As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on January 31, 2022.
Registration Statement No. 333-
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM F-1
REGISTRATION STATEMENT
UNDER
THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933
Locafy Limited
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
Australia | 7370 | N/A | ||
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization) |
(Primary Standard Industrial Classification Code Number) |
(I.R.S. Employer Identification No.) |
246A Churchill Avenue
Subiaco WA 6008, Australia
+61 409 999 339
(Address, including zip code and telephone number, including area code, of registrant’s principal executive offices)
Puglisi & Associates
850 Library Ave., Suite 204
Newark, DE 19711
(302) 738-6680
(Name, address, including zip code, and telephone number, including area code, of agent for service)
Copies to:
Rick A. Werner, Esq. | Joseph M. Lucosky, Esq. | |||
Haynes and Boone, LLP | Lucosky Brookman LLP | |||
30 Rockefeller Plaza | 101 Wood Avenue South | |||
26th Floor | 5th Floor | |||
New York, New York 10112 | Woodbridge, New Jersey 08830 | |||
Tel: +1 212 659-7300 | Tel: +1 732 395-4400 |
Approximate date of commencement of proposed sale to the public: As soon as practicable after this Registration Statement becomes effective.
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 an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933.
Emerging growth company ☒
If an emerging growth company that prepares its financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards † provided pursuant to Section 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act. ☐
CALCULATION OF REGISTRATION FEE
Title of Each Class of Securities To Be Registered |
Proposed
|
Amount
of
Registration Fee |
||||||
Units, each consisting of one ordinary share, no par value, and one Warrant | $ | $ | ||||||
(1) Ordinary shares included as part of the Units |
— |
— | (4) | |||||
(2) Warrants included as part of the Units | — | — | (4) | |||||
Representative’s warrants to purchase ordinary shares(5) | $ |
|
$ | |||||
Ordinary shares issuable upon exercise of the Warrants | $ | $ | ||||||
Ordinary shares issuable upon exercise of the representative’s warrants(6) | $ | $ | ||||||
Total | $ | 10,000,000 | $ | 927.00 |
(1) | Estimated solely for the purpose of calculating the registration fee in accordance with Rule 457(o) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), based on an estimate of the proposed maximum offering price. |
(2) | Pursuant to Rule 416, the securities being registered hereunder include such indeterminate number of additional securities as may be issuable to prevent dilution resulting from stock splits, stock dividends or similar transactions. |
(3) | Includes the aggregate offering price of additional ordinary shares and/or warrants to purchase ordinary shares that may be acquired by the underwriters to cover the option to purchase additional securities, if any. |
(4) | No additional registration fee is payable pursuant to Rule 457(i) under the Securities Act. |
(5) | No fee required pursuant to Rule 457(g) under the Securities Act. |
(6) | Estimated solely for the purposes of calculating the registration fee pursuant to Rule 457(g) under the Securities Act. We have calculated the proposed maximum aggregate offering price of the ordinary shares underlying the representative’s warrants assuming that such warrants are exercisable at a price per ordinary share equal to 125% of the initial public offering price per Unit. |
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 Commission, acting pursuant to said section 8(a), may determine.
The information in this preliminary prospectus is not complete and may be changed. We may not sell these securities until the registration statement filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission is effective. This preliminary prospectus is not an offer to sell these securities and we are not soliciting offers to buy these securities in any state where the offer or sale is not permitted.
PRELIMINARY PROSPECTUS | SUBJECT TO COMPLETION | DATED JANUARY 31, 2022 |
Units,
each consisting of one ordinary share and
one Warrant to purchase one ordinary share
_________Units
This is the initial public offering of our securities in the United States. We are offering units, or “Units,” with each Unit having an offering price of $ and consisting of (i) one of our ordinary shares, no par value per share, and (ii) one warrant, or the “Warrants”. Each Warrant entitles the holder thereof to purchase one ordinary share at an exercise price of $ . Only whole warrants are exercisable. Each Warrant will be immediately exercisable for a -year period after the date of issuance. We currently expect the initial public offering price to be between $__________ and __________ per Unit.
Prior to this offering, no public market has existed for our ordinary shares or warrants. We have applied to list our ordinary shares and the Warrants on The Nasdaq Capital Market (“Nasdaq”), under the symbols “LCFY” and “LCFY-W”, respectively. No assurance can be given that our application will be approved or that an active trading market for our ordinary shares or Warrants will develop.
We are a “foreign private issuer” and an “emerging growth company”, each as defined under the U.S. federal securities laws and, as such, we will be subject to reduced public company reporting requirements. See “Prospectus Summary—Implications of Being an Emerging Growth Company and a Foreign Private Issuer” for additional information.
Investing in our securities is speculative and involves a high degree of risk. See “Risk Factors” beginning on page 14 for a discussion of information that you should consider before investing in our securities.
Per Unit | Total | |||||||
Initial public offering price | $ | $ | ||||||
Underwriting discounts and commissions (1) | $ | $ | ||||||
Proceeds to us, before expenses (2) | $ | $ |
(1) | Represents an underwriting discount equal to 8% of the aggregate gross proceeds purchase price paid by the underwriters to us per Unit. In addition, we have agreed to issue to the representative of the underwriters or its designees warrants (the “representative’s warrants”) to purchase a number of ordinary shares equal to 6% of the ordinary shares sold in this offering (including any additional ordinary shares issuable upon exercise by the underwriters of the option to purchase additional securities), at an exercise price of $ per ordinary share, which represents 125% of the initial public offering price per Unit. We have also agreed to reimburse the representative of the underwriters for certain of their expenses. See “Underwriting” for additional information regarding total underwriter compensation. |
(2) | Does not include proceeds from the exercise of Warrants or representative’s warrants. |
We have granted the underwriters the right to purchase from us, at the initial public offering price, up to an additional ordinary shares and/or warrants to purchase up to ordinary shares within 30 days from the date of this prospectus. If the underwriters exercise the option in full, the total underwriting discounts and commissions payable by us will be $ , and the total proceeds to us, before expenses, will be $ .
Neither the Securities and Exchange Commission nor any state securities commission has approved or disapproved of these securities or passed upon the adequacy or accuracy of this prospectus. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.
The underwriters expect to deliver the Units against payment to purchasers in this offering on or about , 2022.
Sole Book-Running Manager
H.C. Wainwright & Co.
The date of this prospectus is , 2022
TABLE OF CONTENTS
We are responsible for the information contained in this prospectus and any free writing prospectus we prepare or authorize.
Neither we nor the underwriters have authorized anyone to provide you with information other than that contained in this prospectus or in any free writing prospectus prepared by or on behalf of us or to which we have referred you. We take no responsibility for, and can provide no assurance as to the reliability of, any other information that others may give to you. The information contained in this prospectus or any free writing prospectus is accurate only as of the date of this prospectus or such free writing prospectus, regardless of the time of delivery of this prospectus or any free writing prospectus.
We are offering to sell, and seeking offers to buy, Units only in jurisdictions where offers and sales are permitted. Neither we nor the underwriters have taken any action to permit a public offering of Units or the possession or distribution of this prospectus in any jurisdiction where action for that purpose is required, other than the United States. Persons outside the United States who come into possession of this prospectus or any free writing prospectus must inform themselves about, and observe any restrictions relating to, this offering and the distribution of this prospectus and any free writing prospectus outside the United States.
TRADEMARKS AND TRADE NAMES
We own or have rights to trademarks, service marks or trade names that we use in connection with the operation of our business. In addition, our names, logos and website names and addresses are our service marks or trademarks. The other trademarks, trade names and service marks appearing in this prospectus are the property of their respective owners. Solely for convenience, the trademarks, service marks, tradenames and copyrights referred to in this prospectus are listed without the ©, ® and TM symbols, but we will assert, to the fullest extent under applicable law, our rights or the rights of the applicable licensors to these trademarks, service marks and tradenames. We do not intend to use our display of other companies’ registered marks, trademarks or trade names to imply a relationship with, or endorsement or sponsorship of us by, any other companies.
i |
MARKET, INDUSTRY AND OTHER DATA
Unless otherwise indicated, information contained in this prospectus concerning our industry and the market in which we operate, including our market position, market opportunity and market size, is based on information from various sources such as industry publications, on assumptions that we have made based on such data and other similar sources and on our knowledge of the markets for our products. These data involve a number of assumptions and limitations. While we have assessed the reasonableness and soundness of the third-party information contained in this prospectus, we have not otherwise independently verified any third-party information.
In addition, projections, assumptions and estimates of our future performance and the future performance of the industry in which we operate is necessarily subject to a high degree of uncertainty and risk due to a variety of factors, including those described in the sections entitled “Risk Factors,” “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements,” and elsewhere in this prospectus. These and other factors could cause results to differ materially from those expressed in the estimates made by the independent parties and by us.
BASIS OF PRESENTATION
Except as otherwise indicated, references in this prospectus to “Locafy,” “the Company,” “we,” “us” and “our” refer to Locafy Limited, a company incorporated under the laws of Australia, and its directly owned subsidiary on a consolidated basis.
We express all amounts in this prospectus in U.S. dollars, except where otherwise indicated. References to “$” and “US$” are to U.S. dollars and references to “A$” are to Australian dollars. Except as otherwise noted, conversions from Australian Dollars into U.S. Dollars were made at the rate of A$1.0000 to US $0.7260, which was the noon buying rate in New York City for cable transfers in Australian dollars as certified for customs purposes by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York on December 30, 2021.
We have made rounding adjustments to some of the figures included in this prospectus. Accordingly, numerical figures shown as totals in some tables may not be an arithmetic aggregation of the figures that preceded them.
PRESENTATION OF FINANCIAL INFORMATION
We report under International Financial Reporting Standards (“IFRS”) as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board (“IASB”). None of the financial statements were prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States. We present our financial statements in Australian dollars.
The unaudited selected financial and other information for the six months ended December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020 reflects our preliminary estimates with respect to such results based on currently available information and is subject to completion of our financial closing procedures. Our financial closing procedures for the six months ended December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020 are not yet complete and, as a result, our actual results may vary from the estimated preliminary results presented here and will not be finalized until after the completion of this offering.
The preliminary estimates presented below have been prepared by, and are the responsibility of, management. Grant Thornton Audit Pty Ltd, our independent registered public accounting firm, has not audited, reviewed, compiled, or performed any procedures with respect to the interim financial information. Accordingly, Grant Thornton Audit Pty Ltd does not express an opinion or provide any other form of assurance with respect thereto.
These estimates should not be viewed as a substitute for our full interim or annual financial statements prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (“IFRS”). Further, our preliminary estimated results are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for any future period as a result of various factors, including, but not limited to, those discussed in the sections titled “Risk Factors” and “Special Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements.” This information should be read in conjunction with “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” for prior periods included elsewhere in this prospectus.
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CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This prospectus contains forward-looking statements that relate to our current expectations and views of future events. These forward-looking statements are contained principally in the sections entitled “Prospectus Summary,” “Risk Factors,” “Use of Proceeds,” “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” and “Business.” Forward-looking statements can often be identified by the use of terminology such as “subject to”, “believe,” “anticipate,” “plan,” “expect,” “intend,” “estimate,” “project,” “may,” “will,” “should,” “would,” “could,” “can,” the negatives thereof, variations thereon and similar expressions, or by discussions of strategy. In addition, any statements or information that refer to expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, performance or other characterizations of future events or circumstances, including any underlying assumptions, are forward-looking. In particular, forward-looking statements in this prospectus include, but are not limited to, statements about:
● | our ability to successfully commercialize, develop, market or sell new products or adopt new technology platforms; | |
● | our installed customer base continuing to license additional products, renew maintenance agreements and purchase additional professional services; | |
● | the performance and availability of third-party providers of cloud infrastructure services, such as Amazon Web Services (AWS), with the necessary speed, data capacity and security for providing reliable internet access and services in order to deliver our products; | |
● | our ability to attract and retain qualified personnel; | |
● | our ability to adequately manage our growth; | |
● | risks related to competition; | |
● | our ability to maintain good relations with our partners; | |
● | risks associated with our international operations and fluctuations in currency values; | |
● | risks related to unanticipated performance problems or bugs in our software product offerings; | |
● | our ability to protect our intellectual property and proprietary rights; | |
● | our use of proceeds from any offering made pursuant to this prospectus | |
● | our ability to comply with Nasdaq’s continued listing requirements; | |
● | status as an emerging growth company under the U.S. federal securities laws; | |
● | whether we are classified as a passive foreign investment company (PFIC) for future periods; | |
● | failure to maintain effective internal controls; and | |
● | we risk losing our “foreign private issuer” status. |
The forward-looking statements contained in this prospectus are based on current expectations, assumptions, and beliefs concerning future developments and their potential effects on us. There can be no assurance that future developments will be those that have been assumed or anticipated. These forward-looking statements are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties (some of which are beyond our control) 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 may not actually achieve the plans, intentions or expectations disclosed in our forward-looking statements, and you should not place undue reliance on our forward-looking statements. You should read this prospectus and the documents that we reference in this prospectus and have filed as exhibits to the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part with the understanding that our actual future results, levels of activity, performance and achievements may be different from what we expect. We qualify all of our forward-looking statements by these cautionary statements.
An investment in us is speculative and involves a high degree of risk due to the nature of our business and the present state of exploration of our royalty projects. All of the forward-looking statements contained in this prospectus are expressly qualified by the foregoing cautionary statements. Investors should read this entire prospectus and consult their own professional advisors to ascertain and assess the income tax, legal, risk factors and other aspects of their investment in the Units.
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Except as otherwise indicated, references in this prospectus to “Locafy,” “the Company,” “we,” “us” and “our” refer to Locafy Limited, a company incorporated under the laws of Australia, and its directly owned subsidiary on a consolidated basis.
This summary highlights certain information contained elsewhere in this prospectus. This summary does not contain all of the information that may be important to you. You should read and carefully consider the following summary together with the entire prospectus, especially the “Risk Factors” section of this prospectus and our financial statements and the notes thereto appearing elsewhere in this prospectus before deciding to invest in our Units. For more information on our business, refer to the “Business” and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operation” sections of this prospectus. Some of the statements in this prospectus constitute forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Our actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking statements as a result of certain factors, including those discussed in the “Risk Factors” and other sections of this prospectus. See “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements.”
We are an Australian company currently focused on commercializing our Software as a Service (SaaS) online publishing technology platform. Key aspects of our platform are patented in the United States. Central to our platform is the ability to publish almost any type of content to almost any device that uses a web browser to display web content. Further to that, our platform programmatically optimizes the published content for local search. Once data is integrated with our platform, the production of pages is largely automated. This enables the publication of large volumes of landing pages optimized for customer relevant search queries for local products and services in target locations.
“Local search” is one of the strongest emerging trends in search engine optimization, with consumers increasingly searching for products and services in close proximity to their immediate location. Approximately 46% of all online search is “local”. We provide businesses an automated and cost-effective solution to increase their online visibility. The objective is to increase the likelihood that local consumers will find our customer’s business online when searching for local products and services, regardless of search method. Regardless of whether the consumer is searching using more traditional means, such as by typing, or by using more modern methods such as voice search (e.g., Google Home, Alexa, Siri), a recent emergent trend, the landing pages are designed to be found for relevant search terms, locally. This is achieved through the automated attribution of schema and speakable codes to published content, which ensures that content and the context in which it is used is understood by all device types, including voice assistants.
The landing pages produced by our platform contain features that would otherwise require significant manual effort to achieve, or the application of additional and more expensive solutions. Our technology results in fast page load speed and the seamless delivery of content to all device types due to the platform’s adaptive nature of publishing content, and the automated attribution of security. We believe the results recently achieved in multiple markets, including North America, Australia and the UK, demonstrate the capability of our technology. Across 21,960 landing pages published up to November 28, 2021, more than 50% of these pages appeared in page one search results for the target keyword and location, while more than 33% of pages appeared in either the first, second and third positions on Page 1.
The importance of Page 1 results is exemplified by consumer behavior studies that found more than 95% of consumers were more likely to enter a new search query than to proceed to page 2 of a search result.
Specifically, our technology is able to process structured data provided in standard technical formats (for example, XML, JSON, CSV and XLS) of any quantity, to be published to any web browser and made accessible on any viewing device that uses a browser to display content, including smart phones, tablets, laptops, desktops and wearables (in so far as the content from data feeds can be published on a myriad of devices). Data may be transmitted via Web Application Programming Interface (“API”), File Transfer Protocol (FTP) or local upload. In March 2016, we were granted a patent in the United States (Patent Number US 9286274) relating to this process.
We believe that our technology is able to provide a number of products and services that are of value to our customers and are capable of generating revenue for us. We believe our technology has several key competitive advantages, including:
● | Page speed: the very fast loading speed of web pages produced using our technology; | |
● | Automated security features: the automated attribution of security certificates (Secure Sockets Layer, or “SSL”) to published web pages; | |
● | Seamless display of content across all devices: using the adaptive delivery of content we initially detect the device accessing a page published by Locafy. We produce the web page in accordance with the device profile in near-real time, which displays in the correct format on any device with an Internet browser; |
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● | Automated schema deployment: the automated attribution of a schema and speakable to content published on a web page to enhance search engine optimization for both traditional and voice search. “Speakable” is a type of schema developed by Google that translates longer-form website content from text-to-speech allowing for audible playback); | |
● | Scale: the substantial scale at which our platform is able to ingest and automatically publish structured data to produce individual, content-specific web pages; | |
● | State of the art page structures: the ability to increase the organic search engine ranking results by publishing content onto proprietary designed page structures (automated “search engine optimization” or “SEO”); | |
● | Synchronized publication of content: acting as a publishing “end point” for third -data providers (for example, citation management companies and Google My Business), who maintain control of their client’s data in their own database; and | |
● | Centralized maintenance: the ability for us to maintain and implement technology improvements centrally for all published pages is a unique feature of our platform that reduces maintenance costs. |
To continue our research into the deployment of large-scale web page production from structured data, in November 2016 we acquired the business assets relating to Hotfrog, a global online business directory. This acquisition allowed us to apply our technology to Hotfrog’s large customer database by repurposing Hotfrog’s business listing data to produce individual web pages. Additionally, the acquisition demonstrated a live use-case for our technology. We have undertaken several years of research since the acquisition to streamline the delivery of product, improve usability and flexibility for customers, and improve the performance of the products in the market.
As an example, voice search has recently been trending in the market. Today, all web products deployed using our technology have voice search optimization automatically attributed to content as it is published online. The majority of business listing information is not voice search enabled, which would impact the likelihood of appearing in voice search results. We intend to keep abreast of market trends and changes and to seek further channels and applications for our technology.
Our Strategy
We are focused on local search solutions and believe that our technology is well-positioned to provide a solution to the issues faced by Internet users and content publishers in their use of the Internet, which we believe can increase their search engine results pages (“SERP”) position for searches conducted within a certain proximity of their business’s core operating location. One of the challenges faced by SMBs is that around 81% of local searches are unbranded, which means that consumers are looking for a product or service but do not have a specific brand in mind, thus making highly ranked local products and services important. It is anticipated that mobile searches will influence around US $1.4 trillion in sales by 2021.
The goal for many content publishers (i.e., business owners) is for their own website or other online presence solutions to appear in the first SERP for related keyword searches. For example, a plumber may want to feature in searches where the keywords are “hot water systems” or “leaking tap.” Accordingly, a website’s keyword ranking is very important because the higher a website ranks in the SERP, the more likely Internet users will view the website. Given that more than 90% of all websites receive zero organic traffic and a further 5% receive less than 10 visits a month, the value of having an online presence optimized for search engines is self-evident. Where a business can achieve more than one result in a SERP this is likely to lead to more calls, map views, requests for directions or form fills. This means the business can be expected to acquire more leads, which could generate more revenue. The importance of ranking well in an organic search is emphasized by the fact that around 97% of consumers that search online will search for local business.
Search engines, like Google, have developed a series of algorithms to determine what content is best served for a particular keyword search. While search engines do not publish specific details about how their search algorithms operate, SEO is the method used to increase the likelihood of obtaining a high ranking (ideally first page) for relevant keyword searches. One market example that demonstrates performance was when a Yellow Pages online directory company provided Locafy with listing data for a services business in a major US region. Locafy utilized the same data as the Yellow Pages business listing and within less than 30 days, the Locafy powered landing pages were ranking higher than the Yellow Pages listing using specific service and location keywords.
A common SEO strategy involves paying an advertising fee to a search engine to appear in keyword search results. Google Ads (formerly Adwords) is an example of such a program. The major disadvantages to a business of implementing such a strategy are cost, complexity and a behavioral phenomenon coined “banner blindness,” which describes the phenomenon of users having learned to ignore content that resembles ads, is located in close proximity to ads, or that appears in locations traditionally dedicated to ads.
Given the challenges with paid advertising, there are a number of widely accepted SEO principles that can be applied to websites to positively influence search results. We have determined that there are eight key factors, what we call the “8S Factors,” which, when implemented collectively, we believe create a compelling local search solution. The “8S Factors” can be broken down into three core categories, in each of which we believe we have a competitive advantage in the market:
● | Core technology advantages | |
● | Automated SEO features | |
● | Commercial scale and agility |
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Core Technology Advantages
At the core of our technology is a platform that is able to publish any type of content on any device, for which we hold a patent. The pages produced are fast loading across all device types and securely hosted. Based on typical load times, Locafy-powered landing pages load around two times faster than 99% of all websites.
Factor 1: Speed - page load speed is widely recognized as one of the top -ranking factors.
There are a number of studies that suggest page loading speed times is a major factor that determines search ranking results. Our technology fundamentally changes the way web pages load on the Internet.
Generally, other website development platforms utilize the web browser on a user’s device to interpret the website’s code (instructions on what to display and how). The web browser then loads that content in a sequential manner (for example, header followed by image, followed by text block, followed by another text block). Accordingly, the page loading speed is the sum of the time to load each individual page element.
We have invented and developed an alternative page loading process whereby each page element loads simultaneously in its own micro server, resulting in page load speed being equal to the slowest loading element.
The overall result is that websites built on our technology theoretically load significantly faster compared to an equivalent website built on other technologies. In summary, our page load speed is the slowest page element versus platforms using traditional methodology where page load speed is the sum of loading individual page elements.
Factor 2: Seamless - content needs to be ubiquitously displayed across all devices.
Since 2015, Google has preferentially ranked mobile-friendly web pages (that is, ones that employ responsive display techniques). Traditional methods of delivering content to mobile devices have led to two streams of website development: responsive and adaptive web design. As both methods address the issue of rendering websites on various screen sizes, the term “responsive web design” is commonly used to refer to either method, however, there are key technology differences between the two. Responsive web design relies on a flexible grid that responds to any screen or device size by changing a website’s layout to suit the viewing device. In contrast, under adaptive web design the viewing device is detected and the website’s layout adapts to predefined content and style based on the specific device’s screen size.
Our technology delivers content in an “adaptive” fashion; meaning our technology detects the type of device accessing the website and only transmits content specifically for that type of device based on a predetermined set of layouts. The page elements are rendered on our servers, which removes the need for the device browsers to interpret the HTML. This also allows specific content to be served to specific devices. For example, a particular image can be selected to be shown on desktop browsers, versus a different image on a Samsung Galaxy phone or on an Apple iPad; this allows for very targeted marketing.
Factor 3: Security - a website must have security features to protect consumers.
Our technology is hosted on Amazon Web Services, Inc. (“AWS”) and we automate the application of SSL security certificates for the pages published by our technology.
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Automated SEO Features
Factor 4: Schema - universal coding language that provides context to content.
In 2011, Schema.org was founded in collaboration between Google, Bing, Yahoo! and, later, Yandex with the aim of creating a universal “search engine language” – essentially a form of software code that is included in webpages to “label” or “mark” specific content in order to make it easier for search engines to “read.” Adding schema markup to a website adds structure to content, which assists search engines to identify different content that might be relevant to a search query, such as events, prices and opening hours.
In April 2019, we determined a method to programmatically apply schema markup to content published in websites produced from our technology. This is an alternative solution to the current practice of website developers manually coding schema into individual websites (both new and existing).
Regardless of the volume of structured data synchronized with our technology, provided there is a unique identifier for each client in a data set, the technology can automate the production of web pages for each client in the data set and apply schema markup to every piece of content. This includes all types of schema including, but not limited to, website, organization, local business and breadcrumbs.
Factor 5: Speakable - applying code to assist rapidly growing voice search.
Currently in beta testing, “Speakable,” developed by Google, is a type of schema which translates longer-form website content from text-to-speech, allowing for audible playback. In April 2019, we developed a method to programmatically apply both schema markup and speakable code to websites produced from our platform. This is an alternative solution to the current practice of website developers manually coding schema and speakable into individual websites (both new and existing).
Factor 6: Page structure - optimized page structure helps search algorithms better understand content.
We understand the importance of page layout and URL structure when deploying a page that is aiming to rank for products and services in a defined geographical area. Content synchronized with our technology is published to a pre-built design template which automates the production of the page, attribution of the schema and speakable code and generation of optimal headers and URL structure.
Commercial Scale and Agility
Factor 7: Synchronize - consistency of commercial content strengthens confidence in data.
Our technology can integrate with any structured data set via any standard data transfer methods including, but not limited to: API, CSV, and XML. Examples of datasets that are already integrated with us include Google My Business (GMB) profiles, citation management solutions and digital solutions marketplaces. The benefit of synchronization is that the client can maintain a trusted source of truth as the primary data source while being able to publish that content to our generated web products.
Factor 8: Scale - automated web page production at scale from synchronized data sets.
We believe our technology allows any volume and type of structured data to be published to any device with a browser that is connected to the Internet. As an extension of that, our technology can ingest very large quantities of data, from which it can produce a separate website for each entity contained in the data feed. Each website can have schema markup applied to all its content published online via the platform.
Our Products and Services
We provide an integrated suite of solutions with the objective of helping maximize the local online presence for business owners. The products can be broadly categorized as:
1. | Listings |
2. | Landing pages |
3. | Locators |
4. | Marketplace |
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Our Competitive Strengths
We automate many SEO tasks that would otherwise take considerable time, cost and manual effort to undertake. Our key technology advantages are the adaptive delivery of content to the web (which is patented in the United States), resulting in fast page load time combined with device specific content publishing. The nature of the adaptive platform has enabled further competitive advantages with the capability to undertake client-wide maintenance and upgrades centrally. By way of example, we created and centrally deployed a widget that applied schema to published content across all client implementations.
The typical providers of local search solutions could be broadly classified into three categories: enterprise level organizations, digital media agencies and SEO freelancers. We believe Locafy has a competitive advantage over alternative local search solutions in regards to:
1. | scale | |
2. | set up time | |
3. | set up costs | |
4. | monthly costs and | |
5. | time to effect. |
Locafy’s ability to scale is substantial through its patented platform that enables very high volumes of page publishing through automation. Our self-serve capability provides an unlimited number channel partners and customers capability to create and publish landing pages. Enterprise customers would typically service tens of thousands of customers using their own technology solutions, while digital agencies would typically service dozens to hundreds of clients while SEO freelancers would typically service a handful of customers. The amount of manual work required to deploy alternative local search solutions is a limiting factor in their ability to scale.
The typical set up time for Locafy solutions is minutes compared to potentially weeks or months for alternative solutions, which leads to the next advantage of set up costs. Given that Locafy is automated, we typically charge no set up fee, whereas digital agencies and SEO freelancers would generally charge a few thousand dollars through to tens of thousands of dollars in set up fees. Enterprise solution providers would generally not charge a set up fee.
Using Australia as an example market, Locafy’s entry-level local search product has a recommended retail price of $375 per month, which compares favorably to enterprise solutions that typically range from $500 to $2,000 per month. Where digital agencies are engaged typical monthly packages range from $1,000 per month through to tens of thousands per month and SEO freelancers would generally charge from $500 per month for their services.
Locafy deployed solutions have consistently demonstrated impact in local search results within 30 days of deployment, compared to enterprise, digital agencies and SEO freelancers all of whom typically set expectations with customers of achieving results in 6-12 months from deployment.
Revenue Model and Commercial Overview
Our technology can be thought of as a scalable publishing engine that automates the conversion of structured business data into highly optimized, search-friendly landing pages at scale. The pages are primarily monetized through subscriptions. In some cases, professional service fees may be charged for customized projects.
Locafy solutions are sold direct to customers and also via a reseller channel that comprises digital agencies and SEO freelancers. The company’s major focus is on assisting existing channel partners to sell to more of their clients and to add more resellers to the channel.
Channel partners receive Locafy solutions at a discount to the recommended retail price. Resellers on sell the solution to their customers at a price solely determined by the reseller. In some markets, Locafy engages master resellers that have the rights to appoint resellers within their own network. In these cases the Master Reseller appoints customers both directly and via their reseller network.
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An example of the sales from one master reseller, the diagram below demonstrates the impact of having a master reseller in a market:
Growth Strategy
Upon completion of this offering, our main objectives are to rapidly expand our channel network in multiple markets, and through automation, expand their uptake. We also intend to accelerate our data acquisition activities and data synchronization projects to maximize the addressable market within our ecosystem to which we can apply our technology. We plan to accomplish these objectives by way of the following:
● | Invest in our sales and marketing team to escalate the velocity at which we appoint resellers in key target markets, primarily the United States, Australia, Canada and Europe and to enter into direct commercial deals with multi-location businesses; | |
● | Invest in our operations team to help maintain and grow the customer base of our channel partners in each market; | |
● | Increase the velocity of data synchronization projects with database owners, online directories, SEO agencies and citation management companies to enable more resellers to market and sell our products directly from the resellers’ own administration dashboards; | |
● | Undertake acquisitions of relevant digital agencies, online directories and databases to grow the number of business profiles within our network and marketing control, which has the potential to increase the number of direct clients that subscribe to our products; | |
● | Undertake a major data migration project to unify all current business profiles across our disparate online publishing network, thereby enabling streamlined customer management, sales and marketing; | |
● | Increase the production of niche business directories utilizing our own technology to target high value business categories to generate advertising and subscription revenues; | |
● | Enhance the scale of our existing commercial partners; | |
● | Further develop our technology and its capabilities, including the expansion of our existing Locafy Marketplace; | |
● | Boost the operations team to ensure customer success and retention, with customer retention rates measured by various factors, including but not limited to, customer satisfaction and customer effort scores; customer churn rates and product churn rates; and | |
● | Upgrade and implement new internal systems and reporting to support our anticipated growth and any increased commercial activities. |
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Implications of Being an Emerging Growth Company and a Foreign Private Issuer
We qualify as an “emerging growth company” under the U.S. federal securities laws. An emerging growth company may take advantage of specified exemptions from various requirements that are otherwise applicable generally to public companies in the United States. These exceptions include:
● | an exemption to include only two years of audited financial statements and related financial disclosure; |
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an exemption from the auditor attestation requirement in the assessment of the emerging growth company’s internal control over financial reporting; and
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● | reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports, proxy statements and registration statements. |
As an emerging growth company, we are permitted to take advantage of an extended transition period to comply with new or revised accounting standards applicable to public companies. We intend to take advantage of this extended transition period for adopting new or revised financial accounting standards.
We will remain an emerging growth company until the earliest of:
● | the last day of the fiscal year during which we have total annual gross revenues of at least US$1.07 billion; |
● | the last day of our fiscal year following the fifth anniversary of the completion of this offering; |
● | the date on which we have, during the previous three-year period, issued more than US$1.0 billion in non-convertible debt securities; or |
● | the date on which we are deemed to be a “large accelerated filer” under the Exchange Act, which would occur if the market value of our ordinary shares that are held by non-affiliates equals or exceeds US$700 million as of the last business day of our most recently completed second fiscal quarter. |
We have availed ourselves in this prospectus of the reduced reporting requirements described above with respect to selected financial data. As a result, the information that we are providing to you may be less comprehensive than what you might receive from other public companies. When we are no longer deemed to be an emerging growth company, we will not be entitled to the exemptions discussed above.
Upon consummation of this offering, we will report under the Exchange Act as a non-U.S. company with foreign private issuer status. Even after we no longer qualify as an emerging growth company, as long as we qualify as a foreign private issuer under the Exchange Act, we will be exempt from certain provisions of the Exchange Act that are applicable to U.S. domestic public companies, including:
● | the sections of the Exchange Act regulating the solicitation of proxies, consents or authorizations in respect of a security registered under the Exchange Act; | |
● | the sections of the Exchange Act requiring insiders to file public reports of their share ownership and trading activities and liability for insiders who profit from trades made in a short period of time; | |
● | the rules under the Exchange Act requiring the filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) of quarterly reports on Form 10-Q containing unaudited financial and other specified information, or current reports on Form 8-K, upon the occurrence of specified significant events; and |
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● | Regulation Fair Disclosure (“Regulation FD”), which regulates selective disclosures of material information by issuers. |
We will remain a foreign private issuer until such time that 50% or more of our outstanding voting securities are held by U.S. residents and any of the following three circumstances applies: (i) the majority of the members of board of directors or our senior management are U.S. citizens or residents; (ii) more than 50% of our assets are located in the United States; or (iii) our business is administered principally in the United States.
Reverse Share Split
On August 20, 2021, our shareholders authorized, at an extraordinary general shareholders meeting, a one-for-twenty reverse share split of our issued and outstanding ordinary shares (the “Reverse Share Split”). No fractional ordinary shares were issued in connection with the Reverse Share Split, and all such fractional interests were rounded to the nearest whole number. Issued and outstanding performance rights were split on the same basis. Unless noted otherwise, all information presented in this prospectus, including the share and per share amounts, reflects the Reverse Share Split.
Organizational Structure
We commenced activities in April 2009. The chart below illustrates the organizational structure of the Company, including the dates and jurisdictions of incorporation. As of the date hereof, Moboom USA Inc. has ceased operations, and we intend to formally close the company.
Company Information
We were incorporated on April 23, 2009 in Australia under the name Gumiyo Australia Pty Ltd. On January 14, 2021 we changed our name to Locafy Limited. Our principal executive offices are located at 246A Churchill Avenue, Subiaco, Western Australia 6008, Australia and our telephone number is +61 409 999 339. Our website address is www.locafy.com. The information contained on, or that can be accessed through, our website is not a part of this prospectus. We have included our website address in this prospectus solely as an inactive textual reference.
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The Offering
Securities offered by us |
Units, with each Unit consisting of one (1) ordinary share and one (1) Warrant. The Units will not be certificated, and the ordinary share and Warrant comprising each Unit are immediately separable and will be issued separately in this offering.
This prospectus also relates to the offering of ordinary shares issuable upon the exercise of the Warrants included in the Units. |
Warrants |
Each Warrant entitles the holder thereof to purchase one ordinary share at a price of $ per ordinary share. Only whole warrants are exercisable. The Warrants are exercisable at any time for period of years from the date on which such Warrants were issued. The Warrants and the ordinary shares will be purchased together in this offering. The exercise price and the number of shares into which the Warrant may be exercised are subject to adjustments in certain circumstances. See “Description of Securities—Warrants” for a discussion of the terms of the Warrants. |
Underwriters’ option to purchase additional securities | We have granted the underwriters an option, exercisable within 30 days of the date of this prospectus, to purchase up to an additional ordinary shares and/or Warrants. |
Ordinary shares to be outstanding after this offering | ordinary shares (assuming no exercise of the Warrants and representative’s warrants included in this offering), and ordinary shares if the underwriters’ option is exercised in full. |
Use of proceeds | We estimate that we will receive net proceeds from this offering of approximately $__________ million, or approximately $__________ million if the underwriters exercise their option to purchase additional ordinary shares and/or Warrants from us in full, based on an assumed initial public offering price of $__________ per Unit, the midpoint of the estimated price range set forth on the cover page of this prospectus, after deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and estimated offering expenses payable by us. We intend to use the net proceeds of this offering to accelerate the commercialization of our existing technology, continue to innovate by enhancing and developing alternative applications of the technology, reduce debt to strengthen our balance sheet, and execute potential strategic acquisitions, as well as for working capital and other general corporate purposes. See “Use of Proceeds.” |
Proposed Nasdaq symbol for our ordinary shares and the Warrants
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We have applied to list our ordinary shares and the Warrants on Nasdaq under the symbols “LCFY” and LCFY-W”, respectively. |
Dividend Policy |
We have never paid or declared any dividends on our ordinary shares or any of our other securities. We currently intend to retain any future earnings to finance the growth and development of our business, and we do not anticipate that we will declare or pay any cash dividends in the foreseeable future. See “Dividend Policy.”
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Risk factors |
See “Risk Factors” on page 14 and the other information included in this prospectus for a discussion of factors you should consider carefully before investing in our ordinary shares and our Warrants.
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Representative’s Warrants |
We will issue to H.C. Wainwright & Co., LLC, the representative of the underwriters, warrants to purchase up to ordinary shares (or ordinary shares if the underwriters exercise in full their option to purchase additional securities). The representative’s warrants will have an exercise price of 125% of the initial public offering price per Unit, will be exercisable on the date of issuance and will expire five years from the commencement of sales pursuant to this offering. |
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Lock-up agreements | We and our directors, officers and principal shareholders of our ordinary shares have agreed with the underwriters not to offer for sale, issue, sell, contract to sell, pledge or otherwise dispose of any of our ordinary shares for a period of 180 days after the date of this prospectus. See “Underwriting” on page 72. |
The number of ordinary shares to be outstanding after this offering is based on 18,598,414 ordinary shares outstanding as of December 31, 2021, after giving effect to the Reverse Share Split, and excludes:
● | 1,312,750 ordinary shares issuable upon the settlement of certain unvested and contingent performance rights outstanding as of December 31, 2021; | |
● | ordinary shares issuable upon the exercise of the Warrants at an exercise price of $ per share; and |
● | ordinary shares issuable upon the exercise of the representative’s warrants (or ordinary shares issuable upon the exercise of the representative’s warrants if the underwriters’ option to purchase additional securities exercised in full) at an exercise price of $ ______ per ordinary share. |
Unless otherwise indicated, all information in this prospectus reflects and assumes:
● | no exercise by the underwriters of their option to purchase additional securities in connection with this offering; | |
● | no exercise of the Warrants or the representative’s warrants described above; and |
● |
no issuance or settlement of performance rights after December 31, 2021. |
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Summary Consolidated Financial Data
The following tables set forth a summary of our consolidated financial data as at and for the years ended June 30, 2021 and 2020 and as at and for the six months ended December 31, 2021 and 2020.
We have derived the consolidated statements of profit or loss comprehensive income data for the years ended June 30, 2021 and 2020, the consolidated statement of financial position data as at June 30, 2020 and 2021, and the consolidated statement of cash flow data for the years ended June 30, 2021 and 2020 from our audited consolidated financial statements for the years ended June 30, 2021 and 2020 (the “2021 Audited Financial Statements”) included elsewhere in this prospectus.
We have derived the consolidated statements of profit or loss comprehensive income data for the six months ended December 31, 2021 and 2020, the consolidated statement of financial position data as at December 31, 2021 and 2020, and the consolidated statement of cash flow data for the six months ended December 31, 2021 and 2020 from our unaudited consolidated financial statements for the six months ended December 31, 2021 and 2020 (the “Q2 YTD Unaudited Financial Statements”) included elsewhere in this prospectus, which are unaudited. The Q2 YTD Unaudited Interim Financial Statements are not necessarily indicative of results to be expected for a full year or any other interim period. Both our 2021 Audited Financial Statements and Q2 YTD Unaudited Financial Statements have been prepared in accordance with IFRS as issued by the IASB.
We maintain our books and records in Australian dollars. Our historical results for any prior period are not necessarily indicative of results to be expected in any future period. You should read this data together with our consolidated financial statements and related notes appearing elsewhere in this prospectus and the sections in this prospectus entitled “Capitalization,” “Selected Historical Consolidated Financial Data” and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.”
