successor trustee during which time the Trustee shall act in accordance with this Agreement. At such time that the Company notifies the Trustee that a successor trustee has been appointed by the Company and has agreed to become subject to the terms of this Agreement, the Trustee shall transfer the management of the Trust Account to the successor trustee, including but not limited to the transfer of copies of the reports and statements relating to the Trust Account, whereupon this Agreement shall terminate; provided, however, that, in the event that the Company does not locate a successor trustee within ninety (90) days of receipt of the resignation notice from the Trustee, the Trustee may submit an application to have the Property deposited with any court in the State of New York or with the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York and upon such deposit, the Trustee shall be immune from any liability whatsoever; or

(b)    At such time that the Trustee has completed the liquidation of the Trust Account in accordance with the provisions of Section 1(i) hereof, and distributed the Property in accordance with the provisions of the Termination Letter, this Agreement shall terminate except with respect to Section 3(b) and Section 5.

 

5


7.    Miscellaneous.

(a)    The Company and the Trustee will each restrict access to confidential information relating to funds being transferred to or from the Trust Account to authorized persons. Each party must notify the other party immediately if it has reason to believe unauthorized persons may have obtained access to such confidential information, or of any change in its authorized personnel. In executing funds transfers, the Trustee shall rely upon all information supplied to it by the Company, including account names, account numbers, and all other identifying information relating to a beneficiary, beneficiary’s bank, or intermediary bank. Except for any liability arising out of the Trustee’s fraud, gross negligence or willful misconduct, the Trustee shall not be liable for any loss, liability, or expense resulting from any error in the information supplied to it or funds transferred based on such information.

(b)    This Agreement shall be governed by and construed and enforced in accordance with the laws of the State of New York, without giving effect to conflicts of law principles that would result in the application of the substantive laws of another jurisdiction. The parties hereto consent to the jurisdiction and venue of any state or federal court located in the City of New York, Borough of Manhattan, for purposes of resolving any disputes hereunder. As to any claim, cross-claim, or counterclaim in any way relating to this Agreement, each party waives the right to trial by jury.

(c)    This Agreement may be executed in several original or facsimile counterparts, each one of which shall constitute an original, and together shall constitute but one instrument.

(d)    This Agreement contains the entire agreement and understanding of the parties hereto with respect to the subject matter hereof. Except for Sections 1(i), 1(j) and (2) (which sections may not be modified, amended or deleted without the affirmative vote of sixty five percent (65%) or more of the then issued and outstanding shares of Common Stock and shares of the Company’s Class B common stock, par value $0.0001 per share, of the Company, voting together as a single class; provided that no such amendment will affect any Public Stockholder who has otherwise properly indicated his, her or its election to redeem his, her or its shares of Common Stock in connection with a stockholder vote sought to amend this Agreement), this Agreement or any provision hereof may only be changed, amended or modified (other than to correct a typographical error) by a writing signed by each of the parties hereto; provided, however, that no such change, amendment or modification may be made without the prior written consent of the Representatives. The Trustee may require from Company counsel an opinion as to the propriety of any proposed amendment.

(e)    Any notice, consent or request to be given in connection with any of the terms or provisions of this Agreement shall be in writing and shall be sent by express mail or similar private courier service, by certified mail (return receipt requested), by hand delivery or by e-mail:

if to the Trustee, to:

Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company

1 State Street, 30th Floor

New York, New York 10004

Attn: Francis Wolf and Celeste Gonzalez

E-mail: fwolf@continentalstock.com; cgonzalez@continentalstock.com

if to the Company, to:

Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

[    ]

Attention: [    ]

E-mail: [    ]

 

6


in either case with a copy (which copy shall not constitute notice) to:

UBS Securities LLC

11 Wall Street

New York, New York 10005

Attn: General Counsel

Moelis & Co.

399 Park Avenue, 5th Floor

New York, New York 10022

Attn: General Counsel

and

Greenberg Traurig, LLP

1750 Tysons Boulevard, Suite 1000

McLean, VA 22102

Attn: Alan I. Annex, Esq. / Jason T. Simon, Esq.

E-mail: annexa@gtlaw.com / simonj@gtlaw.com

and

Graubard Miller

The Chrysler Building

405 Lexington Avenue

New York, New York 10174

Attn: David Alan Miller, Esq. / Jeffrey M. Gallant, Esq.

E-mail: dmiller@graubard.com / jgallant@graubard.com

(f)    This Agreement may not be assigned by the Trustee without the prior consent of the Company.

(g)    Each of the Trustee and the Company hereby represents that it has the full right and power and has been duly authorized to enter into this Agreement and to perform its respective obligations as contemplated hereunder. The Trustee acknowledges and agrees that it shall not make any claims or proceed against the Trust Account, including by way of set-off, and shall not be entitled to any funds in the Trust Account under any circumstance.

(h)    Each of the Company and the Trustee hereby acknowledge and agrees that the Representatives is are third party beneficiaries of this Agreement.

[Signature Page Follows]

 

7


IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties have duly executed this Investment Management Trust Agreement as of the date first written above.

 

CONTINENTAL STOCK TRANSFER & TRUST COMPANY, as Trustee
By:  

 

  Name:   Francis Wolf
  Title:   Vice President
GOLDEN FALCON ACQUISITION CORP.
By:  

 

  Name:   Makram Azar
  Title:   Chief Executive Officer

[Signature Page to Investment Management Trust Agreement]

 

8


SCHEDULE A

 

Fee Item

  

Time and method of payment

  

Amount

Initial acceptance fee    Initial closing of IPO by wire transfer    $
Annual fee    First year, on initial closing of IPO by wire transfer; thereafter on the anniversary of the effective date of the IPO by wire transfer or check    $
Transaction processing fee for disbursements to Company under Section 2    Billed to Company following disbursement made to Company under Section 2    $
Paying Agent services as required pursuant to section 1(i) and 1(j)    Billed to Company upon delivery of service pursuant to section 1(i) and 1(j)    Prevailing rates

 

9


EXHIBIT A

[Letterhead of Company]

[Insert date]

Continental Stock Transfer

& Trust Company

1 State Street, 30th floor

New York, New York 10004

Attn: Francis Wolf and Celeste Gonzalez

Re: Trust Account - Investment Letter

Dear Mr. Wolf and Ms. Gonzalez

Pursuant to Section 1(c) of the Investment Management Trust Agreement between Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp. (“Company”) and Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, dated as of                 , 2020 (“Trust Agreement”), you are hereby instructed to direct                      [Asset Manager] to (check all that apply):

 

 

invest and reinvest the Property in United States “government securities” within the meaning of Section 2(a)(16) of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Investment Company Act”), having a maturity of 185 days or less

            % of Property

 

 

invest and reinvest the Property in money market funds meeting the conditions of paragraphs (d)(1), (d)(2), (d)(3) and (d)(4) of Rule 2a-7 promulgated under the Investment Company Act, which invest only in direct U.S. government treasury obligations

            % of Property

 

 

have the Property held in a cash demand deposit account

            % of Property

Capitalized terms used herein and not otherwise defined shall have the meanings set forth in the Trust Agreement. The Company shall notify you of any requested change in the above investment instructions.

 

Very truly yours,
GOLDEN FALCON ACQUISITION CORP.
By:  

 

  Name:
  Title:

AGREED TO AND ACKNOWLEDGED BY

 

[Asset Manager]
By:  

 

  Name:
  Title:

 

10


EXHIBIT B

[Letterhead of Company]

[Insert date]

Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company

1 State Street, 30th floor

New York, New York 10004

Attn: Francis Wolf and Celeste Gonzalez

Re: Trust Account - Termination Letter

Dear Mr. Wolf and Ms. Gonzalez

Pursuant to Section 1(i) of the Investment Management Trust Agreement between Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp. (“Company”) and Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, dated as of                 , 2020 (“Trust Agreement”), this is to advise you that the Company has entered into an agreement with [                                ] to consummate a business combination (“Business Combination”) on or about [insert date]. The Company shall notify you at least 72 hours in advance of the actual date of the consummation of the Business Combination (or such shorter time as you may agree) (“Consummation Date”). Capitalized terms used herein and not otherwise defined shall have the meanings set forth in the Trust Agreement.

In accordance with the terms of the Trust Agreement, we hereby authorize you to liquidate the Trust Account investments and to transfer the proceeds to the Trust Account at [●] to the effect that, on the Consummation Date, all of the funds held in the Trust Account will be immediately available for transfer to the account or accounts that the Company shall direct on the Consummation Date (including as directed to it by the Representatives on behalf of the Underwriters (with respect to the Deferred Discount)). It is acknowledged and agreed that while the funds are on deposit in the trust account awaiting distribution, neither the Company nor the Underwriters will earn any interest or dividends.

On the Consummation Date (i) counsel for the Company shall deliver to you written notification that the Business Combination has been consummated or will be consummated concurrently with your transfer of funds to the accounts as directed by the Company and (ii) the Company shall deliver to you (a) a certificate by the Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer, Corporate Secretary or other authorized officer of the Company, which verifies that the Business Combination has been approved by a vote of the Company’s stockholders if a vote is held and (b) joint written instructions from the Company and the Representatives with respect to the transfer of the funds held in the Trust Account, including payment of the Deferred Discount from the Trust Account (“Instruction Letter”). You are hereby directed and authorized to transfer the funds held in the Trust Account immediately upon your receipt of the counsel’s letter and the Instruction Letter, in accordance with the terms of the Instruction Letter. In the event that certain deposits held in the Trust Account may not be liquidated by the Consummation Date without penalty, you will notify the Company of the same and the Company shall direct you as to whether such funds should remain in the Trust Account and distributed after the Consummation Date to the Company. Upon the distribution of all the funds in the Trust Account pursuant to the terms hereof, your obligations under the Trust Agreement shall be terminated.

In the event that the Business Combination is not consummated on the Consummation Date described in the notice thereof and we have not notified you on or before the original Consummation Date of a new Consummation Date, then upon receipt by the you of written instructions from the Company, the funds held in the Trust Account shall be reinvested as provided in the Trust Agreement on the business day immediately following the Consummation Date as set forth in the notice.

 

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Very truly yours,
GOLDEN FALCON ACQUISITION CORP.
By:  

 

  Name:
  Title:

 

cc:

UBS Securities LLC

Moelis & Co.

 

12


EXHIBIT C

[Letterhead of Company]

[Insert date]

Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company

1 State Street, 30th Floor

New York, New York 10004

Attn: Francis Wolf and Celeste Gonzalez

Re: Trust Account - Termination Letter

Dear Mr. Wolf and Ms. Gonzalez

Pursuant to Section 1(i) of the Investment Management Trust Agreement between Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp. (“Company”) and Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, dated as of                 , 2020 (“Trust Agreement”), this is to advise you that the Company has been unable to effect a Business Combination within the time frame specified in the Company’s Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, as described in the Company’s prospectus relating to its IPO. Capitalized terms used herein and not otherwise defined shall have the meanings set forth in the Trust Agreement.

In accordance with the terms of the Trust Agreement, we hereby authorize you to liquidate the Trust Account and to transfer the total proceeds of the Trust to the Trust Operating Account at [●] to await distribution to the Public Stockholders. The Company has selected [                    , 20    ] as the effective date for the purpose of determining when the Public Stockholders will be entitled to receive their share of the liquidation proceeds. It is acknowledged that while the funds are on deposit in the Trust Operating Account awaiting distribution, the Company will not earn any interest or dividends. You agree to be the Paying Agent of record and in your separate capacity as Paying Agent, to distribute said funds directly to the Public Stockholders in accordance with the terms of the Trust Agreement and the Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation of the Company. Upon the distribution of all the funds in the Trust Account, your obligations under the Trust Agreement shall be terminated.

 

Very truly yours,
GOLDEN FALCON ACQUISITION CORP.
By:  

 

  Name:
  Title:

 

cc:

UBS Securities LLC

Moelis & Co.

 

13


EXHIBIT D

[Letterhead of Company]

[Insert date]

Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company

1 State Street, 30th Floor

New York, New York 10004

Attn: Francis Wolf and Celeste Gonzalez

Re: Trust Account – Amendment Notification Letter

Dear Mr. Wolf and Ms. Gonzalez

Reference is made to the Investment Management Trust Agreement between Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp. (“Company”) and Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, dated as of                     , 2020 (“Trust Agreement”). Capitalized words used herein and not otherwise defined shall have the meanings ascribed to them in the Trust Agreement.

Pursuant to Section 1(j) of the Trust Agreement, this is to advise you that the Company has sought and will adopt an Amendment. Accordingly, in accordance with the terms of the Trust Agreement, we hereby authorize you to liquidate a sufficient portion of the Trust Account and to transfer $         of the total proceeds of the Trust to the Trust Account at [●] to await distribution to the Public Stockholders that have properly requested redemption of their shares of Common Stock in connection with such Amendment. The remaining funds shall be reinvested by you as previously instructed.

 

Very truly yours,
GOLDEN FALCON ACQUISITION CORP.
By:  

 

  Name:
  Title:

 

cc:

UBS Securities LLC

Moelis & Co.

 

14


EXHIBIT E

[Letterhead of Company]

[Insert date]

Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company

1 State Street, 30th Floor

New York, New York 10004

Attn: Francis Wolf and Celeste Gonzalez

Re: Trust Account – Tax Payment Withdrawal Instruction

Dear Mr. Wolf and Ms. Gonzalez

Pursuant to Section 2(a) of the Investment Management Trust Agreement between Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp. (“Company”) and Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, dated as of                     , 2020 (“Trust Agreement”), the Company hereby requests that you deliver to the Company [$                ] of the interest earned on the Property as of the date hereof. The Company needs such funds to pay for its tax obligations.

In accordance with the terms of the Trust Agreement, you are hereby directed and authorized to transfer (via wire transfer) such funds promptly upon your receipt of this letter to the Company’s operating account at:

[WIRE INSTRUCTION INFORMATION]

 

GOLDEN FALCON ACQUISITION CORP.
By:  

 

  Name:
  Title:

 

cc:

UBS Securities LLC

Moelis & Co.

 

15

Exhibit 10.4

THIS PROMISSORY NOTE (THIS “NOTE”) HAS NOT BEEN REGISTERED UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933, AS AMENDED (THE “SECURITIES ACT”). THIS NOTE HAS BEEN ACQUIRED FOR INVESTMENT ONLY AND MAY NOT BE SOLD, TRANSFERRED OR ASSIGNED IN THE ABSENCE OF REGISTRATION OF THE RESALE THEREOF UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OR AN OPINION OF COUNSEL REASONABLY SATISFACTORY IN FORM, SCOPE AND SUBSTANCE TO THE MAKER THAT SUCH REGISTRATION IS NOT REQUIRED.

PROMISSORY NOTE

 

Principal Amount: Up to $200,000    Dated as of September 2, 2020

Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp., a Delaware corporation (the “Maker”), promises to pay to the order of Golden Falcon Sponsor Group, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company, or its registered assigns or successors in interest (the “Payee”), or order, the principal sum of Two Hundred Thousand Dollars ($200,000), or such lesser amount as shall have been advanced by Payee to Maker and shall remain unpaid under this Note, in lawful money of the United States of America, on the terms and conditions described below. All payments on this Note shall be made by check or wire transfer of immediately available funds or as otherwise determined by the Maker to such account as the Payee may from time to time designate by written notice in accordance with the provisions of this Note.

1.    Principal. The principal balance of Note shall be payable on the earlier of: (i) December 31, 2020 and (ii) the date on which Maker consummates an initial public offering of its securities (the “IPO”). The principal balance may be prepaid at any time. Under no circumstances shall any individual, including but not limited to any officer, director, employee or shareholder of the Maker, be obligated personally for any obligations or liabilities of the Maker hereunder.

2.     Interest. No interest shall accrue on the unpaid principal balance of this Note.

3.    Drawdown Requests. The principal of this Note may be drawn down from time to time prior to the earlier of: (i) December 31, 2020 and (ii) the date on which Maker consummates the IPO, upon request from Maker to Payee (each, a “Drawdown Request”). Payee shall fund each Drawdown Request within two (2) business days after receipt of a Drawdown Request; provided, however, that the maximum amount of drawdowns collectively under this Note is Two Hundred Thousand Dollars ($200,000). Once an amount is drawn down under this Note, it shall not be available for future Drawdown Requests even if prepaid. No fees, payments or other amounts shall be due to Payee in connection with, or as a result of, any Drawdown Request by Maker.

4.    Application of Payments. All payments shall be applied first to payment in full of any costs incurred in the collection of any sum due under this Note, including (without limitation) reasonable attorney’s fees, then to the payment in full of any late charges and finally to the reduction of the unpaid principal balance of this Note.

5.    Events of Default. The following shall constitute an event of default (“Event of Default”):

(a)    Failure to Make Required Payments. Failure by Maker to pay the principal amount due pursuant to this Note within five (5) business days of the date specified in Section 1 above.

(b)    Voluntary Bankruptcy, Etc. The commencement by Maker of a voluntary case under any applicable bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, rehabilitation or other similar law, or the consent by it to the appointment of or taking possession by a receiver, liquidator, assignee, trustee, custodian,

 

1


sequestrator (or other similar official) of Maker or for any substantial part of its property, or the making by it of any assignment for the benefit of creditors, or the failure of Maker generally to pay its debts as such debts become due, or the taking of corporate action by Maker in furtherance of any of the foregoing.

(c)    Involuntary Bankruptcy, Etc. The entry of a decree or order for relief by a court having jurisdiction in the premises in respect of Maker in an involuntary case under any applicable bankruptcy, insolvency or other similar law, or appointing a receiver, liquidator, assignee, custodian, trustee, sequestrator (or similar official) of Maker or for any substantial part of its property, or ordering the winding-up or liquidation of its affairs, and the continuance of any such decree or order unstayed and in effect for a period of 60 consecutive days.

6.    Remedies.

(a)    Upon the occurrence of an Event of Default specified in Section 5(a) hereof, Payee may, by written notice to Maker, declare this Note to be due immediately and payable, whereupon the unpaid principal amount of this Note, and all other amounts payable thereunder, shall become immediately due and payable without presentment, demand, protest or other notice of any kind, all of which are hereby expressly waived, anything contained herein or in the documents evidencing the same to the contrary notwithstanding.

(b)    Upon the occurrence of an Event of Default specified in Sections 5(b) or 5(c), the unpaid principal balance of this Note, and all other sums payable with regard to this Note, shall automatically and immediately become due and payable, in all cases without any action on the part of Payee.

7.    Waivers. Maker and all endorsers and guarantors of, and sureties for, this Note waive presentment for payment, demand, notice of dishonor, protest, and notice of protest with regard to the Note, all errors, defects and imperfections in any proceedings instituted by Payee under the terms of this Note, and all benefits that might accrue to Maker by virtue of any present or future laws exempting any property, real or personal, or any part of the proceeds arising from any sale of any such property, from attachment, levy or sale under execution, or providing for any stay of execution, exemption from civil process, or extension of time for payment; and Maker agrees that any real estate that may be levied upon pursuant to a judgment obtained by virtue hereof, on any writ of execution issued hereon, may be sold upon any such writ in whole or in part in any order desired by Payee.

8.    Unconditional Liability. Maker hereby waives all notices in connection with the delivery, acceptance, performance, default, or enforcement of the payment of this Note, and agrees that its liability shall be unconditional, without regard to the liability of any other party, and shall not be affected in any manner by any indulgence, extension of time, renewal, waiver or modification granted or consented to by Payee, and consents to any and all extensions of time, renewals, waivers, or modifications that may be granted by Payee with respect to the payment or other provisions of this Note, and agrees that additional makers, endorsers, guarantors, or sureties may become parties hereto without notice to Maker or affecting Maker’s liability hereunder.

9.    Notices. All notices, statements or other documents which are required or contemplated by this Agreement shall be in writing and delivered: (i) personally or sent by first class registered or certified mail, overnight courier service to the address designated in writing by such party, (ii) by facsimile to the number most recently provided to such party or such other address or fax number as may be designated in writing by such party or (iii) by electronic mail, to the electronic mail address most recently provided to such party or such other electronic mail address as may be designated in writing by such party. Any notice or other communication so transmitted shall be deemed to have been given on the day of delivery, if delivered personally, on the business day following receipt of written confirmation, if sent by facsimile or electronic mail, one (1) business day after delivery to an overnight courier service or five (5) days after mailing if sent by mail.

 

2


10.    Construction. THIS NOTE SHALL BE CONSTRUED AND ENFORCED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE LAWS OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE, WITHOUT REGARD TO CONFLICT OF LAW PROVISIONS THEREOF.

11.    Severability. Any provision contained in this Note which is prohibited or unenforceable in any jurisdiction shall, as to such jurisdiction, be ineffective to the extent of such prohibition or unenforceability without invalidating the remaining provisions hereof, and any such prohibition or unenforceability in any jurisdiction shall not invalidate or render unenforceable such provision in any other jurisdiction.

12.    Trust Waiver. Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, the Payee hereby waives any and all right, title, interest or claim of any kind (“Claim”) in or to any distribution of or from the trust account to be established in which the proceeds of the IPO and the proceeds of the sale of the units issued in private placements to occur prior to the consummation of the IPO are to be deposited, as described in greater detail in the registration statement and prospectus to be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission in connection with the IPO, and hereby agrees not to seek recourse, reimbursement, payment or satisfaction for any Claim against the trust account for any reason whatsoever.

13.    Amendment; Waiver. Any amendment hereto or waiver of any provision hereof may be made with, and only with, the written consent of the Maker and the Payee.

14.    Assignment. No assignment or transfer of this Note or any rights or obligations hereunder may be made by any party hereto (by operation of law or otherwise) without the prior written consent of the other party hereto and any attempted assignment without the required consent shall be void.

[SIGNATURE PAGE FOLLOWS]

 

3


IN WITNESS WHEREOF, Maker, intending to be legally bound hereby, has caused this Note to be duly executed by the undersigned as of the day and year first above written.

 

GOLDEN FALCON ACQUISITION CORP.
By:  

/s/ Scott J. Freidheim

Name:   Scott J. Freidheim
Title:   Chairman

[SIGNATURE PAGE TO PROMISSORY NOTE]

Exhibit 10.5

Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

September 2, 2020

Golden Falcon Sponsor Group, LLC

 

  RE:

Subscription Agreement for Founder Shares

Ladies and Gentlemen:

We are pleased to accept the offer Golden Falcon Sponsor Group, LLC (the “Subscriber” or “you”) has made to purchase 7,187,500 shares (“Founder Shares”) of Class B common stock, $0.0001 par value per share (the “Class B Common Stock” and, together with all other classes of Company (as defined below) common stock, the “Common Stock”), of Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), up to 937,500 of which are subject to forfeiture by you if the underwriters of the proposed initial public offering (“IPO”) of the Company pursuant to the registration statement on Form S-1 expected to be filed by the Company in connection with the IPO (the “Registration Statement”) do not fully exercise their over-allotment option (the “Over-allotment Option”) as described below. The terms (this “Agreement”) on which the Company is willing to sell the Founder Shares to the Subscriber, and the Company and the Subscriber’s agreements regarding such Founder Shares, are as follows:

1. Purchase of Founder Shares. For the sum of $25,000.00 (the “Purchase Price”), which the Company acknowledges receiving in cash, the Company hereby sells and issues the Founder Shares to the Subscriber, and the Subscriber hereby purchases the Founder Shares from the Company, subject to the forfeiture provisions of Section 3 below, on the terms and subject to the conditions set forth in this Agreement. Concurrently with the Subscriber’s execution of this Agreement, the Company shall, at its option, deliver to the Subscriber a certificate registered in the Subscriber’s name representing the Founder Shares, or effect such delivery in book-entry form.

2. Representations, Warranties and Agreements.

2.1. Subscriber’s Representations, Warranties and Agreements. To induce the Company to issue the Founder Shares to the Subscriber, the Subscriber hereby represents and warrants to the Company and agrees with the Company as follows:

2.1.1. No Government Recommendation or Approval. The Subscriber understands that no federal or state agency has passed upon or made any recommendation or endorsement of the offering of the Founder Shares.

2.1.2. No Conflicts. The execution, delivery and performance of this Agreement and the consummation by the Subscriber of the transactions contemplated hereby do not violate,

 

1


conflict with or constitute a default under (i) the formation and governing documents of the Subscriber, (ii) any agreement, indenture or instrument to which the Subscriber is a party, (iii) any law, statute, rule or regulation to which the Subscriber is subject, or (iv) any agreement, order, judgment or decree to which the Subscriber is subject.

2.1.3. Organization and Authority. The Subscriber is a Delaware limited liability company, validly existing and in good standing under the laws of Delaware and possesses all requisite power and authority necessary to carry out the transactions contemplated by this Agreement. Upon execution and delivery by you, this Agreement will be a legal, valid and binding agreement of the Subscriber, enforceable against the Subscriber in accordance with its terms, except as such enforceability may be limited by applicable bankruptcy, insolvency, fraudulent conveyance or similar laws affecting the enforcement of creditors’ rights generally and subject to general principles of equity (regardless of whether enforcement is sought in a proceeding at law or in equity).

2.1.4. Experience, Financial Capability and Suitability. The Subscriber is: (i) sophisticated in financial matters and is able to evaluate the risks and benefits of the investment in the Founder Shares and (ii) able to bear the economic risk of its investment in the Founder Shares for an indefinite period of time because the Founder Shares have not been registered under the Securities Act (as defined below) and therefore cannot be resold unless such transaction is registered under the Securities Act or an exemption from such registration is available. The Subscriber is capable of evaluating the merits and risks of its investment in the Company and has the capacity to protect its own interests. The Subscriber must bear the economic risk of this investment until the Founder Shares are sold pursuant to: (x) an effective registration statement under the Securities Act or (y) an exemption from registration available with respect to such sale. The Subscriber is able to bear the economic risks of an investment in the Founder Shares and to afford a complete loss of the Subscriber’s investment in the Founder Shares.

2.1.5. Access to Information; Independent Investigation. Prior to the execution of this Agreement, the Subscriber has had the opportunity to ask questions of and receive answers from representatives of the Company concerning an investment in the Company, as well as the finances, operations, business and prospects of the Company, and the opportunity to obtain additional information to verify the accuracy of all information so obtained. In determining whether to make this investment, the Subscriber has relied solely on the Subscriber’s own knowledge and understanding of the Company and its business based upon the Subscriber’s own due diligence investigation and the information furnished pursuant to this paragraph. The Subscriber understands that no person has been authorized to give any information or to make any representations which were not furnished pursuant to this Section 2 and the Subscriber has not relied on any other representations or information in making its investment decision, whether written or oral, relating to the Company, its operations or its prospects.

2.1.6. Regulation D Offering. The Subscriber represents that it is an “accredited investor” as such term is defined in Rule 501(a) of Regulation D under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), and acknowledges the sale contemplated hereby is being made in reliance on a private placement exemption applicable to “accredited investors” within the meaning of Section 501(a) of Regulation D under the Securities Act or similar exemptions under federal and state law.

 

2


2.1.7. Investment Purposes. The Subscriber is purchasing the Founder Shares solely for investment purposes, for the Subscriber’s own account and not for the account or benefit of any other person, and not with a view towards the distribution or dissemination thereof. The Subscriber did not enter into this Agreement as a result of any general solicitation or general advertising within the meaning of Rule 502 of Regulation D under the Securities Act.

2.1.8. Restrictions on Transfer; Shell Company. The Subscriber understands the Founder Shares are being offered in a transaction not involving a public offering within the meaning of the Securities Act. The Subscriber understands the Founder Shares will be “restricted securities” as defined in Rule 144(a)(3) under the Securities Act and the Subscriber understands that any certificate or book entries representing the Founder Shares will contain a legend in respect of such restrictions. If in the future the Subscriber decides to offer, resell, pledge or otherwise transfer the Founder Shares, such Founder Shares may be offered, resold, pledged or otherwise transferred only in accordance with the provisions of Section 5 hereof. The Subscriber agrees that if any transfer of its Founder Shares or any interest therein is proposed to be made, as a condition precedent to any such transfer, the Subscriber may be required to deliver to the Company an opinion of counsel satisfactory to the Company. Absent registration under the Securities Act or an exemption therefrom, the Subscriber agrees not to resell the Founder Shares. The Subscriber further acknowledges that because the Company is a shell company, Rule 144 may not be available to the Subscriber for the resale of the Founder Shares until at least one year following consummation of the initial business combination of the Company, despite technical compliance with the certain requirements of Rule 144 and the release or waiver of any contractual transfer restrictions.

