As filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on July 11, 2019
Registration No. 333-232356
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM S-1
(Amendment No. 1)
REGISTRATION STATEMENT
UNDER THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933
Orisun Acquisition Corp.
Delaware |
6770 |
83-2479505 |
||
(State or other jurisdiction
of
incorporation or organization) |
(Primary Standard Industrial
Classification Code Number) |
(I.R.S. Employer
Identification Number) |
555 Madison Avenue, Room 543
New York, NY 10022
(631) 220-3541
(Address, including zip code, and telephone number, including area code, of registrant’s principal executive offices)
Wei Chen
Orisun Acquisition Corp.
555 Madison Avenue, Room 543
New York, NY 10022
(631) 220-3541
(Name, address, including zip code, and telephone number, including area code, of agent for service)
Copies to:
Giovanni Caruso | Stuart Neuhauser, Esq. |
Mitch Nussbaum | Douglas S. Ellenoff, Esq. |
Loeb & Loeb LLP | Ari Edelman, Esq. |
345 Park Avenue | Ellenoff Grossman & Schole LLP |
New York, New York 10154 | 1345 Avenue of the Americas |
(212) 407-4000 | New York, NY 10105 |
(212) 407-4990 — Facsimile | (212) 370-1300 |
(212) 370-7889 –Facsimile |
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, 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 to Section 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act. ☐
CALCULATION OF REGISTRATION FEE
Title of Class of Security being registered |
Amount to be
Registered |
Proposed
maximum offering price per share |
Proposed
|
Amount of
Registration Fee |
||||||||||||
Units, each consisting of one share of Common Stock, $0.00001 par value, one Redeemable Warrant to acquire 1/2 of a share of Common Stock, and one Right to acquire 1/10 of a share of Common Stock (2) | 4,600,000 | $ | 10.00 | $ | 46,000,000 | $ | 5,575.20 | |||||||||
Shares of Common Stock included as
part of
the Units (2) |
4,600,000 | — | — | — | (3) | |||||||||||
Warrants included as part of the Units | 4,600,000 | — | — | — | (3) | |||||||||||
Rights included as part of the Units (2) | 4,600,000 | — | — | — | (3) | |||||||||||
Shares of Common Stock underlying the Rights included as part of the Units (2) | 460,000 | $ | 10.00 | $ | 4,600,000 | $ | 557.52 | |||||||||
Representative’s Unit Purchase Option | 1 | $ | 100.00 | $ | 100 | $ | 0.01 | |||||||||
Units underlying the Representative’s Unit Purchase Option (“Representative’s Units”) | 345,000 | $ | 11.50 | $ | 3,967,500 | $ | 480.86 | |||||||||
Shares of Common Stock included as part of the Representative’s Units | 345,000 | — | — | — | (3) | |||||||||||
Warrants included as part of the Representative’s Units | 345,000 | — | — | — | (3) | |||||||||||
Rights included as part of the Representative’s Units | 345,000 | — | — | — | (3) | |||||||||||
Shares of Common Stock underlying the Rights included as part of Representative’s Units | 34,500 | $ | 11.50 | $ | 396,750 | $ | 48.09 | |||||||||
Total | $ | 54,964,350 | $ | 6,661.68 | (4) |
(1) | Estimated solely for the purpose of calculating the registration fee pursuant to Rule 457(o) under the Securities Act. |
(2) | Includes (i) Units, (ii) Shares of Common Stock, (iii) Rights and (iv) Warrants underlying such Units which may be issued on exercise of a 45-day option granted to the Underwriters to cover over-allotments, if any. |
(3) | No fee pursuant to Rule 457(g). |
(4) | Previously paid. |
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.
The information in this 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 prospectus is not an offer to sell these securities, and we are not soliciting an offer to buy these securities in any state where the offer or sale is not permitted.
PRELIMINARY PROSPECTUS | SUBJECT TO COMPLETION, DATED JULY 11, 2019 |
$40,000,000
Orisun Acquisition Corp.
4,000,000 Units
Orisun Acquisition Corp. is a blank check company formed for the purpose of entering into a merger, share exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, recapitalization, reorganization or other similar business combination with one or more businesses or entities. Our efforts to identify a target business will not be limited to a particular industry or geographic region, although we intend to focus on operating businesses in and around the high-tech industry in the United States.
This is an initial public offering of our securities. Each unit that we are offering has a price of $10.00 and consists of one share of common stock, par value $0.00001, one warrant, and one right to receive one-tenth (1/10) of a share of common share upon the consummation of an initial business combination, as described in more detail in this prospectus. We refer to the rights included in the units as “rights” or the “public rights” and warrants included in the units as “warrants” or the “public warrants”. Each warrant entitles the holder thereof to purchase one half (1/2) of one share of common stock at a price of $11.50 per whole share, subject to adjustment as described in the prospectus. We will not issue fractional shares. As a result, you must (1) exercise warrants in multiples of two warrants, at a price of $11.50 per full share, subject to adjustment as described in this prospectus, to validly exercise your warrants; and (2) hold rights in multiples of 10 in order to receive shares for all of your rights upon closing of a business combination. Each warrant will become exercisable on the later of one year after the effective date of this registration statement or the consummation of an initial business combination, and will expire five years from the consummation of a Business Combination, or earlier upon redemption.
We have also granted Chardan Capital Markets, LLC, the representative of the underwriters, a 45-day option to purchase up to an additional 600,000 units (over and above the 4,000,000 units referred to above) solely to cover over-allotments, if any.
We will provide the holders of our outstanding shares of common stock that were sold as part of the units in this offering with the opportunity to redeem their shares of common stock upon the consummation 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, including interest (net of taxes payable), divided by the number of then outstanding shares of common stock that were sold as part of the units in this offering, which we refer to as our “public shares.”
Our sponsor, Everstone Investments LLC, which is jointly owned by Ming-Yang Wang and Wei Chen, our chief executive officer, and Chardan Capital Markets, LLC and/or their designee have committed to purchase from us an aggregate of 220,000 units, or “private units,” at $10.00 per private unit (for a total purchase price of $2,200,000). These purchases will take place on a private placement basis simultaneously with the consummation of this offering. All of the proceeds we receive from these purchases will be placed in the trust account described below. They have also agreed that if the over-allotment option is exercised by the underwriters, they will purchase from us at a price of $10.00 per private unit an additional number of private units (up to a maximum of 18,000 private units) pro rata with the amount of the over-allotment option exercised so that at least $10.00 per share sold to the public in this offering is held in trust regardless of whether the over-allotment option is exercised in full or part. These additional private units will be purchased in a private placement that will occur simultaneously with the purchase of units resulting from the exercise of the over-allotment option.
There is presently no public market for our units, shares of common stock, warrants or rights. We have applied to have our units listed on the Nasdaq Capital Market, or Nasdaq, under the symbol “ORSNU”. We cannot guarantee that our securities will be approved for listing on Nasdaq. The common stock, warrants, and rights comprising the units will begin separate trading on the 90 th day following the date of this prospectus unless Chardan Capital Markets, LLC informs us of its decision to allow earlier separate trading, subject to our filing a Current Report on Form 8-K with the Securities and Exchange Commission 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 as described in this prospectus, the shares of common stock, warrants and rights will be traded on Nasdaq under the symbols “ORSN,” “ORSNW,” and “ORSNR,” respectively. We cannot assure you that our securities will continue to be listed on Nasdaq after this offering.
We are an “emerging growth company” as defined in the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act of 2012, and therefore will be subject to reduced reporting requirements.
Investing in our securities involves a high degree of risk. See “Risk Factors” beginning on page 20 of this prospectus 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 U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission 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.
Price to Public |
Underwriting
|
Proceeds,
before Expenses, to us |
||||||||||
Per Unit | $ | 10.00 | $ | 0.60 | (2) | $ | 9.40 | |||||
Total | $ | 40,000,000 | $ | 2,400,000 | $ | 37,600,000 |
(1) | We will also sell to Chardan, for $100, an option to purchase 300,000 units (or 345,000 units if the over-allotment option is exercised in full) at the closing of this offering. For further information relating to the underwriters’ compensation, please refer to the section entitled “Underwriting” on page 83 of this prospectus. |
(2) | Includes $1,200,000, or $0.30 per unit, equal to 3.0% of the gross proceeds of this offering (or $1,380,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) payable to the underwriters as deferred underwriting discounts and commissions from the funds to be placed in the trust account described in this prospectus. The deferred underwriting discounts and commissions will be released to the underwriters upon consummation of an initial business combination, as described in this prospectus. If the business combination is not consummated, such deferred underwriting discounts and commissions will be forfeited by the underwriters. The underwriters will not be entitled to any interest accrued on the deferred underwriting discounts and commissions. |
Upon consummation of the offering, $10.00 per unit sold to the public in this offering (whether or not the underwriters’ over-allotment option has been exercised in full or part) will be deposited into a United States-based trust account at JP Morgan Chase, N.A., maintained by American Stock Transfer & Trust Company, LLC, acting as trustee. Such amount includes $1,200,000, or $0.30 per unit (or $1,380,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full), payable to the underwriters as deferred underwriting discounts and commissions. Except as described in this prospectus, these funds will not be released to us until the earlier of the completion of our initial business combination and our redemption of the shares of common stock sold in this offering upon our failure to consummate a business combination within the required period.
The underwriters are offering the units on a firm commitment basis. Chardan Capital Markets, LLC, acting as the representative of the underwriters, expects to deliver the units to purchasers on or about __________, 2019.
Sole Book-Running Manager
Chardan
__________, 2019
You should rely only on the information contained in this prospectus. We have not, and the underwriters have not, authorized anyone to provide you with different information. We are not, and the underwriters are not, making an offer of these securities in any jurisdiction where the offer is not permitted.
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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 “Risk Factors” and our financial statements and the related notes included elsewhere in this prospectus, before investing.
Unless otherwise stated in this prospectus, references to:
● | “we,” “us” or “our company” refer to Orisun Acquisition Corp.; |
● | “insider shares” refer to the 1,150,000 shares of common stock held or controlled by our insiders (as defined below) prior to this offering, which include up to an aggregate of 150,000 shares of common stock subject to forfeiture by our insiders to the extent that the underwriters’ over-allotment option is not exercised in full or in part; |
● | “private units” refer to the 200,000 units (up to a maximum of 215,000 private units if over-allotment option is exercised in full) we are selling privately to Everstone Investments LLC, our sponsor, and the 20,000 private units (up to a maximum of 23,000 private units if over-allotment option is exercised in full) to Chardan Capital Markets, LLC and/or their designee upon consummation of this offering; |
● | our “public shares” refer to shares of common stock which are being sold as part of the units in this offering (whether they are purchased in this offering or thereafter in the open market) and references to “public stockholders” refer to the holders of our public shares, including our insiders to the extent our insiders purchase public shares, provided that their status as “public stockholders” shall only exist with respect to such public shares; |
● | our “rights” or “public rights” refer to the rights which are being sold as part of the units in this offering; |
● | our “warrants” or “public warrants” refer to the warrants which are being sold as part of the units in this offering; and | |
● | our “insiders” refer to our officers, directors, and any holder of our insider shares. |
Except as specifically provided otherwise, the information in this prospectus assumes that the underwriters will not exercise their over-allotment option.
Certain financial information contained in this prospectus has been rounded and, as a result, certain totals shown in this prospectus may not equal the arithmetic sum of the figures that should otherwise aggregate to those totals.
You should rely only on the information contained in this prospectus. We have not, and the underwriters have not, authorized anyone to provide you with different information. We are not, and the underwriters are not, making an offer of these securities in any jurisdiction where the offer is not permitted.
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General
We are a blank check company formed under the laws of the State of Delaware on October 22, 2018. We were formed for the purpose of entering into a merger, share exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, recapitalization, reorganization or other 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. To date, our efforts have been limited to organizational activities as well as activities related to this offering. Our efforts to identify a prospective target business will not be limited to any particular industry or geographic region, although we intend to focus our search on target businesses operating in the United States in the high-tech industry. We have not identified any acquisition targets. From the date of our incorporation through the date of this prospectus, there have been no communications, evaluations or discussions between any of our officers or directors and any of their contacts or relationships regarding a potential initial business combination with our company. Additionally, we have not engaged or retained any agent or other representative to identify or locate any suitable acquisition candidate.
Acquisition Strategy/Industry Opportunity/Investment Criteria
We intend to focus on potential acquisition targets with primary operations in the technology industries. We expect to leverage our management team’s extensive relationships with corporate executives, venture capitalists, entrepreneurs, and private equity firms. We believe that our proprietary deal sourcing network will enable us to identify potential business combination opportunities efficiently and productively. Despite our focus, we may attempt to acquire an acquisition target in another industry if an attractive acquisition opportunity is identified in such other industry prior to the time we identify an acquisition opportunity within our primary industry focus and if we believe that such opportunity is in the best interest of our shareholders.
We have identified the following general criteria that we believe are important in evaluating candidates for our initial business combination.
● | Enterprise Value. We will seek to acquire one or more acquisition targets that have a combined enterprise value of at least $150 million and up to $300 million |
● | Post-Acquisition Growth. We are committed to identifying one or more companies that we believe will either experience continued substantial organic growth post acquisition or present the opportunities for add-on acquisitions through identification of multiple actionable target companies. |
● | Strong Management Team. We will seek to identify companies with strong and experienced public-ready management teams. Specifically, we will look for management teams that have a proven track record of driving revenue and value creation for their shareholders. |
● | Leadership Position. We will seek to identify one or more companies that have a leadership position in their industry or a defensible niche within a target market as a result of differentiated technology or other competitive advantages. |
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● | Benefit from Being a Public Company. We intend to only acquire a business or businesses that will benefit from being publicly traded for access to broader sources of capital, greater visibility and expanded branding awareness in the market. |
We will have until 12 months from the consummation of this offering to consummate our initial business combination. However, if we anticipate that we may not be able to consummate our initial business combination within 12 months, we may, but are not obligated to, extend the period of time to consummate a business combination three times by an additional three months each time (for a total of up to 21 months to complete a business combination). Pursuant to the terms of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and the trust agreement to be entered into between us and American Stock Transfer & Trust Company, LLC on the date of this prospectus, in order to extend the time available for us to consummate our initial business combination, our insiders or their affiliates or designees, upon five days advance notice prior to the applicable deadline, must deposit into the trust account $400,000, or $460,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full ($0.10 per share in either case), on or prior to the date of the applicable deadline. The insiders will receive a non-interest bearing, unsecured promissory note equal to the amount of any such deposit that will not be repaid in the event that we are unable to close a business combination unless there are funds available outside the trust account to do so. Such notes would either be paid upon consummation of our initial business combination, or, at the lender’s discretion, converted upon consummation of our business combination into additional private units at a price of $10.00 per unit. Our stockholders have approved the issuance of the private units upon conversion of such notes, to the extent the holder wishes to so convert such notes at the time of the consummation of our initial business combination. In the event that we receive notice from our insiders five days prior to the applicable deadline of their intent to effect an extension, we intend to issue a press release announcing such intention at least three days prior to the applicable deadline. In addition, we intend to issue a press release the day after the applicable deadline announcing whether or not the funds had been timely deposited. Our insiders and their affiliates or designees are not obligated to fund the trust account to extend the time for us to complete our initial business combination. To the extent that some, but not all, of our insiders, decide to extend the period of time to consummate our initial business combination, such insiders (or their affiliates or designees) may deposit the entire amount required. If we are unable to consummate our initial business combination within such time period, we will, as promptly as possible but not more than ten business days thereafter, redeem 100% of our outstanding public shares for a pro rata portion of the funds held in the trust account, including a pro rata portion of any interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us or necessary to pay our taxes, and then seek to liquidate and dissolve. However, we may not be able to distribute such amounts as a result of claims of creditors which may take priority over the claims of our public stockholders. In the event of our liquidation and subsequent dissolution, the public rights will expire and will be worthless.
We will either (1) seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination at a meeting called for such purpose, at which stockholders may seek to convert their shares, regardless of whether they vote for or against the proposed business combination, into their pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account (net of taxes payable), or (2) provide our stockholders with the opportunity to sell their shares to us by means of a tender offer (and thereby avoid the need for a stockholder vote) for an amount equal to their pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account (net of taxes payable), in each case subject to the limitations described herein. The decision as to whether we will seek stockholder approval of our proposed business combination or 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. Any tender offer documents used in connection with a business combination will contain substantially the same financial and other information about the initial business combination as is required under the SEC’s proxy rules.
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Pursuant to the Nasdaq listing rules, our initial business combination must occur with one or more target businesses having an aggregate fair market value of at least 80% of the value of the trust account (excluding any deferred underwriting discounts and commissions and taxes payable on the income earned on the trust account), which we refer to as the 80% test, at the time of the agreement to enter into the initial business combination. We are not required to obtain an opinion from an unaffiliated third party that the target business we select has a fair market value in excess of at least 80% of the balance of the trust account unless our board of directors cannot make such determination on its own. If we are no longer listed on Nasdaq, we will not be required to satisfy the 80% test.
We anticipate structuring our initial business combination so that the post-transaction company in which our public stockholders own 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 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, but we will only complete such business combination if the post-transaction company owns 50% or more of the outstanding voting securities of the target or otherwise owns 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, or the Investment Company Act. Even if the post-transaction company owns 50% or more of the voting securities of the target, our stockholders prior to the business combination may collectively own a minority interest in the post-transaction 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 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 is what will be valued for purposes of the 80% test.
Management Operating and Investing Experience
We believe that our executive officers possess the experience, skills and contacts necessary to source, evaluate, and execute an attractive business combination. See the section titled “Management” for complete information on the experience of our officers and directors. Notwithstanding the foregoing, our officers and directors are not required to commit their full time to our affairs and will allocate their time to other businesses, and the collective experience of our officers and with blank check companies like ours is not significant. We presently expect each of our employees to devote such amount of time as they reasonably believe is necessary to our business (which could range from only a few hours a week while we are trying to locate a potential target business to a majority of their time as we move into serious negotiations with a target business for a business combination). The past successes of our executive officers and directors do not guarantee that we will successfully consummate an initial business combination.
As more fully discussed in “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. Most of our officers, directors and director nominees currently have certain relevant pre-existing fiduciary duties or contractual obligations.
Emerging Growth Company Status and Other Information
We are 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, 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.
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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 until we are no longer an “emerging growth company.”
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 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 common stock that is held by non-affiliates exceeds $700 million as of the prior June 30 th , and (2) the date on which we have issued more than $1.0 billion in non-convertible debt during the prior three-year period. References herein to “emerging growth company” shall have the meaning associated with it in the JOBS Act.
Private Placements
In December 2018, we sold an aggregate of 1,150,000 shares of our common stock to certain of our initial stockholders, which we refer to throughout this prospectus as the “insider shares,” for an aggregate purchase price of $25,000, or approximately $0.02 per share. The 1,150,000 insider shares held or controlled by our insiders include an aggregate of up to 150,000 shares subject to forfeiture to the extent that the underwriters’ over-allotment option is not exercised in full or in part, so that our insiders will collectively own or control 20.0% of our issued and outstanding shares after this offering (excluding the sale of the private units and assuming our insiders do not purchase units in this offering). None of our initial stockholders has indicated any intention to purchase public units in this offering.
The insider shares are identical to the shares of common stock included in the units being sold in this offering. However, our insiders have agreed (A) to vote their insider shares, private shares and any public shares acquired in or after this offering in favor of any proposed business combination, (B) not to propose, or vote in favor of, an amendment to our certificate of incorporation that would affect the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 12 months from the closing of this offering (or 21 months, if we extend the time to complete a business combination as described in this prospectus), unless we provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their shares of common stock 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, net of taxes payable, divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, (C) not to convert any shares (including the insider shares) into the right to receive cash from the trust account in connection with a stockholder vote to approve our proposed initial business combination (or sell any shares they hold to us in a tender offer in connection with a proposed initial business combination) or a vote to amend the provisions of our certificate of incorporation relating to the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 12 months from the closing of this offering (or 21 months, as applicable), and (D) that the insider shares and private shares shall not be entitled to be redeemed for a pro rata portion of the funds held in the trust account if a business combination is not consummated.
On the date of this prospectus, the insider shares will be placed into an escrow account maintained in New York, New York by American Stock Transfer & Trust Company, LLC, acting as escrow agent. Subject to certain limited exceptions, 50% of these shares will not be transferred, assigned, sold or released from escrow until the earlier of six months after the date of the consummation of our initial business combination and the date on which the closing price of our common stock equals or exceeds $12.50 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations and recapitalizations) for any 20 trading days within any 30-trading day period commencing after the consummation of our initial business combination and the remaining 50% of the insider shares will not be transferred, assigned, sold or released from escrow until six months after the date of the consummation of our initial business combination, or earlier, in either case, if, subsequent to our initial business combination, we complete a liquidation, merger, stock exchange or other similar transaction which results in all of our stockholders having the right to exchange their shares of common stock for cash, securities or other property. The limited exceptions referred to above include (1) transfers among the insiders, to our officers, directors, advisors and employees, (2) transfers to an insider’s affiliates or its members upon its liquidation, (3) transfers to relatives and trusts for estate planning purposes, (4) transfers by virtue of the laws of descent and distribution upon death, (5) transfers pursuant to a qualified domestic relations order, (6) private sales made at prices no greater than the price at which the securities were originally purchased or (7) transfers to us for cancellation in connection with the consummation of an initial business combination, in each case (except for clause 7) where the transferee agrees to the terms of the escrow agreement and forfeiture, as the case may be, as well as the other applicable restrictions and agreements of the holders of the insider shares.
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In addition, Everstone Investments LLC and Chardan Capital Markets, LLC have committed to purchase an aggregate of 220,000 private units, at a price of $10.00 per unit ($2,200,000 in the aggregate). These purchases will take place on a private placement basis simultaneously with the consummation of this offering. All of the proceeds we receive from these purchases will be placed in the trust account described below. They have also agreed that if the over-allotment option is exercised by the underwriters, they will purchase from us at a price of $10.00 per private unit an additional number of private units (up to a maximum of 18,000 private units) pro rata with the amount of the over-allotment option exercised so that at least $10.00 per share sold to the public in this offering is held in trust regardless of whether the over-allotment option is exercised in full or part. These additional private units will be purchased in a private placement that will occur simultaneously with the purchase of units resulting from the exercise of the over-allotment option. The proceeds from the private placement of the additional private units will be added to the proceeds of this offering and placed in the trust account.
The private units are identical to the units sold in this offering except that the private warrants will be non-redeemable and may be exercised on a cashless basis, in each case so long as they continue to be held by Everstone Investments LLC, Chardan Capital Markets, LLC or their permitted transferees. Additionally, because the private units will be issued in a private transaction, Everstone Investments LLC and Chardan Capital Markets, LLC will be allowed to exercise the private warrants for cash even if a registration statement covering the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of such warrants is not effective and receive unregistered shares of common stock. Furthermore, the holders have agreed (A) to vote their private shares and any public shares acquired in or after this offering in favor of any proposed business combination, (B) not to propose, or vote in favor of, an amendment to our certificate of incorporation that would affect the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 12 months from the closing of this offering (or 21 months, if we extend the time to complete a business combination as described in this prospectus), unless we provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their shares of common stock 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 us to pay our franchise and income taxes, divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, (C) not to convert any shares (including the private shares) into the right to receive cash from the trust account in connection with a stockholder vote to approve our proposed initial business combination (or sell any shares they hold to us in a tender offer in connection with a proposed initial business combination) or a vote to amend the provisions of our certificate of incorporation relating to the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 12 months from the closing of this offering (or 21 months, if we extend the time to complete a business combination as described in this prospectus) and (D) that the private shares shall not be entitled to be redeemed for a pro rata portion of the funds held in the trust account if a business combination is not consummated. Additionally, our insiders (and/or their designees) have agreed not to transfer, assign or sell any of the private units or underlying securities (except to transferees that agree to the same terms and restrictions described above) until the completion of our initial business combination.
None of the private warrants will be redeemable by us so long as they are held by our sponsor, Chardan or their permitted transferees. If the private warrants are held by holders other than the sponsor, Chardan or their permitted transferees, the private warrants will be redeemable by us and exercisable by the holders on the same basis as the warrants included in the units being sold in this offering. In addition, for as long as private warrants are held by Chardan or its designees or affiliates, the said private warrants may not be exercised after five years from the effective date of the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part.
We have also agreed to sell to Chardan Capital Markets, LLC (and/or its designees), for $100, an option to purchase a total of 300,000 units (or 345,000 units if the over-allotment option is exercised in full), at an exercise price of $11.50 per unit, exercisable at any time, in whole or in part, commencing on the later of six months from the effective date of the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part and the consummation of a business combination and ending five years after the effective date of this offering, in accordance with FINRA Rule 5110(f)(2)(G)(i).
Our executive offices are located at 555 Madison Avenue, Room 543, New York, NY 10022. Our telephone number is (631) 220-3541.
6
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 below entitled “Risk Factors” beginning on page 20 of this prospectus.
Securities offered | 4,000,000 units, at $10.00 per unit, each unit consisting of one share of common stock, one redeemable warrant, and one right. Each redeemable warrant entitles the holder thereof to purchase one half of one share of common stock. Each right entitles the holder thereof to receive one-tenth (1/10) of a share of common stock upon consummation of our initial business combination. | |
Proposed Nasdaq symbols | We anticipate the units, and the shares of common stock, warrants, and rights once they begin separate trading, will be listed on Nasdaq under the symbols “ORSNU,” “ORSN,” “ORSNW,” and “ORSNR,” respectively. | |
Trading commencement and separate trading of
common stock, warrants, and rights |
The units will begin trading on or promptly after the date of this prospectus. Each of the shares of common stock, warrants and rights may trade separately on the 90 th day after the date of this prospectus unless Chardan Capital Markets, LLC determines that an earlier date is acceptable (based upon, among other things, its assessment of the relative strengths of the securities markets and small capitalization companies in general, and the trading pattern of, and demand for, our securities in particular). In no event will Chardan Capital Markets, LLC allow separate trading of the shares of common stock, warrants and rights until we file with the Securities and Exchange Commission, or the SEC, an audited balance sheet reflecting our receipt of the gross proceeds at the closing of this offering. Once the shares of common stock, warrants and rights commence separate trading, holders will have the option to continue to hold units or separate their units into the component pieces. Holders will need to have their brokers contact our transfer agent in order to separate the units into shares of common stock, warrants and rights. We will file a Current Report on Form 8-K with the SEC, including an audited balance sheet, promptly following the closing of this offering, which is anticipated to take place two business days from the date the units commence trading. The audited balance sheet will reflect our receipt of the proceeds from the exercise of the over-allotment option if the over-allotment option is exercised on the date of this prospectus. If the over-allotment option is exercised after the date of this prospectus, we will file an amendment to the Current Report on Form 8-K or a new Current Report Form 8-K to provide updated financial information to reflect the exercise of the over-allotment option. We will also include in the Form 8-K, or amendment thereto, or in a subsequent Form 8-K, information indicating if Chardan Capital Markets, LLC has allowed separate trading of the shares of common stock, warrants and rights prior to the 90 th day after the date of this prospectus. |
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Units: | ||
Number outstanding before this offering | 0 | |
Number outstanding after this offering and sale of private units | 4,220,000 1 |
1 | Assumes the over-allotment option has not been exercised. |
Shares of common stock: | ||
Number outstanding before this offering | 1,150,000 2 | |
Number to be outstanding after this offering and sale of private units | 5,220,000 3 |
2 | This number includes an aggregate of up to 150,000 shares of common stock held by our initial stockholders that are subject to forfeiture if the over-allotment option is not exercised by the underwriters in full. |
3 | Assumes the over-allotment option has not been exercised and an aggregate of 150,000 shares of common stock held by our initial stockholders have been forfeited. If the over-allotment option is exercised in full, there will be a total of 5,988,000 shares of common stock issued and outstanding. |
4 | Assumes the over-allotment option has not been exercised. If the over-allotment option is exercised in full, there will be a total of 4,838,000 warrants, including an aggregate of 238,000 private warrants. |
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Exercise price |
$11.50 per whole share. No public warrants will be exercisable for cash unless we have an effective and current registration statement covering the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants and a current prospectus relating to such shares of common stock. It is our current intention to have an effective and current registration statement covering the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants and a current prospectus relating to such shares of common stock in effect promptly following consummation of an initial business combination. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if a registration statement covering the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the public warrants is not effective within 90 days following the consummation of our initial business combination, public warrant holders may, until such time as there is an effective registration statement and during any period when we shall have failed to maintain an effective registration statement, exercise warrants on a cashless basis pursuant to an available exemption from registration under the Securities Act. In such event, each holder would pay the exercise price 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 difference between the exercise price of the warrants and the “fair market value” (defined below) by (y) the fair market value. The “fair market value” shall mean the average reported last sale price of the shares of common stock for the 10 trading days ending on the day prior to the date of exercise. For example, if a holder held 300 warrants to purchase 150 shares and the fair market value on the date prior to exercise was $15.00, that holder would receive 35 shares without the payment of any additional cash consideration. If an exemption from registration is not available, holders will not be able to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis.
In addition, if (x) we issue additional shares of common stock 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 $9.50 per share of common stock (with such issue price or effective issue price to be determined in good faith by our board of directors), (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, and (z) the volume weighted average trading price of our 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 Price”) is below $9.50 per share, the exercise price of the warrants will be adjusted (to the nearest cent) to be equal to 115% of the Market Price, and the $16.50 per share redemption trigger price described above will be adjusted (to the nearest cent) to be equal to 165% of the Market Value.
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Exercise period |
The warrants will become exercisable on the later of the completion of an initial business combination and 12 months from the date of this prospectus. The warrants will expire at 5:00 p.m., New York City time, on the fifth anniversary of the effective date of this registration statement, or earlier upon redemption. |
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Redemption | We may redeem the outstanding warrants (excluding the private warrants and warrants underlying the units that may be issued upon conversion of working capital loans but including any outstanding warrants issued upon exercise of the unit purchase option issued to Chardan Capital Markets, LLC), in whole and not in part, at a price of $0.01 per warrant: | |
● at any time while the warrants are exercisable, | ||
● upon a minimum of 30 days’ prior written notice of redemption, | ||
● if, and only if, the last sales price of our shares of common stock equals or exceeds $16.50 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations and recapitalizations) for any 20 trading days within a 30 trading day period ending three business days before we send the notice of redemption, and | ||
● if, and only if, there is a current registration statement in effect with respect to the shares of common stock underlying such warrants at the time of redemption and for the entire 30-day trading period referred to above and continuing each day thereafter until the date of redemption. | ||
If the foregoing conditions are satisfied and we issue a notice of redemption, each warrant holder can exercise his, her or its warrant prior to the scheduled redemption date. However, the price of the shares of common stock may fall below the $16.50 trigger price as well as the $11.50 warrant exercise price per full share after the redemption notice is issued and not limit our ability to complete the redemption.
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The redemption criteria for our warrants have been established at a price which is intended to provide warrant holders a reasonable premium to the initial exercise price and provide a sufficient differential between the then-prevailing share price and the warrant exercise price so that if the share price declines as a result of our redemption call, the redemption will not cause the share price to drop below the exercise price of the warrants.
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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 such event, each holder would pay the exercise price by surrendering the whole 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 difference between the exercise price of the warrants and the “fair market value” (defined below) by (y) the fair market value. The “fair market value” shall mean the average reported last sale price of the shares of 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. Whether we will exercise our option to require all holders to exercise their warrants on a “cashless basis” will depend on a variety of factors including the price of our shares of common stock at the time the warrants are called for redemption, our cash needs at such time and concerns regarding dilutive share issuances. |
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5 | Assumes the over-allotment option has not been exercised. If the over-allotment option is exercised in full, there will be a total of 4,838,000 rights, including an aggregate of 238,000 private rights. |
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Except as set forth below, the proceeds held in the trust account will not be released until the earlier of: (1) the completion of our initial business combination within the required time period and (2) our redemption of 100% of the outstanding public shares if we have not completed a business combination in the required time period. Therefore, unless and until our initial business combination is consummated, the proceeds held in the trust account will not be available for our use for any expenses related to this offering or expenses which we may incur related to the investigation and selection of a target business and the negotiation of an agreement in connection with our initial business combination. | ||
Notwithstanding the foregoing, there can be released to us from the trust account any interest earned on the funds in the trust account that we need to pay our income tax or other tax obligations. With these exceptions, expenses incurred by us may be paid prior to a business combination only from the net proceeds of this offering not held in the trust account (estimated to initially be $500,000); provided, however, that in order to meet our working capital needs following the consummation of this offering if the funds not held in the trust account are insufficient, our initial stockholders, officers and directors or their affiliates may, but are not obligated to, loan us funds, from time to time or at any time, in whatever amount they deem reasonable in their sole discretion. Each loan would be evidenced by a promissory note. The notes would either be paid upon consummation of our initial business combination, without interest, or, at the lender’s discretion, up to $500,000 of the notes may be converted upon consummation of our business combination into private units at a price of $10.00 per unit (which, for example, would result in the holders being issued units to acquire 55,000 shares of common stock (which includes 5,000 shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of rights) and warrants to purchase 25,000 shares of common stock if $500,000 of notes were so converted). If we do not complete a business combination, the loans would be repaid out of funds not held in the trust account, and only to the extent available.