Consolidated Statements of Profit or Loss Comprehensive Income Data:
Year Ended June 30, | Six Months Ended December 31, | |||||||||||||||
2021 A$
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2020 A$
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2021 A$ (unaudited) |
2020 A$ (unaudited) |
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Revenue | 2,191,425 | 1,985,362 | 1,795,821 | 916,380 | ||||||||||||
Other income | 788,258 | 615,356 | 386,245 | 775,058 | ||||||||||||
Technology expense | (651,644 | ) | (979,161 | ) | (776,023 | ) | (263,831 | ) | ||||||||
Employee benefits expense | (2,359,459 | ) | (2,389,185 | ) | (2,098,756 | ) | (1,083,559 | ) | ||||||||
Occupancy expense | (52,219 | ) | (104,419 | ) | (23,167 | ) | (31,673 | ) | ||||||||
Advertising expense | (67,575 | ) | (265,996 | ) | (39,379 | ) | (40,529 | ) | ||||||||
Consultancy expense | (240,928 | ) | (273,978 | ) | (352,609 | ) | (159,283 | ) | ||||||||
Depreciation and amortization expense | (397,506 | ) | (362,917 | ) | (200,544 | ) | (194,297 | ) | ||||||||
Other expenses | (132,515 | ) | (438,418 | ) | (40,670 | ) | (5,732 | ) | ||||||||
Impairment of financial assets | (14,690 | ) | - | - | (10,726 | ) | ||||||||||
Operating loss | (936,853 | ) | (2,213,356 | ) | (1,349,082 | ) | (98,192 | ) | ||||||||
Financial cost | (58,913 | ) | (108,471 | ) | (24,530 | ) | (35,993 | ) | ||||||||
Loss before income tax | (995,766 | ) | (2,321,827 | ) | (1,373,612 | ) | (134,185 | ) | ||||||||
Income tax expense | - | - | - | - | ||||||||||||
Loss for the period | (995,766 | ) | (2,321,827 | ) | (1,373,612 | ) | (134,185 | ) | ||||||||
Other comprehensive income | (1,653 | ) | (4,205 | ) | (18,050 | ) | 21,411 | |||||||||
Total comprehensive loss for the period | (997,419 | ) | (2,326,032 | ) | (1,391,662 | ) | (112,774 | ) |
Consolidated Statement of Financial Position Data:
As at June 30, | As at December 31, | |||||||||||||||
2021 A$ |
2020 A$ |
2021 A$ (unaudited) |
2020 A$ (unaudited) |
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Cash and cash equivalents | 650,731 | 161,191 | 762,739 | 399,571 | ||||||||||||
Total assets | 2,781,580 | 1,632,286 | 3,624,108 | 2,352,163 | ||||||||||||
Total liabilities | 3,617,058 | 3,796,027 | 5,851,248 | 3,844,163 | ||||||||||||
Total deficiency | (835,478 | ) | (2,163,741 | ) | (2,227,140 | ) | (1,492,000 | ) |
Consolidated Statement of Cash Flow Data
Year ended June 30, | Year ended December 31, | |||||||||||||||
2021 A$ |
2020 A$ |
2021 A$ (unaudited) |
2020 A$ (unaudited) |
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Net cash used by operating activities | (496,031 | ) | (1,484,589 | ) | (1,320,522 | ) | 276,545 | |||||||||
Net cash used by investing activities | (442,423 | ) | (54,137 | ) | (295,564 | ) | (418,965 | ) | ||||||||
Net cash from financing activities | 1,427,994 | 1,397,961 | 1,728,094 | 380,800 | ||||||||||||
Net change in cash and cash equivalents | 489,540 | (140,765 | ) | 112,008 | 238,380 | |||||||||||
Cash and cash equivalents, beginning of year | 161,191 | 301,956 | 650,731 | 161,191 | ||||||||||||
Cash and cash equivalents, end of period | 650,731 | 161,191 | 762,739 | 399,571 |
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Investing in our securities is speculative and involves substantial risk. You should carefully consider all of the information in this prospectus prior to investing in our securities. There are numerous risk factors related to our business that are described under “Risk Factors” on page 14 and elsewhere in this prospectus. These risks could materially and adversely impact our business, results of operations, financial condition and future prospects, which could cause the trading price of our ordinary shares to decline and could result in a loss of your investment. Among these important risks are the following:
● | Our recent growth may not be indicative of our future growth, and we may not be able to sustain our revenue growth rate in the future. Our growth also makes it difficult to evaluate our future prospects and may increase the risk that we will not be successful. |
● | The market and technology space in which we participate are competitive, new, and rapidly changing, and if we do not compete effectively or if our products and services do not perform as well as our competitors’, then our business, results of operations, and financial condition could be harmed. | |
● | We use third-party services and technologies in connection with our business, and any disruption to the provision of these services and technologies to us could result in negative publicity and a slowdown in the growth of our user base, which could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. | |
● | If we fail to manage our growth effectively, we may be unable to execute our business plan or maintain high levels of service and customer satisfaction. | |
● | We will face additional risks as we offer new products and services, transact with a broader array of clients and counterparties, and expose ourselves to new geographical markets. | |
● | Real or perceived errors, failures, vulnerabilities, or bugs in our technology could harm our business, results of operations, financial condition, and our reputation could be harmed. | |
● | If there are interruptions or performance problems associated with the technology or infrastructure used to operate our technology, customers may experience service outages, other organizations may be reluctant to use our technology, and our reputation could be harmed. | |
● | We face cybersecurity risks that could result in damage to our reputation and/or subject us to fines, payment of damages, lawsuits and restrictions on our use of data. | |
● | If we are unable to attract new users and organizations, our revenue growth and profitability will be harmed. | |
● | Any inability to deal with and manage our development and growth could have a material adverse effect on our business, operations, financial performance and prospects. | |
● | If we are not able to introduce new features or products successfully and to make enhancements to our existing products and services, our business and results of operations could be adversely affected. | |
● | If we are not able to maintain and enhance our brand and increase market awareness of our company and products, our business, results of operations and financial condition may be adversely affected. | |
● | We cannot guarantee that our future monetization strategies will be successfully implemented or generate sustainable revenues and profit. | |
● | We have been reliant on government subsidies and research and development grants in the past and we cannot ensure that our existing capital will be sufficient to meet our capital requirements. | |
● | Compliance with the rapidly evolving landscape of global data privacy and security laws may be challenging, and any failure or perceived failure to comply with such laws, or other concerns about our practices or policies with respect to the processing of personal data, could damage our reputation and deter current and potential customers and end users from using our platform and products and services or subject us to significant compliance costs or penalties, which could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. | |
● | We rely on key personnel and employees with the technical know-how to lead and operate our businesses. |
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● | If we fail to adequately protect our proprietary rights, our competitive position could be impaired and we may lose valuable assets, generate reduced revenue, and incur costly litigation to protect our rights. | |
● | We face the risk that third parties will claim that we infringe on their intellectual property rights, which could result in costly license fees or expensive litigation. | |
● | We may need additional capital, and financing may not be available on terms acceptable to us, or at all. | |
● | The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic may adversely affect our operations, which could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition. | |
● | As a company primarily based outside of the United States, our business is subject to economic, political, regulatory and other risks associated with international operations. | |
● | The requirements of being a U.S. public company may strain our resources, divert management’s attention and affect our ability to attract and retain qualified board members. | |
● | We are a “foreign private issuer” and may have disclosure obligations that are different from those of U.S. domestic reporting companies. As a foreign private issuer, we are subject to different U.S. securities laws and rules than a domestic U.S. issuer, which could limit the information publicly available to our shareholders. | |
● | We may lose our “foreign private issuer” status in the future, which could result in additional costs and expenses to us. | |
● | We are an “emerging growth company,” and any decision on our part to comply only with certain reduced reporting and disclosure requirements applicable to emerging growth companies could make our ordinary shares less attractive to investors. | |
● | If we fail to maintain an effective system of internal control over financial reporting, we may not be able to accurately report our financial results or prevent fraud. As a result, shareholders could lose confidence in our financial and other public reporting, which would harm our business and the trading price of our ordinary shares. | |
● | Substantial future sales of our ordinary shares, or the perception that these sales could occur, may cause the price of our ordinary shares to drop significantly, even if our business is performing well. | |
● | We do not anticipate paying cash dividends and, accordingly, shareholders must rely on share appreciation for any return on their investment. | |
● | Investors in this offering will pay a much higher price than the book value of our ordinary shares and, as a result, you will incur immediate and substantial dilution of your investment. | |
● | Nasdaq may delist our securities from its exchange, which could limit investors’ ability to make transactions in our securities and subject us to additional trading restrictions. | |
● | We are governed by the corporate laws of Australia, which in some cases have a different effect on shareholders than the corporate laws of the United States and may have the effect of delaying or preventing a change in control. | |
● | U.S. civil liabilities may not be enforceable against us, our directors, our officers or certain experts named in this prospectus. |
● | U.S. holders of our ordinary shares and Warrants may suffer adverse tax consequences if we are characterized as a passive foreign investment company. | |
● | Insiders have substantial control over us which could delay or prevent a change in corporate control or result in the entrenchment of management or the board of directors. | |
● | Our warrants have no prior trading history and an active market may not develop, which may limit the ability of our investors to sell warrants. | |
● | Holders of Warrants purchased in this offering will have no rights as ordinary share shareholders until such holders exercise their Warrants and acquire our ordinary shares, except as set forth in the Warrants. | |
● | The Warrants are speculative in nature. | |
● | We may not receive any additional funds upon the exercise of the Warrants. |
As a result of these risks and other risks described under “Risk Factors,” there is no guarantee that we will experience growth or profitability in the future.
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Investing in our securities is speculative and involves a high degree of risk. You should consider carefully the following risk factors, as well as the other information in this prospectus, including our consolidated financial statements and notes thereto, before you decide to purchase our securities. If any of the following risks actually occur, our business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects could be materially adversely affected, the value of our ordinary shares could decline, and you may 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 a number of factors, including the risks described below. See “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements.”
Risks Relating to our Business and Industry
Our recent growth may not be indicative of our future growth, and we may not be able to sustain our revenue growth rate in the future. Our growth also makes it difficult to evaluate our future prospects and may increase the risk that we will not be successful.
We have experienced growth since the inception of our operations. Our revenue increased by 10.0% from year- end 2020 to year-end 2021. However, you should not rely on the revenue growth of any prior quarterly or annual period as an indication of our future performance. We cannot assure you that we will be able manage our growth at the same rate as we did in the past, or avoid any decline in the future. To maintain our growth, we need to attract more customers, scale up our business and continue to improve our technology, among other things. Moreover, our current and planned staffing, systems, policies, procedures and controls may not be adequate to support our future operations. To effectively manage the expected growth of our operations and personnel, we will also be required to refine our operational, financial and management controls and reporting systems and procedures. If we fail to efficiently manage the expansion of our business, our costs and expenses may increase faster than we planned and we may not successfully attract a sufficient number of customers and end users in a cost-effective manner, respond timely to competitive challenges, or otherwise execute our business strategies. Our growth requires significant financial resources and will continue to place significant demands on our management. There is no guarantee that we will be able to effectively manage any future growth in an efficient, cost-effective and timely manner, or at all. Our past growth is not necessarily indicative of results that we may achieve in the future. If we fail to effectively manage the growth of our business and operations, our reputation, results of operations and overall business and prospects could be negatively impacted.
The market and technology space in which we participate are competitive, new, and rapidly changing, and if we do not compete effectively or if our products and services do not perform as well as our competitors’, then our business, results of operations, and financial condition could be harmed.
Our market is subject to rapidly evolving products and technological change, and our future success depends on our technology. Products, services and technologies developed by others may render our products, services or technology obsolete or non-competitive. Moreover, the functionality, reliability or security of our technology or our ability to adequately maintain, develop, update or enhance our technology each depends on numerous factors, many of which are beyond our control, and any failure in respect of any of the foregoing may cause the level of usage and customer satisfaction to decline. This may result in reduced sales, loss of customers, damage to reputation, an inability to attract new clients and potential claims for breach of contract or other litigation.
The future revenue and growth of the Company also depends on our ability to develop enhancements and new features and products that utilize our technology. The failure to successfully develop enhancements, services, features, products or other new solutions may materially adversely impact our future operations and financial performance, competitive position and business prospects.
We use third-party services and technologies in connection with our business, and any disruption to the provision of these services and technologies to us could result in negative publicity and a slowdown in the growth of our user base, which could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Our business partially depends on services provided by, and relationships with, various third parties. For example, we rely on contracts with third-party suppliers such as AWS, which provides cloud hosting services. If these contracts and services are terminated or suffer a disruption in the future and we are not able to replace or accommodate for those events in a timely and cost-effective manner, our operations and financial performance, competitive position and business prospects may be adversely impacted.
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We are faced with uncertainties related to our research and development.
Our products and services are the subject of continuous research and development and must be continually and substantially developed in order to gain and maintain competitive and technological advantage, and in order to meaningfully improve the usability, scalability and accuracy of our products and services. There are no guarantees that we will be able to undertake such research and development successfully. Failure to successfully undertake such research and development, anticipate technical problems, or estimate research and development costs or timeframes accurately may adversely affect our results and viability.
If we fail to manage our growth effectively, we may be unable to execute our business plan or maintain high levels of service and customer satisfaction.
To continue to grow our business, it is important that existing customers renew their subscriptions when existing contracts expire and that we expand our relationships with existing customers. Customers have no obligation to renew their subscriptions and may decide not to renew their subscriptions with a similar contract period, at the same prices and terms, or at all. Our ability to retain customers and expand deployments with them may decline or fluctuate as a result of a number of factors, including customer satisfaction, functionality, reliability, customer support, prices, competitor prices, customer experience, new feature releases and overall performance of our technology.
Our growth strategy is largely dependent upon increasing the number of customers that use our technology. As we seek to increase our sales, we may face upfront sales costs and longer sales cycles, higher customer acquisition costs, more complex customer requirements and volume discount requirements. We may also be required to enter into customized contractual arrangements with certain customers, particularly large enterprises, pursuant to which we are required to offer more favorable pricing terms in exchange for larger total contract values that accompany large deployments. As we continue to expand our sales efforts, we will need to continue to increase investment in sales and marketing. There is no assurance that such investments will succeed and contribute to additional customer acquisition, and in turn result in revenue growth.
There can be no assurance that we will successfully commercialize our technology or our products and services or that existing product markets will continue to grow or that new markets will develop. If we are unable to increase sales to customers, our business, financial condition, operations and overall financial performance may suffer.
We will face additional risks as we offer new products and services, transact with a broader array of clients and counterparties, and expose ourselves to new geographical markets.
We are committed to providing new products and services in order to strengthen our market position in the industries that we operate in. We expect to expand our product and service offerings as permitted by relevant regulatory authorities, transact with new clients not in our traditional client base, and enter into new markets. If we are unable to achieve the expected results with respect to our offering of new products and services, our new client base, and in new geographical markets, our business, financial condition, and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected.
Real or perceived errors, failures, vulnerabilities, or bugs in our technology could harm our business, results of operations, financial condition, and our reputation could be harmed.
We will need to ensure that our technology continues to be developed, updated and enhanced to add new features. The success of any enhancement or new feature depends on several factors, including our understanding of market demand, timely execution, successful introduction or integration and market acceptance. We may not successfully develop new content and features or enhance our technology to meet customer needs or demands. In addition, new content and features or enhancements may not achieve adequate acceptance in the market.
Errors, failures, vulnerabilities or bugs may occur in our technology, particularly when updates are deployed or new features or enhancements are rolled out. In addition, utilization of our technology in complicated, large-scale customer environments may expose errors, failures, vulnerabilities or bugs. Any such errors, failures, vulnerabilities or bugs may not be identified until after updates are deployed or new features or enhancements are rolled out. As a provider of technology solutions, our brand and reputation are particularly sensitive to such errors, failures, vulnerabilities or bugs given that our customers’ proprietary information will be available through the technology. Any unauthorized access to customers’ proprietary information by third parties or loss in customer data could expose us to significant liability.
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Real or perceived errors, failures, vulnerabilities or bugs in our technology could result in negative publicity, loss of competitive position, loss of customer data, loss of or delay in market acceptance or claims for losses suffered or incurred by customers, all of which could adversely impact our business and our future operations and financial performance, competitive position and business prospects.
If there are interruptions or performance problems associated with the technology or infrastructure used to operate our technology, customers may experience service outages, other organizations may be reluctant to use our technology, and our reputation could be harmed.
Our technology is hosted through data centers provided by AWS, a provider of cloud infrastructure services. Our operations therefore depend on the virtual cloud infrastructure hosted by AWS as well as the information stored in these virtual data centers and which third-party Internet service providers transmit. Any incident affecting AWS’s infrastructure could negatively affect the availability, functionality or reliability of our technology. A prolonged AWS service disruption affecting our technology, or AWS no longer being willing to offer its cloud infrastructure services, could damage our reputation, expose us to liability, cause us to lose customers or otherwise adversely impact our business.
While our agreement with AWS is ongoing for an indefinite term and may be terminated by us for any reason upon the delivery of adequate notice, or by either party if the other party is in material breach of the agreement and such agreement remains uncured for a period of 30 days, AWS may also terminate our agreement with AWS for any reason by providing us at least 30 days’ advance notice, immediately upon notice to us if its relationship with a third-party partner who provides software or other technology used to provide its cloud infrastructure services expires, terminates or requires AWS to change the way it provide the software or other technology, or in order to comply with the law or requests of governmental entities. AWS may also change or discontinue any of its virtual cloud infrastructure services from time to time, temporarily suspend our right to access or use any portion of the virtual cloud infrastructure and may modify our agreement at any time upon requisite notice to us. While alternative cloud infrastructure services are available, we may incur significant costs and delays if it is required to transition to a new service provider, and alternative cloud infrastructure providers may provide services on terms less favorable to those offered by AWS.
We face cybersecurity risks that could result in damage to our reputation and/or subject us to fines, payment of damages, lawsuits and restrictions on our use of data.
Our information systems and data, including those we maintain with our third-party service providers, may be subject to cyber security breaches in the future. Computer programmers and hackers may be able to penetrate our network security and misappropriate, copy or pirate our confidential information or that of third parties, create system disruptions or cause interruptions or shutdowns of our internal systems and services. Our technology may become subject to denial-of-service attacks, where a website is bombarded with information requests eventually causing the website to overload, resulting in a delay or disruption of service. Computer programmers and hackers also may be able to develop and deploy viruses, worms and other malicious software programs that attack our products or otherwise exploit any security vulnerabilities of our products. Also, there is a growing trend of advanced persistent threats being launched by organized and coordinated groups against corporate networks to breach security for malicious purposes.
The techniques used to obtain unauthorized, improper, or illegal access to our systems, our data or customers’ data, disable or degrade service, or sabotage systems are constantly evolving and have become increasingly complex and sophisticated, may be difficult to detect quickly, and often are not recognized or detected until after they have been launched. Although we have developed systems and processes designed to protect our data and customer data and to prevent data loss and other security breaches and expect to continue to expend significant resources to bolster these protections, there can be no assurance that these security measures will provide absolute security.
Disruptions in the availability of our technology, through cyber-attacks or otherwise, could damage our computer or telecommunications systems, impact our ability to service our customers, adversely affect our operations and the results of operations, and have an adverse effect on our reputation. The costs to us to eliminate or alleviate security problems, bugs, viruses, worms, malicious software programs and security vulnerabilities could be significant, and the efforts to address these problems could result in interruptions, delays, cessation of service and loss of existing or potential customers and may impede our sales, distribution and other critical functions. We may also be subject regulatory penalties and litigation by customers and other parties whose information has been compromised, all of which could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and cash flows.
If we are unable to attract new users and organizations, our revenue growth and profitability will be harmed.
Our ability to broaden our customer base and achieve broader market acceptance of our technology will depend to a significant extent on the ability of our sales and marketing team to drive our sales pipeline and cultivate relationships to drive revenue growth.
We have invested in, and plan to continue, expanding our sales and marketing activities. Identifying, recruiting, and training sales personnel will require significant time, expense, and attention. We also plan to dedicate significant resources to sales and marketing programs. If we are unable to hire, develop, and retain talented sales or marketing personnel, if our new sales or marketing personnel are unable to achieve desired productivity levels in a reasonable period of time, or if our sales and marketing programs are not effective, our ability to broaden our customer base and achieve broader market acceptance of our technology could be harmed. In addition, the investments we make in our sales and marketing team will occur in advance of experiencing benefits from such investments, making it difficult to determine in a timely manner if we are efficiently allocating resources in these areas.
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If we fail to offer high-quality customer experience, our business and reputation will suffer.
Our business model is based on recurring revenue arising from customers. A poor user experience may not necessarily be anticipated but may affect the growth of customer numbers and repeat purchases or ongoing contracts for the use of our software services. Factors which may contribute to poor customer experience include:
(i) | ease of setting up and commencing use of the products offered; | |
(ii) | simplicity, functionality and reliability of customer usage; and | |
(iii) | quality of services provided. |
Poor user experiences may result in a decline in the level of usage of our products, the loss of customers, adverse publicity, litigation and regulatory investigations. If any of these occur, it may adversely impact our operations and financial performance, position and prospects.
Any inability to deal with and manage our development and growth could have a material adverse effect on our business, operations, financial performance and business prospects.
Achievement of our objectives will largely depend on the ability of the board of directors and management to successfully implement our development and growth strategy. However, there can be no assurance that our board of directors and management will successfully implement our development and growth strategy. Failure by our board of directors and management to properly implement and manage the strategic direction of the Company and our business would adversely affect our financial performance.
In addition, we may be subject to growth related risks including capacity constraints and pressure on our internal systems, procedures and controls. Our ability to manage growth effectively will require us to continue to implement and improve our operational and financial systems and to expand, train and manage our employee base.
As we target rapid sales growth, this may bring challenges in recruiting sufficient qualified personnel to manage growth and maintain the desired quality of service and support. If any of the foregoing inabilities or challenges occurs, our business may be adversely impacted.
If we are not able to introduce new features or products successfully and to make enhancements to our existing products and services, our business and results of operations could be adversely affected.
To attract new customers and end users and keep our existing ones engaged, we must introduce new products and services and upgrade our existing offerings to meet their evolving preferences. It is difficult to predict the preferences of a particular customer or a specific group of customers. Changes and upgrades to our existing products may not be well received by our customers and end users, and newly introduced products or services may not achieve success as expected. Such efforts may require us to contribute a substantial amount of additional human capital and financial resources. We cannot assure you that any of such new products will achieve market acceptance or generate sufficient revenues to adequately compensate the costs and expenses incurred in relation to our development and promotion efforts. Enhancements and new products and services that we develop may not be introduced in a timely or cost-effective manner, may contain errors or defects, may have interoperability difficulties with our platform or other products and services or may not achieve the broad market acceptance necessary to generate significant revenue. If we fail to improve our existing products and introduce new ones in a timely or cost-effective manner, our ability to attract and retain customers and end users may be impaired, and our financial performance and business prospects may be adversely affected.
Failure to set optimal prices for our products could adversely impact our business, results of operations and financial condition.
We derive substantially all of our revenue from license subscription fees earned from customers using our technology as well as from advertising fees earned from customers publishing their content on our digital property network. We also offer tiered, volume-based discounts to our largest customers and in some cases, customers are contracted to some level of minimum revenue commitment. If competitors introduce new products or services at prices that are more competitive than ours for similar products and services, we may be unable to attract new customers or retain existing customers based on our historical pricing. Further, as we expand internationally, we also must determine the appropriate price to enable us to compete effectively internationally. As a result, in the future we may be required or choose to reduce our prices or change our pricing model, which could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.
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We cannot guarantee that our future monetization strategies will be successfully implemented or generate sustainable revenues and profit.
We have developed a diversified revenue model and plan to explore additional opportunities to monetize our customer base and technology by, for example, promoting additional value-added services to end users to generate more subscription fees. If these efforts fail to achieve our anticipated results, we may not be able to increase or maintain our revenue growth. Specifically, in order to increase the number of our customers and end users and their levels of spending, we will need to address a number of challenges, including providing consistent quality products and services; continuing to innovate and stay ahead of our competitors; and improving the effectiveness and efficiency of our sales and marketing efforts. If we fail to address any of these challenges, we may not be successful in increasing the number of our customers and end users and their expenditures with us, which could have a material adverse impact on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
We have been reliant on government subsidies and research and development grants in the past and we cannot ensure that our existing capital will be sufficient to meet our capital requirements.
To date, a substantial portion of our operations have been funded through government subsidies and research and development grants. Such subsidies and grants accounted for 23.5% and 26.4% of the sum of our revenue and other income (referred to herein as “total income”) for the years ended June 30, 2020 and June 30, 2021, respectively, and 45.8% and 17.7% of total income for the six months ended December 31, 2020 and December 31, 2021, respectively. We expect to generate revenues primarily through license subscription fees from our customer-base and through the acquisition of additional online directories and databases to grow the number of business profiles within our network.
We believe that our existing capital and other sources of liquidity will be sufficient to meet our capital requirements, however, the adequacy of our available funds to meet our operating and capital requirements will depend on many factors, including our ability to achieve revenue growth and maintain favorable operating margins; the cost, progress and results of our future research and product development; our ability to improve or maintain coverage and reimbursement arrangements with third-party and government payers; the effect of competing technological and market developments; and costs incurred in enforcing and defending certain of the patents and other intellectual property rights upon which our technologies are based, to the extent such rights are challenged.
We cannot be certain that in the future alternative financing sources, including previously received government subsidies and research and development grants, will be available to us at such times or in the amounts we need or whether we can negotiate commercially reasonable terms or at all, or that our actual cash requirements will not be greater than anticipated. If we are unable to obtain future financing through the methods we described above or through other means, our business may be materially impaired and we may be unable to complete our business objectives and may be required to cease operations, curtail one or more product development or commercialization programs, significantly reduce expenses, sell assets, seek a merger or joint venture partner, file for protection from creditors or liquidate all our assets. Additionally, though we have engaged qualified external consultants to assist us with the preparation of our grant applications, our government subsidies remain subject to review and potential audits, and we may be required to repay all or portion of the grant with penalties, as applicable, if we are deemed ineligible for such subsidies following such audits.
If we are not able to maintain and enhance our brand and increase market awareness of our company and products, our business, results of operations and financial condition may be adversely affected.
We believe that maintaining and enhancing the “Locafy” brand identity and increasing market awareness of our company and products, is critical to achieving widespread acceptance of our platform, to strengthen our relationships with our existing customers and to our ability to attract new customers. The successful promotion of our brand will depend largely on our continued marketing efforts, our ability to continue to offer high quality products, and our ability to successfully differentiate our products and platform from competing products and services. Our brand promotion activities may not be successful or yield increased revenue.
Negative publicity about us, our products or our platform could materially and adversely impact our ability to attract and retain customers, our business, results of operations and financial condition.
The promotion of our brand also requires us to make substantial expenditures, and we anticipate that these expenditures will increase as our market becomes more competitive and as we expand into new markets. To the extent that these activities increase revenue, this revenue may not be enough to offset the increased expenses we incurred. We cannot predict whether virtual marketing events and phone or virtual sales interactions will be as successful as in-person events and meetings or, for how long, or the extent to which the COVID-19 pandemic may continue to constrain our marketing, promotional and sales activities. If we do not successfully maintain and enhance our brand, our business may not grow, our pricing power may be reduced relative to our competitors and we may lose customers, all of which would adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition.
Compliance with the rapidly evolving landscape of global data privacy and security laws may be challenging, and any failure or perceived failure to comply with such laws, or other concerns about our practices or policies with respect to the processing of personal data, could damage our reputation and deter current and potential customers and end users from using our platform and products and services or subject us to significant compliance costs or penalties, which could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Failure to comply with the increasing number of data protection laws in the jurisdictions in which we operate, as well as concerns about our practices with regard to the collection, use, storage, retention, transfer, disclosure, and other processing of personal data, the security of personal data, or other privacy-related matters, such as cybersecurity breaches, misuse of personal data and data sharing without necessary safeguards, including concerns from our customers, employees and third parties with whom we conduct business, even if unfounded, could damage our reputation and operating results. As we seek to expand our business, we are, and may increasingly become, subject to various laws, regulations and standards, as well as contractual obligations, relating to data privacy and security in the jurisdictions in which we operate. The regulatory and legal frameworks regarding data privacy and security issues in many jurisdictions are constantly evolving and developing and can be subject to significant changes from time to time, including in ways that may result in conflicting requirements among various jurisdictions. Interpretation and implementation standards and enforcement practices are similarly in a state of flux and are likely to remain uncertain for the foreseeable future. As a result, we may not be able to comprehensively assess the scope and extent of our compliance responsibility at a global level and we may fail to fully comply with the applicable data privacy and security laws, regulations and standards. Moreover, these laws, regulations and standards may be interpreted and applied differently over time and from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, and it is possible that they will be interpreted and applied in ways that may have a material and adverse impact on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
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In certain jurisdictions in which we operate, stringent, extra-territorial data protection laws exist which increase our compliance burden and the risk of scrutiny. For example, the General Data Protection Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (“GDPR”), which applies to the collection, use, storage, retention, transfer, disclosure, and other processing of personal data obtained from individuals located in the European Union (“EU”) or by businesses operating within the EU, became effective on May 25, 2018 and has resulted, and will continue to result, in significantly greater compliance burdens and costs for companies with customers, end users, or operations in the EU. The GDPR places stringent obligations and operational requirements on us as both a processor and controller of personal data and could make it more difficult or more costly for us to use and share personal data. Under the GDPR, data protection supervisory authorities are given various enforcement powers, including levying fines of up to 20 million Euros or up to 4% of an organization’s annual worldwide turnover, whichever is greater, for the preceding financial year, for non-compliance. Data subjects also have the right to be compensated for damages suffered as a result of a controller or processor’s non-compliance with the GDPR. While the GDPR provides a more harmonized approach to data protection regulation across the EU member states, it also gives EU member states certain areas of discretion and therefore laws and regulations in relation to certain data processing activities may differ on a member state by member state basis, which could further limit our ability to use and share personal data and could require localized changes to our operating model. In addition to the GDPR, the EU also has released a proposed Regulation on Privacy and Electronic Communications, or the ePrivacy Regulation, to replace the EU’s current Privacy and Electronic Communications Directive, or the ePrivacy Directive, to, among other things, better align EU member states and the rules governing online tracking technologies and electronic communications, such as unsolicited marketing and cookies, with the requirements of the GDPR. While the ePrivacy Regulation was originally intended to be adopted on May 25, 2018 (alongside the GDPR), it is currently going through the European legislative process, and commentators now expect it to be adopted in 2021. The current draft of the ePrivacy Regulation significantly increases fining powers to the same levels as GDPR and may require us to change our operational model and incur additional compliance expenses. Recent discussions were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, further delaying enactment of this regulation, the details of which remain in flux. Additional time and effort may need to be spent addressing the new requirements in the potential ePrivacy Regulation as compared to the GDPR.
Under the GDPR, restrictions are placed on transfers of personal data outside of the European Economic Area to countries which have not been deemed “adequate” by the European Commission (including the United States). As a global business, with customers and end users worldwide, we are susceptible to any changes in legal requirements affecting international data flows. The Court of Justice of the European Union (“CJEU”) issued a decision on July 16, 2020, invalidating the EU-US Privacy Shield Framework, which provided one mechanism for lawful cross-border transfers of personal data between the EU and the U.S. While the decision did not invalidate the use of standard contractual clauses, another mechanism for making lawful cross-border transfers, the decision has called the validity of standard contractual clauses into question under certain circumstances, and has made the legality of transferring personal data from the EU to the U.S. or various other jurisdictions outside of the EU more uncertain. Specifically, the CJEU stated that companies must now assess the validity of standard contractual clauses on a case-by-case basis, taking into consideration whether the standard contractual clauses provide sufficient protection in light of any access by the public authorities of the third country to where the personal data is transferred, and the relevant aspects of the legal system of such third country. While the European Data Protection Board recently issued certain draft guidance relating to ongoing use of the standard contractual clauses, including certain proposed amendments to the standard contractual clauses, the CJEU’s decision has increased uncertainty surrounding data transfers from the EU to third countries that may not offer the same level of protection for data subjects’ rights as the EU. Due to this evolving regulatory guidance, we may need to invest in additional technical, legal and organization safeguards in the future to avoid disruptions to data flows within our business and to and from our customers and service providers. Furthermore, this uncertainty, and its eventual resolution, may increase our costs of compliance, impede our ability to transfer data and conduct our business, and harm our business or results of operations.
Outside of the EU, many jurisdictions have adopted or are adopting new data privacy and security laws, which may result in additional expenses to us and increase the risk of non-compliance. For example, in the United States, various federal and state regulators, including governmental agencies like the Federal Trade Commission, have adopted, or are considering adopting, laws and regulations concerning personal data and data security. This patchwork of legislation and regulation may give rise to conflicts or differing views of personal privacy rights. For example, certain state laws may be more stringent or broader in scope, or offer greater individual rights, with respect to personal data than federal, international or other state laws, and such laws may differ from each other, all of which may complicate compliance efforts. One such comprehensive privacy law in the United States is the California Consumer Privacy Act (“CCPA”), which came into effect on January 1, 2020. Among other things, the CCPA requires companies that process information of California residents to make new detailed disclosures to consumers about such companies’ data collection, use and sharing practices, gives California residents expanded rights to access and delete their personal information, and to opt out of certain personal information sharing with (and sales of personal information to) third parties. The CCPA provides for civil penalties for violations, as well as a private right of action for certain data breaches that result in the loss of personal data. This private right of action is expected to increase the likelihood of, and risks associated with, data breach litigation. The CCPA was amended in September 2018, November 2019 and September 2020, and it is possible that further amendments will be enacted, but even in its current form it remains unclear how various provisions of the CCPA will be interpreted and enforced. Additionally, a new privacy law, the California Privacy Rights Act (“CPRA”), was approved by California voters in the election of November 3, 2020. The CPRA, which will take effect in most material respects on January 1, 2023, modifies the California Consumer Privacy Act significantly, including by expanding consumers’ rights with respect to certain sensitive personal information and creating a new state agency to oversee implementation and enforcement efforts, potentially resulting in further uncertainty and requiring us to incur additional costs and expenses in an effort to comply. Other state laws are changing rapidly and there have been ongoing discussions and proposals in the U.S. Congress with respect to new federal data privacy and security laws to which we would become subject if enacted. All of these evolving compliance and operational requirements impose significant costs that are likely to increase over time, may require us to modify our data processing practices and policies, divert resources from other initiatives and projects, and could restrict the way products and services involving data are offered, all of which may have a material and adverse impact on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
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In addition to government regulation, privacy advocates and industry groups have and may in the future propose self-regulatory standards from time to time. These and other industry standards may legally or contractually apply to us, or we may elect to comply with such standards. We expect that there will continue to be new proposed laws and regulations concerning data privacy and security, and we cannot yet determine the impact such future laws, regulations and standards may have on our business. New laws, amendments to or re-interpretations of existing laws, regulations, standards and other obligations may require us to incur additional costs and restrict our business operations. For example, there is an increasing trend of jurisdictions requiring data localization, which may prohibit companies from storing data relating to resident individuals in data centers outside the relevant jurisdiction or, at a minimum, require a complete set of the data to be stored in data centers within the relevant jurisdiction. Because the interpretation and application of laws, regulations, standards and other obligations relating to data privacy and security are still uncertain, it is possible that these laws, regulations, standards and other obligations may be interpreted and applied in a manner that is inconsistent with our data processing practices and policies or the features of our products and services. If so, in addition to the possibility of fines, lawsuits, regulatory investigations, public censure, other claims and penalties, and significant costs for remediation and damage to our reputation, we could be materially and adversely affected if legislation or regulations are expanded to require changes in our data processing practices and policies or if governing jurisdictions interpret or implement their legislation or regulations in ways that negatively impact our business, financial condition and results of operations. Furthermore, the developing requirements relating to clear and prominent privacy notices (including in the context of obtaining informed and specific consents to the collection and processing of personal data, where applicable) may potentially deter end users from consenting to certain uses of their personal data. In general, negative publicity of us or our industry regarding actual or perceived violations of our end users’ privacy-related rights, including fines and enforcement actions against us or other similarly placed businesses, also may impair users’ trust in our privacy practices and make them reluctant to give their consent to share their data with us. Any inability to adequately address data privacy or security-related concerns, even if unfounded, or to comply with applicable laws, regulations, standards and other obligations relating to data privacy and security, could result in additional cost and liability to us, harm our reputation and brand, damage our relationships with consumers and have a material and adverse impact on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
With regard to our commercial arrangements, we and our counterparties, including business partners and external service providers, might be subject to contractual obligations regarding the processing of personal data. While we believe our and our counterparties’ conduct under these agreements is in material compliance with all applicable laws, regulations, standards, certifications and orders relating to data privacy or security, we or our counterparties may fail, or be alleged to have failed, to be in full compliance. In the event that our acts or omissions result in alleged or actual failure to comply with applicable laws, regulations, standards, certifications and orders relating to data privacy or security, we may incur liability. While we endeavor to include indemnification provisions or other protections in such agreements to mitigate liability and losses stemming from our counterparties’ acts or omissions, we may not always be able to negotiate for such protections and, even where we can, there is no guarantee that our counterparties will honor such provisions or that such protections will cover the full scope of our liabilities and losses.
While we strive to comply with our internal data privacy guidelines as well as all applicable data privacy and security laws and regulations, and contractual obligations in respect of personal data, there is no assurance that we are able to comply with these laws, regulations and contractual obligations in all respects. Any failure or perceived failure by us, external service providers or business partners to comply may result in proceedings or actions against us, including fines and penalties or enforcement orders (including orders to cease processing activities) being levied on us by government agencies or proceedings or actions against us by our business partners, customers or end-users, including class action privacy litigation in certain jurisdictions, and could damage our reputation and discourage current and future users from using our products and services, which could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. In addition, compliance with applicable laws on data privacy requires substantial expenditure and resources, including to continually evaluate our policies and processes and adapt to new requirements that are or become applicable to us on a jurisdiction-by-jurisdiction basis, which would impose significant burdens and costs on our operations or may require us to alter our business practices. Concerns about the security of personal data also could lead to a decline in general Internet usage, which could result in a decrease in demand for our products and services and have a material and adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. Furthermore, if the local government authorities in our target markets require real-name registration for users of our platform, the growth of our customer and end-user bases may slow down and our business, financial condition and results of operations may be adversely affected.
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We rely on key personnel and employees with the technical know-how to lead and operate our businesses.
We depend on the expertise, experience and efforts of our executive officers and other key employees. A failure to attract and retain executive, business development, technical and other key personnel could reduce our revenues and operational effectiveness. There is a continuing demand for relevant qualified personnel, and we believe that our future growth and success will depend upon our ability to attract, train and retain such personnel.
Competition for personnel in our industry is intense, and there is a limited number of persons with knowledge of, and experience in, this industry. There can be no assurance that we will maintain sufficiently qualified personnel or hire additional qualified personnel on a timely basis, or that we will be able to retain our key management personnel. An inability to attract or maintain a sufficient number of requisite personnel, particularly those with the requisite technical expertise, could have a material adverse effect on our performance or on our ability to capitalize on market opportunities or meet our stated objectives.
If we fail to adequately protect our proprietary rights, our competitive position could be impaired and we may lose valuable assets, generate reduced revenue, and incur costly litigation to protect our rights.
We use intellectual property and technology developed in the course of our business. A substantial part of our commercial success will depend on our ability to establish and protect our intellectual property to maintain our software source code.
A component of the underlying technology on which our technology is built is patented in the United States (Patent Number US 9286274). However, the granting of a patent does not guarantee validity since it may be revoked on the grounds of invalidity at any time during its life and, at any point, an alleged infringer may assert that the patent is invalid. The granting of the patent also does not guarantee that the patentee has freedom to operate the invention claimed in the patent because, for example, the working of a patented invention may be prevented by the existence of another patent. In addition, there are limitations associated with patent protection and, generally speaking, a patent issued in one jurisdiction will not prevent unauthorized exploitation of the invention in other jurisdictions.
Further to the above, the commercial value of our intellectual property assets is dependent on any relevant legal protections. These legal mechanisms, however, do not guarantee that the intellectual property will be protected or that our competitive position will be maintained. No assurance can be given that employees or third parties will not, knowingly or unknowingly, breach confidentiality agreements, infringe or misappropriate our intellectual property or commercially sensitive information or that competitors will not be able to produce non-infringing competitive products. Competition in retaining and sustaining protection of technologies and the complex nature of technologies can lead to expensive and lengthy disputes for which there can be no guaranteed outcome. There can be no assurance that any intellectual property which we (or entities we deal with) may have an interest in now or in the future will afford us commercially significant protection of technologies or that any of the projects that may arise from technologies will have commercial applications.
In addition, there can be no assurance that we will implement adequate measures to protect our intellectual property. Failure in the measures implemented to protect our intellectual property may result in an erosion of any potential competitive position. Additionally, securing rights to (or developing) technologies complementing our existing intellectual property will also play an important part in our commercial success. There is no guarantee that such rights can be secured or such technologies can be developed.
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We face the risk that third parties will claim that we infringe on their intellectual property rights, which could result in costly license fees or expensive litigation.
There is a risk that the validity, ownership or authorized use of intellectual property relevant to us and our technology may be successfully challenged by third parties or that third parties may assert intellectual property infringement, unfair competition or like claims against us under copyright, trade secret, patent or other laws. While we are not aware of any claims of this nature in relation to any of the intellectual property rights in which we have or will acquire an interest, such claims, if made, may harm, directly or indirectly, our business and operations. If we are forced to defend claims of intellectual property infringement, whether they are with or without merit or are determined in our favor, the costs of such litigation may be potentially significant and may divert management’s attention from normal commercial operations. We have not undertaken an exhaustive assessment to determine any potential infringements or like claims.
Any such action as described in the foregoing may adversely affect our business, operating results, and financial performance.
Our results of operations may be harmed if we are subject to a protracted infringement claim, a claim that results in a significant damage award, or a claim that results in an injunction.
If a third party accuses us of infringing on its intellectual property rights or if a third party commences litigation against us for the infringement of intellectual property rights, we may incur significant costs in defending such action, whether or not it ultimately prevails. Typically, intellectual property litigation is expensive and may result in the inability to use the intellectual property in question. Costs that we incur in defending third-party infringement actions may also include diversion of management’s and technical personnel’s time and attention from normal commercial operations.
In addition, parties making claims against us may be able to obtain injunctive or other equitable relief that could prevent us from further using our technology and intellectual property or commercializing our products. In the event of a successful claim of infringement against us, we may be required to pay damages and other costs and obtain one or more licenses from the prevailing third party. If we are not able to obtain these licenses at a reasonable cost, if at all, it could encounter delays in commercializing our products or product introductions and loss of substantial resources while we attempt to develop alternative products. Defense of any lawsuit or failure to obtain any of these licenses could prevent us from commercializing available products and could cause us to incur substantial expense.
Any of these events could adversely impact our business and our future operations and financial performance, position and prospects.
We may need additional capital, and financing may not be available on terms acceptable to us, or at all.
Although our current cash and cash equivalents, anticipated cash flows from operating activities will be sufficient to meet our anticipated working capital requirements and capital expenditures in the ordinary course of business for at least 12 months following this offering, there is a risk that we may need additional cash resources in the future to fund our growth plans or if we experience adverse changes in business conditions or other developments. We may also need additional cash resources in the future if we find and wish to pursue opportunities for new investments, acquisitions, capital expenditures or similar actions. If we determine that our cash requirements exceed the amount of cash and cash equivalents we have on hand at the time, we may seek to issue equity or debt securities or obtain credit facilities. We cannot assure you that financing will be available in amounts or on terms acceptable to us, if at all. The issuance and sale of additional equity would result in further dilution to our shareholders. While one or more new debt financings could subject us to any or all of the following risks:
● | default and foreclosure on our assets if our operating revenue is insufficient to repay debt obligations; | |
● | acceleration of obligations to repay the indebtedness (or other outstanding indebtedness), even if we make all principal and interest payments when due, if we breach any covenants that require the maintenance of certain financial ratios or reserves without a waiver or renegotiation of that covenant; | |
● | 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; | |
● | diverting a substantial portion of cash flow to pay principal and interest on such debt, which would reduce the funds available for expenses, capital expenditures, acquisitions and other general corporate purposes; and | |
● | creating potential limitations on our flexibility in planning for and reacting to changes in our business and in the industry in which we operate. |
The occurrence of any of these risks could adversely affect our operations or financial condition.
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The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic may adversely affect our operations, which could have a material adverse effect on our results of operations and financial condition.
The world is currently experiencing a deadly outbreak of the coronavirus disease 2019 (“COVID-19”). Public health and government authorities have recommended and mandated precautions to mitigate the spread of COVID-19, including in some cases quarantines and shelter-in-place orders. Despite the recent easing of certain precautions in certain geographic regions, some of our operating counterparties continue to experience temporary operational curtailments. There may be additional curtailments. The COVID-19 pandemic could also disrupt our supply or distribution chains or access to workers, which in turn could adversely impact our sales. Any of these events could have a material adverse impact on our results of operations and financial condition in future periods. We are unable to predict the nature or extent of any impact the COVID-19 pandemic may have on our future results of operations and financial condition.