2.1.9. No Governmental Consents. No governmental, administrative or other third-party consents or approvals are required, necessary or appropriate on the part of the Subscriber in connection with the transactions contemplated by this Agreement.

2.2. Company’s Representations, Warranties and Agreements. To induce the Subscriber to purchase the Founder Shares, the Company hereby represents and warrants to the Subscriber and agrees with the Subscriber as follows:

2.2.1. Organization and Corporate Power. The Company is a Delaware corporation and is qualified to do business in every jurisdiction in which the failure to so qualify would reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the financial condition, operating results or assets of the Company. The Company possesses all requisite corporate power and authority necessary to carry out the transactions contemplated by this Agreement.

2.2.2. No Conflicts. The execution, delivery and performance of this Agreement and the consummation by the Company of the transactions contemplated hereby do not violate, conflict with or constitute a default under (i) the Certificate of Incorporation or Bylaws of the Company, (ii) any agreement, indenture or instrument to which the Company is a party, (iii) any law, statute, rule or regulation to which the Company is subject, or (iv) any agreement, order, judgment or decree to which the Company is subject.

 

3


2.2.3. Title to Securities. Upon issuance in accordance with, and payment pursuant to, the terms hereof, the Founder Shares will be duly and validly issued, fully paid and nonassessable. Upon issuance in accordance with, and payment pursuant to, the terms hereof the Subscriber will have or receive good title to the Founder Shares, free and clear of all liens, claims and encumbrances of any kind, other than (a) transfer restrictions hereunder and other agreements to which the Founder Shares may be subject which have been notified to the Subscriber in writing, (b) transfer restrictions under federal and state securities laws, and (c) liens, claims or encumbrances imposed due to the actions of the Subscriber.

2.2.4. No Adverse Actions. There are no actions, suits, investigations or proceedings pending, threatened against or affecting the Company which: (i) seek to restrain, enjoin, prevent the consummation of or otherwise affect the transactions contemplated by this Agreement or (ii) question the validity or legality of any transactions or seek to recover damages or to obtain other relief in connection with any transactions.

3. Forfeiture of Founder Shares.

3.1. Partial or No Exercise of the Over-allotment Option. In the event the Over-allotment Option granted to the underwriters of the IPO is not exercised in full, the Subscriber acknowledges and agrees that it (and, if applicable, any transferee of Founder Shares) shall automatically forfeit at the time such Over-allotment Option expires (or earlier if the underwriters of the IPO waive their ability to exercise such Over-allotment Option) any and all rights to such number of Founder Shares (up to an aggregate of 937,500 Founder Shares and pro rata based upon the percentage of the Over-allotment Option exercised) such that immediately following such forfeiture, the Subscriber (and any such transferees), collectively with all other initial stockholders of the Company prior to the IPO, will own an aggregate number of Founder Shares equal to 20% of the issued and outstanding Common Stock immediately following the IPO.

3.2. Termination of Rights as Stockholder. If any of the Founder Shares are forfeited in accordance with this Section 3, then after such time the Subscriber (or its successor in interest), shall no longer have any rights as a holder of such forfeited Founder Shares, and the Company shall take such action as is appropriate to cancel such forfeited Founder Shares.

3.3. Share Certificates. In the event an adjustment to any certificate representing the Founder Shares purchased pursuant hereto is required pursuant to this Section 3, then the Subscriber shall return such certificate to the Company or its designated agent as soon as practicable upon its receipt of notice from the Company advising the Subscriber of such adjustment, following which a new certificate shall be issued in such amount representing the adjusted number of Founder Shares held by the Subscriber. Such new certificate, if any, shall be returned to the Subscriber as soon as practicable. Any such adjustment for any uncertificated securities held by the Subscriber shall be made in book-entry form.

 

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4. Waiver of Liquidation Distributions; Redemption Rights. In connection with the Founder Shares purchased pursuant to this Agreement, the Subscriber hereby waives any and all right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to any distributions by the Company from the trust account which will be established for the benefit of the Company’s public stockholders and into which substantially all of the proceeds of the IPO will be deposited (the “Trust Account”), in the event of a liquidation of the Company upon the Company’s failure to timely complete an initial business combination. For purposes of clarity, in the event the Subscriber purchases securities in the IPO or securities of the Company issued in the IPO in the aftermarket, any additional Common Stock so purchased shall be eligible to receive any liquidating distributions from the Trust Account by the Company. However, in no event will the Subscriber have the right to redeem any shares of Common Stock into funds held in the Trust Account upon the successful completion of an initial business combination.

5. Restrictions on Transfer.

5.1. Securities Law Restrictions. In addition to any restrictions to be contained in that certain letter agreement (commonly known as an “Insider Letter”) to be entered into between the Company and the Subscriber in connection with the consummation of the IPO, the Subscriber agrees not to sell, transfer, pledge, hypothecate or otherwise dispose of all or any part of the Founder Shares unless, prior thereto (a) a registration statement on the appropriate form under the Securities Act and applicable state securities laws with respect to the Founder Shares proposed to be transferred shall then be effective or (b) the Company has received an opinion from counsel reasonably satisfactory to the Company, that such registration is not required because such transaction is exempt from registration under the Securities Act and the rules promulgated by the Securities and Exchange Commission thereunder and with all applicable state securities laws.

5.2. Lock-up. The Subscriber acknowledges that the Founder Shares will be subject to lock-up provisions (the “Lock-up”) contained in the Insider Letter. Pursuant to the Insider Letter, the Subscriber will agree (subject to certain customary exceptions) not to sell, transfer, pledge, hypothecate or otherwise dispose of all or any part of the Founder Shares until the earlier to occur of: (A) one year after the completion of the Company’s initial business combination and (B) subsequent to the Company’s initial business combination, (x) if the last reported sale price of the Class A common stock equals or exceeds $12.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like and certain issuances of Class A common stock and equity-linked securities) for any 20 trading days within any 30-trading day period commencing at least 150 days after its initial business combination, or (y) the date on which the Company completes a liquidation, merger, capital stock exchange, reorganization or other similar transaction that results in all of the Company’s stockholders having the right to exchange their shares of common stock for cash, securities or other property.

5.3. Restrictive Legends. All certificates representing the Founder Shares shall have endorsed thereon legends substantially as follows:

“THE SECURITIES REPRESENTED HEREBY HAVE NOT BEEN REGISTERED UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933, AS AMENDED, OR ANY STATE SECURITIES LAWS

 

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AND NEITHER THE SECURITIES NOR ANY INTEREST THEREIN MAY BE OFFERED, SOLD, TRANSFERRED, PLEDGED OR OTHERWISE DISPOSED OF EXCEPT PURSUANT TO AN EFFECTIVE REGISTRATION STATEMENT UNDER SUCH ACT OR SUCH LAWS OR AN EXEMPTION FROM REGISTRATION UNDER SUCH ACT AND SUCH LAWS WHICH, IN THE OPINION OF COUNSEL (IF THE COMPANY SO REQUESTS), IS AVAILABLE.”

“THE SECURITIES REPRESENTED BY THIS CERTIFICATE ARE SUBJECT TO LOCKUP PROVISIONS AND MAY NOT BE OFFERED, SOLD, TRANSFERRED, PLEDGED OR OTHERWISE DISPOSED OF DURING THE TERM OF THE LOCKUP PERIOD.”

5.4. Additional Founder Shares or Substituted Securities. In the event of the declaration of a stock dividend, the declaration of a special dividend payable in a form other than Common Stock, a spin-off, a stock split, an adjustment in conversion ratio, a recapitalization or a similar transaction affecting the Company’s outstanding Common Stock without receipt of consideration, any new, substituted or additional securities or other property which are by reason of such transaction distributed with respect to any Founder Shares subject to this Section 5 or into which such Founder Shares thereby become convertible shall immediately be subject to this Section 5 and Section 3. Appropriate adjustments to reflect the distribution of such securities or property shall be made to the number or class of Founder Shares subject to this Section 5 and Section 3.

5.5. Registration Rights. The Subscriber acknowledges that the Founder Shares are being purchased pursuant to an exemption from the registration requirements of the Securities Act and will become freely tradable only after certain conditions are met or they are registered pursuant to a registration rights agreement to be entered into with the Company prior to the closing of the IPO (the “Registration Rights Agreement”).

6. Other Agreements.

6.1. Further Assurances. The Subscriber agrees to execute such further instruments and to take such further action as may reasonably be necessary to carry out the intent of this Agreement.

6.2. Notices. All notices, statements or other documents which are required or contemplated by this Agreement shall be in writing and delivered: (i) personally or sent by first class registered or certified mail, overnight courier service or facsimile or electronic transmission to the address designated in writing, (ii) by facsimile to the number most recently provided to such party or such other address or fax number as may be designated in writing by such party and (iii) by electronic mail, to the electronic mail address most recently provided to such party or such other electronic mail address as may be designated in writing by such party. Any notice or other communication so transmitted shall be deemed to have been given on the day of delivery, if delivered personally, on the business day following receipt of written confirmation, if sent by facsimile or electronic transmission, one (1) business day after delivery to an overnight courier service or five (5) days after mailing if sent by mail.

 

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6.3. Entire Agreement. This Agreement, together with that certain Insider Letter to be entered into between the Subscriber and the Company and the Registration Rights Agreement, each substantially in the form to be filed as an exhibit to the Registration Statement, embodies the entire agreement and understanding between the Subscriber and the Company with respect to the subject matter hereof and supersedes all prior oral or written agreements and understandings relating to the subject matter hereof. No statement, representation, warranty, covenant or agreement of any kind not expressly set forth in this Agreement shall affect, or be used to interpret, change or restrict, the express terms and provisions of this Agreement.

6.4. Modifications and Amendments. The terms and provisions of this Agreement may be modified or amended only by written agreement executed by all parties hereto.

6.5. Waivers and Consents. The terms and provisions of this Agreement may be waived, or consent for the departure therefrom granted, only by written document executed by the party entitled to the benefits of such terms or provisions. No such waiver or consent shall be deemed to be or shall constitute a waiver or consent with respect to any other terms or provisions of this Agreement, whether or not similar. Each such waiver or consent shall be effective only in the specific instance and for the purpose for which it was given, and shall not constitute a continuing waiver or consent.

6.6. Assignment. The rights and obligations under this Agreement may not be assigned by either party hereto without the prior written consent of the other party.

6.7. Benefit. All statements, representations, warranties, covenants and agreements in this Agreement shall be binding on the parties hereto and shall inure to the benefit of the respective successors and permitted assigns of each party hereto. Nothing in this Agreement shall be construed to create any rights or obligations except among the parties hereto, and no person or entity shall be regarded as a third-party beneficiary of this Agreement.

6.8. Governing Law. This Agreement and the rights and obligations of the parties hereunder shall be construed in accordance with and governed by the laws of the State of Delaware applicable to contracts wholly performed within the borders of such state.

6.9. Severability. In the event that any court of competent jurisdiction shall determine that any provision, or any portion thereof, contained in this Agreement shall be unreasonable or unenforceable in any respect, then such provision shall be deemed limited to the extent that such court deems it reasonable and enforceable, and as so limited shall remain in full force and effect. In the event that such court shall deem any such provision, or portion thereof, wholly unenforceable, the remaining provisions of this Agreement shall nevertheless remain in full force and effect.

6.10. No Waiver of Rights, Powers and Remedies. No failure or delay by a party hereto in exercising any right, power or remedy under this Agreement, and no course of dealing between the parties hereto, shall operate as a waiver of any such right, power or remedy of such party. No single or partial exercise of any right, power or remedy under this Agreement by a party hereto, nor any abandonment or discontinuance of steps to enforce any such right, power or remedy,

 

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shall preclude such party from any other or further exercise thereof or the exercise of any other right, power or remedy hereunder. The election of any remedy by a party hereto shall not constitute a waiver of the right of such party to pursue other available remedies. No notice to or demand on a party not expressly required under this Agreement shall entitle the party receiving such notice or demand to any other or further notice or demand in similar or other circumstances or constitute a waiver of the rights of the party giving such notice or demand to any other or further action in any circumstances without such notice or demand.

6.11. Survival of Representations and Warranties. All representations and warranties made by the parties hereto in this Agreement or in any other agreement, certificate or instrument provided for or contemplated hereby, shall survive the execution and delivery hereof and any investigations made by or on behalf of the parties.

6.12. No Broker or Finder. Each of the parties hereto represents and warrants to the other that no broker, finder or other financial consultant has acted on its behalf in connection with this Agreement or the transactions contemplated hereby in such a way as to create any liability on the other. Each of the parties hereto agrees to indemnify and hold the other harmless from any claim or demand for commission or other compensation by any broker, finder, financial consultant or similar agent claiming to have been employed by or on behalf of such party and to bear the cost of legal expenses incurred in defending against any such claim.

6.13. Headings and Captions. The headings and captions of the various sections of this Agreement are for convenience of reference only and shall in no way modify or affect the meaning or construction of any of the terms or provisions hereof.

6.14. Counterparts. This Agreement may be executed in one or more counterparts, all of which when taken together shall be considered one and the same agreement and shall become effective when counterparts have been signed by each party and delivered to the other party, it being understood that both parties need not sign the same counterpart. In the event that any signature is delivered by facsimile transmission or any other form of electronic delivery, such signature shall create a valid and binding obligation of the party executing (or on whose behalf such signature is executed) with the same force and effect as if such signature page were an original thereof.

6.15. Construction. The words “include,” “includes,” and “including” will be deemed to be followed by “without limitation.” Pronouns in masculine, feminine, and neuter genders will be construed to include any other gender, and words in the singular form will be construed to include the plural and vice versa, unless the context otherwise requires. The words “this Agreement,” “herein,” “hereof,” “hereby,” “hereunder,” and words of similar import refer to this Agreement as a whole and not to any particular section unless expressly so limited. The parties hereto intend that each representation, warranty, and covenant contained herein will have independent significance. If any party hereto has breached any representation, warranty, or covenant contained herein in any respect, the fact that there exists another representation, warranty or covenant relating to the same subject matter (regardless of the relative levels of specificity) which such party hereto has not breached will not detract from or mitigate the fact that such party hereto is in breach of the first representation, warranty, or covenant.

 

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6.16. Mutual Drafting. This Agreement is the joint product of the Subscriber and the Company and each provision hereof has been subject to the mutual consultation, negotiation and agreement of such parties and shall not be construed for or against any party hereto.

7. Voting and Redemption of Founder Shares. The Subscriber agrees to vote the Founder Shares in favor of an initial business combination that the Company negotiates and submits for approval to the Company’s stockholders and shall not seek redemption with respect to such Founder Shares. Additionally, the Subscriber agrees not to redeem any Founder Shares in connection with a redemption or tender offer presented to the Company’s stockholders in connection with an initial business combination negotiated by the Company.

8. Indemnification. Each party shall indemnify the other against any loss, cost or damages (including reasonable attorneys’ fees and expenses) incurred as a result of such party’s breach of any representation, warranty, covenant or agreement in this Agreement.

[Signature Page Follows]

 

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If the foregoing accurately sets forth our understanding and agreement, please sign the enclosed copy of this Agreement and return it to us.

 

Very truly yours,
GOLDEN FALCON ACQUISITION CORP.
By  

/s/ Scott J. Freidheim

Name:   Scott J. Freidheim
Title:   Chairman

Accepted and agreed as of the date first written above.

 

GOLDEN FALCON SPONSOR GROUP, LLC
By  

/s/ Makram Azar

Name:   Makram Azar
Title:   Manager and Authorized Signatory

[Signature Page to Subscription Agreement]

Exhibit 10.6

REGISTRATION RIGHTS AGREEMENT

THIS REGISTRATION RIGHTS AGREEMENT (this “Agreement”) is entered into as of [●], 2020, by and among Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), Golden Falcon Sponsor Group, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company (the “Sponsor”), and the undersigned parties listed under Holder on the signature page hereto (each such party, together with the Sponsor, members of the Sponsor and any person or entity who hereafter becomes a party to this Agreement pursuant to Section 6.2 of this Agreement, a “Holder” and collectively the “Holders”).

RECITALS

WHEREAS, the Holders as of the date of this Agreement own, in the aggregate, 7,187,500 shares of the Company’s Class B common stock, par value $0.0001 per share (the “Founder Shares”); and

WHEREAS, the Sponsor subsequently transferred an aggregate of 25,000 Founder Shares to the other Holders; and

WHEREAS, up to an aggregate of 937,500 Founder Shares are subject to forfeiture by the Sponsor if the over-allotment option in connection with the Company’s initial public offering is not exercised in full; and

WHEREAS, the Founder Shares are convertible into shares of the Company’s Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 per share (the “Common Stock”), at the time of the initial Business Combination, or earlier at the option of the holder (as defined below) on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment, on the terms and conditions provided in the Company’s amended and restated certificate of incorporation, as may be amended from time to time; and

WHEREAS, on [●], 2020, the Company and the Sponsor entered into that certain Private Placement Warrants Purchase Agreement, pursuant to which the Sponsor agreed to purchase 7,000,000 warrants (or up to 7,750,000 warrants if the over-allotment option in connection with the Company’s initial public offering is exercised in full) (the “Private Placement Warrants”), in a private placement transaction occurring simultaneously with the closing of the Company’s initial public offering, each Private Placement Warrant entitling the holder to purchase one share of Common Stock at an exercise price of $11.50 per share; and

WHEREAS, the Company and the Holders desire to enter into this Agreement, pursuant to which the Company shall grant the Holders certain registration rights with respect to certain securities of the Company, as set forth in this Agreement.

NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the mutual covenants and agreements set forth herein, and for other good and valuable consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of which are hereby acknowledged, the parties hereto agree as follows:

 

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DEFINITIONS. The following capitalized terms used herein have the following meanings:

Adverse Disclosure” is defined in Section 3.5.

Agreement” means this Agreement, as amended, restated, supplemented, or otherwise modified from time to time.

Board” is defined in Section 3.1.1.

Business Combination” means the acquisition of direct or indirect ownership through a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses or entities.

Commission” means the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, or any other federal agency then administering the Securities Act or the Exchange Act.

Common Stock” is defined in the recitals to this Agreement.


Company” is defined in the preamble to this Agreement.

Demand Registration” is defined in Section 2.1.1.

Demanding Holder” is defined in Section 2.1.1.

Exchange Act” means the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and the rules and regulations of the Commission promulgated thereunder, all as the same shall be in effect at the time.

Form S-3” is defined in Section 2.3.

Founder Shares” is defined in the recitals to this Agreement and include the shares of Common Stock issuable upon conversion thereof.

Founder Shares Lock-up Period” means, with respect to the Founder Shares, the period ending on the earlier of (A) one year after the completion of the Company’s initial Business Combination or (B) subsequent to the completion of the Business Combination, (x) if the last reported sale price of the Common Stock equals or exceeds $12.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) for any 20 trading days within any 30-trading day period commencing at least 150 days after the Company’s initial Business Combination or (y) the date on which the Company completes a liquidation, merger, capital stock exchange, reorganization or other similar transaction that results in all of the Company’s stockholders having the right to exchange their shares of Common Stock for cash, securities or other property.

Holders” shall have the meaning given in the preamble.

Holder Indemnified Party” is defined in Section 4.1.

Indemnified Party” is defined in Section 4.3.

Indemnifying Party” is defined in Section 4.3.

Insider Letter” shall mean those certain letter agreements, dated as of [●], 2020, by and among the Company, the Sponsor and each of the Company’s officers, directors and director nominees.

Maximum Number of Shares” is defined in Section 2.1.4.

Misstatement” is defined in Section 3.1.12.

Notices” is defined in Section 6.3.

Permitted Transferees” means a person or entity to whom a Holder is permitted to transfer Registrable Securities prior to the expiration of the Founder Shares Lock-up Period or Private Placement Lock-up Period, as the case may be, under the Insider Letter and any other applicable agreement between such Holder and the Company, and to any transferee thereafter.

Piggy-Back Registration” is defined in Section 2.2.1.

Private Placement Lock-up Period” means, with respect to Private Placement Warrants that are held by the Sponsor or its Permitted Transferees, Working Capital Warrants, and any of the shares of Common Stock issued or issuable upon the exercise or conversion of the Private Placement Warrants and that are held by the Sponsor or its Permitted Transferees or Working Capital Warrants, the period ending 30 days after the completion of the Company’s initial Business Combination.

Private Placement Warrants” is defined in the recitals to this Agreement.

Pro Rata” is defined in Section 2.1.4.

 

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Register,” “Registered” and “Registration” mean a registration effected by preparing and filing a Registration Statement or similar document in compliance with the requirements of the Securities Act, and the applicable rules and regulations promulgated thereunder, and such Registration Statement becoming effective.

Registrable Securities” mean (i) all of the shares of Common Stock issued or issuable upon the conversion of any Founder Shares, (ii) all of the Private Placement Warrants (and shares of Common Stock issuable upon exercise thereof) and (iii) all of the Working Capital Warrants (and Common Stock issuable upon exercise thereof). Registrable Securities include any warrants, shares of capital stock or other securities of the Company issued as a dividend or other distribution with respect to or in exchange for or in replacement of such Registrable Securities. As to any particular Registrable Securities, such securities shall cease to be Registrable Securities when: (a) a Registration Statement with respect to the sale of such securities shall have become effective under the Securities Act and such securities shall have been sold, transferred, disposed of or exchanged in accordance with and pursuant to such Registration Statement; (b) such securities shall have been otherwise transferred, new certificates for them not bearing a legend restricting further transfer shall have been delivered by the Company and subsequent public distribution of them shall not require Registration under the Securities Act; (c) such securities shall have ceased to be outstanding; (d) such securities may be sold without registration pursuant to Rule 144 promulgated under the Securities Act (or any successor rule promulgated thereafter by the Commission) (but with no volume or other restrictions or limitations); or (e) such securities have been sold to, or through, a broker, dealer or underwriter in a public distribution or other public securities transaction.

Registration Statement” means a registration statement filed by the Company with the Commission in compliance with the Securities Act and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder for a public offering and sale of equity securities, or securities or other obligations exercisable or exchangeable for, or convertible into, equity securities (other than a registration statement on Form S-4 or Form S-8, or their successors, or any registration statement covering only securities proposed to be issued in exchange for securities or assets of another entity).

Securities Act” means the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and the rules and regulations of the Commission promulgated thereunder, all as the same shall be in effect at the time.

Sponsor” is defined in the preamble to this Agreement.

Underwriter” means a securities dealer who purchases any Registrable Securities as principal in an underwritten offering and not as part of such dealer’s market-making activities.

Working Capital Warrants” means up to 1,500,000 warrants held by the Sponsor, the officers or directors of the Company or their respective affiliates which may be issued in repayment of working capital loans made to the Company.

 

2.

REGISTRATION RIGHTS

2.1    Demand Registration.

2.1.1    Request for Registration. At any time and from time to time on or after the date that the Company completes a Business Combination, the Sponsor or the Holders of at least a majority in interest of the then issued and outstanding Registrable Securities (the Sponsor or such Holders, as the case may be, the “Demanding Holders”) may make a written demand for Registration under the Securities Act of all or part of their Registrable Securities (a “Demand Registration”). Any demand for a Demand Registration shall specify the number of Registrable Securities proposed to be included in such Registration and the intended method(s) of distribution thereof. The Company will within 10 days of the Company’s receipt of the Demand Registration notify all Holders of the demand, and each Holder who wishes to include all or a portion of such Holder’s Registrable Securities in a Registration pursuant to the Demand Registration (each such Holder including shares of Registrable Securities in such Registration, a “Demanding Holder”) shall so notify the Company within 10 days after the receipt by the Holder of the notice from the Company. Upon receipt by the Company of any such written notification, the Demanding Holders shall be entitled to have their Registrable Securities included in the Demand Registration, subject to Section 2.1.4 and the provisos set forth in Section 3.1.1. The Company shall not be obligated to effect more than an aggregate of three (3) Demand Registrations under this Section 2.1.1 in respect of all Registrable Securities.

 

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2.1.2    Effective Registration. A Registration will not count as a Demand Registration until the Registration Statement filed with the Commission with respect to such Demand Registration has been declared effective by the Commission and the Company has complied with all of its obligations under this Agreement with respect thereto; provided, however, that if, after such Registration Statement has been declared effective, the offering of Registrable Securities pursuant to a Demand Registration is interfered with by any stop order or injunction of the Commission or any other governmental agency or court, the Registration Statement with respect to such Demand Registration will be deemed not to have been declared effective, unless and until, (i) such stop order or injunction is removed, rescinded or otherwise terminated, and (ii) a majority-in-interest of the Demanding Holders thereafter affirmatively elect to continue with such Registration and accordingly notify the Company in writing, but in no event later than five days of such election; provided, further, that the Company shall not be obligated to file a second Registration Statement until the Registration Statement that has been previously filed becomes effective or is subsequently terminated.

2.1.3    Underwritten Offering. If a majority-in-interest of the Demanding Holders so elect and such Holders so advise the Company as part of their written demand for a Demand Registration, the offering of such Registrable Securities pursuant to such Demand Registration shall be in the form of an underwritten offering. In such event, the right of any Holder to include its Registrable Securities in such Registration shall be conditioned upon such Holder’s participation in such underwritten offering and the inclusion of such Holder’s Registrable Securities in the underwriting to the extent provided herein. All Demanding Holders proposing to distribute their securities through such underwritten offering shall enter into an underwriting agreement in customary form with the Underwriter or Underwriters selected for such underwritten offering by the majority-in-interest of the Demanding Holders initiating the Demand Registration.

2.1.4    Reduction of Underwritten Offering. If the managing Underwriter or Underwriters in an underwritten offering pursuant to a Demand Registration, in good faith, advises the Company and the Demanding Holders in writing that the dollar amount or number of shares of Registrable Securities which the Demanding Holders desire to sell, taken together with all other shares of Common Stock or other securities which the Company desires to sell and the shares of Common Stock, if any, as to which a Registration has been requested pursuant to separate written contractual piggy-back registration rights held by other stockholders of the Company who desire to sell, exceeds the maximum dollar amount or maximum number of shares that can be sold in such underwritten offering without adversely affecting the proposed offering price, the timing, the distribution method, or the probability of success of such offering (such maximum dollar amount or maximum number of shares, as applicable, the “Maximum Number of Shares”), then the Company shall include in such underwritten offering, as follows: (i) the Registrable Securities as to which Demand Registration has been requested by the Demanding Holders (pro rata based on the respective number of shares that each such Demanding Holder has requested be included in such underwritten offering, regardless of the number of shares held by each such Demanding Holder (such proportion is referred to herein as “Pro Rata”)) that can be sold without exceeding the Maximum Number of Shares; (ii) to the extent that the Maximum Number of Shares has not been reached under the foregoing clause (i), the shares of Common Stock or other securities that the Company desires to sell for its own account that can be sold without exceeding the Maximum Number of Shares; and (iii) to the extent that the Maximum Number of Shares have not been reached under the foregoing clauses (i) and (ii), the Registrable Securities of holders exercising their rights to register their Registrable Securities pursuant to Section 2.2; and (iv) to the extent that the Maximum Number of Shares has not been reached under the foregoing clauses (i), (ii) and (iii) shares of Common Stock or other securities for the account of other persons or entities that the Company is obligated to register in a Registration pursuant to separate written contractual arrangements with such persons and that can be sold without exceeding the Maximum Number of Shares.

2.1.5    Demand Registration Withdrawal. If a majority-in-interest of the Demanding Holders disapprove of the terms of any underwritten offering or are not entitled to include all of their Registrable Securities in any underwritten offering, such majority-in-interest of the Demanding Holders may elect to withdraw from such Registration by giving written notice to the Company and the Underwriter or Underwriters of their request to withdraw prior to the effectiveness of the Registration Statement filed with the Commission with respect to such Demand Registration. If the majority-in-interest of the Demanding Holders withdraws from a proposed underwritten offering relating to a Demand Registration, then such Registration shall not count as a Demand Registration provided for in this Section 2.1.

 

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2.2    Piggy-Back Registration.