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Limited payments to insiders | Prior to the consummation of a business combination, there will be no fees, reimbursements or other cash payments paid to our initial stockholders, officers, directors or their affiliates prior to, or for any services they render in order to effectuate, the consummation of a business combination (regardless of the type of transaction that it is) other than: | |
● repayment at the closing of this offering of a non-interest bearing loan in an amount of $225,000 made by Everstone Investments LLC, our sponsor; | ||
● reimbursement of out-of-pocket expenses incurred by insiders, officers, directors or any of its or their affiliates in connection with certain activities on our behalf, such as identifying and investigating possible business targets and business combinations; and |
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● repayment of loans which may be made by our insiders, officers, directors or any of its or their affiliates to finance transaction costs in connection with an initial business combination, the terms of which have not been determined. | ||
There is no limit on the amount of out-of-pocket expenses reimbursable by us; provided, however, that to the extent such expenses exceed the available proceeds not deposited in the trust account and the interest income earned on the amounts held in the trust account that may be released to us, such expenses would not be reimbursed by us unless we consummate an initial business combination. We have no policy which prohibits our insiders or any member of our management team from negotiating the reimbursement of such expenses by a target business. Our audit committee will review and approve all reimbursements and payments made to any insider or member of our management team, or our or their respective affiliates, and any reimbursements and payments made to members of our audit committee will be reviewed and approved by our board of directors, with any interested director abstaining from such review and approval. | ||
Stockholder approval of, or tender offer in connection with, initial business combination | In connection with any proposed initial business combination, we will either (1) seek stockholder approval of such initial business combination at a meeting called for such purpose at which public stockholders may seek to convert their public shares, regardless of whether they vote for or against the proposed business combination, into their pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account (net of taxes payable) or (2) provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to sell their public shares to us by means of a tender offer (and thereby avoid the need for a stockholder vote) for an amount equal to their pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account (net of taxes payable), in each case subject to the limitations described herein. Notwithstanding the foregoing, our initial stockholders have agreed, pursuant to written letter agreements with us, not to convert any public shares held by them into their pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account. If we determine to engage in a tender offer, such tender offer will be structured so that each public stockholder may tender any or all of his, her or its public shares rather than some pro rata portion of his, her or its shares. If enough stockholders tender their shares so that we are unable to satisfy any applicable closing condition set forth in the definitive agreement related to our initial business combination, or we are unable to maintain net tangible assets of at least $5,000,001 upon the consummation of initial business combination, we will not consummate such business combination. 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 based on a variety of factors such as the timing of the transaction or whether the terms of the transaction would otherwise require us to seek stockholder approval. If we provide stockholders with the opportunity to sell their shares to us by means of a tender offer, we will file tender offer documents with the SEC which will contain substantially the same financial and other information about the initial business combination as is required under the SEC’s proxy rules. If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination, we will consummate the business combination only if a majority of the outstanding shares of common stock voted are voted in favor of the business combination. |
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We have determined not to consummate any business combination unless we have net tangible assets of at least $5,000,001 upon such consummation in order to avoid being subject to Rule 419 promulgated under the Securities Act. However, if we seek to consummate an initial business combination with a target business that imposes any type of working capital closing condition or requires us to have a minimum amount of funds available from the trust account upon consummation of such initial business combination, our net tangible asset threshold may limit our ability to consummate such initial business combination (as we may be required to have a lesser number of shares redeemed) and may force us to seek third party financing which may not be available on terms acceptable to us or at all. As a result, we may not be able to consummate such initial business combination and we may not be able to locate another suitable target within the applicable time period, if at all. | ||
However, if we seek to consummate a business combination with a target business that imposes any type of working capital closing condition or requires us to have a minimum amount of funds available from the trust account upon consummation of such business combination, the net tangible asset requirement may limit our ability to consummate such a business combination and may force us to seek third party financing which may not be available on terms acceptable to us or at all. As a result, we may not be able to consummate such business combination and we may not be able to locate another suitable target within the applicable time period, if at all. | ||
Our initial stockholders, officers and directors, have agreed (i) to vote their insider shares, private shares and any public shares purchased in or after this offering in favor of any proposed business combination and (ii) not to convert any shares (including the insider shares) in connection with a stockholder vote to approve, or sell their shares to us in any tender offer in connection with, a proposed initial business combination. As a result, if we sought stockholder approval of a proposed transaction we could need as little as 85,001 of our public shares (or approximately 2.13% of our public shares) to be voted in favor of the transaction in order to have such transaction approved (assuming that only a quorum was present at the meeting, that the over-allotment option is not exercised, that Chardan votes in favor of the transaction, and that the initial stockholders do not purchase any units in this offering or units or shares in the after-market). None of our officers, directors, initial stockholders or their affiliates has indicated any intention to purchase units in this offering or any units or shares of common stock in the open market or in private transactions (other than the private units). However, if a significant number of stockholders vote, or indicate an intention to vote, against a proposed business combination, our officers, directors, initial stockholders or their affiliates could make such purchases in the open market or in private transactions in order to influence the vote. There is no limit on the amount of shares that may be purchased by the insiders. Any purchases would be made in compliance with federal securities laws, including the fact that all material information will be made public prior to such purchase, and no purchases would be made if such purchases would violate Section 9(a)(2) or Rule 10b-5 of the Exchange Act, which are rules designed to stop potential manipulation of a company’s stock. |
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15
Under Delaware law, we may be required to give a minimum of only ten days’ notice for each general meeting. As a result, if we require public stockholders who wish to convert their shares of common stock into the right to receive a pro rata portion of the funds in the trust account to comply with the foregoing delivery requirements, holders may not have sufficient time to receive the notice and deliver their shares for conversion. Accordingly, investors may not be able to exercise their conversion rights and may be forced to retain our securities when they otherwise would not want to. | ||
If we require public stockholders who wish to convert their shares of common stock to comply with specific delivery requirements for conversion described above and such proposed business combination is not consummated, we will promptly return such certificates to the tendering public stockholders. | ||
Liquidation if no business combination | If we are unable to complete our initial business combination within 12 months from the closing of this offering (or 21 months, if we extend the time to complete a business combination as described in this prospectus), 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 100% of the outstanding public shares for a pro rata portion of the funds held in the trust account (net of interest that may be used by us to pay income taxes or other taxes) which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidation distributions, if any), subject to applicable law, and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining holders of common stock and our board of directors, dissolve and liquidate, subject (in the case of (ii) and (iii) above) to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. However, if we anticipate that we may not be able to consummate our initial business combination within 12 months, we may, but are not obligated to, extend the period of time to consummate a business combination three times by an additional three months each time (for a total of up to 21 months to complete a business combination). Pursuant to the terms of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and the trust agreement to be entered into between us and American Stock Transfer & Trust Company, LLC on the date of this prospectus, in order to extend the time available for us to consummate our initial business combination, our insiders or their affiliates or designees, upon five days advance notice prior to the applicable deadline, must deposit into the trust account $400,000, or $460,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full ($0.10 per share in either case), on or prior to the date of the applicable deadline. The insiders will receive a non-interest bearing, unsecured promissory note equal to the amount of any such deposit that will not be repaid in the event that we are unable to close a business combination unless there are funds available outside the trust account to do so. Such notes would either be paid upon consummation of our initial business combination, or, at the lender’s discretion, converted upon consummation of our business combination into additional private units at a price of $10.00 per unit. Our stockholders have approved the issuance of the private units upon conversion of such notes, to the extent the holder wishes to so convert such notes at the time of the consummation of our initial business combination. In the event that we receive notice from our insiders five days prior to the applicable deadline of their intent to effect an extension, we intend to issue a press release announcing such intention at least three days prior to the applicable deadline. |
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In connection with our redemption of 100% of our outstanding public shares, each holder will receive an amount equal to (1) the number of public shares being converted by such public holder divided by the total number of public shares multiplied by (2) the amount then in the trust account (initially $10.00 per share), which includes the deferred underwriting discounts and commissions, plus a pro rata portion of any interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us or necessary to pay our taxes (subject in each case to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors). Holders of rights or warrants will receive no proceeds in connection with the liquidation with respect to such rights or warrants, which will expire worthless. | ||
The proceeds deposited in the trust account could, however, become subject to claims of our creditors that are in preference to the claims of our stockholders. We may not have funds sufficient to pay or provide for all creditors’ claims. Although we will seek to have all third parties (including any vendors or other entities we engage after this offering) and any prospective target businesses enter into valid and enforceable agreements with us waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to any monies held in the trust account, there is no guarantee that they will execute such agreements. There is also no guarantee that the third parties would not challenge the enforceability of these waivers and bring claims against the trust account for monies owed them. In addition, if we are forced to file a bankruptcy case or an involuntary bankruptcy case 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. Therefore, the actual per-share redemption price may be less than $10.00. | ||
The holders of the insider shares and private units will not participate in any redemption with respect to their insider shares or private shares. | ||
If we are unable to conclude our initial business combination and we expend all of the net proceeds of this offering not deposited in the trust account, without taking into account any interest earned on the trust account and assuming that we do not extend our life beyond 12 months, we expect that the initial per-share redemption price will be approximately $10.00. |
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We will pay the costs of any liquidation following the redemptions from our remaining assets outside of the trust account. If such funds are insufficient, our sponsor has agreed to pay the funds necessary to complete such liquidation (currently anticipated to be no more than approximately $18,500) and has agreed not to seek repayment for such expenses. | ||
The underwriters have agreed to waive their rights to the deferred underwriting discounts and commissions held in the trust account in the event we do not consummate a business combination within 12 months from the closing of this offering (or 21 months, as applicable) 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. | ||
Indemnity | Wei Chen, our chief executive officer has agreed that she 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 a prospective target business with which we have entered into a written letter of intent, confidentiality or similar agreement or business combination agreement, reduce the amount of funds in the trust account to below the lesser of (i) $10.00 per public share and (ii) the actual amount per public share held in the trust account as of the date of the liquidation of the trust account, if less than $10.00 per share due to reductions in the value of the trust assets, less taxes payable, provided that such liability will not apply to any claims by a third party or prospective target business who executed a waiver of any and all rights to the monies held in the trust account (whether or not such waiver is enforceable), nor will it apply to any claims under our indemnity of the underwriters of this offering against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. However, we have not asked our chief executive officer to reserve for such indemnification obligations and we have not verified her financial ability to satisfy the indemnification obligation. Therefore, Ms. Wei Chen may not be able to satisfy those obligations. |
Risks
We are a newly formed company that has conducted no operations and has generated no revenues. Until we complete our initial business combination, we will have no operations and will generate no operating revenues. In making your decision whether to invest in our securities, you should take into account not only the background of our management team, but also the special risks we face as a blank check company. This offering is not being conducted in compliance with Rule 419 promulgated under the Securities Act. Accordingly, you will not be entitled to protections normally afforded to investors in Rule 419 blank check offerings. For additional information concerning how Rule 419 blank check offerings differ from this offering, please see “Proposed Business — Comparison to offerings of blank check companies subject to Rule 419.” You should carefully consider these and the other risks set forth in the section entitled “Risk Factors” beginning on page 20 of this prospectus.
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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 are presented.
December 31,
2018 |
March 31,
2019 |
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Actual | Actual | As Adjusted (1) | ||||||||||
(audited) | (unaudited) | |||||||||||
Balance Sheet Data: | ||||||||||||
Working capital (deficit) | $ | (81,363 | ) | $ | (98,369 | ) | $ | 39,307,581 | ||||
Total assets | $ | 252,500 | $ | 233,344 | $ | 40,507,581 | ||||||
Total liabilities | $ | 228,363 | $ | 225,863 | $ | (1,200,000 | ) (2) | |||||
Value of common stock subject to possible conversion/tender | $ | — | $ | — | $ | 34,307,580 | ||||||
Stockholders’ equity | $ | 24,137 | $ | 7,481 | $ | 5,000,001 |
(1) | Includes the $2,200,000 we will receive from the sale of the private units. |
(2) | The “as adjusted” total liabilities represents up to $1,200,000 of deferred underwriting discounts and commissions that would be payable in the event that the maximum number of stockholders redeemed their shares. The actual liabilities of $225,863 at March 31 2019 mainly represents $225,000 of a related party loan from our sponsor, which will be repaid using the proceeds received from the offering on the date the offering is consummated. The $1,200,000 of deferred underwriting discounts is not due until an initial business combination is consummated, for which we have until 12 months from the closing of this offering to consummate (or 21 months if our time to complete a business combination is extended as described herein). |
The “as adjusted” column gives effect to the sale of the units we are offering, including the application of the related gross proceeds and the payment of the estimated remaining costs from such sale and the repayment of the accrued and other liabilities required to be repaid.
The “as adjusted” working capital amount includes the $40,000,000 to be held in the trust account, plus $500,000 in cash held outside the trust account, plus $7,481 of actual stockholders’ equity at March 31, 2019, plus $100 for the sale of the unit purchase option, and less the deferred underwriting discounts and commissions of up to $1,200,000 that would be payable in the event that the maximum number of stockholders redeemed their shares, which, except for limited situations described in this prospectus, will be available to us only upon the consummation of our initial business combination within the time period described in this prospectus.
The “as adjusted” total assets amount includes the $40,000,000 to be held in the trust account, plus $500,000 in cash held outside the trust account, plus $7,481 of actual stockholders’ equity at March 31, 2019, and plus $100 for the sale of the unit purchase option. If our initial business combination is not consummated, the trust account, less amounts we are permitted to withdraw as described in this prospectus, will be distributed solely to our public stockholders. The actual deferred offering costs of $105,850 will be reclassified as a charge to additional paid-in capital from the gross proceeds in connection with the consummation of the offering. Any additional offering costs will also be charged to additional paid-in capital.
We will consummate our initial business combination only if we have net tangible assets of at least $5,000,001 upon such consummation and, solely if we seek stockholder approval, a majority of the issued and outstanding shares of common stock voted are voted in favor of the business combination.
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An investment in our securities involves a high degree of risk. You should consider carefully all of the risks described below, which we believe represent the material risks related to the offering, 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. This prospectus also contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Our actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking statements as a result of specific factors, including the risks described below.
Risks Associated with Our Business
We are a newly formed development stage company with no operating history and, accordingly, you have no basis on which to evaluate our ability to achieve our business objective.
We are a newly formed development stage 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, which is to complete our initial business combination with one or more target businesses. We have not engaged in any substantive discussions and we have no plans, arrangements or understandings with any prospective target business concerning a business combination and may be unable to complete our 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 March 31, 2019, we had $127,494 in cash and a working capital deficiency of $98,369. 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.
If we are unable to consummate our initial business combination, our public stockholders may be forced to wait more than 21 months before receiving distributions from the trust account.
We will have until 12 months from the closing of this offering (or 21 months from the closing of this offering if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination, as described in more detail elsewhere in this prospectus) to consummate our initial business combination. We have no obligation to return funds to investors prior to such date unless we consummate our initial business combination prior thereto or we seek to amend out amended and restated certificate of incorporation prior to the consummation of our initial business combination and only then in cases where investors have sought to convert their shares. Only after the expiration of this full time period will holders of our common stock be entitled to distributions from the trust account if we are unable to complete our initial business combination. Accordingly, investors’ funds may be unavailable to them until after such date and to liquidate your investment, public security holders may be forced to sell their public shares, warrants, or rights, potentially at a loss.
Our public stockholders may not be afforded an opportunity to vote on our proposed business combination.
We will either (1) seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination at a meeting called for such purpose at which public stockholders may seek to convert their shares, regardless of whether they vote for or against the proposed business combination, into their pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account (net of taxes payable), or (2) provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to sell their shares to us by means of a tender offer (and thereby avoid the need for a stockholder vote) for an amount equal to their pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account (net of taxes payable), in each case subject to the limitations described elsewhere in this prospectus. Accordingly, it is possible that we will consummate our initial business combination even if holders of a majority of our public shares do not approve of the business combination. 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. For instance, Nasdaq rules currently allow us to engage in a tender offer in lieu of a stockholder meeting but would still require us to obtain stockholder approval if we were seeking to issue more than 20% of our outstanding shares to a target business as consideration in any business combination. Therefore, if we were structuring a business combination that required us to issue more than 20% of our outstanding shares, we would seek stockholder approval of such business combination instead of conducting a tender offer.
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You will not be entitled to protections normally afforded to investors of blank check companies.
Since the net proceeds of this offering are intended to be used to complete our initial business combination with a target business that has not been identified, we may be deemed to be a “blank check” company under the United States securities laws. However, since we will have net tangible assets in excess of $5,000,001 upon the successful consummation of this offering 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 of blank check companies such as Rule 419. Accordingly, investors will not be afforded the benefits or protections of those rules which would, for example, completely restrict the transferability of our securities, require us to complete our initial business combination within 18 months of the closing of this offering and restrict the use of interest earned on the funds held in the trust account. Because we are not subject to Rule 419, our units will be immediately tradable, we will be entitled to withdraw amounts from the funds held in the trust account prior to the completion of our initial business combination and we may have a longer period of time to complete such a business combination than we would if we were subject to such rule.
If we determine to amend certain agreements made by our management team, many of the disclosures contained in this prospectus regarding our those agreements would no longer apply.
We could seek to amend certain agreements with our management team disclosed in this prospectus without the approval of our stockholders, although we have no current intention to do so. For example, restrictions on our executives relating to the voting of securities owned by them, the agreement of our management team to remain with us until the closing of a business combination, the obligation of our management team to not propose certain changes to our organizational documents or the obligation of the management team and its affiliates to not receive any compensation in connection with a business combination could be modified without obtaining stockholder approval. Although stockholders would not be given the opportunity to redeem their shares in connection with such changes, in no event would we be able to modify the redemption or liquidation rights of our stockholders without permitting our stockholders the right to redeem their shares in connection with any such change. We will not agree to any such changes unless we believed that such changes were in the best interests of our stockholders (for example, if such a modification were necessary to complete a business combination).
We may issue shares of our capital stock to complete our initial business combination, which would reduce the equity interest of our stockholders and likely cause a change in control of our ownership.
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will authorize the issuance of up to 30,000,000 shares of common stock, par value $0.00001 per share. Immediately after this offering and the purchase of the private units (assuming no exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option), there will be 21,768,000 authorized but unissued shares of common stock available for issuance (after appropriate reservation for the issuance of the shares underlying the private units and public and private warrants and rights and the issuance of the securities underlying the underwriters’ purchase option). Although we have no commitment as of the date of this offering, we may issue a substantial number of additional shares of common stock or shares of preferred stock, or a combination of common stock and preferred stock, to complete our initial business combination. The issuance of additional shares of common stock or preferred stock:
● | may significantly reduce the equity interest of investors in this offering; |
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● | may subordinate the rights of holders of shares of common stock if we issue shares of preferred stock with rights senior to those afforded to our shares of common stock; |
● | may cause a change in control if a substantial number of shares of common stock are 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; and |
● | may adversely affect prevailing market prices for our shares of common stock. |
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, we may choose to incur substantial debt to complete our business combination. However, the incurrence of debt could have a variety of negative effects, including:
● | default and foreclosure on our assets if our operating revenues after our initial business combination are insufficient to repay our debt obligations; |
● | 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; |
● | our immediate payment of all principal and accrued interest, if any, if the debt security is payable on demand; |
● | our inability to obtain necessary additional financing if the debt security contains covenants restricting our ability to obtain such financing while the debt security is outstanding; and |
● | limitations on our ability to borrow additional amounts for expenses, capital expenditures, acquisitions, debt service requirements, execution of our strategy and other purposes and other disadvantages compared to our competitors who have less debt. |
We may be limited to the funds held outside of the trust account to fund our search for target businesses, to pay our tax obligations and to complete our initial business combination.
Of the net proceeds of this offering, $500,000 is anticipated to be available to us initially outside the trust account to fund our working capital requirements. We may not have sufficient funds available with which to structure, negotiate or close our initial business combination. In such event, we would need to borrow funds from our insiders, officers or directors to operate or may be forced to liquidate. Our insiders, officers and directors are under no obligation to loan us any funds. If we are unable to obtain the funds necessary, we may be forced to cease searching for a target business and may be unable to complete our initial business combination.
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We may not have sufficient working capital to cover our operating expenses.
As set forth in this prospectus under “Use of Proceeds,” we anticipate that we will incur operating expenses of approximately $500,000 after the initial public offering. These expenses include $70,000 of third party expenses related to the search for target businesses and the due diligence investigation, structuring and negotiation of our initial business combination; $100,000 of expenses related to due diligence of prospective target businesses; $40,000 of legal and accounting fees related to SEC reporting obligations; and $290,000 of working capital to cover miscellaneous expenses, D&O insurance, Delaware Franchise Taxes, liquidation obligations, reserves and for general corporate purposes. Following the consummation of this offering, the amounts available to us to pay our operating expenses will consist only of the approximately $500,000 initially held outside of the trust account and any interest earned on the funds in the trust account remaining after interest is released to pay our income or other tax obligations. Therefore, if our expenses exceed our estimates, we will not have sufficient funds outside the trust account to cover our expenses. In such event, we would need to borrow funds from our insiders, officers or directors or from third parties to continue to operate. However, our insiders, officers and directors and third parties are under no obligation to loan us any funds. If we are unable to obtain the necessary funds, we may be forced to cease searching for a target business and liquidate without completing our initial business combination.
Reimbursement of out-of-pocket expenses incurred by our insiders, officers, directors or any of their affiliates in connection with certain activities on our behalf, such as identifying and investigating possible business targets and business combinations, could reduce the funds available to us to consummate a business combination. In addition, an indemnification claim by one or more of our officers and directors in the event that any of them are sued in their capacity as an officer or director could also reduce the funds available to us outside of the trust account.
We may reimburse our insiders, officers, directors or any of their affiliates for out-of-pocket expenses incurred in connection with certain activities on our behalf, such as identifying and investigating possible business targets and business combinations. There is no limit on the amount of out-of-pocket expenses reimbursable by us; provided, that, to the extent such expenses exceed the available proceeds not deposited in the trust, such expenses would not be reimbursed by us unless we consummate an initial business combination. In addition, pursuant to our certificate of incorporation and Delaware law, we may be required to indemnify our officers and directors in the event that any of them are sued in their capacity as an officer or director. We will also enter into agreements with our officers and directors to provide contractual indemnification in addition to the indemnification provided for in our certificate of incorporation and under Delaware law. In the event that we reimburse our insiders, officers, directors or any of their affiliates for out-of-pocket expenses prior to the consummation of a business combination or are required to indemnify any of our officers or directors pursuant to our certificate of incorporation, Delaware law, or the indemnity agreements that we will enter into with them, we would use funds available to us outside of the trust account. Any reduction in the funds available to us could have a material adverse effect on our ability to locate and investigate prospective target businesses and to structure, negotiate, conduct due diligence in connection with or consummate our initial business combination.
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If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in the trust account could be reduced and the per-share redemption price received by stockholders may be less than approximately $10.00.
Our placing of funds in trust may not protect those funds from third party claims against us. Although we will seek to have all vendors and service providers we engage and prospective target businesses we negotiate with 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, they may not execute such agreements. Furthermore, even if such entities execute such agreements with us, they may seek recourse against the monies held in the trust account. A court may not uphold the validity of such agreements. Accordingly, the proceeds held in trust could be subject to claims which could take priority over those of our public stockholders. If we liquidate the trust account before the completion of a business combination, Everstone Investments LLC, our sponsor, has agreed that it will be liable to ensure that the proceeds in the trust account are not reduced by the claims of target businesses or claims of vendors or other entities that are owed money by us for services rendered or contracted for or products sold to us and which have not executed a waiver agreement. However, it may not be able to meet such obligation. Therefore, the per-share distribution from the trust account in such a situation may be less than $10.00, plus interest, due to such claims.
Additionally, if we are forced to file a bankruptcy case or an involuntary bankruptcy case is filed against us which is not dismissed, or if we otherwise enter compulsory or court supervised liquidation, 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 may not be able to return to our public stockholders at least $10.00 per share.
Our stockholders may be held liable for claims by third parties against us to the extent of distributions received by them.
If we have not completed our initial business combination within 12 months from the closing of this offering (or 21 months from the closing of this offering if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination, as described in more detail elsewhere in this prospectus), 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 100% of the outstanding public shares for a pro rata portion of the funds held in the trust account (net of interest used to pay taxes) which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidation distributions, if any), subject to applicable law, and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining holders of common stock and our board of directors, dissolve and liquidate, subject (in the case of (ii) and (iii) above) to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. We may not 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 well beyond the third anniversary of the date of distribution. Accordingly, third parties may seek to recover from our stockholders amounts owed to them by us.
If, after we distribute the proceeds in the trust account to our public stockholders, we file a bankruptcy petition or an involuntary bankruptcy 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 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 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, thereby exposing itself and us to claims of punitive damages, by paying public stockholders from the trust account prior to addressing the claims of creditors.
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If, before distributing the proceeds in the trust account to our public stockholders, we file a bankruptcy petition or an involuntary bankruptcy 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 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, the per-share amount that would otherwise be received by our stockholders in connection with our liquidation may be reduced.
Holders of rights and warrants will not have redemption rights.
If we are unable to complete an initial business combination within the required time period and we redeem the funds held in the trust account, the rights and warrants will expire and holders will not receive any of the amounts held in the trust account in exchange for such rights or warrants.
We have no obligation to net cash settle the warrants or rights.
In no event will we have any obligation to net cash settle the warrants or rights. Accordingly, the warrants and rights may expire worthless.
If we do not maintain a current and effective prospectus relating to the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the redeemable warrants, public holders will only be able to exercise such redeemable warrants on a “cashless basis” which would result in a fewer number of shares being issued to the holder had such holder exercised the redeemable warrants for cash.
Except as set forth below, if we do not maintain a current and effective prospectus relating to the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants at the time that holders wish to exercise such warrants, they will only be able to exercise them on a “cashless basis,” provided that an exemption from registration is available. As a result, the number of the shares of common stock that a holder will receive upon exercise of its warrants will be fewer than it would have been had such holder exercised its warrant for cash. Further, if an exemption from registration is not available, holders would not be able to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis and would only be able to exercise their warrants for cash if a current and effective prospectus relating to the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants is available. Under the terms of the warrant agreement, we have agreed to use our best efforts to meet these conditions and to maintain a current and effective prospectus relating to the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants until the expiration of the warrants. However, we cannot assure you that we will be able to do so. If we are unable to do so, the potential “upside” of the holder’s investment in our company may be reduced or the warrants may expire worthless. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the private warrants may be exercisable for unregistered shares of common stock for cash even if the prospectus relating to the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants is not current and effective.
An investor will only be able to exercise warrants if the issuance of the shares of common stock upon such exercise has been registered or qualified or is deemed exempt under the securities laws of the state of residence of the holder of the warrants.
No warrants will be exercisable for cash and we will not be obligated to issue the shares of common stock unless the shares of common stock issuable upon such exercise have been registered or qualified or deemed to be exempt under the securities laws of the state of residence of the holder of the warrants. At the time that the warrants become exercisable, we expect to continue to be listed on a national securities exchange, which would provide an exemption from registration in every state. However, we cannot assure you of this fact. If the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants are not qualified or exempt from qualification in the jurisdictions in which the holders of the warrants reside, the warrants may be deprived of any value, the market for the warrants may be limited and they may expire worthless if they cannot be sold.
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Our management’s ability to require holders of our redeemable warrants to exercise such redeemable warrants on a cashless basis will cause holders to receive fewer shares of common stock upon their exercise of the redeemable warrants than they would have received had they been able to exercise their redeemable warrants for cash.
If we call our warrants for redemption after the redemption criteria described elsewhere in this prospectus have been satisfied, our management will have the option to require any holder that wishes to exercise his warrants (including any warrants held by our initial shareholders or their permitted transferees) to do so on a “cashless basis.” If our management chooses to require holders to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis, the number of the shares of common stock received by a holder upon exercise will be fewer than it would have been had such holder exercised his warrants for cash. This will have the effect of reducing the potential “upside” of the holder’s investment in our company.
We may amend the terms of the warrants in a way that may be adverse to holders with the approval by the holders of a majority of the then outstanding warrants.
Our warrants will be issued in registered form under a warrant agreement between American Stock Transfer & Trust Company, LLC, 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. The warrant agreement requires the approval by the holders of a majority of the then outstanding warrants (including the private warrants) in order to make any change that adversely affects the interests of the registered holders.
Since we have not yet selected a particular industry or target business with which to complete our initial business combination, we are unable to currently ascertain the merits or risks of the industry or business in which we may ultimately operate.
We may consummate our initial business combination with a target business in any industry we choose and are not limited to any particular industry or type of business. Accordingly, there is no current basis for you to evaluate the possible merits or risks of the particular industry in which we may ultimately operate or the target business which we may ultimately consummate our initial business combination. To the extent we complete our initial business combination with a financially unstable company or an entity in its development stage, we may be affected by numerous risks inherent in the business operations of those entities. If we complete our initial business combination with an entity in an industry characterized by a high level of risk, we may be affected by the currently unascertainable risks of that industry. We may not properly ascertain or assess all of the significant risk factors. An investment in our shares may not ultimately prove to be more favorable to investors in this offering than a direct investment, if an opportunity were available, in a target business.
The requirement that our initial business combination occur with one or more target businesses having an aggregate fair market value equal to at least 80% of the value of the trust account at the time of the execution of a definitive agreement for our initial business combination may limit the type and number of companies that we may complete such a business combination with.
Pursuant to the Nasdaq listing rules, our initial business combination must occur with one or more target businesses having an aggregate fair market value equal to at least 80% of the value of the trust account (excluding any deferred underwriting discounts and commissions and taxes payable on the income earned on the trust account) at the time of the execution of a definitive agreement for our initial business combination. This restriction may limit the type and number of companies that we may complete a business combination with. If we are unable to locate a target business or businesses that satisfy this fair market value test, we may be forced to liquidate and you will only be entitled to receive your pro rata portion of the funds in the trust account. If we are no longer listed on Nasdaq, we will not be required to satisfy the 80% test.
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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 such that the post-transaction company owns 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, but we will only complete such business combination if the post-transaction company owns 50% or more of the outstanding voting securities of the target or otherwise owns a controlling interest in the target sufficient for it not to be required to register as an investment company under the Investment Company Act. Even if the post-transaction company owns 50% or more of the voting securities of the target, our stockholders prior to the business combination may collectively own a minority interest in the post-transaction 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. 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.
Our ability to successfully effect our initial business combination and to be successful thereafter will be totally dependent upon the efforts of our key personnel, some of whom may join us following our initial business combination. While we intend to closely scrutinize any individuals we engage after our initial business combination, our assessment of these individuals may not prove to be correct.
Our ability to successfully effect our initial business combination is dependent upon the efforts of our key personnel. We believe that our success depends on the continued service of our key personnel, at least until we have consummated our initial business combination. None of our officers are required to commit any specified amount of time to our affairs (although we expect them to devote approximately 10 hours per week to our business) and, accordingly, they will have conflicts of interest in allocating management time among various business activities, including identifying potential business combinations and monitoring the related due diligence. If our officers’ and directors’ other business affairs require them to devote more substantial amounts of time to their other business activities, it could limit their ability to devote time to our affairs and could have a negative impact on our ability to consummate our initial business combination.
The role of our key personnel after our initial business combination, however, remains to be determined. Although some of our key personnel serve in senior management or advisory positions following our initial business combination, it is likely that most, if not all, of the management of the target business will remain in place. These individuals may be unfamiliar with the requirements of operating a public company which could cause us to have to expend time and resources helping them become familiar with such requirements. This could be expensive and time-consuming and could lead to various regulatory issues which may adversely affect our operations.
Our officers and directors may not have significant experience or knowledge regarding the jurisdiction or industry of the target business we may seek to consummate our initial business combination with.
We may consummate a business combination with a target business in any geographic location or industry we choose. Our officers and directors may not have enough experience or sufficient knowledge relating to the jurisdiction of the target or its industry to make an informed decision regarding our initial business combination.
Our key personnel 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 initial 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.
Our key personnel may be able to remain with the company after the completion of our 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.
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Our insiders, officers, directors and their affiliates may be owed reimbursement for out-of-pocket expenses which may cause them to have conflicts of interest in determining whether a particular business combination is most advantageous.
Our insiders, officers, directors and their affiliates may incur out-of-pocket expenses in connection with certain activities on our behalf, such as identifying and investigating possible business targets and combinations. We have no policy that would prohibit these individuals and their affiliates from negotiating the reimbursement of such expenses by a target business. As a result, the personal and financial interests of such individuals may influence their motivation in identifying and selecting a target business.
Members of our management team may have affiliations with entities engaged in business activities similar to those intended to be conducted by us and accordingly, may have conflicts of interest in determining to which entity a particular business opportunity should be presented.
Members of our management team may have affiliations with companies, including companies that are engaged in business activities similar to those intended to be conducted by us. Accordingly, they may participate in transactions and have obligations that may be in conflict or competition with our consummation of our initial business combination. As a result, a potential target business may be presented by our management team to another entity prior to its presentation to us and we may not be afforded the opportunity to engage in a transaction with such target business. For a more detailed description of the potential conflicts of interest of our management, see the section titled “Management — Conflicts of Interest.”
We may engage in a business combination with one or more target businesses that have relationships with entities that may be affiliated with our executive officers, directors or insiders, which may raise potential conflicts of interest.
In light of the involvement of our insiders, officers, directors and director nominees with other entities, we may decide to acquire one or more businesses affiliated with our insiders, officers, directors and director nominees. Our directors and director nominees also serve as officers and board members for other entities, including, without limitation, those described under “Management — Conflicts of Interest.” Our insiders, officers, directors and director nominees are not currently aware of any specific opportunities for us to complete our business combination with any entities with which they are affiliated, and there have been no preliminary discussions concerning a business combination with any such entity or entities. Although we will not be specifically focusing on, or targeting, any transaction with any affiliated entities, we would pursue such a transaction if we determined that such affiliated entity met our criteria for a business combination as set forth in “Proposed Business — Effecting Our Initial Business Combination — Selection of a Target Business and Structuring of Our Initial Business Combination,” such transaction was approved by a majority of our disinterested and independent directors (if we have any at that time), and we obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm that the business combination is fair to our unaffiliated stockholders from a financial point of view. Despite our agreement to obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm regarding the fairness to our company from a financial point of view of a business combination with one or more domestic or international businesses affiliated with our officers, directors or insiders, potential conflicts of interest still may exist and, as a result, the terms of the business combination may not be as advantageous to our public stockholders as they would be absent any conflicts of interest.
The shares beneficially owned by our insiders, officers and directors will not participate in a redemption and, therefore, our insiders, officers and directors may have a conflict of interest in determining whether a particular target business is appropriate for our initial business combination.
Our insiders and Chardan have waived their right to convert their insider shares and private shares in connection with a business combination and their redemption rights with respect to their insider shares and private shares if we are unable to consummate our initial business combination. Accordingly, these securities will be worthless if we do not consummate our initial business combination. Any rights they hold, like those held by the public, will also be worthless if we do not consummate an initial business combination. The personal and financial interests of our directors and officers may influence their motivation in timely identifying and selecting a target business and completing a business combination. Consequently, our directors’ and officers’ discretion in identifying and selecting a suitable target business may result in a conflict of interest when determining whether the terms, conditions and timing of a particular business combination are appropriate and in our stockholders’ best interest.
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If we are unable to consummate a business combination, any loans made by our insiders, officers, directors or their affiliates would not be repaid, resulting in a potential conflict of interest in determining whether a potential transaction is in our stockholders’ best interest.
In order to meet our working capital needs following the consummation of this offering, our insiders, officers, directors or their affiliates may, but are not obligated to, loan us funds, from time to time or at any time, in whatever amount they deem reasonable in their sole discretion. The loans would be non-interest bearing and would be payable at the consummation of a business combination. If we fail to consummate a business combination within the required time period, the loans would not be repaid. Consequently, our directors and officers may have a conflict of interest in determining whether the terms, conditions and timing of a particular business combination are appropriate and in our stockholders’ best interest.
Nasdaq may delist our securities from quotation on its exchange which could limit investors’ ability to make transactions in our securities and subject us to additional trading restrictions.