The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted the global economy and markets over the past several months and may continue to do so, which could adversely affect our business or the trading price of our ordinary shares.
The global economy and financial markets have experienced significant volatility and uncertainty due to COVID-19. Reduced economic and travel activities or illness among our management team as a result of COVID-19 could limit or delay our business activities. In addition, economic volatility and disruptions in the financial markets could adversely affect our ability to obtain future debt or equity financing on acceptable terms. Government efforts to counter the economic effects of COVID-19 through liquidity and stimulus programs may be insufficient or ineffective in preventing or reducing the effects of a recession. It is difficult to determine the extent of the economic and market impacts from COVID-19 and the many ways in which they may negatively affect our business and the trading price of our ordinary shares.
As a company primarily based outside of the United States, our business is subject to economic, political, regulatory and other risks associated with international operations.
As a company with substantial operations in Australia, our business is subject to risks associated with conducting business outside the United States. Many of our suppliers are located outside the United States. Accordingly, our future results could be harmed by a variety of factors, including:
● | economic weakness, including inflation, or political instability in particular non-U.S. economies and markets; | |
● | differing and changing regulatory requirements for product approvals; | |
● | differing jurisdictions could present different issues for securing, maintaining or obtaining freedom to operate in such jurisdictions; | |
● | potentially reduced protection for intellectual property rights; | |
● | difficulties in compliance with different, complex and changing laws, regulations and court systems of multiple jurisdictions and compliance with a wide variety of foreign laws, treaties and regulations; | |
● | changes in non-U.S. regulations and customs, tariffs and trade barriers; | |
● | changes in non-U.S. currency exchange rates, Australian dollar, U.S. dollar, and currency controls; | |
● | changes in a specific country’s or region’s political or economic environment; | |
● | trade protection measures, import or export licensing requirements or other restrictive actions by governments; | |
● | negative consequences from changes in tax laws; and | |
● | business interruptions resulting from geo-political actions, including war and terrorism, health epidemics, or natural disasters including earthquakes, typhoons, floods and fires. |
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Risks Related to Our Securities and this Offering
The requirements of being a U.S. public company may strain our resources, divert management’s attention and affect our ability to attract and retain qualified board members.
We have applied to have our ordinary shares and the Warrants listed on Nasdaq. As a U.S. public company, we will be subject to the reporting requirements of the Exchange Act. In addition, we will become subject to other reporting and corporate governance requirements, including certain requirements of the Nasdaq and certain provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (“Sarbanes-Oxley”), which will impose significant compliance obligations upon us. We will also be required to ensure that we have the ability to prepare financial statements that are fully compliant with all applicable reporting requirements on a timely basis. Compliance with these rules and regulations will increase our legal and financial compliance costs, make some activities more difficult, time-consuming or costly and increase demand on our systems and resources. The Exchange Act requires, among other things, that we file annual reports with respect to our business and operating results. Sarbanes-Oxley, as well as rules subsequently implemented by the Securities and Exchange Commission, or SEC, and Nasdaq, have imposed increased regulation and disclosure and require enhanced corporate governance practices of public companies. Our efforts to comply with evolving corporate governance laws, regulations and standards are likely to result in increased administrative expenses and a diversion of management’s time and attention from revenue-generating activities to compliance activities. These changes will require a significant commitment of additional resources. We may need to hire more employees in the future to comply with these requirements, which will increase our costs and expenses.
We may not be successful in implementing these requirements and implementing them could materially adversely affect our business. In addition, if we fail to implement the requirements with respect to our internal accounting and audit functions, our ability to report our operating results on a timely and accurate basis could be impaired. If we do not implement such requirements in a timely manner or with adequate compliance, we might be subject to sanctions or investigations by regulatory authorities, such as the SEC or Nasdaq. Any such action could harm our reputation and the confidence of investors, customers and other third parties with whom we do business and could materially adversely affect our business and cause the trading price of our ordinary shares to fall.
In addition, changing laws, regulations and standards relating to corporate governance and public disclosure are creating uncertainty for public companies, increasing legal and financial compliance costs and making some activities more time consuming. These laws, regulations and standards are subject to varying interpretations, in many cases due to their lack of specificity, and, as a result, their application in practice may evolve over time as new guidance is provided by regulatory and governing bodies. This could result in continuing uncertainty regarding compliance matters and higher costs necessitated by ongoing revisions to disclosure and governance practices. We intend to invest resources to comply with evolving laws, regulations and standards, and this investment may result in increased general and administrative expenses. If our efforts to comply with new laws, regulations and standards differ from the activities intended by regulatory or governing bodies due to ambiguities related to practice, regulatory authorities may initiate legal proceedings against us and our business may be harmed.
We also expect that being a U.S. public company and these new rules and regulations will make it more expensive for us to obtain director and officer liability insurance, and we may be required to accept reduced coverage or incur substantially higher costs to obtain coverage. These factors could also make it more difficult for us to attract and retain qualified members of our board of directors, particularly to serve on our audit committee and compensation committee, and qualified executive officers.
We are a “foreign private issuer” and may have disclosure obligations that are different from those of U.S. domestic reporting companies. As a foreign private issuer, we are subject to different U.S. securities laws and rules than a domestic U.S. issuer, which could limit the information publicly available to our shareholders.
As a “foreign private issuer,” we are subject to reporting obligations that, in certain respects, are less detailed and less frequent than those of U.S. domestic reporting companies. For example, we are not required to issue quarterly reports, proxy statements that comply with the requirements applicable to U.S. domestic reporting companies, or individual executive compensation information that is as detailed as that required of U.S. domestic reporting companies. We will also have four months after the end of each fiscal year to file our annual reports with the SEC and will not be required to file current reports as frequently or promptly as U.S. domestic reporting companies. Furthermore, our officers, directors and principal shareholders are exempt from the insider reporting and short-swing profit recovery requirements in Section 16 of the Exchange Act. Accordingly, our shareholders may not know on as timely a basis when our officers, directors and principal shareholders purchase or sell their ordinary shares, as the reporting deadlines under the corresponding Australian insider reporting requirements are longer. As a foreign private issuer, we are also exempt from the requirements of Regulation FD (Fair Disclosure) which, generally, are meant to ensure that select groups of investors are not privy to specific information about an issuer before other investors. As a result of such varied reporting obligations, shareholders should not expect to receive the same information at the same time as information provided by U.S. domestic companies.
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In addition, as a foreign private issuer, we have the option to follow certain Australian corporate governance practices rather than those of the United States, except to the extent that such laws would be contrary to U.S. securities laws, provided that we disclose the requirements we are not following and describe the Australian practices we follow instead. As a result, our shareholders may not have the same protections afforded to shareholders of companies that are subject to all domestic U.S. corporate governance requirements.
We may lose our “foreign private issuer” status in the future, which could result in additional costs and expenses to us.
We are a “foreign private issuer,” as such term is defined in Rule 405 under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), and are not subject to the same requirements that are imposed upon U.S. domestic issuers by the SEC. We may in the future lose foreign private issuer status if a majority of our ordinary shares are held in the United States and we fail to meet the additional requirements necessary to avoid loss of foreign private issuer status, such as if: (i) a majority of our directors or executive officers are U.S. citizens or residents; (ii) a majority of our assets are located in the United States; or (iii) our business is administered principally in the United States. The regulatory and compliance costs to us under U.S. securities laws as a U.S. domestic issuer would be significantly more than the costs incurred as an Australian foreign private issuer. If we are not a foreign private issuer, we would be required to file periodic and current reports and registration statements on U.S. domestic issuer forms with the SEC, which are generally more detailed and extensive than the forms available to a foreign private issuer. In addition, we may lose the ability to rely upon exemptions from corporate governance requirements that are available to foreign private issuers.
We are an “emerging growth company,” and any decision on our part to comply only with certain reduced reporting and disclosure requirements applicable to emerging growth companies could make our ordinary shares less attractive to investors.
We are an “emerging growth company,” as defined in Section 2(a) of the Securities Act. For as long as we continue to be an “emerging growth company,” we may choose to take advantage of exemptions from various reporting requirements applicable to other public companies that are not “emerging growth companies,” including, but not limited to, not being required to have our independent registered public accounting firm audit our internal control over financial reporting under Section 404, reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports and exemptions from the requirements of holding a nonbinding advisory vote on executive compensation and shareholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved. We could be an “emerging growth company” until the fifth anniversary of the fiscal year end date following the completion of this offering, however, our status would change more quickly if we have more than US$1.07 billion in annual revenue, if the market value of our ordinary shares held by non-affiliates equals or exceeds US$700 million as of June 30 of any year, or we issue more than US$1.0 billion of non-convertible debt over a three-year period before the end of that period.
Investors could find our ordinary shares less attractive if we choose to rely on these exemptions. If some investors find our ordinary shares less attractive as a result of any choices to reduce future disclosure, there may be a less active trading market for our ordinary shares and our share price may be more volatile.
If we fail to maintain an effective system of internal control over financial reporting, we may not be able to accurately report our financial results or prevent fraud. As a result, shareholders could lose confidence in our financial and other public reporting, which would harm our business and the trading price of our ordinary shares.
Effective internal controls over financial reporting are necessary for us to provide reliable financial reports and, together with adequate disclosure controls and procedures, are designed to prevent fraud. Any failure to implement required new or improved controls, or difficulties encountered in their implementation could cause us to fail to meet our reporting obligations. In addition, any testing by us conducted in connection with Section 404 or any subsequent testing by our independent registered public accounting firm, may reveal deficiencies in our internal controls over financial reporting that are deemed to be material weaknesses or that may require prospective or retroactive changes to our financial statements or identify other areas for further attention or improvement. Inferior internal controls could also cause investors to lose confidence in our reported financial information, which could have a negative effect on the trading price of our ordinary shares.
Prior to this offering, we were a private company with limited accounting personnel and other resources with which to address our internal controls and procedures. Our independent registered public accounting firm has not conducted an audit of our internal control over financial reporting. However, in preparing our consolidated financial statements as of and for the years ended June 30, 2021 and 2020, we identified material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting. As a result of lacking an effective accounting review process, material adjustments were made to the financial statements for the last two fiscal years in order to be in conformity with International Financial Reporting Standards. We also identified a significant deficiency relating to insufficient written policies and procedures for accounting and financial reporting which led to inadequate financial statement closing process. To remediate our material weaknesses, we expect to incur substantially more additional costs for addressing our material weaknesses and deficiencies. Our remedial measures will include: (a) hiring qualified internal control personnel, including financial and IT personnel, to manage the implementation of internal control policies, procedures and improvement of the internal audit function, system user access, security management and data protection, as applicable; (b) developing and implementing written policies and procedures for accounting and financial reporting that meet the standards applied to public companies listed in the United States; and (c) conducting internal control training to management, key operations personnel and the accounting department, so that management and relevant personnel understand the requirements and elements of internal control over financial reporting mandated by the U.S. securities laws. We have already commenced the implementation of several aforementioned remedial measures, which we expect to complete by June 30, 2022. Our ongoing remedial measures include hiring an additional qualified finance employee to facilitate the segregation of duties between the authorization, recording and reporting material transactions, and formal documentation of key Company controls, processes and accounting transactions. The implementation of any or all of these measures, however, still may not fully address the material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting. Additionally, as most of our documentation will be prepared internally, we do not expect there to be significant material costs to implement our remedial measures. Our failure to correct the material weaknesses or our failure to discover and address any other material weaknesses or control deficiencies could result in inaccuracies in our financial statements and could also impair our ability to comply with applicable financial reporting requirements and related regulatory filings on a timely basis. Moreover, ineffective internal control over financial reporting significantly hinders our ability to prevent fraud.
For as long as we are an “emerging growth company”, our independent registered public accounting firm will not be required to attest to the effectiveness of our internal controls over financial reporting pursuant to Section 404. We could be an “emerging growth company” until the fifth anniversary of the fiscal year end date following the completion of this offering. An independent assessment of the effectiveness of our internal controls could detect problems that our management’s assessment might not. Undetected material weaknesses in our internal controls could lead to financial statement restatements and require us to incur the expense of remediation.
If we identify material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting, or if we are unable to comply with the requirements of Section 404 in a timely manner or assert that our internal control over financial reporting is effective, or if our independent registered public accounting firm is unable to express an opinion as to the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting when required, investors may lose confidence in the accuracy and completeness of our financial reports and the market price of our ordinary shares could be negatively affected, and we could become subject to investigations by the stock exchange on which our securities are listed, the SEC, or other regulatory authorities, which could require additional financial and management resources.
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Substantial future sales of our ordinary shares, or the perception that these sales could occur, may cause the price of our ordinary shares to drop significantly, even if our business is performing well.
A large volume of sales of our ordinary shares, or securities convertible into or exercisable or exchangeable for our ordinary shares, into the public market, including shares of our ordinary shares issued upon exercise of options or warrants, could decrease the prevailing market price of our ordinary shares and could impair our ability to raise additional capital through the sale of equity securities in the future. Even if a substantial number of sales of our ordinary shares or warrants does not occur, the mere perception of the possibility of these sales could depress the market price of our ordinary shares or warrants and have a negative effect on our ability to raise capital in the future.
We do not anticipate paying cash dividends and, accordingly, shareholders must rely on share appreciation for any return on their investment.
We have never paid any dividends on our ordinary shares. We currently intend to retain our future earnings, if any, to fund the development and growth of our businesses and do not anticipate that we will declare or pay any cash dividends on our ordinary shares in the foreseeable future. See “Dividend Policy.” As a result, capital appreciation, if any, of our ordinary shares will be your sole source of gain on your investment for the foreseeable future. Investors seeking cash dividends should not invest in our ordinary shares.
Our management team will have broad discretion to use the net proceeds from this offering and its investment of these proceeds may not yield a favorable return. They may invest the proceeds of this offering in ways with which investors disagree.
Our management team will have broad discretion in the application of the net proceeds from this offering and could spend or invest the proceeds in ways with which our shareholders disagree. Accordingly, investors will need to rely on our management team’s judgment with respect to the use of these proceeds. We intend to use the proceeds from this offering in the manner described in the section entitled “Use of Proceeds.” The failure by management to apply these funds effectively could negatively affect our ability to operate and grow our business.
We cannot specify with certainty all of the particular uses for the net proceeds to be received upon the closing of this offering. In addition, the amount, allocation and timing of our actual expenditures will depend upon numerous factors. Accordingly, we will have broad discretion in using these proceeds. Until the net proceeds are used, they may be placed in investments that do not produce significant income or that may lose value.
Investors in this offering will pay a much higher price than the book value of our ordinary shares and, as a result, you will incur immediate and substantial dilution of your investment.
The initial public offering price of the Units will be substantially higher than the net tangible book value per ordinary share based on the total value of our tangible assets less our total liabilities immediately following this offering. Therefore, if you purchase Units in this offering, you will experience immediate and substantial dilution of approximately $ per ordinary share, representing the difference between our pro forma, as adjusted net tangible book value per ordinary share after giving effect to this offering at an assumed initial public offering price of $ per Unit, assuming no value is attributed to the Warrants included in the Units, the midpoint of the estimated price range set forth on the cover page of this prospectus. As of December 31, 2021, we had 1,312,750 outstanding performance rights to acquire ordinary shares at prices below the assumed initial public offering price. To the extent these outstanding options or the Warrants included as part of the Units are ultimately exercised, you will experience further dilution. See “Dilution.”
Nasdaq may delist our securities from its exchange, which could limit investors’ ability to make transactions in our securities and subject us to additional trading restrictions.
While we expect that our ordinary shares and the Warrants will be listed on Nasdaq following this offering under the trading symbols “LCFY” and LCFY-W, respectively, we cannot assure you that our securities will be or will continue to be listed on Nasdaq. If Nasdaq delists any of our securities from trading on its exchange, we could face significant material adverse consequences, including:
● | a limited availability of market quotations for our securities; | |
● | a determination that our ordinary shares are a “penny stock,” which would require brokers trading in our ordinary shares to adhere to more stringent rules, possibly resulting in a reduced level of trading activity in the secondary trading market for our ordinary shares; | |
● | a limited amount of news and analyst coverage for us; and | |
● | a decreased ability to issue additional securities or obtain additional financing in the future. |
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We are governed by the corporate laws of Australia, which in some cases have a different effect on shareholders than the corporate laws of the United States and may have the effect of delaying or preventing a change in control.
We are governed by the Australian Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) (the “Corporations Act”) and other relevant laws, which may affect the rights of shareholders differently from those of a company governed by the laws of a U.S. jurisdiction, and may, together with our Constitution, have the effect of delaying, deferring or discouraging another party from acquiring control of the Company by means of a tender offer, a proxy contest or otherwise, or may affect the price an acquiring party would be willing to offer in such an instance.
U.S. civil liabilities may not be enforceable against us, our directors, our officers or certain experts named in this prospectus.
We are governed by the Corporations Act and our principal place of business is in Australia. Many of our directors and officers, reside outside of the United States, and all or a substantial portion of their assets are located outside the United States. As a result, it may be difficult for investors to effect service of process within the United States upon us and such directors, officers and experts or to enforce judgments obtained against us or such persons, in U.S. courts, in any action, including actions predicated upon the civil liability provisions of U.S. federal securities laws or any other laws of the United States. Additionally, rights predicated solely upon civil liability provisions of U.S. federal securities laws or any other laws of the United States may not be enforceable in original actions, or actions to enforce judgments obtained in U.S. courts, brought in Australian courts, including courts in the State of Western Australia.
If securities or industry analysts do not publish research or publish inaccurate or unfavorable research about our business, our share price and trading volume could decline.
The trading market for our ordinary shares will depend on the research and reports that securities or industry analysts publish about us or our business. We do not have any control over these analysts. We cannot assure you that analysts will cover us or provide favorable coverage. If one or more of the analysts who cover us downgrade our stock or change their opinion of our ordinary shares, our share price would likely decline. If one or more of these analysts cease coverage of the Company or fail to regularly publish reports on us, we could lose visibility in the financial markets, which could cause our share price or trading volume to decline.
U.S. holders of our ordinary shares and Warrants may suffer adverse tax consequences if we are characterized as a passive foreign investment company.
We do not believe we are a passive foreign investment company (“PFIC”). However, the determination as to whether we are a PFIC for any taxable year is based on the application of complex U.S. federal income tax rules that are subject to differing interpretations. If we are a PFIC for any taxable year during which a U.S. Holder (as defined under “Material U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations”) holds the ordinary shares and Warrants, it would likely result in adverse U.S. federal income tax consequences for such U.S. Holder. U.S. Holders should carefully read “Material U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations for United States Holders” for more information and consult their own tax advisors regarding the likelihood and consequences if we are treated as a PFIC for U.S. federal income tax purposes.
Insiders have substantial control over us which could delay or prevent a change in corporate control or result in the entrenchment of management or the board of directors.
After this offering, our directors, executive officers and principal shareholders, together with their affiliates and related persons, will beneficially own, in the aggregate, approximately 29.7% of our outstanding ordinary shares. As a result, these shareholders, if acting together, may have the ability to determine the outcome of matters submitted to our shareholders for approval, including the election and removal of directors and any merger, or sale of all or substantially all of our assets. In addition, these persons, acting together, may have the ability to control the management and affairs of the Company. Accordingly, this concentration of ownership may harm the market price of our ordinary shares by:
● | delaying, deferring, or preventing a change in control; | |
● | entrenching our management or the board of directors; | |
● | impeding a merger, takeover, or other business combination involving us; or | |
● | discouraging a potential acquirer from making a tender offer or otherwise attempting to obtain control of us. |
Risks Related to Our Warrants
Our warrants have no prior trading history and an active market may not develop, which may limit the ability of our investors to sell warrants.
There is no public market for our warrants . Although we have applied to have the Warrants listed on Nasdaq, an active trading market for the Warrants may never develop or may not be sustained if one develops. If an active market for the Warrants does not develop, it may be difficult to sell your Warrants.
Holders of Warrants purchased in this offering will have no rights as ordinary share shareholders until such holders exercise their Warrants and acquire our ordinary shares, except as set forth in the Warrants.
Until holders of Warrants acquire our ordinary shares upon exercise of the Warrants, such holders will have no rights with respect to the ordinary shares underlying the Warrants, except as set forth in the Warrants. Upon exercise of the Warrants, the holders will be entitled to exercise the rights of an ordinary shareholder only as to matters for which the record date occurs after the exercise date. Accordingly, the Warrants do not confer any rights of ordinary share ownership on their holders, such as voting rights or the right to receive dividends, but rather merely represent the right to acquire shares of our ordinary shares at a fixed price for a limited period of time.
The Warrants are speculative in nature.
Holders of the Warrants may exercise their right to acquire the ordinary shares and pay an exercise price of $ per ordinary share, subject to certain adjustments, commencing immediately upon issuance for a -year period, after which period any unexercised Warrants will expire and have no further value. Moreover, following this offering, the market value of the Warrants, if any, is uncertain and there can be no assurance that the market value of the Warrants will equal or exceed their imputed offering price. The Warrants will not be listed or quoted for trading on any market or exchange. There can be no assurance that the market price of the ordinary shares will ever equal or exceed the exercise price of the Warrants, and consequently, it may not ever be profitable for holders of the Warrants to exercise the Warrants.
Our Warrants will designate the courts of the State of New York sitting in the City and County of New York or the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York as the sole and exclusive forum for certain types of actions and proceedings that may be initiated by holders of our Warrants, which could limit the ability of Warrant holders to obtain a favorable judicial forum for disputes with our company.
Our Warrants will provide that all questions concerning the construction, validity, enforcement and interpretation of the Warrants shall be governed by and construed and enforced in accordance with the law of the State of New York. Each party to the Warrant will agree that all legal proceedings concerning the interpretations, enforcement and defense of the transactions contemplated by the Warrants (whether brought against a party hereto or their respective affiliates, directors, officers, shareholders, partners, members, employees or agents) shall be commenced exclusively in the state and federal courts sitting in the City and County of New York. In addition, each party will irrevocably submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the state and federal courts sitting in the City and County of New York, for the adjudication of any dispute under or in connection with or with any transaction contemplated by or discussed in the Warrant, and each party will irrevocably waive, and agree not to assert in any suit, action or proceeding, any claim that it is not personally subject to the jurisdiction of any such court, that such suit, action or proceeding is improper or is an inconvenient venue for such proceeding.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, this exclusive forum provision shall not apply to suits brought to enforce a duty or liability created by the Exchange Act, any other claim for which the federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction or any complaint asserting a cause of action arising under the Securities Act against us or any of our directors, officers, other employees or agents. Section 27 of the Exchange Act creates exclusive federal jurisdiction over all suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Exchange Act or the rules and regulations thereunder. In addition, stockholders cannot waive compliance with the federal securities laws and the rules and regulations thereunder.
This choice-of-forum provision may limit a Warrant holder’s ability to bring a claim in a judicial forum that it finds favorable for disputes with our company, which may discourage such lawsuits. Alternatively, if a court were to find this provision of our Warrant inapplicable or unenforceable with respect to one or more of the specified types of actions or proceedings, we may incur additional costs associated with resolving such matters in other jurisdictions, which could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations and result in a diversion of the time and resources of our management and board of directors.
We may not receive any additional funds upon the exercise of the Warrants.
Each Warrant may be exercised by way of a cashless exercise, meaning that the holder may not pay a cash purchase price upon exercise, but instead would receive upon such exercise the net number of our ordinary shares determined according to the formula set forth in the Warrant. Accordingly, we may not receive any additional funds upon the exercise of the Warrants.
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We estimate that we will receive net proceeds of approximately $_____ million, excluding the proceeds, if any, from the exercise of the Warrants, or $_____ million if the underwriters exercise their option to purchase additional securities in full, from the sale of the Units offered by us, based upon the assumed initial public offering price of $_____ per Unit (the midpoint of the price range set forth on the cover page of this prospectus), after deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and estimated offering expenses payable by us and excluding the proceeds, if any, from the exercise of the Warrants. An increase (decrease) of $1.00 in the assumed initial public offering price of $___ per Unit would increase (decrease) the net proceeds to us from this offering by $___ million, assuming the number of ordinary shares offered by us, as set forth on the cover page of this prospectus, remains the same and after deducting the estimated underwriting discounts and commissions and estimated offering expenses payable by us.
The principal purposes of this offering are to increase our capitalization and financial flexibility, create a market for our ordinary shares, and facilitate future access to the public equity markets for us and our shareholders. We currently intend to use the net proceeds of this offering to accelerate the commercialization of our existing technology, continue to innovate by enhancing and developing alternative applications of the technology, reduce debt to strengthen our balance sheet, and execute potential strategic acquisitions, as well as for working capital and other general corporate purposes.
The expected use of net proceeds of this offering represents our current intentions based upon our present plan and business conditions. As of the date of this prospectus, we cannot specify with certainty all of the particular uses for the net proceeds to be received upon the completion of this offering. We will have broad discretion in the application of the net proceeds in the category of “for general corporate purposes,” and investors will be relying on our judgment regarding the application of the proceeds of this offering. Depending on the outcome of our business activities and other unforeseen events, our plans and priorities may change and we may apply the net proceeds of this offering in different proportions than we currently anticipate.
Pending use of the net proceeds from this offering as described above, we intend to invest the net proceeds of this offering in term deposits and short-term, interest-bearing, investment-grade securities or certificates of deposit.
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We have never declared or paid any dividends on our ordinary shares or any of our other securities. We currently intend to retain any future earnings to finance the growth and development of our business, and we do not anticipate that we will declare or pay any cash dividends in the foreseeable future. Any future determination to pay cash dividends will be at the discretion of our board of directors and will be dependent upon our financial condition, results of operations, capital requirements, restrictions under any future indebtedness and other factors the board of directors deems relevant.
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The following table sets forth our cash and cash equivalents and our capitalization as of December 31, 2021 derived from our Q2 YTD Unaudited Financial Statements prepared in accordance IFRS:
● | On an actual basis; and | |
● | On an “as adjusted” basis to give effect to our issuance and sale of the Units in this offering at an assumed initial public offering price of US$ (A$ ) per Unit, after deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and estimated offering expenses payable by us. |
This table should be read in conjunction with “Use of Proceeds,” “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” and our historical financial statements and related notes thereto appearing elsewhere in this prospectus.
As of December 31, 2021 | ||||||||
Actual |
As adjusted (1) |
|||||||
Cash and cash equivalents | A$ | 762,739 | ||||||
Liabilities: | ||||||||
ASX Convertible Notes | 405,600 | |||||||
NASDAQ Convertible Notes | 1,777,000 | |||||||
Total current debt | 2,182,600 | |||||||
Equity: | ||||||||
Issued capital | 35,505,073 | |||||||
Reserves | 3,778,099 | |||||||
Accumulated losses | (41,510,312 | ) | ||||||
Total deficiency | (2,227,140 | ) | ||||||
Total Capitalization | A$ | (576,402) |
(1) Assumes the option to purchase additional securities is not exercised by the underwriters and no value is attributed to the Warrants included in the Units.
Each $1.00 increase (decrease) in the assumed initial public offering price of $___ per Unit, the midpoint of the range set forth on the cover page of this prospectus, would increase (decrease) each of as adjusted additional paid-in capital, total deficiency and total capitalization by approximately $______million (A$ ), assuming the number of Units offered by us, as set forth on the cover page of this prospectus, remains the same and after deducting the estimated underwriting discounts and commissions and estimated offering expenses payable by us. We may also increase or decrease the number of Units we are offering. An increase (decrease) of one million in the number of Units we are offering would increase (decrease) each of as adjusted additional paid-in capital, total deficiency and total capitalization by approximately US$______ million (A$ ), based upon the assumed initial public offering price per Unit remains the same and after deducting the estimated underwriting discounts and commissions and estimated offering expenses payable by us. The as adjusted information is illustrative only, and we will adjust this information based on the actual initial public offering price and other terms of this offering determined at pricing.
The outstanding share information in the table above excludes the following:
● | 1,312,750 ordinary shares issuable upon the settlement of certain unvested and contingent performance rights outstanding as of December 31, 2021; | |
● | ordinary shares issuable upon the exercise of the Warrants at an exercise price of $ per share; and | |
● | ordinary shares issuable upon the exercise of the representative’s warrants (or ordinary shares issuable upon the exercise of the representative’s warrants if the underwriters’ option to purchase additional securities is exercised in full) at an exercise price of $ ___ per ordinary share. |
30 |
If you invest in our Units in this offering, your interest will be diluted to the extent of the difference between the initial public offering price per Unit and the as adjusted, net tangible book value per ordinary share immediately after this offering, assuming no value is attributed to the Warrants included in the Units. The historical net tangible book value (deficit) of our ordinary shares as of December 31, 2021 was $(2,825,911), or $(0.15) per share, based upon 18,598,414 ordinary shares outstanding as of such date. Net tangible book value (deficit) per ordinary share represents our total tangible assets less our total liabilities, divided by the number of ordinary shares outstanding at December 31, 2021.
After giving effect to the receipt of the net proceeds from our sale of Units in this offering at an initial public offering price of $ per Unit, and after deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and estimated offering expenses payable by us, as adjusted net tangible book value as of December 31, 2021 would have been $ million, or $ per ordinary share. This represents an immediate increase in as adjusted net tangible book value of $ per ordinary share to existing shareholders and an immediate dilution of $ per ordinary share, assuming no value is attributed to the Warrants included in the Units, to new investors purchasing Units in this offering.
The following table illustrates this dilution on a per ordinary share basis to new investors (unaudited):
Assumed initial public offering price per Unit | $ | |||||||
Historical net tangible book value per ordinary share at December 31, 2021 | (0.15 | ) | ||||||
Increase in as adjusted net tangible book value per ordinary share attributable to the offering of Units | $ | |||||||
As adjusted net tangible book value per ordinary share after giving effect to the offering of Units | $ | |||||||
Dilution per ordinary share to new investors purchasing Units in this offering | $ |
A $1.00 increase (decrease) in the assumed initial public offering price of $_____ per Unit, which is the midpoint of the range set forth on the cover page of this prospectus, would increase (decrease) the as adjusted net tangible book value, as adjusted to give effect to this offering, by approximately $___ million or $_____ per ordinary share and would increase (decrease) the dilution to new investors by approximately $____ per ordinary share, assuming the number of Units offered by us, as set forth on the cover page of this prospectus, remains the same, and after deducting the estimated underwriting discounts and commissions and estimated offering expenses payable by us.
We may also increase or decrease the number of Units we are offering. An increase of 1,000,000 in the number of Units offered by us would increase our as adjusted net tangible book value by approximately $___ million or $______ per share, and decrease the dilution per ordinary share to investors participating in this offering by $_______ per share, assuming no value is attributed to the Warrants and the assumed initial public offering price per Unit remains the same and after deducting the estimated underwriting discounts and commissions and estimated offering expenses payable by us.
Similarly, a decrease of 1,000,000 in the number of Units offered by us would decrease our as adjusted net tangible book value by approximately $______ million or $_____ per ordinary share, and increase the dilution per ordinary share to investors participating in this offering by $______ per ordinary share, assuming no value is attributed to the Warrants and the assumed initial public offering price per Unit remains the same and after deducting the estimated underwriting discounts and commissions and estimated offering expenses payable by us. If the underwriters exercise their option to purchase additional securities in full, the net tangible book value per ordinary share, as adjusted to give effect to this offering, would be $______ per ordinary share, and the dilution in net tangible book value per ordinary share to new investors in this offering would be $____ per ordinary share, assuming no value is attributed to the Warrants included in the Units.
31 |
If the underwriters exercise option to purchase additional securities in full, the as adjusted net tangible book value per ordinary share after the offering would be $ , the increase in as adjusted net tangible book value per ordinary share to existing shareholders would be $____ and the immediate dilution in net tangible book value per ordinary share to new investors in this offering would be $____, assuming no value is attributed to the Warrants.
The following table summarizes, as of December 31, 2021, on an as adjusted basis as described above, the aggregate number of ordinary shares, as well as the total consideration and the average price per ordinary share paid to us by existing shareholders and to be paid by new investors acquiring shares in this offering, assuming no value is attributed to the Warrants.
Shares Purchased | Total Consideration | Average Price Per | ||||||||||||||||||
Number | % | Amount | % | Share | ||||||||||||||||
Existing shareholders before this offering | 18,598,414 | $ | 25,776,683 | $ | 1.38 | |||||||||||||||
Investors participating in this offering, assuming no value is attributed to the Warrants | ||||||||||||||||||||
Total | $ | $ |
The table above assumes no exercise of the underwriters’ option to purchase additional ordinary shares and/or Warrants. If the underwriters’ option to purchase additional ordinary shares and/or Warrants is exercised in full, the number of ordinary shares held by the existing shareholders after this offering would be reduced to % of the total number of ordinary shares outstanding after this offering, and the number of ordinary shares held by new investors would increase to ordinary shares, or % of the total number of ordinary shares outstanding after this offering.
The outstanding share information in the table above excludes the following:
● | 1,312,750 ordinary shares issuable upon the settlement of certain unvested and contingent performance rights outstanding as of December 31, 2021; | |
● |
ordinary shares issuable upon the exercise of the Warrants at an exercise price of US$ _____ per share; and |
|
● | ordinary shares issuable upon the exercise of the representative’s warrants (or ordinary shares issuable upon the exercise of the representative’s warrants if the underwriters’ option to purchase additional securities is exercised in full) at an exercise price of $ ___ per ordinary share. |
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MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF
FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS
The following discussion of our financial condition and results of operations should be read together with our consolidated financial statements, prepared in accordance with IFRS, and the related notes and the other financial information included elsewhere in this prospectus. Amounts for subtotal, totals and percentage variances included in tables may not sum or calculate using the numbers as they appear in the tables due to rounding. This discussion contains forward-looking statements that involve significant risks and uncertainties. Our actual results, performance and achievements could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, including those discussed below and elsewhere in this prospectus, particularly under “Risk Factors” and “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements.”
Overview
We are an Australian company currently focused on commercializing our Software as a Service (SaaS) online publishing technology platform. Key aspects of our platform are patented in the United States. Central to our platform is the ability to publish almost any type of content to almost any device that uses a web browser to display web content. Further to that, our platform programmatically optimizes the published content for local search. Once data is integrated with our platform, the production of pages is largely automated. This enables the publication of large volumes of landing pages optimized for customer relevant search queries for local products and services in target locations.
“Local search” is one of the strongest emerging trends in search engine optimization, with consumers increasingly searching for products and services in close proximity to their immediate location. Approximately 46% of all online search is “local”. We provide businesses an automated and cost-effective solution to increase their online visibility. The objective is to increase the likelihood that local consumers will find our customer’s business online when searching for local products and services, regardless of search method. Regardless of whether the consumer is searching using more traditional means, such as by typing, or by using more modern methods such as voice search (e.g., Google Home, Alexa, Siri), a recent emergent trend, the landing pages are designed to be found for relevant search terms, locally. This is achieved through the automated attribution of schema and speakable codes to published content, which ensures that content and the context in which it is used is understood by all device types, including voice assistants.
The landing pages produced by our platform contain features that would otherwise require significant manual effort to achieve, or the application of additional and more expensive solutions. Our technology results in fast page load speed and the seamless delivery of content to all device types due to the platform’s adaptive nature of publishing content, and the automated attribution of security. We believe the results recently achieved in multiple markets, including North America, Australia and the UK, demonstrate the capability of our technology. Across 21,960 landing pages published up to November 28, 2021, more than 50% of these pages appeared in page one search results for the target keyword and location, while more than 33% of pages appeared in either the first, second and third positions on Page 1.
The importance of Page 1 results is exemplified by consumer behavior studies that found more than 95% of consumers were more likely to enter a new search query than to proceed to page 2 of a search result.
Specifically, our technology is able to process structured data provided in standard technical formats (for example XML, JSON, CSV and XLS) of any quantity, to be published to any web browser and made accessible on any viewing device that uses a browser to display content, including smart phones, tablets, laptops, desktops and wearables (in so far as the content from data feeds can be published on a myriad of devices). Data may be transmitted via Web API, FTP or local upload. In March 2016, we were granted a patent in the United States (Patent Number US 9286274) relating to this process.
Impact of COVID-19
We have been largely unaffected by COVID-19. Our existing larger international customers appeared to have withstood any financial impact caused by COVID-19 on their business. Our smaller customers are predominantly based in Australia, where COVID-19 generally had a relatively minor disruption to businesses.
Key Components of Our Results of Operations
Revenue. We derive substantially all of our revenue from license subscription fees earned from customers using our technology as well as from data and advertising fees earned from customers publishing their content on our digital property network.
We derived license subscription fees from 996 direct customers for the year ended June 30, 2021, as compared to license subscription fees from 297 direct customers for the year ended June 30, 2020. This increase was largely due to the acquisition of the PinkPages directory in November 2020. We derived license subscription fees from 17 channel partners that acquired 1,306 end user licenses for the year ended June 30, 2021, as compared to 7 channel partners that acquired 513 end user licenses for the year ended June 30, 2020. We derived data revenues from 8 data partners representing approximately 2.7 million end users for the year ended June 30, 2021, as compared to 8 data partners representing approximately 1.9 million end users for the year ended June 30, 2020.
Historically, we have not experienced any significant recoverability issues with respect to our accounts receivable. We offer tiered, volume-based discounts to our largest customers and in some cases, customers are contracted to some level of minimum revenue commitment.
Cost of Revenue and Gross Margin. Cost of revenue consists primarily costs of bandwidth purchased from cloud providers and third-party software resold individually or as part of a bundled solution. Gross profit is equal to our total revenues less cost of revenues. Gross profit as a percentage of our total revenue is referred to as gross margin. Our gross margin has been and will continue to be affected by a number of factors, including the timing and extent of our investments in our operation, our ability to manage server costs, our ability to manage the usage of third-party software and the extent to which we periodically choose to pass on the cost savings from lower pricing and higher utilization to our customers in the form or lower prices as well as our efforts to drive greater usage of our products through attractive pricing.
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Operating Expenses. The most significant components of operating expenses are personnel costs, which consist of salaries, benefits, bonuses and commissions. We also incur other non-personnel costs related to our general overhead expenses. We plan to continue investing in sales and marketing by increasing our sales and marketing headcount, expanding our sales channels and building our brand awareness. We expect our sales and marketing expenses to continue to increase in absolute dollars for the foreseeable future as we expand our sales and marketing efforts, although these expenses may fluctuate as a percentage of our total revenue from period to period depending on the timing of these expenses and, over the longer term, we expect them to decline as a percentage of revenue as we scale our business. Following the completion of this offering, we expect to incur additional expenses as a result of operating as a public company, including costs to comply with the rules and regulations applicable to companies listed on a national securities exchange, costs related to compliance and reporting obligations pursuant to the rules and regulations of the SEC and increased expenses for insurance, investor relations and professional services.
Operating Results
Comparison of the Six Months Ended December 31, 2021 and 2020
We have based the following discussion of our financial condition and results of operations on our Q2 YTD Unaudited Financial Statements and the notes thereto, included elsewhere in this prospectus.
The following table sets forth information concerning our operating results for the six months ended December 31, 2021 and 2020:
Six Months Ended December 31, | ||||||||
2021
(unaudited) |
2020 A$ (unaudited) |
|||||||
Revenue | 1,795,821 | 916,380 | ||||||
Other income | 386,245 | 775,058 | ||||||
Technology expense | (776,023 | ) | (263,831 | ) | ||||
Employee benefits expense | (2,098,756 | ) | (1,083,559 | ) | ||||
Occupancy expense | (23,167 | ) | (31,673 | ) | ||||
Advertising expense | (39,379 | ) | (40,529 | ) | ||||
Consultancy expense | (352,609 | ) | (159,283 | ) | ||||
Depreciation and amortization expense | (200,544 | ) | (194,297 | ) | ||||
Other expenses | (40,670 | ) | (5,732 | ) | ||||
Impairment of financial assets | - | (10,726 | ) | |||||
Operating loss | (1,349,082 | ) | (98,192 | ) | ||||
Financial cost | (24,530 | ) | (35,993 | ) | ||||
Loss before income tax | (1,373,612 | ) | (134,185 | ) | ||||
Income tax expense | - | - | ||||||
Loss for the year | (1,373,612 | ) | (134,185 | ) | ||||
Other comprehensive income | (18,050 | ) | 21,411 | |||||
Total comprehensive loss for the year | (1,391,662 | ) | (112,774 | ) |
Revenue
Six Months Ended December 31, | Change | |||||||||||||||
2021
(unaudited) |
2020
(unaudited) |
A$ | % | |||||||||||||
Revenue | 1,795,821 | 916,380 | 879,441 | +95.9 | % | |||||||||||
Other income | 386,245 | 775,058 | (388,813 | ) | -50.1 | % |
There was a A$879,441 increase in overall revenue for the six month period ended December 31, 2021 compared to the six month period ended December 31, 2020. Of this increase, A$220,432 is attributed to our acquisition of PinkPages in November 2020 and primarily results from the recognition of revenue from July to December 2021 as compared to November and December 2020, the only two months for which we included results from PinkPages for the same period in 2020. Subscription revenues (excluding those derived from PinkPages) increased by A$594,795 for the six month period ended December 31, 2021 compared to the six month period ended December 31, 2020, an increase of 169%. This increase is primarily due to the commercial release of our Landing Page and “proximity” products.
During the six month period ended December 31, 2020, other income included A$277,700 in COVID-19 related government subsidies. We did not receive any equivalent government subsidies during the six months ended December 31, 2021. Research and development grants, comprising an “R&D Tax Incentive” comprised A$386,245 for the six month period ended December 31, 2021, compared to A$497,358 for the six month period ended December 31, 2020.