2.2.1    Piggy-Back Rights. If at any time on or after the date the Company completes a Business Combination the Company proposes to file a Registration Statement under the Securities Act with respect to an offering of equity securities, or securities or other obligations exercisable or exchangeable for, or convertible into, equity securities, by the Company for its own account or for the account of stockholders of the Company (or by the Company and by the stockholders of the Company including, without limitation, pursuant to Section 2.1), other than a Registration Statement (i) filed in connection with any employee stock option or other benefit plan, (ii) for an exchange offer or offering of securities solely to the Company’s existing stockholders, (iii) for an offering of debt that is convertible into equity securities of the Company or (iv) for a dividend reinvestment plan, then the Company shall (x) give written notice of such proposed filing to the Holders as soon as practicable but in no event less than seven days before the anticipated filing date of such Registration Statement, which notice shall describe the amount and type of securities to be included in such offering, the intended method(s) of distribution, and the name of the proposed managing Underwriter or Underwriters, if any, of the offering, and (y) offer to the Holders in such notice the opportunity to register the sale of such number of shares of Registrable Securities as such Holders may request in writing within five days following receipt of such notice (such Registration, a “Piggy-Back Registration”). The Company shall, in good faith, cause such Registrable Securities to be included in such Piggy-Back Registration and shall use its reasonable best efforts to cause the managing Underwriter or Underwriters of a proposed underwritten offering to permit the Registrable Securities requested by the Holders pursuant to this Subsection 2.2.1 to be included in a Piggy-Back Registration on the same terms and conditions as any similar securities of the Company included in such Registration and to permit the sale or other disposition of such Registrable Securities in accordance with the intended method(s) of distribution thereof. All Holders proposing to distribute their Registrable Securities through a Piggy-Back Registration that involves an Underwriter or Underwriters shall enter into an underwriting agreement in customary form with the Underwriter or Underwriters selected for such Piggy-Back Registration.

2.2.2    Reduction of Offering. If the managing Underwriter or Underwriters for a Piggy-Back Registration that is to be an underwritten offering advises the Company and the Holders in writing that the dollar amount or number of shares of Common Stock which the Company desires to sell, taken together with (i) the shares of Common Stock, if any, as to which Registration has been demanded pursuant to separate written contractual arrangements with persons or entities other than the Holders hereunder, (ii) the Registrable Securities as to which Registration has been requested under this Section 2.2, and (iii) the shares of Common Stock, if any, as to which Registration has been requested pursuant to the written contractual piggy-back registration rights of other stockholders of the Company, exceeds the Maximum Number of Shares, then the Company shall include in any such Registration:

(a)    If the Registration is undertaken for the Company’s account: (A) the shares of Common Stock or other securities that the Company desires to sell that can be sold without exceeding the Maximum Number of Shares; (B) to the extent that the Maximum Number of Shares has not been reached under the foregoing clause (A), the shares of Common Stock or other securities, if any, comprised of Registrable Securities, as to which Registration has been requested pursuant to the applicable written contractual piggy-back registration rights of such security holders, Pro Rata, that can be sold without exceeding the Maximum Number of Shares; and (C) to the extent that the Maximum Number of Shares has not been reached under the foregoing clauses (A) and (B), the shares of Common Stock or other securities for the account of other persons that the Company is obligated to register pursuant to written contractual piggy-back registration rights with such persons and that can be sold without exceeding the Maximum Number of Shares; and

(b)    If the Registration is a “demand” registration undertaken at the demand of persons or entities other than the Holders: (A) the shares of Common Stock or other securities for the account of the demanding persons that can be sold without exceeding the Maximum Number of Shares; (B) to the extent that the Maximum Number of Shares has not been reached under the foregoing clause (A), the Common Stock or other securities that the Company desires to sell that can be sold without exceeding the Maximum Number of Shares that can be sold without exceeding the Maximum Number of Shares; (C) to the extent that the Maximum Number of Shares has not been reached under the foregoing clauses (A) and (B), collectively the shares of Common Stock or other securities comprised of Registrable Securities, Pro Rata, as to which Registration has been requested pursuant to the terms hereof, as applicable, that can be

 

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sold without exceeding the Maximum Number of Shares; and (D) to the extent that the Maximum Number of Shares has not been reached under the foregoing clauses (A), (B) and (C), the shares of Common Stock or other securities for the account of other persons that the Company is obligated to register pursuant to written contractual arrangements with such persons, that can be sold without exceeding the Maximum Number of Shares.

2.2.3    Withdrawal. Any Holder may elect to withdraw such Holder’s request for inclusion of Registrable Securities in any Piggy-Back Registration by giving written notice to the Company of such request to withdraw prior to the effectiveness of the Registration Statement filed with the Commission with respect to such Piggy-Back Registration. The Company (whether on its own determination or as the result of a request for withdrawal by persons making a demand pursuant to written contractual obligations) may withdraw a Registration Statement filed with the Commission in connection with a Piggy-Back Registration at any time prior to the effectiveness of such Registration Statement. Notwithstanding any such withdrawal, the Company shall pay all expenses incurred by the Holders in connection with such Piggy-Back Registration as provided in Section 3.3.

2.2.4    Unlimited Piggy-Back Registration Rights. For purposes of clarity, any Registration effected pursuant to Section 2.2 hereof shall not be counted as a Registration pursuant to a Demand Registration effected under Section 2.1 hereof.

2.3    Registrations on Form S-3. The holders of Registrable Securities may at any time and from time to time, request in writing that the Company register the resale of any or all of such Registrable Securities on Form S-3 or any similar short-form Registration Statement which may be available at such time (“Form S-3”); provided, however, that the Company shall not be obligated to effect such request through an underwritten offering. Upon receipt of such written request, the Company will promptly give written notice of the proposed Registration to all other Holders, and each Holder who thereafter wishes to include all or a portion of such Holder’s Registrable Securities in such Registration shall so notify the Company, in writing, within 5 days after the receipt by the Holder of the notice from the Company, and, as soon as practicable thereafter but not more than 12 days after the Company’s initial receipt of such written request for a registration, effect the registration of all or such portion of such Holder’s or Holders’ Registrable Securities as are specified in such request, together with all or such portion of the Registrable Securities or other securities of the Company, if any, of any other Holder or Holders joining in such request; provided, however, that the Company shall not be obligated to effect any such registration pursuant to this Section 2.3 if: (i) Form S-3 is not available for such offering or the Company is not eligible to use Form S-3; or (ii) the Holders, together with the holders of any other securities of the Company entitled to inclusion in such registration, propose to sell Registrable Securities and such other securities (if any) at any aggregate price to the public of less than $1,000,000. Registrations effected pursuant to this Section 2.3 shall not be counted as Demand Registrations effected pursuant to Section 2.1.

2.4    Restrictions on Registration Rights. If (A) during the period starting with the date 60 days prior to the Company’s good faith estimate of the date of the filing of, and ending on a date 120 days after the effective date of, the Company initiated a Registration and provided that the Company has delivered written notice to the Holders prior to receipt of a Demand Registration pursuant to subsection 2.1.1 and it continues to actively employ, in good faith, all reasonable efforts to cause the applicable Registration Statement to become effective; (B) the Holders have requested an underwritten Registration and the Company and the Holders are unable to obtain the commitment of underwriters to firmly underwrite the offer; or (C) in the good faith judgment of the Board such Registration would be seriously detrimental to the Company and the Board concludes as a result that it is essential to defer the filing of such Registration Statement at such time, then in each case the Company shall furnish to such Holders a certificate signed by the Chairman of the Board, the Chief Executive Officer, the Chief Financial Officer or Corporate Secretary of the Company stating that in the good faith judgment of the Board it would be seriously detrimental to the Company for such Registration Statement to be filed in the near future and that it is therefore essential to defer the filing of such Registration Statement. In such event, the Company shall have the right to defer such filing for a period of not more than 30 days; provided, however, that the Company shall not defer its obligation in this manner more than once in any 12-month period. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in this Agreement, no Registration shall be effected or permitted and no Registration Statement shall become effective, with respect to any Registrable Securities held by any Holder, until after the expiration of the Founder Shares Lock-Up Period or the Private Placement Lock-Up Period, as the case may be.

 

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3.

REGISTRATION PROCEDURES.

3.1    Filings; Information. Whenever the Company is required to effect a Registration of any Registrable Securities pursuant to Section 2, the Company shall use its reasonable best efforts to effect the registration and sale of such Registrable Securities in accordance with the intended method(s) of distribution thereof as expeditiously as practicable, and in connection with any such request:

3.1.1    Filing Registration Statement. The Company shall, as expeditiously as possible and in any event within 60 days after receipt of a request for a Demand Registration pursuant to Section 2.1, prepare and file with the Commission a Registration Statement on any form for which the Company then qualifies or which counsel for the Company shall deem appropriate and which form shall be available for the sale of all Registrable Securities to be registered thereunder in accordance with the intended method(s) of distribution thereof, and shall use its reasonable best efforts to cause such Registration Statement to become and remain effective for the period required by Section 3.1.3; provided, however, that the Company shall have the right to defer any Demand Registration for up to 30 days, and any Piggy-Back Registration for such period as may be applicable to deferment of any demand registration to which such Piggy-Back Registration relates, in each case if the Company shall furnish to the Holders a certificate signed by the Chairman of the Board, the Chief Executive Officer, the Chief Financial Officer or Corporate Secretary of the Company stating that, in the good faith judgment of the Board of Directors of the Company (the “Board”), it would be materially detrimental to the Company and its stockholders for such Registration Statement to be effected at such time; provided further, however, that the Company shall not have the right to exercise the right set forth in the immediately preceding proviso more than once in any 365-day period in respect of a Demand Registration hereunder.

3.1.2    Copies. The Company shall, prior to filing a Registration Statement or prospectus, or any amendment or supplement thereto, furnish without charge to the Holders whose Registrable Securities are included in such Registration, and such Holders’ legal counsel, copies of such Registration Statement as proposed to be filed, each amendment and supplement to such Registration Statement (in each case including all exhibits thereto and documents incorporated by reference therein), the prospectus included in such Registration Statement (including each preliminary prospectus), and such other documents as such Holders or legal counsel for any such Holders may request in order to facilitate the disposition of the Registrable Securities owned by such Holders.

3.1.3    Amendments and Supplements. The Company shall prepare and file with the Commission such amendments, including post-effective amendments, and supplements to such Registration Statement and the prospectus used in connection therewith as may be necessary to keep such Registration Statement effective and in compliance with the provisions of the Securities Act until all Registrable Securities and other securities covered by such Registration Statement have been disposed of in accordance with the intended method(s) of distribution set forth in such Registration Statement or such securities have been withdrawn.

3.1.4    Notification. After the filing of a Registration Statement, the Company shall promptly, and in no event more than two business days after such filing, notify the Holders whose Registrable Securities are included in such Registration Statement of such filing, and shall further notify such Holders promptly and confirm such advice in writing in all events within two business days of the occurrence of any of the following: (i) when such Registration Statement becomes effective; (ii) when any post-effective amendment to such Registration Statement becomes effective; (iii) the issuance or threatened issuance by the Commission of any stop order (and the Company shall take all actions required to prevent the entry of such stop order or to remove it if entered); and (iv) any request by the Commission for any amendment or supplement to such Registration Statement or any prospectus relating thereto or for additional information or of the occurrence of an event requiring the preparation of a supplement or amendment to such prospectus so that, as thereafter delivered to the purchasers of the securities covered by such Registration Statement, such prospectus will not contain an untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state any material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, and promptly make available to the Holders whose Registrable Securities are included in such Registration Statement any such supplement or amendment; except that before filing with the Commission a Registration Statement or prospectus or any amendment or supplement thereto, including documents incorporated by reference, the Company shall furnish to the Holders whose Registrable Securities are included in such Registration Statement and to the legal counsel for any such Holders, copies of all such documents proposed to be filed sufficiently in advance of filing to provide such Holders and legal counsel with a reasonable opportunity to review such documents and comment thereon, and the Company shall not file any Registration Statement or prospectus or amendment or supplement thereto, including documents incorporated by reference, to which such Holders or their legal counsel shall reasonably object.

 

 

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3.1.5    Securities Laws Compliance. The Company shall use its best efforts to (i) register or qualify the Registrable Securities covered by the Registration Statement under such securities or “blue sky” laws of such jurisdictions in the United States as the Holders whose Registrable Securities are included in such Registration Statement (in light of their intended plan of distribution) may request and (ii) take such action necessary to cause such Registrable Securities covered by the Registration Statement to be registered with or approved by such other governmental authorities as may be necessary by virtue of the business and operations of the Company and do any and all other acts and things that may be necessary or advisable to enable the Holders whose Registrable Securities are included in such Registration Statement to consummate the disposition of such Registrable Securities in such jurisdictions; provided, however, that the Company shall not be required to qualify generally to do business in any jurisdiction where it would not otherwise be required to qualify or take any action to which it would be subject to general service of process or to taxation in any such jurisdiction where it is not then otherwise so subject.

3.1.6    Agreements for Disposition. The Company shall enter into customary agreements (including, if applicable, an underwriting agreement in customary form) and take such other actions as are reasonably required in order to expedite or facilitate the disposition of such Registrable Securities. The representations, warranties and covenants of the Company in any underwriting agreement which are made to or for the benefit of any Underwriters, to the extent applicable, shall also be made to and for the benefit of the Holders whose Registrable Securities are included in such Registration Statement. No Holder whose Registrable Securities are included in such Registration Statement shall be required to make any representations or warranties in the underwriting agreement except, if applicable, with respect to such Holder’s organization, good standing, authority, title to Registrable Securities, lack of conflict of such sale with such Holder’s material agreements and organizational documents, and with respect to written information relating to such Holder that such Holder has furnished in writing expressly for inclusion in such Registration Statement.

3.1.7    Cooperation. The principal executive officer of the Company, the principal financial officer of the Company, the principal accounting officer of the Company and all other officers and members of the management of the Company shall cooperate fully in any offering of Registrable Securities hereunder, which cooperation shall include, without limitation, the preparation of the Registration Statement with respect to such offering and all other offering materials and related documents, and participation in meetings with Underwriters, attorneys, accountants and potential investors.

3.1.8    Records. The Company shall make available for inspection by the Holders whose Registrable Securities are included in such Registration Statement, any Underwriter participating in any disposition pursuant to such Registration Statement and any attorney, accountant or other professional retained by any Holder whose Registrable Securities are included in such Registration Statement or any Underwriter, all financial and other records, pertinent corporate documents and properties of the Company, as shall be reasonably necessary to enable them to exercise their due diligence responsibility, and cause the Company’s officers, directors and employees to supply all information requested by any of them in connection with such Registration Statement.

3.1.9    Opinions and Comfort Letters. The Company shall furnish to each holder of Registrable Securities included in any Registration Statement a signed counterpart, addressed to such holder, of (i) any opinion of counsel to the Company delivered to any Underwriter and (ii) any comfort letter from the Company’s independent public accountants delivered to any Underwriter. In the event no legal opinion is delivered to any Underwriter, the Company shall furnish to each holder of Registrable Securities included in such Registration Statement, at any time that such holder elects to use a prospectus, an opinion of counsel to the Company to the effect that the Registration Statement containing such prospectus has been declared effective and that no stop order is in effect.

3.1.10    Listing. The Company shall use its reasonable best efforts to cause all Registrable Securities included in any Registration to be listed on such exchanges or otherwise designated for trading in the same manner as similar securities issued by the Company are then listed or designated or, if no such similar securities are then listed or designated, in a manner satisfactory to the Holders of a majority-in-interest of the Registrable Securities included in such Registration.

 

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3.1.11    Transfer Agent. The Company shall provide a transfer agent or warrant agent, as applicable, and registrar for all such Registrable Securities no later than the effective date of the Registration Statement.

3.1.12    Misstatements. The Company shall notify the Holders at any time when a prospectus relating to such Registration Statement is required to be delivered under the Securities Act, of the happening of any event as a result of which the prospectus included in such Registration Statement, as then in effect, includes an untrue statement of a material fact or an omission to state a material fact required to be stated in a Registration Statement or prospectus, or necessary to make the statements therein in the light of the circumstances under which they were made not misleading (a “Misstatement”), and then to correct such Misstatement.

3.1.13    Road Show. If the Registration involves Registrable Securities involving gross proceeds in excess of $25,000,000, use its reasonable efforts to make available senior executives of the Company to participate in customary “road show” presentations that may be reasonably requested by the Underwriter in any underwritten offering.

3.2    Obligation to Suspend Distribution. Upon receipt of any notice from the Company of the happening of any event of the kind described in Section 3.1.4(iv), or, in the case of a resale Registration on Form S-3 pursuant to Section 2.3 hereof, upon any suspension by the Company, pursuant to a written insider trading compliance program adopted by the Board, of the ability of all “insiders” covered by such program to transact in the Company’s securities because of the existence of material non-public information, each Holder whose Registrable Securities are included in any Registration shall immediately discontinue disposition of such Registrable Securities pursuant to the Registration Statement covering such Registrable Securities until such Holder receives the supplemented or amended prospectus contemplated by Section 3.1.4(iv) or the restriction on the ability of “insiders” to transact in the Company’s securities is removed, as applicable, and, if so directed by the Company, each such Holder will deliver to the Company all copies, other than permanent file copies then in such Holder’s possession, of the most recent prospectus covering such Registrable Securities at the time of receipt of such notice.

3.3    Registration Expenses. The Company shall bear all costs and expenses incurred in connection with any Demand Registration pursuant to Section 2.1, any Piggy-Back Registration pursuant to Section 2.2, and any Registration on Form S-3 effected pursuant to Section 2.3, and all expenses incurred in performing or complying with its other obligations under this Agreement, whether or not the Registration Statement becomes effective, including, without limitation: (i) all Registration and filing fees and fees of any securities exchange on which Registrable Securities are then listed; (ii) fees and expenses of compliance with securities or “blue sky” laws (including fees and disbursements of counsel for the Underwriters in connection with blue sky qualifications of the Registrable Securities); (iii) printing, messenger, telephone and delivery expenses; (iv) the Company’s internal expenses (including, without limitation, all salaries and expenses of its officers and employees); (v) the fees and expenses incurred in connection with the listing of the Registrable Securities as required by Section 3.1.10; (vi) Financial Industry Regulatory Authority fees; (vii) fees and disbursements of counsel for the Company and fees and expenses for independent certified public accountants retained by the Company (including the expenses or costs associated with the delivery of any opinions or comfort letters requested pursuant to Section 3.1.9); (viii) the fees and expenses of any special experts retained by the Company in connection with such Registration; and (ix) the fees and expenses of one legal counsel selected by the Holders of a majority-in-interest of the Registrable Securities included in such Registration. The Company shall have no obligation to pay any underwriting discounts or selling commissions attributable to the Registrable Securities being sold by the Holders thereof, which underwriting discounts or selling commissions shall be borne by such Holders. Additionally, in an underwritten offering, all selling stockholders and the Company shall bear the expenses of the Underwriter pro rata in proportion to the respective amount of shares each is selling in such offering.

3.4    Information. The Holders shall provide such information as may reasonably be requested by the Company, or the managing Underwriter, if any, in connection with the preparation of any Registration Statement, including amendments and supplements thereto, in order to effect the Registration of any Registrable Securities under the Securities Act pursuant to Section 2 and in connection with the Company’s obligation to comply with federal and applicable state securities laws.

3.5    Suspension of Sales; Adverse Disclosure. Upon receipt of written notice from the Company that a Registration Statement or prospectus contains a Misstatement, each of the Holders shall forthwith discontinue

 

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disposition of Registrable Securities until it has received copies of a supplemented or amended prospectus correcting the Misstatement (it being understood that the Company hereby covenants to prepare and file such supplement or amendment as soon as practicable after the time of such notice), or until it is advised in writing by the Company that the use of the prospectus may be resumed. If the filing, initial effectiveness or continued use of a Registration Statement in respect of any Registration at any time would require the Company to make an Adverse Disclosure (as defined below) or would require the inclusion in such Registration Statement of financial statements that are unavailable to the Company for reasons beyond the Company’s control, the Company may, upon giving prompt written notice of such action to the Holders, delay the filing or initial effectiveness of, or suspend use of, such Registration Statement for the shortest period of time, but in no event more than 30 days, determined in good faith by the Company to be necessary for such purpose. In the event the Company exercises its rights under the preceding sentence, the Holders agree to suspend, immediately upon their receipt of the notice referred to above, their use of the prospectus relating to any Registration in connection with any sale or offer to sell Registrable Securities. The Company shall immediately notify the Holders of the expiration of any period during which it exercised its rights under this Section 3.5. “Adverse Disclosure” shall mean any public disclosure of material non-public information, which disclosure, in the good faith judgment of the Chief Executive Officer or principal financial officer of the Company, after consultation with counsel to the Company, (i) would be required to be made in any Registration Statement or prospectus in order for the applicable Registration Statement or prospectus not to contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements contained therein (in the case of any prospectus and any preliminary prospectus, in the light of the circumstances under which they were made) not misleading, (ii) would not be required to be made at such time if the Registration Statement were not being filed, and (iii) the Company has a bona fide business purpose for not making such information public.

3.6    Reporting Obligations. As long as any Holder shall own Registrable Securities, the Company, at all times while it shall be a reporting company under the Exchange Act, covenants to file timely (or obtain extensions in respect thereof and file within the applicable grace period) all reports required to be filed by the Company after the date hereof pursuant to Sections 13(a) or 15(d) of the Exchange Act and to promptly furnish the Holders with true and complete copies of all such filings. The Company further covenants that it shall take such further action as any Holder may reasonably request, all to the extent required from time to time to enable such Holder to sell the shares of Common Stock held by such Holder without Registration under the Securities Act within the limitation of the exemptions provided by Rule 144 promulgated under the Securities Act (to the extent such exemptions are applicable to the Company), as such rules may be amended from time to time, or any similar rule or regulation hereafter adopted by the Commission, including providing any legal opinions. Upon the request of any Holder, the Company shall deliver to such Holder a written certification of a duly authorized officer as to whether it has complied with such requirements.

 

4.

INDEMNIFICATION AND CONTRIBUTION.

4.1    Indemnification by the Company. The Company agrees to indemnify and hold harmless each Holder, and each of their respective officers, employees, affiliates, directors, partners, members, attorneys and agents, and each person, if any, who controls such Holder (within the meaning of Section 15 of the Securities Act or Section 20 of the Exchange Act) (each, a “Holder Indemnified Party”), from and against any expenses, losses, judgments, claims, damages or liabilities, whether joint or several, arising out of or based upon any untrue statement (or allegedly untrue statement) of a material fact contained in any Registration Statement under which the sale of such Registrable Securities was registered under the Securities Act, any preliminary prospectus, final prospectus or summary prospectus contained in the Registration Statement, or any amendment or supplement to such Registration Statement, or arising out of or based upon any omission (or alleged omission) to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statements therein not misleading, or any violation by the Company of the Securities Act or any rule or regulation promulgated thereunder applicable to the Company and relating to action or inaction required of the Company in connection with any such Registration; and the Company shall promptly reimburse the Holder Indemnified Party for any legal and any other expenses reasonably incurred by such Holder Indemnified Party in connection with investigating and defending any such expense, loss, judgment, claim, damage, liability or action; provided, however, that the Company will not be liable in any such case to the extent that any such expense, loss, claim, damage or liability arises out of or is based upon any untrue statement or allegedly untrue statement or omission or alleged omission made in such Registration Statement, preliminary prospectus, final prospectus, or summary prospectus, or any such amendment or supplement, in reliance upon and in conformity with information furnished to the Company, in writing, by such selling Holder expressly for use therein. The Company

 

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also shall indemnify any Underwriter of the Registrable Securities, their officers, affiliates, directors, partners, members and agents and each person who controls such Underwriter on substantially the same basis as that of the indemnification provided above in this Section 4.1.

4.2    Indemnification by Holders. Each selling Holder will, in the event that any Registration is being effected under the Securities Act pursuant to this Agreement of any Registrable Securities held by such selling Holder, indemnify and hold harmless the Company, each of its directors and officers and each Underwriter (if any), and each other selling Holder and each other person, if any, who controls another selling Holder or such Underwriter within the meaning of the Securities Act, against any losses, claims, judgments, damages or liabilities, whether joint or several, insofar as such losses, claims, judgments, damages or liabilities (or actions in respect thereof) arise out of or are based upon any untrue statement or allegedly untrue statement of a material fact contained in any Registration Statement under which the sale of such Registrable Securities was registered under the Securities Act, any preliminary prospectus, final prospectus or summary prospectus contained in the Registration Statement, or any amendment or supplement to the Registration Statement, or arise out of or are based upon any omission or the alleged omission to state a material fact required to be stated therein or necessary to make the statement therein not misleading, if the statement or omission was made in reliance upon and in conformity with information furnished in writing to the Company by such selling Holder expressly for use therein, and shall reimburse the Company, its directors and officers, and each other selling Holder or controlling person for any legal or other expenses reasonably incurred by any of them in connection with investigation or defending any such loss, claim, damage, liability or action. Each selling Holder’s indemnification obligations hereunder shall be several and not joint and shall be limited to the amount of any net proceeds actually received by such selling Holder.

4.3    Conduct of Indemnification Proceedings. Promptly after receipt by any person of any notice of any loss, claim, damage or liability or any action in respect of which indemnity may be sought pursuant to Section 4.1 or 4.2, such person (the “Indemnified Party”) shall, if a claim in respect thereof is to be made against any other person for indemnification hereunder, notify such other person (the “Indemnifying Party”) in writing of the loss, claim, judgment, damage, liability or action; provided, however, that the failure by the Indemnified Party to notify the Indemnifying Party shall not relieve the Indemnifying Party from any liability which the Indemnifying Party may have to such Indemnified Party hereunder, except and solely to the extent the Indemnifying Party is actually prejudiced by such failure. If the Indemnified Party is seeking indemnification with respect to any claim or action brought against the Indemnified Party, then the Indemnifying Party shall be entitled to participate in such claim or action, and, to the extent that it wishes, jointly with all other Indemnifying Parties, to assume control of the defense thereof with counsel satisfactory to the Indemnified Party. After notice from the Indemnifying Party to the Indemnified Party of its election to assume control of the defense of such claim or action, the Indemnifying Party shall not be liable to the Indemnified Party for any legal or other expenses subsequently incurred by the Indemnified Party in connection with the defense thereof other than reasonable costs of investigation; provided, however, that in any action in which both the Indemnified Party and the Indemnifying Party are named as defendants, the Indemnified Party shall have the right to employ separate counsel (but no more than one such separate counsel) to represent the Indemnified Party and its controlling persons who may be subject to liability arising out of any claim in respect of which indemnity may be sought by the Indemnified Party against the Indemnifying Party, with the fees and expenses of such counsel to be paid by such Indemnifying Party if, based upon the written opinion of counsel of such Indemnified Party, representation of both parties by the same counsel would be inappropriate due to actual or potential differing interests between them. No Indemnifying Party shall, without the prior written consent of the Indemnified Party, consent to entry of judgment or effect any settlement of any claim or pending or threatened proceeding in respect of which the Indemnified Party is or could have been a party and indemnity could have been sought hereunder by such Indemnified Party, unless such judgment or settlement includes an unconditional release of such Indemnified Party from all liability arising out of such claim or proceeding.

4.4    Contribution.

4.4.1    If the indemnification provided for in the foregoing Sections 4.1, 4.2 and 4.3 is unavailable to any Indemnified Party in respect of any loss, claim, damage, liability or action referred to herein, then each such Indemnifying Party, in lieu of indemnifying such Indemnified Party, shall contribute to the amount paid or payable by such Indemnified Party as a result of such loss, claim, damage, liability or action in such proportion as is appropriate to reflect the relative fault of the Indemnified Parties and the Indemnifying Parties in connection with the actions or omissions which resulted in such loss, claim, damage, liability or action, as well as any other relevant

 

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equitable considerations. The relative fault of any Indemnified Party and any Indemnifying Party shall be determined by reference to, among other things, whether the untrue or alleged untrue statement of a material fact or the omission or alleged omission to state a material fact relates to information supplied by such Indemnified Party or such Indemnifying Party and the parties’ relative intent, knowledge, access to information and opportunity to correct or prevent such statement or omission.

4.4.2    The parties hereto agree that it would not be just and equitable if contribution pursuant to this Section 4.4 were determined by pro rata allocation or by any other method of allocation which does not take account of the equitable considerations referred to in the immediately preceding Section 4.4.1. The amount paid or payable by an Indemnified Party as a result of any loss, claim, damage, liability or action referred to in the immediately preceding paragraph shall be deemed to include, subject to the limitations set forth above, any legal or other expenses incurred by such Indemnified Party in connection with investigating or defending any such action or claim. Notwithstanding the provisions of this Section 4.4, no Holder shall be required to contribute any amount in excess of the dollar amount of the net proceeds (after payment of any underwriting fees, discounts, commissions or taxes) actually received by such Holder from the sale of Registrable Securities which gave rise to such contribution obligation. No person guilty of fraudulent misrepresentation (within the meaning of Section 11(f) of the Securities Act) shall be entitled to contribution from any person who was not guilty of such fraudulent misrepresentation.