We anticipate that our securities will be listed on Nasdaq, a national securities exchange, upon consummation of this offering. Although after giving effect to this offering we expect to meet, on a pro forma basis, the minimum initial listing standards set forth in the Nasdaq listing standards, we cannot assure you that our securities will be, or will continue to be, listed on Nasdaq in the future or prior to our initial business combination. In order to continue listing our securities on Nasdaq prior to our initial business combination, we must maintain certain financial, distribution and stock price levels. Generally, we must maintain a minimum amount in stockholders’ equity (generally $2,500,000) 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 Nasdaq’s initial listing requirements, which are more rigorous than Nasdaq’s continued listing requirements, in order to continue to maintain the listing of our securities on Nasdaq. For instance, our stock price would generally be required to be at least $4.00 per share and our stockholders’ equity would generally be required to be at least $5.0 million. We cannot assure you that we will be able to meet those initial listing requirements at that time.
If Nasdaq delists our securities from trading on its exchange, we could face significant material adverse consequences, including:
● | a limited availability of market quotations for our securities; |
● | reduced liquidity with respect to our securities; |
● | a determination that our shares are a “penny stock,” which will require brokers trading in our shares to adhere to more stringent rules, possibly resulting in a reduced level of trading activity in the secondary trading market for our shares; |
● | a limited amount of news and analyst coverage for our company; and |
● | a decreased ability to issue additional securities or obtain additional financing in the future. |
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We may only be able to complete one business combination with the proceeds of this offering, which will cause us to be solely dependent on a single business which may have a limited number of products or services.
It is likely we will consummate our initial business combination with a single target business, although we have the ability to simultaneously consummate our initial business combination with several target businesses. By consummating a business combination with only a single entity, our lack of diversification may subject us to numerous economic, competitive and regulatory developments. 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 resources to complete several business combinations in different industries or different areas of a single industry. Accordingly, the prospects for our success may be:
● | solely dependent upon the performance of a single business, or |
● | 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 developments, 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.
Alternatively, if we determine to simultaneously consummate our initial business combination with several businesses and such businesses 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 the 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 target 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.
The ability of our public stockholders to exercise their conversion rights may not allow us to effectuate the most desirable business combination or optimize our capital structure.
If our initial business combination requires us to use substantially all of our cash to pay the purchase price, because we will not know how many public stockholders may exercise conversion rights, we may either need to reserve part of the trust account for possible payment upon such conversion, or we may need to arrange third party financing to help fund our initial business combination. In the event that the business combination involves the issuance of our stock as consideration, we may be required to issue a higher percentage of our stock to make up for a shortfall in funds. Raising additional funds to cover any shortfall may involve dilutive equity financing or incurring indebtedness at higher than desirable levels. This may limit our ability to effectuate the most attractive business combination available to us.
We may be unable to consummate an initial business combination if a target business requires that we have a certain amount of cash at closing, in which case public stockholders may have to remain stockholders of our company and wait until our redemption of the public shares to receive a pro rata share of the trust account or attempt to sell their shares in the open market.
A potential target may make it a closing condition to our initial business combination that we have a certain amount of cash in excess of the $5,000,001 of net tangible assets we are required to have pursuant to our organizational documents available at the time of closing. If the number of our public stockholders electing to exercise their conversion rights has the effect of reducing the amount of money available to us to consummate an initial business combination below such minimum amount required by the target business and we are not able to locate an alternative source of funding, we will not be able to consummate such initial business combination and we may not be able to locate another suitable target within the applicable time period, if at all. In that case, public stockholders may have to remain stockholders of our company and wait the full 12 (or 21) months in order to be able to receive a portion of the trust account, or attempt to sell their shares in the open market prior to such time, in which case they may receive less than they would have in a liquidation of the trust account.
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Public stockholders, together with any affiliates of theirs or any other person with whom they are acting in concert or as a “group,” will be restricted from seeking conversion rights with respect to more than 20% of the shares of common stock sold in this offering.
In connection with any meeting held to approve an initial business combination, we will offer each public stockholder (but not our insiders, officers or directors) the right to have his, her, or its shares of common stock converted into cash. Notwithstanding the foregoing, a public stockholder, together with any affiliate of his or hers, or any other person with whom he or she is acting in concert or as a “group” will be restricted from seeking conversion rights with respect to more than 20% of the shares of common stock sold in this offering without our prior written consent. Generally, in this context, a stockholder will be deemed to be acting in concert or as a group with another stockholder when such stockholders agree to act together for the purpose of acquiring, voting, holding or disposing of our equity securities. Accordingly, if you purchase more than 20% of the shares of common stock sold in this offering and our proposed business combination is approved, you will not be able to seek conversion rights with respect to the full amount of your shares and may be forced to hold such additional shares of common stock or sell them in the open market. The value of such additional shares may not appreciate over time following our initial business combination, and the market price of our shares of common stock may not exceed the per-share conversion price.
We may require public stockholders who wish to convert their shares of common stock in connection with a vote of stockholders on a proposed business combination to comply with specific requirements for conversion that may make it more difficult for them to exercise their conversion rights prior to the deadline for exercising their rights.
In connection with any stockholder meeting called to approve a proposed initial business combination, each public stockholder will have the right, regardless of whether he or she is voting for or against such proposed business combination, to demand that we convert his or her shares of common stock into a share of the trust account. We may require public stockholders seeking to convert their shares in connection with a stockholder vote on a proposed business combination, whether they are a record holder or hold their shares in “street name,” to either tender their certificates to our transfer agent or to deliver their shares to the transfer agent electronically using Depository Trust Company’s DWAC (Deposit/Withdrawal At Custodian) System, at the holder’s option, at least two business days on the initial business combination (a tender of shares is always required in connection with a tender offer). In order to obtain a physical stock certificate, a stockholder’s broker and/or clearing broker, DTC and our transfer agent will need to act to facilitate this request. It is our understanding that stockholders should generally allot at least two weeks to obtain physical certificates from the transfer agent. However, because we do not have any control over this process or over the brokers or DTC, it may take significantly longer than two weeks to obtain a physical stock certificate. While we have been advised that it takes a short time to deliver shares through the DWAC System, this may not be the case. Under Delaware law and our bylaws, we are required to provide at least 10 days advance notice of any stockholder meeting, which would be the minimum amount of time a public stockholder would have to determine whether to exercise conversion rights. Accordingly, if it takes longer than we anticipate for stockholders to deliver their shares, stockholders who wish to convert may be unable to meet the deadline for exercising their conversion rights and thus may be unable to convert their shares.
If we require public stockholders who wish to convert their shares of common stock to comply with the delivery requirements discussed above for conversion, such converting stockholders may be unable to sell their securities when they wish to in the event that the proposed business combination is not approved.
If we require public stockholders who wish to convert their shares of common stock to comply with the delivery requirements discussed above for conversion and such proposed business combination is not consummated, we will promptly return such certificates to the tendering public stockholders. Accordingly, investors who attempted to convert their shares in such a circumstance will be unable to sell their securities after the failed business combination until we have returned their securities to them. The market price for our shares of common stock may decline during this time and you may not be able to sell your securities when you wish to, even while other stockholders that did not seek conversion may be able to sell their securities.
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Because of our structure, other companies may have a competitive advantage and we may not be able to consummate an attractive business combination.
We expect to encounter intense competition from entities other than blank check companies having a business objective similar to ours, including venture capital funds, leveraged buyout funds and operating businesses competing for acquisitions. Many of these entities are well established and have extensive experience in identifying and effecting business combinations directly or through affiliates. Many of these competitors possess greater technical, human and other resources than we do and our financial resources will be relatively limited when contrasted with those of many of these competitors. Therefore, our ability to compete in consummating our initial business combination with certain sizable target businesses may be limited by our available financial resources. This inherent competitive limitation gives others an advantage in pursuing a business combination with certain target businesses. Furthermore, seeking stockholder approval of our initial business combination may delay the consummation of a transaction. Additionally, our outstanding warrants, rights and unit purchase option, and the future dilution they represent (entitling the holders to receive shares of our common stock on close of the business combination), may not be viewed favorably by certain target businesses. Any of the foregoing may place us at a competitive disadvantage in successfully negotiating our initial business combination.
Our ability to consummate an attractive business combination may be impacted by the market for initial public offerings.
Our efforts to identify a prospective target business will not be limited to any particular industry or geographic region. If the market for initial public offerings is limited, we believe there will be a greater number of attractive target businesses open to consummating an initial business combination with us as a means to achieve publicly held status. Alternatively, if the market for initial public offerings is robust, we believe that there will be fewer attractive target businesses amenable to consummating an initial business combination with us to become a public reporting company. Accordingly, during periods with strong public offering markets, it may be more difficult for us to complete an initial business combination.
We may be unable to obtain additional financing, if required, to complete our initial business combination or to fund the operations and growth of the target business, which could compel us to restructure or abandon a particular business combination.
Although we believe that the net proceeds of this offering will be sufficient to allow us to consummate a business combination, because we have not yet identified any prospective target business, the capital requirements for any particular transaction remain to be determined. If the net proceeds of this offering prove to be insufficient, either because of the size of the business combination, the depletion of the available net proceeds in search of a target business, or the obligation to convert into cash a significant number of shares of common stock, we will be required to seek additional financing. Such financing may not be available on acceptable terms, if at all. To the extent that additional financing proves to be unavailable when needed to consummate a particular business combination, we would be compelled to either restructure the transaction or abandon that particular business combination and seek an alternative target business candidate. In addition, if we consummate a business combination, we may require additional 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.
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Our insiders, officers and directors, will control a substantial interest in us and thus may influence certain actions requiring a stockholder vote.
Upon consummation of our offering and sale of the private units, our insiders, officers and directors, will collectively beneficially own approximately 23.0% of our issued and outstanding shares of common stock (assuming they do not purchase any units in this offering and assuming the over-allotment option has not been exercised and an aggregate of 150,000 insider shares have been forfeited as a result thereof). None of our insiders, officers, directors, director nominees or their affiliates has committed to purchase units in this offering or any units or shares from persons in the open market or in private transactions. In addition, our insiders, officers, directors or their affiliates could determine in the future to make such purchases in the open market or in private transactions, to the extent permitted by law, in order to influence the vote. In connection with any vote for a proposed business combination, our insiders, officers and directors have agreed to vote the shares of common stock owned by them immediately before this offering as well as the private shares and any shares of common stock acquired in this offering or in the aftermarket in favor of such proposed business combination, and therefore will have a significant influence on the vote.
Our board of directors is divided into three classes and, therefore, our insiders will continue to exert control over us until the closing of a business combination.
Our board of directors 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. It is unlikely that there will be an annual meeting of stockholders to elect new directors prior to the consummation of our initial business combination, in which case all of the current directors will continue in office until at least the consummation of the business combination. Accordingly, you may not be able to exercise your voting rights under corporate law for up to 21 months. If there is an annual meeting, as a consequence of our “staggered” board of directors, fewer than half of the board of directors will be considered for election and our insiders, because of their ownership position, will have considerable influence regarding the outcome. Accordingly, our insiders will continue to exert control at least until the consummation of our initial business combination.
We may not hold an annual meeting of stockholders until after the consummation of our initial business combination.
In accordance with Nasdaq 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 Nasdaq. Under Section 211(b) of the Delaware General Corporation Law, 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. It is unlikely that there will be 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 Delaware General Corporation Law, 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 Delaware General Corporation Law.
Provisions in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and Delaware law may have the effect of discouraging lawsuits against our directors and officers.
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will require that derivative actions brought in our name, actions against directors, officers and employees for breach of fiduciary duty and other similar actions not including claims that arise under the Securities Act or Exchange Act, may be brought only in the Court of Chancery in the State of Delaware. This provision may have the effect of discouraging lawsuits against our directors and officers.
Our insiders paid an aggregate of $25,000, or approximately $0.02 per share, for the insider shares and, accordingly, you will experience immediate and substantial dilution from the purchase of our shares of common stock.
The difference between the public offering price per share and the pro forma net tangible book value per share after this offering constitutes the dilution to the investors in this offering. Our initial stockholders acquired their insider shares at a nominal price, significantly contributing to this dilution. Upon consummation of this offering, you and the other new investors will incur an immediate and substantial dilution of approximately 75.1% or $6.83 per share (the difference between the public offering price per share (including the shares of common stock issuable upon conversion of rights) and the pro forma net tangible book value per share of $2.26 per share). This is because investors in this offering will be contributing approximately 94.7% of the total amount paid to us for our outstanding securities after this offering but will only own approximately 78.0% of our outstanding securities (including the shares of common stock issuable upon conversion of rights). Accordingly, the per-share purchase price you will be paying substantially exceeds our per share net tangible book value.
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Our outstanding warrants, rights and unit purchase option may have an adverse effect on the market price of our shares of common stock and make it more difficult to effect a business combination.
We will be issuing warrants that will result in the issuance of up to 2,000,000 shares of common stock as part of the units offered by this prospectus and private warrants that will result in the issuance of an additional 110,000 shares of common stock. We will also be issuing rights that will result in the issuance of up to 400,000 shares of common stock as part of the units offered by this prospectus and private rights that will result in the issuance of an additional 22,000 shares of common stock. We will also issue a unit purchase option to purchase 300,000 units to the representative of the underwriters which, if exercised, will result in the issuance of 330,000 shares of common stock (which includes 30,000 shares underlying rights) and warrants exercisable to purchase an additional 150,000 shares of common stock. The potential for the issuance of a substantial number of additional shares upon exercise of the warrants and conversion of the rights could make us a less attractive acquisition vehicle in the eyes of a target business. Such securities, when converted, will increase the number of issued and outstanding shares of common stock and reduce the value of the shares issued to complete the business combination. Accordingly, our warrants, rights and unit purchase option may make it more difficult to effectuate a business combination or increase the cost of acquiring the target business. Additionally, the sale, or even the possibility of sale, of the shares underlying the warrants, rights and unit purchase option could have an adverse effect on the market price for our securities or on our ability to obtain future financing. If and to the extent these warrants are exercised, the rights are converted or the unit purchase option is exercised, you may experience dilution to your holdings.
If our insiders exercise their registration rights, it may have an adverse effect on the market price of our shares of common stock and the existence of these rights may make it more difficult to effect our initial business combination.
Our insiders are entitled to make a demand that we register the resale of the insider shares (a total of 1,000,000 shares if the over-allotment option is not exercised, or 1,150,000 shares if the over-allotment option is exercised in full) at any time commencing three months prior to the date on which their shares may be released from escrow. Additionally, the purchasers of the private units and our initial shareholders, officers and directors are entitled to demand that we register the resale of the 220,000 shares of common stock (or 238,000 ordinary shares if the overallotment is exercised in full) underlying the private units, 110,000 shares of common stock (or 119,000 shares of common stock if the overallotment is exercised in full) underlying the private warrants, and the 22,000 shares of common stock (or 23,800 shares of common stock if the overallotment is exercised in full) underlying the private rights and any securities our initial shareholders, officers, directors or their affiliates may be issued in payment of working capital loans made to us at any time after we consummate a business combination. The presence of these additional shares of common stock trading in the public market may have an adverse effect on the market price of our securities. In addition, the existence of these rights may make it more difficult to effectuate our initial business combination or increase the cost of consummating our initial business combination with the target business, as the stockholders of the target business may be discouraged from entering into a business combination with us or will request a higher price for their securities because of the potential effect the exercise of such rights may have on the trading market for our shares of common stock.
We may enter into agreements with consultants or financial advisers that provide for the payment of fees upon the consummation of our initial business combination, and, therefore, such consultants or financial advisers may have conflicts of interest.
We may enter into agreements with consultants or financial advisers that provide for the payment of fees upon the consummation of our initial business combination. If we pay consultants or financial advisers fees that are tied to the consummation of our initial business combination, they may have conflicts of interest when providing services to us, and their interests in such fees may influence their advice with respect to a potential business combination. For example, if a consultant’s or financial advisor’s fee is based on the size of the transaction, then they may be influenced to present us larger transactions that may have lower growth opportunities or long-term value versus smaller transactions that may have greater growth opportunities or provide greater value to our stockholders. Similarly, consultants whose fees are based on consummation of a business combination may be influenced to present potential business combinations to us regardless of whether they provide longer-term value for our stockholders. While we will endeavor to structure agreements with consultants and financial advisors to minimize the possibility and extent of these conflicts of interest, we cannot assure you that we will be able to do so and that we will not be impacted by the adverse influences they create.
If we are deemed to be an investment company, 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:
● | restrictions on the nature of our investments; and |
● | restrictions on the issuance of securities, |
each of which may make it difficult for us to complete our business combination.
In addition, we may have imposed upon us certain burdensome requirements, including:
● | registration as an investment company; |
● | adoption of a specific form of corporate structure; and |
● | reporting, record keeping, voting, proxy and disclosure requirements and other rules and regulations. |
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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 in 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 180 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 earlier to occur of either: (i) the completion of our primary business objective, which is a business combination; or (ii) 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. 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 public rights will expire worthless.
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 and rights were negotiated between us and the underwriters. In determining the size of this offering, management held customary organizational meetings with representatives of the underwriters, both prior to our inception and thereafter, 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 common stock, warrants, and rights underlying the units, include:
● | the history of other similarly structured blank check companies; |
● | prior offerings of those companies; |
● | our prospects for consummating an initial business combination with an operating business at attractive values; |
● | our capital structure; |
● | securities exchange listing requirements; |
● | market demand; |
● | expected liquidity of our securities; |
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● | general conditions of the securities markets at the time of the offering; and |
● | other factors as were deemed relevant. |
However, although these factors were considered, the determination of our offering price is more arbitrary than the pricing of securities for an operating company in a particular industry since we have no historical operations or financial results to compare them to.
The requirement that we complete our initial business combination within 12 or 21 months may give potential target businesses leverage over us in negotiating our initial business combination.
We have 12 months from the closing of this offering (for a total of up to 21 months if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination, as described in more detail elsewhere in this prospectus) to complete our initial business combination. Any potential target business with which we enter into negotiations concerning a business combination will be aware of this requirement. Consequently, such target business may obtain leverage over us in negotiating a business combination, knowing that if we do not complete a business combination with that particular target business, we may be unable to complete a business combination with any other target business. This risk will increase as we get closer to the time limit referenced above.
We may not obtain a fairness opinion with respect to the target business that we seek to consummate our initial business combination with and therefore you may be relying solely on the judgment of our board of directors in approving a proposed business combination.
We will only be required to obtain a fairness opinion with respect to the target business that we seek to consummate our initial business combination with if it is an entity that is affiliated with any of our insiders, officers or directors. In all other instances, we will have no obligation to obtain an opinion. 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 tender offer documents or proxy solicitation materials, as applicable, related to our initial business combination
Resources could be wasted in researching business combinations 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 on the liquidation of our trust account and our public rights 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 public rights will expire worthless.
Compliance with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 will require substantial financial and management resources and may increase the time and costs of completing an initial business combination.
Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, or the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, requires that we evaluate and report on our system of internal control and may require that we have such system of internal control audited. If we fail to maintain the adequacy of our internal control, we could be subject to regulatory scrutiny, civil or criminal penalties and/or stockholder litigation. Any inability to provide reliable financial reports could harm our business. Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act also requires that our independent registered public accounting firm report on management’s evaluation of our system of internal control, although as an “emerging growth company” as defined in the JOBS Act, we may take advantage of an exemption to this requirement. A target company may not be in compliance with the provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act regarding adequacy of their internal control. 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 initial business combination.
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We are an “emerging growth company” and we cannot be certain if the reduced disclosure requirements applicable to emerging growth companies will make our securities less attractive to investors.
We are an “emerging growth company,” as defined in the JOBS Act. We will remain an “emerging growth company” for up to five years. However, if our non-convertible debt issued within a three-year period exceeds $1.0 billion or revenues exceeds $1.07 billion, or the market value of our shares of common stock that are held by non-affiliates exceeds $700 million on the last day of the second fiscal quarter of any given fiscal year, we would cease to be an emerging growth company as of the following fiscal year. As an emerging growth company, we are not being required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, we have reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports and proxy statements, and we are exempt from the requirements of holding a nonbinding advisory vote on executive compensation and shareholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved. Additionally, as an emerging growth company, we have elected to delay the adoption of new or revised accounting standards that have different effective dates for public and private companies until those standards apply to private companies. As such, our financial statements may not be comparable to companies that comply with public company effective dates. We cannot predict if investors will find our shares less attractive because we may rely on these provisions. If some investors find our shares less attractive as a result, there may be a less active trading market for our shares and our share price 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, will not adopt the new or revised standard until the time private companies are required to 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 accountant standards used.
If we effect our initial business combination with a company located outside of the United States, we would be subject to a variety of additional risks that may negatively impact our operations.
We may effect our initial business combination with a company located outside of the United States. If we did, we would be subject to any special considerations or risks associated with companies operating in the target business’ home jurisdiction, including any of the following:
● | rules and regulations or currency conversion or corporate withholding taxes on individuals; |
● | tariffs and trade barriers; |
● | regulations related to customs and import/export matters; |
● | longer payment cycles; |
● | tax issues, such as tax law changes and variations in tax laws as compared to the United States; |
● | currency fluctuations and exchange controls; |
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● | challenges in collecting accounts receivable; |
● | cultural and language differences; |
● | employment regulations; |
● | crime, strikes, riots, civil disturbances, terrorist attacks and wars; and |
● | deterioration of political relations with the United States. |
We may not be able to adequately address these additional risks. If we are unable to do so, our operations may suffer.
If we effect our initial business combination with a target business located outside of the United States, the laws applicable to such target business will likely govern all of our material agreements and we may not be able to enforce our legal rights.
If we effect our initial business combination with a target business located outside of the United States, the laws of the country in which such target business is domiciled will govern almost all of the material agreements relating to its operations. The target business may not be able to enforce any of its material agreements in such jurisdiction and appropriate remedies to enforce its rights under such material agreements may not 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. Additionally, if we consummate our initial business combination with a company located outside of the United States, it is likely that substantially all of our assets would be located outside of the United States and some of our officers and directors might reside outside of the United States. As a result, it may not be possible for investors in the United States to enforce their legal rights, to effect service of process upon our directors or officers or to enforce judgments of United States courts predicated upon civil liabilities and criminal penalties of our directors and officers under Federal securities laws.
Provisions in our certificate of incorporation and bylaws 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 common stock and could entrench management.
Our certificate of incorporation contains 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 more difficult the removal of management 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 more difficult the removal of management and may discourage transactions that otherwise could involve payment of a premium over prevailing market prices for our securities.
Because we must furnish our stockholders with target business financial statements prepared in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles or international financial reporting standards, 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 historical and/or pro forma financial statement disclosure in periodic reports. 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, or IFRS as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board or the IASB, 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. We will include the same financial statement disclosure in connection with any tender offer documents we use, whether or not they are required under the tender offer rules. These financial statement requirements may limit the pool of potential target businesses we may consummate our initial business combination with because some targets may be unable to provide such statements in time for us to disclose such statements in accordance with federal proxy rules and complete our initial business combination within the prescribed time frame.
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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. 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.
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 and results of operations.
Investors may not appropriately allocate a tax basis to the components of the unit.
Because investors in this offering will be investing in units comprised of one share of common stock and one right, investors will need to allocate a tax basis to each item in proportion to their values at the time of the investment. We are not required to provide any guidance as to the proper allocation of tax basis. Failure to properly allocate a tax basis could result in adverse tax consequences to an investor.
CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
The statements contained in this prospectus that are not purely historical are forward-looking statements. Our forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding our or our management’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 our:
● | ability to complete our initial business combination; |
● | success in retaining or recruiting, or changes required in, our officers, key employees or directors following our initial business combination; |
● | 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, as a result of which they would then receive expense reimbursements; |
● | potential ability to obtain additional financing to complete our initial business combination; |
● | pool of prospective target businesses; |
● | the ability of our officers and directors to generate a number of potential investment opportunities; |
● | potential change in control if we acquire one or more target businesses for stock; |
● | the potential liquidity and trading of our securities; |
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● | the lack of a market for our securities; |
● | use of proceeds not held in the trust account or available to us from interest income on the trust account balance; or |
● | financial performance following this offering. |
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. Future developments affecting us may not 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 under the heading “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.
We estimate that the net proceeds of this offering, in addition to the funds we will receive from the sale of the private units, will be used as set forth in the following table:
Without
Option |
Over-Allotment
Option Exercised |
|||||||
Gross proceeds | ||||||||
From offering | $ | 40,000,000 | $ | 46,000,000 | ||||
From sale of private units | 2,200,000 | 2,380,000 | ||||||
Total gross proceeds | 42,200,000 | 48,380,000 | ||||||
Offering expenses (1) | ||||||||
Non-contingent underwriting discounts and commissions (3.0% of gross proceeds from offering, which excludes the deferred underwriting discounts and commissions of up to 3.0% of gross proceeds from offering) | 1,200,000 | (2) | 1,380,000 | (2) | ||||
Initial Trustee Fee | 6,500 | 6,500 | ||||||
Legal fees and expenses | 300,000 | 300,000 | ||||||
Nasdaq listing fee | 50,000 | 50,000 | ||||||
Printing and engraving expenses | 30,000 | 30,000 | ||||||
Accounting fees and expenses | 40,000 | 40,000 | ||||||
SEC registration fee | 6,662 | 6,662 | ||||||
FINRA registration fee | 8,745 | 8,745 | ||||||
Miscellaneous | 58,093 | 58,093 | ||||||
Total offering expenses (not including deferred underwriting discounts and commissions) | 1,700,000 | 1,880,000 | ||||||
Net proceeds | ||||||||
Held in the trust account (4) | $ | 40,000,000 | $ | 46,000,000 | ||||
Not held in the trust account | $ | 500,000 | $ | 500,000 | ||||
Net proceeds (including deferred underwriting discounts and commissions) | $ | 40,500,000 | $ | 46,500,000 | ||||
Use of net proceeds not held in the trust account (5)(6) | ||||||||
Legal, accounting and other third party expenses attendant to the search for target businesses and to the due diligence investigation, structuring and negotiation of our initial business combination | $ | 100,000 | 20.00 | % | ||||
Due diligence of prospective target businesses by officers, directors and sponsor | 70,000 | 14.00 | % | |||||
Legal and accounting fees relating to SEC reporting obligations | 40,000 | 8.00 | % | |||||
Working capital to cover miscellaneous expenses, D&O insurance, general corporate purposes, liquidation obligations, Delaware Franchise Taxes, and reserves | 290,000 | 58.00 | % | |||||
Total | $ | 500,000 | 100.0 | % |
(1) | A portion of the offering expenses, including the SEC registration fee, the FINRA filing fee, the non-refundable portion of the Nasdaq listing fee and a portion of the legal and audit fees, have been paid from the funds we received as loans from our sponsor. These funds will be repaid out of the proceeds of this offering available to us. If we determine not to proceed with the offering, such amounts would not be repaid. |
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(2) | No discounts or commissions will be paid with respect to the purchase of the private units. |
(3) | The deferred underwriting discounts and commissions in an amount up to 3.0% of the gross proceeds raised in this offering will be payable to the underwriters upon the consummation of our initial business combination and will be held in the trust account until the consummation of such initial business combination. |
(4) | The funds held in the trust account may, but need not, be used to pay our expenses relating to completing our initial business combination, including deferred underwriting discounts and commissions payable to Chardan Capital Markets, LLC in an amount of up to 3.0% of the total gross proceeds raised in the offering described below. |
(5) | The amount of proceeds not held in the trust account will remain constant at approximately $500,000 even if the over-allotment option is exercised. |
(6) | 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 that business combination. We do not anticipate any change in the categories of 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 be deducted from our excess working capital. |
Our sponsor Everstone Investments LLC and Chardan Capital Markets, LLC have committed that they will purchase the private units (for an aggregate purchase price of $2,200,000) from us on a private placement basis that will occur simultaneously with the consummation of this offering. They have also agreed that if the over-allotment option is exercised by the underwriters in full or in part, they (and/or their designees) will purchase from us at a price of $10.00 per unit the number of private units (up to a maximum of 18,000 private units) that is necessary to maintain in the trust account an amount equal to $10.00 per share of common stock sold to the public in this offering. All of the proceeds we receive from these purchases will be placed in the trust account described below.
$40,000,000, or $46,000,000 if the over-allotment option is exercised in full, of net proceeds of this offering and the sale of the private units will be placed in a trust account in the United States at JP Morgan Chase, N.A., maintained by American Stock Transfer & Trust Company, LLC, as trustee. The funds held in the trust account will be invested only in United States government treasury bills, bonds or notes having a maturity of 180 days or less, or in money market funds meeting the applicable conditions under Rule 2a-7 promulgated under the Investment Company Act and that invest solely in U.S. treasuries, so that we are not deemed to be an investment company under the Investment Company Act. Except with respect to interest earned on the funds held in the trust account that may be released to us to pay our income or other tax obligations, the proceeds will not be released from the trust account until the earlier of the completion of a business combination or our liquidation. The proceeds held in the trust account may be used as consideration to pay the sellers of a target business with which we complete our initial business combination to the extent not used to pay converting stockholders. Any amounts not paid as consideration to the sellers of the target business may be used to finance operations of the target business.
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No compensation of any kind (including finder’s, consulting or other similar fees) will be paid to any of our existing officers, directors, stockholders, or any of their affiliates, prior to, or for any services they render in order to effectuate, the consummation of the business combination (regardless of the type of transaction that it is). However, such individuals will receive reimbursement for any out-of-pocket expenses incurred by them in connection with activities on our behalf, such as identifying potential target businesses, performing business due diligence on suitable target businesses and business combinations as well as traveling to and from the offices, plants or similar locations of prospective target businesses to examine their operations. Since the role of present management after our initial business combination is uncertain, we have no ability to determine what remuneration, if any, will be paid to those persons after our initial business combination.
Regardless of whether the over-allotment option is exercised in full, the net proceeds from this offering available to us out of trust for our working capital requirements in searching for our initial business combination will be approximately $500,000. We intend to use the excess working capital available for miscellaneous expenses such as paying fees to consultants to assist us with our search for a target business and for director and officer liability insurance premiums, with the balance being held in reserve in the event due diligence, legal, accounting and other expenses of structuring and negotiating business combinations exceed our estimates, as well as for reimbursement of any out-of-pocket expenses incurred by our insiders, officers and directors in connection with activities on our behalf as described below.
The allocation of the net proceeds available to us outside of the trust account, along with the interest earned on the funds held in the trust account available to us, represents our best estimate of the intended uses of these funds. In the event that our assumptions prove to be inaccurate, we may reallocate some of such proceeds within the above described categories. If our estimate of the costs of undertaking due diligence and negotiating our initial business combination is less than the actual amount necessary to do so, or the amount of interest available to us from the trust account is insufficient as a result of the current low interest rate environment, we may be required to raise additional capital, the amount, availability and cost of which is currently unascertainable. In this event, we could seek such additional capital through loans or additional investments from our insiders, members of our management team or third parties, but our insiders, members of our management team or third parties are not under any obligation to advance funds to, or invest in, us.
We will likely use substantially all of the net proceeds of this offering, including the funds held in the trust account, in connection with our initial business combination and to pay our expenses relating thereto, including the deferred underwriting discounts and commissions payable to Chardan Capital Markets, LLC in an amount equal to 3.0% of the total gross proceeds raised in the offering upon consummation of our initial business combination. To the extent that our capital stock is used in whole or in part as consideration to effect our initial business combination, the proceeds held in the trust account which are not used to consummate a business combination will be disbursed to the combined company and will, along with any other net proceeds not expended, be used as working capital to finance the operations of the target business. Such working capital funds could be used in a variety of ways including continuing or expanding the target business’ operations, for strategic acquisitions and for marketing, research and development of existing or new products.
To the extent we are unable to consummate a business combination, we will pay the costs of liquidation from our remaining assets outside of the trust account. If such funds are insufficient, our sponsor Everstone Investments LLC has agreed to pay the funds necessary to complete such liquidation (currently anticipated to be no more than $18,500) and has agreed not to seek repayment of such expenses.
As of March 31, 2019, Everstone Investments LLC, our sponsor, loaned us $225,000 to pay formation and a portion of the expenses of this offering. The loan is payable without interest on the date on which we consummate our initial public offering. If we determine not to proceed with the offering, such amounts would not be repaid.
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In order to meet our working capital needs following the consummation of this offering until completion of an initial business combination, our initial stockholders, officers and directors or their affiliates may, but are not obligated to, loan us funds, from time to time or at any time, in whatever amount they deem reasonable in their sole discretion. The notes would either be paid upon consummation of our initial business combination, without interest, or, at the lender’s discretion, up to $500,000 of the notes may be converted upon consummation of our business combination into private units at a price of $10.00 per unit (which, for example, would result in the holders being issued units to acquire 55,000 shares of common stock (which includes 5,000 shares issuable upon conversion of rights) and warrants to purchase 25,000 shares of common stock if $500,000 of notes were so converted). If we do not complete our initial business combination, the loans would be repaid out of funds not held in the trust account, and only to the extent available. These notes would be in addition to any notes we issued in exchange for the funds necessary to extend our life.
A public stockholder will be entitled to receive funds from the trust account only in the event of (1) our redemption of 100% of the outstanding public shares if we have not completed a business combination in the required time period, (2) if that public stockholder elects to convert public shares in connection with a stockholder vote or (3) if that public stockholder sells shares to us in any tender offer in connection with a proposed business combination. In no other circumstances will a public stockholder have any right or interest of any kind to or in the trust account.
We have not paid any cash dividends on our shares of 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 subsequent to the completion of our initial business combination will be dependent upon our revenues and earnings, if any, capital requirements and general financial condition subsequent to completion of our initial business combination. The payment of any dividends subsequent to our initial business combination will be within the discretion of our board of directors at such time. It is the present intention of our board of directors to retain all earnings, if any, for use in our business operations and, accordingly, our board of directors does not anticipate declaring any dividends in the foreseeable future. In addition, our board of directors is not currently contemplating and does not anticipate declaring any stock dividends in the foreseeable future, except if we increase the size of the offering, including pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act, in which case we will effect a stock dividend immediately prior to the consummation of the offering in such amount as to maintain our insiders’ ownership at an aggregate of 20.0% of our issued and outstanding shares of our common stock upon the consummation of this offering (excluding ownership of the private units). 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.
The difference between the public offering price per share and the pro forma net tangible book value per share after this offering constitutes the dilution to investors in this offering. 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 shares of common stock which may be converted into cash), by the number of outstanding shares of common stock.