Operating Expenses
Six Months Ended December 31, | Change | |||||||||||||||
2021
(unaudited) |
2020
(unaudited) |
A$ | % | |||||||||||||
Technology expense | (776,023 | ) | (263,831 | ) | (512,192 | ) | 194.1 | % | ||||||||
Employee benefits expense | (2,098,756 | ) | (1,083,559 | ) | (1,015,197 | ) | 93.6 | % | ||||||||
Occupancy expense | (23,167 | ) | (31,673 | ) | 8,506 | (26.8 | )% | |||||||||
Advertising expense | (39,379 | ) | (40,529 | ) | 1,150 | (2.8 | )% | |||||||||
Consultancy expense | (352,609 | ) | (159,283 | ) | (193,326 | ) | 121.3 | % | ||||||||
Depreciation and amortization expense | (200,544 | ) | (194,297 | ) | (6,247 | ) | 3.2 | % | ||||||||
Other expenses | (40,670 | ) | (5,732 | ) | (34,938 | ) | 609.5 | % | ||||||||
Impairment of financial assets | - | (10,726 | ) | 10,726 | (100 | )% | ||||||||||
Total Operating Expenses | (3,531,148 | ) | (1,789,630 | ) | (1,741,518 | ) | 97.3 | % |
34 |
Total Operating Expenses increased to A$3,531,148 for the six months ended December 31, 2021 from A$1,789,630 for the six months ended December 31, 2020, an increase of 97.3%. This increase was primarily due to the scaling up of our sales activities, increasing operational and technical resources as a result of our existing and anticipated growth, and establishing systems to support and enable further growth.
Technology expense. Technology expense includes the software and hosting services required to operate and maintain our platform, software that we use in the management of our broader operations, and third-party solutions that we may offer for resale, typically as part of a bundled solution. The increase in technology expense for the six months ended December 31, 2021 compared to the six months ended December 31, 2020 is mainly attributed to the increase in the sales of bundled “proximity” solutions, which incorporates an element of third-party software.
Employee benefits expense. Employee benefits expense relates to our engagement of employees and contractors, together with associated expenses including recruitment, payroll taxes and insurances. Total costs increased by A$1,015,197 for the six months ended December 31, 2021 compared to the six months ended December 31, 2020, as we increased sales and operational resources in our key markets (Australia, North America and Europe).
Occupancy expense. The decrease in occupancy expenses for the six months ended December 31, 2021 compared to the six months ended December 31, 2020 was primarily due to the non-renewal of certain leased premises.
Advertising expense. Advertising expenses include the engagement of corporate marketing consultants and the purchase of third-party online advertising as required in specific customer engagements. These expenses were largely unchanged during the six months ended December 31, 2021 compared to the six months ended December 31, 2020.
Consultancy expense. Consultancy expenses include tax, corporate and general advisory services provided by third-party consultants. The increase in consultancy expenses during the six months ended December 31, 2021 compared to the six months ended December 31, 2020 was primarily due to the costs associated in preparing this offering.
Depreciation and amortization expense. The six month periods ended December 31, 2021 and 2020 include the amortization of acquired database assets together with the depreciation of right-of-use assets with respect to the lease of office space in Perth, Australia.
Other expenses. Other expenses are sundry costs incurred that relate to business operations, which include insurance policies, legal and travel costs. Other expenses for the six months ended December 31, 2020 included a net gain of A$38,580 in realized foreign exchange which largely accounts for the difference in other expenses incurred during the six months ended December 31, 2021.
Comparison of the Years Ended June 30, 2021 and 2020
The following table sets forth information concerning our operating results for the years ended June 30, 2021 and 2020:
Year Ended June 30, | ||||||||
2021
A$ |
2020
A$ |
|||||||
Revenue | 2,191,425 | 1,985,362 | ||||||
Other income | 788,258 | 615,356 | ||||||
Technology expense | (651,644 | ) | (979,161 | ) | ||||
Employee benefits expense | (2,359,459 | ) | (2,389,185 | ) | ||||
Occupancy expense | (52,219 | ) | (104,419 | ) | ||||
Advertising expense | (67,575 | ) | (265,996 | ) | ||||
Consultancy expense | (240,928 | ) | (273,978 | ) | ||||
Depreciation and amortization expense | (397,506 | ) | (362,917 | ) | ||||
Other expenses | (132,515 | ) | (438,418 | ) | ||||
Impairment of financial assets | (14,690 | ) | - | |||||
Operating loss | (936,853 | ) | (2,213,356 | ) | ||||
Financial cost | (58,913 | ) | (108,471 | ) | ||||
Loss before income tax | (995,766 | ) | (2,321,827 | ) | ||||
Income tax expense | - | - | ||||||
Loss for the year | (995,766 | ) | (2,321,827 | ) | ||||
Other comprehensive income | (1,653 | ) | (4,205 | ) | ||||
Total comprehensive loss for the year | (997,419 | ) | (2,326,032 | ) |
Revenue
Year Ended June 30, | Change | |||||||||||||||
2021
A$ |
2020
|
A$ | % | |||||||||||||
Revenue | 2,191,425 | 1,985,362 | 206,063 | +10.4 | % | |||||||||||
Other income |
788,258 |
615,356 | 172,902 | +28.1 | % |
While there was a 10.4% increase in overall revenue, of particular significance was the change in the mix of underlying revenue from a declining print business (resulting from our acquisition of SuperMedia in 2018) to a largely recurring subscription-based revenue. The strategic rationale for the SuperMedia acquisition was to gain access to their customer list and online directory asset, however, a requirement for the acquisition was to also acquire its print business. The print operations were never intended to be a continued business and were incidental to the acquisition. Hence, FY20 included A$310,349 print directory revenues, which in FY21 was a discontinued product line with no attributed revenue. Overall revenues from subscriptions were A$1,362,110 for the year ended June 30, 2021, as compared to A$831,733 for the year ended June 30, 2020, or an increase of A$530,377. This increase in subscription revenues included A$467,702 in additional subscription revenues, attributable to our acquisition of PinkPages in November 2020. Other income included government subsidies, which was A$290,900 for the year ended June 30, 2021 compared to A$116,000 for the year ended June 30, 2020, comprising “Jobkeeper” and “COVID-19 Cashflow Boost subsidies,” and research and development grants, which was A$497,358 for the year ended June 30, 2021 compared to A$494,577 for the year ended June 30, 2020, which comprised “R&D Tax Incentive.”
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Operating Expenses
Year Ended June 30, | Change | |||||||||||||||
2021
A$ |
2020
|
A$ | % | |||||||||||||
Technology expense | (651,644 | ) | (979,161 | ) | 327,517 | (33.4 | )% | |||||||||
Employee benefits expense | (2,359,459 | ) | (2,389,185 | ) | 29,726 | (1.2 | )% | |||||||||
Occupancy expense | (52,219 | ) | (104,419 | ) | 52,200 | (50.0 | )% | |||||||||
Advertising expense | (67,575 | ) | (265,996 | ) | 198,421 | (74.6 | )% | |||||||||
Consultancy expense | (240,928 | ) | (273,978 | ) | 33,050 | (12.1 | )% | |||||||||
Depreciation and amortization expense | (397,506 | ) | (362,917 | ) | (34,589 | ) | 9.5 | % | ||||||||
Other expenses | (132,515 | ) | (438,418 | ) | 305,903 | (69.8 | )% | |||||||||
Impairment of financial assets | (14,690 | ) | - | (14,690 | ) | N/A | ||||||||||
Total Operating Expenses |
(3,916,536 |
) |
(4,814,074 |
) |
(897,538 |
) | (18.6 | )% |
Total Operating Expenses decreased to A$3,916,536 for the year ended June 30, 2021 from A$4,814,074 for the year ended June 30, 2021, a decrease of 18.6%. This decrease was primarily due to the changes discussed below.
Technology expense. Technology expense includes the software and hosting services required to operate and maintaining our platform, software that we use in the management of our broader operations and third-party solutions that we may offer for resale, typically as part of a bundled solution. The decline in technology expense for the year ended June 30, 2021 compared to the year ended June 30, 2020 is mainly attributed to the reduction in the sale of third-party solutions, primarily as a result of a change in product mix.
Employee benefits expense. Employee benefits expense relates to our engagement of employees and contractors together with associated expenses including recruitment, payroll taxes and insurances. While the total costs were relatively unchanged for the year ended June 30, 2021 compared to the year ended June 30, 2020, we made significant changes in the reallocation of resources. Costs attributed to the now discontinued print business were redeployed to bolster sales and services related to our channel reseller target market.
Occupancy expense. From July 1, 2019 we have adopted IFRS 16 Leases which has resulted in changes in the classification, measurement and recognition of leases. The new standard, among other things, requires recognition of a right-of-use asset (the leased item) and a financial liability (lease payments) with expenses being recognized as depreciation costs. In applying IFRS 16 for the first time, as permitted by the standard, we have elected not to apply the new standard to existing short-term leases, but have applied the new standard to the lease of our head office in Perth, Australia. As a result, the financial impact from our application of the new standard is a comparative decrease in occupancy expenses and an increase in depreciation expenses. The decrease in occupancy expenses for the year ended June 30, 2021 compared to the year ended June 30, 2020 was also due to the non-renewal of certain leased premises.
Advertising expense. Advertising expenses during the year ended June 30, 2020 included print directory production costs, which was discontinued for the year ended June 30, 2021, representing a cost decrease of A$82,389. Further expense reductions of A$60,939 resulted from the decrease in the resale of third-party online advertising solutions as we continue to assist customers acquired through SuperMedia transition to use our technology.
Consultancy expense. Consultancy expenses include tax, corporate and general advisory services provided by third-party consultants.
Depreciation and amortization expense. During the years ended June 30, 2021 and 2020, we continued to amortize the acquired database assets for Hotfrog and SuperPages. Amortization expense commenced for the PinkPages database asset acquired during the year ended June 30, 2021. The depreciation of right -of -use assets was A$34,819 for the year ended June 30, 2021 and A$23,213 for the year ended June 30, 2020.
Other expenses. Other expenses are sundry costs incurred that relate to business operations which includes insurances, legal and travel costs. The decrease in other expenses for the year ended June 30, 2021 compared to the year ended June 30, 2020 is mainly attributed to the reduction in legal expenses to A$93,801 for the year ended June 30, 2021, from A$249,316 for the year ended June 30, 2020, primarily as a result of legal work undertaken in connection with a possible offering in Australia in the year ended June 30, 2020, with no corresponding work in the year ended June 30, 2021, as well as to the decrease in travel & related expenses to A$7,558 for the year ended June 30, 2021, from A$56,290 for the year ended June 30, 2020, and in business expenses to A$4,958 for the year ended June 30, 2021, from A$31,531 for the year ended June 30, 2020, as well as to a one-time share based payment of A$30,800 that occurred in the year ended June 30, 2020.
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Liquidity and Capital Resources
Overview
Since our inception and through December 31, 2021, we have financed our operations and capital expenditures primarily through cash flows generated by operations and private sales of our equity securities. From our inception in 2009 through to December 31, 2021, we have raised in excess of A$35 million of equity capital, in connection with such financings.
Comparison of the Six Months ended December 31, 2021 and 2020
As at December 31, | ||||||||
2021 A$ (unaudited) |
2020 A$ (unaudited) |
|||||||
Cash and cash equivalents | 762,739 | 399,571 | ||||||
Accounts receivable, net | 850,825 | 462,242 | ||||||
Current Liabilities | 4,200,510 | 2,525,532 | ||||||
Working capital (1) | (2,284,161 | ) | (1,518,665 | ) |
(1) Working capital is defined as current assets less current liabilities.
The table below presents our cash flows for the periods indicated:
Six Months Ended December 31, | ||||||||
2021 A$ (unaudited) |
2020 A$ (unaudited) |
|||||||
Net cash used by operating activities | (1,320,522 | ) | 276,545 | |||||
Net cash used by investing activities | (295,564 | ) | (418,965 | ) | ||||
Net cash from financing activities | 1,728,094 | 380,800 | ||||||
Net increase/(decrease) in cash and cash equivalents | 112,008 | 238,380 |
Operating Activities
For the six months ended December 31, 2021, net cash used by operating activities was A$1,320,522, attributable to a net loss of A$1,373,612. For the six months ended December 31, 2020, net cash used by operating activities was A$276,545, attributable to a net loss of A$134,185. The increase in net cash expenditure for the six month period ended December 31, 2021 is indicative of the increase in sales and commercial activities compared to December 31, 2020 as well as a decrease in government subsidies due to COVID-19.
Investing Activities
For the six months ended December 31, 2021 and 2020, net cash used by investing activities was A$295,564 and A$418,965, respectively, attributable to A$261,737 and A$418,965 respectively, in cash payments for the purchase of intellectual property. Further cash payments of A$33,827 were made for the purchase of property, plant and equipment during the six month period ended December 31, 2021.
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Financing Activities
For the six months ended December 31, 2021, net cash from financing activities was A$1,728,094, of which A$1,747,000 was from the issuance of convertible loan notes which would convert to ordinary shares upon Nasdaq listing (the “NASDAQ Convertible Notes”) and offset by a A$18,906 reduction in leasing liabilities.
For the six months ended December 31, 2020, net cash from financing activities was A$380,800, of which A$699,850 was from the issuance of shares, partially offset by A$314,070 from the net repayment of borrowings and A$4,980 reduction in leasing liabilities.
Comparison of the Years ended June 30, 2021 and 2020
The following table shows our cash, accounts receivable and working capital as of the dates indicated:
As at June 30, | ||||||||
2021 A$ |
2020 A$ |
|||||||
Cash and cash equivalents | 650,731 | 161,191 | ||||||
Accounts receivable, net | 391,016 | 232,017 | ||||||
Current liabilities | 2,402,068 | 2,683,588 | ||||||
Working capital (1) | (1,126,033 | ) | (2,171,930 | ) |
(1) Working capital is defined as current assets less current liabilities.
The table below presents our cash flows for the periods indicated:
Years Ended June 30, | ||||||||
2021 A$ |
2020 A$ |
|||||||
Net cash used by operating activities | (496,031 | ) | (1,484,589 | ) | ||||
Net cash used by investing activities | (442,423 | ) | (54,137 | ) | ||||
Net cash from financing activities | 1,427,994 | 1,397,961 | ||||||
Net increase/(decrease) in cash and cash equivalents | 489,540 | (140,765 | ) |
Operating Activities
For the year ended June 30, 2021, net cash used by operating activities was A$496,031, attributable to a net loss of A$995,766 adjusted for A$410,543 in operating cash flows before movements in working capital as well as a net cash inflow from cash generated from operations of A$89,192. Operating cash flows before movements in working capital of A$410,543 consisted of A$397,506 in depreciation and amortization expenses, A$14,690 from expected credit losses and A$1,653 of foreign exchange loss.
For the year ended June 30, 2020, net cash used by operating activities was A$1,484,589, attributable to a net loss of A$2,321,827 adjusted for A$397,442 in operating cash flows before movements in working capital as well as a net cash inflow from cash generated from operations of A$439,796. Operating cash flows before movements in working capital of A$397,442 consisted of A$370,847 in depreciation and amortization expenses, A$30,800 in share-based payments and A$4,205 of foreign exchange loss.
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Investing Activities
For the years ended June 30, 2021 and 2020, net cash used by investing activities was A$442,423 and A$54,137, respectively, attributable to A$433,639 and A$52,656 respectively, in cash payments for the purchase of intellectual property and further cash payments of A$8,784 and A$1,481, respectively, for the purchase of property, plant and equipment.
Financing Activities
For the year ended June 30, 2021, net cash from financing activities was A$1,427,994, of which A$1,739,999 was from the issuance of shares, partially offset by A$284,070 from the net repayment of borrowings and A$17,785 reduction in leasing liabilities.
For the year ended June 30, 2020, net cash from financing activities was A$1,397,961, of which A$2,301,050 was from the issuance of shares, partially offset by A$800,000 for payment for cancellation of shares, A$87,412 from net repayment of borrowings and A$13,235 reduction in leasing liabilities.
We intend to increase our capital expenditures to support the growth in our business and operations. Together with our existing cash and cash equivalents, funds raised in the offering will be sufficient to meet our anticipated cash needs for at least the next 12 months. However, our liquidity assumptions may prove to be incorrect, and we could exhaust our available financial resources sooner than we currently expect. We may seek additional funds at any time through equity, equity linked or debt financing arrangements. Our future capital requirements and the adequacy of available funds will depend on many factors, including those described in the section of this prospectus captioned “Risk Factors”. We may not be able to secure additional financing to meet our operating requirements on acceptable terms, or at all.
Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements
We have not engaged in any off-balance sheet financing arrangements and do not have any holdings in variable interest entities. We do not have any contingent assets or liabilities.
Recently Issued Accounting Pronouncements
We have adopted all of the new and revised Standards and Interpretations issued by IASB that are relevant to our operations and effective for the current year.
New and revised Standards and amendments thereof and Interpretations effective for the current year that are relevant to us include:
● | IFRS 16 “Leases”; and |
● | Interpretation 23 “Uncertainty over Income Tax Treatments”. |
IFRS 16 Leases
We applied IFRS 16 Leases from July 1, 2019, which has resulted in changes in the classification, measurement and recognition of leases. The new standard introduces significant changes to lessee accounting by removing the distinction between operating and finance leases and requiring the recognition of a right-of-use asset and a lease liability at commencement for all leases, except for short-term leases and leases of low value assets.
In applying IFRS 16 for the first time, as permitted by the standard, we have not elected to reassess whether a contract is, or contains, a lease at the date of initial application Instead, for contracts entered before the transition date we based our assessment by applying AASB 17 Leases and Interpretation 4 Determining whether an Arrangement contains a Lease. Further, the remaining terms of leases commencing before 1 July 2019 was less than 12 months. We started to apply IFRS 16 towards long term leases commencing during the year ended June 30, 2020. This has resulted in a comparative decrease in rent expenses and an increase in depreciation expenses.
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Interpretation 23 Uncertainty over Income Tax Treatments
We have significant tax losses carried forward but have assessed that they are not yet to be recognized in the accounts until such time that we are in a position to utilize those losses.
Impact of standards issued but not yet effective
The new Standards and Interpretations that have been issued but are not yet effective are not expected to have a material impact on the amounts recognized or disclosure included in our consolidated financial statements.
Contractual Obligations
Our future minimum payments under non-cancelable contracts were as follows as of December 31, 2021:
Contractual Obligations | Payment due by period | |||||||||||||||||||
Total | Less than 1 year | 1–3 years | 3–5 years | More than 5 years | ||||||||||||||||
Short-Term Debt Obligations (1) | A$ | 405,600 | A$ | 405,600 | A$ | - | A$ | - | A$ | - | ||||||||||
Convertible Notes (2) | 1,777,000 | 1,777,000 | - | - | - | |||||||||||||||
Lease Payments(3) | 570,324 | 53,338 | 226,673 | 290,313 | - | |||||||||||||||
Purchase Obligations (4) | 114,466 | 114,466 | - | - | - | |||||||||||||||
Total | A$ | 2,867,390 | A$ | 2,350,404 | A$ | 226,673 | A$ | 290,313 | A$ | - |
(1) | Relate to unsecured convertible notes which we would seek to repay. |
(2) | Relate to unsecured debt which would convert to ordinary shares upon Nasdaq listing. |
(3) | We lease our corporate head office in Perth, Australia under an operating lease arrangement that expires November 20, 2026. The terms of the lease agreement provide for rental payments on a graduated basis. We recognize rent expense on a straight-line basis over the lease periods. |
(4) | Amounts consist of purchase obligations with certain vendors to provide products and services for operating purposes. |
The commitment amounts in the table above are associated with contracts that are enforceable and legally binding and that specify all significant terms, including fixed or minimum services to be used, fixed, minimum or variable price provisions, and the approximate timing of the actions under the contracts. The table does not include obligations under agreements that we can cancel without a significant penalty. We do not have any capital lease obligations and all of our property, equipment and software have been purchased with cash.
We enter into agreements in the normal course of business with vendors for products and services for operating purposes which are cancellable at any time by us. These payments are not included in this table of contractual obligations.
Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosure about Market Risk
We are exposed to market risks in the ordinary course of our business. Market risk represents the risk of loss that may impact our financial position due to adverse changes in financial market prices and rates. Our market risk exposure is primarily the result of fluctuations in interest rates and foreign currency exchange rate risk.
Interest Rate Risk
As of December 31, 2021, we had cash and cash equivalents of A$762,739 (year ended June 30, 2021: A$650,731). We have limited exposure to interest rate risk. Our exposure to market interest rates relates primarily to short-term deposits. Our cash and cash equivalents are not locked into long-term deposits at fixed rates so as to mitigate the risk of earning interest below the current floating rate. We do not have any credit facilities bearing variable interest rates or that allow lenders to reset the interest rate or the basis for the interest rate.
Foreign Currency Exchange Rate Risk
As a result of services provided by third parties in the United States, Canada and Europe, we incur financial assets and liabilities in foreign currency denominated transactions that are affected by movements in the applicable exchange rate. We do not enter into any hedging transactions, although trade receivables and cash at banks held in foreign currency denominations provide a partial natural hedge against liabilities to be settled in foreign currencies. We are primarily exposed to foreign exchange risk inherent in U.S. dollar-denominated contracts related to our commercialization and acquisition activities. As of December 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020, we had a decline of A$30,736 and an increase of A$228,063, respectively, in net exposure to the U.S. dollar, primarily in payables. An appreciation of the Australian dollar against the U.S. dollar by 10% would have decreased our operating loss for the period ended December 31, 2021 by A$2,794 and increased our operating loss for the period ended December 31, 2020 by A$20,733, while a depreciation would have increased our operating loss for the period ended December 31, 2021 by A$3,073 and would have decreased our operating loss by A$22,806 for the period ended December 31, 2020. As we continue our commercialization and acquisition activities, we expect to face continued exposure to exchange rate risk from the U.S. dollar. There was minimal or insignificant exposure to the euro, Great British Pound or to the Canadian dollar during the periods ended December 31, 2021 and 2020.
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History and Development of the Company
We were incorporated on April 23, 2009 in Australia under the name Gumiyo Australia Pty Ltd. On January 14, 2021 we changed our name to Locafy Limited. On May 31, 2012, we established Moboom USA Inc. as a wholly owned subsidiary in the state of Delaware in the United States. As of the date hereof, Moboom USA Inc. has ceased operations, and we intend to formally close the company. Our principal executive offices are located at 246A Churchill Avenue, Subiaco Western Australia 6008, Australia and our telephone number is +61 409 999 339. Our website address is www.locafy.com. The information contained on, or that can be accessed through, our website is not a part of this prospectus. We have included our website address in this prospectus solely as an inactive textual reference.
Overview
We are an Australian company currently focused on commercializing our Software as a Service (SaaS) online publishing technology platform. Key aspects of our platform are patented in the United States. Central to our platform is the ability to publish almost any type of content to almost any device that uses a web browser to display web content. Further to that, our platform programmatically optimizes the published content for local search. Once data is integrated with our platform, the production of pages is largely automated. This enables the publication of large volumes of landing pages optimized for customer-relevant search queries for local products and services in target locations.
“Local search” is one of the strongest emerging trends in search engine optimization, with consumers increasingly searching for products and services in close proximity to their immediate location. Approximately 46% of all online search is “local”. We provide businesses an automated and cost-effective solution to increase their online visibility. The objective is to increase the likelihood that local consumers will find our customer’s business online when searching for local products and services, regardless of search method. Regardless of whether the consumer is searching using more traditional means, such as by typing, or by using more modern methods such as voice search (e.g., Google Home, Alexa, Siri), a recent emergent trend, the landing pages are designed to be found for relevant search terms, locally. This is achieved through the automated attribution of schema and speakable codes to published content, which ensures that content and the context in which it is used is understood by all device types, including voice assistants.
The landing pages produced by our platform contain features that would otherwise require significant manual effort to achieve, or the application of additional and more expensive solutions. Our technology results in fast page load speed and the seamless delivery of content to all device types due to the platform’s adaptive nature of publishing content, and the automated attribution of security. We believe the results recently achieved in multiple markets, including North America, Australia and the UK, demonstrate the capability of our technology. Across 21,960 landing pages published up to November 28, 2021, more than 50% of these pages appeared in page one search results for the target keyword and location, while more than 33% of pages appeared in either the first, second and third positions on Page 1.
The importance of Page 1 results is exemplified by consumer behavior studies that found more than 95% of consumers were more likely to enter a new search query than to proceed to page 2 of a search result. Specifically, our technology is able to process structured data provided in standard technical formats (for example, XML, JSON, CSV and XLS) of any quantity, to be published to any web browser and made accessible on any viewing device that uses a browser to display content, including smart phones, tablets, laptops, desktops and wearables (in so far as the content from data feeds can be published on a myriad of devices). Data may be transmitted via Web API, FTP or local upload. In March 2016, we were granted a patent in the United States (Patent Number US 9286274) relating to this process.
We believe that our technology is able to provide a number of products and services that are of value to our customers and are capable of generating revenue for us. We believe our technology has several key competitive advantages, including:
● | Page speed: the very fast loading speed of web pages produced using our technology; | |
● | Automated security features: the automated attribution of security certificates (SSL) to published web pages; |
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● | Seamless display of content across all devices: using the adaptive delivery of content we initially detect the device accessing a page published by Locafy. We produce the web page in accordance with the device profile in near-real time, which displays in the correct format on any device with an Internet browser; | |
● | Automated schema deployment: the automated attribution of a schema and speakable to content published on a web page to enhance search engine optimization for both traditional and voice search. “Speakable” is a type of schema developed by Google that translates longer-form website content from text-to-speech allowing for audible playback); | |
● | Scale: the substantial scale at which our platform is able to ingest and automatically publish structured data to produce individual, content-specific web pages; | |
● | State of the art page structures: the ability to increase the organic search engine ranking results by publishing content onto proprietary designed page structures (automated “search engine optimization” or “SEO”); | |
● | Synchronized publication of content: acting as a publishing “end point” for third -data providers (for example, citation management companies and Google My Business), who maintain control of their client’s data in their own database; and | |
● | Centralized maintenance: the ability for us to maintain and implement technology improvements centrally for all published pages is a unique feature of our platform that reduces maintenance costs. |
To continue our research into the deployment of large-scale web page production from structured data, in November 2016 we acquired the business assets relating to Hotfrog, a global online business directory. This acquisition allowed us to apply our technology to Hotfrog’s large customer database by repurposing Hotfrog’s business listing data to produce individual web pages. Additionally, the acquisition demonstrated a live use-case for our technology. We have undertaken several years of research since the acquisition to streamline the delivery of product, improve usability and flexibility for customers, and improve the performance of the products in the market.
As an example, voice search has recently been trending in the market. Today, all web products deployed using our technology have voice search optimization automatically attributed to content as it is published online. The majority of business listing information is not voice search enabled, which would impact the likelihood of appearing in voice search results. We intend to keep abreast of market trends and changes and to seek further channels and applications for our technology.
Our Industry
For the approximate 213 million small-to-medium businesses (“SMBs”) in the world that may be seeking to get found online for the products and services they offer, there are two main alternatives. The first is to pay for digital advertising and the alternative is to buy search engine optimization (“SEO”) services to enhance their own online presence. Both markets are substantial, with annual spend on digital advertising anticipated to be around $571 billion in 2021 and spend on SEO predicted to reach $773 billion globally in 2022.
Before the advent of search engines such as Google, Yahoo! and Bing, one method for finding information online was through web directories. A web directory is a searchable catalogue of links to external websites. The links are typically organized according to categories, for example “professional services > bookkeeping.” A person searching for information can also browse by category or type a query in a search box. Many of these early web directories were built by companies that owned print directories, and they tended to employ the same commercial strategies online as they did in print. That business model has been superseded by search engine tactics that favor results for the most relevant service in the nearest proximity to the search user. Search engines now effectively operate in competition to traditional directory business models.
Search engines are programs that create a catalogue of information by, amongst other things, scanning the Internet to assess the structure of websites and the content within websites. Internet users utilize search engines through the use of keyword(s) search terms. The search engine analyzes those keyword(s) and returns SERP, with a list of websites it deems relevant or connected to the searched keyword(s) and, in regards to local search, the nearest in proximity. In addition to the technology factors that impact SERP, in terms of content, we believe relevance and proximity are two of the three major determining factors in generating local search results. The third factor, prominence, is achieved by publishing a customer’s business profile onto many online properties.
As new technologies are developed, the manner in which users access the Internet to conduct search queries has changed and continues to quickly evolve. In June 2007, the first Apple iPhone was released to the market, and in May 2015, Google announced that for the first time more Google searches were conducted on mobile devices than desktop computers.
Notwithstanding this evolution, while the overall trend for Internet searching appears to have shifted from desktop to mobile devices and may now be moving towards searching by voice, the underlying website technologies used to publish content predominantly suit desktop and increasingly mobile searches.
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The other major emerging trend is local search. According to research, 46% of all Google searches are for local information (in other words, consumers looking for products and services in their immediate proximity). Taken together, these two trends are challenging for existing technologies to cater for and would typically require a substantial re-write or rebuild to meet these needs. Most existing web and search technologies have not yet evolved to fully contemplate voice search enabled devices, and many of those technologies are not local search friendly. By way of example, in 2019, Uberall published their Voice Search Readiness Report, which observed that from a survey size of 73,000 businesses, only 4% were “voice search ready”. “Voice search ready” means a website whose content is capable of being searched by the entering of search terms by voice, which is predicted to be the majority of search in coming years. We believe that, similarly to when mobile sites were first deployed, clients would prefer that web pages they deploy can be viewed on any device and be found by search engines regardless of how the user conducts a search - by typing or using voice.
Due to the increasing number of Internet users engaged in voice search and the relatively low number of businesses that are voice search ready, we believe there is currently a significant market opportunity to provide businesses (and other content publishers) with pages that are also voice search enabled. In addition, businesses need to appear in local search queries in order to remain relevant to consumers. In short, we believe we are helping to solve the global problem for businesses wishing to engage with their local customers regardless of how they are searching and what they are searching for.
Our Strategy
We are focused on local search solutions and believe that our technology is well-positioned to provide a solution to the issues faced by Internet users and content publishers in their use of the Internet, which we believe can increase their SERP position for searches conducted within a certain proximity of their business’s core operating location. One of the challenges faced by SMBs is that around 81% of local searches are unbranded, which means that consumers are looking for a product or service but do not have a specific brand in mind, thus making highly ranked local products and services important. It is anticipated that mobile searches will influence around US $1.4 trillion in sales by 2021.
The goal for many content publishers (i.e., business owners) is for their own website or other online presence solutions to appear in the first SERP for related keyword searches. For example, a plumber may want to feature in searches where the keywords are “hot water systems” or “leaking tap.” Accordingly, a website’s keyword ranking is very important because the higher a website ranks in the SERP, the more likely Internet users will view the website. Given that more than 90% of all websites receive zero organic traffic and a further 5% receive less than 10 visits a month, the value of having an online presence optimized for search engines is self-evident. Where a business can achieve more than one result in a SERP this is likely to lead to more calls, map views, requests for directions or form fills. This means the business can be expected to acquire more leads, which could generate more revenue. The importance of ranking well in an organic search is emphasized by the fact that around 97% of consumers that search online will search for local business.
Search engines, like Google, have developed a series of algorithms to determine what content is best served for a particular keyword search. While search engines do not publish specific details about how their search algorithms operate, SEO is the method used to increase the likelihood of obtaining a high ranking (ideally first page) for relevant keyword searches. One market example that demonstrates performance was when a Yellow Pages online directory company provided Locafy with listing data for a services business in a major US region. Locafy utilized the same data as the Yellow Pages business listing and within less than 30 days, the Locafy powered landing pages were ranking higher than the Yellow Pages listing using specific service and location keywords.
A common SEO strategy involves paying an advertising fee to a search engine to appear in keyword search results. Google Ads (formerly Adwords) is an example of such a program. The major disadvantages to a business of implementing such a strategy are cost, complexity and a behavioral phenomenon coined “banner blindness,” which describes the phenomenon of users having learned to ignore content that resembles ads, is located in close proximity to ads, or that appears in locations traditionally dedicated to ads.
Given the challenges with paid advertising, there are a number of widely accepted SEO principles that can be applied to websites to positively influence search results. We have determined that there are eight key factors, what we call the “8S Factors,” which, when implemented collectively, we believe create a compelling local search solution. The “8S Factors” can be broken down into three core categories, in each of which we believe we have a competitive advantage in the market:
● | Core technology advantages | |
● | Automated SEO features | |
● | Commercial scale and agility |
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Core Technology Advantages
At the core of our technology is a platform that is able to publish any type of content on any device, for which we hold a patent. The pages produced are fast loading across all device types and securely hosted. Based on typical load times, Locafy-powered landing pages load around two times faster than 99% of all websites.
Factor 1: Speed - page load speed is widely recognized as one of the top -ranking factors.
There are a number of studies that suggest page loading speed times is a major factor that determines search ranking results. Our technology fundamentally changes the way web pages load on the Internet.
Generally, other website development platforms utilize the web browser on a user’s device to interpret the website’s code (instructions on what to display and how). The web browser then loads that content in a sequential manner (for example, header followed by image, followed by text block, followed by another text block). Accordingly, the page loading speed is the sum of the time to load each individual page element.
We have invented and developed an alternative page loading process whereby each page element loads simultaneously in its own micro server, resulting in page load speed being equal to the slowest loading element.
The overall result is that websites built on our technology theoretically load significantly faster compared to an equivalent website built on other technologies. In summary, our page load speed is the slowest page element versus platforms using traditional methodology where page load speed is the sum of loading individual page elements.
Factor 2: Seamless - content needs to be ubiquitously displayed across all devices.
Since 2015, Google has preferentially ranked mobile-friendly web pages (that is, ones that employ responsive display techniques). Traditional methods of delivering content to mobile devices have led to two streams of website development: responsive and adaptive web design. As both methods address the issue of rendering websites on various screen sizes, the term “responsive web design” is commonly used to refer to either method, however, there are key technology differences between the two. Responsive web design relies on a flexible grid that responds to any screen or device size by changing a website’s layout to suit the viewing device. In contrast, under adaptive web design the viewing device is detected and the website’s layout adapts to predefined content and style based on the specific device’s screen size.
Our technology delivers content in an “adaptive” fashion; meaning our technology detects the type of device accessing the website and only transmits content specifically for that type of device based on a predetermined set of layouts. The page elements are rendered on our servers, which removes the need for the device browsers to interpret the HTML. This also allows specific content to be served to specific devices. For example, a particular image can be selected to be shown on desktop browsers, versus a different image on a Samsung Galaxy phone or on an Apple iPad; this allows for very targeted marketing.
Factor 3: Security - a website must have security features to protect consumers.
Our technology is hosted on AWS and we automate the application of SSL security certificates for the pages published by our technology.
Automated SEO Features
Factor 4: Schema - universal coding language that provides context to content.
In 2011, Schema.org was founded in collaboration between Google, Bing, Yahoo! and, later, Yandex with the aim of creating a universal “search engine language” – essentially a form of software code that is included in webpages to “label” or “mark” specific content in order to make it easier for search engines to “read.” Adding schema markup to a website adds structure to content, which assists search engines to identify different content that might be relevant to a search query, such as events, prices and opening hours.
In April 2019, we determined a method to programmatically apply schema markup to content published in websites produced from our technology. This is an alternative solution to the current practice of website developers manually coding schema into individual websites (both new and existing).
Regardless of the volume of structured data synchronized with our technology, provided there is a unique identifier for each client in a data set, the technology can automate the production of web pages for each client in the data set and apply schema markup to every piece of content. This includes all types of schema including, but not limited to, website, organization, local business and breadcrumbs.
Factor 5: Speakable - applying code to assist rapidly growing voice search.
Currently in beta testing, “Speakable,” developed by Google, is a type of schema which translates longer-form website content from text-to-speech, allowing for audible playback. In April 2019, we developed a method to programmatically apply both schema markup and speakable code to websites produced from our platform. This is an alternative solution to the current practice of website developers manually coding schema and speakable into individual websites (both new and existing).
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Factor 6: Page structure - optimized page structure helps search algorithms better understand content.
We understand the importance of page layout and URL structure when deploying a page that is aiming to rank for products and services in a defined geographical area. Content synchronized with our technology is published to a pre-built design template which automates the production of the page, attribution of the schema and speakable code and generation of optimal headers and URL structure.
Commercial Scale and Agility
Factor 7: Synchronize - consistency of commercial content strengthens confidence in data.
Our technology can integrate with any structured data set via any standard data transfer methods including, but not limited to: API, CSV, and XML. Examples of datasets that are already integrated with us include Google My Business (GMB) profiles, citation management solutions and digital solutions marketplaces. The benefit of synchronization is that the client can maintain a trusted source of truth as the primary data source while being able to publish that content to our generated web products.
Factor 8: Scale - automated web page production at scale from synchronized data sets.
We believe our technology allows any volume and type of structured data to be published to any device with a browser that is connected to the Internet. As an extension of that, our technology can ingest very large quantities of data, from which it can produce a separate website for each entity contained in the data feed. Each website can have schema markup applied to all its content published online via the platform.
Our Products and Services
We provide an integrated suite of solutions with the objective of helping maximize the local online presence for business owners. The products can be broadly categorized as:
1. | Listings | |
2. | Landing pages | |
3. | Locators | |
4. | Marketplace |
Listings
We own and operate several online directories. An important component of an online presence for a business owner is to publish a business profile on various online directories, also referred to as “citation management.” Business owners or digital agencies on behalf of business owners publish business profiles (providing search relevancy) on many business directories in markets in which the business operates (providing search prominence in their proximity). While many smaller business owners do this manually, there are service providers that manage large volumes of business profiles through technology platforms. It is more efficient for these citation management services to be managed via an API that can synchronize with and publish to third-party directories, such as those we own.
We have several commercial agreements with citation management companies that pay a fee to connect to our directories via API to publish citations for their clients. The attraction for citation management companies is that our directory network attracts high volumes of Internet traffic and clicks as a result of consumers searching for local products and services.
We intend to upgrade the directory network over the next 12 to 18 months to further increase traffic and also to enable the automated production of web products from the data published to the directories. We aim to extend our commercial agreements with our current customers to also include licensing or reselling agreements.
We also intend to continue to seek out additional commercial citation management opportunities and to add to our publishing network through the production of additional niche directories or acquisition of relevant directories, databases and complementary technologies in our main target markets of Australia, the United States, Canada and Europe.
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Landing Pages
Landing page products can range from a single optimized web page for a business seeking a simple digital presence through to hundreds of interconnected landing pages that target multiple products and services across several regions. The primary function of the landing page product is to provide a cost-effective online presence that enables a business to rank high (search prominence) in organic search for local products and services (search relevance) in the regions they service (search proximity).
Proximity Page
We market our single page landing page product as Proximity Page, primarily due to its capability to provide a customer with an online presence that enables their business to be found for a specific product or service in a target location. Each proximity Page is published with all 8S Factors applied which assists in search rankings. Visually, a Proximity Page appears as a normal website and typically closely represents the customer’s brand. Proximity Page can be produced individually either manually via a form fill process or programmatically at scale from a dataset into a pre-built template. There are automated features that enable the Proximity Page to align the site look and feel with client branding, including through automated color schemes based on the colors of the provided logo.
Proximity Network
Proximity Network is a collection of interlinked Proximity Pages that promote a number of products and services in a targeted geographical region for a single business operation. The primary purpose of our technology-powered Proximity Pages is to create a prominent and relevant online presence in a business’s immediate proximity in order to deliver more sales leads at a lower cost of acquisition than alternative methods. Typical calls to action include chat-bots, click-to-call, click-to-book, request directions and request-a-quote (via basic form fill). The power of the Proximity Page combined with the interlinking of related pages within a single solution provides additional SEO benefits that generally result in improved page ranking for the desired keywords. The Proximity Network complements a customer’s existing online marketing presence and does not require any adjustment to their existing website.
Locators
Our Locator product is a combination of location-specific Lead Pages interlinked for multi-location businesses that have common corporate branding, products and services. The solution can be expanded from a small regional size solution, through to state, national and even global deployments.
The Locators can be programmatically produced from any structured data sets including citation management platforms, proprietary databases and Google My Business profiles. The Locators can be set to be controlled centrally, or their data management can be distributed to the individual region or business, depending on the client’s business requirements.
The Locators can incorporate custom widgets that deliver specific outcomes for the client. For example, if the client has an existing booking engine, this can be incorporated seamlessly into each Proximity Page within the Locator. Developers can also produce custom widgets that will render to any Proximity Page without having to undertake traditional coding work related to device detection and responsive design.
A unique aspect of our technology is that it is coding language agnostic which means that developers can use any coding language they choose and even have traditionally incompatible coding languages render on the same web page. This allows developers to choose solutions that offer the best desired outcome without being limited by coding language incompatibility.
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Marketplace
The “Locafy Marketplace” is an emerging solution that enables third-party developers to make available for consumption by our users three types of products:
1. | Themes: website designs that can be cloned, altered and published. | |
2. | Widgets: tools that make a website function better, for example: payment gateways, booking engines, appointment scheduling, job quoting and lead generation tools. | |
3. | Modules: typically, integrations to third-party systems that enable content to be published to third parties, for example, CRM, citation management, GMB management and accounting systems. |
Currently, we offer some third-party products and solutions as part of product bundles, including citation management, GMB optimization, GMB posting and proximity boosting solutions.
Our Competitive Strengths
We automate many SEO tasks that would otherwise take considerable time, cost and manual effort to undertake. Our key technology advantages are the adaptive delivery of content to the web (which is patented), resulting in fast page load time combined with device specific content publishing. The nature of the adaptive platform has enabled further competitive advantages with the capability to undertake client-wide maintenance and upgrades centrally. By way of example, we created and centrally deployed a widget that applied schema to published content across all client implementations.
The typical providers of local search solutions could be broadly classified into three categories: enterprise level organizations, digital media agencies and SEO freelancers. We believe that Locafy has a competitive advantage over alternative local search solutions in regards to:
1. | Scale; | |
2. | Set-up time; | |
3. | Set-up costs; | |
4. | Monthly costs; and | |
5. | Time to effect. |
Locafy’s ability to scale is substantial through its patented platform that enables very high volumes of page publishing through automation. Our self-serve capability provides an unlimited number channel partners and customers capability to create and publish landing pages. Enterprise customers would typically service tens of thousands of customers using their own technology solutions, while digital agencies would typically service dozens to hundreds of clients while SEO freelancers would typically service a handful of customers. The labor required to deploy alternative local search solutions is a limiting factor in their ability to scale.
The typical set up time for Locafy solutions is minutes compared to potentially weeks or months for alternative solutions, which leads to the next advantage of set up costs. Given that Locafy is automated, we typically charge no set-up fee. In comparison, digital agencies and SEO freelancers generally charge a few thousand dollars through to tens of thousands of dollars in set up fees. Enterprise solution providers would generally not charge a set-up fee.
In Australia, Locafy’s entry-level local search product has a recommended retail price of $375 per month, which compares favorably to enterprise solutions that typically range from $500 to $2,000 per month. Where digital agencies are engaged typical monthly packages range from $1,000 per month through to tens of thousands per month and SEO freelancers would generally charge from $500 per month for their services.