4.5    Survival. The indemnification provided for under this Agreement shall remain in full force and effect regardless of any investigation made by or on behalf of the Indemnified Party or any officer, director or controlling person of such Indemnified Party and shall survive the transfer of securities.

 

5.

UNDERWRITING AND DISTRIBUTION.

5.1    Rule 144. The Company covenants that it shall file any reports required to be filed by it under the Securities Act and the Exchange Act and shall take such further action as the holders of Registrable Securities may reasonably request, all to the extent required from time to time to enable such holders to sell Registrable Securities without registration under the Securities Act within the limitation of the exemptions provided by Rule 144 under the Securities Act, as such Rules may be amended from time to time, or any similar rule or regulation hereafter adopted by the Commission.

 

6.

MISCELLANEOUS.

6.1    Other Registration Rights. The Company represents and warrants that no person, other than a Holder, has any right to require the Company to register any shares of the Company’s capital stock for sale or to include shares of the Company’s capital stock in any Registration filed by the Company for the sale of shares of capital stock for its own account or for the account of any other person. Further, the Company represents and warrants that this Agreement supersedes any other registration rights agreement or agreement with similar terms and conditions and in the event of a conflict between any such agreement or agreements and this Agreement, the terms of this Agreement shall prevail.

6.2    Assignment; No Third Party Beneficiaries. This Agreement and the rights, duties and obligations of the Company hereunder may not be assigned or delegated by the Company in whole or in part. Prior to the expiration of the Founder Shares Lock-up Period or the Private Placement Lock-up Period, as the case may be, no Holder may assign or delegate such Holder’s rights, duties or obligations under this Agreement, in whole or in part, except in connection with a transfer of Registrable Securities by such Holder to a Permitted Transferee but only if such Permitted Transferee agrees to become bound by the transfer restrictions set forth in this Agreement. This Agreement and the provisions hereof shall be binding upon and shall inure to the benefit of each of the parties and the permitted assigns of the Holder or of any assignee of the Holder, which shall include Permitted Transferees. This Agreement is not intended to confer any rights or benefits on any persons that are not party hereto other than as expressly set forth in Article 4 and this Section 6.2.

6.3    Notices. All notices, demands, requests, consents, approvals or other communications (collectively, “Notices”) required or permitted to be given hereunder or which are given with respect to this Agreement shall be in writing and given by (i) deposit in the United States mail, addressed to the party to be notified, postage prepaid and registered or certified with return receipt requested, (ii) delivery in person or by courier service providing evidence of delivery, or (iii) transmission by hand delivery, electronic mail, telecopy, telegram or

 

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facsimile. Each notice or communication that is mailed, delivered, or transmitted in the manner described above shall be deemed sufficiently given, served, sent, and received, in the case of mailed notices, on the third business day following the date on which it is mailed and, in the case of notices delivered by courier service, hand delivery, electronic mail, telecopy, telegram or facsimile, at such time as it is delivered to the addressee (with the delivery receipt or the affidavit of messenger) or at such time as delivery is refused by the addressee upon presentation. Any notice or communication under this Agreement must be addressed:

To the Company:

Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

[    ]

Attn: [    ]

with a copy to:

Greenberg Traurig, LLP

1750 Tysons Boulevard

Suite 1000

McLean, VA 22102

Attn: Alan I. Annex, Esq. and Jason T. Simon, Esq.

To any other Holder, to such Holder’s address as set forth in the books and records of the Company.

6.4    Severability. This Agreement shall be deemed severable, and the invalidity or unenforceability of any term or provision hereof shall not affect the validity or enforceability of this Agreement or of any other term or provision hereof. Furthermore, in lieu of any such invalid or unenforceable term or provision, the parties hereto intend that there shall be added as a part of this Agreement a provision as similar in terms to such invalid or unenforceable provision as may be possible that is valid and enforceable.

6.5    Counterparts. This Agreement may be executed in multiple counterparts, each of which shall be deemed an original, and all of which taken together shall constitute one and the same instrument. Delivery of a signed counterpart of this Agreement by facsimile or email/pdf transmission shall constitute valid and sufficient delivery thereof.

6.6    Entire Agreement. This Agreement (including all agreements entered into pursuant hereto and all certificates and instruments delivered pursuant hereto and thereto) constitute the entire agreement of the parties with respect to the subject matter hereof and supersede all prior and contemporaneous agreements, representations, understandings, negotiations and discussions between the parties, whether oral or written.

6.7    Modifications and Amendments. Upon the written consent of the Company and the Holders of at least sixty-six and two-thirds percent (6623%) of the Registrable Securities at the time in question, compliance with any of the provisions, covenants and conditions set forth in this Agreement may be waived, or any of such provisions, covenants or conditions may be amended or modified; provided, however, that notwithstanding the foregoing, any amendment hereto or waiver hereof that adversely affects one Holder, solely in its capacity as a Holder, in a manner that is materially different from the other Holders (in such capacity) shall require the consent of the Holder so affected. No course of dealing between any Holders or the Company and any other party hereto or any failure or delay on the part of a Holder or the Company in exercising any rights or remedies under this Agreement shall operate as a waiver of any rights or remedies of any Holder or the Company. No single or partial exercise of any rights or remedies under this Agreement by a party shall operate as a waiver or preclude the exercise of any other rights or remedies hereunder or thereunder by such party.

6.8    Titles and Headings. Titles and headings of sections of this Agreement are for convenience only and shall not affect the construction of any provision of this Agreement.

6.9    Waivers and Extensions. Any party to this Agreement may waive any right, breach or default which such party has the right to waive, provided that such waiver will not be effective against the waiving party

 

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unless it is in writing, is signed by such party, and specifically refers to this Agreement. Waivers may be made in advance or after the right waived has arisen or the breach or default waived has occurred. Any waiver may be conditional. No waiver of any breach of any agreement or provision herein contained shall be deemed a waiver of any preceding or succeeding breach thereof nor of any other agreement or provision herein contained. No waiver or extension of time for performance of any obligations or acts shall be deemed a waiver or extension of the time for performance of any other obligations or acts.

6.10    Remedies Cumulative. In the event that the Company fails to observe or perform any covenant or agreement to be observed or performed under this Agreement, the Holders may proceed to protect and enforce its rights by suit in equity or action at law, whether for specific performance of any term contained in this Agreement or for an injunction against the breach of any such term or in aid of the exercise of any power granted in this Agreement or to enforce any other legal or equitable right, or to take any one or more of such actions, without being required to post a bond. None of the rights, powers or remedies conferred under this Agreement shall be mutually exclusive, and each such right, power or remedy shall be cumulative and in addition to any other right, power or remedy, whether conferred by this Agreement or now or hereafter available at law, in equity, by statute or otherwise.

6.11    Governing Law. This Agreement shall be governed by, interpreted under, and construed in accordance with the internal laws of the State of New York applicable to agreements made and to be performed within the State of New York, without giving effect to any choice-of-law provisions thereof that would compel the application of the substantive laws of any other jurisdiction.

6.12    Waiver of Trial by Jury. Each party hereby irrevocably and unconditionally waives the right to a trial by jury in any action, suit, counterclaim or other proceeding (whether based on contract, tort or otherwise) arising out of, connected with or relating to this Agreement, the transactions contemplated hereby, or the actions of the Sponsor in the negotiation, administration, performance or enforcement hereof.

[Signature Page Follows]

 

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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties have caused this Registration Rights Agreement to be executed and delivered by their duly authorized representatives as of the date first written above.

 

COMPANY:

GOLDEN FALCON ACQUISITION CORP.,

a Delaware corporation

By:  

 

Name:   Makram Azar
Title:   Chief Executive Officer
HOLDERS:

GOLDEN FALCON SPONSOR GROUP, LLC,

a Delaware limited liability company

By:  

 

Name:   Makram Azar
Title:   Manager
By:  

 

Name:   Isabelle Amiel Azoulai
By:  

 

Name:   Mikael Breuer-Weil
By:  

 

Name:   Dominique D’Hinnin
By:  

 

Name:   I. Martin Pompadur
By:  

 

Name:   Xavier Rolet, KBE

[Signature Page to Registration Rights Agreement]

Exhibit 10.7

PRIVATE PLACEMENT WARRANTS PURCHASE AGREEMENT

This Private Placement Warrants Purchase Agreement (as it may from time to time be amended, “Agreement”), dated as of [●], 2020, is entered into by and between Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), and Golden Falcon Sponsor Group, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company (the “Purchaser”).

WHEREAS, the Company intends to consummate an initial public offering of the Company’s units (the “Public Offering”), each unit consisting of one share of Class A common stock of the Company, par value $0.0001 per share (each, a “Share”), and one-half of one redeemable warrant, each whole warrant entitling the holder to purchase one Share at an exercise price of $11.50 per Share, as set forth in the Company’s Registration Statement on Form S-1, filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), File Number [●] (the “Registration Statement”), under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”).

WHEREAS, the Purchaser has agreed to purchase, at a price of $1.00 per warrant, 7,000,000 warrants (or 7,750,000 if the underwriters in the Public Offering exercise their over-allotment option in full) (the “Private Placement Warrants”), each Private Placement Warrant entitling the holder to purchase one Share at an exercise price of $11.50 per Share.

NOW THEREFORE, in consideration of the mutual promises contained in this Agreement and other good and valuable consideration, the receipt and sufficiency of which are hereby acknowledged, the parties to this Agreement hereby, intending legally to be bound, agree as follows:

AGREEMENT

Section 1. Authorization, Purchase and Sale; Terms of the Private Placement Warrants.

A. Authorization of the Private Placement Warrants. The Company has duly authorized the issuance and sale of the Private Placement Warrants to the Purchaser.

B. Purchase and Sale of the Private Placement Warrants.

(i) On the date of the consummation of the Public Offering or on such earlier time and date as may be mutually agreed by the Purchaser and the Company (the “IPO Closing Date”), the Company shall issue and sell to the Purchaser, and the Purchaser shall purchase from the Company, 7,000,000 Private Placement Warrants at a price of $1.00 per warrant for an aggregate purchase price of $7,000,000 (the “Purchase Price”). The Purchaser shall pay the Purchase Price by wire transfer of immediately available funds to the Company, to the trust account at a financial institution to be chosen by the Company, maintained by Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, acting as trustee (the “Trust Account”), in accordance with the Company’s wiring instructions, at least one (1) business day prior to the effectiveness of the Registration Statement, or such other date as the Company and the Purchaser may agree upon in writing. On the IPO Closing Date, upon the payment by the Purchaser of the Purchase Price, by wire transfer of immediately available funds to the Company, the Company, at its option, shall deliver a certificate evidencing the Private Placement Warrants purchased on such date duly registered in the Purchaser’s name to the Purchaser or effect such delivery in book-entry form.

(ii) On the date of any closing of the over-allotment option, if any, in connection with the Public Offering or on such earlier time and date as may be mutually agreed by the Purchaser and the Company (each such date, an “Over-allotment Closing Date”, and each Over-allotment Closing Date (if any) and the IPO Closing Date, a “Closing Date”), the Company shall issue and sell to the Purchaser, and the Purchaser shall purchase from the Company, up to 750,000 Private Placement Warrants (or, to the extent the over-allotment


option is not exercised in full, a lesser number of Private Placement Warrants in proportion to the portion of the over-allotment option that is exercised) at a price of $1.00 per warrant for an aggregate purchase price of up to $750,000 (the “Over-allotment Purchase Price”). The Purchaser shall pay the Over-allotment Purchase Price to the Trust Account by wire transfer of immediately available funds in accordance with the Company’s wiring instructions, at least one (1) business day prior to such Over-allotment Closing Date. On the Over-allotment Closing Date, upon the payment by the Purchaser of the Over-allotment Purchase Price, by wire transfer of immediately available funds to the Company, the Company, at its option, shall deliver a certificate evidencing the Private Placement Warrants purchased on such date duly registered in the Purchaser’s name to the Purchaser or effect such delivery in book-entry form.

C. Terms of the Private Placement Warrants.

(i) Each Private Placement Warrant shall have the terms set forth in a Warrant Agreement to be entered into by the Company and a warrant agent, in connection with the Public Offering (the “Warrant Agreement”), and shall be subject to the terms of a letter agreement to be entered into by the Company and the Purchaser in connection with the Public Offering.

(ii) At the time of, or prior to, the IPO Closing Date, the Company and the Purchaser shall enter into a registration rights agreement (the “Registration Rights Agreement”) pursuant to which the Company will grant certain registration rights to the Purchaser relating to the Private Placement Warrants and the Shares underlying the Private Placement Warrants.

Section 2. Representations and Warranties of the Company.

As a material inducement to the Purchaser to enter into this Agreement and purchase the Private Placement Warrants, the Company hereby represents and warrants to the Purchaser (which representations and warranties shall survive each Closing Date) that:

A. Incorporation and Corporate Power. The Company is a corporation duly incorporated, validly existing and in good standing under the laws of the State of Delaware and is qualified to do business in every jurisdiction in which the failure to so qualify would reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on the financial condition, operating results or assets of the Company. The Company possesses all requisite corporate power and authority necessary to carry out the transactions contemplated by this Agreement and the Warrant Agreement.

B. Authorization; No Breach.

(i) The execution, delivery and performance of this Agreement and the Private Placement Warrants have been duly authorized by the Company as of each Closing Date. This Agreement constitutes the valid and binding obligation of the Company, enforceable in accordance with its terms, subject to bankruptcy, insolvency, fraudulent conveyance, reorganization, moratorium and other laws of general applicability relating to or affecting creditors’ rights and to general equitable principles (whether considered in a proceeding in equity or law). Upon issuance in accordance with, and payment pursuant to, the terms of the Warrant Agreement and this Agreement, the Private Placement Warrants will constitute valid and binding obligations of the Company, enforceable in accordance with their terms as of each Closing Date.

(ii) The execution and delivery by the Company of this Agreement and the Private Placement Warrants, the issuance and sale of the Private Placement Warrants, the issuance of the Shares upon exercise of the Private Placement Warrants and the fulfillment of and compliance with the respective terms hereof and thereof by the Company, do not and will not

 

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as of each Closing Date (a) conflict with or result in a breach of the terms, conditions or provisions of, (b) constitute a default under, (c) result in the creation of any lien, security interest, charge or encumbrance upon the Company’s capital stock or assets under, (d) result in a violation of, or (e) require any authorization, consent, approval, exemption or other action by or notice or declaration to, or filing with, any court or administrative or governmental body or agency pursuant to the amended and restated certificate of incorporation of the Company or the bylaws of the Company (in effect on the date hereof or as may be amended prior to completion of the Public Offering) or any material law, statute, rule or regulation to which the Company is subject, or any agreement, order, judgment or decree to which the Company is subject, except for any filings required after the date hereof under federal or state securities laws.

C. Title to Securities. Upon issuance in accordance with, and payment pursuant to, the terms hereof and the Warrant Agreement, the Shares issuable upon exercise of the Private Placement Warrants will be duly and validly issued, fully paid and nonassessable. Upon issuance in accordance with, and payment pursuant to, the terms hereof and the Warrant Agreement, the Purchaser will have good title to the Private Placement Warrants purchased by it and the Shares issuable upon exercise of such Private Placement Warrants, free and clear of all liens, claims and encumbrances of any kind, other than (i) transfer restrictions hereunder and under the other agreements contemplated hereby, (ii) transfer restrictions under federal and state securities laws, and (iii) liens, claims or encumbrances imposed due to the actions of the Purchaser.

D. Governmental Consents. No permit, consent, approval or authorization of, or declaration to or filing with, any governmental authority is required in connection with the execution, delivery and performance by the Company of this Agreement or the consummation by the Company of any other transactions contemplated hereby.

E. Regulation D Qualification. Neither the Company nor, to its actual knowledge, any of its affiliates, members, officers, directors or beneficial shareholders of 20% or more of its outstanding securities, has experienced a disqualifying event as enumerated pursuant to Rule 506(d) of Regulation D under the Securities Act.

Section 3. Representations and Warranties of the Purchaser.

As a material inducement to the Company to enter into this Agreement and issue and sell the Private Placement Warrants to the Purchaser, the Purchaser hereby represents and warrants to the Company (which representations and warranties shall survive each Closing Date) that:

A. Organization and Requisite Authority. The Purchaser possesses all requisite power and authority necessary to carry out the transactions contemplated by this Agreement.

B. Authorization; No Breach.

(i) This Agreement constitutes a valid and binding obligation of the Purchaser, enforceable in accordance with its terms, subject to bankruptcy, insolvency, fraudulent conveyance, reorganization, moratorium and other laws of general applicability relating to or affecting creditors’ rights and to general equitable principles (whether considered in a proceeding in equity or law).

(ii) The execution and delivery by the Purchaser of this Agreement and the fulfillment of and compliance with the terms hereof by the Purchaser does not and shall not as of each Closing Date (a) conflict with or result in a breach by the Purchaser of the terms, conditions or provisions of, (b) constitute a default under, (c) result in the creation of any lien, security interest, charge or encumbrance upon the Purchaser’s equity or assets under, (d) result in a violation of, or (e) require any authorization, consent, approval, exemption or other

 

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action by or notice or declaration to, or filing with, any court or administrative or governmental body or agency pursuant to the Purchaser’s organizational documents in effect on the date hereof or as may be amended prior to completion of the contemplated Public Offering, or any material law, statute, rule or regulation to which the Purchaser is subject, or any agreement, instrument, order, judgment or decree to which the Purchaser is subject, except for any filings required after the date hereof under federal or state securities laws.

C. Investment Representations.

(i) The Purchaser is acquiring the Private Placement Warrants and, upon exercise of the Private Placement Warrants, the Shares issuable upon such exercise (collectively, the “Securities”) for its own account, for investment purposes only and not with a view towards, or for resale in connection with, any public sale or distribution thereof.

(ii) The Purchaser is an “accredited investor” as such term is defined in Rule 501(a)(3) of Regulation D, and the Purchaser has not experienced a disqualifying event as enumerated pursuant to Rule 506(d) of Regulation D under the Securities Act.

(iii) The Purchaser understands that the Securities are being offered and will be sold to it in reliance on specific exemptions from the registration requirements of the United States federal and state securities laws and that the Company is relying upon the truth and accuracy of, and the Purchaser’s compliance with, the representations and warranties of the Purchaser set forth herein in order to determine the availability of such exemptions and the eligibility of the Purchaser to acquire such Securities.

(iv) The Purchaser did not decide to enter into this Agreement as a result of any general solicitation or general advertising within the meaning of Rule 502(c) of Regulation D under the Securities Act.

(v) The Purchaser has been furnished with all materials relating to the business, finances and operations of the Company and materials relating to the offer and sale of the Securities which have been requested by the Purchaser. The Purchaser has been afforded the opportunity to ask questions of the executive officers and directors of the Company. The Purchaser understands that its investment in the Securities involves a high degree of risk and it has sought such accounting, legal and tax advice as it has considered necessary to make an informed investment decision with respect to the acquisition of the Securities.

(vi) The Purchaser understands that no United States federal or state agency or any other government or governmental agency has passed on or made any recommendation or endorsement of the Securities or the fairness or suitability of the investment in the Securities by the Purchaser nor have such authorities passed upon or endorsed the merits of the offering of the Securities.

(vii) The Purchaser understands that: (a) the Securities have not been and are not being registered under the Securities Act or any state securities laws, and may not be offered for sale, sold, assigned or transferred unless (1) subsequently registered thereunder or (2) sold in reliance on an exemption therefrom; and (b) except as specifically set forth in the Registration Rights Agreement, neither the Company nor any other person is under any obligation to register the Securities under the Securities Act or any state securities laws or to comply with the terms and conditions of any exemption thereunder. In this regard, the Purchaser understands that the SEC has taken the position that promoters or affiliates of a blank check company and their transferees, both before and after an initial Business Combination, are deemed to be “underwriters” under the Securities Act when reselling the securities of a blank check company. Based on that position, Rule 144 adopted pursuant to the Securities Act would not be available for resale transactions of the Securities despite

 

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technical compliance with the requirements of such Rule, and the Securities can be resold only through a registered offering or in reliance upon another exemption from the registration requirements of the Securities Act.

(viii) The Purchaser has such knowledge and experience in financial and business matters, knowledge of the high degree of risk associated with investments in the securities of companies in the development stage such as the Company, is capable of evaluating the merits and risks of an investment in the Securities and is able to bear the economic risk of an investment in the Securities in the amount contemplated hereunder for an indefinite period of time. The Purchaser has adequate means of providing for its current financial needs and contingencies and will have no current or anticipated future needs for liquidity which would be jeopardized by the investment in the Securities. The Purchaser can afford a complete loss of its investments in the Securities.

(ix) The Purchaser understands that the Private Placement Warrants shall bear the legend substantially in the form set forth in the Warrant Agreement.

Section 4. Conditions of the Purchaser’s Obligations.

The obligations of the Purchaser to purchase and pay for the Private Placement Warrants are subject to the fulfillment, on or before each Closing Date, of each of the following conditions:

A. Representations and Warranties. The representations and warranties of the Company contained in Section 2 shall be true and correct at and as of such Closing Date as though then made.

B. Performance. The Company shall have performed and complied with all agreements, obligations and conditions contained in this Agreement that are required to be performed or complied with by it on or before such Closing Date.

C. No Injunction. No litigation, statute, rule, regulation, executive order, decree, ruling or injunction shall have been enacted, entered, promulgated or endorsed by or in any court or governmental authority of competent jurisdiction or any self-regulatory organization having authority over the matters contemplated hereby, which prohibits the consummation of any of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement or the Warrant Agreement.

D. Warrant Agreement and Registration Rights Agreement. The Company shall have entered into the Warrant Agreement and the Registration Rights Agreement, in each case on terms satisfactory to the Purchaser.

Section 5. Conditions of the Company’s Obligations.

The obligations of the Company to the Purchaser under this Agreement are subject to the fulfillment, on or before each Closing Date, of each of the following conditions:

A. Representations and Warranties. The representations and warranties of the Purchaser contained in Section 3 shall be true and correct at and as of such Closing Date as though then made.

B. Performance. The Purchaser shall have performed and complied with all agreements, obligations and conditions contained in this Agreement that are required to be performed or complied with by the Purchaser on or before such Closing Date.

C. Corporate Consents. The Company shall have obtained the consent of its Board of Directors authorizing the execution, delivery and performance of this Agreement and the Warrant Agreement and the issuance and sale of the Private Placement Warrants hereunder.

 

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D. No Injunction. No litigation, statute, rule, regulation, executive order, decree, ruling or injunction shall have been enacted, entered, promulgated or endorsed by or in any court or governmental authority of competent jurisdiction or any self-regulatory organization having authority over the matters contemplated hereby, which prohibits the consummation of any of the transactions contemplated by this Agreement or the Warrant Agreement.

E. Warrant Agreement and Registration Rights Agreement. The Company shall have entered into the Warrant Agreement and the Registration Rights Agreement, in each case on terms satisfactory to the Company.

Section 6. Termination.

This Agreement may be terminated by the Company or the Purchaser at any time after January 31, 2021 upon written notice to the other party hereto if the closing of the Public Offering does not occur prior to such date.

Section 7. Survival of Representations and Warranties.

All of the representations and warranties contained herein shall survive each Closing Date.

Section 8. Definitions.

Terms used but not otherwise defined in this Agreement shall have the meaning assigned to such terms in the Registration Statement.

Section 9. Miscellaneous.

A. Successors and Assigns. Except as otherwise expressly provided herein, all covenants and agreements contained in this Agreement by or on behalf of any of the parties hereto shall bind and inure to the benefit of the respective successors of the parties hereto whether so expressed or not. Notwithstanding the foregoing or anything to the contrary herein, the parties may not assign this Agreement, other than assignments by the Purchaser to affiliates thereof (including, without limitation one or more of its members).

B. Severability. Whenever possible, each provision of this Agreement shall be interpreted in such manner as to be effective and valid under applicable law, but if any provision of this Agreement is held to be prohibited by or invalid under applicable law, such provision shall be ineffective only to the extent of such prohibition or invalidity, without invalidating the remainder of this Agreement.

C. Counterparts. This Agreement may be executed simultaneously in two or more counterparts, none of which need contain the signatures of more than one party, but all such counterparts taken together shall constitute one and the same agreement.

D. Descriptive Headings; Interpretation. The descriptive headings of this Agreement are inserted for convenience only and do not constitute a substantive part of this Agreement. The use of the word “including” in this Agreement shall be by way of example rather than by limitation.

E. Governing Law. This Agreement shall be deemed to be a contract made under the laws of the State of New York and for all purposes shall be construed in accordance with the internal laws of the State of New York, without giving effect to conflicts of law principles that would result in the application of the laws of another jurisdiction.

F. Amendments. This Agreement may not be amended, modified or waived as to any particular provision, except by a written instrument executed by all parties hereto.

[Signature Page Follows]

 

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IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have executed this Agreement to be effective as of the date first set forth above.

 

GOLDEN FALCON ACQUISITION CORP.

By:  

 

Name:   Makram Azar
Title:   Chief Executive Officer
GOLDEN FALCON SPONSOR GROUP, LLC
By:  

 

Name:   Makram Azar
Title:   Manager

[Signature Page to Private Placement Warrant Purchase Agreement]

Exhibit 10.8

INDEMNITY AGREEMENT

THIS INDEMNITY AGREEMENT (this “Agreement”) is made as of [●], 2020, by and between Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), and                              (“Indemnitee”).

RECITALS

WHEREAS, highly competent persons have become more reluctant to serve publicly-held corporations as directors, officers or in other capacities unless they are provided with adequate protection through insurance or adequate indemnification against inordinate risks of claims and actions against them arising out of their service to and activities on behalf of such corporations;

WHEREAS, the Board of Directors of the Company (the “Board”) has determined that, in order to attract and retain qualified individuals, the Company will attempt to maintain on an ongoing basis, at its sole expense, liability insurance to protect persons serving the Company and its subsidiaries from certain liabilities. Although the furnishing of such insurance has been a customary and widespread practice among United States-based corporations and other business enterprises, the Company believes that, given current market conditions and trends, such insurance may be available to it in the future only at higher premiums and with more exclusions. At the same time, directors, officers and other persons in service to corporations or business enterprises are being increasingly subjected to expensive and time-consuming litigation relating to, among other things, matters that traditionally would have been brought only against the Company or business enterprise itself. The Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation (the “Charter”) and the Bylaws (the “Bylaws”) of the Company require indemnification of the officers and directors of the Company. Indemnitee may also be entitled to indemnification pursuant to applicable provisions of the Delaware General Corporation Law (“DGCL”). The Charter, Bylaws and the DGCL expressly provide that the indemnification provisions set forth therein are not exclusive, and thereby contemplate that contracts may be entered into between the Company and members of the Board, officers and other persons with respect to indemnification, hold harmless, exoneration, advancement and reimbursement rights;

WHEREAS, the uncertainties relating to such insurance and to indemnification have increased the difficulty of attracting and retaining such persons;

WHEREAS, the Board has determined that the increased difficulty in attracting and retaining such persons is detrimental to the best interests of the Company’s stockholders and that the Company should act to assure such persons that there will be increased certainty of such protection in the future;

WHEREAS, it is reasonable, prudent and necessary for the Company contractually to obligate itself to indemnify, hold harmless, exonerate and to advance expenses on behalf of, such persons to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law so that they will serve or continue to serve the Company free from undue concern that they will not be so protected against liabilities;

WHEREAS, this Agreement is a supplement to and in furtherance of the Charter and Bylaws of the Company and any resolutions adopted pursuant thereto, and shall not be deemed a substitute therefor, nor to diminish or abrogate any rights of Indemnitee thereunder; and

WHEREAS, Indemnitee may not be willing to serve as an officer or director, advisor or in another capacity without adequate protection, and the Company desires Indemnitee to serve in such capacity. Indemnitee is willing to serve, continue to serve and to take on additional service for or on behalf of the Company on the condition that he or she be so indemnified.