At March 31, 2019, our net tangible book value was a deficit of $98,369, or approximately $0.09 per share assuming the underwriters do not exercise any portion of the over-allotment option and the forfeiture of 150,000 insider shares. For purposes of the dilution calculation, in order to present the maximum estimated dilution as a result of this offering, we have assumed (i) the issuance of 0.10 of a share for each right outstanding, as such issuance will occur upon a business combination without the payment of additional consideration and (ii) the number of shares included in the units offered hereby will be deemed to be 4,400,000 (consisting of 4,000,000 shares included in the units we are offering by this prospectus and 400,000 shares for the outstanding rights), and the price per share in this offering will be deemed to be $9.09. After giving effect to the sale of 4,400,000 shares of common stock included in the units we are offering by this prospectus, the deduction of underwriting discounts and estimated expenses of this offering, the sale of 242,000 shares of common stock (consisting of 220,000 shares of common stock included in the private units and 22,000 shares for the outstanding rights) included in the private units, our pro forma net tangible book value at March 31, 2019 would have been $5,000,001 or $2.26 per share, representing an immediate increase in net tangible book value of $2.35 per share to the initial stockholders and an immediate dilution of 75.1% per share or $6.83 to new investors not exercising their conversion/tender rights. For purposes of presentation, our pro forma net tangible book value after this offering is $34,307,580 less than it otherwise would have been because if we effect a business combination, the ability of public stockholders to exercise conversion rights or sell their shares to us in any tender offer may result in the conversion or tender of up to 3,430,758 shares sold in this offering.
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The following table illustrates the dilution to the new investors on a per-share basis, assuming no value is attributed to the redeemable warrants, including the private warrants:
Public offering price | $ | 9.09 | ||||||
Net tangible book value before this offering | $ | (0.09 | ) | |||||
Increase attributable to new investors and private sales | 2.35 | |||||||
Pro forma net tangible book value after this offering | 2.26 | |||||||
Dilution to new investors | $ | 6.83 | ||||||
Percentage of dilution to new investors | 75.1 | % |
The following table sets forth information with respect to our insiders and the new investors:
Shares Purchased | Total Consideration |
Average
Price |
||||||||||||||||||
Number | Percentage | Amount | Percentage | Per Share | ||||||||||||||||
Initial stockholders (1) | 1,000,000 | 17.72 | % | $ | 25,000 | 0.06 | % | $ | 0.025 | |||||||||||
Shares underlying private unit (2) | 242,000 | 4.29 | % | $ | 2,200,000 | 5.21 | % | $ | 9.091 | |||||||||||
New investors (3) | 4,400,000 | 77.99 | % | $ | 40,000,000 | 94.73 | % | $ | 9.091 | |||||||||||
5,642,000 | 100 | % | $ | 42,225,000 | 100 | % | $ |
(1) | Assumes the over-allotment option has not been exercised and an aggregate of 150,000 insider shares held by our initial stockholders have been forfeited as a result thereof. |
(2) | Assumes the issuance of an additional 1,800 public shares (23,800 shares if over-allotment is exercised) underlying the private rights. |
(3) | Assumes the issuance of an additional 60,000 public shares (460,000 shares if overallotment is exercised) underlying the public rights. |
The pro forma net tangible book value per share after the offering is calculated as follows:
Numerator: (1) | ||||
Net tangible book value before the offering | $ | (98,369 | ) | |
Offering costs paid in advance | $ | 105,850 | ||
Net proceeds from this offering and private placement of private units | $ | 40,500,000 | ||
Proceeds from unit purchase option | $ | 100 | ||
Less: Deferred underwriting discounts and commissions | $ | (1,200,000 | )(2) | |
Less: Proceeds held in trust subject to conversion/tender | $ | (34,307,580 | ) | |
5,000,001 | ||||
Denominator | ||||
Shares of common stock outstanding prior to this offering (1) | 1,000,000 | |||
Shares of common stock to be sold in this offering | 4,000,000 | |||
Shares of common stock to be sold in private placement | 220,000 | |||
Shares of common stock underlying the rights to be sold in this offering | 400,000 | |||
Shares of common stock underlying the rights to be sold in private placement | 22,000 | |||
Less: Shares subject to conversion/tender | (3,430,758 | ) | ||
2,211,242 |
(1) | Assumes the over-allotment option has not been exercised and an aggregate of 150,000 shares of common stock held by our initial stockholder have been forfeited by us as a result thereof. |
(2) | Deferred underwriting discounts and commission of 3.0%. |
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The following table sets forth our capitalization at March 31, 2019 and as adjusted to give effect to the sale of our units offered by this prospectus and the private units and the application of the estimated net proceeds derived from the sale of such securities:
As at March 31, 2019 | ||||||||
Actual |
As
Adjusted (1) |
|||||||
Promissory note – related party (2) | $ | 225,000 | $ | — | ||||
Deferred underwriting discounts and commissions payable | — | 1,200,000 | ||||||
Shares of common stock, $0.00001 par value, none and 3,430,758 shares are subject to possible conversion/tender, respectively | — | 34,307,580 | (4) | |||||
Shares of common stock, $0.00001 par value, 10,000,000 shares authorized, 1,150,000 shares issued and outstanding, actual; 1,789,242 shares issued and outstanding (3) (excluding 3,430,758 shares subject to possible conversion/tender), as adjusted | 12 | 18 | ||||||
Additional paid in capital | 24,988 | 5,017,502 | ||||||
Accumulated deficit | (17,519 | ) | (17,519 | ) | ||||
Total stockholders’ equity | 7,481 | 5,000,001 | ||||||
Total capitalization | $ | 232,481 | $ | 40,507,581 | (5) |
(1) | Includes the $2,200,000 in aggregate we will receive from the sale of the private units. |
(2) | As of March 31, 2019, Everstone Investments LLC, our sponsor, had loaned to us an aggregate of $225,000 to be used to pay formation and a portion of the expenses of this offering. The loan is payable without interest on the date on which we consummate our initial public offering. |
(3) | Assumes the over-allotment option has not been exercised and an aggregate of 150,000 insider shares have been forfeited by our insiders as a result thereof. Includes 220,000 shares underlying the private units purchased by Everstone Investments LLC and Chardan Capital Markets, LLC concurrent with this offering. |
(4) | Derived by taking 3,430,758 shares which may be redeemed, representing the maximum number of shares that may be converted while maintaining at least $5,000,001 in net tangible assets after the offering, multiplied by $10.00. |
(5) | Derived by adding deferred underwriting discounts and commissions payable, total stockholders’ equity and the value of shares of common stock subject to possible conversion. |
MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS
OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS
We were formed on October 22, 2018 for the purpose of entering into a merger, share exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, recapitalization, reorganization or other similar business combination with one or more target businesses. Our efforts to identify a prospective target business will not be limited to any particular industry or geographic region, although we intend to focus on target businesses in and around the high-tech industry in the United States. We intend to utilize cash derived from the proceeds of this offering and the private placement of the private units, our securities, debt or a combination of cash, securities and debt, in effecting our initial business combination. The issuance of additional shares of common stock or preferred stock in our initial business combination:
● | may significantly dilute the equity interest of our investors in this offering who would not have pre-emption rights in respect of any such issuance; |
● | may subordinate the rights of holders of shares of common stock if we issue shares of preferred stock with rights senior to those afforded to our shares of common stock; |
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● | will likely cause a change in control if a substantial number of our shares of common stock are issued, which may affect, among other things, our ability to use our net operating loss carry forwards, if any, and most likely will also result in the resignation or removal of our present officers and directors; and |
● | may adversely affect prevailing market prices for our securities. |
Similarly, if we issue debt securities, it could result in:
● | default and foreclosure on our assets if our operating revenues after our initial business combination are insufficient to pay our debt obligations; |
● | acceleration of our obligations to repay the indebtedness even if we have made all principal and interest payments when due if the debt security contains covenants that required the maintenance of certain financial ratios or reserves and we breach any such covenant without a waiver or renegotiation of that covenant; |
● | our immediate payment of all principal and accrued interest, if any, if the debt security is payable on demand; |
● | our inability to obtain additional financing, if necessary, if the debt security contains covenants restricting our ability to obtain additional financing while such security is outstanding; and |
● | limitations on our ability to borrow additional amounts for expenses, capital expenditures, acquisitions, debt service requirements, execution of our strategy and other purposes and other disadvantages compared to our competitors who have less debt. |
We have neither engaged in any operations nor generated any revenues to date. Our entire activity since inception has been to prepare for our proposed fundraising through an offering of our equity securities.
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
As indicated in the accompanying financial statements, at March 31, 2019, we had $127,494 in cash and a working capital deficiency of $98,369. 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. Our plans to raise capital or 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.
Our liquidity needs have been satisfied to date through receipt of $25,000 from the sale of the insider shares and a loan from an insider in the aggregate principal amount of $225,000 that is more fully described below. We estimate that the net proceeds from (1) the sale of the units in this offering, after deducting offering expenses of approximately $500,000 and underwriting discounts and commissions (not including the deferred underwriting discounts and commissions) of $1,200,000 (or $1,380,000 if the over-allotment option is exercised in full) and (2) the sale of the private units for an aggregate purchase price of $2,200,000 (or $2,380,000 if the over-allotment option is exercised in full), will be $40,500,000 (or $46,500,000 if the over-allotment option is exercised in full). Of this amount, $40,000,000 (or $46,000,000 if the over-allotment option is exercised in full) will be held in the trust account. The remaining approximately $500,000 will not be held in the trust account.
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We intend to use substantially all of the net proceeds of this offering, including the funds held in the trust account, in connection with our initial business combination and to pay our expenses relating thereto, including deferred underwriting discounts and commissions payable to Chardan Capital Markets, LLC in an amount equal to 3.0% of the total gross proceeds raised in the offering upon consummation of our initial business combination. To the extent that our capital stock is used in whole or in part as consideration to effect our initial business combination, the remaining proceeds held in the trust account as well as any other net proceeds not expended will be used as working capital to finance the operations of the target business. Such working capital funds could be used in a variety of ways including continuing or expanding the target business’ operations, for strategic acquisitions and for marketing, research and development of existing or new products. Such funds could also be used to repay any operating expenses or finders’ fees which we had incurred prior to the completion of our initial business combination if the funds available to us outside of the trust account were insufficient to cover such expenses.
Over the next 12 months (assuming a business combination is not consummated prior thereto), we will be using the funds held outside of the trust account for identifying and evaluating prospective acquisition candidates, performing business due diligence on prospective target businesses, traveling to and from the offices, plants or similar locations of prospective target businesses, reviewing corporate documents and material agreements of prospective target businesses, selecting the target business to acquire and structuring, negotiating and consummating the business combination. Out of the funds available outside the trust account, we anticipate that we will incur approximately:
● | $100,000 of expenses for the search for target businesses and for the legal, accounting and other third-party expenses attendant to the due diligence investigations, structuring and negotiating of a business combination; |
● | $70,000 of expenses for the due diligence and investigation of a target business by our officers, directors and initial shareholder; |
● | $40,000 of expenses in legal and accounting fees relating to our SEC reporting obligations; and; |
● | $290,000 for general working capital that will be used for miscellaneous expenses, D&O insurance, Delaware Franchise Taxes, liquidation obligations, reserves and for general corporate purposes. |
If our estimates of the costs of undertaking due diligence and negotiating our initial business combination are less than the actual amount necessary to do so, or the amount of interest available to us from the trust account is less than we expect as a result of the current interest rate environment, we may have insufficient funds available to operate our business prior to our initial business combination. Moreover, we may need to obtain additional financing either to consummate our initial business combination or because we become obligated to convert a significant number of our public shares upon consummation of our initial business combination, in which case we may issue additional securities or incur debt in connection with such business combination. Subject to compliance with applicable securities laws, we would only consummate such financing simultaneously with the consummation of our initial business combination. Following our initial business combination, if cash on hand is insufficient, we may need to obtain additional financing in order to meet our obligations.
Related Party Transactions
As of March 31, 2019, Everstone Investments LLC, a company jointly owned by Wei Chen, our chief executive officer, and Ming-Yang Wang loaned to us an aggregate of $225,000 on a non-interest bearing basis for payment of offering expenses on our behalf. The loans will be repaid out of the proceeds of this offering not being placed in the trust account.
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Our sponsor Everstone Investments LLC and Chardan Capital Markets, LLC have committed to purchase from us an aggregate of 220,000 private units at $10.00 per private unit (for a total purchase price of $2,200,000). Everstone Investments LLC and Chardan Capital Markets, LLC have also agreed that if the over-allotment option is exercised by the underwriters, they will purchase from us at a price of $10.00 per private unit an additional number of private units (up to a maximum of 18,000 private units) pro rata with the amount of the over-allotment option exercised so that at least $10.00 per share sold to the public in this offering is held in trust regardless of whether the over-allotment option is exercised in full or part. These additional private units will be purchased in a private placement that will occur simultaneously with the purchase of units resulting from the exercise of the over-allotment option.
If needed to finance transaction costs in connection with searching for a target business or consummating an intended initial business combination, our initial stockholders, officers, directors or their affiliates may, but are not obligated to, loan us funds as may be required. In the event that the 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 for such repayment. Such loans would be evidenced by promissory notes. The notes would either be paid upon consummation of our initial business combination, without interest, or, at the lender’s discretion, up to $500,000 of the notes may be converted upon consummation of our business combination into private units at a price of $10.00 per unit (which, for example, would result in the holders being issued units to acquire 55,000 shares of common stock (which includes 5,000 shares issuable upon conversion of rights) and warrants to purchase 25,000 shares of common stock if $500,000 of notes were so converted). We believe the purchase price of these units will approximate the fair value of such units when issued. However, if it is determined, at the time of issuance, that the fair value of such private warrants exceeds the purchase price, we would record compensation expense for the excess of the fair value of the private warrants on the day of issuance over the purchase price in accordance with Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) 718 — Compensation — Stock Compensation.
Controls and Procedures
We are not currently required to maintain an effective system of internal control as defined by Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. We will be required to comply with the internal control requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2020. As of the date of this prospectus, we have not completed an assessment, nor has our independent registered public accounting firm tested our systems, of internal control. We expect to assess the internal control 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 control. A target business may not be in compliance with the provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act regarding the adequacy of internal control. Target businesses we may consider for our initial business combination may have internal controls that need improvement in areas such as:
● | staffing for financial, accounting and external reporting areas, including segregation of duties; |
● | reconciliation of accounts; |
● | proper recording of expenses and liabilities in the period to which they relate; |
● | evidence of internal review and approval of accounting transactions; |
● | documentation of processes, assumptions and conclusions underlying significant estimates; and |
● | 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.
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When required by Section 404 and once our management’s report on internal control is complete, we will retain our independent registered public accounting firm to audit and render an opinion on such report. This independent registered public accounting firm may identify additional issues concerning a target business’s internal control while performing its audit of internal control over financial reporting.
Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk
The net proceeds of this offering and the sale of the private units held in the trust account will be invested in U.S. government treasury bills with a maturity of 180 days or less or in money market funds meeting certain conditions under Rule 2a-7 under the Investment Company Act of 1940 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.
Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements; Commitments and Contractual Obligations; Quarterly Results
As of the date of this prospectus, 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.
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 such, our financial statements may not be comparable to companies that comply with public company effective dates.
Introduction
We are a blank check company formed under the laws of the State of Delaware on October 22, 2018. We were formed for the purpose of effecting a merger, share exchange, asset acquisition, share purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses, which we refer to throughout this prospectus as our initial business combination. Our efforts to identify a prospective target business will not be limited to a particular geographic region or industry, although we intent to focus on the high-tech industry in the United States. We do not have any specific business combination under consideration or contemplation, and we have not, nor has anyone on our behalf, contacted any prospective target business or had any discussions, formal or otherwise, with respect to such a transaction.
Background and Competitive Strengths
We believe the experience and contacts of our management team will give us distinct advantages in sourcing, structuring and consummating acquisition transactions. However, none of our management team is obligated to remain with the company after an acquisition transaction, and we cannot provide assurance that the resignation or retention of our current management will be a term or condition in any agreement relating to an acquisition transaction. Moreover, despite the competitive advantages we believe we have, we remain subject to significant competition with respect to identifying and executing an acquisition transaction.
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Acquisition Strategy
Based on the collective business and acquisition experiences of our management team, our management will seek to identify and target businesses in the technology industry in which our management can assist in the growth and development. Our management intends to acquire a target cash-positive operating business or businesses that it believes can achieve long-term appreciation. Given our management team’s collective track record of transactions and industry contacts, we believe we can identify potential targets and successfully negotiate and consummate our initial acquisition transaction, although we cannot provide any assurance that an acquisition transaction will be consummated. In addition, we believe the target business will benefit from our involvement, including through the potential strategic relationships we can introduce, as well by our assisting the target in areas such as intellectual property and corporate financing. Our selection process will also leverage our team’s network of industry, private equity and venture capital sponsor relationships as well as relationships with management teams of public and private companies, investment bankers, attorneys and accountants that we believe should provide us with significant acquisition transaction opportunities.
Opportunities in the Technology, Media and Telecommunications Industry
We believe there are significant opportunities in the Technology, Media and Telecommunications Industries globally due to the following factors:
● | Technologies becoming more affordable and accessible |
Consumers and businesses are benefiting from the falling costs of technologies. From smart phones, to self-driving cars, to smart manufacturing, to gene sequencing, new applications of the technologies are becoming more affordable than ever.
● | Emerging technologies driving continued industry growth |
The technology, media and telecommunications industries continue to evolve rapidly, which has fostered innovation in products, services and business models globally. Technologies such as 5G networks, artificial intelligence, smart devices, quantum computers, and cloud computing have made remarkable advancements in the last decade and are on the verge of some major breakthrough. We believe that these exciting developments will continue to allow the industries to keep up its growth momentum.
● | Businesses increasingly using technologies to improve productivities |
The widespread adoption of consumer-centric technologies has over time driven down the costs of research and development and production, improved data security, and eased the learning curve for business users. As technology infrastructure becomes more readily available and cost effective, traditional businesses are more willing to improve their operations through the use of technologies.
Investment Criteria
We have identified the following general criteria that we believe are important in evaluating candidates for our initial business combination.
● | Enterprise Value. We will seek to acquire one or more acquisition targets that have a combined enterprise value of at least $150 million and up to $300 million |
● | Post-Acquisition Growth. We are committed to identifying one or more companies that we believe will either experience continued substantial organic growth post acquisition or present the opportunities for add-on acquisitions through identification of multiple actionable target companies. |
● | Strong Management Team. We will seek to identify companies with strong and experienced public-ready management teams. Specifically, we will look for management teams that have a proven track record of driving revenue and value creation for their shareholders. |
● | Leadership Position. We will seek to identify one or more companies that have a leadership position in their industry or a defensible niche within a target market as a result of differentiated technology or other competitive advantages. |
● | Benefit from Being a Public Company. We intend to only acquire a business or businesses that will benefit from being publicly traded for access to broader sources of capital, greater visibility and expanded branding awareness in the market. |
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Effecting Our Initial Business Combination
General
We are not presently engaged in, and we will not engage in, any substantive commercial business for an indefinite period of time following this offering. We intend to utilize cash derived from the proceeds of this offering and the private placement of private units, our capital stock, debt or a combination of these in effecting our initial business combination. Although substantially all of the net proceeds of this offering and the private placement of private units are intended to be applied generally toward effecting a business combination as described in this prospectus, the proceeds are not otherwise being designated for any more specific purposes. Accordingly, investors in this offering are investing without first having an opportunity to evaluate the specific merits or risks of any one or more business combinations. Our initial business combination may involve the acquisition of, or merger with, a company which does not need substantial additional capital but which desires to establish a public trading market for its shares. In the alternative, we may seek to consummate a business combination with a company that may be financially unstable or in its early stages of development or growth. While we may seek to effect simultaneous business combinations with more than one target business, we will probably have the ability, as a result of our limited resources, to effect only a single business combination.
We Have Not Identified a Target Business
To date, we have not selected any target business on which to concentrate our search for a business combination. None of our officers, directors, initial stockholders and other affiliates has engaged in discussions on our behalf with representatives of other companies regarding the possibility of a potential merger, share exchange, asset acquisition or other similar business combination with us, nor have we, nor any of our agents or affiliates, been approached by any candidates (or representatives of any candidates) with respect to a possible business combination with our company.
Subject to the limitations that a target business have a fair market value of at least 80% of the balance in the trust account (excluding any deferred underwriting discounts and commissions and taxes payable on the income earned on the trust account) at the time of the execution of a definitive agreement for our initial business combination, as described below in more detail, we will have virtually unrestricted flexibility in identifying and selecting a prospective acquisition candidate. We have not established any other specific attributes or criteria (financial or otherwise) for prospective target businesses. Accordingly, there is no basis for investors in this offering to evaluate the possible merits or risks of the target business with which we may ultimately complete a business combination. To the extent we effect a business combination with a company or an entity in its early stage of development or growth, including entities without established records of sales or earnings, we may be affected by numerous risks inherent in the business and operations of early stage or potential emerging growth companies. Although our management will endeavor to evaluate the risks inherent in a particular target business, we cannot assure you that we will properly ascertain or assess all significant risk factors.
Sources of Target Businesses
While we have not yet identified any initial business combination candidates, we believe based on our management’s business knowledge and past experience that there are numerous business combination candidates. We anticipate that target business candidates will be brought to our attention from various unaffiliated sources, including investment bankers, venture capital funds, private equity funds, leveraged buyout funds, management buyout funds and other members of the financial community. Target businesses may be brought to our attention by such unaffiliated sources as a result of being solicited by us through calls or mailings. 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 officers and directors, as well as their affiliates, may also bring to our attention target business candidates that they become aware of through their business contacts as a result of formal or informal inquiries or discussions they may have, as well as attending trade shows or conventions. We may engage professional firms or other individuals that specialize in business acquisitions or mergers in the future, in which event we may pay a finder’s fee, consulting fee or other compensation to be determined in an arm’s length negotiation based on the terms of the transaction. In no event, however, will our insiders or any of the members of our management team be paid any finder’s fee, consulting fee or other compensation prior to, or for any services they render in order to effectuate, the consummation of our initial business combination (regardless of the type of transaction that it is). We have no present intention to enter into a business combination with a target business that is affiliated with any of our officers, directors, director nominees or insiders. However, we are not restricted from entering into any such transactions and may do so if (1) such transaction is approved by a majority of our disinterested and independent directors (if we have any at that time) and (2) we obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm that the business combination is fair to our unaffiliated stockholders from a financial point of view. As of the date of this prospectus, there are no affiliated entities that we would consider as a business combination target.
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Selection of a Target Business and Structuring of Our Initial Business Combination
Subject to our management team’s fiduciary duties and the limitation that one or more target businesses have an aggregate fair market value of at least 80% of the value of the trust account (excluding any deferred underwriting discounts and commissions and taxes payable on the income earned on the trust account) at the time of the execution of a definitive agreement for our initial business combination, as described below in more detail, our management will have virtually unrestricted flexibility in identifying and selecting a prospective target business. Additionally, there is no limitation on our ability to raise funds privately or through loans in connection with our initial business combination. We have not established any specific attributes or criteria (financial or otherwise) for prospective target businesses.
Accordingly, there is no basis for investors in this offering to evaluate the possible merits or risks of the target business with which we may ultimately complete a business combination. To the extent we effect our initial business combination with a financially unstable company or an entity in its early stage of development or growth, including entities without established records of sales or earnings, we may be affected by numerous risks inherent in the business and operations of financially unstable and early stage or potential emerging growth companies. The valuation of a financially unstable company or early stage company can be more complicated than the calculation of a mature, stable company, and any valuation we make on such a company would be based, in part, on its prospects and how successful we believe the business will be once the company matures or is stabilized. Although our management will endeavor to evaluate the risks inherent in a particular target business, we may not properly ascertain or assess all significant risk factors. In evaluating a prospective target business, our management may consider a variety of factors, including one or more of the following:
● | financial condition and results of operation; |
● | growth potential; |
● | brand recognition and potential; |
● | return on equity or invested capital; |
● | market capitalization or enterprise value; |
● | experience and skill of management and availability of additional personnel; |
● | capital requirements; |
● | competitive position; |
● | barriers to entry; |
● | stage of development of the products, processes or services; |
● | existing distribution and potential for expansion; |
● | degree of current or potential market acceptance of the products, processes or services; |
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● | proprietary aspects of products and the extent of intellectual property or other protection for products or formulas; |
● | impact of regulation on the business; |
● | regulatory environment of the industry; |
● | costs associated with effecting the business combination; |
● | industry leadership, sustainability of market share and attractiveness of market industries in which a target business participates; and |
● | macro competitive dynamics in the industry within which the company competes. |
These criteria are not intended to be exhaustive. Our management may not consider any of the above criteria in evaluating a prospective target business. The retention of our officers and directors following the completion of any business combination will not be a material consideration in our evaluation of a prospective target business.
Any evaluation relating to the merits of a particular business combination will be based, to the extent relevant, on the above factors as well as other considerations deemed relevant by our management in effecting a business combination consistent with our business objective. In evaluating a prospective target business, we will conduct an extensive due diligence review which will encompass, among other things, meetings with incumbent management and inspection of facilities, as well as review of financial and other information which is made available to us. This due diligence review will be conducted either by our management or by unaffiliated third parties we may engage, although we have no current intention to engage any such third parties.
The time and costs required to select and evaluate a target business and to structure and complete our initial business combination remain to be determined. Any costs incurred with respect to the identification and evaluation of a prospective target business with which a business combination is not ultimately completed will result in a loss to us and reduce the amount of capital available to otherwise complete a business combination.
Fair Market Value of Target Business
Pursuant to Nasdaq listing rules, our initial business combination must occur with one or more target businesses having an aggregate fair market value equal to at least 80% of the value of the funds in the trust account (excluding any deferred underwriting discounts and commissions and taxes payable on the income earned on the trust account), which we refer to as the 80% test, at the time of the execution of a definitive agreement for our initial business combination, although we may structure a business combination with one or more target businesses whose fair market value significantly exceeds 80% of the trust account balance. If we are no longer listed on Nasdaq, we will not be required to satisfy the 80% test.
We currently anticipate structuring a business combination to acquire 100% of the equity interests or assets of the target business or businesses. We may, however, structure a business combination where we merge directly with the target business or where we acquire 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, but we will only complete such business combination if the post-transaction company owns 50% or more of the outstanding voting securities of the target or otherwise owns a controlling interest in the target sufficient for it not to be required to register as an investment company under the Investment Company Act. Even if the post-transaction company owns 50% or more of the voting securities of the target, our stockholders prior to the business combination may collectively own a minority interest in the post-transaction 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 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 is what will be valued for purposes of the 80% test. In order to consummate such an acquisition, we may issue a significant amount of our debt or equity securities to the sellers of such businesses and/or seek to raise additional funds through a private offering of debt or equity securities. Since we have no specific business combination under consideration, we have not entered into any such fund raising arrangement and have no current intention of doing so. The fair market value of the target will be determined by our board of directors based upon one or more standards generally accepted by the financial community (such as actual and potential sales, earnings, cash flow and/or book value). We are not required to obtain an opinion from an unaffiliated third party that the target business we select has a fair market value in excess of at least 80% of the balance of the trust account unless our board of directors cannot make such determination on its own. The board of directors, in light of its fiduciary obligation to stockholders, would be required to determine whether it is capable of valuing the target company based on the experience of its members in valuing companies and whether the board was actually able to reach a determination of value with respect to the particular target company.
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Lack of Business Diversification
For an indefinite period of time after consummation 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 consummating our initial business combination with only a single entity, our lack of diversification may:
● | subject us to negative economic, competitive and regulatory developments, 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 |
● | result in our dependency upon the performance of a single operating business or the development or market acceptance of a single or limited number of products, processes or services. |
Limited Ability to Evaluate the Target Business’ Management Team
Although we intend to scrutinize the management team of a prospective target business when evaluating the desirability of effecting our initial business combination, our assessment of the target business’ management team may not prove to be correct. In addition, the future management team may not have the necessary skills, qualifications or abilities to manage a public company. Furthermore, the future role of our officers and directors, if any, in the target business following our initial business combination remains to be determined. While it is possible that some of our key personnel will remain associated in senior management or advisory positions with us following our initial business combination, it is unlikely that they will devote their full time efforts to our affairs subsequent to our initial business combination. Moreover, they would only be able to remain with the company after the consummation of our initial business combination 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 them to receive compensation in the form of cash payments and/or our securities for services they would render to the company after the consummation of the business combination. While the personal and financial interests of our key personnel may influence their motivation in identifying and selecting a target business, their ability to remain with the company after the consummation 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. Additionally, our officers and directors may not have significant experience or knowledge relating to the operations of the particular target business.
Following our initial business combination, we may seek to recruit additional managers to supplement the incumbent management of the target business. We may not have the ability to recruit additional managers, or that any such additional managers we do recruit will have the requisite skills, knowledge or experience necessary to enhance the incumbent management.
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Stockholders May Not Have the Ability to Approve an Initial Business Combination
In connection with any proposed business combination, we will either (1) seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination at a meeting called for such purpose at which public stockholders may seek to convert their public shares, regardless of whether they vote for or against the proposed business combination, into their pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account (net of taxes payable) or (2) provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to sell their public shares to us by means of a tender offer (and thereby avoid the need for a stockholder vote) for an amount equal to their pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account (net of taxes payable), in each case subject to the limitations described herein. Notwithstanding the foregoing, our initial stockholders have agreed, pursuant to written letter agreements with us, not to convert any public shares held by them into their pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account. If we determine to engage in a tender offer, such tender offer will be structured so that each stockholder may tender any or all of his, her or its public shares rather than some pro rata portion of his, her or its shares. 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 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. If we so choose and we are legally permitted to do so, we have the flexibility to avoid a stockholder vote and allow our stockholders to sell their shares pursuant to Rule 13e-4 and Regulation 14E of the Exchange Act which regulate issuer tender offers. In that case, we will file tender offer documents with the SEC which will contain substantially the same financial and other information about the initial business combination as is required under the SEC’s proxy rules. We will consummate our initial business combination only if we have net tangible assets of at least $5,000,001 upon such consummation and, solely if we seek stockholder approval, a majority of the issued and outstanding shares of common stock voted are voted in favor of the business combination.
We chose our net tangible asset threshold of $5,000,001 to ensure that we would avoid being subject to Rule 419 promulgated under the Securities Act. However, if we seek to consummate an initial business combination with a target business that imposes any type of working capital closing condition or requires us to have a minimum amount of funds available from the trust account upon consummation of such initial business combination, our net tangible asset threshold may limit our ability to consummate such initial business combination (as we may be required to have a lesser number of shares converted or sold to us) and may force us to seek third party financing which may not be available on terms acceptable to us or at all. As a result, we may not be able to consummate such initial business combination and we may not be able to locate another suitable target within the applicable time period, if at all. Public stockholders may therefore have to wait 24 months from the closing of this offering in order to be able to receive a pro rata share of the trust account.
Our initial stockholders and our officers and directors have agreed (1) to vote any shares of common stock owned by them in favor of any proposed business combination, (2) not to convert any shares of common stock in connection with a stockholder vote to approve a proposed initial business combination and (3) not sell any shares of common stock in any tender in connection with a proposed initial business combination. As a result, if we sought stockholder approval of a proposed transaction, we would need only 85,001 of our public shares (or approximately 2.13% of our public shares) to be voted in favor of the transaction in order to have such transaction approved (assuming that only a quorum was present at the meeting, that the over-allotment option is not exercised, that Chardan votes in favor of the transaction, and that the initial stockholders do not purchase any units in this offering or units or shares in the after-market).
None of our officers, directors, initial stockholders or their affiliates has indicated any intention to purchase units or shares of common stock in this offering or from persons in the open market or in private transactions. However, if we hold a meeting to approve a proposed business combination and a significant number of stockholders vote, or indicate an intention to vote, against such proposed business combination, our officers, directors, initial stockholders or their affiliates could make such purchases in the open market or in private transactions in order to influence the vote. Notwithstanding the foregoing, our officers, directors, initial stockholders and their affiliates will not make purchases of common stock if the purchases would violate Section 9(a)(2) or Rule 10b-5 of the Exchange Act, which are rules designed to stop potential manipulation of a company’s stock.
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Conversion/Tender Rights
At any meeting called to approve an initial business combination, public stockholders may seek to convert their public shares, regardless of whether they vote for or against the proposed business combination, into their pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, less any taxes then due but not yet paid. Notwithstanding the foregoing, our initial stockholders have agreed, pursuant to written letter agreements with us, not to convert any public shares held by them into their pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account. If we hold a meeting to approve an initial business combination, a holder will always have the ability to vote against a proposed business combination and not seek conversion of his shares.
Alternatively, if we engage in a tender offer, each public stockholder will be provided the opportunity to sell his public shares to us in such tender offer. The tender offer rules require us to hold the tender offer open for at least 20 business days. Accordingly, this is the minimum amount of time we would need to provide holders to determine whether they want to sell their public shares to us in the tender offer or remain an investor in our company.
Our initial stockholders, officers and directors will not have conversion rights with respect to any shares of common stock owned by them, directly or indirectly, whether acquired prior to this offering or purchased by them in this offering or in the aftermarket.
We may also require public stockholders, whether they are a record holder or hold their shares in “street name,” to either tender their certificates (if any) to our transfer agent or to deliver their shares to the transfer agent electronically using Depository Trust Company’s DWAC (Deposit/Withdrawal At Custodian) System, at the holder’s option, at any time at or prior to the vote on the business combination. The proxy solicitation materials that we will furnish to stockholders in connection with the vote for any proposed business combination will indicate whether we are requiring stockholders to satisfy such delivery requirements. Accordingly, a stockholder would have from the time our proxy statement is mailed through the vote on the business combination to deliver his shares if he wishes to seek to exercise his conversion rights. Under Delaware law and our bylaws, we are required to provide at least 10 days’ advance notice of any stockholder meeting, which would be the minimum amount of time a stockholder would have to determine whether to exercise conversion rights. As a result, if we require public stockholders who wish to convert their shares of common stock into the right to receive a pro rata portion of the funds in the trust account to comply with the foregoing delivery requirements, holders may not have sufficient time to receive the notice and deliver their shares for conversion. Accordingly, investors may not be able to exercise their conversion rights and may be forced to retain our securities when they otherwise would not want to.
There is a nominal cost associated with this 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 $45 and it would be up to the broker whether or not to pass this cost on to the converting holder. However, this fee would be incurred regardless of whether or not we require holders seeking to exercise conversion rights. The need to deliver shares is a requirement of exercising conversion rights regardless of the timing of when such delivery must be effectuated. However, in the event we require stockholders seeking to exercise conversion rights to deliver their shares prior to the consummation of the proposed business combination and the proposed business combination is not consummated, this may result in an increased cost to stockholders.
Any request to convert or tender such shares once made, may be withdrawn at any time up to the vote on the proposed business combination or expiration of the tender offer. Furthermore, if a holder of a public share delivered his certificate in connection with an election of their conversion or tender and subsequently decides prior to the vote on the business combination or the expiration of the tender offer not to elect to exercise such rights, he may simply request that the transfer agent return the certificate (physically or electronically).
If the initial business combination is not approved or completed for any reason, then our public stockholders who elected to exercise their conversion or tender rights would not be entitled to convert their shares for the applicable pro rata share of the trust account. In such case, we will promptly return any shares delivered by public holders.