Locafy deployed solutions have consistently demonstrated impact in local search results within 30 days of deployment, compared to enterprise, digital agencies and SEO freelancers all of whom typically set expectations with customers of achieving results in 6 to 12 months from deployment.
Revenue Model and Commercial Overview
Our technology can be thought of as a scalable publishing engine that automates the conversion of structured business data into highly optimized, search-friendly landing pages at scale. The pages are primarily monetized primarily through subscriptions. In some cases, professional service fees may be charged for customized projects.
Locafy solutions are sold direct to customers and also via a reseller channel that comprises digital agencies and SEO freelancers. The company’s major focus is on assisting existing channel partners to sell to more of their clients and to add more resellers to the channel.
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Channel partners receive Locafy solutions at a discount to the recommended retail price. Resellers on sell the solution to their customers at a price solely determined by the reseller. In some markets, Locafy engages master resellers that have the rights to appoint resellers within their own network. In these cases, the master reseller appoints customers both directly and via their reseller network. The diagram below demonstrates the impact of having a master reseller in a market:
We currently have three operating segments: the Publishing segment, the Direct sale segment and the Channel sales segment.
Recently, we have migrated the customers we acquired through our corporate acquisitions from traditional advertising solutions, such as print and pay-per-click, to our own solutions. This has resulted in a shift from Publishing revenues to Direct sales revenues. Our Publishing revenue for the year ended June 30, 2021 was A$779,430, or 35.6% of our overall revenue, as compared with A$1,101,720, or 55.5% of our overall revenue, for the year ended June 30, 2020. Of that decrease, A$310,349, or 96%, was attributable to a project we undertook to migrate our print directory customers to digital products.
Our Direct revenue for the year ended June 30, 2021 was A$1,183,025, or 53.9% of our overall revenue, as compared with A$604,703, or 30.5% of our overall revenue, for the year ended June 30, 2020. Our acquisition of PinkPages in November 2020 accounted for an increase of A$530,377, or 91.7%, in our Direct revenue for the year ended June 30, 2021.
Our Channel revenue for the year ended June 30, 2021 was A$278,939, or 10.4% of our overall revenue, as compared with A$616,873, or 14.0% of our overall revenue, for the year ended June 30, 2020. Despite these historically low percentages, we expect Channel revenues to increase at a faster rate in the near term compared to our Publishing and Direct revenue segments. This expectation is based on our sales strategy to increase our network of reseller partners who are better positioned to sell to and provide continued support to their customer base. We anticipate that the combination of growing resellers and in turn their end-user customers will result in a multiplier effect which we expect will lead to an increase in channel sales revenues.
Revenue Model
Our business model is focused on securing long-term, recurring revenue contracts for advertising and subscription licenses via both direct and channel sales. The delivery of these contracts may incorporate professional services, however, these services tend to be limited in scope as most implementations are highly automated.
Service Fees
We may enter into commercial contracts with clients to produce various online publishing solutions in exchange for service fees. These solutions range from the production of custom Proximity Page, Proximity Network or Locators to the replacement of an entire online directory. Under these contracts, we may also charge ongoing service fees to maintain and support the solution in a managed services arrangement.
Advertising
We generate advertising revenue from our Listing Products, which are available through our Publishing Network. We enter into commercial contracts with owners or managers of online business databases, including citation management companies that seek to advertise their client’s business profile on our Publishing Network of online directories under bulk publishing deals. We have existing commercial agreements with citation management companies and digital agencies. The fees charged are typically based on the volume of business profiles being published. The contracts are either fixed price for an agreed term or variable based on the volume of profiles being published. To facilitate the bulk publishing the citation management company will connect to our API, which enables automated publishing to one or more of our directories in our network.
We own several online directories, including the global directory network Hotfrog, which has a presence in more than 40 countries and a number of Australian directories including AussieWeb.com.au, PinkPages.com.au and SuperPages.com.au.
From each directory, additional advertising revenue is generated, for instance, from Google Ads (formerly Adsense), which is variable and based on a number of factors, including site traffic. In some cases, business owners also pay a premium advertising rate to appear higher within a specific directory’s search results pages.
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Subscription Fees
We charge recurring subscription fees for our Proximity Page, Proximity Network, Locator and Marketplace Products. Proximity Page products can be acquired on a singular basis; however, the sales emphasis is on securing Proximity Network solutions that enable customers to promote multiple products and services within multiple locations. Locators are inherently an aggregated collection of Proximity Network solutions.
Proximity Page, Proximity Network Locator licenses are acquired by direct clients and resellers. Direct clients are typically charged our recommended retail price (“RRP”) and can also qualify for volume discounts. Resellers are typically charged wholesale prices which are a discount to RRP. The sales focus is to maximize the local search presence for our clients by utilizing Proximity Pages within a Proximity Network to promote a niche (i.e., a single product or service in a specific location). The number of Proximity Pages acquired by a client would therefore be the aggregate of products and services they promote multiplied by the total locations in which they promote. As an example, a client promoting 7 products in 20 locations would require 140 landing pages. The landing pages can be sold on a standalone basis or as part of a bundled solution that might include third party solutions (for example, citation management, GMB optimization, GMB posts and proximity boosting technology).
Locator solutions are akin to a micro-directory for a single business that has multiple physical locations or service providers that operate in several service areas. We generate recurring subscription fees based on the volume of business locations or service providers in a network.
Our subscription fee revenue model can be summarized as follows:
Revenue = Keywords (i.e., products and services) x Locations (i.e., proximity) x Price (per page per month)
Commercial Overview
Our business has two core aspects - data acquisition and data publishing.
Data Acquisition
An important aspect of search engine optimization and proximity marketing for a business owner is to have their business profile advertised consistently across multiple online directories, search engines, applications and maps (collectively, “endpoints”). The business owner can do this manually for free, which is time consuming and difficult to maintain, or they can engage a citation management company to distribute their profile to these endpoints via an API feed for a fee. We engage with and are also engaged by citation management companies to secure bulk publishing agreements that enable these publishers to advertise their client’s business profiles on one or more of our online directories in our publishing network.
Citation management companies currently collectively publish more than 2.5 million business profiles on the Hotfrog properties, and we anticipate this will increase further and some will soon commence publishing on our Australian Publishing Network. Hotfrog publishes more than 50 million business profiles, and each of the Australian directories publishes approximately 1 million business profiles.
We expect small business owners and SEO agencies will also manually add business profiles to each directory in our network. This represents a largely untapped market opportunity for us to provide an upgrade path for advertising and subscription-based products.
Data acquisition is monetized through advertising agreements.
Data Publishing
Data Publishing relates to the production of Proximity Pages, Proximity Networks and Locators as either standalone products or as part of a bundled solution.
The Proximity Page products can be produced either manually or programmatically at scale. Manual production of Proximity Pages requires an online form to be completed to produce a single Proximity Page or a Proximity Network, which are multiple, interlinked Proximity Pages within a design template. We can also produce high volumes of such pages through the synchronization of data held by third parties.
Our business model is primarily based on creating a sales network by leveraging channel partners who supply our products and services to their end-user client base. Our resellers would typically manage many business profiles, ranging from a few dozen for smaller agencies, to several thousand for mid-sized agencies, to hundreds-of-thousands or even millions for larger enterprises. By initially engaging with these types of channel partners, we reduce upfront sales and marketing costs and gain access to large client bases where there is a strong existing client relationship with a trusted service provider.
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Our resellers obtain pricing which is typically at a discount to suggested retail pricing. We invoice the reseller and support them through our customer success team. Our resellers are responsible for invoicing their end user clients and maintaining those relationships. Under this model, we believe we can achieve revenue growth without a proportionate increase in costs since our solutions are generally digital in nature and highly scalable with minimal marginal production cost.
We have agreements with data providers where we monetize data received through the publication of business profiles on online directories and on-page advertising.
Growth Strategy
Upon completion of this offering, our main objectives are to rapidly expand our channel network in multiple markets, and through automation, expand their uptake. We also intend to accelerate our data acquisition activities and data synchronization projects to maximize the addressable market within our ecosystem to which we can apply our technology. We plan to accomplish these objectives by way of the following:
● | Invest in our sales and marketing team to escalate the velocity at which we appoint resellers in key target markets, primarily the United States, Australia, Canada and Europe and to enter into direct commercial deals with multi-location businesses; | |
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Invest in our operations team to help maintain and grow the customer base of our channel partners in each market; |
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● | Increase the velocity of data synchronization projects with database owners, online directories, SEO agencies and citation management companies to enable more resellers to market and sell our products directly from the resellers’ own administration dashboards; | |
● | Undertake acquisitions of relevant digital agencies, online directories and databases to grow the number of business profiles within our network and marketing control, which has the potential to increase the number of direct clients that subscribe to our products; | |
● | Undertake a major data migration project to unify all current business profiles across our disparate online publishing network, thereby enabling streamlined customer management, sales and marketing; | |
● | Increase the production of niche business directories utilizing our own technology to target high value business categories to generate advertising and subscription revenues; | |
● | Enhance the scale of our existing commercial partners; | |
● | Further develop our technology and its capabilities, including the expansion of our existing Locafy Marketplace; | |
● | Boost the operations team to ensure customer success and retention, with customer retention rates measured by various factors, including but not limited to, customer satisfaction and customer effort scores; customer churn rates and product churn rates; and | |
● | Upgrade and implement new internal systems and reporting to support our anticipated growth and any increased commercial activities. |
We intend to seek additional staffing and resources as needed to assist in implementing these key objectives, secure new commercial contracts and service our existing client base.
Initially, our regions of focus for expansion will be the United States, Australia and Canada. We plan to generate increased revenues through existing partnerships and also through securing new commercial partnerships. We also plan to explore new acquisitions and business initiatives, which expand both our client base and the capabilities of our technology and solutions in both existing and new markets.
We plan to target clients who own or manage large online databases and are seeking to reduce their operating costs, increase their organic traffic and increase revenues from advertising and lead generation solutions. Accordingly, the type of commercial partners that we are targeting include online directory publishers, data management companies, digital agencies, domain registrars and industry associations.
We intend to acquire additional resources in management, engineering, marketing and design to help grow the business and facilitate this commercialization strategy.
We will continue our ongoing maintenance, development and enhancement of our technology to ensure it meets consumer demand and remains compliant with new and emerging technologies and data protection laws.
Competition
We compete against various companies to attract and engage users, some of which are larger and have greater brand name recognition, longer operating histories, larger marketing budgets and established customer relationships, access to larger customer bases and significantly greater resources for the development of their solutions. In addition, we may face potential competition from participants in adjacent markets that may enter our markets by leveraging related technologies and partnering with or acquiring other companies or providing alternative approaches to provide similar results.
Furthermore, rival product offerings by existing and new competitors as well as technology developments by competitors may have an adverse impact on our business operations, financial performance and prospects as well as on the value and market price of our ordinary shares. This risk may influence our customer acquisition cost and customer lifetime value.
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Intellectual Property
Our ability to establish and protect our core technology and intellectual property, including our software source code and copyright, is critical to our success. We rely on a combination of patents, trade secrets, including know-how, and contractual rights to establish and protect our proprietary rights in our technology. A component of the underlying technology on which our technology is built is patented in the United States (Patent Number US 9286274), which will remain in effect until January 27, 2035. In addition, we enter into confidentiality and non-disclosure agreements with our employees and business partners. The agreements we entered into with our employees also provide that all software, inventions, developments, works of authorship and trade secrets created by them during the course of their employment are our property.
See “Risk Factors—Risks Relating to our Business and Industry—If we fail to adequately protect our proprietary rights, our competitive position could be impaired and we may lose valuable assets, generate reduced revenue, and incur costly litigation to protect our rights.”
Property and Facilities
We are headquartered in Perth, Australia where we lease and occupy for office space approximately 603 square meters (approximately 6,490 square feet) as of the date of this prospectus. We believe that our existing facilities are generally adequate to meet our current of future needs, but we expect to seek additional space as needed to accommodate future growth.
Employees
As of January 20, 2022, we had 39 full time employees located in Australia, Canada, Europe and the United States. These employees are engaged in technical development, sales and marketing, customer support, finance, legal, human resources and general management. We rely upon and engage consultants on a contract basis to provide services, management and personnel who assist us to carry on our technical development, administrative, shareholder communication and marketing activities.
Legal Proceedings
From time to time, we may be involved in various claims and legal proceedings relating to claims arising out of our operations. We are not currently a party to any legal proceedings that, in the opinion of our management, are likely to have a material adverse effect on our business. Regardless of outcome, litigation can have an adverse impact on us because of defense and settlement costs, diversion of management resources and other factors.
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Executive Officers and Directors
The following table sets forth the name, age and position of each of our directors and executive officers as of the date of this prospectus. The address for our directors and executive officers is c/o Locafy Limited., 246A Churchill Avenue, Subiaco, Western Australia 6008, Australia.
Name | Age | Position(s) | |
Gavin Burnett | 52 | Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director | |
Melvin Tan | 44 | Chief Financial Officer and Executive Director | |
Collin Visaggio | 60 | Chairman and Non-Executive Director |
There are no family relationships between any of our directors or members of senior management. There are no arrangements or understandings with major shareholders, customers, suppliers or others pursuant to which any of our directors or members of senior management were selected to be a director or member of senior management.
Senior Management and Key Employees
Gavin Burnett, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director
Mr. Burnett has been a director of public companies for more than 13 years and has 20 years’ experience in technology, both as an entrepreneur and as a senior executive of a large, publicly listed Australian media organization. Mr. Burnett has received considerable commercial recognition including dual Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year Finalist, BRW Fastest Growing companies (10th), twice in Deloitte’s technology Fast 50 Companies (3rd and 5th), Western Australia’s fastest growing company (1st) and Western Australia’s Technology Product of the Year (2004), with BigRedSky Pty Ltd. Mr. Burnett founded technology company BigRedSky Pty Ltd in 1999, taking the business from concept to a national business in a few years, winning numerous government and corporate contracts. The business was ultimately purchased by the international media group, Thomson Reuters. Mr. Burnett was appointed West Australian Newspapers’ (now Seven West Media) first General Manager of Digital in 2006. Mr. Burnett founded Locafy (formerly, Moboom Limited) in 2009 and, as the Chief Executive Officer, has been instrumental in raising in excess of A$35,000,000 to develop, trial and commence marketing and implementing the patented web-building platform that we have today. He holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from Curtin University.
Melvin Tan, Chief Financial Officer and Executive Director
Mr. Tan has held senior finance roles in technology companies for the majority of his career, and has experience in growing businesses organically and through strategic acquisitions. Prior to joining us in 2012, Mr. Tan worked as a finance executive in both public and private companies. Most recently, he served as the Australasia Financial Controller for Gemcom Software International (“Gemcom”) for more than seven years, helping to make Gemcom (now named Geovia) into the world-leading mine management software company it is today. He was responsible for all regional financial and legal matters and played a key role in Gemcom’s expansion throughout Asia. Prior to Gemcom, Mr. Tan worked as a Management Accountant for Schlumberger and as a Business Recovery Accountant at RSM Bird Cameron. He is a Fellow Certified Practicing Accountant (FCPA), Fellow Governance Institute Australia (FGIA/FCIS) and holds bachelor’s degrees in law and commerce from The University of Western Australia (LLB, BCom).
Non-Employee Directors
Collin Visaggio, Chairman and Non-Executive Director
Mr. Visaggio has 39 years of experience in corporate leadership, strategy, financing and governance. Mr. Visaggio was formerly the CFO of InterOil Corporation, a company that attained listing on the New York Stock Exchange on March 31, 2009. As CFO, he had overall responsibility for the financial, information technology, investor relations and supply chain functions of a fully integrated oil and gas company. During his tenure at Interoil, the company grew to be valued at over $3 billion with over 1000 employees.
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Mr. Visaggio is a Fellow of the Australian Society of Certified Practicing Accountants and is a member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. He has a Bachelor of Business Degree from Curtin University, Bentley, Western Australia and a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree from Murdoch University, Murdoch, Western Australia. While completing his MBA, he won the Alcoa Australia prize for top student in Strategic Management and he has also attended the Stanford Senior Executive Program (SEP) in Management at Stanford University, Stanford, California.
Mr. Visaggio has had experience in senior business positions within Woodside Petroleum and BP Australia. Mr. Visaggio was at Woodside Petroleum from March 1988 until July 2005, with his final position being Manager, Compliance and Business for the Africa Business Unit, and prior position as Manager, Commercial and Planning for the Gas Business Unit. Prior to this and during his 17 years with Woodside, he was Deputy Chief Financial Officer, and Financial Analyst and Planning Manager within the Corporate Finance Unit.
Mr. Visaggio has been our Chairman since August 2017. He also served on the board of Santa Maria Ladies College from 2004 to March 2010, including as Chairman for four of those years. He was on the Woodside Superannuation Board for a period of three years representing employees’ interests and he was a Board Director on 26 subsidiary boards of Interoil Corporation, covering the United States, Singapore, Australia, Papua New Guinea, Cayman Islands, Bahamas and Barbados.
The board of directors continually assesses its composition and skills matrix to consider the addition of board and management resources as the Company and its business develops and grows.
We are aware of the need to have sufficient management to properly supervise its operations. As the Company’s activities require an increased level of involvement, the board of directors will look to appoint additional management, consultants or other contractors when and where appropriate to ensure proper management of the Company’s activities.
Corporate Governance
We are incorporated under the laws of Australia. Our governing documents consist of our Constitution and we have implemented a corporate governance framework that is guided by The Corporate Governance Principles and Recommendations (4th Edition) as published by the Australian Securities Exchange’s Corporate Governance Council.
We qualify as a “foreign private issuer” as defined in Section 405 of the Securities Act. As a foreign private issuer, we are exempt from certain rules under the Exchange Act that impose disclosure requirements as well as procedural requirements for proxy solicitations under Section 14 of the Exchange Act. In addition, the members of our board of directors and senior management are not subject to short-swing profit and insider trading reporting obligations under Section 16 of the Exchange Act. They will, however, be subject to the obligations to report changes in share ownership under Section 13 of the Exchange Act and related SEC rules, to the extent applicable.
The foreign private issuer exemption will also permit us to follow home country corporate governance practices or requirements instead of certain Nasdaq listing requirements, including the following:
● | We expect to rely on an exemption from the requirement that our independent directors meet regularly in executive sessions under Nasdaq listing rules. The Corporations Act do not require the independent directors of an Australian company to have such executive sessions, accordingly, we plan to claim this exemption. |
● | We expect to rely on an exemption from the quorum requirements applicable to meetings of shareholders under Nasdaq listing rules. In compliance with Australian law, our Constitution provides that two shareholders present, in person or by proxy, attorney or a representative, shall constitute a quorum for a general meeting. Nasdaq listing rules require that an issuer provide for a quorum as specified in its by-laws for any meeting of the holders of ordinary shares, which quorum may not be less than 33 1/3% of the outstanding voting ordinary shares. Accordingly, because applicable Australian law and rules governing quorums at shareholder meetings differ from Nasdaq’s quorum requirements, we plan to claim this exemption. |
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● | We expect to follow applicable Australian law regarding prior shareholder approval in lieu of the requirement prescribed by Nasdaq listing rules that issuers obtain shareholder approval prior to the issuance of securities in connection with certain acquisitions, private placements of securities, or the establishment or amendment of certain stock option, purchase or other compensation plans. Applicable Australian law differs from Nasdaq requirements, with the ASX Listing Rules requiring prior shareholder approval for issuance of equity securities in a number of circumstances, including (i) issuance of equity securities over any 12 month period exceeding 15% of our issued ordinary share capital on issue at the start of that period (subject to securities issued under certain exceptions to the rule or with shareholder approval which are excluded from the calculation of the 15% limit), (ii) subject to certain exceptions, issuance of equity securities to related parties (as defined in the ASX Listing Rules), including issuances of securities to directors or their associates under an employee incentive plan. Due to differences between Australian law and rules and the Nasdaq shareholder approval requirements, we plan to claim this exemption. |
● | We expect to rely on an exemption from the requirement to disclose third-party director and director nominee compensation under Nasdaq listing rules. The Corporations Act does not have a similar requirement, accordingly, we plan to claim this exemption. |
● | We expect to rely on an exemption from the independence requirements for a majority of our board of directors as prescribed by Nasdaq listing rules. The Corporations Act does not require us to have a majority of independent directors although ASX Corporate Governance Principles and Recommendations do recommend a majority of independent directors. During fiscal 2021, we did not have a majority of directors who were “independent” as defined in the ASX Corporate Governance Principles and Recommendations, which definition differs from Nasdaq’s definition. Accordingly, because Australian law regarding director independence differ to the independence requirements under Nasdaq listing rules, we plan to claim this exemption. |
Board Composition and Election of Directors
Our board of directors currently consists of three directors. Our board of directors will facilitate its exercise of independent supervision over management by ensuring that a majority of its members are “independent” following this offering. Under our Constitution, at each annual general meeting one-third of the directors, other than the Managing Director, or if their number is not a multiple of three, then the number nearest to one-third (rounded upwards in case of doubt) of the directors must retire.
Notwithstanding the above, no director, other than the Managing Director, shall hold office for a period in excess of 3 years, or until the third annual general meeting following his or her appointment, whichever is the longer, without submitting himself for re-election.
A retiring director remains in office until the relevant shareholder meeting and will be eligible for re-election at that meeting.
A director who has a material interest in a matter before our board of directors or any committee on which he or she serves is required to disclose such interest as soon as the director becomes aware of it. In situations where a director has a material interest in a matter to be considered by our board of directors or any committee on which he or she serves, such director may be required to remove himself or herself from the meeting while discussions and voting with respect to the matter are taking place.
Meetings of Directors
Our board of directors is responsible for the stewardship of the Company and providing oversight as to the management of our business and affairs, including providing guidance and strategic oversight to management by, among other things:
● | appointing our Chief Executive Officer; |
● | developing the corporate goals and objectives that our Chief Executive Officer is responsible for meeting, and reviewing the performance of our Chief Executive Officer against such corporate goals and objectives; |
● | taking steps to satisfy itself as to the integrity of our Chief Executive Officer and other executive officers and that our Chief Executive Officer and other executive officers create a culture of integrity throughout the organization; |
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● | reviewing and approving our Code of Business Conduct and Ethics and reviewing and monitoring compliance with the Code of Conduct and our enterprise risk management processes; |
● | adopting a strategic planning process to establish objectives and goals for our business and reviewing, approving, and modifying, as appropriate, the strategies proposed by management to achieve such objectives and goals; and |
● | reviewing and approving material transactions not in the ordinary course of business. |
Foreign Private Issuer Status
We are a “foreign private issuer” under SEC and Nasdaq rules, which also exempts us, as well as our directors, executive officers and 10% shareholders, from certain requirements that apply to U.S. public companies and their directors, executive officers and 10% shareholders. See “Risk Factors — We are a “foreign private issuer” and may have disclosure obligations that are different from those of U.S. domestic reporting companies. As a foreign private issuer, we are subject to different U.S. securities laws and rules than a domestic U.S. issuer, which could limit the information publicly available to our shareholders.”
Board Committees
In light of the Company’s size and nature, we believe that the current size of the board of directors is a cost effective and practical method of directing and managing the Company. As our activities develop in size, nature and scope, the size of the board, the formation of board committees and the implementation of additional corporate governance policies and structures will be reviewed.
To assist with the effective discharge of its duties, our board of directors intend to establish an Audit and Risk Committee prior to the closing of the offering. The Audit and Risk Committee will operate under a charter approved by our board of directors, which will set forth the purposes and responsibilities of the Audit and Risk Committee as well as qualifications for committee membership, committee structure and operations and committee reporting to our board of directors.
Audit and Risk Committee
The members of our Audit and Risk Committee, which we intend to establish prior to the closing of the offering, are expected to be Gavin Burnett, Melvin Tan and Collin Visaggio. Our board of directors has determined that Mr. Visaggio will satisfy the independence requirements under Nasdaq listing standards and Rule 10A-3(b)(1) of the Exchange Act. The chairperson of our Audit and Risk Committee is expected to be Colin Visaggio. Our board of directors has determined that Collin Visaggio is an “audit committee financial expert” within the meaning of SEC regulations. Each member of our Audit and Risk Committee can read and understand fundamental financial statements in accordance with applicable requirements. In arriving at these determinations, our board of directors has examined each member’s scope of experience and the nature of his or her employment.
The Audit and Risk Committee’s duties will be specified in our Audit and Risk Committee Charter, and will include, but not be limited to:
● | appointing the independent auditors and pre-approving all auditing and non-auditing services permitted to be performed by the independent auditors; | |
● | reviewing with the independent auditors any audit problems or difficulties and management’s response; | |
● | discussing the annual audited financial statements with management and the independent auditors; | |
● | reviewing the adequacy and effectiveness of our accounting and internal control policies and procedures and any steps taken to monitor and control major financial risk exposures; | |
● | reviewing and approving all proposed related party transactions; | |
● | annually reviewing and reassessing the adequacy of our audit committee charter; | |
● | meeting separately and periodically with management and the independent auditors; and | |
● | monitoring compliance with our code of business conduct and ethics, including reviewing the adequacy and effectiveness of our procedures to ensure proper compliance |
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Compensation Committee
We intend to rely upon the exemption available to foreign private issuers under the Nasdaq listing rules with respect to the determination of the compensation of our Chief Executive Officer and other executive officers in lieu of forming a compensation committee consisting entirely of independent directors (or the determination of such compensation solely by the independent members of our board of directors). In lieu of a compensation committee, the remuneration of an executive director will be decided by our board of directors, without the affected executive director participating in that decision-making process.
The total maximum remuneration of non-executive directors is initially set by the Constitution and subsequent variation is by ordinary resolution of shareholders in general meeting in accordance with the Constitution and the Corporations Act, as applicable. The determination of non-executive directors’ remuneration within that maximum will be made by the board of directors having regard to the inputs and value to the Company of the respective contributions by each non-executive director. The current amount has been set at an amount not to exceed A$300,000 per annum.
Where agreed by the board of directors, directors are also entitled to be paid reasonable travel, hotel and other expenses incurred by them respectively in or about the performance of their duties as directors.
Our board of directors reviews and approves the remuneration policy to enable the Company to attract and retain executives and directors who will create value for shareholders having consideration to the amount considered to be commensurate for a company of its size and level of activity as well as the relevant directors’ time, commitment and responsibility. Our board of directors is also responsible for reviewing any employee incentive and equity-based plans including the appropriateness of performance hurdles and total payments proposed.
Nominating Committee
Our board of directors does not currently have a nominating committee, as director nominees are presented by our board of directors to our shareholders based upon the nominations made by the board of directors itself. We intend to rely upon the exemption available to foreign private issuers under the Nasdaq listing rules related to independent director oversight of nominations to our board of directors and the adoption of a formal written charter or board resolution addressing the nominations process.
Code of Conduct
We have adopted a Code of Conduct applicable to all of our directors, officers and employees. We post on our website all disclosures that are required by law or the listing standards of Nasdaq concerning any amendments to, or waivers from, any provision of the Code of Conduct. The reference to our website address does not constitute incorporation by reference of the information contained at or available through our website, and you should not consider it to be a part of, this prospectus.
Monitoring Compliance with the Code of Business Conduct and Ethics
Our board of directors is responsible for reviewing and evaluating the Code of Conduct periodically and will make any necessary changes thereto. Our board of directors is also charged with the monitoring of compliance with the Code of Conduct and will be responsible for considering any waivers of the Code of Conduct.
Interests of Directors
A director who has a material interest in a matter before our board of directors or any committee on which he or she serves is required to disclose such interest as soon as the director becomes aware of it. In situations where a director has a material interest in a matter to be considered by our board of directors or any committee on which he or she serves, such director may be required to excuse himself or herself from the meeting while discussions and voting with respect to the matter are taking place. Directors will also be required to comply with the relevant provisions of the Corporations Act regarding conflicts of interest and any material personal interest in a matter that relates to the affairs of the Company.
Complaint Reporting and Whistleblower Policy
In order to foster a climate of openness and honesty in which any concern or complaint pertaining to a suspected violation of the law, our Code of Conduct or any of our policies or any unethical or questionable act or behavior, the board of directors will adopt a whistleblower policy that requires that our employees promptly report such violation or suspected violation. In order to ensure that violations or suspected violations can be reported without fear of retaliation, harassment or an adverse employment consequence, our whistleblower policy will contain procedures that are aimed to facilitate confidential, anonymous submissions by our employees.
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EXECUTIVE AND DIRECTOR COMPENSATION
Introduction
The following section describes the significant elements of our executive and director compensation programs.
Overview
Compensation Philosophy
The goal of our compensation program is to attract, retain and motivate our employees and executives. Our board of directors is responsible for setting our executive compensation and establishing corporate performance objectives. In considering executive compensation, the board strives to ensure that our total compensation is competitive within the industry in which we operate and supports our overall strategy and corporate objectives. The combination of base salary, annual incentives and long-term incentives that we provide our executive officers is designed to accomplish this. Our board of directors considers the implications of the risks associated with our compensation policies and practices. For additional details regarding the relevant education and experience of our board of directors see “Management—Executive Officers and Directors.”
Components of Compensation Package
There are two major components of our executive compensation program:
● | Base salary; and |
● | Variable-performance based compensation, consisting of: |
● | annual, discretionary cash bonuses based on a comparison of individual and corporate performance to pre-set goals and objectives; and |
● | long-term incentives, consisting of grants of long-term stock performance rights. |
Executive Compensation Practices
The objective of the board of directors when determining compensation to be paid to our senior executives is to ensure that the level and form of compensation: (a) attracts and retains talented, qualified, experienced and effective executives consistent with the general sector; (b) motivates the short and long-term performance of these executives; (c) reflects our current state of development; (d) reflects our performance and financial status; (e) reflects individual performance, and (f) aligns the interests of the executives with our overall business objectives and the interests of our shareholders. As there are no formal policies and compensation decisions are generally subjective, we do not tie any significant element of compensation to specific performance criteria or goals.
In addition to industry trends, the board of directors considers a variety of other factors it considers relevant and appropriate when assessing compensation policies and practices for director and executive compensation levels. These factors include the long-range interests of the Company and our shareholders, the implications of the risks associated with our compensation policies and practices in light of our financial performance, our overall financial and operating performance and the board of director’s assessment of each executive’s individual achievements, performance and contribution toward meeting corporate objectives.
Assessments to determine executive compensation are made through board discussion without formal objectives, criteria and analysis. To ensure our executive compensation is appropriate and competitive, the board of directors will typically review the compensation practices on an annual basis but may also conduct reviews on an ad hoc basis as the need arises. We have not retained any third-party advisors to conduct compensation reviews of its pay levels and practices. We aim to provide compensation that is competitive with companies at a similar stage of development; however, no formal benchmark group of companies is established.
We have adopted both short-term and long-term incentive plans. These plans are available to directors, key employees, including officers, and consultants of the Company, as determined by our board of directors.
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Non-Employee Director Compensation Practices
Following this offering, we expect to pay non-employee directors a fixed fee annually and performance-based awards with the same performance targets as those currently issued.
Base Salary
Base salaries for our named executive officers (“NEOs”) are evaluated and established to provide a reasonable amount of non-contingent remuneration in order to retain executives with experience and skills required to achieve our strategic and organizational goals. In determining base salaries, the board of directors reference salary levels in the industry and location in which we operate, the individual’s experience level, the scope and complexity of the position held, and the level of expertise and capabilities demonstrated by and expected by the executive officers.
Bonus
The board of directors considers, on an annual basis, discretionary cash bonuses to reward extraordinary performance during the preceding fiscal year which has led to our milestones, strategic transactions, or capital raising achievements. The discretionary bonuses are intended to provide a short-term incentive for executive officers to meet our goals, as well as to remain competitive within the industry. In determining whether a bonus will be awarded, the board of directors considers such factors as the executive’s performance over the past year, our achievements in the past year and the executive’s role in effecting such achievements, after taking into account our financial and operating performance.
The board of directors determines performance bonus payments based on the results achieved as compared to targets established for a particular fiscal year.
Variable-Performance Based Compensation
The board of directors considers long-term performance incentive awards and stock performance rights to be an important component of executive compensation. Under our Incentive Performance Rights Plan (the “Performance Rights Plan”) adopted by the Company, executive officers may be provided with long-term incentives consisting of grants of long-term stock performance rights. The objective of providing long-term incentives is to encourage our executive officers to acquire an ownership interest in the Company over a period of time, which is intended to align the interests of executive officers with the interests of shareholders while discouraging excessive risk taking. In granting long-term incentives, the board of directors considers past grants offered to executive officers under the Performance Rights Plan as well as other factors. The board of directors retains the discretion to declare who may be eligible to receive long-term stock performance rights and to, by resolution, amend or add to all or any of the provisions of the Performance Rights Plan, or the terms or conditions of any long-term stock performance rights granted under the Performance Rights Plan including giving any amendment retrospective effect, amongst others. Continued service to the Company is attached to the vesting of the long-term stock performance rights, unless otherwise resolved by the board of directors.
Summary of Compensation
The following is the compensation awarded to, earned by or paid to each of our named executive officers for the year ended June 30, 2021.
Post-employment | ||||||||||||
Name and Principal Position |
Short
Term
Salary |
Superannuation benefits | Total Compensation | |||||||||
Gavin Burnett
Chief Executive Officer |
$ | 300,000 | $ | 28,500 | $ | 328,500 | ||||||
Melvin Tan
Chief Financial Officer |
$ | 200,000 | $ | 19,000 | $ | 219,000 |
Executive Employment, Consulting and Management Arrangements and Termination and Change in Control Benefits
Following is a summary description of material terms of compensation awarded to, earned by, paid or payable to our NEOs pursuant to agreements or arrangements.
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Gavin Burnett, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director
On January 1, 2020, we entered into an Executive Agreement with Gavin Burnett (the “Burnett Agreement”) pursuant to which Mr. Burnett is serving as the Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director of the Company. The Burnett Agreement will continue on an ongoing basis, unless terminated earlier in accordance with its terms. Pursuant to the Burnett Agreement, we will pay Mr. Burnett A$328,500 per annum, inclusive of superannuation and exclusive of any short-term incentives, long term incentives or bonus entitlements. Under the Burnett Agreement, if certain short-term incentive milestones are achieved within the required time frame, Mr. Burnett will be eligible to receive a percentage increase to his base salary. In addition, if 100 to 125 percent of certain Gross Revenue Targets (as defined in the Burnett Agreement) are reached by certain dates, Mr. Burnett will be eligible to receive increases to his base salary, as specified in the Burnett Agreement.
In the event that Mr. Burnett is terminated under certain circumstances, notwithstanding such termination, if targets are ultimately met for the fiscal year during which the termination occurred, Mr. Burnett shall be entitled to receive a cash bonus that is prorated for the number of days Mr. Burnett was employed during that fiscal year.
The Burnett Agreement contains other terms and conditions considered standard for an agreement of this nature.
Melvin Tan, Chief Financial Officer and Executive Director
On January 1, 2020, we entered into an Executive Agreement with Melvin Tan (the “Tan Agreement”) pursuant to which Mr. Tan is serving as the Chief Financial Officer of the Company. The Tan Agreement will continue on an ongoing basis, unless terminated earlier in accordance with its terms. Pursuant to the Tan Agreement, we will pay Mr. Tan A$219,000 per annum, inclusive of superannuation and exclusive of any short-term incentives, long term incentives or bonus entitlements. Under the Tan Agreement, if certain short-term incentive milestones are achieved within the required time frame, Mr. Tan will be eligible to receive a percentage increase to his base salary. In addition, if 100 to 125 percent of certain Gross Revenue Targets (as defined in the Tan Agreement), Mr. Tan will be eligible to receive increases to his base salary, as specified in the Tan Agreement.
In the event that Mr. Tan is terminated in certain circumstances, notwithstanding such termination, if targets are ultimately met for the fiscal year during which the termination occurred, Mr. Tan shall be entitled to receive a cash bonus that is prorated for the number of days Mr. Tan was employed during that fiscal year.
The Tan Agreement contains other terms and conditions considered standard for an agreement of this nature.
Director Compensation
As of June 30, 2021, the following amounts were paid or accrued in directors’ fees to the members of our board of directors:
Name | Fees earned | |||
Collin Visaggio | A$80,000 |
We expect to pay cash and performance rights (with the same performance hurdles as those currently issued) to non-employee directors following the completion of this offering.
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Agreements with Executive Officers
Director and Senior Management Compensation
For a description of our agreements with our executive officers, please see “Management— Executive and Director Compensation.”
Indemnification Agreements
Our Constitution provides that, except to the extent prohibited by law including under the Corporations Act, we will indemnify every person who is or has been an officer of the Company against any liability (other than conduct involving a lack of good faith on the part of the officer) incurred by that person as an officer. This includes any liability incurred by that person in their capacity as an officer of our subsidiary where we requested that person to accept that appointment.
We have entered into Deeds of Indemnity, Insurance and Access (“Indemnity Deeds”), with Collin Visaggio, Gavin Burnett and Melvin Tan. Under the Indemnity Deeds, we have agreed to indemnify (to the maximum extent permitted by law and our Constitution, subject to certain specified exceptions) each director against certain liabilities incurred in their capacity as our or our subsidiaries’ director and any and all costs and expenses relating to such a claim or to any notified event incurred by such director, including costs and expenses reasonably and necessarily incurred to mitigate any liability for such a claim or any claim which may arise from such a notified event.
Separately, we have obtained insurance for our directors and executive officers, as required by the Indemnity Deeds.
Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act may be permitted to directors, officers or persons controlling us pursuant to the foregoing provisions, we have been informed that in the opinion of the SEC such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and is therefore unenforceable.
Private Placements
For a description of private placement agreements, please see “Description of Share Capital—History of Securities Issuances.”
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The following table indicates information as of the date of this prospectus regarding the beneficial ownership of our ordinary shares, after giving effect to the sale of the Units offered in this offering, for:
● | each person who is known by us to beneficially own 5% or more of our ordinary shares; | |
● | each named executive officer; | |
● | each of our directors; and | |
● | all of our directors and executive officers as a group. |
The percentage ownership information shown in the column labeled “Percentage of Shares Outstanding” is based upon 18,598,414 ordinary shares outstanding as of the date of this prospectus.
The percentage ownership information shown in the column labeled “Percentage of Shares Outstanding” after the offering assumes that there is no exercise of the Warrants included in the Units nor of the underwriters’ option to purchase additional securities and is based upon ______ ordinary shares to be outstanding immediately after the offering, including the sale of _____ ordinary shares included in the Units in this offering.
We have determined beneficial ownership in accordance with the rules of the SEC. These rules generally attribute beneficial ownership of securities to persons who possess sole or shared voting power or investment power with respect to those securities. In addition, the rules include ordinary shares issuable pursuant to the exercise of stock options or warrants or upon conversion of a security that are either exercisable or convertible within 60 days of the date of this prospectus. These shares are deemed to be outstanding and beneficially owned by the person holding those options or warrants for the purpose of computing the percentage ownership of that person, but they are not treated as outstanding for the purpose of computing the percentage ownership of any other person. Unless otherwise indicated, the persons or entities identified in this table have sole voting and investment power with respect to all shares shown as beneficially owned by them. As of the date of this prospectus, we had 525 record holders of our ordinary shares, with 498 record holders in Australia, representing 93.0% of our outstanding ordinary shares, and 3 record holders in the United States, representing 1.2% of our outstanding ordinary shares. The address for our directors and executive officers is c/o Locafy Limited, 246A Churchill Avenue, Subiaco, Western Australia 6008, Australia.
Prior to the Offering | After the Offering | |||||||||||||||
Name of Beneficial Owner | Number of Shares Beneficially Owned | Percentage of Shares Outstanding | Number of Shares Beneficially Owned | Percentage of Shares Outstanding | ||||||||||||
Named Executive Officers and Directors: | ||||||||||||||||
Gavin Burnett | 3,530,486 | (1) | 19.0 | % | 3,530,486 | |||||||||||
Melvin Tan | 1,493,385 | (2) | 8.0 | % | 1,493,385 | |||||||||||
Collin Visaggio | 507,322 | (3) | 2.7 | % | 507,322 | |||||||||||
All Current Executive Officers and Directors as a Group (3 persons) | 5,531,193 | (1)(2)(3) | 29.74 | % | 5,531,193 |
(1) | Excluding 250,000 ordinary shares underlying certain unvested and contingent performance rights. | |
(2) | Excluding 150,000 ordinary shares underlying certain unvested and contingent performance rights. | |
(3) | Excluding 100,000 ordinary shares underlying certain unvested and contingent performance rights. |
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DESCRIPTION OF SHARE CAPITAL AND GOVERNING DOCUMENTS
General
Australian law does not limit the authorized share capital that may be issued by a corporation and does not recognize the concept of par value. Subject to our Constitution, the Corporations Act, and the rules governing the listing of our securities on the Nasdaq Capital Market, our directors are entitled to issue shares in our capital, grant options over unissued shares, and settle the manner in which fractions of a share are to be dealt with. The directors may decide the persons to whom, and the terms on which, shares are issued or options are granted as well as the rights and restrictions that attach to those shares or options subject to our Constitution, the Corporations Act and the rules governing the listing of our securities on the Nasdaq Capital Market.
On August 20, 2021, the Company’s shareholders approved the Reverse Share Split. Accordingly, the number of ordinary shares outstanding was consolidated to 18,598,414 (difference due to rounding on individual holdings) and an aggregate of 1,144,000 ordinary shares underlying outstanding performance rights as at June 30, 2021. As at December 31, 2021, there are 18,598,414 ordinary shares outstanding, along with an aggregate of 1,312,750 ordinary shares underlying outstanding performance rights as at such date.
Units
Each Unit consists of one ordinary share and one (1) Warrant to purchase an ordinary share. Each whole warrant entitles the holder thereof to purchase one ordinary share at a price of $ per share.
Ordinary shares
Voting Rights
Each holder of our ordinary shares is entitled to receive notice of and to be present, to vote and to speak at general meetings. Subject to any rights or restrictions attached to any shares, on a show of hands each holder of ordinary shares present has one vote and, on a poll, one vote for each fully paid share held, and for each partly paid share, a fraction of a vote equivalent to the proportion to which the share has been paid up. Voting may be in person or by proxy, attorney or representative.
No business, the election of a chairman and the adjournment of the meeting, shall be transacted at any general meeting unless a quorum is present comprising two shareholders present in person, by proxy, attorney or representative.