 

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NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the premises and the covenants contained herein and subject to the provisions of the letter agreement, dated the date hereof, among the Company, Indemnitee and the other parties thereto, the Company and Indemnitee do hereby covenant and agree as follows:

TERMS AND CONDITIONS

1.    SERVICES TO THE COMPANY. In consideration of the Company’s covenants and obligations hereunder, Indemnitee will serve or continue to serve as an officer, director, advisor, key employee or in any other capacity of the Company, as applicable, for so long as Indemnitee is duly elected or appointed or retained or until Indemnitee tenders his or her resignation or until Indemnitee is removed. The foregoing notwithstanding, this Agreement shall continue in full force and effect after Indemnitee has ceased to serve as a director, officer, advisor, key employee or in any other capacity of the Company, as provided in Section 17. This Agreement, however, shall not impose any obligation on Indemnitee or the Company to continue Indemnitee’s service to the Company beyond any period otherwise required by law or by other agreements or commitments of the parties, if any.

2.    DEFINITIONS. As used in this Agreement:

(a)    References to “agent” shall mean any person who is or was a director, officer or employee of the Company or a subsidiary of the Company or other person authorized by the Company to act for the Company, to include such person serving in such capacity as a director, officer, employee, advisor, fiduciary or other official of another corporation, partnership, limited liability company, joint venture, trust or other enterprise at the request of, for the convenience of, or to represent the interests of the Company or a subsidiary of the Company.

(b)    The terms “Beneficial Owner” and “Beneficial Ownership” shall have the meanings set forth in Rule 13d-3 promulgated under the Exchange Act (as defined below) as in effect on the date hereof.

(c)    (c) A “Change in Control” shall be deemed to occur upon the earliest to occur after the date of this Agreement of any of the following events:

(i)    Acquisition of Stock by Third Party. Other than an affiliate or member of Golden Falcon Sponsor Group, LLC (the “Sponsor”), any Person (as defined below) is or becomes the Beneficial Owner, directly or indirectly, of securities of the Company representing fifteen percent (15%) or more of the combined voting power of the Company’s then outstanding securities entitled to vote generally in the election of directors, unless (1) the change in the relative Beneficial Ownership of the Company’s securities by any Person results solely from a reduction in the aggregate number of outstanding shares of securities entitled to vote generally in the election of directors, or (2) such acquisition was approved in advance by the Continuing Directors (as defined below) and such acquisition would not constitute a Change in Control under part (iii) of this definition;

(ii)    Change in Board of Directors. Individuals who, as of the date hereof, constitute the Board, and any new director whose election by the Board or nomination for election by the Company’s stockholders was approved by a vote of at least two thirds of the directors then still in office who were directors on the date hereof or whose election or nomination for election was previously so approved (collectively, the “Continuing Directors”), cease for any reason to constitute at least a majority of the members of the Board;

(iii)    Corporate Transactions. The effective date of a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination,

 

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involving the Company and one or more businesses (a “Business Combination”), in each case, unless, following such Business Combination: (1) all or substantially all of the individuals and entities who were the Beneficial Owners of securities entitled to vote generally in the election of directors immediately prior to such Business Combination beneficially own, directly or indirectly, more than 50% of the combined voting power of the then outstanding securities of the Company entitled to vote generally in the election of directors resulting from such Business Combination (including, without limitation, a corporation which as a result of such transaction owns the Company or all or substantially all of the Company’s assets either directly or through one or more Subsidiaries (as defined below)) in substantially the same proportions as their ownership immediately prior to such Business Combination, of the securities entitled to vote generally in the election of directors; (2) other than a member or an affiliate of the Sponsor, no Person (excluding any corporation resulting from such Business Combination) is the Beneficial Owner, directly or indirectly, of 15% or more of the combined voting power of the then outstanding securities entitled to vote generally in the election of directors of the surviving corporation except to the extent that such ownership existed prior to the Business Combination; and (3) at least a majority of the board of directors of the corporation resulting from such Business Combination were Continuing Directors at the time of the execution of the initial agreement, or of the action of the Board, providing for such Business Combination;

(iv)    Liquidation. The approval by the stockholders of the Company of a complete liquidation of the Company or an agreement or series of agreements for the sale or disposition by the Company of all or substantially all of the Company’s assets, other than factoring the Company’s current receivables or escrows due (or, if such stockholder approval is not required, the decision by the Board to proceed with such a liquidation, sale, or disposition in one transaction or a series of related transactions); or

(v)    Other Events. There occurs any other event of a nature that would be required to be reported in response to Item 6(e) of Schedule 14A of Regulation 14A (or any successor rule) (or a response to any similar item on any similar schedule or form) promulgated under the Exchange Act (as defined below), whether or not the Company is then subject to such reporting requirement.

(d)    “Corporate Status” describes the status of a person who is or was a director, officer, trustee, general partner, manager, managing member, fiduciary, employee or agent of the Company or of any other Enterprise (as defined below) which such person is or was serving at the request of the Company.

(e)    “Delaware Court” shall mean the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware.

(f)    “Disinterested Director” shall mean a director of the Company who is not and was not a party to the Proceeding (as defined below) in respect of which indemnification is sought by Indemnitee.

(g)    “Enterprise” shall mean the Company and any other corporation, constituent corporation (including any constituent of a constituent) absorbed in a consolidation or merger to which the Company (or any of its wholly owned subsidiaries) is a party, limited liability company, partnership, joint venture, trust, employee benefit plan or other enterprise of which Indemnitee is or was serving at the request of the Company as a director, officer, trustee, general partner, managing member, fiduciary, employee or agent.

(h)    “Exchange Act” shall mean the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.

 

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(i)    “Expenses” shall include all direct and indirect costs, fees and expenses of any type or nature whatsoever, including, without limitation, all reasonable attorneys’ fees and costs, retainers, court costs, transcript costs, fees of experts, witness fees, travel expenses, fees of private investigators and professional advisors, duplicating costs, printing and binding costs, telecommunication charges, postage, delivery service fees, fax transmission charges, secretarial services and all other disbursements, obligations or expenses in connection with prosecuting, defending, preparing to prosecute or defend, investigating, being or preparing to be a witness in, settlement or appeal of, or otherwise participating in, a Proceeding (as defined below), including reasonable compensation for time spent by Indemnitee for which he or she is not otherwise compensated by the Company or any third party. Expenses also shall include Expenses incurred in connection with any appeal resulting from any Proceeding (as defined below), including without limitation the principal, premium, security for, and other costs relating to any cost bond, supersedes a bond, or other appeal bond or its equivalent. Expenses, however, shall not include amounts paid in settlement by Indemnitee or the amount of judgments or fines against Indemnitee.

(j)    References to “fines” shall include any excise tax assessed on Indemnitee with respect to any employee benefit plan; references to “serving at the request of the Company” shall include any service as a director, officer, employee, agent or fiduciary of the Company which imposes duties on, or involves services by, such director, officer, employee, agent or fiduciary with respect to an employee benefit plan, its participants or beneficiaries; and if Indemnitee acted in good faith and in a manner Indemnitee reasonably believed to be in the best interests of the participants and beneficiaries of an employee benefit plan, Indemnitee shall be deemed to have acted in a manner “not opposed to the best interests of the Company” as referred to in this Agreement.

(k)    “Independent Counsel” shall mean a law firm or a member of a law firm with significant experience in matters of corporation law and that neither presently is, nor in the past five years has been, retained to represent: (i) the Company or Indemnitee in any matter material to either such party (other than with respect to matters concerning Indemnitee under this Agreement, or of other indemnitees under similar indemnification agreements); or (ii) any other party to the Proceeding (as defined below) giving rise to a claim for indemnification hereunder. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the term “Independent Counsel” shall not include any person who, under the applicable standards of professional conduct then prevailing, would have a conflict of interest in representing either the Company or Indemnitee in an action to determine Indemnitee’s rights under this Agreement.

(l)    The term “Person” shall have the meaning as set forth in Sections 13(d) and 14(d) of the Exchange Act as in effect on the date hereof; provided, however, that “Person” shall exclude: (i) the Company; (ii) any Subsidiaries (as defined below) of the Company; (iii) any employment benefit plan of the Company or of a Subsidiary (as defined below) of the Company or of any corporation owned, directly or indirectly, by the stockholders of the Company in substantially the same proportions as their ownership of stock of the Company; and (iv) any trustee or other fiduciary holding securities under an employee benefit plan of the Company or of a Subsidiary (as defined below) of the Company or of a corporation owned directly or indirectly by the stockholders of the Company in substantially the same proportions as their ownership of stock of the Company.

(m)    The term “Proceeding” shall include any threatened, pending or completed action, suit, arbitration, mediation, alternate dispute resolution mechanism, investigation, inquiry, administrative hearing or any other actual, threatened or completed proceeding, whether brought in the right of the Company or otherwise and whether of a civil (including intentional or unintentional tort claims), criminal, administrative or investigative or related nature, in which Indemnitee was, is, will or might be involved as a party or otherwise by reason of the fact that Indemnitee is or was a director or officer of the Company, by reason of any action (or failure to act) taken by him or her or of any action (or failure to act) on his or her part while acting as a director or officer of the Company, or by reason of the fact that he or she is or was serving at the request of the Company as a director, officer, trustee,

 

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general partner, managing member, fiduciary, employee or agent of any other Enterprise, in each case whether or not serving in such capacity at the time any liability or expense is incurred for which indemnification, reimbursement, or advancement of expenses can be provided under this Agreement.

(n)    The term “Subsidiary,” with respect to any Person, shall mean any corporation, limited liability company, partnership, joint venture, trust or other entity of which a majority of the voting power of the voting equity securities or equity interest is owned, directly or indirectly, by that Person.

(o)    The phrase “to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law” shall include, but not be limited to: (a) to the fullest extent authorized or permitted by the provision of the DGCL that authorizes or contemplates additional indemnification by agreement, or the corresponding provision of any amendment to or replacement of the DGCL, and (b) to the fullest extent authorized or permitted by any amendments to or replacements of the DGCL adopted after the date of this Agreement that increase the extent to which a corporation may indemnify its officers and directors.

3.    INDEMNITY IN THIRD-PARTY PROCEEDINGS. To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, the Company shall indemnify, hold harmless and defend Indemnitee in accordance with the provisions of this Section 3 if Indemnitee was, is, or is threatened to be made, a party to or a participant (as a witness, deponent or otherwise) in any Proceeding, other than a Proceeding by or in the right of the Company to procure a judgment in its favor by reason of Indemnitee’s Corporate Status. Pursuant to this Section 3, Indemnitee shall be indemnified, held harmless and exonerated against all Expenses, judgments, liabilities, fines, penalties and amounts paid in settlement (including all interest, assessments and other charges paid or payable in connection with or in respect of such Expenses, judgments, fines, penalties and amounts paid in settlement) actually, and reasonably incurred by Indemnitee or on his or her behalf in connection with such Proceeding or any claim, issue or matter therein, if Indemnitee acted in good faith and in a manner he or she reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the Company and, in the case of a criminal Proceeding, had no reasonable cause to believe that his or her conduct was unlawful; provided, in no event shall Indemnitee be entitled to be indemnified, held harmless or advanced any amounts hereunder in respect of any Expenses, judgments, liabilities, fines, penalties and amounts paid in settlement (if any) that Indemnitee may incur by reason of his or her own actual fraud or intentional misconduct. Indemnitee shall not be found to have committed actual fraud or intentional misconduct for any purpose of this Agreement unless or until a court of competent jurisdiction shall have made a finding to that effect.

4.    INDEMNITY IN PROCEEDINGS BY OR IN THE RIGHT OF THE COMPANY. To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, the Company shall indemnify, hold harmless and exonerate Indemnitee in accordance with the provisions of this Section 4 if Indemnitee was, is, or is threatened to be made, a party to or a participant (as a witness, deponent or otherwise) in any Proceeding by or in the right of the Company to procure a judgment in its favor by reason of Indemnitee’s Corporate Status. Pursuant to this Section 4, Indemnitee shall be indemnified, held harmless and exonerated against all Expenses actually and reasonably incurred by him or her or on his or her behalf in connection with such Proceeding or any claim, issue or matter therein, if Indemnitee acted in good faith and in a manner he or she reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the Company. No indemnification, hold harmless or exoneration for Expenses shall be made under this Section 4 in respect of any claim, issue or matter as to which Indemnitee shall have been finally adjudged by a court of competent jurisdiction to be liable to the Company, unless and only to the extent that any court in which the Proceeding was brought or the Delaware Court shall determine upon application that, despite the adjudication of liability but in view of all the circumstances of the case, Indemnitee is fairly and reasonably entitled to indemnification, to be held harmless or to exoneration.

5.    INDEMNIFICATION FOR EXPENSES OF A PARTY WHO IS WHOLLY OR PARTLY SUCCESSFUL. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this Agreement except for Section 27, to the extent that Indemnitee was or is, by reason of Indemnitee’s Corporate Status, a party to (or a participant in) and is successful, on the merits or otherwise, in any Proceeding or in defense of any claim, issue or matter

 

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therein, in whole or in part, the Company shall, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, indemnify, hold harmless and exonerate Indemnitee against all Expenses actually and reasonably incurred by him or her in connection therewith. If Indemnitee is not wholly successful in such Proceeding but is successful, on the merits or otherwise, as to one or more but less than all claims, issues or matters in such Proceeding, the Company shall, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, indemnify, hold harmless and exonerate Indemnitee against all Expenses actually and reasonably incurred by him or her or on his or her behalf in connection with each successfully resolved claim, issue or matter. If Indemnitee is not wholly successful in such Proceeding, the Company also shall, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, indemnify, hold harmless and exonerate Indemnitee against all Expenses reasonably incurred in connection with a claim, issue or matter related to any claim, issue, or matter on which Indemnitee was successful. For purposes of this Section and without limitation, the termination of any claim, issue or matter in such a Proceeding by dismissal, with or without prejudice, shall be deemed to be a successful result as to such claim, issue or matter.

6.    INDEMNIFICATION FOR EXPENSES OF A WITNESS. Notwithstanding any other provision of this Agreement except for Section 27, to the extent that Indemnitee is, by reason of his or her Corporate Status, a witness or deponent in any Proceeding to which Indemnitee was or is not a party or threatened to be made a party, he or she shall, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, be indemnified, held harmless and exonerated against all Expenses actually and reasonably incurred by him or her or on his or her behalf in connection therewith.

7.    ADDITIONAL INDEMNIFICATION, HOLD HARMLESS AND EXONERATION RIGHTS. Notwithstanding any limitation in Sections 3, 4, or 5, except for Section 27, the Company shall, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, indemnify, hold harmless and exonerate Indemnitee if Indemnitee is a party to or threatened to be made a party to any Proceeding (including a Proceeding by or in the right of the Company to procure a judgment in its favor) against all Expenses, judgments, fines, penalties and amounts paid in settlement (including all interest, assessments and other charges paid or payable in connection with or in respect of such Expenses, judgments, fines, penalties and amounts paid in settlement) actually and reasonably incurred by Indemnitee in connection with the Proceeding. No indemnification, hold harmless or exoneration rights shall be available under this Section 7 on account of Indemnitee’s conduct which constitutes a breach of Indemnitee’s duty of loyalty to the Company or its stockholders or is an act or omission not in good faith or which involves intentional misconduct or a knowing violation of the law.

8.    CONTRIBUTION IN THE EVENT OF JOINT LIABILITY.

(a)    To the fullest extent permissible under applicable law, if the indemnification, hold harmless and/or exoneration rights provided for in this Agreement are unavailable to Indemnitee in whole or in part for any reason whatsoever, the Company, in lieu of indemnifying, holding harmless or exonerating Indemnitee, shall pay, in the first instance, the entire amount incurred by Indemnitee, whether for judgments, liabilities, fines, penalties, amounts paid or to be paid in settlement and/or for Expenses, in connection with any Proceeding without requiring Indemnitee to contribute to such payment, and the Company hereby waives and relinquishes any right of contribution it may have at any time against Indemnitee.

(b)    The Company shall not enter into any settlement of any Proceeding in which the Company is jointly liable with Indemnitee (or would be if joined in such Proceeding) unless such settlement provides for a full and final release of all claims asserted against Indemnitee.

(c)    The Company hereby agrees to fully indemnify, hold harmless and exonerate Indemnitee from any claims for contribution which may be brought by officers, directors or employees of the Company other than Indemnitee who may be jointly liable with Indemnitee.

 

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9.    EXCLUSIONS. Notwithstanding any provision in this Agreement (except for section 27), the Company shall not be obligated under this Agreement to make any indemnification, advance expenses, hold harmless or exoneration payment in connection with any claim made against Indemnitee:

(a)    for which payment has actually been received by or on behalf of Indemnitee under any insurance policy or other indemnity or advancement provision, except with respect to any excess beyond the amount actually received under any insurance policy, contract, agreement, other indemnity or advancement provision or otherwise;

(b)    for an accounting of profits made from the purchase and sale (or sale and purchase) by Indemnitee of securities of the Company within the meaning of Section 16(b) of the Exchange Act (or any successor rule) or similar provisions of state statutory law or common law; or

(c)    except as otherwise provided in Sections 14(f) and (g) hereof, prior to a Change in Control, in connection with any Proceeding (or any part of any Proceeding) initiated by Indemnitee, including any Proceeding (or any part of any Proceeding) initiated by Indemnitee against the Company or its directors, officers, employees or other indemnitees, unless (i) the Board authorized the Proceeding (or any part of any Proceeding) prior to its initiation or (ii) the Company provides the indemnification, hold harmless or exoneration payment, in its sole discretion, pursuant to the powers vested in the Company under applicable law. Indemnitee shall seek payments or advances from the Company only to the extent that such payments or advances are unavailable from any insurance policy of the Company covering Indemnitee.

10.    ADVANCES OF EXPENSES; DEFENSE OF CLAIM.

(a)    Notwithstanding any provision of this Agreement to the contrary except for Section 27, and to the fullest extent not prohibited by applicable law, the Company shall pay the Expenses incurred by Indemnitee (or reasonably expected by Indemnitee to be incurred by Indemnitee within three months) in connection with any Proceeding within ten (10) days after the receipt by the Company of a statement or statements requesting such advances from time to time, prior to the final disposition of any Proceeding. Advances shall, to the fullest extent permitted by law, be unsecured and interest free. Advances shall, to the fullest extent permitted by law, be made without regard to Indemnitee’s ability to repay the Expenses and without regard to Indemnitee’s ultimate entitlement to be indemnified, held harmless or exonerated under the other provisions of this Agreement. Advances shall include any and all reasonable Expenses incurred pursuing a Proceeding to enforce this right of advancement, including Expenses incurred preparing and forwarding statements to the Company to support the advances claimed. To the fullest extent required by applicable law, such payments of Expenses in advance of the final disposition of the Proceeding shall be made only upon the Company’s receipt of an undertaking, by or on behalf of Indemnitee, to repay the advanced amounts to the extent that it is ultimately determined that Indemnitee is not entitled to be indemnified by the Company under the provisions of this Agreement, the Charter, the Bylaws of the Company, applicable law or otherwise. If it shall be determined by a final judgment or other final adjudication that Indemnitee was not so entitled to indemnification, any advancement shall be returned to the Company (without interest) by the Indemnitee. This Section 10(a) shall not apply to any claim made by Indemnitee for which an indemnification, hold harmless or exoneration payment is excluded pursuant to Section 9 but shall apply to any Proceeding referenced in Section 9(b) prior to a final determination that Indemnitee is liable therefor.

(b)    The Company will be entitled to participate in the Proceeding at its own expense.

(c)    The Company shall not settle any action, claim or Proceeding (in whole or in part) which would impose any Expense, judgment, fine, penalty or limitation on Indemnitee without Indemnitee’s prior written consent.

 

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11.    PROCEDURE FOR NOTIFICATION AND APPLICATION FOR INDEMNIFICATION.

(a)    Indemnitee agrees to notify promptly the Company in writing upon being served with any summons, citation, subpoena, complaint, indictment, information or other document relating to any Proceeding, claim, issue or matter therein which may be subject to indemnification, hold harmless or exoneration rights, or advancement of Expenses covered hereunder. The failure of Indemnitee to so notify the Company shall not relieve the Company of any obligation which it may have to Indemnitee under this Agreement, or otherwise.

(b)    Indemnitee may deliver to the Company a written application to indemnify, hold harmless or exonerate Indemnitee in accordance with this Agreement. Such application(s) may be delivered from time to time and at such time(s) as Indemnitee deems appropriate in his or her sole discretion. Following such a written application for indemnification by Indemnitee, Indemnitee’s entitlement to indemnification shall be determined according to Section 12(a) of this Agreement.

12.    PROCEDURE UPON APPLICATION FOR INDEMNIFICATION.

(a)    A determination, if required by applicable law, with respect to Indemnitee’s entitlement to indemnification shall be made in the specific case by one of the following methods, which shall be at the election of Indemnitee: (i) by a majority vote of the Disinterested Directors, even though less than a quorum of the Board, (ii) by a committee of such directors designated by majority vote of such directors, (iii) if there are no Disinterested Directors or if such directors so direct, by Independent Counsel in a written opinion to the Board, a copy of which shall be delivered to Indemnitee, or (iv) by vote of the stockholders. The Company promptly will advise Indemnitee in writing with respect to any determination that Indemnitee is or is not entitled to indemnification, including a description of any reason or basis for which indemnification has been denied. If it is so determined that Indemnitee is entitled to indemnification, payment to Indemnitee shall be made within ten (10) days after such determination. Indemnitee shall reasonably cooperate with the person, persons or entity making such determination with respect to Indemnitee’s entitlement to indemnification, including providing to such person, persons or entity upon reasonable advance request any documentation or information which is not privileged or otherwise protected from disclosure and which is reasonably available to Indemnitee and reasonably necessary to such determination. Any costs or Expenses (including reasonable attorneys’ fees and disbursements) incurred by Indemnitee in so cooperating with the person, persons or entity making such determination shall be borne by the Company (irrespective of the determination as to Indemnitee’s entitlement to indemnification) and the Company hereby agrees to indemnify and to hold Indemnitee harmless therefrom.

(b)    In the event the determination of entitlement to indemnification is to be made by Independent Counsel pursuant to Section 12(a) hereof, the Independent Counsel shall be selected as provided in this Section 12(b). The Independent Counsel shall be selected by Indemnitee (unless Indemnitee shall request that such selection be made by the Board), and Indemnitee shall give written notice to the Company advising it of the identity of the Independent Counsel so selected and certifying that the Independent Counsel so selected meets the requirements of “Independent Counsel” as defined in Section 2 of this Agreement. If the Independent Counsel is selected by the Board, the Company shall give written notice to Indemnitee advising him or her of the identity of the Independent Counsel so selected and certifying that the Independent Counsel so selected meets the requirements of “Independent Counsel” as defined in Section 2 of this Agreement. In either event, Indemnitee or the Company, as the case may be, may, within ten (10) days after such written notice of selection shall have been received, deliver to the Company or to Indemnitee, as the case may be, a written objection to such selection; provided, however, that such objection may be asserted only on the ground that the Independent Counsel so selected does not meet the requirements of “Independent

 

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Counsel” as defined in Section 2 of this Agreement, and the objection shall set forth with particularity the factual basis of such assertion. Absent a proper and timely objection, the person so selected shall act as Independent Counsel. If such written objection is so made and substantiated, the Independent Counsel so selected may not serve as Independent Counsel unless and until such objection is withdrawn or a court of competent jurisdiction has determined that such objection is without merit. If, within twenty (20) days after submission by Indemnitee of a written request for indemnification pursuant to Section 11(b) hereof, no Independent Counsel shall have been selected and not objected to, either the Company or Indemnitee may petition the Delaware Court for resolution of any objection which shall have been made by the Company or Indemnitee to the other’s selection of Independent Counsel and/or for the appointment as Independent Counsel of a person selected by the Delaware Court, and the person with respect to whom all objections are so resolved or the person so appointed shall act as Independent Counsel under Section 12(a) hereof. Upon the due commencement of any judicial proceeding or arbitration pursuant to Section 14(a) of this Agreement, Independent Counsel shall be discharged and relieved of any further responsibility in such capacity (subject to the applicable standards of professional conduct then prevailing).

(c)    The Company agrees to pay the reasonable fees and expenses of Independent Counsel and to fully indemnify and hold harmless such Independent Counsel against any and all Expenses, claims, liabilities and damages arising out of or relating to this Agreement or its engagement pursuant hereto.

13.    PRESUMPTIONS AND EFFECT OF CERTAIN PROCEEDINGS.

(a)    In making a determination with respect to entitlement to indemnification hereunder, the person, persons or entity making such determination shall presume that Indemnitee is entitled to indemnification under this Agreement if Indemnitee has submitted a request for indemnification in accordance with Section 11(b) of this Agreement, and the Company shall have the burden of proof to overcome that presumption in connection with the making by any person, persons or entity of any determination contrary to that presumption. Neither the failure of the Company (including by the Disinterested Directors or Independent Counsel) to have made a determination prior to the commencement of any action pursuant to this Agreement that indemnification is proper in the circumstances because Indemnitee has met the applicable standard of conduct, nor an actual determination by the Company (including by the Disinterested Directors or Independent Counsel) that Indemnitee has not met such applicable standard of conduct, shall be a defense to the action or create a presumption that Indemnitee has not met the applicable standard of conduct.

(b)    If the person, persons or entity empowered or selected under Section 12 of this Agreement to determine whether Indemnitee is entitled to indemnification shall not have made a determination within thirty (30) days after receipt by the Company of the request therefor, the requisite determination of entitlement to indemnification shall, to the fullest extent permitted by law, be deemed to have been made and Indemnitee shall be entitled to such indemnification, absent (i) a misstatement by Indemnitee of a material fact, or an omission of a material fact necessary to make Indemnitee’s statement not materially misleading, in connection with the request for indemnification, or (ii) a final judicial determination that any or all such indemnification is expressly prohibited under applicable law; provided, however, that such 30-day period may be extended for a reasonable time, not to exceed an additional fifteen (15) days, if the person, persons or entity making the determination with respect to entitlement to indemnification in good faith requires such additional time for the obtaining or evaluating of documentation and/or information relating thereto.

(c)    The termination of any Proceeding or of any claim, issue or matter therein, by judgment, order, settlement or conviction, or upon a plea of nolo contendere or its equivalent, shall not (except as otherwise expressly provided in this Agreement) of itself adversely affect the right of Indemnitee to indemnification or create a presumption that Indemnitee did not act in good faith and in

 

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a manner which he or she reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the Company or, with respect to any criminal Proceeding, that Indemnitee had reasonable cause to believe that his or her conduct was unlawful.

(d)    For purposes of any determination of good faith, Indemnitee shall be deemed to have acted in good faith if Indemnitee’s action is based on the records or books of account of the Enterprise, including financial statements, or on information supplied to Indemnitee by the directors, manager, or officers of the Enterprise in the course of their duties, or on the advice of legal counsel for the Enterprise, its Board, any committee of the Board or any director, trustee, general partner, manager or managing member, or on information or records given or reports made to the Enterprise, its Board, any committee of the Board or any director, trustee, general partner, manager or managing member, by an independent certified public accountant or by an appraiser or other expert selected by the Enterprise, its Board, any committee of the Board or any director, trustee, general partner, manager or managing member. The provisions of this Section 13(d) shall not be deemed to be exclusive or to limit in any way the other circumstances in which Indemnitee may be deemed or found to have met the applicable standard of conduct set forth in this Agreement.

(e)    The knowledge and/or actions, or failure to act, of any other director, officer, trustee, partner, manager, managing member, fiduciary, agent or employee of the Enterprise shall not be imputed to Indemnitee for purposes of determining the right to indemnification under this Agreement.

14.    REMEDIES OF INDEMNITEE.

(a)    In the event that (i) a determination is made pursuant to Section 12 of this Agreement that Indemnitee is not entitled to indemnification under this Agreement, (ii) advancement of Expenses, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, is not timely made pursuant to Section 10 of this Agreement, (iii) no determination of entitlement to indemnification shall have been made pursuant to Section 12(a) of this Agreement within thirty (30) days after receipt by the Company of the request for indemnification, (iv) payment of indemnification is not made pursuant to Sections 5, 6, 7 or the last sentence of Section 12(a) of this Agreement within ten (10) days after receipt by the Company of a written request therefor, (v) a contribution payment is not made in a timely manner pursuant to Section 8 of this Agreement, (vi) payment of indemnification pursuant to Section 3 or 4 of this Agreement is not made within ten (10) days after a determination has been made that Indemnitee is entitled to indemnification, or (vii) payment to Indemnitee pursuant to any hold harmless or exoneration rights under this Agreement or otherwise is not made in accordance with this Agreement within ten (10) days after receipt by the Company of a written request therefor, Indemnitee shall be entitled to an adjudication by the Delaware Court to such indemnification, hold harmless, exoneration, contribution or advancement rights. Alternatively, Indemnitee, at his or her option, may seek an award in arbitration to be conducted by a single arbitrator pursuant to the Commercial Arbitration Rules and Mediation Procedures of the American Arbitration Association. Except as set forth herein, the provisions of Delaware law (without regard to its conflict of laws rules) shall apply to any such arbitration. The Company shall not oppose Indemnitee’s right to seek any such adjudication or award in arbitration.