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Automatic Liquidation of Trust Account if No Business Combination
If we do not complete a business combination within 12 months (or 21 months, as applicable) 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 100% of the outstanding public shares 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 (ii) and (iii) above) to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. However, if we anticipate that we may not be able to consummate our initial business combination within 12 months (or 21 months, as applicable), we may, but are not obligated to, extend the period of another three months to consummate a business combination. Pursuant to the terms of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and the trust agreement to be entered into between us and American Stock Transfer & Trust Company, LLC on the date of this prospectus, in order to extend the time available for us to consummate our initial business combination, our insiders or their affiliates or designees, upon five days advance notice prior to the applicable deadline, must deposit into the trust account $400,000, or $460,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full ($0.10 per share in either case) on or prior to the date of the applicable deadline. The insiders will receive a non-interest bearing, unsecured promissory note equal to the amount of any such deposit that will not be repaid in the event that we are unable to close a business combination unless there are funds available outside the trust account to do so. Such notes would either be paid upon consummation of our initial business combination, or, at the lender’s discretion, converted upon consummation of our business combination into additional private units at a price of $10.00 per unit. Our stockholders have approved the issuance of the private units upon conversion of such notes, to the extent the holder wishes to so convert such notes at the time of the consummation of our initial business combination. In the event that we receive notice from our insiders five days prior to the applicable deadline of their intent to effect an extension, we intend to issue a press release announcing such intention at least three days prior to the applicable deadline. In addition, we intend to issue a press release the day after the applicable deadline announcing whether or not the funds had been timely deposited. Our insiders and their affiliates or designees are not obligated to fund the trust account to extend the time for us to complete our initial business combination. To the extent that some, but not all, of our insiders, decide to extend the period of time to consummate our initial business combination, such insiders (or their affiliates or designees) may deposit the entire amount required. If we do extend the period of time to consummate our initial business combination as described above, we would follow the same liquidation procedures described above if we do not complete a business combination by the end of the extended period. At such time, the rights and warrants will expire and holders of rights or warrants will receive nothing upon a liquidation with respect to such rights, and the rights and warrants will be worthless.
Under the Delaware General Corporation Law, 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 100% of our outstanding public shares in the event we do not complete our initial business combination within the required time period may be considered a liquidation distribution under Delaware law. If the corporation complies with certain procedures set forth in Section 280 of the Delaware General Corporation Law 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 redemptions are made to stockholders, any liability of stockholders with respect to a redemption 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 100% of our public shares in the event we do not complete our initial business combination within the required time period is not considered a liquidation distribution under Delaware law and such redemption distribution is deemed to be unlawful, then pursuant to Section 174 of the Delaware General Corporation Law, 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 liquidation distribution. It is our intention to redeem our public shares as soon as reasonably possible following the 18 th month from the closing of this offering and, therefore, we do not intend to comply with the above 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.
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Because we will not be complying with Section 280 of the Delaware General Corporation Law, Section 281(b) of the Delaware General Corporation Law 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 seeking to complete an initial business combination, the only likely claims to arise would be from our vendors (such as lawyers, investment bankers, etc.) or prospective target businesses.
We will seek to have all third parties (including any vendors or other entities we engage after this offering) and any prospective target businesses enter into valid and enforceable agreements with us waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind they may have in or to any monies held in the trust account. The underwriters in this offering will execute such a waiver agreement.
As a result, the claims that could be made against us will be limited, thereby lessening the likelihood that any claim would result in any liability extending to the trust. We therefore believe that any necessary provision for creditors will be reduced and should not have a significant impact on our ability to distribute the funds in the trust account to our public stockholders. Nevertheless, there is no guarantee that vendors, service providers and prospective target businesses will execute such agreements. In the event that a potential contracted party was to refuse to execute such a waiver, we will execute an agreement with that entity only if our management first determines that we would be unable to obtain, on a reasonable basis, substantially similar services or opportunities from another entity willing to execute such a waiver. Examples of instances where we may engage a third party that refused to execute a waiver would be the engagement of a third party consultant who cannot sign such an agreement due to regulatory restrictions, such as our auditors who are unable to sign due to independence requirements, or whose particular expertise or skills are believed by management to be superior to those of other consultants that would agree to execute a waiver or a situation in which management does not believe it would be able to find a provider of required services willing to provide the waiver. There is also no guarantee that, even if they execute such agreements with us, they will not seek recourse against the trust account. Wei Chen, our chief executive officer, has agreed that she will be liable to us if and to the extent any claims by a vendor for services rendered or products sold to us, or 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 $10.00 per public share, except as to any claims by a third party who executed a valid and enforceable agreement with us waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind they may have in or to any monies held in 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. However, Ms. Wei Chen may not be able to satisfy her indemnification obligations, as we have not required her to retain any assets to provide for her indemnification obligations, nor have we taken any further steps to ensure that she will be able to satisfy any indemnification obligations that arise. Moreover, Ms. Wei Chen will not be liable to our public stockholders and instead will only have liability to us. As a result, if we liquidate, the per-share distribution from the trust account could be less than approximately $10.00 (whether or not the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) due to claims or potential claims of creditors. We will distribute to all of our public stockholders, in proportion to their respective equity interests, an aggregate sum equal to the amount then held in the trust account, inclusive of any interest not previously released to us, subject to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors as described below.
If we are unable to consummate an initial business combination and are forced to redeem 100% of our outstanding public shares for a portion of the funds held in the trust account, we anticipate notifying the trustee of the trust account to begin liquidating such assets promptly after such date and anticipate it will take no more than 10 business days to effectuate the redemption of our public shares. Our insiders have waived their rights to participate in any redemption with respect to their insider shares. We will pay the costs of any subsequent liquidation from our remaining assets outside of the trust account and from the interest income on the balance of the trust account (net income and other tax obligations) that may be released to us to fund our working capital requirements. If such funds are insufficient, our sponsor has agreed to pay the funds necessary to complete such liquidation (currently anticipated to be no more than approximately $18,500) and has agreed not to seek repayment of such expenses. Each holder of public shares will receive a full pro rata portion of the amount then in the trust account, plus any pro rata interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us or necessary to pay our taxes. The proceeds deposited in the trust account could, however, become subject to claims of our creditors that are in preference to the claims of public stockholders.
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Our public stockholders shall be entitled to receive funds from the trust account only in the event of our failure to complete our initial business combination in the required time period or if the stockholders seek to have us convert their respective shares of common stock upon a business combination which is actually completed by us. In no other circumstances shall a stockholder have any right or interest of any kind to or in the trust account.
If we are forced to file a bankruptcy case or an involuntary bankruptcy case is filed against us which 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, the per share redemption or conversion amount received by public stockholders may be less than $10.00.
If, after we distribute the proceeds in the trust account to our public stockholders, 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 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, thereby exposing itself and us to claims of punitive damages, by paying public stockholders from the trust account prior to addressing the claims of creditors. Claims may be brought against us for these reasons.
Certificate of Incorporation
Our certificate of incorporation contains certain requirements and restrictions relating to this offering that will apply to us until the consummation of our initial business combination. If we hold a stockholder vote to amend any provisions of our certificate of incorporation relating to stockholder’s rights or pre-business combination activity (including the substance or timing within which we have to complete a business combination), we will provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their shares of common stock 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 us to pay our franchise and income taxes, divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, in connection with any such vote. Our insiders and Chardan have agreed to waive any conversion rights with respect to any insider shares, private shares and any public shares they may hold in connection with any vote to amend our certificate of incorporation. Specifically, our certificate of incorporation provides, among other things, that:
● | prior to the consummation of our initial business combination, we shall either (1) seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination at a meeting called for such purpose at which public stockholders may seek to convert their shares of common stock, regardless of whether they vote for or against the proposed business combination, into a portion of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, or (2) provide our stockholders with the opportunity to sell their shares to us by means of a tender offer (and thereby avoid the need for a stockholder vote) for an amount equal to their pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, in each case subject to the limitations described herein; |
● | we will consummate our initial business combination only if public stockholders do not exercise conversion rights in an amount that would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001 and a majority of the outstanding shares of common stock voted are voted in favor of the business combination; |
● | if our initial business combination is not consummated within 12 months of the closing of this offering (or up to 21 months from the closing of this offering if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination, as described in more detail elsewhere in this prospectus), then our existence will terminate and we will distribute all amounts in the trust account to all of our public holders of shares of common stock; |
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● | upon the consummation of this offering, $40,000,000, or $46,000,000 if the over-allotment option is exercised in full, shall be placed into the trust account; |
● | we may not consummate any other business combination, merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar transaction prior to our initial business combination; and |
● | prior to our initial business combination, we may not issue additional shares of capital stock that would entitle the holders thereof to (i) receive funds from the trust account or (ii) vote on any initial business combination. |
Potential Revisions to Agreements with Insiders
Each of our insiders has entered into letter agreements with us pursuant to which each of them has agreed to do certain things relating to us and our activities prior to a business combination. We could seek to amend these letter agreements without the approval of stockholders, although we have no intention to do so. In particular:
● | Restrictions relating to liquidating the trust account if we failed to consummate a business combination in the time-frames specified above could be amended, but only if we allowed all stockholders to redeem their shares in connection with such amendment; |
● | Restrictions relating to our insiders being required to vote in favor of a business combination or against any amendments to our organizational documents could be amended to allow our insiders to vote on a transaction as they wished; |
● | The requirement of members of the management team to remain our officer or director until the closing of a business combination could be amended to allow persons to resign from their positions with us if, for example, the current management team was having difficulty locating a target business and another management team had a potential target business; |
● | The restrictions on transfer of our securities could be amended to allow transfer to third parties who were not members of our original management team; |
● | The obligation of our management team to not propose amendments to our organizational documents could be amended to allow them to propose such changes to our stockholders; |
● | The obligation of insiders to not receive any compensation in connection with a business combination could be modified in order to allow them to receive such compensation; |
● | The requirement to obtain a valuation for any target business affiliated with our insiders, in the event it was too expensive to do so. |
Except as specified above, stockholders would not be required to be given the opportunity to redeem their shares in connection with such changes. Such changes could result in:
● | Our having an extended period of time to consummate a business combination (although with less in trust as a certain number of our stockholders would certainly redeem their shares in connection with any such extension); |
● | Our insiders being able to vote against a business combination or in favor of changes to our organizational documents; |
● | Our operations being controlled by a new management team that our stockholders did not elect to invest with; |
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● | Our insiders receiving compensation in connection with a business combination; and |
● | Our insiders closing a transaction with one of their affiliates without receiving an independent valuation of such business. |
We will not agree to any such changes unless we believed that such changes were in the best interests of our stockholders (for example, if we believed such a modification were necessary to complete a business combination). Each of our officers and directors have fiduciary obligations to us requiring that they act in our best interests and the best interests of our stockholders.
Competition
In identifying, evaluating and selecting a target business for our initial 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 significant experience identifying and effecting business combinations directly or through affiliates. Moreover, many of these competitors possess greater financial, technical, human and other resources than us. 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, the requirement that we acquire a target business or businesses having a fair market value equal to at least 80% of the value of the trust account (excluding any taxes payable) at the time of the agreement to enter into the business combination, our obligation to pay cash in connection with our public stockholders who exercise their redemption rights and the number of our outstanding warrants and the future dilution they potentially represent, may not be viewed favorably by certain target businesses. Any of these factors may place us at a competitive disadvantage in successfully negotiating our initial business combination.
Facilities
We currently maintain our principal executive offices at 555 Madison Avenue, Room 543, New York, NY 10022. The cost for this space is provided to us by our sponsor, at no cost. We consider our current office space, combined with the other office space otherwise available to our executive officers, adequate for our current operations.
Employees
We have one executive officer, Ms. Wei Chen as the chief executive officer. She is not obligated to devote any specific number of hours to our matters and intend to devote only as much time as they deem necessary to our affairs. The amount of time they will devote in any time period will vary based on whether a target business has been selected for the business combination and the stage of the business combination process the company is in. Accordingly, once management locates a suitable target business to acquire, they will spend more time investigating such target business and negotiating and processing the business combination (and consequently spend more time to our affairs) than they would prior to locating a suitable target business. We presently expect our executive officers to devote such amount of time as they reasonably believe is necessary to our business (which could range from only a few hours a week while we are trying to locate a potential target business to a majority of their time as we move into serious negotiations with a target business for a business combination). We do not intend to have any full time employees prior to the consummation of a business combination.
Periodic Reporting and Audited Financial Statements
We have registered our units, common stocks, warrants and rights 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 report will contain financial statements audited and reported on by our independent registered public accountants.
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We will provide stockholders with audited financial statements of the prospective target business as part of any proxy solicitation materials or tender offer documents sent to stockholders to assist them in assessing the target business. These financial statements will need to be prepared in accordance with or reconciled to United States GAAP or IFRS as issued by the IASB. A particular target business identified by us as a potential business combination candidate may not have the necessary financial statements. To the extent that this requirement cannot be met, we may not be able to consummate our initial business combination with the proposed target business.
We may be required by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act to have our internal control over financial reporting audited for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2020. A target company may not be in compliance with the provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act regarding the adequacy of their internal control over financial reporting. The development of the internal control over financial reporting of any such entity to achieve compliance with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act may increase the time and costs necessary to complete any such initial business combination.
We are an emerging growth company as defined in the JOBS Act and will remain such for up to five years. However, if our non-convertible debt issued within a three-year period or our total revenues exceed $1.07 billion or the market value of our shares of common stock that are held by non-affiliates exceeds $700 million on the last day of the second fiscal quarter of any given fiscal year, we would cease to be an emerging growth company as of the following fiscal year. As an emerging growth company, we have elected, under Section 107(b) of the JOBS Act, to 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.
Legal Proceedings
There is no material litigation, arbitration or governmental proceeding currently pending against us or any of our officers or directors in their capacity as such, and we and our officers and directors have not been subject to any such proceeding in the 12 months preceding the date of this prospectus.
Comparison to Offerings 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 the Offering | Terms Under a Rule 419 Offering | |||
Escrow of offering proceeds | $40,000,000 of the net offering proceeds and proceeds from the sale of the private units will be deposited into a trust account in the United States at JP Morgan Chase, N.A., maintained by American Stock Transfer & Trust Company, LLC, acting as trustee. | $34,920,000 of the offering proceeds would be required to 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 | $40,000,000 of net offering proceeds and proceeds from the sale of the private units held in the trust account will be invested only in U.S. government treasury bills, bonds or notes with a maturity of 180 days or less or in money market funds meeting the applicable 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. | ||
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 value of the trust account (excluding any deferred underwriting discounts and 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. |
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Trading of securities issued | The units may commence trading on or promptly after the date of this prospectus. The common stock and rights comprising the units will begin to trade separately on the 90 th day after the date of this prospectus unless Chardan Capital Markets, LLC informs us of its decision to allow earlier separate trading (based upon its assessment of the relative strengths of the securities markets and small capitalization companies in general, and the trading pattern of, and demand for, our securities in particular), provided we have filed with the SEC a Current Report on Form 8-K, which includes an audited balance sheet reflecting our receipt of the proceeds of this offering. | No trading of the units or the underlying common stock and rights would be permitted until the completion of a business combination. During this period, the securities would be held in the escrow or trust account. | ||
Election to remain an investor | We will either (i) give our stockholders the opportunity to vote on the business combination or (ii) provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to sell their shares of our common stock for cash equal to their pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, less taxes. If we hold a meeting to approve a proposed business combination, we will send each stockholder a proxy statement containing information required by the SEC. Alternatively, if we do not hold a meeting and instead conduct a tender offer, we will conduct such tender offer in accordance with 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 as we would have included in a proxy statement. Under Delaware law and our bylaws, we must provide at least 10 days advance notice of any meeting of stockholders. Accordingly, this is the minimum amount of time we would need to provide holders to determine whether to exercise their rights to convert their shares into cash or to remain an investor in our company. | 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 he, she or it elects to remain a stockholder of the company or require the return of his, her or its investment. If the company has not received the notification by the end of the 45 th 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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Business combination deadline | Pursuant to our certificate of incorporation, if we are unable to complete our initial business combination within 12 months from the closing of this offering (or up to 21 months from the closing of this offering if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination, as described in more detail elsewhere in this prospectus), 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 100% of the outstanding public shares which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidation distributions, if any), subject to applicable law, 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 (ii) and (iii) above) to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. | 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. | ||
Interest earned on the funds in the trust account | There can be released to us, from time to time any interest earned on the funds in the trust account that we may need to pay our tax obligations. The remaining interest earned on the funds in the trust account will not be released until the earlier of the completion of a business combination and our entry into liquidation upon failure to effect a business combination within the allotted time. | 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. | ||
Release of funds | Except for interest earned on the funds held in the trust account that may be released to us to pay our tax obligations, the proceeds held in the trust account will not be released until the earlier of the completion of a business combination (in which case, the proceeds released to us will be net of the funds used to pay converting or tendering stockholders, as the trustee will directly send the appropriate portion of the amount held in trust to the converting or tendering stockholders at the time of the business combination) and the liquidation of our trust account upon failure to effect a business combination within the allotted time. | 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 the allotted time. |
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Directors and Executive Officers
Our current directors, director nominees and executive officers are as follows:
Name | Age | Position | ||
Wei Chen | 51 | Chief Executive Officer, Chairman and President | ||
Lu Zhou | 38 | Chief Financial Officer and Director | ||
Lihua Zheng | 41 | Independent Director | ||
Ling Wu | 50 | Independent Director | ||
Tony Chi Ming Chan | 51 | Independent Director |
Wei Chen has been our Chairman and President since our inception and was appointed as our chief executive officer in March, 2019. Ms. Chen has been an independent investor through her family office, Everpower International Holdings Co., Ltd. since January, 2009. She focuses on high technology, the greater health industry, and entertainment opportunities and helps create strategic plans for target companies. Ms. Chen has successfully helped multiple overseas technology companies moving their manufacturing operations to mainland China, including a graphene technology application company supported by Rutgers University and a Taiwanese organic photovoltaic solar cell company. She also helped these companies get local policy support and collaborate with Chinese private equity firms. Her family office has been authorized to act as the exclusive licensee by the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce to engage in certain Hollywood-related commercial activities in China. Ms. Chen is currently leading several projects such as a theme park and other Hollywood related real estate projects. Previously, Ms. Chen was an officer at the China General Administration of Customs from January 1989 to January 2009. She earned a degree in business management from Jiangsu Provincial Party School.
Lu Zhou has been our Chief Financial Officer and a director since May 2019. Ms. Zhou has served as the executive secretary and project manager at Capstone Capital Group, LLC, a company providing financing solutions for its clients, since January 2006, where she is responsible for research, evaluation and selection of qualified investment projects, negotiation of funding structure and finance terms, and investor relationships. She also works to facilitate communication between Capstone Capital Group, LLC and Chinese officials at different levels. Ms. Zhou holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management from the University of New Orleans.
Lihua Zheng has served as our independent director since December 2018. Mr. Zheng has served as the Director and Co-Founder of AnHeart Therapeutics Inc. since October 2018and of AnBio Inc. since December 2017, where he leads the operation in licensing in pharmaceutical development programs in both companies. He is also the owner and founding partner of Zheng & Karg LLP, which he founded in January 2018. Prior to that, he was the owner and founding partner of Liu Zheng Chen & Hoofman LLP from October 2015 to December 2017. Mr. Zheng worked at Proskauer Rose LLP from June 2008 until September 2015. He was also a postdoctoral research scientist at Columbia University Medical Center from November 2006 until May 2008. Mr. Zheng earned a juris doctor degree from Fordham University School of Law in 2012, a Ph. D in molecular and human genetics from Baylor College of Medicine in 2006, and a master’s and bachelor’s degree in biology from Fudan University in China in 2001.
Ling Wu has served as our independent director since December 2018. Mr. Wu is the founder and principal attorney of Wu Law Firm PLLC, which he founded in September 2011. Prior to founding his own firm, he served as the project leader of Ricoh Corporation Information Technology Group from October 2002 until August 2011. Mr. Wu was an associate in the investment banking department of Morgan Stanley Dean Witter from October 2000 until February 2002. Prior to that, he was an software engineer at Lockheed Martin IMS from October 1999 until September 2000. Mr. Wu earned a juris doctor degree from Rutgers University School of Law in 2011, a master’s degree in business computer information systems from Baruch College of CUNY in 1999, and a bachelor’s degree in English from Shanghai University in China in 1990.
Tony Chi Ming Chan has served as our independent director since February 2019. Mr. Chan has served as the chief financial officer at Good Resources Holdings Limited (“GRHL,” a Hong Kong public listed company with stock code: 109), where he is mainly responsible for the financial and investment management, since January 2019. Mr. Chan is also an independent director of Theme International Holdings Limited (a Hong Kong public listed company with stock code: 990). Mr. Chan was a non-executive director of Hua Xia Healthcare Holdings Limited (“Hua Xia,” a Hong Kong public listed company with stock code: 8143) from November 2016 until July 2018 and then served as an executive director of Hua Xia from July 2018 to January 2019. Prior to that, he was an executive director of Wan Kei Group Holdings Limited (a Hong Kong public listed company with stock code:1748) from November 2016 until July 2018. Mr. Chan served as company secretary and authorized representative of GRHL from September 2007 until May 2017. Prior to joining GRHL, Mr. Chan worked at Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu (between July 2000 and September 2001), Ernst & Young (from November 1994 to June 2000 and then from June 2004 until August 2007), and Coopers & Lybrand (from July 1994 until November 1994). Mr. Chan holds a bachelor’s degree in Accounting from Australian National University and master’s degree in Finance from University of New South Wales. Mr. Chan was admitted as Certified Practicing Accountant of CPA Australia in November 1993 and was admitted as Certified Public Accountant of Hong Kong Institute of Certified Public Accountants in February 2012.
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Executive Compensation
No executive officer has received any cash compensation for services rendered to us. No compensation of any kind, including finders, consulting or other similar fees, will be paid to any of our existing stockholders, including our directors, or any of their respective affiliates, prior to, or for any services they render in order to effectuate, the consummation of a business combination. However, such 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. There is no limit on the amount of these out-of-pocket expenses and there will be no review of the reasonableness of the expenses by anyone other than our board of directors and audit committee, which includes persons who may seek reimbursement, or a court of competent jurisdiction if such reimbursement is challenged.
After the completion of our initial business combination, directors or members of our management team who remain with us may be paid consulting, management or other fees from the combined company. All the 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. It is unlikely the amount of such compensation will be known at the time, because the directors of the post-combination business will be responsible for determining executive officer and director compensation. Any compensation to be paid to our executive officers will be determined by a compensation committee constituted solely of independent directors.
We do not intend to take any action to ensure that members of our management team maintain their positions with us after the consummation of our initial business combination, although it is possible that some or all of our executive officers and directors may negotiate employment or consulting arrangements to remain with us after the initial business combination. The existence or terms of any such employment or consulting arrangements to retain their positions with us may influence our management’s motivation in identifying or selecting a target business but we do not believe that the ability of our management to remain with us after the consummation of our initial business combination will be a determining factor in our decision to proceed with any potential business combination. We are not party to any agreements with our executive officers and directors that provide for benefits upon termination of employment.
Director Independence
Nasdaq requires that a majority of our board must be composed of “independent directors.” Currently, Lihua Zheng, Ling Wu, and Tony Chi Ming Chan would each be considered an “independent director” under the Nasdaq listing rules, which 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 independent directors will have regularly scheduled meetings at which only independent directors are present.
We will only enter into a business combination if it is approved by a majority of our independent directors. Additionally, we will only enter into transactions with our officers and directors and their respective affiliates that are on terms no less favorable to us than could be obtained from independent parties. Any related-party transactions must also be approved by our audit committee and a majority of disinterested independent directors.
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Audit Committee
Under the Nasdaq listing standards and applicable SEC rules, we are required to have three members of the audit committee all of whom must be independent. Effective as of the date of this prospectus, we have established an audit committee of the board of directors, which will consist of Lihua Zheng, Ling Wu, and Tony Chi Ming Chan, each of whom is an independent director under Nasdaq’s listing standards. Tony Chi Ming Chan is the Chairperson of the audit committee. The audit committee’s duties, which are specified in our Audit Committee Charter, include, but are not limited to:
● | reviewing and discussing with management and the independent auditor the annual audited financial statements, and recommending to the board whether the audited financial statements should be included in our Form 10-K; |
● | discussing with management and the independent auditor significant financial reporting issues and judgments made in connection with the preparation of our financial statements; |
● | discussing with management major risk assessment and risk management policies; |
● | monitoring the independence of the independent auditor; |
● | verifying the rotation of the lead (or coordinating) audit partner having primary responsibility for the audit and the audit partner responsible for reviewing the audit as required by law; |
● | reviewing and approving all related-party transactions; |
● | inquiring and discussing with management our compliance with applicable laws and regulations; |
● | pre-approving all audit services and permitted non-audit services to be performed by our independent auditor, including the fees and terms of the services to be performed; |
● | appointing or replacing the independent auditor; |
● | determining the compensation and oversight of the work of the independent auditor (including resolution of disagreements between management and the independent auditor regarding financial reporting) for the purpose of preparing or issuing an audit report or related work; |
● | establishing procedures for the receipt, retention and treatment of complaints received by us regarding accounting, internal accounting controls or reports which raise material issues regarding our financial statements or accounting policies; and |
● | approving reimbursement of expenses incurred by our management team in identifying potential target businesses. |
Financial Experts on Audit Committee
The audit committee will at all times be composed exclusively of “independent directors” who are “financially literate” as defined under the Nasdaq listing standards. The Nasdaq listing standards define “financially literate” as being able to read and understand fundamental financial statements, including a company’s balance sheet, income statement and cash flow statement.
In addition, we must certify to Nasdaq that the committee has, and will continue to have, at least one member who has past employment experience in finance or accounting, requisite professional certification in accounting, or other comparable experience or background that results in the individual’s financial sophistication. The board of directors has determined that Tony Chi Ming Chan qualifies as an “audit committee financial expert,” as defined under rules and regulations of the SEC.
Nominating Committee
Effective as of the date of this prospectus, we have established a nominating committee of the board of directors, which will consist of Lihua Zheng, Ling Wu, and Tony Chi Ming Chan, each of whom is an independent director under Nasdaq’s listing standards. Tony Chi Ming Chan is the Chairperson of the nominating committee. The nominating committee is responsible for overseeing the selection of persons to be nominated to serve on our board of directors. The nominating committee considers persons identified by its members, management, shareholders, investment bankers and others.
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Guidelines for Selecting Director Nominees
The guidelines for selecting nominees, which are specified in the Nominating Committee Charter, generally provide that persons to be nominated:
● | should have demonstrated notable or significant achievements in business, education or public service; |
● | 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 |
● | should have the highest ethical standards, a strong sense of professionalism and intense dedication to serving the interests of the shareholders |
The nominating committee will 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 nominating 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 committee does not distinguish among nominees recommended by stockholders and other persons.
Compensation Committee
Effective as of the date of this prospectus, we will establish a compensation committee of the board of directors, which will consist of Lihua Zheng, Ling Wu, and Tony Chi Ming Chan, each of whom is an independent director under Nasdaq’s listing standards. Tony Chi Ming Chan is the Chairperson of the compensation committee. The compensation committee’s duties, which are specified in our Compensation Committee Charter, include, but are not limited to:
● | reviewing and approving on an annual basis the corporate goals and objectives relevant to our President and Chief Executive Officer’s compensation, evaluating our President and Chief Executive Officer’s performance in light of such goals and objectives and determining and approving the remuneration (if any) of our President and Chief Executive Officer based on such evaluation; |
● | reviewing and approving the compensation of all of our other executive officers; |
● | reviewing our executive compensation policies and plans; |
● | implementing and administering our incentive compensation equity-based remuneration plans; |
● | assisting management in complying with our proxy statement and annual report disclosure requirements; |
● | approving all special perquisites, special cash payments and other special compensation and benefit arrangements for our executive officers and employees; |
● | producing a report on executive compensation to be included in our annual proxy statement; and |
● | reviewing, evaluating and recommending changes, if appropriate, to the remuneration for directors. |
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 NASDAQ and the SEC.
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Code of Ethics
Effective upon consummation of this offering, we will adopt a code of ethics that applies to all of our executive officers, directors and employees. The code of ethics codifies the business and ethical principles that govern all aspects of our business.
Conflicts of Interest
Investors should be aware of the following potential conflicts of interest:
● | None of our officers and directors is required to commit their full time to our affairs and, accordingly, they may have conflicts of interest in allocating their time among various business activities. |
● | 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 our company as well as the other entities with which they are affiliated. Our officers and directors may have conflicts of interest in determining to which entity a particular business opportunity should be presented. |
● | Our officers and directors may in the future become affiliated with entities, including other blank check companies, engaged in business activities similar to those intended to be conducted by our company. |
● | Unless we consummate our initial business combination, our officers, directors and insiders will not receive reimbursement for any out-of-pocket expenses incurred by them to the extent that such expenses exceed the amount of available proceeds not deposited in the trust account and the amount of interest income from the trust account that may be released to us as working capital. |
● | The insider shares beneficially owned by our officers and directors will be released from escrow only if our initial business combination is successfully completed. Additionally, if we are unable to complete an initial business combination within the required time frame, our officers and directors will not be entitled to receive any amounts held in the trust account with respect to any of their insider shares or private units. Furthermore, our insiders (and/or their designees) have agreed that the private units will not be sold or transferred by them until after we have completed our initial business combination. For the foregoing reasons, our board may have a conflict of interest in determining whether a particular target business is an appropriate business with which to effect our initial business combination. |
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:
● | the corporation could financially undertake the opportunity; |
● | the opportunity is within the corporation’s line of business; and |
● | it would not be fair to the corporation and its stockholders for the opportunity not to be brought to the attention of the corporation. |
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 provides that the doctrine of corporate opportunity will not apply with respect to any of our officers or directors in circumstances where the application of the doctrine would conflict with any fiduciary duties or contractual obligations they may have. In order to minimize potential conflicts of interest which may arise from multiple affiliations, our officers and directors (other than our independent directors) have agreed to present to us for our consideration, prior to presentation to any other person or entity, any suitable opportunity to acquire a target business, until the earlier of: (1) our consummation of an initial business combination and (2) 12 months (or 21 months, as applicable) from the date of this prospectus. This agreement is, however, subject to any pre-existing fiduciary and contractual obligations such officer or director may from time to time have to another entity. Accordingly, if any of them becomes aware of a business combination opportunity which is suitable for an entity to which he or she has pre-existing fiduciary or contractual obligations, he or she will honor his or her fiduciary or contractual obligations to present such business combination opportunity to such entity, and only present it to us if such entity rejects the opportunity. We do not believe, however, that the pre-existing fiduciary duties or contractual obligations of our officers and directors will materially undermine our ability to complete our business combination because in most cases the affiliated companies are closely held entities controlled by the officer or director or the nature of the affiliated company’s business is such that it is unlikely that a conflict will arise.
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The following table summarizes the current pre-existing fiduciary or contractual obligations of our officers, directors and director nominees:
Name of Individual | Name of Affiliated Company | Entity’s Business | Affiliation | |||
Lu Zhou | Capstone Capital Group, LLC | Financial Services | Executive Assistant and Project Manager | |||
Lihua Zheng |
AnHeart Therapeutics Inc.
AnBio Inc. |
Pharmaceutical Development | Director and Co-Founder | |||
Tony Chi Ming Chan |
Good Resources Holdings Ltd.
Theme International Holdings Limited LTC Consulting Limited |
Financial Services
Investment Holding Consulting |
Chief Financial Officer
Independent Director Director |
|||
Wei Chen | Everpower International Holdings Co., Ltd. | Financial Services | Founder |
Our insiders and Chardan have agreed to vote any shares of common stock held by them in favor of our initial business combination. In addition, they have agreed to waive their respective rights to receive any amounts held in the trust account with respect to their insider shares and private shares if we are unable to complete our initial business combination within the required time frame. If they purchase shares of common stock in this offering or in the open market, however, they would be entitled to receive their pro rata share of the amounts held in the trust account if we are unable to complete our initial business combination within the required time frame, but have agreed not to convert such shares in connection with the consummation of our initial business combination.
All ongoing and future transactions between us and any of our officers and directors or their respective affiliates will be on terms believed by us to be no less favorable to us than are available from unaffiliated third parties. Such transactions will require prior approval by our audit committee and a majority of our uninterested “independent” directors, or the members of our board who do not have an interest in the transaction, in either case who had access, at our expense, to our attorneys or independent legal counsel. We will not enter into any such transaction unless our audit committee and a majority of our disinterested “independent” directors determine that the terms of such transaction are no less favorable to us than those that would be available to us with respect to such a transaction from unaffiliated third parties.
To further minimize conflicts of interest, we have agreed not to consummate our initial business combination with an entity that is affiliated with any of our officers, directors or insiders, unless we have obtained (i) an opinion from an independent investment banking firm that the business combination is fair to our unaffiliated stockholders from a financial point of view and (ii) the approval of a majority of our disinterested and independent directors (if we have any at that time). Furthermore, in no event will our insiders or any of the members of our management team be paid any finder’s fee, consulting fee or other similar compensation prior to, or for any services they render in order to effectuate, the consummation of our initial business combination (regardless of the type of transaction that it is).
Limitation on Liability and Indemnification of Directors and Officers
Our certificate of incorporation provides that our directors and officers 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 provides that our directors will not be personally liable for monetary damages to us 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. Notwithstanding the foregoing, as set forth in our certificate of incorporation, such indemnification will not extend to any claims our insiders may make to us to cover any loss that they may sustain as a result of their agreement to pay debts and obligations to target businesses or vendors or other entities that are owed money by us for services rendered or contracted for or products sold to us as described elsewhere in this prospectus.
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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 indemnification. We will purchase a policy of directors’ and officers’ liability insurance that insures our directors and officers against the cost of defense, settlement or payment of a judgment in some circumstances and insures us against our obligations to indemnify the directors and officers.
These provisions may discourage stockholders from bringing a lawsuit against our directors for breach of their fiduciary duty. These provisions also may have the effect of reducing the likelihood of derivative litigation against directors and officers, 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 directors and officers pursuant to these provisions. We believe that these provisions, the insurance and the indemnity agreements are necessary to attract and retain talented and experienced directors and officers.
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.
The following table sets forth information regarding the beneficial ownership of our shares of common stock as of the date of this prospectus and upon completion of the sale of our shares of common stock included in the units offered by this prospectus (assuming none of the individuals listed purchase units in this offering), by:
● | each person known by us to be the beneficial owner of more than 5% of our outstanding shares of common stock; |
● | each of our officers, directors and director nominees; and |
● | all of our current 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 of beneficial ownership of any shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants or conversion of rights as the warrants are not exercisable within 60 days of the date of this prospectus and the rights are not convertible within sixty days of the date of this prospectus.