Dividend Rights
Holders of our ordinary shares are entitled to receive such dividends as may be declared by the directors, subject to and in accordance with the Corporations Act, the rights of any preference shareholders and to the rights of the holders of any shares created or raised under any special arrangement as to dividend. If the directors determine that a final or interim dividend is payable, it is (subject to the terms of issue on any shares or class of shares) paid on all shares proportionate to the amount for the time being paid on each share. Dividends may be paid by cash, electronic transfer, or any other method as the board determines.
The directors have the power to capitalize and distribute the whole or part of the amount from time to time standing to the credit of any reserve account or the profit and loss account or otherwise available for distribution to shareholders, subject to any rights or restrictions for the time being attached to any class or class of shares. The capitalization and distribution must be in the same proportions which the shareholders would be entitled to receive if distributed by way of a dividend.
Subject to the rules of Nasdaq, the directors may pay a dividend out of any fund or reserve or out of profits derived from any source.
Variation of Class Rights
The Corporations Act provides that if a company has a constitution that sets out the procedure for varying or cancelling rights attached to shares in a class of shares, those rights may be varied or cancelled only in accordance with the procedure.
The rights attached to our ordinary shares may only be varied with the consent in writing of members holding at least three-quarters of the issued shares of that class, or with the sanction of a special resolution passed at a separate meeting of the holders of shares of that class. Any variation of rights will be subject to the Corporations Act.
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Rights of Non-Resident or Foreign Shareholders
There are no specific limitations in the Corporations Act which restrict the acquisition, ownership, or disposal of shares in an Australian company by non-resident or foreign shareholders. The Foreign Acquisitions and Takeovers Act 1975 (Cth) regulates investment in Australian companies and may restrict the acquisition, ownership, and disposal of our ordinary shares by non-resident or foreign shareholders.
Below is a reconciliation of the number of ordinary shares outstanding from June 30, 2020 through June 30, 2021:
Number
of
Ordinary shares |
||||
Ordinary shares outstanding at June 30, 2020 |
17,389,894 |
|||
Shares issued from capital raisings | 957,500 | |||
Shares issued for assets |
25,000 |
|||
Shares issued to suppliers in lieu of cash | 186,020 | |||
Shares issued to related parties |
40,000 |
|||
Ordinary shares outstanding at June 30, 2021: | 18,598,414 |
History of Share Capital
During the last three years, the following changes have been made to our ordinary share capital:
During the fiscal year ended June 30, 2021, the Company issued the following securities:
Period | Details | No. |
Issue
Price
A$ |
Total
Value
A$ |
||||||||
July to August 2020 | Shares issued from capital raising |
10,000 |
2.00 | 20,000 | ||||||||
October to December 2020 | Shares issued from capital raising | 690,000 | 1.00 | 690,000 | ||||||||
October to December 2020 | Shares issued to supplier in lieu of cash | 84,665 | 1.00 | 84,665 | ||||||||
February 2021 | Shares issued to suppliers in lieu of cash | 37,125 | 2.00 | 74,250 | ||||||||
February 2021 | Shares issued to related parties | 40,000 | 2.00 | 80,000 | ||||||||
March 2021 | Shares issued from capital raising |
257,500 |
4.00 | 1,030,000 | ||||||||
April 2021 | Shares issued for assets | 25,000 | 4.00 | 100,000 | ||||||||
May to June 2021 | Shares issued to suppliers in lieu of cash | 64,230 | 4.00 | 256,918 | ||||||||
Net Change |
1,208,520 |
2,335,832 |
During the fiscal year ended June 30, 2020, the Company issued the following securities:
Period | Details | No. |
Issue
Price
A$ |
Total
Value
A$ |
||||||||
July 2019 to March 2020 | Shares issued from capital raising |
213,917 |
2.00 | 427,836 | ||||||||
August 2019 to January 2020 | Shares issued from capital raising (special placement) | 1,543,110 | 1.11 | 1,714,568 | ||||||||
October 2019 | Shares issued to related parties | 40,000 | 2.00 | 80,000 | ||||||||
November 2019 | Share buy-back approved by shareholders at the Annual General Meeting of the Company held on November 27, 2019 |
(2,623,386 |
) | 0.30 | (800,001 | ) | ||||||
December 2019 | Shares issued from capital raising | 100,000 | 1.00 | 100,000 | ||||||||
January 2020 | Shares issued to convertible note holders |
27,500 |
1.12 | 30,800 | ||||||||
February 2020 | Shares issued to suppliers in lieu of cash | 70,022 | 1.12 | 78,647 | ||||||||
Net Change | (628,837 | ) | 1,631,850 |
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During the fiscal year ended June 30, 2019, the Company issued the following securities:
Period | Details | No. |
Issue
Price
A$ |
Total
Value
A$ |
||||||||
August 2018 to June 2019 | Shares issued from capital raisings | 309,721 | 2.00 | 619,442 | ||||||||
June 2019 | Shares issued from capital raising |
90,000 |
1.11 | 100,000 | ||||||||
June 2019 | Shares issued to a vendor in relation to a business acquisition agreement dated April 23, 2018 |
50,000 |
7.00 | 350,000 | ||||||||
Net Change | 449,721 | 1,069,442 |
Rights and Restrictions on Classes of Shares
Subject to the Corporations Act, rights attaching to our ordinary shares are detailed in our Constitution. Our Constitution provides that any of our ordinary shares may be issued with preferred, deferred or other special rights or restrictions, whether in relation to dividends, voting, return of share capital, payment of calls or otherwise as the board may determine from time to time. Except as provided by contract or by our Constitution to the contrary, all unissued shares are under the control of the board which may grant options on the ordinary shares, allot or otherwise issue the ordinary shares on the terms and conditions and for the consideration it deems fit. Currently our outstanding share capital consists of only one class of ordinary shares.
Dividend Rights
The board may from time to time determine to pay dividends to shareholders. All unclaimed dividends may be invested or otherwise made use of by the board for our benefit until claimed or otherwise disposed of in accordance with our Constitution, except as otherwise provided by statute.
Voting Rights
Under our Constitution, each holder of our ordinary shares is entitled to receive notice of and to be present, to vote and to speak at general meetings. Subject to any rights or restrictions attached to any shares, on a show of hands each holder of ordinary shares present has one vote and, on a poll, one vote for each fully paid share held, and for each partly paid share, a fraction of a vote equivalent to the proportion to which the share has been paid up.
Under Australian law, shareholders of a public company with more than one member are not permitted to approve corporate matters by written consent. Our Constitution does not provide for cumulative voting.
Pursuant to the Corporations Act, our board of directors must convene a general meeting if requested to do so by shareholders with at least 5% of the votes that may be cast at the general meeting or members with at least 5% of the votes that may be cast at a general meeting may call, and arrange to hold, a general meeting.
Generally, only items of business included in the relevant notice of meeting (or any supplementary notice) would be considered and voted on at general meetings.
Right to Share in our Profits
Subject to the Corporations Act (which contains no overriding provisions as of the date of this prospectus) and pursuant to our Constitution, our shareholders are entitled to participate in our profits only by payment of dividends. The board may from time to time determine to pay dividends to the shareholders.
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Rights to Share in the Surplus in the Event of Liquidation
Our Constitution provides for the right of shareholders to participate in a surplus in the event of our liquidation. In certain circumstances, any division may be otherwise than in accordance with the legal rights of the contributories, and in particular, our creditors and any other class of security holders may be given preferential or special rights or may be excluded altogether or in part from participation in a surplus in the event of liquidation.
If the Company is wound up, the liquidator may, with the authority of a special resolution, divide among the Shareholders in kind the whole or any part of the property of the Company, and may for that purpose set such value as he considers fair upon any property to be so divided, and may determine how the division is to be carried out as between the Shareholders or different classes of Shareholders.
The liquidator may, with the authority of a special resolution, vest the whole or any part of any such property in trustees upon such trusts for the benefit of the contributories as the liquidator thinks fit, but so that no Shareholder is compelled to accept any shares or other securities in respect of which there is any liability.
Redemption Provisions
Under our Constitution and subject to the Corporations Act (which contains no overriding provisions as of the date of this prospectus) we are able to:
● | redeem and cancel ordinary shares, subject to obtaining the necessary and prior shareholder approval; and | |
● | issue preference shares on the terms that they are, or may at our option be, liable to be redeemed, with or without shareholder approval. |
Warrants
General
The following is a summary of the material terms and provisions of the Warrants that are being offered hereby. This summary is subject to and qualified in its entirety by the form of warrant, which has been filed as an exhibit to the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part. Prospective investors should carefully review the terms and provisions of the form of warrant for a complete description of the terms and conditions of the Warrants.
Duration and Exercise Price
Each Unit offered in this offering consists of one ordinary share and one Warrant. Each whole warrant shall be exercisable into one ordinary share at an exercise price equal to $ per ordinary share. The Warrants will be immediately exercisable and will be immediately exercisable for a -year period after the date of issuance. The exercise prices and numbers of shares of ordinary stock issuable upon exercise are subject to appropriate adjustment in the event of stock dividends, stock splits, reorganizations or similar events affecting our ordinary shares. The Warrants will be issued in certificated form only.
Exercisability
The Warrants will be exercisable, at the option of each holder, in whole or in part, by delivering to us a duly executed exercise notice accompanied by payment in full for the number of our ordinary shares purchased upon such exercise (except in the case of a cashless exercise as discussed below). A holder (together with its affiliates) may not exercise any portion of such holder’s Warrants to the extent that the holder would own more than 4.895% of our outstanding ordinary shares immediately after exercise.
Cashless Exercise
If, at the time a holder exercises a Warrant, a registration statement registering under the Securities Act either (i) the issuance of the ordinary shares for which the Warrants are exercisable or (ii) the resale of the ordinary shares for which the Warrants are exercisable by the holder is not then effective or available for the issuance or resale, respectively, of such ordinary shares, then in lieu of making the cash payment otherwise contemplated to be made to us upon such exercise in payment of the aggregate exercise price, the holder may elect instead to receive upon such exercise (either in whole or in part) such number of ordinary shares as determined according to a formula set forth in the Warrant.
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Transferability
A Warrant may be transferred at the option of the holder upon surrender of the Warrant to us together with the appropriate instruments of transfer.
Fractional Shares
No fractional ordinary shares will be issued upon the exercise of the Warrants. Rather, the number of ordinary shares to be issued will, at our election, either be rounded up to the nearest whole number or we will pay a cash adjustment in respect of such final fraction in an amount equal to such fraction multiplied by the exercise price.
Trading Market
There is no established trading market for any of the Warrants. Although we have applied to have the Warrants listed on Nasdaq, an active trading market for our Warrants may never develop or may not be sustained if one develops. Without an active trading market, the liquidity of the Warrants will be limited.
Rights as a Shareholder
Except as otherwise provided in the Warrants or by virtue of the holders’ ownership of our ordinary shares, the holders of Warrants do not have the rights or privileges of holders of our ordinary shares, including any voting rights, until such warrant holders exercise their Warrants.
Fundamental Transaction
In the event of a fundamental transaction, as described in the Warrants and generally including any reorganization, recapitalization or reclassification of our ordinary shares, the sale, transfer or other disposition of all or substantially all of our properties or assets, our consolidation or merger with or into another person, the acquisition of more than 50% of our outstanding ordinary shares, or any person or group becoming the beneficial owner of 50% of the voting power represented by our outstanding ordinary shares, the holders of the Warrants will be entitled to receive upon exercise of the Warrants the kind and amount of securities, cash or other property that the holders would have received had they exercised the Warrants immediately prior to such fundamental transaction.
Waivers and Amendments
No term of the Warrants may be amended or waived without the written consent of the holder of such Warrant.
Exclusive Forum
We have agreed that any action, proceeding or claim against us arising out of or relating in any way to the Warrants will be brought and enforced in the courts of the State of New York sitting in the City and County of New York or the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, and we irrevocably submit to such jurisdiction, which jurisdiction will be the exclusive forum for any such action, proceeding or claim. See “Risk Factors”. This exclusive forum provision shall not apply to suits brought to enforce a duty or liability created by the Exchange Act, any other claim for which the federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction or any complaint asserting a cause of action arising under the Securities Act against us or any of our directors, officers, other employees or agents. Section 27 of the Exchange Act creates exclusive federal jurisdiction over all suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Exchange Act or the rules and regulations thereunder.
Fully Paid and Nonassessable
All of our outstanding ordinary shares are, and the ordinary shares to be issued pursuant to this offering (including the ordinary shares to be issued upon the exercise of the Warrants and the representative’s warrant), when paid for, will be validly issued, fully paid and nonassessable.
Registration Rights
No holders of any of our securities have registration rights.
Corporate Governance
Our Constitution
Our constituent document is a Constitution, which is similar in nature to the by-laws of a company incorporated under the laws of a U.S. state. Our Constitution does not provide for or prescribe any specific objectives or purposes of Locafy. Our Constitution is subject to the terms of the Corporations Act. Our Constitution may be amended or repealed and replaced by special resolution of shareholders, which is a resolution passed by at least 75% of the votes cast by shareholders entitled to vote on the resolution.
Directors
Interested Directors
Except where permitted by the Corporations Act, a director who has a material personal interest in a matter that is being considered at a meeting of directors must not be present while the matter is being considered at the meeting or vote on that matter.
Unless a relevant exception applies under the Corporations Act, our directors are:
● | required to disclose all their and their associates’ holdings of our securities, any and all dealings in any of those securities and certain other interests; and | |
● | required to obtain prior shareholder approval of any provision of related party benefits to any of those directors or their associates. |
Borrowing Powers Exercisable by Directors
Pursuant to our Constitution, the management and control of our business affairs are vested in our board of directors, subject to the Constitution and the Corporations Act. The board of directors has the power to raise or borrow money. The board of directors may also charge any of our property or business or any uncalled capital and may issue debentures or give any other security for any of our debts, liabilities or obligations or of any other person, in each case, in the manner and on terms it deems fit.
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Retirement of Directors
Under our Constitution, at each annual general meeting one-third of the directors, other than the Managing Director, or if their number is not a multiple of three, then the number nearest to one-third (rounded upwards in case of doubt) of the directors must retire.
Notwithstanding the above, no director, other than the Managing Director, shall hold office for a period in excess of 3 years, or until the third annual general meeting following his or her appointment, whichever is the longer, without submitting himself for re-election.
A retiring director remains in office until the relevant shareholder meeting and will be eligible for re-election at that meeting.
Access to and Inspection of Documents
Inspection of our records is governed by our Constitution and the Corporations Act. Any member of the Company has the right to inspect or obtain copies of our share register on the payment of any prescribed fee required by the company. Our books containing the minutes of general meetings will be kept at our registered office and will be open to inspection of members at all times when the office is required to be open to the public. Generally other corporate records, including minutes of directors’ meetings, financial records and other documents, are not open for inspection by shareholders (who are not directors). Where a shareholder is acting in good faith and an inspection is deemed to be made for a proper purpose, a shareholder may apply to the court to make an order for inspection of our books.
Foreign Ownership Regulation
There are no limitations on the rights to own securities imposed by our Constitution. However, Australia has a foreign investment approval regime that regulates certain types of acquisitions by ‘foreign persons’ of equity interests in Australian companies and acquisitions and proposed acquisitions of shares and voting power in Australian companies may be subject to review and approval by the Australian Federal Treasurer under the Foreign Acquisitions and Takeovers Act 1975 (Cth) (“FATA”). Generally, the FATA applies to acquisitions or proposed acquisitions of shares and voting power in an entity by a ‘foreign person’ as defined under the FATA of a substantial interest (generally 20% or more) where the target entity is valued above a specified threshold value (which varies by investor type and nature of business and industry).
Where the FATA applies to the acquisition, the acquisition may not occur unless notice of it has been given to the Australian Federal Treasurer and the Australian Federal Treasurer has either notified that there is no objection to the proposed acquisition (with or without conditions) or a statutory period has expired without the Australian Federal Treasurer objecting. The Australian Federal Treasurer may prevent a proposed acquisition in the above categories or impose conditions on such acquisition if the Australian Federal Treasurer is satisfied that the acquisition would be contrary to the national interest. If a foreign person acquires shares or an interest in shares in an Australian company in contravention of the FATA, the Australian Federal Treasurer may order the divestiture of such person’s shares or interest in shares in such company. The Australian Federal Treasurer may order divestiture pursuant to the FATA if he determines that the acquisition has resulted in that foreign person, either alone or together with other non-associated or associated foreign persons, controlling the company and that such control is contrary to the national interest. Criminal offences and civil penalties can apply to failing to give notification of certain acquisitions, undertaking certain acquisitions without a no objection notification or contravening a condition in a no objection notification.
Listing
We have applied to list our ordinary shares and Warrants on Nasdaq under the symbols “LCFY” and “LCFY-W”, respectively.
Transfer Agent, Registrar and Auditor
Upon the closing of this offering, the transfer agent and registrar for our ordinary shares in the United States will be Computershare Trust Company, N.A. at its principal office in Canton, Massachusetts.
Grant Thornton Audit Pty Ltd, located at Central Park, 152-158 St Georges Terrace, Perth WA 6000, Australia is our independent registered public accounting firm and has been appointed as our independent auditor.
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SHARES ELIGIBLE FOR FUTURE SALE
Upon closing of this offering, assuming an initial public offering price of $ per Unit, the midpoint of the estimated price range set forth on the cover page of this prospectus, we will have outstanding ordinary shares (assuming no exercise of the Warrants included in the Units and no exercise of the underwriters’ option to purchase additional ordinary shares and/or Warrants). All of the ordinary shares issued in this offering will be freely transferable by persons other than our “affiliates” without restriction or further registration under the Securities Act. Sales of substantial numbers of our ordinary shares in the public market could adversely affect prevailing market prices of our ordinary shares. While we expect our ordinary shares will be listed on Nasdaq following this offering, we cannot assure you that a regular trading market will develop in our ordinary shares. Future sales of substantial amounts of our ordinary shares in the public market or the perception that such sales might occur could adversely affect market prices prevailing from time to time.
Rule 144
In general, under Rule 144 of the Securities Act as currently in effect, beginning 90 days after the date of this prospectus, an “affiliate” who has beneficially owned our ordinary shares for a period of at least six months is entitled to sell within any three-month period a number of ordinary shares that does not exceed the greater of either 1% of the then outstanding shares or the average weekly trading volume of our ordinary shares on the Nasdaq during the four calendar weeks preceding the filing with the SEC of a notice on Form 144 with respect to such sale. Such sales under Rule 144 of the Securities Act are also subject to prescribed requirements relating to the manner of sale, notice and availability of current public information about us.
Under Rule 144, a person who is not deemed to have been an affiliate of ours at any time during the 90 days preceding a sale, and who has beneficially owned the ordinary shares proposed to be sold for at least six months, including the holding period of any prior holder other than an affiliate, is entitled to sell such shares without restriction, provided we have been in compliance with our reporting requirements under the Exchange Act for 90 days preceding such sale. To the extent that our affiliates sell their shares, other than pursuant to Rule 144 or a registration statement, the purchaser’s holding period for the purpose of effecting a sale under Rule 144 commences on the date of transfer from the affiliate.
Rule 701
In general, under Rule 701 of the Securities Act as currently in effect, each of our employees or directors who acquire our ordinary shares from us in connection with a compensatory stock plan or other written agreement executed prior to the closing of this offering is eligible to resell such shares in reliance on Rule 144, but without compliance with some of the restrictions, including the holding period, contained in Rule 144.
Regulation S
Regulation S under the Securities Act provides that securities owned by any person may be sold without registration in the United States, provided that the sale is effected in an “offshore transaction” and no “directed selling efforts” are made in the United States (as these terms are defined in Regulation S) and subject to certain other conditions. In general, this means that our ordinary shares may be sold in some manner outside the United States without requiring registration in the United States.
Lock-up Agreements
For a description of the lock-up arrangements that we and our shareholders have entered into in connection with this offering, see “Underwriting.”
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MATERIAL U.S. FEDERAL INCOME TAX CONSIDERATIONS
The following discussion describes the material U.S. federal income tax consequences relating to the ownership and disposition of ordinary shares and Warrants by U.S. Holders (as defined below). This discussion applies to U.S. Holders that purchase our ordinary shares and Warrants pursuant to this prospectus and hold such ordinary shares and Warrants as capital assets. This discussion is based on the U.S. Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, or the Code, U.S. Treasury regulations promulgated thereunder and administrative and judicial interpretations thereof, all as in effect on the date hereof and all of which are subject to change, possibly with retroactive effect. This discussion does not address all of the U.S. federal income tax consequences that may be relevant to specific U.S. Holders in light of their particular circumstances or to U.S. Holders subject to special treatment under U.S. federal income tax law (such as certain financial institutions, insurance companies, broker-dealers and traders in securities or other persons that generally mark their securities to market for U.S. federal income tax purposes, tax-exempt entities, retirement plans, regulated investment companies, real estate investment trusts, certain former citizens or residents of the United States, persons who hold our ordinary shares and Warrants as part of a “straddle”, “hedge”, “conversion transaction”, “synthetic security” or integrated investment, persons that have a “functional currency” other than the U.S. dollar, persons that own directly, indirectly or through attribution 10% or more of the voting power of our ordinary shares, corporations that accumulate earnings to avoid U.S. federal income tax, persons subject to special tax accounting rules under Section 451(b) of the Code, partnerships and other pass-through entities, and investors in such pass-through entities). This discussion does not address any U.S. state or local or non-U.S. tax consequences or any U.S. federal estate, gift or alternative minimum tax consequences.
As used in this discussion, the term “U.S. Holder” means a beneficial owner of our ordinary shares and Warrants that is, for U.S. federal income tax purposes, (1) an individual who is a citizen or resident of the United States, (2) a corporation (or entity treated as a corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes) created or organized in or under the laws of the United States, any state thereof, or the District of Columbia, (3) an estate the income of which is subject to U.S. federal income tax regardless of its source or (4) a trust (i) with respect to which a court within the United States is able to exercise primary supervision over its administration and one or more United States persons have the authority to control all of its substantial decisions or (ii) that has elected under applicable U.S. Treasury regulations to be treated as a domestic trust for U.S. federal income tax purposes.
If an entity treated as a partnership for U.S. federal income tax purposes holds our ordinary shares and Warrants, the U.S. federal income tax consequences relating to an investment in our ordinary shares and Warrants will depend in part upon the status and activities of such entity and the particular partner. Any such entity should consult its own tax advisor regarding the U.S. federal income tax consequences applicable to it and its partners of the purchase, ownership and disposition of our ordinary shares and Warrants. Persons considering an investment in our ordinary shares and Warrants should consult their own tax advisors as to the particular tax consequences applicable to them relating to the purchase, ownership and disposition of our ordinary shares and Warrants, including the applicability of U.S. federal, state and local tax laws and non-U.S. tax laws.
Passive Foreign Investment Company Consequences
In general, a corporation organized outside the United States will be treated as a passive foreign investment company, or PFIC, for any taxable year in which either (1) at least 75% of its gross income is “passive income”, or the “PFIC income test”, or (2) on average at least 50% of its assets, determined on a quarterly basis, are assets that produce passive income or are held for the production of passive income, the “PFIC asset test”. Passive income for this purpose generally includes, among other things, dividends, interest, royalties, rents, and gains from the sale or exchange of property that gives rise to passive income. Assets that produce or are held for the production of passive income generally include cash, even if held as working capital or raised in a public offering, marketable securities, and other assets that may produce passive income. Generally, in determining whether a non-U.S. corporation is a PFIC, a proportionate share of the income and assets of each corporation in which it owns, directly or indirectly, at least a 25% interest (by value) is taken into account.
Section 1298(a)(4) of the Code provides that to the extent provided in regulations, if any person has an option to acquire stock in a PFIC, such stock shall be considered as owned by such person. Certain proposed regulations provide rules for treatment of options to acquire stock in a PFIC. It is not currently known if, when or the extent to which such proposed regulations will be finalized and become effective. The discussion below assumes that regulations relating to options to acquire PFIC stock will become effective and would apply to the Warrants. Each prospective investor is urged to consult with its own tax advisor about the tax consequences of holding Warrants if we are classified as a PFIC.
Although we do not believe that we will be a PFIC for the tax year ending December 31, 2021, our determination is based on an interpretation of complex provisions of the law, which are not addressed in a significant number of administrative pronouncements or rulings by the Internal Revenue Service, or IRS. Accordingly, because PFIC status is determined on an annual basis and generally cannot be determined until the end of the taxable year, there can be no assurance that we will not be a PFIC for the current taxable year. Because we may continue to hold a substantial amount of cash and cash equivalents, and because the calculation of the value of our assets may be based in part on the value of our ordinary shares, which may fluctuate considerably, we may be a PFIC in future taxable years. Even if we determine that we are not a PFIC for a taxable year, there can be no assurance that the IRS will agree with our conclusion and that the IRS would not successfully challenge our position. Our status as a PFIC is a fact-intensive determination made on an annual basis. Accordingly, our U.S. counsel expresses no opinion with respect to our PFIC status and also expresses no opinion with regard to our expectations regarding our PFIC status.
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If we are a PFIC in any taxable year during which a U.S. Holder owns our ordinary shares and Warrants, the U.S. Holder could be liable for additional taxes and interest charges under the “PFIC excess distribution regime” upon (1) a distribution paid during a taxable year that is greater than 125% of the average annual distributions paid in the three preceding taxable years, or, if shorter, the U.S. Holder’s holding period for our ordinary shares and Warrants, and (2) any gain recognized on a sale, exchange or other disposition, including a pledge, of our ordinary shares and Warrants, whether or not we continue to be a PFIC. Under the PFIC excess distribution regime, the tax on such distribution or gain would be determined by allocating the distribution or gain ratably over the U.S. Holder’s holding period for our ordinary shares and Warrants. The amount allocated to the current taxable year (i.e., the year in which the distribution occurs or the gain is recognized) and any year prior to the first taxable year in which we are a PFIC will be taxed as ordinary income earned in the current taxable year. The amount allocated to other taxable years will be taxed at the highest marginal rates in effect for individuals or corporations, as applicable, to ordinary income for each such taxable year, and an interest charge, generally applicable to underpayments of tax, will be added to the tax.
If we are a PFIC for any year during which a U.S. Holder holds our ordinary shares and Warrants, we must generally continue to be treated as a PFIC by that holder for all succeeding years during which the U.S. Holder holds our ordinary shares and Warrants, unless we cease to meet the requirements for PFIC status and the U.S. Holder makes a “deemed sale” election with respect to our ordinary shares and Warrants. If the election is made, the U.S. Holder will be deemed to sell our ordinary shares and Warrants it holds at their fair market value on the last day of the last taxable year in which we qualified as a PFIC, and any gain recognized from such deemed sale would be taxed under the PFIC excess distribution regime. After the deemed sale election, the U.S. Holder’s ordinary shares and Warrants would not be treated as shares of a PFIC unless we subsequently become a PFIC.
If we are a PFIC for any taxable year during which a U.S. Holder holds our ordinary shares and Warrants and one of our non-U.S. corporate subsidiaries is also a PFIC (i.e., a lower-tier PFIC), such U.S. Holder would be treated as owning a proportionate amount (by value) of the ordinary shares of the lower-tier PFIC and would be taxed under the PFIC excess distribution regime on distributions by the lower-tier PFIC and on gain from the disposition of shares of the lower-tier PFIC even though such U.S. Holder would not receive the proceeds of those distributions or dispositions. Each U.S. Holder is advised to consult its tax advisors regarding the application of the PFIC rules to our non-U.S. subsidiaries.
If we are a PFIC, a U.S. Holder will not be subject to tax under the PFIC excess distribution regime on distributions or gain recognized on our ordinary shares if such U.S. Holder makes a valid “mark-to-market” election for our ordinary shares. A mark-to-market election is available to a U.S. Holder only for “marketable stock”.
Our ordinary shares will be marketable stock as long as they remain listed on the Nasdaq and are regularly traded, other than in de minimis quantities, on at least 15 days during each calendar quarter. If a mark-to-market election is in effect, a U.S. Holder generally would take into account, as ordinary income each year, the excess of the fair market value of our ordinary shares held at the end of such taxable year over the adjusted tax basis of such ordinary shares. The U.S. Holder would also take into account, as an ordinary loss each year, the excess of the adjusted tax basis of such our ordinary shares over their fair market value at the end of the taxable year, but only to the extent of the excess of amounts previously included in income over ordinary losses deducted as a result of the mark-to-market election. The U.S. Holder’s tax basis in our ordinary shares would be adjusted to reflect any income or loss recognized as a result of the mark-to-market election. Any gain from a sale, exchange or other disposition of our ordinary shares in any taxable year in which we are a PFIC would be treated as ordinary income and any loss from such sale, exchange or other disposition would be treated first as ordinary loss (to the extent of any net mark-to-market gains previously included in income) and thereafter as capital loss.
A mark-to-market election will not apply to our ordinary shares for any taxable year during which we are not a PFIC, but will remain in effect with respect to any subsequent taxable year in which we become a PFIC. Such election will not apply to any non-U.S. subsidiaries that we may organize or acquire in the future. Accordingly, a U.S. Holder may continue to be subject to tax under the PFIC excess distribution regime with respect to any lower-tier PFICs that we may organize or acquire in the future notwithstanding the U.S. Holder’s mark-to-market election for our ordinary shares.
The tax consequences that would apply if we are a PFIC would also be different from those described above if a U.S. Holder were able to make a valid qualified electing fund, or QEF, election. Because at this time we do not expect to provide U.S. Holders with the information necessary for a U.S. Holder to make a valid QEF election, prospective investors should assume that a QEF election will not be available.
Each U.S. person that is an investor of a PFIC is generally required to file an annual information return on IRS Form 8621 containing such information as the U.S. Treasury Department may require. The failure to file IRS Form 8621 could result in the imposition of penalties and the extension of the statute of limitations with respect to U.S. federal income tax.
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The U.S. federal income tax rules relating to PFICs are very complex. Prospective U.S. investors are strongly urged to consult their own tax advisors with respect to the impact of PFIC status on the purchase, ownership and disposition of our ordinary shares and Warrants, the consequences to them of an investment in a PFIC, any elections available with respect to our ordinary shares and Warrants and the IRS information reporting obligations with respect to the purchase, ownership and disposition of the ordinary shares and Warrants of a PFIC.
Distributions
Subject to the discussion above under “Passive Foreign Investment Company Consequences”, a U.S. Holder that receives a distribution with respect to our ordinary shares generally will be required to include the gross amount of such distribution in gross income as a dividend when actually or constructively received to the extent of the U.S. Holder’s pro rata share of our current and/or accumulated earnings and profits (as determined under U.S. federal income tax principles). To the extent a distribution received by a U.S. Holder is not a dividend because it exceeds the U.S. Holder’s pro rata share of our current and accumulated earnings and profits, it will be treated first as a tax-free return of capital and reduce (but not below zero) the adjusted tax basis of the U.S. Holder’s ordinary shares. To the extent the distribution exceeds the adjusted tax basis of the U.S. Holder’s ordinary shares, the remainder will be taxed as capital gain. Because we may not account for our earnings and profits in accordance with U.S. federal income tax principles, U.S. Holders should expect all distributions to be reported to them as dividends. Distributions on our ordinary shares that are treated as dividends generally will constitute income from sources outside the United States for foreign tax credit purposes and generally will constitute passive category income. Such dividends will not be eligible for the “dividends received” deduction generally allowed to corporate shareholders with respect to dividends received from U.S. corporations.
Dividends paid by a “qualified foreign corporation” are eligible for taxation for certain non-corporate U.S. Holders at a reduced capital gains rate rather than the marginal tax rates generally applicable to ordinary income provided certain requirements are met. However, if we are a PFIC for the taxable year in which the dividend is paid or the preceding taxable year (see discussion above under “Passive Foreign Investment Company Consequences”), we will not be treated as a qualified foreign corporation, and therefore the reduced capital gains tax rate described above will not apply. Each U.S. Holder is advised to consult its tax advisors regarding the availability of the reduced tax rate on dividends with regard to its particular circumstances.
A non-United States corporation (other than a corporation that is classified as a PFIC for the taxable year in which the dividend is paid or the preceding taxable year) generally will be considered to be a qualified foreign corporation (a) if it is eligible for the benefits of a comprehensive tax treaty with the United States which the Secretary of Treasury of the United States determines is satisfactory for purposes of this provision and which includes an exchange of information program, or (b) with respect to any dividend it pays on our ordinary shares that are readily tradable on an established securities market in the United States. We believe that we qualify as a resident of Australia for purposes of, and are eligible for the benefits of, the U.S.-Australia Treaty, although there can be no assurance in this regard. Further, the IRS has determined that the U.S.-Australia Treaty is satisfactory for purposes of the qualified dividend rules and that it includes an exchange of information provision. Therefore, subject to the discussion above under “Passive Foreign Investment Company Consequences”, if the U.S.-Australia Treaty is applicable, such dividends will generally be “qualified dividend income” in the hands of individual U.S. Holders, provided that certain conditions are met, including holding period and the absence of certain risk reduction transactions. In addition, it is anticipated that our ordinary shares will qualify for the exception applicable to dividends from stock that is readily tradeable on an established securities market.
Sale, Exchange or Other Disposition of our Ordinary Shares and Warrants
Subject to the discussion above under “Passive Foreign Investment Company Consequences”, a U.S. Holder generally will recognize capital gain or loss for U.S. federal income tax purposes upon the sale, exchange or other disposition of our ordinary shares and Warrants in an amount equal to the difference, if any, between the amount realized (i.e., the amount of cash plus the fair market value of any property received) on the sale, exchange or other disposition and such U.S. Holder’s adjusted tax basis in our ordinary shares and Warrants. Such capital gain or loss generally will be long-term capital gain taxable at a reduced rate for noncorporate U.S. Holders or long-term capital loss if, on the date of sale, exchange or other disposition, our ordinary shares and Warrants were held by the U.S. Holder for more than one year. Any capital gain of a non-corporate U.S. Holder that is not long-term capital gain is taxed at ordinary income rates. The deductibility of capital losses is subject to limitations. Any gain or loss recognized by a U.S. Holder from the sale or other disposition of our ordinary shares and Warrants generally will be gain or loss from sources within the United States for U.S. foreign tax credit purposes.
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Allocation of Purchase Price and Tax Basis
For United States federal income and other applicable tax purposes, each purchaser of our Units in this offering must allocate its purchase price between each component (i.e. the ordinary shares and Warrants) based on the relative fair market value of each at the time of issuance. These allocated amounts will be the holder’s tax basis in each component. Because each investor must make its own determination of the relative value of each component of the Units, we urge each investor to consult its tax advisor in connection with this analysis.
Exercise or Lapse of a Warrant
Subject to the PFIC rules described above and except as discussed below with respect to the cashless exercise of a warrant, a U.S. Holder generally will not recognize gain or loss on the exercise of a warrant and related receipt of an ordinary share, except to the extent that cash is received in lieu of the issuance of a fractional ordinary share.
A U.S. Holder’s initial tax basis in the ordinary share received on the exercise of a warrant should be equal to the sum of (i) the U.S. Holder’s tax basis in the warrant plus (ii) the exercise price paid by the U.S. Holder on the exercise of the warrant. A U.S. Holder’s holding period for ordinary shares received on exercise of a warrant will commence on the date following the date of exercise of the warrant and will not include the period during which the U.S. Holder held the warrant.
The U.S. federal income tax treatment of a cashless exercise of warrants into ordinary shares is unclear, and the tax consequences of a cashless exercise could differ from the consequences upon the exercise of a warrant described in the preceding paragraph.
Due to the absence of clear authority on the U.S. federal income tax treatment of a cashless exercise, there can be no assurance as to the tax treatment that would be adopted by the IRS or a court of law. Accordingly, U.S. Holders should consult their own tax advisors regarding the U.S. federal income tax consequences of a cashless exercise of our Warrants.
The exercise of a Warrant for ordinary shares generally will not be a taxable event for the exercising U.S. Holder. A U.S. Holder will have a tax basis in the ordinary shares received on exercise of a Warrant equal to the sum of the U.S. Holder’s tax basis in the Warrant surrendered, reduced by any portion of the basis allocable to a fractional share, plus the exercise price of the Warrant. A U.S. Holder generally will have a holding period in ordinary shares acquired on exercise of a Warrant that commences on the date of exercise of the Warrant.
Tax Basis of each ordinary share and Warrant
The ordinary shares will be sold together with an accompanying Warrant. The initial tax basis of a beneficial owner in each ordinary share will be equal to the amount paid for the ordinary share less the fair market value of their accompanying Warrant. The initial basis in the accompanying Warrant will equal the initial fair market value of the Warrant.
Medicare Tax on Net Investment Income
Certain U.S. Holders who are individuals, estates or trusts are subject to an additional 3.8% U.S. federal income tax on all or a portion of their “net investment income,” which generally includes dividends (and constructive dividends) on the securities and net gains from the disposition of ordinary shares or warrants. U.S. Holders that are individuals, estates or trusts should consult their tax advisors regarding the applicability of the Medicare tax to them.
Information Reporting and Backup Withholding
U.S. Holders may be required to file certain U.S. information reporting returns with the IRS with respect to an investment in our ordinary shares and Warrants, including, among others, IRS Form 8938 (Statement of Specified Foreign Financial Assets). As described above under “Passive Foreign Investment Company Consequences”, each U.S. Holder who is a shareholder of a PFIC must file an annual report containing certain information. U.S. Holders paying more than US$100,000 for our ordinary shares may be required to file IRS Form 926 (Return by a U.S. Transferor of Property to a Foreign Corporation) reporting this payment. Substantial penalties may be imposed upon a U.S. Holder that fails to comply with the required information reporting.
Dividends on and proceeds from the sale or other disposition of our ordinary shares and Warrants may be reported to the IRS unless the U.S. Holder establishes a basis for exemption. Backup withholding may apply to amounts subject to reporting if the holder (1) fails to provide an accurate United States taxpayer identification number or otherwise establish a basis for exemption, or (2) is described in certain other categories of persons. However, U.S. Holders that are corporations generally are excluded from these information reporting and backup withholding tax rules. Backup withholding is not an additional tax. Any amounts withheld under the backup withholding rules generally will be allowed as a refund or a credit against a U.S. Holder’s U.S. federal income tax liability if the required information is furnished by the U.S. Holder on a timely basis to the IRS.
U.S. Holders should consult their own tax advisors regarding the backup withholding tax and information reporting rules.
EACH PROSPECTIVE INVESTOR IS URGED TO CONSULT ITS OWN TAX ADVISOR ABOUT THE TAX CONSEQUENCES TO IT OF AN INVESTMENT IN OUR UNITS IN LIGHT OF THE INVESTOR’S OWN CIRCUMSTANCES.
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CERTAIN AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL INCOME TAX CONSIDERATIONS
In this section, we discuss the material Australian income tax, stamp (or transfer) duty and goods and services tax considerations related to the acquisition, ownership and disposal by the absolute beneficial owners of the ordinary shares. It is based upon existing Australian tax law as of the date of this registration statement, which is subject to change, possibly retrospectively. This discussion does not address all aspects of Australian tax law which may be important to particular investors in light of their individual investment circumstances, such as shares held by investors subject to special tax rules (for example, financial institutions, insurance companies or tax-exempt organizations). In addition, this summary does not discuss any non-Australian or state tax considerations, other than transfer duty.
Prospective investors are urged to consult their tax advisors regarding the Australian and non-Australian income and other tax considerations of the acquisition, ownership and disposition of the ordinary shares. This summary is based upon the premise that the holder is not an Australian tax resident and is not carrying on business in Australia through a permanent establishment (referred to as a “Non-Australian Holder” in this summary).
This summary is of a general nature only and is not, and is not intended to be, legal or tax advice to any particular shareholder, and no representations with respect to the income tax consequences to any particular shareholder are made. This summary is not exhaustive of all Australian federal income tax considerations. Accordingly, you should consult your own tax advisor with respect to your particular circumstances.
Non-Australian residents may be liable to pay Australian tax on income derived from Australian sources. One mechanism by which that tax is paid (for non-residents who have no permanent establishment or fixed base in Australia or where the income is not connected with a permanent establishment or fixed base) is known as withholding tax. Dividends paid by a resident Australian company to a resident of the United States of America who is entitled to the benefits of the Australia/US double tax treaty and is beneficially entitled to the dividends are subject to withholding tax at the rate of 15% to the extent the dividends are ‘unfranked’. The rate of withholding tax on dividends is normally 30%, but since the United States has concluded a double tax treaty agreement with Australia, the rate is reduced to 15% where the benefits of the treaty apply. It should be noted, however, that under Section 128B(3) of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1936 (Cth), to the extent that dividends paid to non-residents have been franked (generally where a company pays tax itself), such dividends are exempt from withholding tax. “Franked dividends” is the expression given to dividends when the profits out of which those dividends are paid have been taxed at company level and such tax is allocated to the dividend. Accordingly, an Australian company paying fully franked dividends to a non-resident is not required to deduct any withholding tax. Dividends on which withholding tax has been paid are generally not subject to any further Australian tax. In other words, the withholding tax should represent the final Australian tax liability in relation to those dividends.
The pertinent provisions of the double tax treaty between Australia and the United States provide that dividends are primarily liable for tax in the country of residence of the beneficial owner of the dividends. However, the source country, in this case Australia, may also tax them, but in such case the tax will be limited to 15% if the benefits of the treaty apply. Where the beneficial owner is a United States resident corporation that directly holds at least 10% of the voting power in us, the tax will be limited to 5%. The 15% limit does not apply to dividends derived by a resident of the United States of America who has a permanent establishment or fixed base in Australia, if the holding giving rise to the dividends is effectively connected with that establishment or base. Such dividends are taxed on a net assessment basis as business income or independent personal services income as the case may be.
We have not paid any cash dividends since our inception and we do not anticipate the payment of cash dividends in the foreseeable future. See “Item 8.A. Financial Statements and Other Financial Information–Dividend Policy.”
A Non-Australian Holder will not generally be subject to capital gains tax in Australia as the Non-Australian Holder is unlikely to have an indirect interest in Australian real property. An indirect interest in Australian real property will only occur where more than 50% of the market value of our assets are attributable to Australian real property.
Dual Residency
If an investor were a resident of both Australia and the United States under those countries’ domestic taxation laws, that investor may be subject to tax as an Australian resident. If, however, the shareholder is determined to be a United States resident for the purposes of Australia/US double tax treaty, the Australian tax applicable would be limited by the Australia/US double tax treaty. Shareholders should obtain specialist taxation advice in these circumstances.