(b)    In the event that a determination shall have been made pursuant to Section 12(a) of this Agreement that Indemnitee is not entitled to indemnification, any judicial proceeding or arbitration commenced pursuant to this Section 14 shall be conducted in all respects as a de novo trial, or arbitration, on the merits and Indemnitee shall not be prejudiced by reason of that adverse determination.

(c)    In any judicial proceeding or arbitration commenced pursuant to this Section 14, Indemnitee shall be presumed to be entitled to be indemnified, held harmless, exonerated to receive advancement of Expenses under this Agreement and the Company shall have the burden of proving

 

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Indemnitee is not entitled to be indemnified, held harmless, exonerated and to receive advancement of Expenses, as the case may be, and the Company may not refer to or introduce into evidence any determination pursuant to Section 12(a) of this Agreement adverse to Indemnitee for any purpose. If Indemnitee commences a judicial proceeding or arbitration pursuant to this Section 14, Indemnitee shall not be required to reimburse the Company for any advances pursuant to Section 10 until a final determination is made with respect to Indemnitee’s entitlement to indemnification (as to which all rights of appeal have been exhausted or lapsed).

(d)    If a determination shall have been made pursuant to Section 12(a) of this Agreement that Indemnitee is entitled to indemnification, the Company shall be bound by such determination in any judicial proceeding or arbitration commenced pursuant to this Section 14, absent (i) a misstatement by Indemnitee of a material fact, or an omission of a material fact necessary to make Indemnitee’s statement not materially misleading, in connection with the request for indemnification, or (ii) a prohibition of such indemnification under applicable law.

(e)    The Company shall be precluded from asserting in any judicial proceeding or arbitration commenced pursuant to this Section 14 that the procedures and presumptions of this Agreement are not valid, binding and enforceable and shall stipulate in any such court or before any such arbitrator that the Company is bound by all the provisions of this Agreement.

(f)    The Company shall indemnify and hold harmless Indemnitee to the fullest extent permitted by law against all Expenses and, if requested by Indemnitee, shall (within ten (10) days after the Company’s receipt of such written request) pay to Indemnitee, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, such Expenses which are incurred by Indemnitee in connection with any judicial proceeding or arbitration brought by Indemnitee: (i) to enforce his or her rights under, or to recover damages for breach of, this Agreement or any other indemnification, hold harmless, exoneration, advancement or contribution agreement or provision of the Charter, or the Bylaws now or hereafter in effect; or (ii) for recovery or advances under any insurance policy maintained by any person for the benefit of Indemnitee, regardless of the outcome and whether Indemnitee ultimately is determined to be entitled to such indemnification, hold harmless or exoneration right, advancement, contribution or insurance recovery, as the case may be (unless such judicial proceeding or arbitration was not brought by Indemnitee in good faith).

(g)    Interest shall be paid by the Company to Indemnitee at the legal rate under Delaware law for amounts which the Company indemnifies, holds harmless or exonerates, or advances, or is obliged to indemnify, hold harmless or exonerate or advance for the period commencing with the date on which Indemnitee requests indemnification, to be held harmless, exonerated, contribution, reimbursement or advancement of any Expenses and ending with the date on which such payment is made to Indemnitee by the Company.

15.    SECURITY. Notwithstanding anything herein to the contrary, except for Section 27, to the extent requested by Indemnitee and approved by the Board, the Company may at any time and from time to time provide security to Indemnitee for the Company’s obligations hereunder through an irrevocable bank line of credit, funded trust or other collateral. Any such security, once provided to Indemnitee, may not be revoked or released without the prior written consent of Indemnitee.

16.    NON-EXCLUSIVITY; SURVIVAL OF RIGHTS; INSURANCE; SUBROGATION.

(a)    The rights of Indemnitee as provided by this Agreement shall not be deemed exclusive of any other rights to which Indemnitee may at any time be entitled under applicable law, the Charter, the Bylaws, any agreement, a vote of stockholders or a resolution of directors, or otherwise. No amendment, alteration or repeal of this Agreement or of any provision hereof shall limit or restrict any right of Indemnitee under this Agreement in respect of any Proceeding (regardless

 

11


of when such Proceeding is first threatened, commenced or completed) or claim, issue or matter therein arising out of, or related to, any action taken or omitted by such Indemnitee in his or her Corporate Status prior to such amendment, alteration or repeal. To the extent that a change in applicable law, whether by statute or judicial decision, permits greater indemnification, hold harmless or exoneration rights or advancement of Expenses than would be afforded currently under the Charter, the Bylaws or this Agreement, then this Agreement (without any further action by the parties hereto) shall automatically be deemed to be amended to require that the Company indemnify the Indemnitee to the fullest extent permitted by law. No right or remedy herein conferred is intended to be exclusive of any other right or remedy, and every other right and remedy shall be cumulative and in addition to every other right and remedy given hereunder or now or hereafter existing at law or in equity or otherwise. The assertion or employment of any right or remedy hereunder, or otherwise, shall not prevent the concurrent assertion or employment of any other right or remedy.

(b)    The DGCL, the Charter and the Bylaws permit the Company to purchase and maintain insurance or furnish similar protection or make other arrangements including, but not limited to, providing a trust fund, letter of credit, or surety bond (“Indemnification Arrangements”) on behalf of Indemnitee against any liability asserted against him or her or incurred by or on behalf of him or her or in such capacity as a director, officer, employee or agent of the Company, or arising out of his or her status as such, whether or not the Company would have the power to indemnify him or her against such liability under the provisions of this Agreement or under the DGCL, as it may then be in effect. The purchase, establishment, and maintenance of any such Indemnification Arrangement shall not in any way limit or affect the rights and obligations of the Company or of Indemnitee under this Agreement except as expressly provided herein, and the execution and delivery of this Agreement by the Company and Indemnitee shall not in any way limit or affect the rights and obligations of the Company or the other party or parties thereto under any such Indemnification Arrangement.

(c)    To the extent that the Company maintains an insurance policy or policies providing liability insurance for directors, officers, trustees, partners, managers, managing members, fiduciaries, employees, or agents of the Company or of any other Enterprise which such person serves at the request of the Company, Indemnitee shall be covered by such policy or policies in accordance with its or their terms to the maximum extent of the coverage available for any such director, officer, trustee, partner, manager, managing member, fiduciary, employee or agent under such policy or policies. If, at the time the Company receives notice from any source of a Proceeding as to which Indemnitee is a party or a participant (as a witness, deponent or otherwise), the Company has director and officer liability insurance in effect, the Company shall give prompt notice of such Proceeding to the insurers in accordance with the procedures set forth in the respective policies. The Company shall thereafter use commercially reasonable efforts to cause such insurers to pay, on behalf of Indemnitee, all amounts payable as a result of such Proceeding in accordance with the terms of such policies.

(d)    In the event of any payment under this Agreement, the Company, to the fullest extent permitted by law, shall be subrogated to the extent of such payment to all of the rights of recovery of Indemnitee, who shall execute all papers required and take all action necessary to secure such rights, including execution of such documents as are necessary to enable the Company to bring suit to enforce such rights. No such payment by the Company shall be deemed to relieve any insurer of its obligations.

(e)    The Company’s obligation to indemnify, hold harmless, exonerate or advance Expenses hereunder to Indemnitee who is or was serving at the request of the Company as a director, officer, trustee, partner, manager, managing member, fiduciary, employee or agent of any other Enterprise shall be reduced by any amount Indemnitee has actually received as indemnification, hold harmless or exoneration payments or advancement of expenses from such Enterprise. Notwithstanding any other provision of this Agreement to the contrary except for Section 27, (i) Indemnitee shall have no obligation to reduce, offset, allocate, pursue or apportion any

 

12


indemnification, hold harmless, exoneration, advancement, contribution or insurance coverage among multiple parties possessing such duties to Indemnitee prior to the Company’s satisfaction and performance of all its obligations under this Agreement, and (ii) the Company shall perform fully its obligations under this Agreement without regard to whether Indemnitee holds, may pursue or has pursued any indemnification, advancement, hold harmless, exoneration, contribution or insurance coverage rights against any person or entity other than the Company.

(f)    Notwithstanding anything contained herein, the Company is the primary indemnitor, and any indemnification or advancement obligation of the Sponsor or its affiliates or members or any other Person is secondary.

17.    DURATION OF AGREEMENT. All agreements and obligations of the Company contained herein shall continue during the period Indemnitee serves as a director or officer of the Company or as a director, officer, trustee, partner, manager, managing member, fiduciary, employee or agent of any other corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust, employee benefit plan or other Enterprise which Indemnitee serves at the request of the Company and shall continue thereafter so long as Indemnitee shall be subject to any possible Proceeding (including any rights of appeal thereto and any Proceeding commenced by Indemnitee pursuant to Section 14 of this Agreement) by reason of his or her Corporate Status, whether or not he or she is acting in any such capacity at the time any liability or expense is incurred for which indemnification or advancement can be provided under this Agreement.

18.    SEVERABILITY. If any provision or provisions of this Agreement shall be held to be invalid, illegal or unenforceable for any reason whatsoever: (a) the validity, legality and enforceability of the remaining provisions of this Agreement (including, without limitation, each portion of any Section, paragraph or sentence of this Agreement containing any such provision held to be invalid, illegal or unenforceable, that is not itself invalid, illegal or unenforceable) shall not in any way be affected or impaired thereby and shall remain enforceable to the fullest extent permitted by law; (b) such provision or provisions shall be deemed reformed to the extent necessary to conform to applicable law and to give the maximum effect to the intent of the parties hereto; and (c) to the fullest extent possible, the provisions of this Agreement (including, without limitation, each portion of any Section, paragraph or sentence of this Agreement containing any such provision held to be invalid, illegal or unenforceable, that is not itself invalid, illegal or unenforceable) shall be construed so as to give effect to the intent manifested thereby.

19.    ENFORCEMENT AND BINDING EFFECT.

(a)    The Company expressly confirms and agrees that it has entered into this Agreement and assumed the obligations imposed on it hereby in order to induce Indemnitee to serve as a director, officer or key employee of the Company, and the Company acknowledges that Indemnitee is relying upon this Agreement in serving as a director, officer or key employee of the Company.

(b)    Without limiting any of the rights of Indemnitee under the Charter or Bylaws of the Company as they may be amended from time to time, this Agreement constitutes the entire agreement between the parties hereto with respect to the subject matter hereof and supersedes all prior agreements and understandings, oral, written and implied, between the parties hereto with respect to the subject matter hereof.

(c)    The indemnification, hold harmless, exoneration and advancement of expenses rights provided by or granted pursuant to this Agreement shall be binding upon and be enforceable by the parties hereto and their respective successors and assigns (including any direct or indirect successor by purchase, merger, consolidation or otherwise to all or substantially all of the business and/or assets of the Company), shall continue as to an Indemnitee who has ceased to be a director, officer, employee or agent of the Company or a director, officer, trustee, general partner, manager, managing member, fiduciary, employee or agent of any other Enterprise at the Company’s request, and shall inure to the benefit of Indemnitee and his or her spouse, assigns, heirs, devisees, executors and administrators and other legal representatives.

 

13


(d)    The Company shall require and cause any successor (whether direct or indirect by purchase, merger, consolidation or otherwise) to all, substantially all or a substantial part, of the business and/or assets of the Company, by written agreement in form and substance satisfactory to Indemnitee, expressly to assume and agree to perform this Agreement in the same manner and to the same extent that the Company would be required to perform if no such succession had taken place.

(e)    The Company and Indemnitee agree herein that a monetary remedy for breach of this Agreement, at some later date, may be inadequate, impracticable and difficult of proof, and further agree that such breach may cause Indemnitee irreparable harm. Accordingly, the parties hereto agree that Indemnitee may, to the fullest extent permitted by law, enforce this Agreement by seeking, among other things, injunctive relief and/or specific performance hereof, without any necessity of showing actual damage or irreparable harm and that by seeking injunctive relief and/or specific performance, Indemnitee shall not be precluded from seeking or obtaining any other relief to which he or she may be entitled. The Company and Indemnitee further agree that Indemnitee shall, to the fullest extent permitted by law, be entitled to such specific performance and injunctive relief, including temporary restraining orders, preliminary injunctions and permanent injunctions, without the necessity of posting bonds or other undertaking in connection therewith. The Company acknowledges that in the absence of a waiver, a bond or undertaking may be required of Indemnitee by a court of competent jurisdiction, and the Company hereby waives any such requirement of such a bond or undertaking to the fullest extent permitted by law.

20.    MODIFICATION AND WAIVER. No supplement, modification or amendment of this Agreement shall be binding unless executed in writing by the Company and Indemnitee. No waiver of any of the provisions of this Agreement shall be deemed or shall constitute a waiver of any other provisions of this Agreement nor shall any waiver constitute a continuing waiver.

21.    NOTICES. All notices, requests, demands and other communications under this Agreement shall be in writing and shall be deemed to have been duly given (i) if delivered by hand and receipted for by the party to whom said notice or other communication shall have been directed, on such delivery, or (ii) if mailed by certified or registered mail with postage prepaid, on the third (3rd) business day after the date on which it is so mailed:

(a)    If to Indemnitee, at the address indicated on the signature page of this Agreement, or such other address as Indemnitee shall provide in writing to the Company.

(b)    If to the Company, to:

Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

[    ]

Attention: [    ]

E-mail: [    ]

With a copy, which shall not constitute notice, to:

Greenberg Traurig, LLP

1750 Tysons Boulevard, Suite 1000

McLean, Virginia 22102

Attn: Alan I. Annex, Esq. and Jason Simon, Esq.

or to any other address as may have been furnished to Indemnitee in writing by the Company.

 

14


22.    APPLICABLE LAW AND CONSENT TO JURISDICTION. This Agreement and the legal relations among the parties shall be governed by, and construed and enforced in accordance with, the laws of the State of Delaware, without regard to its conflict of laws rules. Except with respect to any arbitration commenced by Indemnitee pursuant to Section 14(a) of this Agreement, to the fullest extent permitted by law, the Company and Indemnitee hereby irrevocably and unconditionally: (a) agree that any action or proceeding arising out of or in connection with this Agreement shall be brought only in the Delaware Court and not in any other state or federal court in the United States of America or any court in any other country; (b) consent to submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the Delaware Court for purposes of any action or proceeding arising out of or in connection with this Agreement; (c) waive any objection to the laying of venue of any such action or proceeding in the Delaware Court; and (d) waive, and agree not to plead or to make, any claim that any such action or proceeding brought in the Delaware Court has been brought in an improper or inconvenient forum, or is subject (in whole or in part) to a jury trial. To the fullest extent permitted by law, the parties hereby agree that the mailing of process and other papers in connection with any such action or proceeding in the manner provided by Section 21 or in such other manner as may be permitted by law, shall be valid and sufficient service thereof.

23.    IDENTICAL COUNTERPARTS. This Agreement may be executed in one or more counterparts, each of which shall for all purposes be deemed to be an original but all of which together shall constitute one and the same Agreement. Only one such counterpart signed by the party against whom enforceability is sought needs to be produced to evidence the existence of this Agreement.

24.    MISCELLANEOUS. The headings of the paragraphs of this Agreement are inserted for convenience only and shall not be deemed to constitute part of this Agreement or to affect the construction thereof.

25.    PERIOD OF LIMITATIONS. No legal action shall be brought and no cause of action shall be asserted by or in the right of the Company against Indemnitee, Indemnitee’s spouse, heirs, executors or personal or legal representatives after the expiration of two years from the date of accrual of such cause of action, and any claim or cause of action of the Company shall be extinguished and deemed released unless asserted by the timely filing of a legal action within such two-year period; provided, however, that if any shorter period of limitations is otherwise applicable to any such cause of action such shorter period shall govern.

26.    ADDITIONAL ACTS. If for the validation of any of the provisions in this Agreement any act, resolution, approval or other procedure is required to the fullest extent permitted by law, the Company undertakes to cause such act, resolution, approval or other procedure to be affected or adopted in a manner that will enable the Company to fulfill its obligations under this Agreement.

27.    WAIVER OF CLAIMS TO TRUST ACCOUNT. Notwithstanding anything contained herein to the contrary, Indemnitee hereby agrees that it does not have any right, title, interest or claim of any kind (each, a “Claim”) in or to any monies in the trust account established in connection with the Company’s initial public offering for the benefit of the Company and holders of shares issued in such offering, and hereby waives any Claim it may have in the future as a result of, or arising out of, any services provided to the Company and will not seek recourse against such trust account for any reason whatsoever. Accordingly, Indemnitee acknowledges and agrees that any indemnification provided hereto will only be able to be satisfied by the Company if (i) the Company has sufficient funds outside of the trust account to satisfy its obligations hereunder or (ii) the Company consummates a Business Combination.

28.    MAINTENANCE OF INSURANCE. The Company shall use commercially reasonable efforts to obtain and maintain in effect during the entire period for which the Company is obligated to indemnify Indemnitee under this Agreement, one or more policies of insurance with reputable insurance companies to provide the officers/directors of the Company with coverage for losses from wrongful acts and omissions and to ensure the Company’s performance of its indemnification obligations under this Agreement.

 

15


Indemnitee shall be covered by such policy or policies in accordance with its or their terms to the maximum extent of the coverage available for any such director or officer under such policy or policies. In all such insurance policies, Indemnitee shall be named as an insured in such a manner as to provide Indemnitee with the same rights and benefits as are accorded to the most favorably insured of the Company’s directors and officers.

[Signature Page Follows]

 

16


IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties hereto have caused this Indemnity Agreement to be signed as of the day and year first above written.

 

GOLDEN FALCON ACQUISITION CORP.
By:  

 

Name:   Makram Azar
Title:   Chief Executive Officer
INDEMNITEE
By:  

 

Name:  
Address:  

[Signature Page to Indemnity Agreement]

Exhibit 10.9

GOLDEN FALCON ACQUISITION CORP.

850 Library Avenue, Suite 204

Newark, Delaware 19711

[●], 2020

Full Circle Capital Services Limited

Palladium House

1-4 Argyll Street

London W1F 7LD

United Kingdom

Re: Administrative Services Agreement

This letter agreement by and between Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp., a Delaware corporation (the “Company”), and Full Circle Capital Services Limited, a private limited company incorporated under the laws of England and Wales (the “Provider”), dated as of the date hereof, will confirm our agreement that, commencing on the date the securities of the Company are first listed on the New York Stock Exchange (the “Listing Date”), pursuant to a Registration Statement on Form S-1 and prospectus filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Registration Statement”), and continuing until the earlier of the consummation by the Company of an initial business combination and the Company’s liquidation (in each case as described in the Registration Statement) (such earlier date hereinafter referred to as the “Termination Date”):

 

  1.

The Provider shall make available, or cause to be made available, to the Company at the address of the Provider referred to above (or any successor location or other existing office locations of the Provider or any of its affiliates), certain administrative, research, transaction and other support services as may be reasonably requested by the Company from time to time. In exchange therefor, the Company shall pay the Provider up to $10,000 per month, commencing on the Listing Date and continuing monthly thereafter until the Termination Date.

 

  2.

The Provider hereby irrevocably waives any and all right, title, interest, causes of action and claims of any kind or nature whatsoever (each, a “Claim”) in or to, and any and all right to seek payment of any amounts due to it out of, the trust account established for the benefit of the public stockholders of the Company and into which substantially all of the proceeds of the Company’s initial public offering will be deposited (the “Trust Account”), and hereby irrevocably waives any Claim it presently has or may have in the future as a result of, or arising out of, this letter agreement, which Claim would reduce, encumber or otherwise adversely affect the Trust Account or any monies or other assets in the Trust Account, and further agrees not to seek recourse, reimbursement, payment or satisfaction of any Claim against the Trust Account or any monies or other assets in the Trust Account for any reason whatsoever.

This letter agreement constitutes the entire agreement and understanding of the parties hereto in respect of its subject matter and supersedes all prior understandings, agreements, or representations by or among the parties hereto, written or oral, to the extent they relate in any way to the subject matter hereof or the transactions contemplated hereby.

This letter agreement may not be amended, modified or waived as to any particular provision, except by a written instrument executed by all parties hereto.

No party hereto may assign either this letter agreement or any of its rights, interests, or obligations hereunder without the prior written approval of the other party, provided that the Provider may assign this letter agreement to an affiliate without the prior written approval of the Company. Any purported assignment in violation of this paragraph shall be void and ineffectual and shall not operate to transfer or assign any interest or title to the purported assignee.

This letter agreement constitutes the entire relationship of the parties hereto, and any litigation between the parties (whether grounded in contract, tort, statute, law or equity) shall be governed by, construed in accordance with and interpreted pursuant to the laws of the State of New York, without giving effect to its choice of laws principles.

This letter agreement may be executed in one or more counterparts, each of which shall for all purposes be deemed to be an original but all of which together shall constitute one and the same letter agreement.


 

Very truly yours,

 

Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

By:  

 

Name:  
Title:  

 

Agreed to and accepted as of the date first above written.

 

Full Circle Capital Services Limited

By:  

 

Name:  
Title:  

 

2

Exhibit 14

GOLDEN FALCON ACQUISITION CORP.

CODE OF BUSINESS CONDUCT AND ETHICS

 

1.

Introduction

The Board of Directors (the “Board”) of Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp. (the “Company”) has adopted this code of business conduct and ethics (this “Code”), as amended from time to time by the Board, and which is applicable to all of the Company’s directors, officers and employees (to the extent that employees are hired in the future) to:

 

   

promote honest and ethical conduct, including the ethical handling of actual or apparent conflicts of interest between personal and professional relationships;

 

   

promote the full, fair, accurate, timely and understandable disclosure in reports and documents that the Company files with, or submits to, the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), as well as in other public communications made by or on behalf of the Company;

 

   

promote compliance with applicable governmental laws, rules and regulations;

 

   

deter wrongdoing; and

 

   

require prompt internal reporting of breaches of, and accountability for adherence to, this Code.

In addition to following this Code in all aspects of business activities, the Company’s directors, officers and employees are expected to seek guidance in any situation where there is a question regarding compliance issues, whether with the letter or the spirit of the Company’s policies and applicable laws. Cooperation with this Code is essential to the continued success of the Company’s business and the cultivation and maintenance of its reputation as a good corporate citizen. Misconduct is never justified, even where sanctioned or ordered by an officer or other individual in a position of higher management. No individual, regardless of stature or position, can authorize actions that are illegal, or that jeopardize or violate Company standards. This Code sets forth general principles of conduct and ethics and is intended to work in conjunction with the policies and procedures that are covered in the Company’s specific policy statements.

Nothing in this Code prohibits the Company’s directors, officers or employees from reporting possible violations of federal law or regulation to any governmental agency or entity, including but not limited to the Department of Justice, the SEC, the Congress, and any agency Inspector General, or making other disclosures that are protected under the whistleblower provisions of U.S. federal law or regulation. No prior authorization from the Company is needed to make any such reports or disclosures and there is no duty to notify the Company that any such reports or disclosures have been made. The Company has a no-tolerance policy for retaliation against persons who raise good faith compliance, ethics or related issues.

This Code may be amended and modified by the Board. In this Code, references to the “Company” mean Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp. and, in appropriate context, the Company’s subsidiaries, if any.

 

2.

Honest, Ethical and Fair Conduct

Each person owes a duty to the Company to act with integrity. Integrity requires, among other things, being honest, fair and candid. Deceit, dishonesty and subordination of principle are inconsistent with integrity. Service to the Company should never be subordinated to violations of laws or regulations, unscrupulous dealings or to personal gain and advantage.

Each person must:

 

  a.

act with integrity, including being honest and candid while still maintaining the confidentiality of the Company’s information where required or when in the Company’s interests;

 

  b.

observe all applicable governmental laws, rules and regulations;

 

1


  c.

comply with the requirements of applicable accounting and auditing standards, as well as Company policies, in order to maintain a high standard of accuracy and completeness in the Company’s financial records and other business-related information and data;

 

  d.

adhere to a high standard of business ethics and not seek competitive advantage through unlawful or unethical business practices;

 

  e.

deal fairly with the Company’s customers, suppliers, competitors, employees and independent contractors;

 

  f.

refrain from taking advantage of anyone through manipulation, concealment, abuse of privileged information, misrepresentation of material facts or any other unfair-dealing practice;

 

  g.

protect the assets of the Company and ensure their proper use;

 

  h.

until the earliest of (i) the Company’s initial business combination (as such is defined in the Company’s initial registration statement filed with the SEC), (ii) the Company’s liquidation, or (iii) such time that such person ceases to be an officer or director of the Company, in each case, to first present to the Company for the Company’s consideration, prior to presentation to any other entity, any business opportunity, but only if such opportunity is suitable for the Company, subject to the Company’s certificate of incorporation and bylaws in effect at such time and subject to any other fiduciary or contractual obligations such officer or director may have; and

 

  i.

avoid actual or apparent conflicts between personal, private interests and the interests of the Company, wherever possible, including receiving improper personal benefits as a result of his or her position, except as may be allowed under guidelines or resolutions approved by the Board (or the appropriate committee of the Board) or as disclosed in the Company’s public filings with the SEC. Anything that would be a conflict for a person subject to this Code also will be a conflict for a member of his or her immediate family or any other close relative.

Examples of conflict of interest situations include, but are not limited to, the following:

 

   

any significant ownership interest in any supplier or customer;

 

   

any consulting or employment relationship with any supplier or customer;

 

   

the receipt of any money, non-nominal gifts or excessive entertainment from any entity with which the Company has current or prospective business dealings;

 

   

selling anything to the Company or buying anything from the Company, except on the same terms and conditions as a third party would buy or sell a comparable item in an arm’s-length transaction;

 

   

any other financial transaction, arrangement or relationship (including any indebtedness or guarantee of indebtedness) involving the Company; and

 

   

any other circumstance, event, relationship or situation in which the personal interest of a person subject to this Code interferes, or even appears to interfere, with the interests of the Company as a whole.

Any material transaction or relationship that reasonably could be expected to give rise to a conflict of interest shall be disclosed to the Board.

 

3.

Confidentiality

The Company’s directors, officers and employees must maintain and protect the confidentiality of information entrusted to them by the Company, or that otherwise comes into their possession, while carrying out their duties and responsibilities, except when disclosure is authorized by the Company or legally mandated.

 

2


Confidential information encompasses all non-public information (including, for example, “inside information” or information that third-parties have entrusted to the Company) that may be of use to competitors, or may otherwise be harmful to the Company or its key stakeholders, if disclosed. Financial information is of special sensitivity and should under all circumstances be considered confidential, except where its disclosure is approved by the Company or when the information has been publicly disseminated.

 

4.

Disclosure

The Company strives to ensure that the contents of and the disclosures in the reports and documents that the Company files with the SEC and other public communications shall be full, fair, accurate, timely and understandable in accordance with applicable disclosure standards, including standards of materiality, where appropriate. Each person must:

 

   

not knowingly misrepresent, or cause others to misrepresent, facts about the Company to others, whether within or outside the Company, including to the Company’s independent registered public accountants, governmental regulators, self-regulating organizations and other governmental officials, as appropriate; and

 

   

in relation to his or her area of responsibility, properly review and critically analyze proposed disclosure for accuracy and completeness.

In addition to the foregoing, the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer of the Company and the Chief Executive Officer and the Chief Financial Officer of each subsidiary of the Company (or persons performing similar functions), if any, and each other person that typically is involved in the financial reporting of the Company must familiarize himself or herself with the disclosure requirements applicable to the Company as well as the business and financial operations of the Company.

Each person must promptly bring to the attention of the Board of Directors any information he or she may have concerning (a) significant deficiencies in the design or operation of internal and/or disclosure controls that could adversely affect the Company’s ability to record, process, summarize and report financial data or (b) any fraud that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the Company’s financial reporting, disclosures or internal controls.

 

5.

Compliance

It is the Company’s obligation and policy to comply with all applicable governmental laws, rules and regulations. All directors, officers and employees of the Company are expected to understand, respect and comply with all of the laws, regulations, policies and procedures that apply to them in their positions with the Company. Employees are responsible for talking to their supervisors to determine which laws, regulations and Company policies apply to their position and what training is necessary to understand and comply with them.