Prior to Offering and
Private Placement |
After Offering | |||||||||||||||
Name and Address of Beneficial Owner (1) |
Amount and
Nature of Beneficial Ownership of Common Stock |
Approximate
Percentage of Outstanding Shares of Common Stock |
Amount and
Nature of Beneficial Ownership of Common Stock (2) |
Approximate
Percentage of Outstanding Shares of Common Stock |
||||||||||||
Everstone Investments LLC (3) | 1,146,000 | 99.7 | % | 1,196,520 | 23.0 | % | ||||||||||
Wei Chen | 1,146,000 | (4) | 99.7 | % | 1,196,520 | (4) | 23.0 | % | ||||||||
Lihua Zheng | 1,000 | * | 870 | * | ||||||||||||
Ling Wu | 1,000 | * | 870 | * | ||||||||||||
Tony Chi Ming Chan | 1,000 | * | 870 | * | ||||||||||||
Lu Zhou | 1,000 | * | 870 | * | ||||||||||||
All current directors and executive officers as a group (five individuals) | 1,150,000 | 100.0 | % | 1,200,000 | 23.0 | % |
* | Less than 1%. |
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(1) | Unless otherwise indicated, the business address of each of the individuals is c/o Orisun Acquisition Corp., 555 Madison Avenue, Room 543, New York, NY 10022. |
(2) | Assumes no exercise of the over-allotment option and, therefore, an aggregate of 150,000 shares of common stock held by our initial stockholders are forfeited. |
(3) | Everstone Investment LLC is owned and controlled by Wei Chen, our Chairman of the Board of Director and President, and Ming-Yang Wang. |
(4) | Consists of shares owned by Everstone Investments LLC, our sponsor, which is jointly owned by Wei Chen, our chief executive officer, and Ming-Yang Wang. |
(5) | George Kaufman has voting and dispositive power over the shares owned by Chardan Capital Markets, LLC. |
Immediately after this offering, our insiders will beneficially own approximately 23.0% of the then issued and outstanding shares of common stock (assuming they do not purchase any units offered by this prospectus). Because of the ownership block held by our insiders, such individuals may be able to effectively exercise influence over all matters requiring approval by our stockholders, including the election of directors and approval of significant corporate transactions other than approval of our initial business combination.
If the underwriters do not exercise all or a portion of the over-allotment option, an aggregate of up to 150,000 insider shares will be forfeited in amounts as determined amongst the holders of such insider shares and not proportional to their ownership percentages in our shares of common stock. Only a number of shares necessary to maintain our insiders’ collective 20.0% ownership interest (excluding the private units) in our shares of common stock after giving effect to the offering and the exercise, if any, of the underwriters’ over-allotment option will be forfeited.
All of the insider shares outstanding prior to the date of this prospectus will be placed in escrow with American Stock Transfer & Trust Company, LLC, as escrow agent. Subject to certain limited exceptions, 50% of these shares will not be transferred, assigned, sold or released from escrow until the earlier of six months after the date of the consummation of our initial business combination and the date the closing price of our common stock equals or exceeds $12.50 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations and recapitalizations) for any 20 trading days within any 30-trading day period commencing after our initial business combination and the remaining 50% of the insider shares will not be transferred, assigned, sold or released from escrow until six months after the date of the consummation of our initial business combination or earlier in either case if, subsequent to our initial business combination, we complete a liquidation, merger, stock exchange or other similar transaction which results in all of our stockholders having the right to exchange their shares of common stock for cash, securities or other property. Up to 150,000 of the insider shares may also be released from escrow earlier than this date for cancellation if the over-allotment option is not exercised in full as described above.
During the escrow period, the holders of these shares will not be able to sell or transfer their securities except (1) transfers among the insiders, to our officers, directors, advisors and employees, (2) transfers to an insider’s affiliates or its members upon its liquidation, (3) transfers to relatives and trusts for estate planning purposes, (4) transfers by virtue of the laws of descent and distribution upon death, (5) transfers pursuant to a qualified domestic relations order, (6) private sales made at prices no greater than the price at which the securities were originally purchased or (7) transfers to us for cancellation in connection with the consummation of an initial business combination, in each case (except for clause 7) where the transferee agrees to the terms of the escrow agreement and forfeiture, as the case may be, as well as the other applicable restrictions and agreements of the holders of the insider shares. If dividends are declared and payable in shares of common stock, such dividends will also be placed in escrow. If we are unable to effect a business combination and liquidate, there will be no liquidation distribution with respect to the insider shares.
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In addition, Everstone Investments LLC and Chardan Capital Markets, LLC have committed to purchase an aggregate of 220,000 private units, at a price of $10.00 per unit ($2,200,000 in the aggregate). These purchases will take place on a private placement basis simultaneously with the consummation of this offering. All of the proceeds we receive from these purchases will be placed in the trust account described below. They have also agreed that if the over-allotment option is exercised by the underwriters, they will purchase from us at a price of $10.00 per private unit an additional number of private units (up to a maximum of 18,000 private units) pro rata with the amount of the over-allotment option exercised so that at least $10.00 per share sold to the public in this offering is held in trust regardless of whether the over-allotment option is exercised in full or part. These additional private units will be purchased in a private placement that will occur simultaneously with the purchase of units resulting from the exercise of the over-allotment option. The proceeds from the private placement of the additional private units will be added to the proceeds of this offering and placed in the trust account.
The private units are identical to the units sold in this offering except that the private warrants will be non-redeemable and may be exercised on a cashless basis, in each case so long as they continue to be held by Everstone Investments LLC and Chardan Capital Markets, LLC. Additionally, because the private units will be issued in a private transaction, Everstone Investments LLC and Chardan Capital Markets, LLC will be allowed to exercise the private warrants for cash even if a registration statement covering the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of such warrants is not effective and receive unregistered shares of common stock. Furthermore, the holders agreed (A) to vote their insider shares, private shares and any public shares acquired in or after this offering in favor of any proposed business combination, (B) not to propose, or vote in favor of, an amendment to our certificate of incorporation that would affect the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 12 months from the closing of this offering (or 21 months, as applicable), unless we provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their shares of common stock 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 us to pay our franchise and income taxes, divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, (C) not to convert any shares (including the insider shares) into the right to receive cash from the trust account in connection with a stockholder vote to approve our proposed initial business combination (or sell any shares they hold to us in a tender offer in connection with a proposed initial business combination) or a vote to amend the provisions of our certificate of incorporation relating to the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 12 months from the closing of this offering (or 21 months, as applicable) and (D) that the insider shares and private shares shall not be entitled to be redeemed for a pro rata portion of the funds held in the trust account if a business combination is not consummated. Additionally, our insiders (and/or their designees) have agreed not to transfer, assign or sell any of the private units or underlying securities (except to transferees that agree to the same terms and restrictions agreed to by the insiders) until the completion of our initial business combination. None of the private warrants will be redeemable by us so long as they are held by our sponsor, Chardan or their permitted transferees. If the private warrants are held by holders other than the sponsor, Chardan or their permitted transferees, the private warrants will be redeemable by us and exercisable by the holders on the same basis as the warrants included in the units being sold in this offering. In addition, for as long as private warrants are held by Chardan or its designees or affiliates, the said private warrants may not be exercised after five years from the effective date of the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part.
In order to meet our working capital needs following the consummation of this offering, our insiders, officers and directors may, but are not obligated to, loan us funds, from time to time or at any time, in whatever amount they deem reasonable in their sole discretion. Each loan would be evidenced by a promissory note. The notes would either be paid upon consummation of our initial business combination, without interest, or, at the lender’s discretion, up to $500,000 of the notes may be converted upon consummation of our business combination into additional private units at a price of $10.00 per unit (which, for example, would result in the holders being issued units to acquire 55,000 shares of common stock (which includes 5,000 shares issuable upon conversion of rights) and warrants to purchase 25,000 shares of common stock if $500,000 of notes were so converted). Our stockholders have approved the issuance of the private units upon conversion of such notes, to the extent the holder wishes to so convert such notes at the time of the consummation of our initial business combination. If we do not complete a business combination, any outstanding loans from our insiders, officers and directors or their affiliates, will be repaid only from amounts remaining outside our trust account, if any.
Our sponsor and our executive officers and directors are deemed to be our “promoters,” as that term is defined under the federal securities laws.
In December 2018, we sold an aggregate of 1,150,000 shares of our common stock for $25,000, or approximately $0.02 per share, to our initial officers and directors.
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If the underwriters do not exercise all or a portion of their over-allotment option, our insiders will forfeit up to an aggregate of 150,000 insider shares in proportion to the portion of the over-allotment option that was not exercised. If such shares are forfeited, we will record the forfeited shares as treasury stock and simultaneously retire the shares. Upon receipt, such forfeited shares would then be immediately cancelled which would result in the retirement of the treasury shares and a corresponding charge to additional paid-in capital.
If the underwriters determine the size of the offering should be increased (including pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act) or decreased, a share dividend or a contribution back to capital, as applicable, would be effectuated in order to maintain our insiders’ ownership at a percentage of the number of shares of common stock to be sold in this offering. Our insiders may purchase from us at a price of $10.00 per unit the number of private units that is necessary to maintain in the trust account an amount equal to $10.00 per share sold to the public in this offering.
Our sponsor, Everstone Investments LLC, and Chardan Capital Markets, LLC have committed to purchase an aggregate of 220,000 private units at a price of $10.00 per unit ($2,200,000 in the aggregate). These purchases of the private units will take place in a private placement that will occur simultaneously with the closing of this offering. In addition, Everstone Investments LLC and Chardan Capital Markets, LLC have agreed that if the over-allotment option is exercised by the underwriters, they will purchase from us at a price of $10.00 per unit the number of private units (up to a maximum of 18,000 private units) that is necessary to maintain in the trust account an amount equal to $10.00 per share of common stock sold to the public in this offering. These additional private units will be purchased in a private placement that will occur simultaneously with the purchase of units resulting from the exercise of the over-allotment option. The purchase price for the private units including those that may be purchased if the over-allotment option is exercised will be delivered to American Stock Transfer & Trust Company, LLC, who will also be acting as escrow agent in connection with the private sale of private units, at least 24 hours prior to the date of this prospectus to hold in a non-interest bearing account until we consummate this offering. American Stock Transfer & Trust Company, LLC will deposit the purchase price into the trust account simultaneously with the consummation of the offering or the over-allotment option, as the case may be. The private units are identical to the units sold in this offering except that the private warrants will be non-redeemable and may be exercised on a cashless basis, in each case so long as they continue to be held by Everstone Investments LLC, Chardan Capital Markets, LLC or their permitted transferees. Additionally, because the private units will be issued in a private transaction, Everstone Investments LLC and Chardan Capital Markets, LLC will be allowed to exercise the private warrants for cash even if a registration statement covering the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of such warrants is not effective and receive unregistered shares of common stock. Furthermore, the holders agreed (A) to vote their private shares and any public shares acquired in or after this offering in favor of any proposed business combination, (B) not to propose, or vote in favor of, an amendment to our certificate of incorporation that would affect the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 12 months from the closing of this offering (or 21 months, as applicable), unless we provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their shares of common stock 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 us to pay our franchise and income taxes, divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, (C) not to convert any shares (including the private shares) into the right to receive cash from the trust account in connection with a stockholder vote to approve our proposed initial business combination (or sell any shares they hold to us in a tender offer in connection with a proposed initial business combination) or a vote to amend the provisions of our certificate of incorporation relating to the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 12 months from the closing of this offering (or 21 months, as applicable) and (D) that the private shares shall not be entitled to be redeemed for a pro rata portion of the funds held in the trust account if a business combination is not consummated. Additionally, our insiders (and/or their designees) have agreed not to transfer, assign or sell any of the private units or underlying securities (except to transferees that agree to the same terms and restrictions agreed to by the insiders) until the completion of our initial business combination.
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In order to meet our working capital needs following the consummation of this offering, our insiders, officers and directors may, but are not obligated to, loan us funds, from time to time or at any time, in whatever amount they deem reasonable in their sole discretion. Each loan would be evidenced by a promissory note. The notes would either be paid upon consummation of our initial business combination, without interest, or, at the lender’s discretion, up to $500,000 of the notes may be converted upon consummation of our business combination into additional private units at a price of $10.00 per unit (which, for example, would result in the holders being issued units to acquire 55,000 shares of common stock (which includes 5,000 shares issuable upon conversion of rights) and warrants to purchase 25,000 shares of common stock if $500,000 of notes were so converted). Our stockholders have approved the issuance of the private units upon conversion of such notes, to the extent the holder wishes to so convert such notes at the time of the consummation of our initial business combination. If we do not complete a business combination, any outstanding loans from our insiders, officers and directors or their affiliates, will be repaid only from amounts remaining outside our trust account, if any.
The holders of our insider shares issued and outstanding on the date of this prospectus, as well as the holders of the private units (and underlying securities) and any shares our insiders, officers, directors or their affiliates may be issued in payment of working capital loans made to us, will be entitled to registration rights pursuant to an agreement to be signed prior to or on the effective date of this offering. The holders of a majority of these securities are entitled to make up to two demands that we register such securities. The holders of the majority of the insider shares can elect to exercise these registration rights at any time commencing three months prior to the date on which these shares of common stock are to be released from escrow. The holders of a majority of the private units or shares issued in payment of working capital loans made to us can elect to exercise these registration rights at any time after we consummate a business combination. In addition, the holders have certain “piggy-back” registration rights with respect to registration statements filed subsequent to our consummation of our initial business combination. We will bear the expenses incurred in connection with the filing of any such registration statements.
As of March 31, 2019, our sponsor, had loaned to us $225,000 to be used to pay formation expenses and a portion of the expenses of this offering. The loan is payable without interest on the date on which we consummate our initial public offering. We intend to repay this loan from the proceeds of this offering not being placed in the trust account. If we determine not to proceed with the offering, such amounts would not be repaid.
No compensation or fees of any kind, including finder’s fees, consulting fees or other similar compensation, will be paid to our insiders or any of the members of our management team, for services rendered to us prior to, or in connection with the consummation of our initial business combination (regardless of the type of transaction that it is). However, such individuals will receive reimbursement for any out-of-pocket expenses incurred by them in connection with activities on our behalf, such as identifying potential target businesses, performing business due diligence on suitable target businesses and business combinations as well as traveling to and from the offices, plants or similar locations of prospective target businesses to examine their operations. There is no limit on the amount of out-of-pocket expenses reimbursable by us; provided, however, that to the extent such expenses exceed the available proceeds not deposited in the trust account and the interest income earned on the amounts held in the trust account, such expenses would not be reimbursed by us unless we consummate an initial business combination.
All ongoing and future transactions between us and any of our officers and directors or their respective affiliates will be on terms believed by us to be no less favorable to us than are available from unaffiliated third parties. Such transactions will require prior approval by our audit committee and a majority of our uninterested independent directors, in either case who had access, at our expense, to our attorneys or independent legal counsel. We will not enter into any such transaction unless our audit committee and a majority of our disinterested independent directors determine that the terms of such transaction are no less favorable to us than those that would be available to us with respect to such a transaction from unaffiliated third parties.
Related Party Policy
Our Code of Ethics requires us to avoid, wherever possible, all related party transactions that could result in actual or potential conflicts of interests, except under guidelines approved by the board of directors (or the audit committee). Related-party transactions are defined as transactions in which (1) the aggregate amount involved will or may be expected to exceed $120,000 in any calendar year, (2) we or any of our subsidiaries is a participant, and (3) any (a) executive officer, director or nominee for election as a director, (b) greater than 5% beneficial owner of our shares of common stock, or (c) immediate family member, of the persons referred to in clauses (a) and (b), has or will have a direct or indirect material interest (other than solely as a result of being a director or a less than 10% beneficial owner of another entity). A conflict of interest situation can arise when a person takes actions or has interests that may make it difficult to perform his or her work objectively and effectively. Conflicts of interest may also arise if a person, or a member of his or her family, receives improper personal benefits as a result of his or her position.
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We also require each of our directors and executive officers to annually complete a directors’ and officers’ questionnaire that elicits information about related party transactions.
Our audit committee, pursuant to its written charter, will be responsible for reviewing and approving related-party transactions to the extent we enter into such transactions. All ongoing and future transactions between us and any of our officers and directors or their respective affiliates will be on terms believed by us to be no less favorable to us than are available from unaffiliated third parties. Such transactions will require prior approval by our audit committee and a majority of our uninterested “independent” directors, or the members of our board who do not have an interest in the transaction, in either case who had access, at our expense, to our attorneys or independent legal counsel. We will not enter into any such transaction unless our audit committee and a majority of our disinterested “independent” directors determine that the terms of such transaction are no less favorable to us than those that would be available to us with respect to such a transaction from unaffiliated third parties. Additionally, we require each of our directors and executive officers to complete a directors’ and officers’ questionnaire that elicits 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.
To further minimize potential conflicts of interest, we have agreed not to consummate a business combination with an entity which is affiliated with any of our initial stockholders unless we obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm that the business combination is fair to our unaffiliated stockholders from a financial point of view. Furthermore, in no event will any of our existing officers, directors or initial stockholders, 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 consummation of a business combination.
General
Our certificate of incorporation currently authorizes the issuance of 10,000,000 shares of common stock, par value $0.00001. We expect to file an amended and restated certificate of incorporation prior to the completion of this offering to increase the number of authorized shares to 30,000,000 shares and to authorize 1,000,000 shares of undesignated preferred stock, $0.00001 par value. As of the date of this prospectus, 1,150,000 shares of common stock are outstanding, held by one stockholder of record. No shares of preferred stock are currently outstanding. The following description summarizes all of the material terms of our securities. Because it is only a summary, it may not contain all the information that is important to you. For a complete description you should refer to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, bylaws, and the forms of warrant agreement and rights agreement, which are filed as exhibits to the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part.
Units
Each unit has an offering price of $10.00 and consists of one share of common stock, one redeemable warrant and one right. Each redeemable warrant entitles the holder thereof to purchase one half of one share of common stock. Each redeemable warrant has an exercise price $11.50 per whole share and shall expire on the five year anniversary of the effective date of the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part. Each right entitles the holder thereof to receive one-tenth (1/10) of a share of common stock upon consummation of our initial business combination. In addition, we will not issue fractional shares. As a result, you must (1) exercise warrants in multiples of two warrants, at a price of $11.50 per full share, subject to adjustment as described in this prospectus, to validly exercise your warrants; and (2) hold rights in multiples of 10 in order to receive shares for all of your rights upon closing of a business combination.
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The common stock, warrants and rights comprising the units will begin separate trading on the 90 th day after the date of this prospectus unless Chardan Capital Markets, LLC determines that an earlier date is acceptable (based upon, among other things, its assessment of the relative strengths of the securities markets and small capitalization companies in general, and the trading pattern of, and demand for, our securities in particular), 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 common stock, warrants and rights commence separate trading, holders will have the option to continue to hold units or separate their units into the component pieces. Holders will need to have their brokers contact our transfer agent in order to separate the units into shares of common stock, warrants and rights.
In no event will the common stock, warrants and rights 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 of this offering. We will file a Current Report on Form 8-K which includes this audited balance sheet upon the completion of this offering, which is anticipated to take place two business days from the date the units commence trading. 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
Our holders of record of our common stock are entitled to one vote for each share held on all matters to be voted on by stockholders. In connection with any vote held to approve our initial business combination, our insiders, officers and directors, have agreed to vote their respective shares of common stock owned by them immediately prior to this offering, including both the insider shares and the private shares, and any shares acquired in this offering or following this offering in the open market, in favor of the proposed business combination.
We will consummate our initial business combination only if public stockholders do not exercise conversion rights in an amount that would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001 upon consummation of the initial business combination and a majority of the outstanding shares of common stock voted are voted in favor of the business combination.
Pursuant to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, if we do not consummate our initial business combination within 12 months from the closing of this offering (or up to 21 months from the closing of this offering if the extension criteria described elsewhere in this prospectus is met), 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 100% of the outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidation distributions, if any), subject to applicable law, 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 (ii) and (iii) above) to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. Our insiders and Chardan have agreed to waive their rights to share in any distribution with respect to their insider shares and private shares, 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 period.
Our stockholders have no conversion, preemptive or other subscription rights and there are no sinking fund or redemption provisions applicable to the shares of common stock, except that public stockholders have the right to sell their shares to us in any tender offer or have their shares of common stock converted to cash equal to their pro rata share of the trust account if they vote on the proposed business combination and the business combination is completed. If we hold a stockholder vote to amend any provisions of our certificate of incorporation relating to stockholder’s rights or pre-business combination activity (including the substance or timing within which we have to complete a business combination), we will provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their shares of common stock 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 us to pay our franchise and income taxes, divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, in connection with any such vote. In either of such events, converting stockholders would be paid their pro rata portion of the trust account promptly following consummation of the business combination or the approval of the amendment to the certificate of incorporation. Public stockholders who sell or convert their stock into their share of the trust account still have the right to convert the rights or exercise the warrants that they received as part of the units. If the business combination is not consummated or the amendment is not approved, stockholders will not be paid such amounts.
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Insider Shares
The insider shares are identical to the shares of common stock included in the units being sold in this offering, and our insiders have the same stockholder rights as public stockholders, except that (i) the insider shares are subject to certain transfer restrictions, as described in more detail below and (ii) our insiders have agreed (A) to vote their insider shares, private shares and any public shares acquired in or after this offering in favor of any proposed business combination, (B) not to propose, or vote in favor of, an amendment to our certificate of incorporation that would affect the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 12 months from the closing of this offering (or 21 months, if we extend the time to complete a business combination as described in this prospectus), unless we provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their shares of common stock 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, net of taxes payable, divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, (C) not to convert any shares (including the insider shares) into the right to receive cash from the trust account in connection with a stockholder vote to approve our proposed initial business combination (or sell any shares they hold to us in a tender offer in connection with a proposed initial business combination) or a vote to amend the provisions of our certificate of incorporation relating to the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 12 months from the closing of this offering (or 21 months, as applicable), and (D) that the insider shares and private shares shall not be entitled to be redeemed for a pro rata portion of the funds held in the trust account if a business combination is not consummated.
On the date of this prospectus, the insider shares will be placed into an escrow account maintained in New York, New York by American Stock Transfer & Trust Company, LLC, acting as escrow agent. Subject to certain limited exceptions, 50% of these shares will not be transferred, assigned, sold or released from escrow until the earlier of six months after the date of the consummation of our initial business combination and the date on which the closing price of our common stock equals or exceeds $12.50 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations and recapitalizations) for any 20 trading days within any 30-trading day period commencing after the consummation of our initial business combination and the remaining 50% of the insider shares will not be transferred, assigned, sold or released from escrow until six months after the date of the consummation of our initial business combination, or earlier, in either case, if, subsequent to our initial business combination, we complete a liquidation, merger, stock exchange or other similar transaction which results in all of our stockholders having the right to exchange their shares of common stock for cash, securities or other property. The limited exceptions referred to above include (1) transfers among the insiders, to our officers, directors, advisors and employees, (2) transfers to an insider’s affiliates or its members upon its liquidation, (3) transfers to relatives and trusts for estate planning purposes, (4) transfers by virtue of the laws of descent and distribution upon death, (5) transfers pursuant to a qualified domestic relations order, (6) private sales made at prices no greater than the price at which the securities were originally purchased or (7) transfers to us for cancellation in connection with the consummation of an initial business combination, in each case (except for clause 7) where the transferee agrees to the terms of the escrow agreement and forfeiture, as the case may be, as well as the other applicable restrictions and agreements of the holders of the insider shares.
Preferred Stock
There are no shares of preferred stock outstanding. Our certificate of incorporation filed with the State of Delaware authorizes the issuance of 1,000,000 shares of preferred stock with such designation, rights and preferences as may be determined from time to time by our board of directors. No shares of preferred stock are being issued or registered in this offering. Accordingly, our board of directors is empowered, without stockholder approval, to issue preferred stock with dividend, liquidation, conversion, voting or other rights which could adversely affect the voting power or other rights of the holders of common stock. However, the underwriting agreement prohibits us, prior to a business combination, from issuing preferred stock which participates in any manner in the proceeds of the trust account, or which votes as a class with the common stock on our initial business combination. We may issue some or all of the preferred stock to effect our initial business combination. In addition, the preferred stock could be utilized as a method of discouraging, delaying or preventing a change in control of us. Although we do not currently intend to issue any shares of preferred stock, we reserve the right to do so in the future.
Redeemable Warrants
Public Warrants
No warrants are currently outstanding. Each redeemable warrant entitles the registered holder to purchase one half of one share of common stock at a price of $11.50 per full share, subject to adjustment as discussed below, at any time commencing on the later of the completion of an initial business combination and 12 months from the date of this prospectus. Because the warrants may only be exercised for whole numbers of shares, only an even number of warrants may be exercised at any given time. Pursuant to the warrant agreement, a warrant holder may exercise its warrants only for a whole number of shares. This means that only an even number of warrants may be exercised at any given time by a warrant holder. However, except as set forth below, no warrants will be exercisable for cash unless we have an effective and current registration statement covering the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants and a current prospectus relating to such shares of common stock. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if a registration statement covering the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants is not effective within 90 days from the consummation of our initial business combination, warrant holders may, until such time as there is an effective registration statement and during any period when we shall have failed to maintain an effective registration statement, exercise warrants on a cashless basis pursuant to the exemption from registration provided by Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act provided that such exemption is available. In such event, each holder would pay the exercise price 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 difference between the exercise price of the warrants and the “fair market value” (defined below) by (y) the fair market value. The “fair market value” shall mean the average reported last sale price of the shares of common stock for the 10 trading days ending on the day prior to the date of exercise. For example, if a holder held 300 warrants to purchase 150 shares and the fair market value on the date prior to exercise was $15.00, that holder would receive 35 shares without the payment of any additional cash consideration. If an exemption from registration is not available, holders will not be able to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis. The warrants will expire five years from the consummation of a Business Combination at 5:00 p.m., Eastern Standard Time.
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We may call the outstanding warrants for redemption (excluding the private warrants and warrants underlying the units that may be issued upon conversion of working capital loans but including any outstanding warrants issued upon exercise of the unit purchase option issued to Chardan Capital Markets, LLC), in whole and not in part, at a price of $.01 per warrant:
● | at any time while the warrants are exercisable,; |
● | upon not less than 30 days’ prior written notice of redemption to each warrant holder; |
● | if, and only if, the reported last sale price of the shares of common stock equals or exceeds $16.50 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations and recapitalizations), for any 20 trading days within a 30-day trading period ending on the third business day prior to the notice of redemption to warrant holders (the “Force-Call Provision”), and |
● | if, and only if, there is a current registration statement in effect with respect to the shares of common stock underlying such warrants at the time of redemption and for the entire 30-day trading period referred to above and continuing each day thereafter until the date of redemption. |
The right to exercise will be forfeited unless the warrants are exercised prior to the date specified in the notice of redemption. On and after the redemption date, a record holder of a warrant will have no further rights except to receive the redemption price for such holder’s warrant upon surrender of such warrant.
The redemption criteria for our warrants have been established at a price which is intended to provide warrant holders a reasonable premium to the initial exercise price and provide a sufficient differential between the then-prevailing share price and the warrant exercise price so that if the share price declines as a result of our redemption call, the redemption will not cause the share price to drop below the exercise price of 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 such event, each holder would pay the exercise price 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 difference between the exercise price of the warrants and the “fair market value” (defined below) by (y) the fair market value. The “fair market value” shall mean the average reported last sale price of our 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. Whether we will exercise our option to require all holders to exercise their warrants on a “cashless basis” will depend on a variety of factors including the price of our common shares at the time the warrants are called for redemption, our cash needs at such time and concerns regarding dilutive share issuances.
In addition, if (x) we issue additional shares of common stock 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 $9.50 per share of common stock (with such issue price or effective issue price to be determined in good faith by our board of directors), (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, and (z) the Market Price is below $9.50 per share, the exercise price of the warrants will be adjusted (to the nearest cent) to be equal to 115% of the Market Price, and the $16.50 per share redemption trigger price described above will be adjusted (to the nearest cent) to be equal to 165% of the Market Value.
The warrants will be issued in registered form under a warrant agreement between American Stock Transfer & Trust Company, LLC, 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 written consent or vote, of the holders of a majority of the then outstanding warrants in order to make any change that adversely affects the interests of the registered holders.
The exercise price and number of shares of common stock issuable on exercise of the warrants may be adjusted in certain circumstances including in the event of a share dividend, extraordinary dividend or our recapitalization, reorganization, merger or consolidation. However, the warrants will not be adjusted for issuances of shares of common stock at a price below their respective exercise prices.
The warrants may be exercised upon surrender of the warrant certificate on or prior to the expiration date at the offices of the warrant agent, with the exercise form on the reverse side of the warrant certificate completed and executed as indicated, accompanied by full payment of the exercise price, by certified or official bank check payable to us, for the number of warrants being exercised. The warrant holders do not have the rights or privileges of holders of shares of common stock and any voting rights until they exercise their warrants and receive shares of common stock. After the issuance of shares of common stock upon exercise of the warrants, each holder will be entitled to one vote for each share held of record on all matters to be voted on by stockholders.
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Except as described above, no public warrants will be exercisable for cash and we will not be obligated to issue shares of common stock unless at the time a holder seeks to exercise such warrant, a prospectus relating to the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants is current and the shares of common stock have been registered or qualified or deemed to be exempt under the securities laws of the state of residence of the holder of the warrants. Under the terms of the warrant agreement, we have agreed to use our best efforts to meet these conditions and to maintain a current prospectus relating to the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants until the expiration of the warrants. However, we cannot assure you that we will be able to do so and, if we do not maintain a current prospectus relating to the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants, holders will be unable to exercise their warrants and we will not be required to settle any such warrant exercise. If the prospectus relating to the shares of common stock issuable upon the exercise of the warrants is not current or if the common stock is not qualified or exempt from qualification in the jurisdictions in which the holders of the warrants reside, we will not be required to net cash settle or cash settle the warrant exercise, the warrants may have no value, the market for the warrants may be limited and the warrants may expire worthless.
Warrant holders may elect to be subject to a restriction on the exercise of their warrants such that an electing warrant holder would not be able to exercise their warrants to the extent that, after giving effect to such exercise, such holder would beneficially own in excess of 9.9% of the shares of common stock outstanding. Notwithstanding the foregoing, any person who acquires a warrant with the purpose or effect of changing or influencing the control of our company, or in connection with or as a participant in any transaction having such purpose or effect, immediately upon such acquisition will be deemed to be the beneficial owner of the underlying shares of common stock and not be able to take advantage of this provision.
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 down to the nearest whole number the number of shares of common stock to be issued to the warrant holder.
Private Warrants
We have agreed that so long as the private warrants are still held by the initial purchasers or their affiliates, we will not redeem such warrants and we will allow the holders to exercise such warrants on a cashless basis (even if a registration statement covering the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of such warrants is not effective). However, once any of the foregoing warrants are transferred from the initial purchasers or their affiliates, these arrangements will no longer apply. Additionally, the representative of the underwriters has agreed that it will not be permitted to exercise any private warrants to be issued to it and/or its designees upon consummation of this offering after the five year anniversary of the effective date of the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part. Furthermore, because the private warrants will be issued in a private transaction, the holders and their transferees will be allowed to exercise the private warrants for cash even if a registration statement covering the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of such warrants is not effective and receive unregistered shares of common stock.
Rights
Except in cases where we are not the surviving company in a business combination, each holder of a right will automatically receive one-tenth (1/10) of a share of common stock upon consummation of our initial business combination, even if the holder of a public right converted all shares of common stock held by him, her or it in connection with the initial business combination or an amendment to our certificate of incorporation with respect to our pre-business combination activities. In the event we will not be the surviving company upon completion of our initial business combination, each holder of a right will be required to affirmatively convert his, her or its rights in order to receive the one-tenth (1/10) of a share underlying each right upon consummation of the business combination. No additional consideration will be required to be paid by a holder of rights in order to receive his, her or its additional shares of common stock upon consummation of an initial business combination. The shares issuable upon exchange of the rights will be freely tradable (except to the extent held by affiliates of ours). If we enter into a definitive agreement for a business combination in which we will not be the surviving entity, the definitive agreement will provide for the holders of rights to receive the same per share consideration the holders of the common stock will receive in the transaction on an as-converted into common stock basis.
We will not issue fractional shares in connection with an exchange of rights. Fractional shares will either be rounded down to the nearest whole share or otherwise addressed in accordance with the applicable provisions of the Delaware General Corporation Law. As a result, you must hold rights in multiples of 10 in order to receive shares for all of your rights upon closing of a business combination. If we are unable to complete an initial business combination within the required time period and we liquidate the funds held in the trust account, holders of rights will not receive any of such funds with respect to their rights, nor will they receive any distribution from our assets held outside of the trust account with respect to such rights, and the rights will expire worthless. Further, there are no contractual penalties for failure to deliver securities to the holders of the rights upon consummation of an initial business combination. Additionally, in no event will we be required to net cash settle the rights. Accordingly, the rights may expire worthless.
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Unit Purchase Option
We have agreed to sell to Chardan Capital Markets, LLC an option to purchase up to a total of 300,000 units at $11.50 per unit (or 345,000 units if the over-allotment option is exercised in full) at $11.50 per unit. The units issuable upon exercise of this option are identical to those offered by this prospectus. For a more complete description of the unit purchase option, see the section below entitled “Underwriting — Unit Purchase Option.”.
Dividends
We have not paid any cash dividends on our shares of common stock to date and do not intend to pay cash dividends prior to the completion of a 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 a business combination. The payment of any dividends subsequent to a business combination will be within the discretion of our then board of directors. It is the present intention of our board of directors to retain all earnings, if any, for use in our business operations and, accordingly, our board does not anticipate declaring any dividends in the foreseeable future.
Our Transfer Agent, Warrant Agent and Rights Agent
The transfer agent for our securities, warrant agent for our warrants, and rights agent for our rights is American Stock Transfer & Trust Company, LLC, 6201 15 th Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11219.
Certain Anti-Takeover Provisions of Delaware Law and our Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation and By-Laws
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:
● | a stockholder who owns 10% or more of our outstanding voting stock (otherwise known as an “interested stockholder”); |
● | an affiliate of an interested stockholder; or |
● | 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:
● | our board of directors approves the transaction that made the stockholder an “interested stockholder,” prior to the date of the transaction; |
● | 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 |
● | 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 affirmative vote of at least two-thirds of the outstanding voting stock not owned by the interested stockholder. |
Exclusive Forum For Certain Lawsuits
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will require that derivative actions brought in our name, actions against directors, officers and employees for breach of fiduciary duty and other similar actions not including claims that arise under the Securities Act or Exchange Act, may be brought only in the Court of Chancery in the State of Delaware. This provision may have the effect of discouraging lawsuits against our directors and officers.
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.
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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 must provide timely notice of their intent in writing. To be timely, a stockholder’s notice will need to be delivered to our principal executive offices not later than the close of business on the 90 th day nor earlier than the opening of business on the 120 th day prior to the scheduled date of the annual meeting of stockholders. 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.
Authorized but unissued shares
Our authorized but unissued common stock and preferred stock are available for future issuances without stockholder approval 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.