Transfer Duty
Any transfer of shares through trading on the Nasdaq should not be subject to transfer duty.
Inheritance and Estate Taxes in Australia
Australia does not have estate or death duties. Generally, no capital gains tax liability is realized upon the inheritance of a deceased person’s shares. The disposal of inherited shares by beneficiaries, may, however, give rise to a capital gains tax liability.
Goods and Services Tax
The issue or transfer of shares will not incur Australian goods and services tax and does not require a stockholder to register for Australian goods and services tax purposes.
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H.C. Wainwright & Co., LLC, or H.C. Wainwright, is acting as the book-running manager of the offering and the representative of the underwriters of this offering. We have entered into an underwriting agreement dated the date of this prospectus with H.C. Wainwright as representative of the several underwriters named below, with respect to this offering. Subject to the terms and conditions of the underwriting agreement, each underwriter has severally agreed to purchase from us the number of our securities set forth opposite its name below.
Underwriter | Units | |||
H.C. Wainwright & Co., LLC | ||||
Total |
The underwriting agreement provides that the obligations of the underwriters to purchase the securities in this offering are subject to certain conditions precedent and that the underwriters have agreed, severally and not jointly, if any of securities are purchased, other than those ordinary shares covered by the option to purchase additional ordinary shares and warrants described below. If an underwriter defaults, the underwriting agreement provides that, under certain circumstances, the purchase commitments of the non-defaulting underwriters may be increased or the underwriting agreement may be terminated.
We have agreed to indemnify the underwriters against specified liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act, and to contribute to payments the underwriters may be required to make in respect thereof.
The underwriters are offering the Units, subject to prior sale, when, as and if issued to and accepted by them, subject to approval of legal matters by their counsel and other conditions specified in the underwriting agreement. The underwriters reserve the right to withdraw, cancel or modify offers to the public and to reject orders in whole or in part.
Underwriting Discounts, Commissions and Expenses
The following table shows the initial public offering price, underwriting discounts and commissions and proceeds, before expenses to us. These amounts are shown assuming both no exercise and full exercise of the underwriters’ option to purchase additional ordinary shares.
Per Unit(1) |
Total
Without
Option Exercise |
Total
With Full
Option Exercise |
||||||||||
Initial public offering price | $ | |||||||||||
Underwriting discounts and commissions(1) | $ | |||||||||||
Proceeds to us (before expenses)(2)(3) | $ |
(1) The initial public offering price and underwriting discount corresponds to an initial public offering price per Unit of $ .
(2) Represents an underwriting discount equal to 8% of the aggregate gross proceeds purchase price paid by the underwriters to us per Unit. In addition, we have agreed to issue to the representative of the underwriters or its designees warrants (the “representative’s warrants”) to purchase a number of ordinary shares equal to 6% of the ordinary shares sold in this offering (including additional ordinary shares sold), at an exercise price of $ per ordinary share, which represents 125% of the initial public offering price per Unit. We have also agreed to reimburse the representative of the underwriters for certain of their expenses.
(3) Does not include proceeds from the exercise of Warrants or representative’s warrants.
We estimate that the total expenses of the offering, excluding underwriting discounts and commissions, will be approximately $ and is payable by us. Subject to compliance with FINRA Rule 5110(f), we have agreed to reimburse the representative of the underwriters for its out-of-pocket expenses, including fees and expenses of legal counsel, up to $350,000, and for closing costs in the amount of $15,950. We have paid an advance of $75,000 to the representative, which will be credited against the fees and expenses of legal counsel and other out-of-pocket accountable expenses that will be incurred in connection with this offering. Such advance will be returned to us to the extent such out-of-pocket expenses were not actually incurred, in accordance with FINRA Rule 5110(g)(4)(A) and (g)(5)(A).
Option to Purchase Additional Securities
We have granted to the underwriters an option, exercisable not later than 30 days after the date of this prospectus, to purchase up to additional ordinary shares and/or warrants to purchase up to ordinary shares in any combination thereof. Any ordinary shares and warrants so purchased shall be sold at the initial public offering price per ordinary share or initial public offering price per Warrant, less the underwriting discounts and commissions, set forth on the cover page of this prospectus. If any additional ordinary shares or warrants are purchased pursuant to this option, the underwriters will offer these additional ordinary shares and warrants on the same terms as those on which the other ordinary shares are being offered hereby.
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Representative’s Warrant
Upon closing of this offering, we will issue to H.C. Wainwright a warrant entitling H.C. Wainwright or its designees to purchase up to ordinary shares (or ordinary shares if the underwriters exercise in full their option to purchase additional ordinary shares) (equal to 6.0% of the aggregate number of ordinary shares sold in this offering) at $ per ordinary share (equal to 125% of the initial public offering price per Unit). The Representative’s Warrants are exercisable immediately upon issuance and will have a termination date of the five-year anniversary of the commencement of the sales pursuant to this offering.
The representative’s warrants and the ordinary shares underlying such warrants are registered on the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part. Pursuant to FINRA Rule 5110(e), the representative’s warrants and any ordinary shares issuable thereunder shall not be sold, transferred, assigned, pledged, or hypothecated, or be the subject of any hedging, short sale, derivative, put or call transaction that would result in the effective economic disposition of the securities by any person for a period of 180 days immediately following the date of commencement of sales of this offering, except the transfer of any security: (i) by operation of law or by reason of reorganization of the issuer; (ii) to any FINRA member firm participating in the offering and the officers, partners, registered persons or affiliates thereof, if all securities so transferred remain subject to the lock-up restriction set forth above for the remainder of the time period; (iii) if the aggregate amount of our securities held by the representative or related persons does not exceed 1% of the securities being offered; (iv) that is beneficially owned on a pro-rata basis by all equity owners of an investment fund, provided that no participating member manages or otherwise directs investments by the fund and the participating members in the aggregate do not own more than 10% of the equity in the fund; (v) the exercise or conversion of any security, if all securities remain subject to the lock-up restriction set forth above for the remainder of the time period; (vi) if we meet the registration requirements of Forms S-3, F-3 or F-10; or (vii) back to us in a transaction exempt from registration under the Securities Act.
Pricing of the Offering
Prior to this offering, there has been no public market for our ordinary shares or Warrants. The initial public offering price was determined by negotiations between us and the representative. Among the factors considered in determining the initial public offering price were our future prospects and those of our industry in general, our sales, earnings and certain other financial and operating information in recent periods, and the price-earnings ratios, price-sales ratios, market prices of securities, and certain financial and operating information of companies engaged in businesses similar to ours.
We cannot assure you that the initial public offering price will correspond to the price at which our ordinary shares or Warrants will trade in the public market subsequent to this offering or that an active trading market for our ordinary shares or Warrants will develop and continue after this offering.
Right of First Refusal
We have also granted the representative (or any affiliate designated by the representative), subject to certain exceptions, a right of first refusal for a period of twelve (12) months following the closing of this offering to act as sole book-running manager, sole underwriter or sole placement agent for each and every future public offering or private placement of equity or debt securities by us or any of our subsidiaries.
Tail
We have also agreed to pay H.C. Wainwright a “tail” fee equal to the compensation in the offering if any investor which H.C. Wainwright contacted or introduced us to during the term of H.C. Wainwright’s engagement (other than pre-existing investors of ours) provides us with further capital in a public or private offering or capital raising transaction and such offering or transaction is consummated during the 12-month period following termination or expiration of that certain engagement letter, dated March 22, 2021, entered into between us and H.C. Wainwright.
Lock-up Agreements
Our officers, directors and principal shareholders have agreed with the representative of the underwriters to be subject to a lock-up period of 180 days following the date of this prospectus. This means that, during the applicable lock-up period, such persons may not offer for sale, contract to sell, sell, distribute, grant any option, right or warrant to purchase, pledge, hypothecate or otherwise dispose of, directly or indirectly, any ordinary shares or any securities convertible into, or exercisable or exchangeable for, ordinary shares, subject to certain customary exceptions. We have also agreed, in the underwriting agreement, to similar lock-up restrictions on the issuance and sale of our securities for 180 days following the closing of this offering, subject to certain customary exceptions, and a restriction on the issuance of variable priced securities until the warrants issued in this offering are no longer outstanding, subject to an exception, without the consent of the representative. The representative of the underwriters may, in its sole discretion and without notice, waive the terms of any of these lock-up agreements.
Price Stabilization, Short Positions and Penalty Bids
In connection with this offering, the underwriter may engage in stabilizing transactions, over-allotment transactions, syndicate covering transactions and penalty bids in connection with our ordinary shares.
● | Over-allotment transactions involve sales by the underwriter of ordinary shares in excess of the number of ordinary shares the underwriter is obligated to purchase. This creates a syndicate short position which may be either a covered short position or a naked short position. In a covered short position, the number of ordinary shares over-allotted by the underwriter is not greater than the number of ordinary shares that it may purchase in the option to purchase additional ordinary shares. In a naked short position, the number of ordinary shares involved is greater than the number of ordinary shares in the option to purchase additional ordinary shares. The underwriter may close out any short position by exercising its option to purchase additional ordinary shares and/or purchasing ordinary shares in the open market. | |
● | Stabilizing transactions permit bids to purchase ordinary shares so long as the stabilizing bids do not exceed a specified maximum. | |
● | Syndicate covering transactions involve purchases of ordinary shares in the open market after the distribution has been completed in order to cover syndicate short positions. Such a naked short position would be closed out by buying securities in the open market. A naked short position is more likely to be created if the underwriter is concerned that there could be downward pressure on the price of the securities in the open market after pricing that could adversely affect investors who purchase in the offering. | |
● | Penalty bids permit the underwriter to reclaim a selling concession from a syndicate member when the securities originally sold by the syndicate member are purchased in a stabilizing or syndicate covering transaction to cover syndicate short positions. |
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These stabilizing transactions, syndicate covering transactions and penalty bids may have the effect of raising or maintaining the market price of our ordinary shares or preventing or retarding a decline in the market price of our ordinary shares. As a result, the price of our ordinary shares in the open market may be higher than it would otherwise be in the absence of these transactions. 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 ordinary shares. These transactions may be effected on Nasdaq, in the over-the-counter market or otherwise and, if commenced, may be discontinued at any time.
Other Relationships
The representative and its affiliates may in the future engage in investment banking and other commercial dealings in the ordinary course of business with us or our affiliates. The representative may in the future receive customary fees and commissions for these transactions.
Transfer Agent and Registrar
Upon the closing of this offering, the transfer agent and registrar for our ordinary shares in the United States will be Computershare Trust Company, N.A.. We do not intend to have a transfer agent and registrar for our ordinary shares in Australia.
Nasdaq Listing
Prior to this offering, no public market has existed for our ordinary shares or warrants. We have applied to list our ordinary shares and the Warrants on Nasdaq under the symbols “LCFY” and “LCFY-W”, respectively. Listing will be subject to the fulfilment of all of the applicable listing requirements of Nasdaq.
SELLING RESTRICTIONS
Other than in the United States, no action has been taken by us or the underwriters that would permit a public offering of the securities offered by this prospectus in any jurisdiction where action for that purpose is required. The securities offered by this prospectus may not be offered or sold, directly or indirectly, nor may this prospectus or any other offering material or advertisements in connection with the offer and sale of any such securities be distributed or published in any jurisdiction, except under circumstances that will result in compliance with the applicable rules and regulations of that jurisdiction. Persons into whose possession this prospectus comes are advised to inform themselves about and to observe any restrictions relating to the offering and the distribution of this prospectus. This prospectus does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any securities offered by this prospectus in any jurisdiction in which such an offer or a solicitation is unlawful.
European Economic Area
In relation to each member state of the European Economic Area (each a “Relevant State”), no securities have been offered or will be offered pursuant to the offering to the public in that Relevant State prior to the publication of a prospectus in relation to such securities which has been approved by the competent authority in that Relevant State or, where appropriate, approved in another Relevant State and notified to the competent authority in that Relevant State, all in accordance with the Prospectus Regulation, except that offers may be made to the public in that Relevant State at any time under the following exemptions under the Prospectus Regulation:
(a) to any legal entity which is a qualified investor as defined under the Prospectus Regulation;
(b) | to fewer than 150 natural or legal persons (other than qualified investors as defined under the Prospectus Regulation), subject to obtaining the prior consent of the underwriters; or |
(c) in any other circumstances falling within Article 1(4) of the Prospectus Regulation,
provided that no such offer of any securities shall require us or any underwriter to publish a prospectus pursuant to Article 3 of the Prospectus Regulation or supplement a prospectus pursuant to Article 23 of the Prospectus Regulation. For the purposes of this provision, the expression an “offer to the public” in relation to any securities in any Relevant State means the communication in any form and by any means of sufficient information on the terms of the offer and any securities to be offered so as to enable an investor to decide to purchase or subscribe for any securities, and the expression “Prospectus Regulation” means Regulation (EU) 2017/1129.
United Kingdom
In relation to the United Kingdom, no securities have been offered or will be offered pursuant to this offering to the public in the United Kingdom prior to the publication of a prospectus in relation to the securities that either (i) have been approved by the Financial Conduct Authority, or (ii) is to be treated as if it had been approved by the Financial Conduct Authority in accordance with the transitional provision in Regulation 74 of the Prospectus (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019, except that offers of the securities may be made to the public in the United Kingdom at any time under the following exemptions under the UK Prospectus Regulation:
(a) to any legal entity which is a qualified investor as defined under Article 2 of the UK Prospectus Regulation;
(b) to fewer than 150 natural or legal persons (other than qualified investors as defined under Article 2 of the UK Prospectus Regulation), subject to obtaining the prior consent of representatives for any such offer; or
(c) in any other circumstances falling within Section 86 of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (the “FSMA”),
provided that no such offer of ordinary shares shall require us or any underwriter to publish a prospectus pursuant to Section 85 of the FSMA or supplement a prospectus pursuant to Article 23 of the UK Prospectus Regulation.
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For the purposes of this provision, the expression an “offer to the public” in relation to any securities in the United Kingdom means the communication in any form and by any means of sufficient information on the terms of the offer and any securities to be offered so as to enable an investor to decide to purchase or subscribe for any securities, and the expression “UK Prospectus Regulation” means Regulation (EU) 2017/1129 as it forms part of domestic law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018.
In addition, this prospectus is only being distributed to, and is only directed at, and any investment or investment activity to which this prospectus relates is available only to, and will be engaged in only with, persons who are outside the United Kingdom or persons in the United Kingdom (i) who have professional experience in matters relating to investments falling within Article 19(5) of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Financial Promotion) Order 2005, as amended (the “Order”); and/or (ii) who are high net worth companies (or persons to whom it may otherwise be lawfully communicated) falling within Article 49(2)(a) to (d) of the Order (all such persons together being referred to as “relevant persons”) or otherwise in circumstances which have not resulted and will not result in an offer to the public of the securities in the United Kingdom within the meaning of the FSMA.
Australia
This document:
● | does not constitute a disclosure document or a prospectus under Chapter 6D.2 of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) (the “Corporations Act”); | |
● | has not been, and will not be, lodged with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (“ASIC”), as a disclosure document for the purposes of the Corporations Act and does not purport to include the information required of a disclosure document for the purposes of the Corporations Act; and | |
● | may only be provided in Australia to select investors who are able to demonstrate that they fall within one or more of the categories of investors available under section 708 of the Corporations Act (“Exempt Investors”). |
The securities may not be directly or indirectly offered for subscription or purchased or sold, and no invitations to subscribe for or buy the securities may be issued, and no draft or definitive offering memorandum, advertisement or other offering material relating to any securities may be distributed in Australia, except where disclosure to investors is not required under Chapter 6D of the Corporations Act or is otherwise in compliance with all applicable Australian laws and regulations. By submitting an application for the securities, you represent and warrant to us that you are an Exempt Investor.
As any offer of the securities under this document will be made without disclosure in Australia under Chapter 6D.2 of the Corporations Act, the offer of those securities for resale in Australia within 12 months may, under section 707 of the Corporations Act, require disclosure to investors under Chapter 6D.2 if none of the exemptions in section 708 applies to that resale. By applying for the securities you undertake to us that you will not, for a period of 12 months from the date of issue of the securities, offer, transfer, assign or otherwise alienate those securities to investors in Australia except in circumstances where disclosure to investors is not required under Chapter 6D.2 of the Corporations Act or where a compliant disclosure document is prepared and lodged with ASIC.
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Canada
The securities may be sold in Canada only to purchasers purchasing, or deemed to be purchasing, as principal that are accredited investors, as defined in National Instrument 45-106 Prospectus Exemptions or subsection 73.3(1) of the Securities Act (Ontario), and are permitted clients, as defined in National Instrument 31-103 Registration Requirements, Exemptions and Ongoing Registrant Obligations. Any resale of the units must be made in accordance with an exemption from, or in a transaction not subject to, the prospectus requirements of applicable securities laws.
Securities legislation in certain provinces or territories of Canada may provide a purchaser with remedies for rescission or damages if this prospectus (including any amendment thereto) contains a misrepresentation, provided that the remedies for rescission or damages are exercised by the purchaser within the time limit prescribed by the securities legislation of the purchaser’s province or territory. The purchaser should refer to any applicable provisions of the securities legislation of the purchaser’s province or territory for particulars of these rights or consult with a legal advisor.
Pursuant to section 3A.3 (or, in the case of securities issued or guaranteed by the government of a non-Canadian jurisdiction, section 3A.4) of National Instrument 33-105 Underwriting Conflicts (NI 33-105), the underwriters are not required to comply with the disclosure requirements of NI 33-105 regarding underwriter conflicts of interest in connection with this offering.
Switzerland
The securities may not be publicly offered in Switzerland and will not be listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange (“SIX”) or on any other stock exchange or regulated trading facility in Switzerland. This document has been prepared without regard to the disclosure standards for issuance prospectuses under art. 652a or art. 1156 of the Swiss Code of Obligations or the disclosure standards for listing prospectuses under art. 27 ff. of the SIX Listing Rules or the listing rules of any other stock exchange or regulated trading facility in Switzerland. Neither this document nor any other offering or marketing material relating to the securities or the offering may be publicly distributed or otherwise made publicly available in Switzerland.
Neither this document nor any other offering or marketing material relating to the offering, the company, the shares have been or will be filed with or approved by any Swiss regulatory authority. In particular, this document will not be filed with, and the offer of securities will not be supervised by, the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority FINMA (“FINMA”), and the offer of securities has not been and will not be authorized under the Swiss Federal Act on Collective Investment Schemes (“CISA”). The investor protection afforded to acquirers of interests in collective investment schemes under the CISA does not extend to acquirers of securities.
Israel
In the State of Israel, this prospectus shall not be regarded as an offer to the public to purchase securities under the Israeli Securities Law, 5728 – 1968, which requires a prospectus to be published and authorized by the Israel Securities Authority, if it complies with certain provisions of Section 15 of the Israeli Securities Law, 5728 – 1968, including, inter alia, if: (i) the offer is made, distributed or directed to not more than 35 investors, subject to certain conditions (the “Addressed Investors”); or (ii) the offer is made, distributed or directed to certain qualified investors defined in the First Addendum of the Israeli Securities Law, 5728 –1968, subject to certain conditions (the “Qualified Investors”). The Qualified Investors shall not be taken into account in the count of the Addressed Investors and may be offered to purchase securities in addition to the 35 Addressed Investors. The Company has not and will not take any action that would require it to publish a prospectus in accordance with and subject to the Israeli Securities Law, 5728 – 1968. We have not and will not distribute this prospectus or make, distribute or direct an offer to subscribe for our securities to any person within the State of Israel, other than to Qualified Investors and up to 35 Addressed Investors.
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EXPENSES RELATED TO THIS OFFERING
The following table sets forth the costs and expenses, other than underwriting discounts and commissions, payable by us in connection with the offer and sale of our ordinary shares in this offering. All amounts listed below are estimates except the SEC registration fee and FINRA filing fee.
Itemized expense | Amount | |||
SEC registration fee | $ | 927.00 | ||
Nasdaq listing fee | * | |||
FINRA filing fee | * | |||
Printing and engraving expenses | * | |||
Transfer agent and registrar fees | * | |||
Legal fees and expenses | * | |||
Accounting fees and expenses | * | |||
Public Relations fees | $ | * | ||
Miscellaneous fees and expenses | ||||
Total | * |
* | To be provided by amendment |
The validity of the ordinary shares and Warrants being offered by this prospectus and other legal matters concerning this offering relating to Australian law will be passed upon for us by Steinepreis Paganin, Perth, Australia. Certain legal matters in connection with this offering relating to U.S. law will be passed upon for us by Haynes and Boone, LLP, New York, New York. Certain legal matters in connection with this offering will be passed upon for the underwriters by Rimon Law Pty Ltd, with respect to Australian law, and by Lucosky Brookman LLP, with respect to the law of the State of New York and the federal law of the United States of America.
The audited financial statements of Locafy as of and for the years ended June 30, 2021 and June 30, 2020 appearing in this prospectus and registration statement have been audited by Grant Thornton Audit Pty Ltd, independent registered public accounting firm, as set forth in their report appearing elsewhere herein, and are included in reliance upon such report given on the authority of such firm as an expert in accounting and auditing.
WHERE YOU CAN FIND MORE INFORMATION
We have filed with the SEC a registration statement on Form F-1 under the Securities Act, including relevant exhibits and schedules, with respect to the ordinary shares to be sold in this offering. This prospectus, which constitutes a part of the registration statement, does not contain all of the information contained in the registration statement. You should read the registration statement and its exhibits for further information with respect to us and the ordinary shares. Some of these exhibits consist of documents or contracts that are described in this prospectus in summary form. You should read the entire document or contract for the complete terms. You may read and copy the registration statement and its exhibits at the SEC’s Public Reference Room at 100 F Street N.E., Room 1580, Washington, D.C. 20549. You may obtain information on the operation of the Public Reference Room by calling the SEC at 1-800-SEC-0330. In addition, the SEC maintains an internet website at www.sec.gov, from which you can electronically access the registration statement and its exhibits.
After this offering, we will be subject to the reporting requirements of the Exchange Act applicable to foreign private issuers. As a foreign private issuer, the SEC’s rules do not require us to deliver proxy statements or to file quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, among other things. In addition, our “insiders” are not subject to the SEC’s rules regarding insider reporting and prohibiting short-swing trading under Section 16 of the Exchange Act. In addition, we will not be required under the Exchange Act to file annual, quarterly and current reports and financial statements with the SEC as frequently or as promptly as U.S. registrants whose securities are registered under the Exchange Act. However, we will be required to file with the SEC an annual report on Form 20-F containing, among other information, our consolidated financial statements audited by an independent registered public accounting firm within 120 days after the end of each fiscal year, or such other time as prescribed by the SEC, and will furnish unaudited quarterly financial information to the SEC on Form 6-K promptly after they are available.
We also maintain a website at www.locafy.com. Information contained in, or accessible through, our website is not a part of this prospectus, and the inclusion of our website address in this prospectus is an inactive textual reference.
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INDEX TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
F-1 |
REPORT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM
Board of Directors and Shareholders
Locafy Limited
Opinion on the consolidated financial statements
We have audited the accompanying consolidated statements of financial position of Locafy Limited and its subsidiary (the “Company”) as of June 30, 2021 and June 30, 2020, the related consolidated statements of profit or loss and other comprehensive loss, changes in equity, and cash flows for each of the two years in the period ended June 30, 2021, and the related notes (collectively referred to as the “financial statements”).
In our opinion, the consolidated financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Company as of June 30, 2021 and June 30, 2020, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for each of the two years in the period ended June 30, 2021, in conformity with International Financial Reporting Standards as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board.
Going concern
The accompanying financial statements have been prepared assuming that the Company will continue as a going concern. The Company incurred a net loss of $995,766 and operating cash outflows of $496,031 during the year ended June 30, 2021, and as of that date, the Company’s current liabilities exceeded its current assets by $1,126,033. These events or conditions, along with other matters set forth in Note 3.2, raise substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern as at June 30, 2021. Management’s plans in regard to these matters are also described in Note 3.2. 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 audits 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 audits, 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 audits included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the consolidated 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 consolidated financial statements. Our audits also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the consolidated financial statements. We believe that our audits provides a reasonable basis for our opinion.
/s/ GRANT THORNTON AUDIT PTY LTD
We have served as the Company’s auditor since 2021. Perth, Australia
November 10, 2021
F-2 |
Consolidated statement of profit or loss and other comprehensive income for the years ended 30 June 2021 and 30 June 2020
Consolidated Group | ||||||||||
Notes |
2021
A$ |
2020
A$ |
||||||||
Revenue | 5 | 2,191,425 | 1,985,362 | |||||||
Other income | 6 | 788,258 | 615,356 | |||||||
Technology expense | (651,644 | ) | (979,161 | ) | ||||||
Employee benefits expense | (2,359,459 | ) | (2,389,185 | ) | ||||||
Occupancy expense | (52,219 | ) | (104,419 | ) | ||||||
Advertising expense | (67,575 | ) | (265,996 | ) | ||||||
Consultancy expense | (240,928 | ) | (273,978 | ) | ||||||
Depreciation and amortisation expense | (397,506 | ) | (362,917 | ) | ||||||
Other expenses | 8 | (132,515 | ) | (438,418 | ) | |||||
Impairment of financial assets | (14,690 | ) | - | |||||||
Operating loss | (936,853 | ) | (2,213,356 | ) | ||||||
Financial cost | 8 | (58,913 | ) | (108,471 | ) | |||||
Loss before income tax | (995,766 | ) | (2,321,827 | ) | ||||||
Income tax expense | 9 | - | - | |||||||
Loss for the year | (995,766 | ) | (2,321,827 | ) | ||||||
Other comprehensive income: | ||||||||||
Items that will be reclassified subsequently to profit and loss | ||||||||||
Exchange differences on translating foreign
operations |
(1,653 | ) | (4,205 | ) | ||||||
Total Comprehensive Loss for the year | (997,419 | ) | (2,326,032 | ) | ||||||
Earnings per share | ||||||||||
Basic loss per share | 25 | (0.05 | ) | (0.13 | ) | |||||
Diluted loss per share | 25 | (0.05 | ) | (0.13 | ) |
This statement should be read in conjunction with the notes to the financial statements.
F-3 |
Consolidated statement of financial position
As at 30 June 2021
Consolidated Group | ||||||||||
Notes |
2021
A$ |
2020
|
||||||||
Assets | ||||||||||
Current assets | ||||||||||
Cash and cash equivalents | 650,731 | 161,191 | ||||||||
Trade and other receivables | 10 | 391,016 | 232,017 | |||||||
Other assets | 11 | 234,288 | 118,450 | |||||||
Total current assets | 1,276,035 | 511,658 | ||||||||
Non-current assets | ||||||||||
Property, plant and equipment | 13 | 12,392 | 5,698 | |||||||
Right of use assets | 14 | 95,756 | 130,575 | |||||||
Intangible assets | 15 | 1,397,397 | 984,355 | |||||||
Total non-current assets | 1,505,545 | 1,120,628 | ||||||||
Total assets | 2,781,580 | 1,632,286 | ||||||||
Liabilities | ||||||||||
Current liabilities | ||||||||||
Trade and other payables | 16 | 1,058,037 | 1,168,435 | |||||||
Borrowings | 17 | 435,600 | 719,670 | |||||||
Provisions | 18 | 384,914 | 288,224 | |||||||
Accrued expenses | 19 | 456,140 | 457,060 | |||||||
Lease liabilities | 14 | 43,298 | 17,785 | |||||||
Contract and other liabilities | 20 | 24,079 | 32,414 | |||||||
Total current liabilities | 2,402,068 | 2,683,588 | ||||||||
Non-current liabilities | ||||||||||
Lease liabilities | 14 | 87,400 | 130,698 | |||||||
Provisions | 18 | 10,557 | 5,693 | |||||||
Accrued expenses | 19 | 1,117,033 | 976,048 | |||||||
Total non-current liabilities | 1,214,990 | 1,112,439 | ||||||||
Total liabilities | 3,617,058 | 3,796,027 | ||||||||
Net liabilities | (835,478 | ) | (2,163,741 | ) | ||||||
Equity | ||||||||||
Issued capital | 21 | 35,505,073 | 33,179,391 | |||||||
Reserves | 22 | 3,796,149 | 3,797,802 | |||||||
Accumulated losses | 23 | (40,136,700 | ) | (39,140,934 | ) | |||||
Total deficiency | (835,478 | ) | (2,163,741 | ) |
This statement should be read in conjunction with the notes to the financial statements.
F-4 |
Consolidated statement of changes in equity
for the years ended 30 June 2021 and 30 June 2020
Consolidated | Issued capital | Foreign currency translation reserve | Share option reserve | Accumulated losses | Total | |||||||||||||||
A$ | A$ | A$ | A$ | A$ | ||||||||||||||||
Balance at 1 July 2019 | 31,599,639 | 198,091 | 3,603,916 | (36,819,107 | ) | (1,417,461 | ) | |||||||||||||
Loss for the year | - | - | - | (2,321,827 | ) | (2,321,827 | ) | |||||||||||||
Exchange difference on translation of foreign operations | - | (4,205 | ) | - | - | (4,205 | ) | |||||||||||||
Total other comprehensive income | - | (4,205 | ) | - | (2,321,827 | ) | (2,326,032 | ) | ||||||||||||
Issue of ordinary shares | 2,431,849 | - | - | - | 2,431,849 | |||||||||||||||
Share issue costs | (52,097 | ) | - | - | - | (52,097 | ) | |||||||||||||
Shares cancelled during the year | (800,000 | ) | - | - | - | (800,000 | ) | |||||||||||||
Balance at 30 June 2020 | 33,179,391 | 193,886 | 3,603,916 | (39,140,934 | ) | (2,163,741 | ) | |||||||||||||
Balance at 1 July 2020 | 33,179,391 | 193,886 | 3,603,916 | (39,140,934 | ) | (2,163,741 | ) | |||||||||||||
Loss for the year | - | - | - | (995,766 | ) | (995,766 | ) | |||||||||||||
Exchange difference on translation of foreign operations | - | (1,653 | ) | - | - | (1,653 | ) | |||||||||||||
Total other comprehensive income | - | (1,653 | ) | - | (995,766 | ) | (997,419 | ) | ||||||||||||
Issue of ordinary shares | 2,335,832 | - | - | - | 2,335,832 | |||||||||||||||
Share issue costs | (10,150 | ) | - | - | - | (10,150 | ) | |||||||||||||
Balance at 30 June 2021 | 35,505,073 | 192,233 | 3,603,916 | (40,136,700 | ) | (835,478 | ) |
This statement should be read in conjunction with the notes to the financial statements.
F-5 |
Consolidated statement of cash flows
for the years ended 30 June 2021 and 30 June 2020
Consolidated Entity | ||||||||||
Notes |
2021
A$ |
2020 A$ |
||||||||
Cash flows from operating activities | ||||||||||
Receipts from customers | 2,192,798 | 2,084,018 | ||||||||
Payments to suppliers and employees | (3,127,274 | ) | (3,962,643 | ) | ||||||
R&D Tax Rebate | 6 | 497,358 | 494,577 | |||||||
Financial Cost | (58,913 | ) | (100,541 | ) | ||||||
Net cash used by operating activities | 24 | (496,031 | ) | (1,484,589 | ) | |||||
Cash flows from investing activities | ||||||||||
Purchase of intellectual property | (433,639 | ) | (52,656 | ) | ||||||
Purchase of property, plant and equipment | (8,784 | ) | (1,481 | ) | ||||||
Net cash used by investing activities | (442,423 | ) | (54,137 | ) | ||||||
Cash flows from financing activities | ||||||||||
Proceeds from issue of shares | 1,739,999 | 2,301,050 | ||||||||
Payment for share issue costs | (10,150 | ) | (2,432 | ) | ||||||
Payment for cancellation of shares | - | (800,000 | ) | |||||||
Repayment of borrowings | (284,070 | ) | (87,412 | ) | ||||||
Leasing liabilities | (17,785 | ) | (13,235 | ) | ||||||
Net cash from financing activities | 1,427,994 | 1,397,961 | ||||||||
Net increase / (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents | 489,540 | (140,765 | ) | |||||||
Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of the year | 161,191 | 301,956 | ||||||||
Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the year | 650,731 | 161,191 |
This statement should be read in conjunction with the notes to the financial statements.
F-6 |
Notes to the financial statements
1. General Information
Locafy Limited (the Company) is an unlisted public company incorporated in Australia. The addresses of its registered office and principal places of business are as follows:
Registered Office | Principal places of business | |
246A Churchill Avenue | 246A Churchill Avenue | |
Subiaco WA 6008 | Subiaco WA 6008 | |
Australia | Australia |
The entity’s principal activities are the continued development of the Locafy platform and the commercialisation of the Company’s technologies. The Company’s platform has unlimited production capability to produce voice, mobile and web search optimised Listings, Landing Pages, Locators and Lead Sites at large scale.
2. Application of new and revised Accounting Standards
New and revised standards that are effective for these financial statements
Certain new accounting standards and interpretations have been published that are mandatory for 30 June 2021 reporting periods and have not been adopted by the Group. The Group’s assessment of the impact of these new standards do not have a material impact on the entity in the current reporting periods.
Impact of standards issued but not yet applied
The following new accounting standards and interpretations have been published that are not mandatory for 30 June 2021 reporting periods, have not been early adopted by the Group, and are as follows:
i) IAS 38 Intangible Assets - Agenda Decision
The Agenda Decision requires that management capitalise those elements of expenditure that meet the definition of an “Intangible Asset” as defined by IAS 38 Intangible Assets and recognise any additional amounts as an expense as the entity benefits from the expenditure – either by applying IAS 138 or applying another accounting standard. The Agenda Decision then clarified:
● | The nature of expenditure that met the definition of an Intangible Asset; | |
● | Methods of differentiating between Intangible Assets and expenses; and | |
● | The pattern in which the entity benefits from expenditure that does not qualify as an Intangible Asset. |
When this policy is first adopted for the reporting period ending 31 December 2021, there will be no material impact on the transactions and balances recognised in the financial statements.
The Agenda Decision requires that management capitalise those elements of expenditure that meet the definition of an “Intangible Asset” as defined by IAS 138 Intangible Assets and recognise any additional amounts as an expense as the entity benefits from the expenditure – either
by applying IAS 138 or applying another accounting standard.
The Agenda Decision then clarified:
● | The nature of expenditure that met the definition of an Intangible Asset; | |
● | Methods of differentiating between Intangible Assets and expenses; and | |
● | The pattern in which the entity benefits from expenditure that does not qualify as an Intangible Asset. |
When this policy is first adopted for the reporting period ending 31 December 2021, there will be no material impact on the transactions and balances recognised in the financial statements.
F-7 |
Impact of standards issued but not yet applied (Cont.)
ii) Amendments to IAS 1: Classification of Liabilities as Current or Non-current
The amendment specify the requirements for classifying liabilities as current or non-current. The amendments clarify:
● | What is meant by a right to defer settlement | |
● | That a right to defer must exist at the end of the reporting period | |
● | That classification is unaffected by the likelihood that an entity will exercise its deferral right | |
● | That only if an embedded derivative in a convertible liability is itself an equity instrument would the terms of a liability not impact its classification. |
The amendments are effective for annual reporting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2023 and must be applied retrospectively. The Group’s assessment of the impact of the new standard is not expected to have a material impact on the entity in future reporting periods.
iii) Amendments to IAS 3 Business Combinations - Reference to the Conceptual Framework
The amendments are intended to replace a reference to the Framework for the Preparation and Presentation of Financial Statements, issued in 1989, with a reference to the Conceptual Framework for Financial Reporting issued in March 2018 without significantly changing its requirements.
The Board also added an exception to the recognition principle of IFRS 3 to avoid the issue of potential ‘day 2’ gains or losses arising for liabilities and contingent liabilities that would be within the scope of IAS 37 or IFRIC 21 Levies, if incurred separately. At the same time, the Board decided to clarify existing guidance in IAS 3 for contingent assets that would not be affected by replacing the reference to the Framework for the Preparation and Presentation of Financial Statements.
The amendments are effective for annual reporting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2022 and apply prospectively.
iv) Onerous Contracts - Costs of Fulfilling a Contract - Amendments to IAS 37
The amendments to IAS 37 specific which costs an entity needs to include when assessing whether a contract is onerous or loss-making. The amendments apply a “directly related cost approach”. The costs that relate directly to a contract to provide goods or services include both incremental costs and an allocation of costs directly related to contract activities. General and administrative costs do not relate directly to a contract and are excluded unless they are explicitly chargeable to the counterparty under the contract.
The amendments are effective for annual reporting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2022. The Group will apply these amendments to contracts for which it has not yet fulfilled all its obligations at the beginning of the annual reporting period in which it first applies the amendments.
v) IAS 9 Financial Instruments – Fees in the ‘10 per cent’ test for derecognition of financial liabilities
The amendment clarifies the fees that an entity includes when assessing whether the terms of a new or modified financial liability are substantially different from the terms of the original financial liability. These fees include only those paid or received between the borrower and the lender, including fees paid or received by either the borrower or lender on the other’s behalf. An entity applies the amendment to financial liabilities that are modified or exchanged on or after the beginning of the annual reporting period in which the entity first applies the amendment.
The amendment is effective for annual reporting periods beginning on or after 1 January 2022 with earlier adoption permitted. The Group will apply the amendments to financial liabilities that are modified or exchanged on or after the beginning of the annual reporting period in which the entity first applies the amendment.
F-8 |
The amendments are not expected to have a material impact on the Group.
3. Significant accounting policies
3.1. Statement of compliance
Theses financial statements comprise the consolidated financial statements of the Group. For the purposes of preparing the consolidated financial statements, the Company is a for-profit entity.
The consolidated financial statements of the Group have been prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB). They have been prepared under the assumption that the Group operates on a going concern basis.
The consolidated financial statements for the year ended 30 June 2021 (including comparatives) were approved and authorised for issue by the board of directors on 10 November 2021.
3.2. Basis of preparation
The Group’s financial statements have been prepared on an accrual basis and under the historical cost convention, modified where applicable, by the measurement at fair value of selected non-current assets, financial assets and financial liabilities. Historical cost is generally based on the fair values of the consideration given in exchange for goods and services. Monetary amounts are expressed in Australian dollars, rounded to the whole dollar, unless otherwise noted.
Going concern basis
The financial report has been prepared on the going concern basis, which assumes continuity of normal business activities and the realisation of assets and the settlement of liabilities in the ordinary course of business.
The Consolidated Entity and Company have incurred a net loss after tax of A$995,766 (2020: A$2,321,827 and experienced net cash outflows from operating activities of A$496,031 (2020: A$1,484,589) for the year ended 30 June 2021.
As at 30 June 2021, the Consolidated Entity and Company had cash assets of A$650,731 (2020: A$161,191) and reported current liabilities exceed its current assets by of A$1,126,033 (2020: A$2,171,930).
The ability of the Consolidated Entity and Company to continue as going concerns and to pay their debts as and when they fall due is dependent on the following:
● | the ability to raise additional funding, including A$880,000 under a “new” convertible note; | |
● | commercialising Locafy’s technology in line with management’s forecasts; | |
● | managing all costs in line with management’s forecasts, including the deferred payment of director employment costs and provision except for personal monthly reimbursement approved by the board and deferred repayments of creditors and convertible notes; | |
● | receipt of Research and Development tax incentive in line with management’s estimates for the amount and expected timing; and | |
● | obtain necessary deferral of current liabilities to allow the company to manage its cash flow, that includes deferrals from directors salaries and fees. |
The Directors have prepared a cash flow forecast which indicates that the Consolidated Entity will have sufficient cash flows to meet minimum operating overheads and committed expenditure requirements for the 12 month period from the date of signing the financial report if they are successful in relation to matters referred to above.
The Directors are confident that they will achieve the matters set out above and therefore the going concern basis of preparation is appropriate. The financial report has therefore been prepared on the going concern basis.
F-9 |
Should the Consolidated Entity and the Company be unable to achieve successful outcomes in relation to each of the matters referred to above, there is a significant uncertainty whether the Consolidated Entity and the Company will be able to continue as a going concern and, therefore, whether they will realise their assets and discharge their liabilities in the normal course of business.
The financial report does not include adjustments relating to the recoverability and classification of recorded asset amounts, nor to the amounts and classification of liabilities that might be necessary should the Consolidated Entity and the Company not continue as a going concern.
3.3 Basis of consolidation
The consolidated financial statements incorporate the financial statements of the Company and entities (including structured entities) controlled by the Company and its subsidiaries. Control is achieved when the Company:
● | has power over the investee; | |
● | is exposed, or has rights, to variable returns from its involvement with the investee; and | |
● | has the ability to use its power to affect its returns. |
The Company reassesses whether or not it controls an investee if facts and circumstances indicate that there are changes to one or more of the three elements of control listed above.
Consolidation of a subsidiary begins when the Company obtains control over the subsidiary and ceases when the Company loses control of the subsidiary. Specifically, income and expenses of a subsidiary acquired or disposed of during the year are included in the consolidated statement of profit or loss and other comprehensive income from the date the Company gains control until the date when the Company ceases to control the subsidiary.
Profit or loss and each component of other comprehensive income are attributed to the owners of the Company and to the non-controlling interests. Total comprehensive income of subsidiaries is attributed to the owners of the Company and to the non-controlling interests even if this results in the non-controlling interests having a deficit balance.
When necessary, adjustments are made to the financial statements of subsidiaries to bring their accounting policies into line with the Group’s accounting policies.
All intragroup assets and liabilities, equity, income, expenses and cash flows relating to transactions between members of the Group are eliminated in full on consolidation.
3.4 Segment Reporting
The Group has three operating segments: publishing, direct sales and channel sales. In identifying these operating segments, management generally follows the Group’s service lines representing its main products and services (see Note 7).
Each of these operating segments are managed separately as each requires different technologies, marketing approach and other resources.
3.5 Revenue
Overview
Revenue arises mainly from the sale of digital marketing solutions and associated services.
To determine whether to recognise the revenue, the Group follows a 5-step process:
1. | Identifying the contract with a customer |
2. | Identifying performance obligations |
3. | Determining the transaction price |
4. | Allocating the transaction price to the performance obligations |
5. | Recognising revenue when/as performance obligations are satisfied |
F-10 |
The Group often enters into transactions involving a range of the Group’s products and services, for example for the delivery software and related after-sales support.