Directors, officers and employees are directed to specific policies and procedures available to persons they supervise.

 

6.

Reporting and Accountability

The Board is responsible for applying this Code to specific situations in which questions are presented to it and has the authority to interpret this Code in any particular situation. Any person who becomes aware of any existing or potential breach of this Code is required to notify the Board promptly. Failure to do so is, in and of itself, a breach of this Code.

Specifically, each person must:

 

   

notify the Board promptly of any existing or potential violation of this Code; and

 

   

not retaliate against any other person for reports of potential violations that are made in good faith.

 

3


The Company will follow the following procedures in investigating and enforcing this Code and in reporting on this Code:

 

   

the Board will take all appropriate action to investigate any breaches reported to it; and

 

   

upon determination by the Board that a breach has occurred, the Board (by majority decision) will take or authorize such disciplinary or preventive action as it deems appropriate, after consultation with the Company’s internal or external legal counsel, up to and including dismissal or, in the event of criminal or other serious violations of law, notification of the SEC or other appropriate law enforcement authorities.

No person following the above procedure shall, as a result of following such procedure, be subject by the Company or any officer or employee thereof to discharge, demotion suspension, threat, harassment or, in any manner, discrimination against such person in terms and conditions of employment.

 

7.

Waivers and Amendments

Any waiver (defined below) or an implicit waiver (defined below) from a provision of this Code for the principal executive officer, principal financial officer, principal accounting officer or controller, and persons performing similar functions or any amendment (as defined below) to this Code is required to be disclosed in a Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC. In lieu of filing a Current Report on Form 8-K to report any such waivers or amendments, the Company may provide such information on its website, in the event that it establishes one in the future, and if it keeps such information on the website for at least 12 months and discloses the website address as well as any intention to provide such disclosures in this manner in its most recently filed Annual Report on Form 10-K.

A “waiver” means the approval by the Board of a material departure from a provision of this Code. An “implicit waiver” means the Company’s failure to take action within a reasonable period of time regarding a material departure from a provision of this Code that has been made known to an executive officer of the Company. An “amendment” means any amendment to this Code other than minor technical, administrative or other non-substantive amendments hereto.

Any request for a waiver of any provision of this Code must be in writing and addressed to the Board. All persons should note that it is not the Company’s intention to grant or to permit waivers from the requirements of this Code. The Company expects full compliance with this Code.

 

8.

Insider Information and Securities Trading

The Company’s directors, officers or employees who have access to material, non-public information are not permitted to use that information for security trading purposes or for any purpose unrelated to the Company’s business. It is also against the law to trade or to “tip” others who might make an investment decision based on inside company information. For example, using non-public information to buy or sell the Company securities, options in the Company securities or the securities of any Company supplier, customer, competitor or potential target is prohibited. The consequences of insider trading violations can be severe. These rules also apply to the use of material, non-public information about other companies (including, for example, the Company’s customers, competitors, potential business partners and potential targets). In addition to directors, officers or employees, these rules apply to such person’s spouse, children, parents and siblings, as well as any other family members living in such person’s home.

 

9.

Financial Statements and Other Records

All of the Company’s books, records, accounts and financial statements must be maintained in reasonable detail, must appropriately reflect the Company’s transactions and must both conform to applicable legal requirements and to the Company’s system of internal controls. Unrecorded or “off the books” funds or assets should not be maintained unless permitted by applicable law or regulation.

Records should always be retained or destroyed according to the Company’s record retention policies. In accordance with those policies, in the event of litigation or governmental investigation, please consult the Board or the Company’s internal or external legal counsel.

 

4


Any and all reports received by the Company of questionable accounting, violations of internal accounting controls, or any other auditing or financial matters, or the reporting of fraudulent financial information or other questionable conduct that are submitted to an officer of the Company will be handled as follows:

 

   

All reports received will be logged and include, among other things: (1) the date the report was received, (2) a description of the report, (3) the reporting party (if provided), and (4) the status and disposition of an investigation of the report.

 

   

The Vice President and Secretary of the Company will promptly submit to the Audit Committee of the Board (the “Audit Committee”) all reports received. The Audit Committee shall direct and oversee an investigation of all reports as it determines to be appropriate. The Audit Committee may also delegate the oversight and investigation of reports to the appropriate members of the Company’s management. The Audit Committee may request special treatment for any report and may re-assume the direction and oversight of an investigation of any report delegated to members of our management.

 

10.

Improper Influence on Conduct of Audits

No director or officer, or any other person acting under the direction thereof, shall directly or indirectly take any action to coerce, manipulate, mislead or fraudulently influence any public or certified public accountant engaged in the performance of an audit or review of the financial statements of the Company or take any action that such person knows or should know that if successful could result in rendering the Company’s financial statements materially misleading. Any person who believes such improper influence is being exerted should report such action to such person’s supervisor, or if that is impractical under the circumstances, to any of the Company’s directors.

Types of conduct that could constitute improper influence include, but are not limited to, directly or indirectly:

 

   

offering or paying bribes or other financial incentives, including future employment or contracts for non-audit services;

 

   

providing an auditor with an inaccurate or misleading legal analysis;

 

   

threatening to cancel or canceling existing non-audit or audit engagements if the auditor objects to the Company’s accounting;

 

   

seeking to have a partner removed from the audit engagement because the partner objects to the Company’s accounting;

 

   

blackmailing; and

 

   

making physical threats.

 

11.

Anti-Corruption Laws

The Company complies with the anti-corruption laws of the countries in which it does business, including the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 (“FCPA”). Directors, officers, employees and agents, such as third party sales representatives, shall not take or cause to be taken any action that would reasonably result in the Company not complying with such anti-corruption laws, including the FCPA. If you are authorized to engage agents on the Company’s behalf, you are responsible for ensuring they are reputable and for obtaining a written agreement for them to uphold the Company’s standards in this area. The Company will comply with the Policy Statement Regarding Compliance and Ethics attached hereto as Schedule A.

 

12.

Violations

The Board will investigate any reported violations and will oversee an appropriate response, including corrective action and preventative measures. Any director, officer or employee who violates this Code will face appropriate, case specific disciplinary action, which may include demotion or discharge. Such action is in addition to any civil or criminal liability which might be imposed by any court or regulatory agency.

 

5


13.

Other Policies and Procedures

Any other policy or procedure set out by the Company in writing or made generally known to employees, officers or directors of the Company prior to the date hereof or hereafter are separate requirements and remain in full force and effect.

 

14.

Inquiries

All inquiries and questions in relation to this Code or its applicability to particular people or situations should be addressed to the Board, or such other compliance officer as shall be designated from time to time by the Company.

 

6


Schedule A

POLICY STATEMENT REGARDING COMPLIANCE AND ETHICS

 

I.

Introduction

Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp. (the “Company”) is committed to the highest ethical standards, and expects the same of its directors, officers and employees (to the extent that employees are hired in the future), third party representatives, and joint venture partners. Consistent with this commitment, all Company employees are expected to understand and comply with all applicable laws, rules, and regulations applicable to their job responsibilities at Company.

This Policy Statement sets forth Company’s general requirements and expectations relating to several key areas of business conduct and ethics. At the same time, this Policy Statement is not intended to be a comprehensive rulebook and cannot address every situation that a Company director, officer and employee (to the extent that employees are hired in the future) may face. If any Company director, officer or employee (to the extent that employees are hired in the future) feels uncomfortable about a situation or has any doubts about whether a situation or course of conduct is consistent with Company’s ethical standards, such individuals are advised to seek help from the Company’s Chief Financial Officer.

 

II.

Compliance with All Laws Including Bribery and Other Corrupt Payments Laws

Company shall comply with all applicable laws, including applicable laws governing bribery, extortion, kickbacks, and the giving or receiving of gifts or hospitality to “Government Officials.”1 Consistent with this commitment, Company directors, officers or employees (to the extent that employees are hired in the future) are prohibited from offering, promising, giving, soliciting, accepting or authorizing another to offer, promise, give, solicit or accept anything of value, either directly or indirectly, for the purpose of corruptly influencing the decision of any person, or to otherwise obtain or retain business or a business advantage in connection with Company. This includes all local, state and federal corruption laws, as well as international laws such as the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, to the extent the Company is conducting business outside of the United States.

 

III.

Facilitation Payments

It is Company’s policy not to make or authorize anyone to make any small, unofficial payment to secure or expedite the performance of a routine or necessary action by a Government Official (a “Facilitation Payment”)2 in connection with Company.

 

IV.

Gifts and Hospitality

Company requires that all gifts and hospitality promised, offered or provided on behalf of Company be reasonable, related to a legitimate business purpose, and lawful under applicable laws and regulations, including those relating to the nature and amount of gifts and hospitality that can be provided to Government Officials.

No Company employee or Third Party may offer, promise, give, solicit, accept or authorize another to offer, promise, give, solicit or accept any gift or hospitality for the purpose of corruptly influencing the decision of any person, or to otherwise obtain or retain business or a business advantage on behalf of Company.

 

1 

“Government Official” means: (i) any person who is an officer, officeholder, full or part-time employee or representative of: (1) a national, state, regional, provincial, city, county or other local government; (2) independent agencies of any government; or (3) state-owned businesses or state-controlled businesses (e.g., a representative of a sovereign wealth fund or public pension fund, an affiliate of a state-owned company owning distressed assets); (ii) political party officials and candidates for political office; and (iii) any employees of quasi-public or non-governmental international organizations (sometimes called “NGOs”).

2 

A “Facilitation Payment” may take the form of any kind of advantage, and is not limited to cash or cash equivalents.

 

7


All gifts and hospitality are required to be approved by appropriate Company personnel before being provided to any external party, and shall be documented fairly and accurately in Company’s books and records.

 

V.

Political and Charitable Contributions

It is the policy of Company that its funds or assets not be used to make a political or charitable contribution,3 unless prior approval has been given by the Company’s Chief Financial Officer. Company shall not reimburse any Company employee or Third Party for their own personal political or charitable contributions. When Company employees participate in private political affairs, those employees should be careful to make it clear that their views and actions are their own, and not made on behalf of Company.

Company employees are prohibited from making or authorizing any person to make a political or charitable contribution on behalf of Company for the purpose of corruptly influencing the decision of any person, or to otherwise obtain or retain business or a business advantage.

 

VI.

Relationships with Third Parties

Company shall conduct reasonable commercial and risk-based due diligence on all third party vendors, suppliers, agents, representatives, and intermediaries (each a “Third Party” and collectively “Third Parties”) working on behalf of Company.

All agreements with Third Parties relating to Company shall be reduced to writing, accurately reflect the actual goods or services to be provided by the Third Party, and include appropriate anti-corruption compliance representations and warranties.

All payments to Third Parties made by or on behalf of Company shall be made transparently, consistent with applicable written agreements, and reflected accurately in Company’s books and records.

 

VII.

Discrimination and Harassment

Company employees shall not discriminate, harass, or authorize any discrimination or harassment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, disability, marital status, citizenship, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by law.

Company will not tolerate or authorize any unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, or any other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature by any Company employee or Third Party in connection with Company if and when: (i) submission to such conduct was made either explicitly or implicitly a term or condition of an individual’s employment; (ii) submission to or rejection of such conduct by an individual is used as the basis for employment decisions affecting such individual; or (iii) such conduct has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual’s work performance or creating an intimidating, hostile, or offensive working environment.

 

VIII.

Money Laundering

It is the policy of Company to prohibit and actively prevent money laundering and any activity that could conceivably facilitate money laundering, the funding of terrorism, or other criminal activity. Consistent with this policy, the local Company partner shall develop appropriate procedures to help ensure that Company does not facilitate or engage in any money laundering activities.

 

3 

For purposes of this provision, the term “political contribution” refers to any contribution of something of value to an incumbent elected official, a candidate for elected office, a political party, a political committee, a political organization, a ballot measure committee, an inaugural committee, or a member of the transition team of a successful candidate. The term “charitable contribution” refers to any contribution of something of value to a charitable or philanthropic cause, including, but not limited to donations of cash or cash equivalents to registered charities.

 

8


IX.

Health, Safety and Environment

Company is committed to conducting all business activities in a responsible manner, which helps ensure the health, safety, and security of people, preservation of the environment, quality of our business offerings, security, legal, quality, and regulatory requirements in all our business activities.

 

X.

Recordkeeping

Company shall make and maintain records that fairly and accurately reflect the business transactions of Company.

 

XI.

Cooperation with Audits and Inspections

COMPANY, INCLUDING EACH COMPANY EMPLOYEE AND THIRD GOLDEN FALCON ACQUISITION CORP.

Party, shall cooperate fully with any and all requests made by its shareholders relating to the review and/or inspection of books and records relating to Company.

 

XII.

Reported Concerns

Company encourages reporting of suspected violations of this policy statement, violations of law, and perceived incidents of discrimination or harassment. Company will not tolerate actions by Company directors, officers or employees (to the extent that employees are hired in the future) or Third Parties to discourage or authorize discouragement of any kind against any individual who reports a perceived incident of discrimination or harassment in relation to Company.

Retaliation of any kind against any individual who reports any perceived incident of discrimination or harassment, or who cooperates with any investigation relating to such reports in good faith is prohibited. Engaging in any form of retaliation may subject Company personnel to discipline, up to and including termination.

 

XIII.

Accountability

Failure to comply with the guidelines and requirements set forth in this Policy Statement is a serious matter. Violating applicable laws, regulations, or the policies set forth in this document, or otherwise engaging in illegal, improper, or unethical conduct may result in appropriate remedial action.

 

9

Exhibit 23.1

INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM’S CONSENT

We consent to the inclusion in this Registration Statement of Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp. (the “Company”) on Form S-1 of our report dated September 15, 2020, which includes an explanatory paragraph as to the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern, with respect to our audit of the financial statements of Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp. as of September 3, 2020 and for the period from August 24, 2020 (inception) through September 3, 2020, which report appears in the Prospectus, which is part of this Registration Statement. We also consent to the reference to our Firm under the heading “Experts” in such Prospectus.

/s/ Marcum LLP

Marcum LLP

New York, NY

December 1, 2020

 

Exhibit 99.1

GOLDEN FALCON ACQUISITION CORP.

AUDIT COMMITTEE CHARTER

 

1.

Purpose

The purposes of the Audit Committee (the “Committee”) of the Board of Directors (the “Board”) of Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp. (the “Company”) shall be to provide assistance to the Board in fulfilling its legal and fiduciary obligations to oversee:

 

  (a)

the quality and integrity of the Company’s financial statements and other financial information provided by the Company to its stockholders, the public, any stock exchange and others;

 

  (b)

the Company’s compliance with legal and regulatory requirements;

 

  (c)

the qualifications and independence of the Company’s independent auditor;

 

  (d)

the performance of the Company’s independent auditors and the Company’s internal audit function (or if the Company does not yet have an internal audit function because it is availing itself of a transition period pursuant to the rules of the New York Stock Exchange Inc. (the “NYSE”), assisting the Board in oversight of the design and implementation of the internal audit function); and

 

  (e)

the preparation of the report required by the Committee pursuant to the rules of the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) for inclusion in the Company’s annual proxy statement.

The Committee shall also review and approve all Related Party Transactions (as defined below) in accordance with the policy set forth herein.

Although the Committee has the powers and responsibilities set forth in this charter (this “Charter”), the role of the Committee is oversight. The members of the Committee are not full-time employees of the Company and may or may not be accountants or auditors by profession or experts in the fields of accounting or auditing and, in any event, do not serve in such capacity. Consequently, it is not the duty of the Committee to conduct audits or to determine that the Company’s financial statements and disclosures are complete and accurate and are in accordance with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (“GAAP”) and listing standards of the NYSE or as mandated under applicable laws, rules and regulations (including the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder, each as amended). These are the responsibilities of management and the Company’s independent auditor.

While the members of the Committee have the duties and responsibilities set forth in this Charter, nothing contained in this Charter is intended to create, or should be construed as creating, any responsibility or liability of members of the Committee, except to the extent otherwise provided under applicable federal or state law.

 

2.

Organization

The Committee shall consist of three or more independent directors, as determined from time to time by the Board based on the recommendation of the Company’s Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee. Each member of the Committee shall be “independent” and qualified to serve on the Committee pursuant to the requirements of the NYSE, and any additional requirements that the Board deems appropriate. Each member of the Committee must be financially literate, as such qualification is interpreted by the Board in its business judgment, or must become financially literate within a reasonable period of time after his or her appointment to the Committee. At least one member of the Committee must be designated by the Board to be the “audit committee financial expert,” as defined by the SEC pursuant to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (the “Act”).

No Committee member shall simultaneously serve on the audit committees of more than two other public companies, unless the Board determines that such simultaneous service does not impair the ability of such member to effectively serve on the Committee. Any such determination must be disclosed in the Company’s annual proxy statement, or, if the Company does not file an annual proxy statement, in its annual report on Form 10-K.

The chairperson of the Committee shall be designated by the Board, provided that if the Board does not so designate a chairperson, the members of the Committee, by a majority vote, may designate a chairperson.

Any vacancy on the Committee shall be filled by majority vote of the Board. No member of the Committee shall be removed except by majority vote of the Board.

 

1


3.

Meetings

The Committee shall meet at least four times per year on a quarterly basis, or more frequently as required. The Committee, in its discretion, may ask members of management or others to attend its meetings (or portions thereof) and to provide pertinent information as necessary. The Committee shall also meet separately, periodically, with (i) management, (ii) the director of the Company’s internal auditing department or other person responsible for the internal audit function, if any, and (iii) the Company’s independent auditors, in each case to discuss any matters that the Committee or any of the above persons or firms believe warrant Committee attention.

A majority of the members of the Committee present in person or by means of a conference telephone or other communications equipment by means of which all persons participating in the meeting can hear each other shall constitute a quorum.

The Committee shall maintain minutes of its meetings and records relating to those meetings and shall report regularly to the Board on its activities, as appropriate.

 

4.

Authority and Responsibilities

In fulfilling its duties and responsibilities hereunder, the Committee will be entitled to rely reasonably on (a) the integrity of those persons within the Company and the professionals and experts (such as the Company’s independent auditor) from whom it receives information, (b) the accuracy of the financial and other information provided to the Committee by such persons and (c) representations made by the Company’s independent auditor as to any services provided by such firm to the Company.

The Committee’s policies and procedures should remain flexible, so that it may be in a position to best address, react or respond to changing circumstances or conditions. The following duties and responsibilities are within the authority of the Committee and the Committee shall, consistent with and subject to applicable law and rules and regulations promulgated by the SEC, the NYSE, or any other applicable regulatory authority:

 

  (a)

Selection, Evaluation, and Oversight of the Independent Auditors

 

  i.

Be directly responsible for the appointment, compensation, retention (including termination), scope and oversight of the work of any independent, registered public accounting firm engaged by the Company for the purpose of preparing or issuing an audit report or performing other audit, review or attest services for the Company, and resolution of any disagreements between management and any such firm regarding financial reporting, and each such firm must report directly to the Committee;

 

  ii.

Review and, in its sole discretion, approve in advance the Company’s independent auditors’ annual engagement letter, including the proposed fees contained therein, as well as all audit and, as provided in the Act and the SEC rules and regulations promulgated thereunder, all permitted non-audit engagements and relationships between the Company and such independent auditors (which approval should be made after receiving input from the Company’s management, if desired). Approval of audit and permitted non-audit services will be made by the Committee or by one or more members of the Committee as shall be designated by the Committee/the chairperson of the Committee and the persons granting such approval shall report such approval to the Committee at the next scheduled meeting;

 

  iii.

At least annually, evaluate the performance of the independent auditors, including the lead partner of the independent auditors, and, in its sole discretion (subject, if applicable, to stockholder ratification), make decisions regarding the replacement or termination of the independent auditors when circumstances warrant;

 

  iv.

At least annually, obtain and review a formal written report from the Company’s independent auditor describing:

 

   

the independent auditors’ internal quality-control procedures;

 

   

any material issues raised by the most recent internal quality-control review, or peer review, or Public Company Accounting Oversight Board review or inspection, or by any inquiry or investigation by governmental or professional authorities, within the preceding five years, with respect to one or more independent audits carried out by the independent auditors, and any steps taken to deal with any such issues;

 

2


   

an assessment of the continued independence of the independent auditor, including all relationships and engagements that may be reasonably be thought to bear on the independence of the auditor, including those between the auditor and the Company;

 

   

the adequacy and effectiveness of the Company’s accounting and internal control policies and procedures; and

 

   

if applicable, the yearly report prepared by management, and attested to by the Company’s independent auditors, assessing the effectiveness of the Company’s internal control over financial reporting and stating management’s responsibility for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting prior to its inclusion in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K;

 

  v.

Evaluate the independence of the Company’s independent auditors by, among other things:

 

   

Confirming with the independent auditors that the audit partner rotation requirements contained in the Act and the rules and regulations promulgated by the SEC thereunder have been complied with;

 

   

actively engaging in a dialogue with the Company’s independent auditors with respect to any disclosed relationships or services that may impact the objectivity and independence of the auditors;

 

   

setting clear hiring policies for employees or former employees of the Company’s independent auditors;

 

   

taking, or recommending that the Board take, appropriate action to oversee the independence of the Company’s independent auditors;

 

   

monitoring compliance by the Company of the employee conflict of interest requirements contained in the Act and the rules and regulations promulgated by the SEC thereunder; and

 

   

engaging in a dialogue with the independent auditors to confirm that audit partner’s compensation is consistent with applicable SEC rules;

 

  (b)

Oversight of Annual Audit and Quarterly Reviews

 

  i.

Review and discuss with the independent auditors their annual audit plan, including the timing and scope of audit activities, and monitor such plan’s progress and results during the year;

 

  ii.

Review with management and the Company’s independent auditors the following information which is required to be reported by the independent auditor:

 

   

all critical accounting policies and practices to be used;

 

   

all alternative treatments of financial information that have been discussed by the independent auditors and management, ramifications of the use of such alternative disclosures and treatments and the treatment preferred by the independent auditors;

 

   

all other material written communications between the independent auditors and management, such as any management letter and any schedule of unadjusted differences; and

 

   

any material financial arrangements of the Company which do not appear on the financial statements of the Company;

 

  iii.

Review with management, the Company’s independent auditors and, if appropriate, the director of the Company’s internal auditing department, if any, the following:

 

3


   

any major issues regarding accounting principles and financial statement presentations, including any significant changes in the Company’s selection or application of accounting principles;

 

   

any major issues and any analyses prepared by management and/or the independent auditors setting forth significant financial reporting issues and judgments made in connection with the preparation of the financial statements, including analyses of the effects of alternative GAAP methods on the financial statements;

 

   

the effect of regulatory and accounting initiatives, as well as off-balance sheet structures, on the financial statements of the Company; and

 

   

the type and presentation of information to be included in earnings, press releases as well as review of any financial information and earnings guidance provided to analysts or rating agencies;

 

  iv.

Review with management, the Company’s independent auditors and, if appropriate, the director of the Company’s internal auditing department, if any, the Company’s annual audited financial statements and quarterly financial statements, including the Company’s specific disclosures under “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” in its Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and Annual Reports on Form 10-K, and any major issues related thereto;

 

  v.

Resolve all disagreements between the Company’s independent auditors and management regarding financial reporting;

 

  vi.

Review on a regular basis with the Company’s independent auditors any problems or difficulties encountered by the independent auditors in the course of any audit work, including management’s response with respect thereto, any restrictions on the scope of the independent auditor’s activities or on access to requested information, and any significant disagreements with management. In connection therewith, the Committee should review with the independent auditors the following:

 

   

any accounting adjustments that were noted or proposed by the independent auditors but were rejected by management (as immaterial or otherwise);

 

   

any communications between the audit team and the independent auditor’s national office respecting auditing or accounting issues presented by the engagement; and

 

   

any “management” or “internal control” letter issued, or proposed to be issued, by the independent auditors to the Company;

 

  (c)

Oversight of Financial Reporting Process and Internal Controls

 

  i.

Review the adequacy and effectiveness of the Company’s accounting and internal control policies and procedures on a regular basis, including the responsibilities, budget, compensation and staffing of the Company’s internal audit function, through inquiry and discussions with the Company’s independent auditors, management and director of the Company’s internal auditing department, if any;

 

  ii.

Review, if applicable, the yearly report prepared by management, and attested to by the Company’s independent auditors, assessing the effectiveness of the Company’s internal control over financial reporting and stating management’s responsibility for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting prior to its inclusion in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K;

 

  iii.

Review the Committee’s level of involvement and interaction with the Company’s internal audit function, including the Committee’s line of authority and role in appointing and compensating employees in the internal audit function;

 

  iv.

Periodically, review the following with management, including the Chief Executive Officer and the Chief Financial Officer, and the Company’s independent auditors:

 

4


   

all significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or operation of internal control over financial reporting which are reasonably likely to adversely affect the Company’s ability to record, process, summarize and report financial information; and

 

   

any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the Company’s internal control over financial reporting;

 

  v.

Discuss guidelines and policies governing the process by which senior management of the Company assess and manage the Company’s exposure to risk, as well as the Company’s major financial risk exposures and the steps management has taken to monitor and control such exposures;

 

  vi.

Review with management the progress and results of all internal audit projects, and, when deemed necessary or appropriate by the Committee, assign additional internal audit projects to appropriate personnel;

 

  vii.

Review with management the Company’s administrative, operational and accounting internal controls, including any special audit steps adopted in light of the discovery of material control deficiencies;

 

  viii.

Receive periodic reports from the Company’s independent auditors, management and director of the Company’s internal auditing department, if any, to assess the impact on the Company of significant accounting or financial reporting developments that may have a bearing on the Company;

 

  ix.

Review and discuss with the independent auditors the results of the year-end audit of the Company, including any comments or recommendations of the Company’s independent auditors and, based on such review and discussions and on such other considerations as it determines appropriate, recommend to the Board whether the Company’s financial statements should be included in the Annual Report on Form 10-K;

 

  x.

Establish and maintain free and open means of communication between and among the Committee, the Company’s independent auditors and management, including providing such parties with appropriate opportunities to meet separately and privately with the Committee on a periodic basis;

 

  xi.

Review the type and presentation of information to be included in the Company’s earnings press releases (especially the use of “pro forma” or “adjusted” information not prepared in compliance with GAAP), as well as financial information and earnings guidance provided by the Company to analysts and rating agencies (which review may be done generally (i.e., discussion of the types of information to be disclosed and type of presentations to be made), and the Committee need not discuss in advance each earnings release or each instance in which the Company may provide earnings guidance);

 

  (d)

Additional Duties

 

  i.

Establish and implement policies and procedures for the Committee’s review and approval or disapproval of proposed transactions or courses of dealings with respect to which executive officers or directors or members of their immediate families have an interest (including all transactions required to be disclosed by Item 404(a) of Regulation S-K);

 

  ii.

Meet periodically with outside counsel when appropriate, to review legal and regulatory matters, including (i) any matters that may have a material impact on the financial statements of the Company and (ii) any matters involving potential or ongoing material violations of law or breaches of fiduciary duty by the Company or any of its directors, officers, employees, or agents or breaches of fiduciary duty to the Company;

 

  iii.

Prepare the report required by the rules of the SEC to be included in the Company’s annual proxy statement;

 

5


  iv.

Review the Company’s policies relating to the ethical handling of conflicts of interest and review past or proposed transactions between the Company and members of management as well as policies and procedures with respect to officers’ expense accounts and perquisites, including the use of corporate assets. The Committee shall consider the results of any review of these policies and procedures by the Company’s independent auditors;

 

  v.

Review and approve in advance any services provided by the Company’s independent auditors to the Company’s executive officers or members of their immediate family;

 

  vi.

Review the Company’s program to monitor compliance with the Company’s Code of Business Conduct and Ethics (the “Code”);

 

  vii.

Establish procedures for (i) the receipt, retention and treatment of complaints received by the Company regarding accounting, internal accounting controls or auditing matters, and (ii) the confidential, anonymous submission by employees of the Company of concerns regarding questionable accounting or auditing matters;

 

  viii.

Establish procedures for the receipt, retention and treatment of reports of evidence of a material violation made by attorneys appearing and practicing before the SEC in the representation of the Company or any of its subsidiaries, or reports made by the Company’s Chief Executive Officer in relation thereto;

 

  ix.