SHARES ELIGIBLE FOR FUTURE SALE
Immediately after this offering, we will have 5,220,000 shares of common stock outstanding, or 5,988,000 shares of common stock if the over-allotment option is exercised in full. Of these shares, the 4,000,000 shares of common stock sold in this offering, or 4,600,000 shares of common stock if the over-allotment option is exercised in full, 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 remaining shares are restricted securities under Rule 144, in that they were issued in private transactions not involving a public offering.
Rule 144
A person who has beneficially owned restricted shares of common stock for at least six months would be entitled to sell their shares provided that (1) 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 (2) we are subject to the Exchange Act periodic reporting requirements for at least three months before the sale. Persons who have beneficially owned restricted shares of common stock for at least six months but who are our affiliates at the time of, or 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 a number of shares that does not exceed the greater of either of the following:
● | 1% of the number of shares then outstanding, which will equal 52,200 shares of common stock immediately after this offering (or 59,880 shares of common stock if the over-allotment option is exercised in full); and |
● | the average weekly trading volume of the shares of common stock during the four calendar weeks preceding the filing of a notice on Form 144 with respect to the sale. |
Sales 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:
● | 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; |
● | the issuer of the securities has filed all Exchange Act reports and material 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 Form 8-K reports; and |
● | 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, it is likely that pursuant to Rule 144, our insiders will be able to sell their insider shares and private units freely without registration one year after we have completed our initial business combination assuming they are not an affiliate of ours at that time.
Registration Rights
The holders of our insider shares issued and outstanding on the date of this prospectus, as well as the holders of the private units and any shares our insiders, officers, directors or their affiliates may be issued in payment of working capital loans made to us, will be entitled to registration rights pursuant to an agreement to be signed prior to or on the effective date of this offering. The holders of a majority of these securities are entitled to make up to two demands that we register such securities. The holders of the majority of the insider shares can elect to exercise these registration rights at any time commencing three months prior to the date on which these shares of common stock are to be released from escrow. The holders of a majority of the private units and units issued in payment of working capital loans made to us can elect to exercise these registration rights at any time commencing on the date that we consummate our initial business combination. In addition, the holders have certain “piggy-back” registration rights with respect to registration statements filed subsequent to our consummation of our initial business combination. Additionally, the private warrants purchased by Chardan shall not 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 date of effectiveness of the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part or commencement of sales of this offering. Furthermore, notwithstanding the foregoing, pursuant to FINRA Rule 5110 Chardan may not exercise its demand and “piggyback” registration rights after five and seven years, respectively, after the effective date of the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part and may not exercise its demand rights on more than one occasion. We will bear the expenses incurred in connection with the filing of any such registration statements.
Chardan Capital Markets, LLC is acting as the underwriter, the sole book-running manager of the offering and as the representative of the underwriters named below. Subject to the terms and conditions of the underwriting agreement, the underwriters, through the representative Chardan Capital Markets, LLC, have severally agreed to purchase from us on a firm commitment basis the following respective number of units at a public offering price less the underwriting discounts and commissions set forth on the cover page of this prospectus:
Underwriter | Number of Units | |||
Chardan Capital Markets, LLC | ||||
Total | 4,000,000 |
A copy of the form of underwriting agreement has been filed as an exhibit to the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part.
Listing of our Securities
We expect our units, common stock, warrants and rights to be listed on Nasdaq under the symbols “ORSNU,” “ORSN,” “ORSNW,” and “ORSNR,” respectively. We anticipate that our units will be listed on Nasdaq on or promptly after the effective date of the registration statement. Following the date the shares of our common stock and rights are eligible to trade separately, we anticipate that the shares of our common stock and rights will be listed separately and as a unit on Nasdaq. We cannot guarantee that our securities will be approved for listing on Nasdaq or that they will continue to be listed on Nasdaq after this offering.
Pricing of this Offering
We have been advised by the representative that the underwriters propose to offer the units to the public at the offering price set forth on the cover page of this prospectus. They may allow some dealers concessions not in excess of $0.10 per unit.
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Prior to this offering there has been no public market for our securities. The public offering price of the units was negotiated between us and the representative of the underwriters. Factors considered in determining the prices and terms of the units include:
● | the history of other similarly structured blank check companies; |
● | prior offerings of those companies; |
● | our prospects for consummating our initial business combination with an operating business at attractive values; |
● | our capital structure; |
● | securities exchange listing requirements; |
● | market demand; |
● | expected liquidity of our securities; and |
● | general conditions of the securities markets at the time of the offering. |
However, although these factors were considered, the determination of our offering price is more arbitrary than the pricing of securities for an operating company in a particular industry since the underwriters are unable to compare our financial results and prospects with those of public companies operating in the same industry.
Over-allotment Option
We have granted the underwriters an option to purchase up to 600,000 additional units at the initial public offering price, less underwriting discounts and commissions. The underwriters may exercise this option solely for the purpose of covering over-allotments, if any, made in connection with this offering. The underwriters have 45 days from the date of this prospectus to exercise this option. If the underwriters exercise this option, they will each purchase additional units approximately in proportion to the amounts specified in the table above.
Commissions and Discounts
The following table shows the public offering price, underwriting discount to be paid by us to the underwriters and the proceeds, before expenses, to us. This information assumes either no exercise or full exercise by the representative of the underwriters of its over-allotment option.
Per Unit |
Without
Over-allotment |
With
Over-allotment |
||||||||||
Public offering price | $ | 10.00 | $ | 40,000,000 | $ | 46,000,000 | ||||||
Discount (1) | $ | 0.60 | $ | 2,400,000 | $ | 2,760,000 | ||||||
Proceeds before expenses (2) | $ | 9.40 | $ | 37,600,000 | $ | 43,240,000 |
(1) | Such amount includes $1,200,000, or $0.3 per unit, (or $1,380,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) payable to the underwriters for deferred underwriting discounts and commissions upon completion of a business combination. |
(2) | The offering expenses are estimated at approximately $500,000. |
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In addition to the underwriting discount, we have agreed to pay to the underwriters for the FINRA-related fees and expenses of the underwriters’ legal counsel and certain diligence and other fees, including the preparation, binding and delivery of bound volumes in form and style reasonably satisfactory to the representative, transaction lucite cubes or similar commemorative items in a style as reasonably requested by the representative, and reimbursement for background checks on our directors, director nominees and executive officers, which such fees and expenses are capped at an aggregate of $150,000 (which includes a $50,000 advance).
No discounts or commissions will be paid on the sale of the private units.
Private Units
Chardan Capital Markets, LLC (and/or its designees) has committed to purchase 20,000 private units for an aggregate purchase price of $200,000, or $10.00 per unit. Chardan Capital Markets, LLC has also agreed that if the over-allotment option is exercised by the underwriters in full or in part, it will purchase from us at a price of $10.00 per unit the number of private units (up to a maximum of 23,000 private units) that is necessary to maintain in the trust account an amount equal to $10.00 per share of common stock sold to the public in this offering. The private units are identical to the units being sold in this offering. However, Chardan Capital Markets, LLC has agreed (A) to vote its insider shares, private shares and any public shares acquired in or after this offering in favor of any proposed business combination, (B) not to propose, or vote in favor of, an amendment to our certificate of incorporation that would affect the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 12 months from the closing of this offering (or 21 months, as applicable), unless we provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their shares of common stock 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, net of taxes payable, divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, (C) not to convert any shares (including the insider shares) into the right to receive cash from the trust account in connection with a stockholder vote to approve our proposed initial business combination (or sell any shares they hold to us in a tender offer in connection with a proposed initial business combination) or a vote to amend the provisions of our certificate of incorporation relating to the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 12 months from the closing of this offering (or 21 months, as applicable), and (D) that the insider shares and private shares shall not be entitled to be redeemed for a pro rata portion of the funds held in the trust account if a business combination is not consummated. The private units, the shares of common stock, warrants and rights underlying the private units, and the shares of common stock that are issuable pursuant to the warrants and rights included in such units have been deemed compensation by FINRA and are therefore subject to a 180-day lock-up pursuant to FINRA Rule 5110(g)(1) commencing on the effective date of the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part or the commencement of sales in this offering. Pursuant to FINRA Rule 5110(g)(1), these securities will not 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. Additionally, the private units purchased by Chardan Capital Markets, LLC may not be sold, transferred, assigned, pledged or hypothecated during the 180-day lock-up period commencing on the effective date of the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part or the commencement of sales in this offering, except to any selected dealer participating in the offering and the bona fide officers or partners of the underwriter and any such participating selected dealer. Chardan Capital Markets, LLC has agreed that the private units it purchases will not be sold or transferred by it (except to certain permitted transferees) until after we have completed an initial business combination. Additionally, Chardan Capital Markets, LLC has agreed that it will not be permitted to exercise any private warrants to be issued to it and/or its designees upon consummation of this offering after the five year anniversary of the effective date of the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part. We have granted the holders of private units, including Chardan Capital Markets, LLC, the registration rights as described under the section “Shares Eligible for Future Sale — Registration Rights” which will at all times be in compliance with FINRA Rule 5110(f)(2)(G)(iii)-(v).
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Unit Purchase Option
We have agreed to sell to Chardan Capital Markets, LLC (and/or its designees), for $100, an option to purchase a total of 300,000 units (or 345,000 units if the over-allotment option is exercised in full) exercisable, in whole or in part, at $11.50 per unit (or an aggregate exercise price of $3,450,000 or $3,967,500 if the over-allotment option is exercised in full) commencing on the later of the consummation of a business combination and six months from the date of this prospectus. Since the option is not exercisable until at the earliest the consummation of a business combination, and the rights will automatically result in the offering of shares of common stock upon consummation of a business combination, assuming that the over-allotment option is not exercised, the option will effectively represent the right to purchase 330,000 shares of common stock (which includes the 30,000 shares of common stock issuable for the rights included in the units) and warrants to purchase 150,000 shares of common stock, for $1,725,000. The purchase option may be exercised for cash or on a cashless basis, at the holder’s option, and both the purchase option and the warrants underlying the purchase option may not be exercised more than five years from the effective date of the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part. The option and the underlying securities that may be issued upon exercise of the option, 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 registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part or the commencement of sales in this offering pursuant to Rule 5110(g)(1) of FINRA’s Rules, during which time the option may not be sold, transferred, assigned, pledged or hypothecated, or be subject of any hedging, short sale, derivative or put or call transaction that would result in the economic disposition of the securities. Additionally, the option may not be sold, transferred, assigned, pledged or hypothecated for a one-year period (including the foregoing 180-day period) following the date of this prospectus except to any underwriters and selected dealer participating in the offering and their bona fide officers or partners. The option grants to holders demand and “piggy back” rights for periods of five and seven years, respectively, from the effective date of the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part with respect to the registration under the Securities Act of the securities directly and indirectly issuable upon exercise of the option. We will bear all fees and expenses attendant to registering the securities, other than underwriting commissions which will be paid for by the holders themselves. The exercise price and number of units issuable upon exercise of the option may be adjusted in certain circumstances including in the event of a stock dividend, or our recapitalization, reorganization, merger or consolidation. However, the option will not be adjusted for issuances of shares of common stock at a price below its exercise price.
Right of First Refusal
Subject to certain conditions, we granted Chardan, for a period of 18 months after the date of the consummation of our business combination, a right of first refusal to act as lead underwriters or minimally as a co-manager, with at least 30% of the economics; or, in the case of a three-handed deal 20% of the economics, for any and all future public and private equity and debt offerings. In accordance with FINRA Rule 5110(f)(2)(E)(i), such right of first refusal shall not have a duration of more than three years from the effective date of the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part.
Warrant Solicitation Fee
We have agreed to pay Chardan a warrant solicitation fee of five percent (5%) of the exercise price of each public warrant exercised during the period commencing 12 months from the effective date of this registration statement other than (a) in conjunction with the force-call provision, or (b) in the case that all solicitations to warrant holders are made exclusively by us and/or our sponsors without third party assistance on an engaged or non-engaged basis. The warrant solicitation fee will be payable in cash. There is no limitation on the maximum warrant solicitation fee payable to Chardan except to the extent it is limited by the number of warrants outstanding.
Regulatory Restrictions on Purchase of Securities
Rules of the SEC may limit the ability of the underwriters to bid for or purchase our units before the distribution of the units is completed. However, the underwriters may engage in the following activities in accordance with the rules:
● | Stabilizing Transactions. The underwriters may make bids or purchases solely for the purpose of preventing or retarding a decline in the price of our units, as long as stabilizing bids do not exceed the offering price of $10.00 and the underwriters comply with all other applicable rules. |
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● | Over-Allotments and Syndicate Coverage Transactions. The underwriters may create a short position in our units by selling more of our units than are set forth on the cover page of this prospectus up to the amount of the over-allotment option. This is known as a covered short position. The underwriters may also create a short position in our units by selling more of our units than are set forth on the cover page of this prospectus and the units allowed by the over-allotment option. This is known as a naked short position. If the underwriters create a short position during the offering, the representative may engage in syndicate covering transactions by purchasing our units in the open market. The representative may also elect to reduce any short position by exercising all or part of the over-allotment option. Determining what method to use in reducing the short position depends on how the units trade in the aftermarket following the offering. If the unit price drops following the offering, the short position is usually covered with shares purchased by the underwriters in the aftermarket. However, the underwriters may cover a short position by exercising the over-allotment option even if the unit price drops following the offering. If the unit price rises after the offering, then the over-allotment option is used to cover the short position. If the short position is more than the over-allotment option, the naked short must be covered by purchases in the aftermarket, which could be at prices above the offering price. |
● | Penalty Bids. The representative may reclaim a selling concession from a syndicate member when the units originally sold by the syndicate member are purchased in a stabilizing or syndicate covering transaction to cover syndicate short positions. |
Stabilization and syndicate covering transactions may cause the price of our securities to be higher than they would be in the absence of these transactions. The imposition of a penalty bid might also have an effect on the prices of our securities if it discourages resales of our securities.
Neither we nor the underwriters make any representation or prediction as to the effect that the transactions described above may have on the price of our securities. These transactions may occur on Nasdaq, in the over-the-counter market or on any trading market. If any of these transactions are commenced, they may be discontinued without notice at any time.
Other Terms
Except as set forth above, 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, any of the underwriters may, among other things, introduce us to potential target businesses or assist us in raising additional capital, as needs may arise in the future. If any underwriter provides services to us after this offering, we may pay the 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 the underwriter and no fees for such services will be paid to the underwriter prior to the date which is 90 days after the date of this prospectus, unless FINRA determines that such payment would not be deemed underwriter’s compensation in connection with this offering.
Indemnification
We have agreed to indemnify the underwriters against some liabilities, including civil liabilities under the Securities Act, or to contribute to payments the underwriters may be required to make in this respect.
Resale Restrictions
We intend to distribute our securities in the Province of Ontario, Canada (the “Canadian Offering Jurisdiction”) by way of a private placement and exempt from the requirement that we prepare and file a prospectus with the securities regulatory authorities in such Canadian Offering Jurisdiction. Any resale of our securities in Canada must be made under applicable securities laws that will vary depending on the relevant jurisdiction, and which may require resales to be made under available statutory exemptions or under a discretionary exemption granted by the applicable Canadian securities regulatory authority. Canadian resale restrictions in some circumstances may apply to resales of interests made outside of Canada. Canadian purchasers are advised to seek legal advice prior to any resale of our securities. We may never be a “reporting issuer”, as such term is defined under applicable Canadian securities legislation, in any province or territory of Canada in which our securities will be offered and there currently is no public market for any of the securities in Canada, and one may never develop. Canadian investors are advised that we have no intention to file a prospectus or similar document with any securities regulatory authority in Canada qualifying the resale of the securities to the public in any province or territory in Canada.
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Representations of Purchasers
A Canadian purchaser will be required to represent to us and the dealer from whom the purchase confirmation is received that:
● | the purchaser is entitled under applicable provincial securities laws to purchase our securities without the benefit of a prospectus qualified under those securities laws; |
● | where required by law, that the purchaser is purchasing as principal and not as agent; |
● | the purchaser has reviewed the text above under Resale Restrictions; and |
● | the purchaser acknowledges and consents to the provision of specified information concerning its purchase of our securities to the regulatory authority that by law is entitled to collect the information. |
Rights of Action — Ontario Purchasers Only
Under Ontario securities legislation, certain purchasers who purchase a security offered by this prospectus during the period of distribution will have a statutory right of action for damages, or while still the owner of our securities, for rescission against us in the event that this prospectus contains a misrepresentation without regard to whether the purchaser relied on the misrepresentation. The right of action for damages is exercisable not later than the earlier of 180 days from the date the purchaser first had knowledge of the facts giving rise to the cause of action and three years from the date on which payment is made for our securities. The right of action for rescission is exercisable not later than 180 days from the date on which payment is made for our securities. If a purchaser elects to exercise the right of action for rescission, the purchaser will have no right of action for damages against us. In no case will the amount recoverable in any action exceed the price at which our securities were offered to the purchaser and if the purchaser is shown to have purchased the securities with knowledge of the misrepresentation, we will have no liability. In the case of an action for damages, we will not be liable for all or any portion of the damages that are proven to not represent the depreciation in value of our securities as a result of the misrepresentation relied upon. These rights are in addition to, and without derogation from, any other rights or remedies available at law to an Ontario purchaser. The foregoing is a summary of the rights available to an Ontario purchaser. Ontario purchasers should refer to the complete text of the relevant statutory provisions.
Enforcement of Legal Rights
All of our directors and officers as well as the experts named herein are located outside of Canada and, as a result, it may not be possible for Canadian purchasers to effect service of process within Canada upon us or those persons. All of our assets and the assets of those persons are located outside of Canada and, as a result, it may not be possible to satisfy a judgment against us or those persons in Canada or to enforce a judgment obtained in Canadian courts against us or those persons outside of Canada.
Collection of Personal Information
If a Canadian purchaser is resident in or otherwise subject to the securities laws of the Province of Ontario, the Purchaser authorizes the indirect collection of personal information pertaining to the Canadian purchaser by the Ontario Securities Commission (the “OSC”) and each Canadian purchaser will be required to acknowledge and agree that the Canadian purchaser has been notified by us (i) of the delivery to the OSC of personal information pertaining to the Canadian purchaser, including, without limitation, the full name, residential address and telephone number of the Canadian purchaser, the number and type of securities purchased and the total purchase price paid in respect of the securities, (ii) that this information is being collected indirectly by the OSC under the authority granted to it in securities legislation, (iii) that this information is being collected for the purposes of the administration and enforcement of the securities legislation of Ontario, and (iv) that the title, business address and business telephone number of the public official in Ontario who can answer questions about the OSC’s indirect collection of the information is the Administrative Assistant to the Director of Corporate Finance, the Ontario Securities Commission, Suite 1903, Box 5520, Queen Street West, Toronto, Ontario, M5H 3S8, Telephone: (416) 593-8086, Facsimile: (416) 593-8252
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Loeb & Loeb 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, Ellenoff Grossman & Schole LLP, New York, New York, is acting as counsel to the underwriters.
The financial statements of Orisun Acquisition Corp. as of December 31, 2018 and for the period from October 22, 2018 (inception) through December 31, 2018 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 Orisun 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 upon such report given on the authority of such firm as experts in accounting and auditing.
WHERE YOU CAN FIND ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
We have filed with the SEC a registration statement on Form S-1, which includes exhibits, schedules and amendments, under the Securities Act, with respect to this offering of our securities. Although this prospectus, which forms a part of the registration statement, contains all material information included in the registration statement, parts of the registration statement have been omitted as permitted by rules and regulations of the SEC. We refer you to the registration statement and its exhibits for further information about us, our securities and this offering. The registration statement and its exhibits, as well as our other reports filed with the SEC, can be inspected and copied at the SEC’s public reference room at 100 F Street, N.E., Washington, D.C. 20549. The public may obtain information about the operation of the public reference room by calling the SEC at 1-800-SEC-0330. In addition, the SEC maintains a web site at http://www.sec.gov which contains the Form S-1 and other reports, proxy and information statements and information regarding issuers that file electronically with the SEC.
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F- 1
REPORT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM
To the Stockholders and the Board of Directors of
Orisun Acquisition Corp.
Opinion on the Financial Statements
We have audited the accompanying balance sheet of Orisun Acquisition Corp. (the “Company”) as of December 31, 2018 and the related statements of operations, changes in stockholders’ equity and cash flows for the period from October 22, 2018 (inception) through December 31, 2018 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 December 31, 2018 and the results of its operations and its cash flows for the period from October 22, 2018 (inception) through December 31, 2018, 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 discussed in Note 1 to the financial statements, its business plan is dependent on the completion of a financing and the Company’s cash and working capital as of December 31, 2018 are not sufficient to complete its planned activities. These conditions raise substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern. Management’s plans in regard to these matters are also described in Note 1 and 3. The financial statements do not include any adjustments that might result from the outcome of this uncertainty.
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.
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 2019.
New York, NY
April 2, 2019
F- 2
ORISUN
ACQUISITION CORP.
BALANCE SHEETS
March 31, 2019 | December 31, 2018 | |||||||
(unaudited) | ||||||||
ASSETS | ||||||||
Current asset – cash | $ | 127,494 | $ | 147,000 | ||||
Deferred offering costs | 105,850 | 105,500 | ||||||
Total Assets | $ | 233,344 | $ | 252,500 | ||||
LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY | ||||||||
Current liabilities | ||||||||
Accrued expenses | $ | 863 | $ | 863 | ||||
Accrued offering costs | — | 2,500 | ||||||
Promissory note – related party | 225,000 | 225,000 | ||||||
Total Current Liabilities | 225,863 | 228,363 | ||||||
Commitments | ||||||||
Stockholders’ Equity | ||||||||
Common stock, $0.00001 par value; 10,000,000 shares authorized; 1,150,000 shares issued and outstanding (1) | 12 | 12 | ||||||
Additional paid-in capital | 24,988 | 24,988 | ||||||
Accumulated deficit | (17,519 | ) | (863 | ) | ||||
Total Stockholders’ Equity | 7,481 | 24,137 | ||||||
TOTAL LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY | $ | 233,344 | $ | 252,500 |
(1) | Includes an aggregate of up to 150,000 shares subject to forfeiture if the over-allotment option is not exercised in full or in part by the underwriters. |
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.
F- 3
STATEMENTs OF OPERATIONS
Three Months Ended March 31, 2019 |
For the Period from October 22, 2018 (inception) through December 31, 2018 | |||||||
(unaudited) | ||||||||
Formation costs | $ | 16,656 | $ | 863 | ||||
Net Loss | $ | (16,656 | ) | $ | (863 | ) | ||
Weighted average shares outstanding, basic and diluted (1) | 1,000,000 | 1,000,000 | ||||||
Basic and diluted net loss per common share | $ | (0.02 | ) | $ | (0.00 | ) |
(1) | Excludes an aggregate of up to 150,000 shares subject to forfeiture if the over-allotment option is not exercised in full or in part by the underwriters. |
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.
F- 4
STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN STOCKHOLDERs’ EQUITY
Common Stock | Additional Paid in | Accumulated | Total Stockholders’ | |||||||||||||||||
Shares | Amount | Capital | Deficit | Equity | ||||||||||||||||
Balance – October 22, 2018 (inception) | — | $ | — | $ | — | $ | — | $ | — | |||||||||||
Issuance of common stock to Sponsor (1) | 1,150,000 | 12 | 24,988 | — | 25,000 | |||||||||||||||
Net loss | — | — | — | (863 | ) | (863 | ) | |||||||||||||
Balance – December 31, 2018 | 1,150,000 | $ | 12 | $ | 24,988 | $ | (863 | ) | $ | 24,137 | ||||||||||
Net loss | — | — | — | (16,656 | ) | (16,656 | ) | |||||||||||||
Balance – March 31, 2019 (unaudited) | 1,150,000 | $ | 12 | $ | 24,988 | $ | (17,519 | ) | $ | 7,481 |
(1) | Includes an aggregate of up to 150,000 shares subject to forfeiture if the over-allotment option is not exercised in full or in part by the underwriters. |
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.
F- 5
STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
Three Months Ended March 31, 2019 | For the Period from October 22, 2018 (inception) through December 31, 2018 | |||||||
(unaudited) | ||||||||
Cash Flows from Operating Activities: | ||||||||
Net loss | $ | (16,656 | ) | $ | (863 | ) | ||
Changes in operating assets and liabilities: | ||||||||
Accrued expenses | — | 863 | ||||||
Net cash used in operating activities | (16,656 | ) | — | |||||
Cash Flows from Financing Activities: | ||||||||
Proceeds from issuance of common stock to Sponsor | — | 25,000 | ||||||
Proceeds from promissory note – related party | — | 225,000 | ||||||
Payment of offering costs | (2,850 | ) | (103,000 | ) | ||||
Net cash (used in) provided by financing activities | (2,850 | ) | 147,000 | |||||
Net Change in Cash | (19,506 | ) | 147,000 | |||||
Cash – Beginning | 147,000 | — | ||||||
Cash – Ending | $ | 127,494 | $ | 147,000 | ||||
Non-cash investing and financing activities: | ||||||||
Deferred offering costs included in accrued offering costs | $ | — | $ | 2,500 |
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.
F- 6
NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
Note 1 — Description of Organization and Business Operations
Orisun Acquisition Corp. (the “Company”) was incorporated in Delaware on October 22, 2018. The Company was formed for the purpose of entering into a merger, share exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, recapitalization, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses or entities (the “Business Combination”).
Although the Company is not limited to a particular industry or sector for purposes of consummating a Business Combination, the Company intends to focus its search on companies in and around the high-tech industry. 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 March 31, 2019, the Company had not commenced any operations. All activity for the period from October 22, 2018 (inception) through March 31, 2019 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 4,000,000 units (the “Units” and, with respect to the shares of common stock included in the Units being offered, the “Public Shares”) at $10.00 per Unit (or 4,600,000 units if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full), which is discussed in Note 3, and the sale of 220,000 units (or 238,000 units if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) (the “Private Units”) at a price of $10.00 per Private Unit in a private placement to Everstone Investments, LLC (the “Sponsor”) and Chardan Capital Markets LLC (and/or their designees) (“Chardan”) 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 Units, 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 having an aggregate fair market value of at least 80% of the assets held in the Trust Account (as defined below) (excluding the deferred underwriting commissions and taxes payable on interest 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 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 Units, 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 180 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 Trust Account, as described below.
F- 7
ORISUN ACQUISITION CORP.
NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
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 franchise and income 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 a redemption value and classified as temporary equity upon the completion of the Proposed Offering in accordance with the Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) Topic 480 “Distinguishing Liabilities from Equity.” The Company will proceed with a Business Combination if the Company has net tangible assets of at least $5,000,001 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 legal 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 legal 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. Additionally, each public stockholder may elect to redeem their Public Shares irrespective of whether they vote for or against the proposed transaction. If the Company seeks stockholder approval in connection with a Business Combination, the Company’s Sponsor and any of the Company’s officers or directors that may hold Founder Shares (as defined in Note 5) (the “Initial Stockholders”) and Chardan have agreed (a) to vote their Founder Shares, Private Shares (as defined in Note 4) and any Public Shares purchased during or after the Proposed Public Offering in favor of approving a Business Combination and (b) not to convert any shares (including the Founder Shares) in connection with a stockholder vote to approve, or sell the shares to the Company in any tender offer in connection with, a proposed Business Combination.
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 20% or more of the Public Shares, without the prior consent of the Company.
The Initial Stockholders and Chardan have agreed (a) to waive their redemption rights with respect to the Founder Shares, Private Shares and Public Shares held by them in connection with the completion of a Business Combination and (b) not to propose, or vote in favor of, an amendment to the Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation that would affect the substance or timing of the Company’s obligation to redeem 100% of its Public Shares if the Company does not complete a Business Combination, unless the Company provides the public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their Public Shares in conjunction with any such amendment.
The Company will have until 12 months from the closing of the Proposed Offering to consummate a Business Combination. However, if the Company anticipates that it may not be able to consummate a Business Combination within 12 months, the Company may extend the period of time to consummate a Business Combination up to three times, each by an additional three months (for a total of 21 months to complete a Business Combination) (the “Combination Period”). In order to extend the time available for the Company to consummate a Business Combination, the Sponsor or its affiliate or designees must deposit into the Trust Account $400,000, or $460,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full ($0.10 per Public Share in either case), up to an aggregate of $1,200,000 (or $1,380,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full), or $0.30 per Unit, on or prior to the date of the applicable deadline for each three month extension.
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 franchise and income taxes, 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), subject to applicable law, 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.
F- 8
ORISUN ACQUISITION CORP.
NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
The Sponsor and Chardan have agreed to waive their liquidation rights with respect to the Founder Shares and Private Shares if the Company fails to complete a Business Combination within the Combination Period. However, if the Sponsor or Chardan 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 in 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, Ms. Wei Chen, our chief executive officer, has agreed to be liable to the Company if and to the extent any claims by a vendor 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 $10.00 per Public Share, except as to any claims by a third party who executed a valid and enforceable agreement with the Company waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind they may have in or to any monies held in the Trust Account and except as to any claims under the Company’s indemnity of the underwriters of 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, Ms. Wei Chen, our chief executive officer, will not be responsible to the extent of any liability for such third party claims. The Company will seek to reduce the possibility that Ms. Chen Wei will have to indemnify the Trust Account due to claims of creditors by endeavoring to have all vendors, service providers, 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.
Going Concern Consideration
At March 31, 2019, the Company had $127,494 in cash and working capital deficit of $98,369. 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 (“GAAP”) and pursuant to the rules and regulations of the SEC.
In the opinion of management, the accompanying unaudited financial statements include all adjustments, consisting of a normal recurring nature, which are necessary for a fair presentation of the financial position, operating results and cash flows for the periods presented. The interim results for the three months ended March 31, 2019 are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for the year ending December 31, 2019 or for any future interim periods.
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.
F- 9
ORISUN ACQUISITION CORP.
NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
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 disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and 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 significantly 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 March 31, 2019 and December 31, 2018.
Deferred Offering Costs
Deferred offering costs consist of legal, accounting, underwriting fees and other costs incurred through the balance sheet date that are directly related to the Proposed Public Offering and that will be charged to stockholders’ 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.
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 March 31, 2019 and December 31, 2018. 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 immaterial for the three months ended March 31, 2019 and for the period from October 22, 2018 (inception) to December 31, 2018.
F- 10
ORISUN ACQUISITION CORP.
NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
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 shares of common stock subject to forfeiture by the Initial Stockholders. Weighted average shares were reduced for the effect of an aggregate of 150,000 shares of common stock that are subject to forfeiture if the over-allotment option is not exercised by the underwriters (see Note 7). At March 31, 2019 and December 31, 2018, the Company did not have any dilutive securities and 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. At March 31, 2019 and December 31, 2018, the Company has not experienced losses on this account and management believes the Company is not exposed to significant risks on such account.
Fair Value of Financial Instruments
The fair value of the Company’s assets and liabilities, which qualify as financial instruments under ASC 820, “Fair Value Measurements and Disclosures,” approximates the carrying amounts represented in the accompanying balance sheet, primarily due to their short-term nature.
Recent Accounting Pronouncements
Management does not believe that any recently issued, but not yet effective, accounting pronouncements, if currently adopted, would have a material effect on the Company’s financial statements.
Note 3 — Public Offering
Pursuant to the Proposed Public Offering, the Company intends to offer for sale 4,000,000 units (or 4,600,000 Units if the over-allotment option is exercised in full) at a price of $10.00 per Unit. Each Unit consists of one share of common stock, one right (“Public Right”) and one warrant (“Public Warrant”). Each Public Right will convert into one-tenth (1/10) of one share of common stock upon the consummation of a Business Combination (see Note 7). Each Public Warrant entitles the holder to purchase one half of one share of common stock at a price of $11.50 per whole share, subject to adjustment (see Note 7).
Note 4 — Private Placement
The Sponsor and Chardan (and/or their designees) have agreed to purchase an aggregate of 220,000 Private Units (or 238,000 Private Units if the over-allotment option is exercised in full) at a price of $10.00 per Private Unit, of which 200,000 Private Units (or 215,000 Private Units if the underwriters’ over-allotment is exercised in full) will be purchased by the Sponsor and 20,000 Private Units will be purchased by Chardan (or 23,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment is exercised in full) for an aggregate purchase price of $2,200,000, or $2,380,000 if the 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 Unit will consist of one share of common stock (“Private Share”), one right (“Private Right”) and one warrant (“Private Warrant”). Each Private Right will convert into one-tenth (1/10) of one share of common stock upon the consummation of a Business Combination (see Note 7). Each Private Warrant is exercisable to purchase one-half of one share of common stock at an exercise price of $11.50 per whole share, subject to adjustment (see Note 7). The proceeds from the Private Units 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 from the sale of the Private Units will be used to fund the redemption of the Public Shares (subject to the requirements of applicable law), and the Private Units and all underlying securities will expire worthless.
F- 11
ORISUN ACQUISITION CORP.
NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
Note 5 — Related Party Transactions
Founder Shares
In December 2018, the Sponsor purchased 1,150,000 shares (the “Founder Shares”) of the Company’s common stock for an aggregate price of $25,000. The Founder Shares include an aggregate of up to 150,000 shares subject to forfeiture by the Initial Stockholders to the extent that the underwriters’ over-allotment is not exercised in full or in part, so that the Initial Stockholders will collectively own 20% of the Company’s issued and outstanding shares after the Proposed Public Offering (assuming the Initial Stockholders do not purchase any Public Shares in the Proposed Public Offering and excluding the Private Units).
The Initial Stockholders have agreed, subject to certain limited exceptions, not to transfer, assign or sell any of their Founder Shares until, with respect to 50% of the Founder Shares, the earlier of six months after the consummation of a Business Combination and the date on which the closing price of the common stock equals or exceeds $12.50 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 after a Business Combination and, with respect to the remaining 50% of the Founder Shares, until the six months after the consummation of a Business Combination, or earlier, in either case, if, subsequent to a Business Combination, the Company completes a liquidation, merger, stock exchange 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.
Promissory Note – Related Party
On December 28, 2018, 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 $300,000, of which $225,000 was outstanding under the Promissory Note as of March 31, 2019 and December 31, 2018. The Promissory Note is non-interest bearing and due on the earlier of the consummation of the Proposed Public Offering or on the date on which the Company determines not to proceed with the Proposed Public Offering.
Related Party Loans
In addition, in order to finance transaction costs in connection with a Business Combination, the Sponsor, or certain of the Company’s officers and directors or their affiliates 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, 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 $500,000 of such Working Capital Loans may be converted into units of the post Business Combination entity at a price of $10.00 per unit. The units would be identical to the Private Units.
Related Party Extension Loans
As discussed in Note 1, the Company may extend the period of time to consummate a Business Combination up to three times, each by an additional three months (for a total of 21 months to complete a Business Combination). In order to extend the time available for the Company to consummate a Business Combination, the Sponsor or its affiliates or designees must deposit into the Trust Account $400,000, or up to $460,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full ($0.10 per Public Share in any case), up to an aggregate of $1,200,000 (or $1,380,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full), or $0.30 per Unit, on or prior to the date of the applicable deadline. The Sponsor will receive a non-interest bearing, unsecured promissory note that will not be repaid in the event that the Company is unable to close a Business Combination unless there are funds available outside the Trust Account to do so. The note would either be repaid upon consummation of a Business Combination or, at the lender’s discretion, converted upon the consummation of a Business Combination into additional Private Units at a price of $10.00 per unit. The initial stockholders and its affiliates or designees are not obligated to fund the Trust Account to extend the time for the Company to complete a Business Combination.
F- 12
ORISUN ACQUISITION CORP.
NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
Note 6 — Commitments
Registration Rights
The holders of the Founder Shares, Private Units (and all underlying securities), and any shares that may be issued upon conversion of Working Capital Loans will be entitled to registration rights pursuant to a registration rights agreement to be signed prior to or on the effective date of Proposed Public Offering. The holders of the majority of these securities are entitled to make up to two demands that the Company register such securities. The holders of the majority of the Founder Shares can elect to exercise these registration rights at any time commencing three months prior to the date on which the Founder Shares are to be released from escrow. The holders of a majority of the Private Units and units issued in payment of Working Capital Loans made to the Company can elect to exercise these registration rights at any time commencing on the date that the Company consummates a Business Combination. In addition, the holders have certain “piggy-back” registration rights with respect to registration statements filed subsequent to the consummation of a Business Combination. 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 this prospectus to purchase up to 600,000 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 $0.30 per Unit, or $1,200,000 in the aggregate (or $1,380,000 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 $0.30 per Unit, or $1,200,000 in the aggregate (or $1,380,000 in the aggregate if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full). The deferred fee will be forfeited by the underwriters solely in the event that the Company fails to complete a Business Combination, subject to the terms of the underwriting agreement.
Unit Purchase Option
The Company has agreed to sell Chardan (and/or its designees), for $100, an option to purchase 300,000 Units (or 345,000 units if the over-allotment option is exercised in full) exercisable at $11.50 per Unit (or an aggregate exercise price of $3,450,000 or $3,967,500 if the over-allotment option is exercised in full) commencing on the later of six months from the effective date of the registration statement related to the Proposed Public Offering and the consummation of a Business Combination. The unit purchase option may be exercised for cash or on a cashless basis, at the holder’s option, and expires five years from the effective date of the registration statement related to the Proposed Public Offering. The Units issuable upon exercise of the option are identical to those offered in the Proposed Public Offering. The Company intends to account for the unit purchase option, inclusive of the receipt of $100 cash payment, as an expense of the Proposed Public Offering resulting in a charge directly to stockholders’ equity. The Company estimates that the fair value of the unit purchase option is approximately $883,000 or $1,016,000 if the over-allotment option is exercised in full (or $2.94 per Unit) using the Black-Scholes option-pricing model. The fair value of the unit purchase option to be granted to the underwriters is estimated as of the date of grant using the following assumptions: (1) expected volatility of 35%, (2) risk-free interest rate of 2.23% and (3) expected life of five years. The option and the underlying securities that may be issued upon exercise of the option, have been deemed compensation by FINRA and are therefore subject to a 180-day lock-up pursuant to Rule 5110(g)(1) of FINRA’s NASDAQ Conduct Rules. Additionally, the option may not be sold, transferred, assigned, pledged or hypothecated for a one-year period (including the foregoing 180-day period) following the date of Proposed Public Offering except to any underwriter and selected dealer participating in the Proposed Public Offering and their bona fide officers or partners. The option grants to holders demand and “piggy back” rights for periods of five and seven years, respectively, from the effective date of the registration statement with respect to the registration under the Securities Act of the securities directly and indirectly issuable upon exercise of the option. The Company will bear all fees and expenses attendant to registering the securities, other than underwriting commissions which will be paid for by the holders themselves. The exercise price and number of units issuable upon exercise of the option may be adjusted in certain circumstances including in the event of a stock dividend, or the Company’s recapitalization, reorganization, merger or consolidation. However, the option will not be adjusted for issuances of shares of common stock at a price below its exercise price.
F- 13
ORISUN ACQUISITION CORP.
NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
Right of First Refusal
The Company has granted Chardan a right of first refusal, for a period of 18 months after the date of the consummation of a Business Combination, to act as lead investment banker, or minimally as a co-manager, with at 30% of the economics or 20% if three investment banks are involved in the transaction, for any public or private equity and debt offerings during such period.
Warrant Solicitation Fee
The Company has agreed to pay Chardan a warrant solicitation fee of 5% of the exercise price of each Public Warrant exercised during the period commencing 12 months from the effective date of this registration statement other than (a) in conjunction with a force-call provision, or (b) in the case that all solicitations to warrant holders are made exclusively by the Company and/or the Sponsor without third party assistance on an engaged or non-engaged basis. The warrant solicitation fee will be payable in cash. There is no limitation on the maximum warrant solicitation fee payable to Chardan except to the extent it is limited by the number of warrants outstanding.
Note 7 — Stockholders’ Equity
Common Stock — The Company is authorized to issue 10,000,000 shares of common stock with a par value of $0.00001 per share. The Company plans to file an Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation prior to the completion of the Proposed Offering to increase the number of authorized shares to 30,000,000 shares. Holders of the common stock are entitled to one vote for each share. At March 31, 2019 and December 31, 2018, there were 1,150,000 shares of common stock issued and outstanding, of which an aggregate of up to 150,000 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 Initial Stockholders will collectively own 20% of the Company’s issued and outstanding common stock after the Proposed Public Offering (assuming the Initial Stockholders do not purchase any Public Shares in the Proposed Public Offering and excluding the Private Units).
Rights — Each holder of a right will receive one-tenth (1/10) of one share of common stock upon consummation of a Business Combination, even if the holder of such right redeemed all shares held by it in connection with a Business Combination. No fractional shares will be issued upon conversion of the rights. No additional consideration will be required to be paid by a holder of rights in order to receive its additional shares upon consummation of a Business Combination, as the consideration related thereto has been included in the Unit purchase price paid for by investors in the Initial Public Offering. If the Company enters into a definitive agreement for a Business Combination in which the Company will not be the surviving entity, the definitive agreement will provide for the holders of rights to receive the same per share consideration the holders of the common stock will receive in the transaction on an as-converted into common stock basis and each holder of a right will be required to affirmatively covert its rights in order to receive 1/10 share underlying each right (without paying additional consideration). The shares issuable upon conversion of the rights will be freely tradable (except to the extent held by affiliates of the Company).
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 rights will not receive any of such funds with respect to their rights, nor will they receive any distribution from the Company’s assets held outside of the Trust Account with respect to such rights, and the rights will expire worthless. Further, there are no contractual penalties for failure to deliver securities to the holders of the rights upon consummation of a Business Combination. Additionally, in no event will the Company be required to net cash settle the rights. Accordingly, holders of the rights might not receive the shares of common stock underlying the rights.
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ORISUN ACQUISITION CORP.
NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
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) the completion of a Business Combination or (b) 12 months from the closing of the Proposed Public Offering. No Public Warrants will be exercisable for cash unless the Company has an effective and current registration statement covering the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the Public Warrants and a current prospectus relating to such shares of common stock. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if a registration statement covering the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the Public Warrants is not effective within 90 days from the consummation of a Business Combination, warrant holders may, until such time as there is an effective registration statement and during any period when the Company shall have failed to maintain an effective registration statement, exercise the Public Warrants on a cashless basis pursuant to the exemption from registration provided by Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act provided that such exemption is available. If an exemption from registration is not available, holders will not be able to exercise their Public Warrants on a cashless basis. The Public Warrants will expire five years from the consummation of a Business Combination or earlier upon redemption or liquidation.
The Company may call the warrants for redemption (excluding the private warrants and warrants underlying the units that may be issued upon conversion of working capital loans but including any outstanding warrants issued upon exercise of the unit purchase option issued to Chardan Capital Markets, LLC), in whole and not in part, at a price of $0.01 per warrant:
● | at any time while the warrants are exercisable, | |
● | upon not less than 30 days’ prior written notice of redemption to each warrant holder, | |
● | if, and only if, the reported last sale price of the shares of common stock equals or exceeds $16.50 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations and recapitalizations), for any 20 trading days within a 30-trading day period ending on the third business day prior to the notice of redemption to warrant holders, and | |
● | if, and only if, there is a current registration statement in effect with respect to the shares of common stock underlying such warrants at the time of redemption and for the entire 30-day trading period referred to above and continuing each day thereafter until the date of redemption. |
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 common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants may be adjusted in certain circumstances including in the event of a stock dividend, extraordinary dividend or recapitalization, reorganization, merger or consolidation. However, the warrants will not be adjusted for issuances of shares of 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 respect to such warrants. Accordingly, the warrants may expire worthless.
The Private Warrants will be identical to the Public Warrants underlying the Units being sold in the Proposed Public Offering, except that the Private Warrants and the shares of common stock issuable upon the exercise of the Private Warrants will not be transferable, assignable or salable until after the completion of a Business Combination, subject to certain limited exceptions. Additionally, the Private Warrants will be exercisable on a cashless basis and be non-redeemable so long as they are held by the initial purchasers or their permitted transferees. If the Private Warrants are held by someone other than the initial purchasers or their permitted transferees, the Private 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 the date that the financial statements were 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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Until __________, 2019 (25 days after the date of this prospectus), all dealers that buy, sell or trade our shares of common stock, 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.
No dealer, salesperson or any other person is authorized to give any information or make any representations in connection with this offering other than those contained in this prospectus and, if given or made, the information or representations must not be relied upon as having been authorized by us. This prospectus does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any security other than the securities offered by this prospectus, or an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any securities by anyone in any jurisdiction in which the offer or solicitation is not authorized or is unlawful.
$40,000,000
Orisun Acquisition Corp.
4,000,000 Units
PROSPECTUS
Sole Book-Running Manager
Chardan
[*], 2019
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:
Initial Trustees fee | $ | 6,500 | (1) | |
SEC Registration fees | 6,662 | |||
FINRA filing fee | 8,745 | |||
Accounting fees and expenses | 40,000 | |||
Nasdaq listing fees | 50,000 | |||
Printing and engraving expenses | 30,000 | |||
Legal fees and expenses | 300,000 | |||
Miscellaneous (1) | 58,093 | |||
Total | $ | 500,000 |
(1) | This amount represents additional expenses that may be incurred by the Company in connection with the offering and over and above those specifically listed above, including liability insurance, distribution and mailing costs. |
Item 14. Indemnification of Directors and Officers.
Our certificate of incorporation provides that all directors, officers, employees and agents of the registrant 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. |
(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. |
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(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. |
(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. |
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(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 bylaw, 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.
In accordance with Section 102(b)(7) of the DGCL, our certificate of incorporation, will provide that no director shall be personally liable to us or any of our stockholders for monetary damages resulting from breaches of their fiduciary duty as directors, except to the extent such limitation on or exemption from liability is not permitted under the DGCL unless they violated their duty of loyalty to the Company 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. The effect of this provision of our certificate of incorporation is to eliminate our rights and those of our stockholders (through stockholders’ derivative suits on our behalf) to recover monetary damages against a director for breach of the fiduciary duty of care as a director, including breaches resulting from negligent or grossly negligent behavior, except, as restricted by Section 102(b)(7) of the DGCL. However, this provision does not limit or eliminate our rights or the rights of any stockholder to seek non-monetary relief, such as an injunction or rescission, in the event of a breach of a director’s duty of care.
If the DGCL is amended to authorize corporate action further eliminating or limiting the liability of directors, then, in accordance with our certificate of incorporation, the liability of our directors to us or our stockholders will be eliminated or limited to the fullest extent authorized by the DGCL, as so amended. Any repeal or amendment of provisions of our certificate of incorporation limiting or eliminating the liability of directors, 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 further limit or eliminate the liability of directors on a retroactive basis.
Our 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 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.
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The right to indemnification conferred by our 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 certificate of incorporation or otherwise.
The rights to indemnification and advancement of expenses will not be deemed exclusive of any other rights which any person covered by our certificate of incorporation may have or hereafter acquire under law, our certificate of incorporation, our bylaws, an agreement, vote of stockholders or disinterested directors, or otherwise.
Any repeal or amendment of provisions of our 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 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 certificate of incorporation.
Our bylaws, which we intend to adopt immediately prior to the closing of this offering, include the provisions relating to advancement of expenses and indemnification rights consistent with those set forth in our 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 indemnity agreements with each of our officers and directors a form of which is filed as Exhibit 10.6 to this Registration Statement. These agreements will require us to indemnify these individuals to the fullest extent permitted under Delaware law 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 Underwriters and the Underwriters have agreed to indemnify us against certain civil liabilities that may be incurred in connection with this offering, including certain liabilities under the Securities Act.
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Item 15. Recent Sales of Unregistered Securities.
In December 2018, our initial officers and directors purchased an aggregate of 1,150,000 shares of our common stock for an aggregate purchase price of $25,000, or approximately $0.02 per share, in connection with the Company’s organization pursuant to the exemption from registration contained in Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act.
In addition, Everstone Investments LLC and Chardan Capital Markets, LLC have committed to purchase an aggregate of 220,000 private units from us on a private placement basis simultaneously with the consummation of this offering, for an aggregate purchase price of $2,200,000. These purchases will take place on a private placement basis simultaneously with the consummation of our initial public offering. They have also agreed that if the over-allotment option is exercised by the underwriters in full or in part, they will purchase from us at a price of $10.00 per unit the number of private units (up to a maximum of 18,000 private units) that is necessary to maintain in the trust account an amount equal to $10.00 per share sold to the public in this offering. These purchases 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:
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* | Previously filed |
Item 17. Undertakings.
(a) | The undersigned registrant hereby undertakes: |
(1) | To file, during any period in which offers or sales are being made, a post-effective amendment to this registration statement: |
i. | To include any prospectus required by Section 10(a)(3) of the Securities Act of 1933; |
ii. | To reflect in the prospectus any facts or events arising after the effective date of the registration statement (or the most recent post-effective amendment thereof) which, individually or in the aggregate, represent a fundamental change in the information set forth in the registration statement. Notwithstanding the foregoing, any increase or decrease in volume of securities offered (if the total dollar value of securities offered would not exceed that which was registered) and any deviation from the low or high end of the estimated maximum offering range may be reflected in the form of prospectus filed with the Commission pursuant to Rule 424(b) if, in the aggregate, the changes in volume and price represent no more than 20 percent change in the maximum aggregate offering price set forth in the “Calculation of Registration Fee” table in the effective registration statement; |
iii. | To include any material information with respect to the plan of distribution not previously disclosed in the registration statement or any material change to such information in the registration statement. |
(2) | That, for the purpose of determining any liability under the Securities Act of 1933, each such post-effective amendment 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. |
(3) | To remove from registration by means of a post-effective amendment any of the securities being registered which remain unsold at the termination of the offering. |
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(4) | That for the purpose of determining any liability under the Securities Act of 1933 in a primary offering of securities of the undersigned registrant pursuant to this registration statement, regardless of the underwriting method used to sell the securities to the purchaser, if the securities are offered or sold to such purchaser by means of any of the following communications, the undersigned registrant will be a seller to the purchaser and will be considered to offer or sell such securities to such purchaser: |
(i) | Any preliminary prospectus or prospectus of the undersigned registrant relating to the offering required to be filed pursuant to Rule 424; |
(ii) | Any free writing prospectus relating to the offering prepared by or on behalf of the undersigned registrant or used or referred to by the undersigned registrant; |
(iii) | The portion of any other free writing prospectus relating to the offering containing material information about the undersigned registrant or its securities provided by or on behalf of the undersigned registrant; and |
(iv) | Any other communication that is an offer in the offering made by the undersigned registrant to the purchaser. |
(5) | That for the purpose of determining liability under the Securities Act of 1933 to any purchaser, if the registrant is subject to Rule 430C, each prospectus filed pursuant to Rule 424(b) as part of a registration statement relating to an offering, other than registration statements relying on Rule 430B or other than prospectuses filed in reliance on Rule 430A, shall be deemed to be part of and included in the registration statement as of the date it is first used after effectiveness. Provided, however, that no statement made in a registration statement or prospectus that is part of the registration statement or made in a document incorporated or deemed incorporated by reference into the registration statement or prospectus that is part of the registration statement will, as to a purchaser with a time of contract of sale prior to such first use, supersede or modify any statement that was made in the registration statement or prospectus that was part of the registration statement or made in any such document immediately prior to such date of first use. |
(b) | The undersigned hereby undertakes to provide to the underwriter at the closing specified in the underwriting agreements, certificates in such denominations and registered in such names as required by the underwriter to permit prompt delivery to each purchaser. |
(c) | 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. |
(d) | 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. |
II- 7
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, the registrant has duly caused this registration statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, in New York City, State of New York, on the 11th day of July, 2019.
ORISUN ACQUISITION CORP. | ||
By: | /s/ Wei Chen | |
Wei Chen | ||
Chief Executive Officer |
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.
Signature |
Title |
Date |
||
/s/ Wei Chen | Chief Executive Officer. President and Director | July 11, 2019 | ||
Wei Chen | (Principal Executive Officer) | |||
/s/ Lu Zhou* | Chief Financial Officer and Director | July 11, 2019 | ||
Lu Zhou | (Principal financial and accounting officer) | |||
/s/ Ling Wu* | Director | July 11, 2019 | ||
Ling Wu | ||||
/s/ Tony Chi Ming Chan* | Director | July 11, 2019 | ||
Tony Chi Ming Chan | ||||
/s/ Lihua Zheng* | Director | July 11, 2019 | ||
Lihua Zheng |
*By | /s/ Wei Chen | |
Wei Chen, attorney in fact |
II-8
Exhibit 3.2
AMENDED AND RESTATED
OF
ORISUN ACQUISITION CORP.
Pursuant to Section 245 of the
Delaware General Corporation Law
Orisun Acquisition Corp., a corporation existing under the laws of the State of Delaware, by its Chief Executive Officer, hereby certifies as follows:
1. The name of the corporation is Orisun Acquisition Corp. (hereinafter called the “Corporation”).
2. The Corporation’s Certificate of Incorporation was filed in the office of the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware on October 22, 2018.
3. This Amended Restated Certificate of Incorporation restates, integrates and amends the Certificate of Incorporation of the Corporation.
4. This Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation was duly adopted by the written consent of the directors and stockholders of the Corporation in accordance with the applicable provisions of Sections 141(f), 228, 242 and 245 of the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware (“GCL”).
5. The text of the Certificate of Incorporation of the Corporation is hereby amended and restated to read in full as follows:
FIRST: The name of the corporation is Orisun Acquisition Corp. (hereinafter called the “Corporation”).
SECOND: The registered office of the Corporation is to be located at 28 Old Rudnick Lane, in the City of Dover, in the County of Kent, in the State of Delaware 19901. The name of its registered agent at that address is Corp1, Inc.
THIRD: The purpose of the Corporation is to engage in any lawful act or activity for which corporations may be organized under the General Corporation Law of Delaware (“GCL”).
FOURTH: The name and mailing address of the incorporator is: Jaszick Maldonado, c/o Loeb & Loeb LLP, 345 Park Avenue, New York NY 10154.
FIFTH: The total number of shares of all classes of capital stock which the Corporation shall have authority to issue is 31,000,000, of which 30,000,000 shares shall be common stock, par value $.00001 per share (“Common Stock”) and 1,000,000 shares shall be preferred stock, par value $.00001 per share (“Preferred Stock”).
A. Preferred Stock. The Board of Directors is expressly granted authority to issue shares of the Preferred Stock, in one or more series, and to fix for each such series such voting powers, full or limited, and such designations, preferences and relative, participating, optional or other special rights and such qualifications, limitations or restrictions thereof as shall be stated and expressed in the resolution or resolutions adopted by the Board of Directors providing for the issue of such series (a “Preferred Stock Designation”) and as may be permitted by the GCL. 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 voting power of all of the then outstanding shares of the capital stock of the Corporation entitled to vote generally in the election of directors, voting together as a single class, without a separate vote of the holders of the Preferred Stock, or any series thereof, unless a vote of any such holders is required pursuant to any Preferred Stock Designation.
B. Common Stock. Except as otherwise required by law or as otherwise provided in any Preferred Stock Designation, the holders of the Common Stock shall exclusively possess all voting power and each share of Common Stock shall have one vote.
SIXTH: This Article Sixth shall apply during the period commencing upon the filing of this Certificate of Incorporation and terminating upon the consummation of any “Business Combination” (as defined below). A “Business Combination” shall mean any merger, capital stock exchange, asset, stock purchase, reorganization or other similar business combination involving the Corporation and one or more businesses or entities (“Target Business”), or entering into contractual arrangements that give the Corporation control over such a Target Business, and, if the Corporation is then listed on a national securities exchange, the Target Business has a fair market value equal to at least 80% of the balance in the Trust Fund (as defined below), less any deferred underwriting commissions and taxes payable on interest earned, at the time of signing a definitive agreement in connection with the initial Business Combination. “IPO Shares” shall mean the shares sold pursuant to the registration statement on Form S-1 (“Registration Statement”) filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“Commission”) in connection with the Corporation’s initial public offering (“IPO”).
A. Prior to the consummation of a Business Combination, the Corporation shall either (i) submit any Business Combination to its holders of Common Stock for approval (“Proxy Solicitation”) pursuant to the proxy rules promulgated under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (“Exchange Act”), or (ii) provide its holders of IPO Shares with the opportunity to sell their shares to the Corporation by means of a tender offer (“Tender Offer”).
B. If the Corporation engages in a Proxy Solicitation with respect to a Business Combination, the Corporation will consummate the Business Combination only if a majority of the then outstanding shares of Common Stock present and entitled to vote at the meeting to approve the Business Combination are voted for the approval of such Business Combination.
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C. In the event that a Business Combination is consummated by the Corporation or the Corporation holds a vote of its stockholders to amend its Certificate of Incorporation, any holder of IPO Shares who (i) followed the procedures contained in the proxy materials to perfect the holder’s right to convert the holder’s IPO Shares into cash, if any, or (ii) tendered the holder’s IPO Shares as specified in the tender offer materials therefor, shall be entitled to receive the Conversion Price (as defined below) in exchanges for the holder’s IPO Shares. The Corporation shall, promptly after consummation of the Business Combination or the filing of the amendment to the Certificate of Incorporation with the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware, convert such shares into cash at a per share price equal to the quotient determined by dividing (i) the amount then held in the Trust Fund (as defined below) less any income taxes owed on such funds but not yet paid, calculated as of two business days prior to the consummation of the Business Combination or the filing of the amendment, as applicable, by (ii) the total number of IPO Shares then outstanding (such price being referred to as the “Conversion Price”). “Trust Fund” shall mean the trust account established by the Corporation at the consummation of its IPO and into which the amount specified in Registration Statement is deposited. Notwithstanding the foregoing, a holder of IPO Shares, together with any affiliate of his or any other person with whom he is acting in concert or as a “group” (within the meaning of Section 13(d)(3) of the Exchange Act) (“Group”) with, will be restricted from demanding conversion in connection with a proposed Business Combination with respect to 25.0% or more of the IPO Shares. Accordingly, all IPO Shares beneficially owned by such holder or any other person with whom such holder is acting in concert or as a Group with in excess of 25.0% or more of the IPO Shares will remain outstanding following consummation of such Business Combination in the name of the stockholder and not be converted.
D. The Corporation will not consummate any Business Combination unless it has net tangible assets of at least $5,000,001 upon consummation of such Business Combination.
E. In the event that the Corporation does not consummate a Business Combination by (i) 12 months from the consummation of the IPO or (ii) up to 21 months from the consummation of the IPO if the Corporation elects to extend the amount of time to complete a Business Combination in accordance with the terms of the Investment Management Trust Agreement between the Corporation and American Stock Transfer & Trust Company, LLC (in either case, such date being referred to as the “Termination Date”), the Corporation shall (i) cease all operations except for the purposes of winding up, (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than ten business days thereafter redeem 100% of the IPO Shares for cash for a redemption price per share as described below (which redemption will completely extinguish such holders’ 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 approval of the Corporation’s then stockholders and subject to the requirements of the GCL, including the adoption of a resolution by the Board of Directors pursuant to Section 275(a) of the GCL finding the dissolution of the Corporation advisable and the provision of such notices as are required by said Section 275(a) of the GCL, dissolve and liquidate the balance of the Corporation’s net assets to its remaining stockholders, as part of the Corporation’s plan of dissolution and liquidation, subject (in the case of (ii) and (iii) above) to the Corporation’s obligations under the GCL to provide for claims of creditors and other requirements of applicable law. In such event, the pershare redemption price shall be equal to a pro rata share of the Trust Account plus any pro rata interest earned on the funds held in the Trust Account and not previously released to the Corporation for its working capital requirements or necessary to pay its taxes divided by the total number of IPO Shares then outstanding.
3
F. A holder of IPO Shares shall only be entitled to receive distributions from the Trust Fund in the event (i) he demands conversion of his shares in accordance with paragraph C above or (ii) that the Corporation has not consummated a Business Combination by the Termination Date as described in paragraph E above. In no other circumstances shall a holder of IPO Shares have any right or interest of any kind in or to the Trust Fund.
G. Prior to a Business Combination, the Board of Directors may not issue (i) any shares of Common Stock or any securities convertible into Common Stock; or (ii) any securities which participate in or are otherwise entitled in any manner to any of the proceeds in the Trust Fund or which vote as a class with the Common Stock on a Business Combination.
SEVENTH: The following provisions are inserted for the management of the business and for the conduct of the affairs of the Corporation, and for further definition, limitation and regulation of the powers of the Corporation and of its directors and stockholders:
A. Election of directors need not be by ballot unless the bylaws of the Corporation so provide.
B. The Board of Directors shall have the power, without the assent or vote of the stockholders, to make, alter, amend, change, add to or repeal the bylaws of the Corporation as provided in the bylaws of the Corporation.
C. The directors in their discretion may submit any contract or act for approval or ratification at any annual meeting of the stockholders or at any meeting of the stockholders called for the purpose of considering any such act or contract, and any contract or act that shall be approved or be ratified by the vote of the holders of a majority of the stock of the Corporation which is represented in person or by proxy at such meeting and entitled to vote thereat (provided that a lawful quorum of stockholders be there represented in person or by proxy) shall be as valid and binding upon the Corporation and upon all the stockholders as though it had been approved or ratified by every stockholder of the Corporation, whether or not the contract or act would otherwise be open to legal attack because of directors’ interests, or for any other reason.
D. In addition to the powers and authorities hereinbefore or by statute expressly conferred upon them, the directors are 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 statutes of Delaware, of this Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, and to any bylaws from time to time made by the stockholders; provided, however, that no bylaw so made shall invalidate any prior act of the directors which would have been valid if such bylaw had not been made.
4
EIGHTH: |
A. 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 for liability (i) for any breach of the director’s duty of loyalty to the Corporation or its stockholders, (ii) for acts or omissions not in good faith or which involve intentional misconduct or a knowing violation of law, (iii) under Section 174 of the GCL, or (iv) for any transaction from which the director derived an improper personal benefit. If the GCL is amended to authorize corporate action further eliminating or limiting the personal liability of directors, then the liability of a director of the Corporation shall be eliminated or limited to the fullest extent permitted by the GCL, as so amended. Any repeal or modification of this paragraph A by the stockholders of the Corporation shall not adversely affect any right or protection of a director of the Corporation with respect to events occurring prior to the time of such repeal or modification.
B. The Corporation, to the full extent permitted by Section 145 of the GCL, as amended from time to time, shall indemnify all persons whom it may indemnify pursuant thereto. Expenses (including attorneys’ fees) incurred by an officer or director in defending any civil, criminal, administrative, or investigative action, suit or proceeding for which such officer or director may be entitled to indemnification hereunder shall 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 he is not entitled to be indemnified by the Corporation as authorized hereby.
C. Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this Article Eighth, no indemnification nor advancement of expenses will extend to any claims made by the Company’s officers and directors to cover any loss that such individuals may sustain as a result of such individuals’ agreement to pay debts and obligations to target businesses or vendors or other entities that are owed money by the Corporation for services rendered or contracted for or products sold to the Corporation, as described in the Registration Statement.
5
NINTH: Whenever a compromise or arrangement is proposed between this Corporation and its creditors or any class of them and/or between this Corporation and its stockholders or any class of them, any court of equitable jurisdiction within the State of Delaware may, on the application in a summary way of this Corporation or of any creditor or stockholder thereof or on the application of any receiver or receivers appointed for this Corporation under Section 291 of Title 8 of the Delaware Code or on the application of trustees in dissolution or of any receiver or receivers appointed for this Corporation under Section 279 of Title 8 of the Delaware Code order a meeting of the creditors or class of creditors, and/or of the stockholders or class of stockholders of this Corporation, as the case may be, to be summoned in such manner as the said court directs. If a majority in number representing three fourths in value of the creditors or class of creditors, and/or of the stockholders or class of stockholders of this Corporation, as the case may be, agree to any compromise or arrangement and to any reorganization of this Corporation as a consequence of such compromise or arrangement, the said compromise or arrangement and the said reorganization shall, if sanctioned by the court to which the said application has been made, be binding on all the creditors or class of creditors, and/or on all the stockholders or class of stockholders, of this Corporation, as the case may be, and also on this Corporation.
TENTH: 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 GCL or this Amended and
Restated Certificate of Incorporation 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, (a) 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, and (b) any action or claim arising under the Exchange
Act or Securities Act of 1933, as amended.
6
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the Corporation has caused this Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation to be signed by Wei Chen, its Chief Executive Officer, as of the ___ day of July, 2019.
__________________________________
Wei Chen, Chief Executive Officer
7
Exhibit 5.1
Loeb & Loeb LLP
345 Park Avenue New York, NY 10154-1895 |
Main
212.407.4000
Fax 212.407.4990 |
July 11, 2019
Orisun Acquisition Corp. 555 Madison Avenue, Room 543
New York, NY 10022
|
Re: | Orisun Acquisition Corp. |
Ladies and Gentlemen:
We have acted as counsel to Orisun Acquisition Corp., a Delaware corporation (the “ Company ”), in connection with the Registration Statement on Form S-1 (the “ Registration Statement ”) filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “ Act ”), covering an underwritten public offering of (i) 4,000,000 units (the “ Units ”), with each Unit consisting of one share of the Company’s common stock, par value $0.00001 (the “ Common Stock ”), one redeemable warrant (collectively the “ Warrants ”), each warrant entitling its holder to purchase one-half (1/2) of one share of Common Stock, and one right to receive one-tenth of one share of Common Stock (collectively, the “ Rights ”) (ii) up to 600,000 Units (the “ Over-Allotment Units ”) for which the underwriters have been granted an over-allotment option, (iii) an option (the “ Unit Purchase Option ”) to purchase up to 345,000 Units (the “ Purchase Option Units ”) granted to Chardan Capital Markets, LLC, the representative of the underwriters (the “ Representative ”), (iv) all Common Stock, Warrants and Rights issued as part of the Units, Over-Allotment Units and the Purchase Option Units; (v) all Common Stock issuable upon exercise of the Warrants included in the Units, Over-Allotment Units and the Purchase Option Units; and (vi) all Common Stock issuable upon conversion of the Rights included in the Units, Over-Allotment Units and the Purchase Option Units.
We have examined such documents and considered such legal matters as we have deemed necessary and relevant as the basis for the opinion set forth below. With respect to such examination, we have assumed the genuineness of all signatures, the authenticity of all documents submitted to us as originals, the conformity to original documents of all documents submitted to us as reproduced or certified copies, and the authenticity of the originals of those latter documents. As to questions of fact material to this opinion, we have, to the extent deemed appropriate, relied upon certain representations of certain officers of the Company.
Based on the foregoing, we are of the opinion that:
1. Each of the shares of Common Stock underlying the Units, Over-Allotment Units and Purchase Option Units, the Warrants (including the Warrants issuable in connection with the Over-Allotment Units and the Purchase Option Units), the Rights (including the Rights issuable in connection with the Over-Allotment Units and the Purchase Option Units), the Units, the Over-Allotment Units, the Unit Purchase Option and the Purchase Option Units, if and when paid for in accordance with the terms of the underwriting agreement between the Company and the Representative (the “ Underwriting Agreement ”), will constitute the valid and legally binding obligation of the Company, enforceable against it in accordance with its terms.
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For the United States offices, a limited liability partnership including professional corporations. For Hong Kong office, a limited liability partnership. |
Orisun Acquisition Corp. July 11, 2019 Page 2 |
2. When the Registration Statement becomes effective under the Act and when the offering is completed as contemplated by the Registration Statement, the shares of Common Stock issued as part of the Units, Over-Allotment Units and the Purchase Option Units will be validly issued, fully paid and non-assessable.
3. The shares of Common Stock underlying the Rights (including the Rights issuable in connection with the Over-Allotment Units and the Purchase Option Units), when duly issued, delivered, sold and paid for upon exercise of the Rights as contemplated by the Rights, the Registration Statement and the rights agreement pursuant to which the Rights are issued (the “ Rights Agreement ”), will be fully paid and non-assessable.
We are opining solely on (i) all applicable statutory provisions of Delaware corporate law, including the rules and regulations underlying those provisions, all applicable provisions of the Constitution of the State of Delaware and all applicable judicial and regulatory determinations, and (ii) with respect to the opinions expressed in paragraph (2) above, the laws of the State of New York.
In addition, the foregoing opinions are qualified to the extent that (a) enforceability may be limited by and be subject to general principles of equity, regardless of whether such enforceability is considered in a proceeding in equity or at law (including, without limitation, concepts of notice and materiality), and by bankruptcy, insolvency, reorganization, moratorium and other similar laws affecting creditors’ and debtors’ rights generally (including, without limitation, any state or federal law in respect of fraudulent transfers); and (b) no opinion is expressed herein as to compliance with or the effect of federal or state securities or blue sky laws.
We hereby consent to the use of this opinion as an exhibit to the Registration Statement, to the use of our name as your U.S. counsel and to all references made to us in the Registration Statement and in the prospectus forming a part thereof. In giving this consent, we do not hereby admit that we are in the category of persons whose consent is required under Section 7 of the Act, or the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder.
Very truly yours,
/s/ Loeb & Loeb LLP
Loeb & Loeb LLP
Exhibit 23.1
Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm’s Consent
We consent to the inclusion in this Registration Statement of Orisun Acquisition Corp. on Amendment No. 1 to Form S-1 , (File No. 333-232356), of our report dated April 2, 2019, 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 Orisun Acquisition Corp. as of December 31, 2018 and for the period from October 22, 2018 (inception) through December 31, 2018, 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
July 11, 2019