Approve reimbursement of expenses incurred by management in connection with certain activities conducted on the Company’s behalf, such as identifying potential target businesses;

 

  x.

Secure independent expert advice to the extent the Committee determines it to be appropriate, including retaining, with or without Board approval, independent counsel, accountants, consultants or others, to assist the Committee in fulfilling its duties and responsibilities, the cost of such independent expert advisors to be borne by the Company;

 

  xi.

Review and assess the adequacy of this Charter on an annual basis;

 

  xii.

Report regularly to the Board on its activities, as appropriate (in connection therewith, the Committee should review with the Board any issues that arise with respect to the quality or integrity of the Company’s financial statements, the Company’s compliance with legal or regulatory requirements, the performance and independence of the Company’s independent auditors, or the performance of the internal audit function);

 

  xiii.

Perform such additional activities, and consider such other matters, within the scope of its responsibilities, as the Committee or the Board deems necessary or appropriate;

 

  xiv.

Review, on a quarterly basis, all payments that were made by the Company to Golden Falcon Sponsor Group, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company, the Company’s officers and directors or any of their respective affiliates;

 

  xv.

Review with management, the independent auditors, and legal advisors, as appropriate, any legal, regulatory or compliance matters, including any correspondence with regulators or government agencies and any employee complaints or published reports that raise material issues regarding the Company’s financial statements or accounting policies and any significant changes in accounting standards or rules promulgated by the Financial Accounting Standards Board, the SEC or other regulatory authorities;

 

  xvi.

Review and approve (i) any amendment to or waiver from the Code and (ii) any public disclosure made regarding such amendment or waiver and advise the Board with respect to the Company’s policies and procedures regarding compliance with the Code; and

 

  xvii.

Review and approve all Related Party Transactions in accordance with the policy set forth herein.

 

6


5.

Related Party Transactions Policy

 

  (a)

Definitions

 

  i.

A “Related Party Transaction” is any transaction directly or indirectly involving any Related Party that would need to be disclosed under Item 404(a) of Regulation S-K. Under Item 404(a), the Company is required to disclose any transaction occurring since the beginning of the Company’s last fiscal year, or any currently proposed transaction, involving the Company where the amount involved exceeds $120,000 (or in the case of a smaller reporting company the amount involved exceeds the lesser of $120,000 or one percent of the average of the smaller reporting company’s total assets at year end for the last two completed fiscal years), and in which any Related Party had, has or will have a direct or indirect material interest. “Related Party Transaction” also includes any material amendment or modification to an existing Related Party Transaction.

 

  ii.

Related Party” means any of the following:

 

   

a director (which term when used herein includes any director nominee) of the Company;

 

   

an executive officer of the Company;

 

   

a person known by the Company to be the beneficial owner of more than 5% of the Company’s common stock; or

 

   

a person known by the Company to be an immediate family member of any of the foregoing.

 

  iii.

“Immediate family member” means a child, stepchild, parent, stepparent, spouse, sibling, mother-in-law, father-in-law, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, brother-in-law, or sister-in-law of such director, executive officer, nominee for director or beneficial owner, and any person (other than a tenant or employee) sharing the household of such director, executive officer, nominee for director or beneficial owner.

 

  (b)

Identification of Potential Related Party Transactions

Each of the Company’s directors and executive officers shall promptly inform the chairperson of the Committee of any potential Related Party Transactions. In addition, each such director and executive officer shall complete a questionnaire on an annual basis designed to elicit information about any potential Related Party Transactions.

Any potential Related Party Transactions that are brought to the Committee’s attention shall be analyzed by the Committee, in consultation with outside counsel or members of management, as appropriate, to determine whether the transaction or relationship does, in fact, constitute a Related Party Transaction requiring compliance with this policy.

 

  (c)

Review and Approval of Related Party Transactions

At each of its meetings, the Committee shall be provided with the details of each new, existing or proposed Related Party Transaction, including the terms of the transaction, any contractual restrictions that the Company has already committed to, the business purpose of the transaction, and the benefits to the Company and to the relevant Related Party. In determining whether to approve a Related Party Transaction, the Committee shall consider, among other factors, the following factors to the extent relevant to the Related Party Transaction:

 

  i.

whether the terms of the Related Party Transaction are fair to the Company and on the same basis as would apply if the transaction did not involve a Related Party;

 

  ii.

whether there are business reasons for the Company to enter into the Related Party Transaction;

 

  iii.

whether the Related Party Transaction would impair the independence of an outside director;

 

  iv.

whether the Related Party Transaction would present an improper conflict of interest for any director or executive officer of the Company, taking into account the size of the transaction, the

 

7


  overall financial position of the director, executive officer or Related Party, the direct or indirect nature of the director’s, executive officer’s or Related Party’s interest in the transaction and the ongoing nature of any proposed relationship, and any other factors the Committee deems relevant; and

 

  v.

any pre-existing contractual obligations.

Any member of the Committee who has an interest in the transaction under discussion shall abstain from voting on the approval of the Related Party Transaction, but may, if so requested by the chairperson of the Committee, participate in some or all of the Committee’s discussions of the Related Party Transaction. Upon completion of its review of the transaction, the Committee may determine to permit or to prohibit the Related Party Transaction. An affirmative vote of a majority of the members of the Committee present at a meeting at which a quorum is present will be required in order to approve a Related Party Transaction. Without a meeting, the unanimous written consent of all of the members of the Committee will be required to approve a Related Party Transaction.

A Related Party Transaction entered into without pre-approval of the Committee shall not be deemed to violate this policy, or be invalid or unenforceable, so long as the transaction is brought to the Committee as promptly as reasonably practical after it is entered into or after it becomes reasonably apparent that the transaction is covered by this policy.

 

6.

Reporting

The Committee shall, on an annual basis and in coordination with the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee, evaluate its own performance. The evaluation shall address all matters that the Committee considers relevant to its performance, including a review and assessment of the adequacy of this Charter, and shall be conducted in such manner as the Committee deems appropriate.

The Committee should present to the Board its conclusions with respect to the above matters, including its review of the adequacy, performance, and continued independence of the independent auditors, and its views on whether there should be a regular rotation of the independent auditors.

The Committee shall deliver to the Board a report, which may be oral, setting forth the results of its evaluation, including any recommended amendments to this Charter.

 

7.

Resources

The Committee shall have the sole authority to retain and terminate advisors, at the Company’s expense, such as independent legal, accounting and other advisors, consultants or professionals as it deems necessary or appropriate in carrying out its duties.

The Committee shall have the sole authority to determine the terms of engagement and the extent of funding necessary (and to be provided by the Company) for payment of (a) compensation to the Company’s independent auditor engaged for the purpose of preparing or issuing an audit report or performing other audit, review or attest services for the Company, (b) any compensation to any advisors retained to advise the Committee and (c) ordinary administrative expenses of the Committee that are necessary or appropriate in carrying out its duties.

 

8

Exhibit 99.2

GOLDEN FALCON ACQUISITION CORP.

COMPENSATION COMMITTEE CHARTER

 

1.

Purpose

The purposes of the Compensation Committee (the “Committee”) of the Board of Directors (the “Board”) of Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp. (the “Company”) shall be to oversee the Company’s compensation and employee benefit plans and practices, including its executive compensation plans, and its incentive-compensation and equity-based plans; to review and discuss with management the Company’s compensation discussion and analysis (“CD&A”) to be included in the Company’s annual proxy statement or annual report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”); to prepare the Compensation Committee Report as required by the rules of the SEC; and to perform such further functions as may be consistent with this charter (this “Charter”) or assigned by applicable law, the Company’s certificate of incorporation (as amended from time to time, the “Certificate of Incorporation”) and bylaws, or the Board.

While the members of the Committee have the duties and responsibilities set forth in this Charter, nothing contained in this Charter is intended to create, or should be construed as creating, any responsibility or liability of members of the Committee, except to the extent otherwise provided under applicable federal or state law.

 

2.

Organization

The Committee shall consist of two or more independent directors as determined from time to time by the Board based on the recommendation of the Company’s Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee. Each member of the Committee shall be “independent” and qualified to serve on the Committee pursuant to the requirements of the New York Stock Exchange Inc. (the “NYSE”), subject to the applicable phase-in periods permitted by the rules of the NYSE, and any additional requirements that the Board deems appropriate. Members of the Committee shall also qualify as “non-employee directors” within the meaning of Rule 16b-3 promulgated under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”).

The chairperson of the Committee shall be designated by the Board; provided that if the Board does not so designate a chairperson, the members of the Committee, by a majority vote, may designate a chairperson.

Any vacancy on the Committee shall be filled by majority vote of the Board. No member of the Committee shall be removed except by majority vote of the Board.

 

3.

Meetings

The Committee shall meet as often as it determines necessary to carry out its duties and responsibilities, but at least once annually. The Committee, in its discretion, may ask members of management or others to attend its meetings (or portions thereof) and to provide pertinent information as necessary; provided that the Chief Executive Officer of the Company may not be present during any portion of a Committee meeting in which deliberation or any vote regarding his or her compensation occurs.

A majority of the members of the Committee present in person or by means of a conference telephone or other communications equipment by means of which all persons participating in the meeting can hear each other shall constitute a quorum.

The Committee shall maintain minutes of its meetings and records relating to those meetings and shall report regularly to the Board on its activities, as appropriate.

 

4.

Authority and Responsibilities

 

  (a)

Executive Compensation

The Committee shall have the following duties and responsibilities with respect to the Company’s executive compensation plans:

 

  i.

The Committee shall review and approve the corporate goals and objectives relevant to compensation of the Company’s Chief Executive Officer, evaluate the Chief Executive

 

1


  Officer’s performance in light of those goals and objectives and, either as a Committee or together with other independent directors (as directed by the Board), determine and approve the Chief Executive Officer’s compensation level based on this evaluation. In determining the long-term incentive component of the Chief Executive Officer’s compensation, the Committee shall consider, among other factors, the Company’s performance and relative stockholder return, the value of similar incentive awards to chief executive officers at comparable companies, and the awards given to the Company’s Chief Executive Officer in past years.

 

  ii.

The Committee shall set salaries and approve incentive compensation awards and equity compensation plan awards, as well as compensation policies for all Section 16 Officers as designated by the Board (other than the Chief Executive Officer, whose compensation is determined in accordance with paragraph (i) above).

 

  iii.

To implement and administer the Company’s incentive compensation plans and to review on an annual basis the Company’s executive compensation policies and plans.

 

  iv.

To evaluate annually the appropriate level of compensation for Board and Committee service by non-employee directors, and to make recommendations to the Board regarding such compensation.

 

  v.

To review and approve any employment agreements, severance or termination arrangements and any other compensatory contracts or arrangements to be made with any executive officer of the Company.

 

  vi.

To perform such duties and responsibilities as may be assigned to the Board or the Committee under the terms of any executive compensation plan.

 

  vii.

To review perquisites or other personal benefits to the Company’s executive officers and directors and recommend any changes to the Board.

 

  viii.

To consider the results of the most recent shareholder advisory vote on executive compensation as required by Section 14A of the Exchange Act and, to the extent the Committee determines it appropriate to do so, take such results into consideration in connection with the review and approval of executive officer compensation.

 

  ix.

To review and discuss with management the Company’s CD&A, and based on that review and discussion, to recommend to the Board that the CD&A be included in the Company’s annual proxy statement or annual report on Form 10-K, as applicable.

 

  x.

To review compensation arrangements for the Company’s employees to evaluate whether incentive and other forms of pay encourage unnecessary or excessive risk taking, and review and discuss, at least annually, the relationship between risk management policies and practices, corporate strategy and the Company’s compensation arrangements.

 

  xi.

To the extent it deems necessary, review and approve the terms of any compensation “clawback” or similar policy or agreement between the Company and the Company’s executive officers or other employees subject to Section 16 of the Exchange Act.

 

  xii.

To prepare the Compensation Committee Report in accordance with the rules and regulations of the SEC for inclusion in the Company’s annual proxy statement or annual report on Form 10-K, as applicable.

 

  xiii.

To perform such other functions as assigned by law, the Certificate of Incorporation or the Board.

 

  (b)

General Compensation and Employee Benefit Plans

The Committee shall have the following duties and responsibilities with respect to the Company’s general compensation and employee benefit plans, including incentive-compensation and equity-based plans:

 

  i.

To review at least annually the goals and objectives of the Company’s general compensation plans and other employee benefit plans, including incentive-compensation and equity-based plans, and amend, or recommend that the Board amend, these goals and objectives if the Committee deems it appropriate.

 

2


  ii.

To review at least annually the Company’s general compensation plans and other employee benefit plans, including incentive-compensation and equity-based plans, in light of the goals and objectives of these plans, and recommend that the Board amend these plans if the Committee deems it appropriate.

 

  iii.

To review all equity-compensation plans to be submitted for shareholder approval under the NYSE listing standards, and to review and, in the Committee’s sole discretion, approve all equity-compensation plans that are exempt from such shareholder approval requirement.

 

  iv.

To perform such duties and responsibilities as may be assigned to the Board or the Committee under the terms of any compensation or other employee benefit plan, including any incentive-compensation or equity-based plan.

 

5.

Delegation of Authority

The Committee may form subcommittees for any purpose that the Committee deems appropriate and may delegate to such subcommittees such power and authority as the Committee deems appropriate; provided, however, that no subcommittee shall consist of fewer than two members; and provided further that the Committee shall not delegate to a subcommittee any power or authority required by any law, regulation or listing standard to be exercised by the Committee as a whole.

 

6.

Reporting

The Committee shall, no less frequently than annually, evaluate its performance. In conducting this review, the Committee shall evaluate whether this Charter appropriately addresses the matters that are or should be within its scope and shall recommend such changes as it deems necessary or appropriate.

The Committee shall address all matters that the Committee considers relevant to its performance, including at least the following: the adequacy, appropriateness and quality of the information and recommendations presented by the Committee to the Board, the manner in which they were discussed or debated, and whether the number and length of meetings of the Committee were adequate for the Committee to complete its work in a thorough and thoughtful manner.

The Committee shall deliver to the Board a report, which may be oral, setting forth the results of its evaluation, including any recommended amendments to this Charter and any recommended changes to the Company’s or the Board’s policies or procedures.

 

7.

Resources

The Committee may conduct or authorize investigations into or studies of matters within the Committee’s scope of responsibilities, and may, in its sole discretion, retain or obtain the advice of a compensation consultant, legal counsel or other adviser. The Committee shall be directly responsible for the appointment, compensation and oversight of the work of any compensation consultant, legal counsel or other adviser retained by the Committee, the expense of which shall be borne by the Company. The Committee may select a compensation consultant, legal counsel or other adviser to the Committee only after taking into consideration all factors relevant to that person’s independence from management, including the following:

 

  (a)

The provision of other services to the Company by the person that employs the compensation consultant, legal counsel or other adviser;

 

  (b)

The amount of fees received from the Company by the person that employs the compensation consultant, legal counsel or other adviser, as a percentage of the total revenue of the person that employs the compensation consultant, legal counsel or other adviser;

 

  (c)

The policies and procedures of the person that employs the compensation consultant, legal counsel or other adviser that are designed to prevent conflicts of interest;

 

3


  (d)

Any business or personal relationship of the compensation consultant, legal counsel or other adviser with a member of the Committee;

 

  (e)

Any stock or other securities of the Company owned by the compensation consultant, legal counsel or other adviser; and

 

  (f)

Any business or personal relationship of the compensation consultant, legal counsel, other adviser or the person employing the adviser with an executive officer of the Company.

The Committee shall conduct the independence assessment with respect to any compensation consultant, legal counsel or other adviser that provides advice to the Committee, other than: (i) in-house legal counsel; and (ii) any compensation consultant, legal counsel or other adviser whose role is limited to the following activities for which no disclosure would be required under Item 407(e)(3)(iii) of Regulation S-K: (x) consulting on any broad-based plan that does not discriminate in scope, terms, or operation, in favor of executive officers or directors of the Company, and that is available generally to all salaried employees; or (y) providing information that either is not customized for the Company or that is customized based on parameters that are not developed by the compensation consultant, and about which the compensation consultant does not provide advice.

Nothing herein requires a compensation consultant, legal counsel or other compensation adviser to be independent, only that the Committee consider the enumerated independence factors before selecting or receiving advice from a compensation consultant, legal counsel or other compensation adviser. The Committee may select or receive advice from any compensation consultant, legal counsel or other compensation adviser it prefers, including ones that are not independent, after considering the six independence factors outlined above.

Nothing herein shall be construed: (1) to require the Committee to implement or act consistently with the advice or recommendations of the compensation consultant, legal counsel or other adviser to the Committee; or (2) to affect the ability or obligation of the Committee to exercise its own judgment in fulfillment of its duties.

 

4

Exhibit 99.3

GOLDEN FALCON ACQUISITION CORP.

NOMINATING AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE COMMITTEE CHARTER

 

1.

Purpose

The purposes of the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee (the “Committee”) of the Board of Directors (the “Board”) of Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp. (the “Company”) shall be to:

 

  (a)

identify and to recommend individuals qualified to serve as directors of the Company and on committees of the Board;

 

  (b)

advise the Board with respect to the Board composition, procedures and committees;

 

  (c)

develop and recommend to the Board a set of corporate governance guidelines (the “Guidelines”) applicable to the Company; and

 

  (d)

oversee the evaluation of the Board and the Company’s management.

While the members of the Committee have the duties and responsibilities set forth in this charter (this “Charter”), nothing contained in this Charter is intended to create, or should be construed as creating, any responsibility or liability of members of the Committee, except to the extent otherwise provided under applicable federal or state law.

 

2.

Organization

The Committee shall consist of two or more independent directors as determined from time to time by the Board based on the recommendation of the Committee. Each member of the Committee shall be “independent” and qualified to serve on the Committee pursuant to the requirements of the New York Stock Exchange Inc. (the “NYSE”), subject to the applicable phase-in periods permitted by the rules of the NYSE, and any additional requirements that the Board deems appropriate.

The chairperson of the Committee shall be designated by the Board; provided that if the Board does not so designate a chairperson, the members of the Committee, by a majority vote, may designate a chairperson.

Any vacancy on the Committee shall be filled by majority vote of the Board. No member of the Committee shall be removed except by majority vote of the Board.

 

3.

Meetings

The Committee shall meet as often as it determines necessary to carry out its duties and responsibilities, but at least once annually. The Committee, in its discretion, may ask members of management or others to attend its meetings (or portions thereof) and to provide pertinent information as necessary.

A majority of the members of the Committee present in person or by means of a conference telephone or other communications equipment by means of which all persons participating in the meeting can hear each other shall constitute a quorum.

The Committee shall maintain minutes of its meetings and records relating to those meetings and shall report regularly to the Board on its activities, as appropriate.

 

4.

Authority and Responsibilities

 

  (a)

Board Candidates and Nominees

The Committee shall have the following duties and responsibilities with respect to Board candidates and nominees:

 

  i.

To assist in identifying, recruiting and, if appropriate, interviewing candidates to fill positions on the Board, including persons suggested by stockholders or others. The Committee may, if it deems appropriate, establish procedures to be followed by stockholders in submitting recommendations for Board candidates.

 

1


  ii.

To review the background and qualifications of individuals being considered as director candidates, taking into consideration the following guidelines: the person should have demonstrated notable or significant achievements in business, education or public service; the person should possess the requisite intelligence, education and experience to make a significant contribution to the Board and bring a range of skills, diverse perspectives and backgrounds to its deliberations; and the person should have the highest ethical standards, a strong sense of professionalism and intense dedication to serving the interests of the Company’s stockholders. The Committee shall consider a number of qualifications relating to management and leadership experience, background and integrity and professionalism in evaluating a person’s candidacy for membership on the board of directors. The Committee may require certain skills or attributes, such as financial or accounting experience, to meet specific Board needs that arise from time to time and will also consider the overall experience and makeup of its members to obtain a broad and diverse mix of Board members.

 

  iii.

To recommend to the Board the director nominees for election by the stockholders or to fill vacancies on the Board, as the case may be, pursuant to the Company’s certificate of incorporation and bylaws, as amended from time to time, which recommendations shall be consistent with the criteria for selecting directors established by the Board from time to time. The Committee shall develop and make recommendations to the Board regarding such criteria and qualifications for membership on the Board.

 

  iv.

To review the suitability for continued service as a director of each Board member when his or her term expires and when he or she has a change in status, including, but not limited to, an employment change, and to recommend whether or not the director should be re-nominated.

 

  (b)

Board Composition and Procedures

The Committee shall have the following duties and responsibilities with respect to the composition and procedures of the Board as a whole:

 

  i.

To review annually with the Board the composition of the Board as a whole and to recommend, if necessary, measures to be taken so that the Board reflects the appropriate balance of knowledge, experience, skills, expertise and diversity required for the Board as a whole and contains at least the minimum number of independent directors required by the NYSE.

 

  ii.

To review periodically the size of the Board and to recommend to the Board any appropriate changes.

 

  iii.

To make recommendations on the frequency and structure of Board meetings.

 

  iv.

To review the independence of each director in light of the independence criteria of the NYSE and any other independence standards applicable to directors, and make a recommendation to the Board with respect to each director’s independence.

 

  v.

To make recommendations concerning any other aspect of the procedures of the Board that the Committee considers warranted, including but not limited to procedures with respect to the waiver by the Board of any Company rule, guideline, procedure or corporate governance principle.

 

  (c)

Board Committees

The Committee shall have the following duties and responsibilities with respect to the committee structure of the Board:

 

  i.

After consultation with the Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, and after taking into account the experiences and expertise of individual directors, to make recommendations to the Board regarding the size and composition of each standing committee

 

2


  of the Board, including the identification of individuals qualified to serve as members of a committee, including the Committee, and to recommend individual directors to fill any vacancy that might occur on a committee, including the Committee.

 

  ii.

To review the independence of each committee member in light of the independence criteria of the NYSE for service on the audit and compensation committees and to make a recommendation to the Board with respect to each director’s independence for service on such committees.

 

  iii.

To monitor the functioning of the committees of the Board and to make recommendations for any changes, including the creation and elimination of committees.

 

  iv.

To review annually committee assignments and the policy with respect to the rotation of committee memberships and/or chairpersonships, and to report any recommendations to the Board.

 

  v.

To recommend that the Board establish such special committees as may be desirable or necessary from time to time in order to address ethical, legal or other matters that may arise. The Committee’s power to make such a recommendation under this Charter shall be without prejudice to the right of any other committee of the Board, or any individual director, to make such a recommendation at any time.

 

  (d)

Corporate Governance

The Committee shall have the following duties and responsibilities with respect to corporate governance:

 

  i.

To develop and recommend to the Board the Guidelines for the Company, which shall be consistent with any applicable laws, regulations and listing standards. At a minimum, the Guidelines developed and recommended by the Committee shall address the following:

 

   

director qualification standards;

 

   

director responsibilities;

 

   

director access to management and, as necessary and appropriate, independent advisors;

 

   

director compensation, including principles for determining the form and amount of director compensation, and for reviewing those principles, as appropriate;

 

   

director orientation and continuing education;

 

   

management succession, including policies and principles for the selection and performance review of the Chief Executive Officer, as well as policies regarding succession in the event of an emergency or the retirement of the Chief Executive Officer; and

 

   

annual performance evaluation of the Board.

 

  ii.

To review periodically, and at least annually, the Guidelines adopted by the Board and the Company’s overall corporate governance to ensure that they are appropriate for the Company and comply with the requirements of the NYSE, and to report to the Board on its findings and to recommend any desirable changes to the Board.

 

  iii.

To consider any other corporate governance issues that arise from time to time, and to develop appropriate recommendations for the Board.

 

  (e)

Evaluation of the Board, Committees and Management

The Committee shall be responsible for overseeing an annual evaluation of the Board, its committees and management, and shall evaluate and report to the Board on the performance and effectiveness of the Board and its committees. The Committee shall establish procedures to allow it to exercise this oversight function.

 

3


5.

Delegation of Authority

The Committee may form subcommittees for any purpose that the Committee deems appropriate and may delegate to such subcommittees such power and authority as the Committee deems appropriate; provided, however, that no subcommittee shall consist of fewer than two members; and provided further that the Committee shall not delegate to a subcommittee any power or authority required by any law, regulation or listing standard to be exercised by the Committee as a whole.

 

6.

Reporting

The Committee shall, on an annual basis, evaluate its performance. In conducting this review, the Committee shall evaluate whether this Charter appropriately addresses the matters that are or should be within its scope and shall recommend such changes as it deems necessary or appropriate. The Committee shall address all matters that the Committee considers relevant to its performance, including at least the following: the adequacy, appropriateness and quality of the information and recommendations presented by the Committee to the Board, the manner in which they were discussed or debated and whether the number and length of meetings of the Committee were adequate for the Committee to complete its work in a thorough and thoughtful manner.

The Committee shall deliver to the Board a report, which may be oral, setting forth the results of its evaluation, including any recommended amendments to this Charter and any recommended changes to the Company’s or the Board’s policies or procedures.

 

7.

Resources

The Committee shall have the sole authority to retain and terminate advisors, at the Company’s expense, such as independent counsel, other consultants or advisors as it deems necessary or appropriate in carrying out its duties. The Committee shall have the sole authority to retain or terminate any search firm to be used to identify director candidates, including sole authority to approve the search firm’s fees and other retention terms, such fees to be borne by the Company.

 

4

Exhibit 99.4

Consent of Director Nominee

Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

Pursuant to Rule 438 of Regulation C promulgated under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), in connection with the Registration Statement on Form S-1 (the “Registration Statement”) of Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp. (the “Company”), the undersigned hereby consents to being named and described as a director nominee in the Registration Statement and any amendment or supplement to any prospectus included in such Registration Statement, any amendment to such Registration Statement or any subsequent Registration Statement filed pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act and to the filing or attachment of this consent with such Registration Statement and any amendment or supplement thereto.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned has executed this consent as of November 18, 2020.

 

/s/ Isabelle Amiel Azoulai

Name: Isabelle Amiel Azoulai

Exhibit 99.5

Consent of Director Nominee

Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

Pursuant to Rule 438 of Regulation C promulgated under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), in connection with the Registration Statement on Form S-1 (the “Registration Statement”) of Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp. (the “Company”), the undersigned hereby consents to being named and described as a director nominee in the Registration Statement and any amendment or supplement to any prospectus included in such Registration Statement, any amendment to such Registration Statement or any subsequent Registration Statement filed pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act and to the filing or attachment of this consent with such Registration Statement and any amendment or supplement thereto.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned has executed this consent as of September 22, 2020.

 

/s/ Mikael Breuer-Weil

Name: Mikael Breuer-Weil

Exhibit 99.6

Consent of Director Nominee

Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

Pursuant to Rule 438 of Regulation C promulgated under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), in connection with the Registration Statement on Form S-1 (the “Registration Statement”) of Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp. (the “Company”), the undersigned hereby consents to being named and described as a director nominee in the Registration Statement and any amendment or supplement to any prospectus included in such Registration Statement, any amendment to such Registration Statement or any subsequent Registration Statement filed pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act and to the filing or attachment of this consent with such Registration Statement and any amendment or supplement thereto.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned has executed this consent as of this 18th day of November, 2020.

 

/s/ Dominique D’Hinnin

Name: Dominique D’Hinnin

Exhibit 99.7

Consent of Director Nominee

Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

Pursuant to Rule 438 of Regulation C promulgated under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), in connection with the Registration Statement on Form S-1 (the “Registration Statement”) of Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp. (the “Company”), the undersigned hereby consents to being named and described as a director nominee in the Registration Statement and any amendment or supplement to any prospectus included in such Registration Statement, any amendment to such Registration Statement or any subsequent Registration Statement filed pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act and to the filing or attachment of this consent with such Registration Statement and any amendment or supplement thereto.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned has executed this consent as of September 22, 2020.

 

/s/ I. Martin Pompadur

Name: I. Martin Pompadur

Exhibit 99.8

Consent of Director Nominee

Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp.

Pursuant to Rule 438 of Regulation C promulgated under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), in connection with the Registration Statement on Form S-1 (the “Registration Statement”) of Golden Falcon Acquisition Corp. (the “Company”), the undersigned hereby consents to being named and described as a director nominee in the Registration Statement and any amendment or supplement to any prospectus included in such Registration Statement, any amendment to such Registration Statement or any subsequent Registration Statement filed pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act and to the filing or attachment of this consent with such Registration Statement and any amendment or supplement thereto.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned has executed this consent as of September 21, 2020.

 

/s/ Xavier Rolet KBE

Name: Xavier Rolet KBE