In all cases, the total transaction price for a contract is allocated amongst the various performance obligations based on their relative stand-alone selling prices. The transaction price for a contract excludes any amounts collected on behalf of third parties.
Revenue is recognised either at a point in time or over time, when (or as) the Group satisfies performance obligations by transferring the promised goods or services to its customers.
The Group recognises contract liabilities for consideration received in respect of unsatisfied performance obligations and reports these amounts as contract liabilities in the statement of financial position (see Note 20). Similarly, if the Group satisfies a performance obligation before it receives the consideration, the Group recognises either a contract asset or a receivable in its statement of financial position, depending on whether something other than the passage of time is required before the consideration is due.
● | Publishing: The Group generates revenues from its online properties (websites) through advertisements on a Pay-Per-Impression or similar basis and through publishing business directory listings on a per insertion basis. Advertising revenues are primarily derived through third parties and accordingly recognised on a net basis during the period in which the advertisements or listings are published. | |
● | Direct: The Group separately identifies end user customers to which we have a direct sales, support and billing relationship. These customers are primarily through the SuperMedia business who acquire a range of digital products and services. Revenue is derived from providing customers access to group platforms and is recognised in accordance with the terms of contracts provided in the subscription agreement. The SaaS and related support revenue (if any) is recognised over time, being the subscription period, as the customer simultaneously receives and consumes the benefit of accessing the platform. |
Revenues from the sale of product licences are recognised during the period in which the subscription is made available to our customers for use.
Where the Group provides services which involve developing a customer-specific website design or solution, in such cases, revenue is recognised during the period in which the professional services were delivered or upon the achievement of agreed milestones.
Access to the platforms is not considered distinct from other performance obligations, as access to any platform alone does not allow the customer to obtain substantially all the benefits of the access, and is therefore accounted for as a single performance obligation.
Consideration received can be variable in nature, based upon customer usage in excess of contractually agreed units. The variable consideration is included in the transaction price at the company’s best estimate, using either an expected value or most likely outcome, whichever provides the best estimate and is included in revenue to the extent that it is highly probable that there will be no significant reversal of the cumulative amount of revenue when any price uncertainty is resolved.
● | Channel: The Group separately identifies end user customers to which sales, support and billing relationships are conducted through third party resellers and partners. |
Revenues from the sale of product licences are recognised during the period in which the subscription is made available to our reseller for use. Where the Group provides services which involve developing a customer-specific website design or solution, in such cases, revenue is recognised during the period in which the professional services were delivered or upon the achievement of agreed milestones.
3.6 Foreign currencies
The individual financial statements of each group entity are presented in the currency of the primary economic environment in which the entity operates (its functional currency). For the purpose of the consolidated financial statements, the results and financial position of each group entity are expressed in Australian dollars (A$), which is the functional currency of the Company and the presentation currency for the consolidated financial statements.
F-11 |
In preparing the financial statements of each individual group entity, transactions in currencies other than the entity’s functional currency are recognised at the rates of exchange prevailing at the dates of the transactions. At the end of each reporting period, monetary items denominated in foreign currencies are retranslated at the rates prevailing at that date. Non-monetary items carried at fair value that are denominated in foreign currencies are retranslated at the rates prevailing at the date when the fair value was determined. Non-monetary items that are measured in terms of historical cost in a foreign currency are not retranslated.
For the purpose of presenting these consolidated financial statements, the assets and liabilities of the Group’s foreign operations are translated into Australian dollars using exchange rates prevailing at the end of the reporting period, unless exchange rates fluctuated significantly during that period, in which case the exchange rates at the dates of the transactions are used. Exchange differences arising, if any, are recognised in other comprehensive income and accumulated in equity.
3.7 Government grants
JobKeeper
The Federal Government’s JobKeeper scheme effectively provided a wage subsidy to entities materially impacted by COVID-19. The JobKeeper scheme ended on 28 March 2021.
This grant is recognised as a receivable when there is reasonable assurance that the entity will comply with the conditions attached to the grant and the grant will be received. The grant is recognised in profit or loss in the period in which the entity recognises the related costs as expenses. Where the employee cost is recognised as an expense, the entity has an accounting policy choice of presenting the grant income as other income, or alternatively deducting the grant from the related expense. The entity has elected to recognise as income on a systematic basis over the periods that the related costs, for which it is intended to compensate, are expenses.
Other government grants
Government grants are recognised where there is reasonable assurance that the grant will be received and all attached conditions will be complied with. When the grant relates to an expense item, it is recognised as income on a systematic basis over the periods that the related costs, for which it is intended to compensate, are expensed.
When the grant relates to an asset, it is recognised as income in equal amounts over the expected useful life of the related asset. When the Group receives grants of non-monetary assets, the asset and the grant are recorded at nominal amounts and released to profit or loss over the expected useful life of the asset, based on the pattern of consumption of the benefits of the underlying asset by equal annual instalments.
3.8 Employee benefits
A liability is recognised for benefits accruing to employees in respect of wages and salaries, annual leave, long service leave, when it is probable that settlement will be required and they are capable of being measured reliably.
Liabilities recognised in respect of short-term employee benefits, are measured at their nominal values using the remuneration rate expected to apply at the time of settlement.
Liabilities recognised in respect of long-term employee benefits are measured as the present value of the estimated future cash outflows to be made by the Group in respect of services provided by employees up to reporting date.
3.9 Share-based payments arrangements
Equity-settled share-based payments to employees and others providing similar services are measured at the fair value of the equity instruments at the grant date.
F-12 |
Equity-settled share-based payment transactions with parties other than employees are measured at the fair value of the goods or service received, except where that fair value cannot be estimated reliably, in which case they are measured at their fair value of the equity instruments granted, measured at the date the entity obtains the goods or the counterparty renders the service.
The Group measures options issued by reference to the fair value of the equity instrument at the date which they are granted using either the Binomial model or Black-Scholes model, taking into account the terms and conditions upon which the instruments were granted.
For performance rights, the Group makes a judgement around whether performance conditions, linked to activities are more probable to be met at which point the value of the rights are recognised either in full or over any service period. The judgement made is based on management’s knowledge of the performance condition and how the Group is tracking bases on activities as at the report date and with reference to subsequent events. The fair value of performance rights with non-market conditions are measured based on the fair value of the security (usually the last capital raising price of the Group’s securities in an open market). The fair value of performance rights for market conditions is measured at the date at which they are granted and are determined using the one of the Monte Carlo model, Binomial model and Black Scholes model, considering the terms and conditions upon which the instruments were granted.
3.10 Taxation
Income tax expense represents the sum of the tax currently payable and deferred tax.
Current tax
The tax currently payable is based on taxable profit for the year. Taxable profit differs from profit before tax as reported in the consolidated statement of profit or loss and other comprehensive income because of items of income or expense that are taxable or deductible in other years, and items that are never taxable or deductible. The Group’s current tax is calculated using tax rates that have been enacted or substantively enacted by the end of the reporting period.
Deferred tax
Deferred tax is recognised on temporary differences between the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities in the consolidated financial statements and the corresponding tax bases used in the computation of taxable profit. Deferred tax liabilities are generally recognised for all taxable temporary differences. Deferred tax assets are generally recognised for all deductible temporary differences to the extent that it is probable that taxable profits will be available against which those deductible temporary differences can be utilised. Such deferred tax assets and liabilities are not recognised if the temporary differences arise from the initial recognition of assets and liabilities in a transaction that affects neither the taxable profit nor the accounting profit.
Deferred tax assets and liabilities are measured at the tax rates that are expected to apply in the period in which the liability is settled or the asset realised, based on tax rates (and tax laws) that have been enacted or substantively enacted by the end of the reported period. The measurement of deferred tax liabilities and assets reflects the tax consequences that would follow from the manner in which the Group expects, at the end of the reporting period, to recover or settle the carrying amount of its assets and liabilities.
3.11 Property, plant and equipment
Fixtures and equipment are stated at cost less accumulated depreciation and accumulated impairment losses.
Depreciation is recognised so as to write off the cost or valuation of assets less their residual values over their useful lives, using the diminishing value method. The estimated useful lives, residual values and depreciation method are reviewed at the end of each reporting period, with the effect of any changes in estimate accounted for on a prospective basis.
F-13 |
An item of property, plant and equipment is derecognised upon disposal or when no future economic benefits are expected to arise from the continued use of the asset. Any gain or loss arising on the disposal or retirement of an item of property, plant and equipment is determined as the difference between the sales proceeds and the carrying amount of the asset and is recognised in profit or loss.
Depreciation is recognised on a straight-line basis to write down the cost less estimated residual value of buildings, IT equipment and other equipment. The following useful lives are applied:
Class of fixed asset | Depreciation rate | |
Plant and equipment | 10-25% | |
Office furniture and equipment | 20% |
In the case of right-of-use assets, expected useful lives are determined by reference to comparable owned assets or the lease term, if shorter. Material residual value estimates and estimates of useful life are updated as required, but at least annually.
Gains or losses arising on the disposal of property, plant and equipment are determined as the difference between the disposal proceeds and the carrying amount of the assets and are recognised in profit or loss within other income or other expenses.
3.12 Intangible assets other than goodwill
Research and development
Expenditure on research activities is recognised as an expense in the period in which it is incurred.
An internally-generated intangible asset arising from development is recognised if, and only if, all of the following have been demonstrated:
● | the technical feasibility of completing the intangible asset so that it will be available for use or sale; |
● | the intention to complete the intangible asset and use or sell it; |
● | the ability to use or sell the intangible asset; |
● | how the intangible asset will generate probable future economic benefits; |
● | the availability of adequate technical, financial and other resources to complete the development and to use or sell the intangible asset; and |
● | the ability to measure reliably the expenditure attributable to the intangible asset during its development. |
The amount initially recognised for internally-generated intangible assets is the sum of the expenditure incurred from the date when the intangible asset first meets the recognition criteria listed above. Where no internally-generated intangible asset can be recognised, development expenditure is recognised in profit or loss in the period in which it is incurred.
Subsequent to initial recognition, internally-generated intangible assets are reported at cost less accumulated amortisation and accumulated impairment losses.
Patents and trademarks
Patents and trademarks are recognised at cost of acquisition and amortised over their useful lives. They have a finite life and are reported at cost less accumulated amortisation and accumulated impairment losses.
Databases
Databases are recognised at cost of acquisition and amortised over their useful lives. They have a finite life as data becomes dated and are reported at cost less accumulated amortisation and accumulated impairment losses.
The following useful lives are applied:
Class of fixed asset | Amortisation Rate | |||
Database | 16.67 | % | ||
Patents | 5 | % | ||
Trademarks | 10 | % |
F-14 |
3.13 Impairment of tangible and intangible assets other than goodwill
At the end of each reporting period, the Group reviews the carrying amounts of its tangible and intangible assets to determine whether there is any indication that those assets have suffered an impairment loss. If any such indication exists, the recoverable amount of the asset is estimated in order to determine the extent of the impairment loss (if any). When it is not possible to estimate the recoverable amount of an individual asset, the Group estimates the recoverable amount of the cash-generating unit to which the asset belongs. When a reasonable and consistent basis of allocation can be identified, corporate assets are also allocated to individual cash-generating units, or otherwise they are allocated to the smallest group of cash-generating units for which a reasonable and consistent allocation basis can be identified.
Intangible assets with indefinite useful lives and intangible assets not yet available for use are tested for impairment at least annually, and whenever there is an indication that the asset may be impaired.
Recoverable amount is the higher of fair value less costs to sell and value in use. In assessing value in use, the estimated future cash flows are discounted to their present value using a pre-tax discount rate that reflects current market assessments of the time value of money and the risks specific to the asset for which the estimates of future cash flows have not been adjusted.
If the recoverable amount of an asset is estimated to be less than its carrying amount, the carrying amount of the asset is reduced to its recoverable amount. An impairment loss is recognised immediately in profit or loss, unless the relevant asset is carried at a revalued amount, in which case the impairment loss is treated as a revaluation decrease.
When an impairment loss subsequently reverses, the carrying amount of the asset is increased to the revised estimate of its recoverable amount, but so that the increased carrying amount does not exceed the carrying amount that would have been determined had no loss been recognised for the asset in prior years. A reversal of an impairment loss is recognised immediately in profit or loss, unless the relevant asset is carried at a revalued amount, in which case the reversal of the impairment loss is treated as a revaluation increase.
3.13. Provisions
Provisions for product warranties, legal disputes, onerous contracts or other claims are recognised when the Group has a present legal or constructive obligation as a result of a past event, it is probable that an outflow of economic resources will be required from the Group and amounts can be estimated reliably. The timing or amount of the outflow may still be uncertain.
Provisions are not recognised for future operating losses.
Provisions are measured at the estimated expenditure required to settle the present obligation, based on the most reliable evidence available at the reporting date, including the risks and uncertainties associated with the present obligation. Where there are a number of similar obligations, the likelihood that an outflow will be required in settlement is determined by considering the class of obligations as a whole. Provisions are discounted to their present values, where the time value of money is material.
No liability is recognised if an outflow of economic resources as a result of present obligations is not probable. Such situations are disclosed as contingent liabilities unless the outflow of resources is remote.
3.14. Financial instruments
Recognition and derecognition
Financial assets and financial liabilities are recognised when the Group becomes a party to the contractual provisions of the financial instrument.
F-15 |
Financial assets are derecognised when the contractual rights to the cash flows from the financial asset expire, or when the financial asset and substantially all the risks and rewards are transferred. A financial liability is derecognised when it is extinguished, discharged, cancelled or expires.
Classification and initial measurement of financial assets
All financial assets are initially measured at fair value adjusted for transaction costs (where applicable). Financial assets are classified into one of the following categories:
● | amortised cost |
● | fair value through profit or loss (FVTPL), or |
● | fair value through other comprehensive income (FVOCI). |
In the periods presented the Group does not have any financial assets categorised as FVTPL or FVOCI.
The classification is determined by both:
● | the entity’s business model for managing the financial asset, and |
● | the contractual cash flow characteristics of the financial asset. |
All revenue and expenses relating to financial assets that are recognised in profit or loss are presented within finance costs, finance income or other financial items.
Subsequent measurement of financial assets
Financial assets are measured at amortised cost if the assets meet the following conditions (and are not designated as FVTPL):
● | they are held within a business model whose objective is to hold the financial assets and collect its contractual cash flows, and |
● | the contractual terms of the financial assets give rise to cash flows that are solely payments of principal and interest on the principal amount outstanding. |
After initial recognition, these are measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method. Discounting is omitted where the effect of discounting is immaterial.
Impairment of financial assets
IFRS 9’s impairment requirements use forward-looking information to recognise expected credit losses – the ‘expected credit loss (ECL) model’. Instruments within the scope of the requirements included loans and other debt-type financial assets measured at amortised cost and FVOCI, trade receivables, contract assets recognised and measured under IFRS 15 and loan commitments and some financial guarantee contracts (for the issuer) that are not measured at fair value through profit or loss.
The Group considers a broader range of information when assessing credit risk and measuring expected credit losses, including past events, current conditions, reasonable and supportable forecasts that affect the expected collectability of the future cash flows of the instrument.
In applying this forward-looking approach, a distinction is made between:
● | financial instruments that have not deteriorated significantly in credit quality since initial recognition or that have low credit risk (‘Stage 1’) and |
● | financial instruments that have deteriorated significantly in credit quality since initial recognition and whose credit risk is not low (‘Stage 2’). |
‘Stage 3’ would cover financial assets that have objective evidence of impairment at the reporting date.
‘12-month expected credit losses’ are recognised for the first category (ie Stage 1) while ‘lifetime expected credit losses’ are recognised for the second category (ie Stage 2).
F-16 |
Trade and other receivables and contract assets
The Group makes use of a simplified approach in accounting for trade and other receivables as well as contract assets and records the loss allowance as lifetime expected credit losses. These are the expected shortfalls in contractual cash flows, considering the potential for default at any point during the life of the financial instrument. In calculating, the Group uses its historical experience, external indicators and forward-looking information to calculate the expected credit losses. The Group assesses impairment of trade receivables on an individual account basis.
Classification and measurement of financial liabilities
The Group’s financial liabilities include borrowings, trade and other payables and derivative financial instruments.
Financial liabilities are initially measured at fair value, and, where applicable, adjusted for transaction costs unless the Group designated a financial liability at fair value through profit or loss.
Subsequently, financial liabilities are measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method except for derivatives and financial liabilities designated at FVTPL, which are carried subsequently at fair value with gains or losses recognised in profit or loss (other than derivative financial instruments that are designated and effective as hedging instruments). All interest-related charges and, if applicable, changes in an instrument’s fair value that are reported in profit or loss are included within finance costs or finance income.
Convertible Notes
The component parts of convertible notes issued by the Group are classified separately as financial liabilities and equity in accordance with the substance of the contractual arrangements and the definitions of a financial liability and an equity instrument. Conversion options that will be settled by the exchange of a fixed amount of cash or another financial asset for a fixed number of the Company’s own equity instruments is an equity instrument.
At the date of issue, the fair value of the liability component is estimated using the prevailing market interest rate for similar non-convertible instruments. This amount is recognised as a liability on an amortised cost basis using the effective interest method until extinguished upon conversion or at the instrument’s maturity date.
3.15. Trade and other receivables
The Group makes use of a simplified approach in accounting for trade and other receivables and records the loss allowance as lifetime expected credit losses. These are expected shortfalls in contractual cash flows, considering the potential for default at any point during the lifetime of the financial instrument. In calculating, the Group uses its historical experience, external indicators and forward-looking information to calculate expected credit losses using a provision matrix.
The Group asses impairment of trade receivables on a collective basis as they possess shared credit risk characteristics they have been grouped based on the days past due.
The Group assess impairment of trade receivables on a collective basis as they possess shared credit risk characteristics they have been grouped based on the days past due. Refer to Note 3.14 for a detailed analysis of how the impairment requirements of IAS 9 are applied.
3.16. Goods and services tax
Revenues, expenses and assets are recognised net of the amount of goods and services tax (GST), except:
i. | where the amount of GST incurred is not recoverable from the taxation authority, it is recognised as part of the cost of acquisition of an asset or as part of an item of expense; or |
ii. | for receivables and payable which are recognised inclusive of GST. |
F-17 |
The net amount of GST recoverable from, or payable to, the taxation authority is included as part of receivables or payables.
Cash flows are included in the cash flow statement on a gross basis. The GST component of cash flows arising from investing and financing activities which is recoverable from, or payable to, the taxation authority is classified within operating cash flows.
3.17. Classification and measurement of financial liabilities
The Group’s financial liabilities include borrowings, trade payables and other payables.
Financial liabilities are initially measured at fair value, and, where applicable, adjusted for transaction costs unless the Group designated a financial liability at fair value through profit or loss.
Subsequently, financial liabilities are measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method except for financial liabilities designated at FVTPL, which are carried subsequently at fair value with gains or losses recognised in profit or loss.
All interest-related charges and, if applicable, changes in an instrument’s fair value that are reported in profit or loss are included within finance costs or finance income.
3.18. Leases
For any new contracts entered into the Group considers whether a contract is, or contains a lease. A lease is defined as ‘a contract, or part of a contract, that conveys the right to use an asset (the underlying asset) for a period of time in exchange for consideration’. To apply this definition the Group assesses whether the contract meets three key evaluations which are whether:
● | the contract contains an identified asset, which is either explicitly identified in the contract or implicitly specified by being identified at the time the asset is made available to the Group; |
● | the Group has the right to obtain substantially all of the economic benefits from use of the identified asset throughout the period of use, considering its rights within the defined scope of the contract; |
● | the Group has the right to direct the use of the identified asset throughout the period of use. The Group assess whether it has the right to direct ‘how and for what purpose’ the asset is used throughout the period of use. |
At lease commencement date, the Group recognises a right of use asset and a lease liability on the balance sheet. The right of use asset is measured at cost, which is made up of the initial measurement of the lease liability, any initial direct costs incurred by the Group, an estimate of any costs to dismantle and remove the asset at the end of the lease, and any lease payments made in advance of the lease commencement date (net of any incentives received).
The Group depreciates the right of use assets on a straight-line basis from the lease commencement date to the earlier of the end of the useful life of the right of use asset or the end of the lease term. The Group also assesses the right of use asset for impairment when such indicators exist.
At the commencement date, the Group measures the lease liability at the present value of the lease payments unpaid at that date, discounted using the interest rate implicit in the lease if that rate is readily available or the Group’s incremental borrowing rate.
Lease payments included in the measurement of the lease liability are made up of fixed payments (including in substance fixed), variable payments based on an index or rate, amounts expected to be payable under a residual value guarantee and payments arising from options reasonably certain to be exercised.
Subsequent to initial measurement, the liability will be reduced for payments made and increased for interest. It is remeasured to reflect any reassessment or modification, or if there are changes in in-substance fixed payments.
F-18 |
When the lease liability is remeasured, the corresponding adjustment is reflected in the right of use asset, or profit and loss if the right of use asset is already reduced to zero.
The Group has elected to account for short-term leases and leases of low-value assets using the practical expedients. Instead of recognising a right of use asset and lease liability, the payments in relation to these are recognised as an expense in profit or loss on a straight-line basis over the lease term.
On the statement of financial position, right of use assets have been included in property, plant and equipment and lease liabilities have been included in trade and other payables.
Short-term leases and leases of low value
Short-term leases (lease term of 12 months or less) and leases of low value assets (under 5,000 AUD) are recognised as incurred as an expense in the consolidated income statement. Low value assets comprise office equipment hire.
3.19. Equity, reserves and dividend payments
Share capital represents the nominal (par) value of shares that have been issued.
Share premium includes any premiums received on issue of share capital. Any transaction costs associated with the issuing of shares are deducted from share premium, net of any related income tax benefits.
Other components of equity include the following:
● | share option reserve – comprises equity-settled employee benefits and equity-settled supplier payments (see Note 3.8 and Note 3.9) |
● | translation reserve – comprises foreign currency translation differences arising from the translation of financial statements of the Group’s foreign entity into functional currency (see Note 3.6). |
Accumulated losses include all current and prior period accumulated losses.
All transactions with owners of the parent are recorded separately within equity.
Dividend distributions payable to equity shareholders are included in other liabilities when the dividends have been approved in a general meeting prior to the reporting date.
4. Significant management judgement in applying accounting policies and estimation uncertainty
The following are the judgements made by management in applying the accounting policies of the Group that have the most significant effect on these consolidated financial statements.
Recognition of revenues due to COVID-19
The extent to which revenue can be recognised is, amongst other criteria, based on an assessment of the impact of COVID-19 on our customers and in particular trade receivables risk.
Capitalisation of internally developed software
Distinguishing the research and development phases of a new customised software project and determining whether the recognition requirements for the capitalisation of development costs are met requires judgement. After capitalisation, management monitors whether the recognition requirements continue to be met and whether there are any indicators that capitalised costs may be impaired (see Note 3.13). Costs relating to maintaining current technology platforms are expensed in the period they are incurred.
F-19 |
Recognition of deferred tax assets
The extent to which deferred tax assets can be recognised is based on an assessment of the probability that future taxable income will be available against which the deductible temporary differences and tax loss carry-forwards can be utilised. In addition, significant judgement is required in assessing the impact of any legal or economic limits or uncertainties.
Research and development tax offset:
Research and development tax offers are recognised when it is reasonable reliable the costs relating to the project can be determined. Refundable research and development credits received from the research and development tax offset scheme are accounted for as a government grant as per IAS 20. Consequently, a credit has been recognised in the same period necessary to match the benefits of the credit with the costs for which it is intended to compensate. This credit has been presented as other income.
Estimating uncertainty
Impairment of non-financial assets
In assessing impairment, management estimates the recoverable amount of each asset or cash generating unit based on expected future cash flows and uses an interest rate to discount them. Estimation uncertainty relates to assumptions about future operating results and the determination of a suitable discount rate.
Useful lives and residual values of depreciable assets
Management reviews its estimate of the useful lives and residual values of depreciable assets at each reporting date, based on the expected utility of the assets. Uncertainties in these estimates relate to technological obsolescence that may change the utility of certain software and IT equipment.
Leases – determination of the appropriate discount rate to measure lease liabilities
As noted above, the Group enters into leases with third-party landlords and as a consequence the rate implicit in the relevant lease is not readily determinable. Therefore, the Group uses its incremental borrowing rate as the discount rate for determining its lease liabilities at the lease commencement date. The incremental borrowing rate is the rate of interest that the Group would have to pay to borrow over similar terms which requires estimations when no observable rates are available.
F-20 |
5. Revenue
The following is an analysis of the Group’s revenue for the year from continuing operations. The Group’s revenue disaggregated by primary revenue sources are as follows:
For the year ended 2021 | ||||||||||||||||
Publishing | Direct | Channel | Total | |||||||||||||
Subscriptions | - | 1,153,255 | 208,855 | 1,362,110 | ||||||||||||
Advertising | 177,126 | - | - | 177,126 | ||||||||||||
Data | 602,304 | - | - | 602,304 | ||||||||||||
Services | - | 29,770 | 20,115 | 49,885 | ||||||||||||
Total | 779,430 | 1,183,025 | 228,970 | 2,191,425 |
For the year ended 2020 | ||||||||||||||||
Publishing | Direct | Channel | Total | |||||||||||||
Subscriptions | - | 552,794 | 278,939 | 831,733 | ||||||||||||
Advertising | 174,498 | 1,500 | - | 175,998 | ||||||||||||
Data | 616,873 | - | - | 616,873 | ||||||||||||
Print directory sales | 310,349 | - | - | 310,349 | ||||||||||||
Services | - | 50,409 | - | 50,409 | ||||||||||||
Total | 1,101,720 | 604,703 | 278,939 | 1,985,362 |
The Group’s revenue disaggregated by primary geographical markets is as follows:
For the year ended 2021 | ||||||||||||||||
Publishing | Direct | Channel | Total | |||||||||||||
Australia | 34,741 | 1,042,621 | 170,061 | 1,247,423 | ||||||||||||
Europe | 398,406 | 132,000 | - | 530,406 | ||||||||||||
United States | 315,711 | 7,772 | 7,778 | 331,261 | ||||||||||||
Other countries | 30,572 | 632 | 51,131 | 82,335 | ||||||||||||
Total | 779,430 | 1,183,025 | 228,970 | 2,191,425 |
For the year ended 2020 | ||||||||||||||||
Publishing | Direct | Channel | Total | |||||||||||||
Australia | 383,085 | 602,659 | 106,478 | 1,092,223 | ||||||||||||
Europe | 433,487 | - | 152,000 | 585,487 | ||||||||||||
United States | 283,890 | - | - | 282,890 | ||||||||||||
Other countries | 1,257 | 2,044 | 20,461 | 23,762 | ||||||||||||
Total | 1,101,720 | 604,703 | 616,873 | 1,985,362 |
The Group’s revenue disaggregated by pattern of revenue recognition is as follows:
For the year ended 2021 | ||||||||||||||||
Publishing | Direct | Channel | Total | |||||||||||||
Services transferred at a point in time | 177,126 | 29,770 | 20,115 | 227,011 | ||||||||||||
Services transferred over time | 602,304 | 1,153,255 | 208,855 | 1,964,414 | ||||||||||||
Total | 779,430 | 1,183,025 | 228,970 | 2,191,425 |
For the year ended 2020 | ||||||||||||||||
Publishing | Direct | Channel | Total | |||||||||||||
Services transferred at a point in time | 174,498 | 51,909 | - | 226,407 | ||||||||||||
Services transferred over time | 927,720 | 552,794 | 278,939 | 1,758,955 | ||||||||||||
Total | 1,101,720 | 604,703 | 278,939 | 1,985,362 |
F-21 |
6. Other Income
Consolidated Group | ||||||||||
2021 A$ |
2020 A$ |
|||||||||
Government subsidy | (a) | 290,900 | 116,000 | |||||||
Research and development grants | (b) | 497,358 | 494,577 | |||||||
Other income | - | 4,779 | ||||||||
Total other income | 788,258 | 615,356 |
(a) | Comprising Jobkeeper and COVID-19 Cashflow Boost subsidies. |
(b) | R&D Tax Incentive. |
7. Segment Reporting
Management currently identifies three operating segments (see Note 3.4). Management monitors the performance of these operating segments as well as deciding on the allocation of resources to them. Segmental performance is monitored using adjusted segment operating results.
For the year ended 2021 | ||||||||||||||||
Publishing | Direct | Channel | Total | |||||||||||||
Revenue | ||||||||||||||||
From external customers | 779,430 | 1,183,025 | 228,970 | 2,191,425 | ||||||||||||
Segment revenue | 779,430 | 1,183,025 | 228,970 | 2,191,425 | ||||||||||||
Technology expense | (225,324 | ) | (12,724 | ) | (376 | ) | (238,424 | ) | ||||||||
Employee benefit expense | (407,876 | ) | (359,082 | ) | (209,251 | ) | (976,209 | ) | ||||||||
Occupancy expense | (1,857 | ) | (15,807 | ) | - | (17,664 | ) | |||||||||
Advertising expense | (659 | ) | (46,734 | ) | - | (47,393 | ) | |||||||||
Depreciation and amortisation | (198,578 | ) | (143,468 | ) | (10,544 | ) | (352,590 | ) | ||||||||
Other expenses | (294 | ) | (625 | ) | (1,379 | ) | (2,298 | ) | ||||||||
Segment operating profit/(loss) | (55,158 | ) | 604,585 | 7,420 | 556,847 | |||||||||||
Segment assets | 1,654,054 | 151,460 | 85,889 | 1,891,403 | ||||||||||||
Segment liabilities | (382,104 | ) | (212,644 | ) | (43,251 | ) | (637,999 | ) |
For the year ended 2020 | ||||||||||||||||
Publishing | Direct | Channel | Total | |||||||||||||
Revenue | ||||||||||||||||
From external customers | 1,101,720 | 604,703 | 278,939 | 1,985,362 | ||||||||||||
Segment revenue | 1,101,720 | 604,703 | 278,939 | 1,985,362 | ||||||||||||
Technology expense | (251,859 | ) | (10,875 | ) | - | (262,734 | ) | |||||||||
Employee benefit expense | (404,527 | ) | (478,592 | ) | - | (883,119 | ) | |||||||||
Occupancy expense | (2,585 | ) | (72,562 | ) | - | (75,147 | ) | |||||||||
Advertising expense | (128,275 | ) | (98,144 | ) | - | (226,419 | ) | |||||||||
Depreciation and amortisation | (180,146 | ) | (58,345 | ) | (40,259 | ) | (278,750 | ) | ||||||||
Other expenses | (6,609 | ) | (14,305 | ) | (4,180 | ) | (25,094 | ) | ||||||||
Segment operating profit/(loss) | 127,719 | (128,120 | ) | 234,500 | 234,099 | |||||||||||
Segment assets | 1,218,608 | 29,210 | 5,968 | 1,253,786 | ||||||||||||
Segment liabilities | (101,986 | ) | (157,069 | ) | - | (259,055 | ) |
During 30 June 2021, A$292,179 or 10.9% (2020: A$318,843 or 12.8%) of the Group’s revenues depended on a single customer in the publishing segment.
F-22 |
The totals presented for the Group’s operating segments reconcile to the key financial figures as presented in its financial statements as follows:
7. Segment Reporting (Cont.)
2021 A$ |
2020 A$ |
|||||||
Revenue | ||||||||
Total reportable segment revenue | 2,191,425 | 1,985,362 | ||||||
Segment operating profit/(loss) | 556,847 | 234,099 | ||||||
Other income not allocated | 290,900 | 120,779 | ||||||
Research and development grants | 497,358 | 494,577 | ||||||
Research and development costs | (761,140 | ) | (1,274,584 | ) | ||||
Technology expenses not allocated | (48,750 | ) | (41,604 | ) | ||||
Employee benefit expense not allocated | (986,580 | ) | (906,305 | ) | ||||
Occupancy expense not allocated | (34,555 | ) | (29,272 | ) | ||||
Advertising expense not allocated | (20,182 | ) | (39,577 | ) | ||||
Consultancy expense not allocated | (240,928 | ) | (273,978 | ) | ||||
Depreciation and amortisation not allocated | (44,916 | ) | (84,167 | ) | ||||
Impairment of financial assets not allocated | (14,690 | ) | - | |||||
Other expenses not allocated | (130,217 | ) | (413,324 | ) | ||||
Group operating loss | (936,853 | ) | (2,213,356 | ) | ||||
Finance costs | (58,913 | ) | (108,471 | ) | ||||
Group loss before tax | (995,766 | ) | (2,321,827 | ) |
2021 A$ |
2020 A$ |
|||||||
Assets | ||||||||
Total reportable segment assets | 1,911,403 | 1,253,786 | ||||||
Other segment assets | 870,177 | 378,500 | ||||||
Group assets | 2,781,580 | 1,632,286 | ||||||
Liabilities | ||||||||
Total reportable segment liabilities | (657,999 | ) | (259,055 | ) | ||||
Other segment liabilities | (2,959,059 | ) | (3,536,972 | ) | ||||
Group liabilities | 3,617,058 | 3,796,027 |
8. Other expenses and financial costs
Consolidated Group | ||||||||
2021 A$ |
2020 A$ |
|||||||
Other expenses | ||||||||
Travel & related expenses | (7,558 | ) | (56,290 | ) | ||||
Legal expenses | (93,801 | ) | (249,316 | ) | ||||
Insurance expenses | (59,685 | ) | (60,733 | ) | ||||
Business expenses | (4,958 | ) | (31,531 | ) | ||||
Foreign exchange gain / (loss) | 33,487 | (9,747 | ) | |||||
Share based payment | - | (30,800 | ) | |||||
Total other expenses | (132,515 | ) | (438,417 | ) | ||||
Finance costs | ||||||||
Interest expense | (40,106 | ) | (86,127 | ) | ||||
Bank charges | (8,155 | ) | (8,060 | ) | ||||
Merchant facility fees | (10,652 | ) | (14,284 | ) | ||||
Total finance costs | (58,913 | ) | (108,471 | ) |
F-23 |
9. Tax expense
(a) Tax expense
The major components of tax expense and the reconciliation of the expected tax expense based on the domestic effective tax rate of Locafy Limited at 26% (2020: 27.5%) and the reported tax expense in profit or loss are as follows:
Consolidated Group | ||||||||
2021 A$ |
2020 A$ |
|||||||
Loss before income tax | (995,766 | ) | (2,321,827 | ) | ||||
Domestic tax rate | 26 | % | 27.5 | % | ||||
Expected tax expense/(benefit) | (258,899 | ) | (638,502 | ) | ||||
Adjustment for tax-exempt income: | ||||||||
- Decline in value of depreciating assets | (12,401 | ) | (141,285 | ) | ||||
- Other deductable expenses | (142,272 | ) | (161,467 | ) | ||||
- R&D tax rebate | (136,773 | ) | (136,009 | ) | ||||
Adjustment for non-deductible expenses: | ||||||||
- R&D expenses | - | 314,422 | ||||||
- Other non-deductable expenses | 176,897 | 252,031 | ||||||
Income tax expense/(benefit) | - | - | ||||||
Movement in unrecognised deferred tax | 373,448 | 510,810 |
(b) Deferred tax assets and liabilities
As at 30 June 2021, the Company had accumulated tax losses totalling A$25,825,721 (2020: A$24,847,504). A deferred tax asset in relation to the tax value of losses carried forward has not been recognised in the accounts as, presently, the Company does not expect to be in a position to utilise these losses in the foreseeable future.
10. Trade and other receivables
Trade and other receivables consist of the following:
Consolidated Group | ||||||||
2021 A$ |
2020 A$ |
|||||||
Trade receivables | 368,285 | 214,054 | ||||||
Trade receivables | 368,285 | 214,054 | ||||||
Amounts receivable from other parties | ||||||||
Related parties | - | - | ||||||
Other parties | - | - | ||||||
GST receivable | 22,731 | 17,963 | ||||||
Trade and other receivables | 391,016 | 232,017 |
All amounts are short term. The net carrying amount of trade receivables is considered a reasonable approximation of fair value.
F-24 |
The following table details the Group’s trade receivables exposed to credit risk with ageing analysis and provisions for impairment. Amounts are considered “past due” when the debt has not been settled with the terms and conditions agreed between the Group and the customer. Receivables that are past due are assessed for impairment by ascertaining solvency of the debtor and are provided for where there are specific circumstances indicating that the debt may not be fully repaid to the Group. Allowance for credit losses for 30 June 2021 have been assessed as insignificant, as the credit risk for trade receivables is negligible.
10. Trade and other receivables (Cont.)
Consolidated Group | ||||||||
2021 A$ |
2020 A$ |
|||||||
Gross amount | 368,285 | 214,054 | ||||||
Within initial trade terms | 217,461 | 31,629 | ||||||
Past due but not impaired (days overdue) | ||||||||
< 30 days | 80,365 | 40,429 | ||||||
31 – 60 days | 19,625 | 107,160 | ||||||
61 – 90 days | 15,728 | 16,614 | ||||||
> 90 days | 35,106 | 18,222 | ||||||
368,285 | 214,054 |
11. Other assets
Consolidated Group | ||||||||
2021 A$ |
2020 A$ |
|||||||
Current | ||||||||
Prepayments | 164,346 | 56,490 | ||||||
Deposits | 69,942 | 61,960 | ||||||
234,288 | 118,450 |
12. Interest in Subsidiaries
The consolidated financial statements incorporate the assets, liabilities and results of the following subsidiaries in accordance with accounting policy described in Note 3:
Name of subsidiary | Principal activity | Place of incorporation and operation | Proportion of ownership interest and voting power held by the Group | |||||||||
2021 | 2020 | |||||||||||
Moboom USA Inc | Dormant | USA | 100 | % | 100 | % |
13. Property, plant & equipment
Consolidated Group | ||||||||
2021 A$ |
2020 A$ |
|||||||
Carrying amounts of: | ||||||||
Plant & equipment | 12,392 | 5,698 | ||||||
12,392 | 5,698 |
F-25 |
Movements in carrying amounts between the beginning and end of the financial year.
Consolidated Group | ||||||||
2021 A$ |
2020 A$ |
|||||||
Plant & equipment | ||||||||
Opening balance | 5,698 | 5,821 | ||||||
Additions | 8,784 | 1,480 | ||||||
Disposals | - | - | ||||||
Depreciation expense | (2,090 | ) | (1,603 | ) | ||||
Carrying amount of plant & equipment | 12,392 | 5,698 |
14. Right of use assets and lease liabilities
Right-of-use assets
Buildings A$ |
||||
Gross carrying amount | ||||
Balance as at 1 July 2020 | 153,788 | |||
Additions | - | |||
Disposals | - | |||
Balance as at 30 June 2021 | 153,788 |
Depreciation and impairment | ||||
Balance as at 1 July 2020 | (23,213 | ) | ||
Disposals | - | |||
Depreciation | (34,819 | ) | ||
Balance as at 30 June 2021 | (58,032 | ) | ||
Carrying amount as at 30 June 2021 | 95,756 |
Lease liabilities
Lease liabilities are presented in the consolidated statement of financial position as follows:
Consolidated Group | ||||||||
2021 A$ |
2020 A$ |
|||||||
Current | 43,298 | 17,785 | ||||||
Non-current | 87,400 | 130,698 | ||||||
130,698 | 148,483 |
The Company has a lease for office space. This lease is reflected in the consolidated financial statement of financial position as a right-of-use asset and a lease liability. For the lease over the office space, the Company must keep this property in a good state of repair and return the property in their original condition at the end of lease.
F-26 |
Right-of-use asset |
No of right-of-use assets leased |
Range of remaining term |
Average remaining lease term |
No of leases with extension options |
No of leases with options to purchase |
No of leases with variable payments linked to an index |
No of leases with termination options |
|||||||||||||||
Office building | 1 | 2-4 years | 2 years | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
The lease liabilities are secured by the related underlying assets. Future minimum lease payments at 30 June 2021 were as follows:
Within 1 year | 1-2 years | 2-3 years | Total | |||||||||||||
Lease payments | 51,642 | 53,018 | 40,555 | 145,215 | ||||||||||||
Finance charges | (8,344 | ) | (4,934 | ) | (1,239 | ) | (14,517 | ) | ||||||||
Net present value | 43,298 | 48,084 | 39,316 | 130,698 |
15. | Intangible assets |
Consolidated Group | ||||||||
2021 A$ |
2020 A$ |
|||||||
Carrying amounts of: | ||||||||
Databases | 1,340,179 | 918,951 | ||||||
Trademarks | 22,458 | 37,754 | ||||||
Patents | 34,760 | 27,650 | ||||||
1,397,397 | 984,355 |
Databases | ||||||||
Opening balance | 918,951 | 1,150,846 | ||||||
Additions | 773,638 | 46,855 | ||||||
Disposals | - | - | ||||||
Amortisation expense | (352,410 | ) | (278,750 | ) | ||||
Carrying amount for databases | 1,340,179 | 918,951 |
Patents | ||||||||
Opening balance | 37,754 | 94,453 | ||||||
Additions | - | - | ||||||
Disposals | - | (54,116 | ) | |||||
Amortisation expense | (2,994 | ) | (2,583 | ) | ||||
Carrying amount for patents | 34,760 | 37,754 |
Trademarks | ||||||||
Opening balance | 27,650 | 24,500 | ||||||
Additions | - | 5,818 | ||||||
Disposals | - | - | ||||||
Amortisation expense | (5,192 | ) | (2,668 | ) | ||||
Carrying amount for trademarks | 22,458 | 27,650 |
On 1 November 2020, the Company acquired the customer database and intellectual property assets of PinkPages, a long established Australian online business directory. The acquisition was made to enhance the Company’s position in expanding its citation management network as well as providing a customer base to which the Company can cross sell its digital solutions.
The acquisition of PinkPages comprised of an upfront cash payment of A$80,000, followed by 14 equal monthly instalments of A$40,000 each. A further performance component is payable if net sales for 12 months from PinkPages exceed target levels agreed by both parties. The maximum total consideration payable to the vendor is capped at A$980,000. The reported asset value reflects the amount of consideration that has been paid at balance date.
F-27 |
During FY21, a further A$168,262 was paid with respect to the FY20 acquisition of the intellectual property assets of Aussieweb. This included a A$100,000 share-based payment (refer Note 21).
16. Trade and other payables
Consolidated Group | ||||||||
2021 A$ |
2020 A$ |
|||||||
Trade payables | 475,069 | 1,026,622 | ||||||
Sundry payables | 342,968 | 141,813 | ||||||
Deferred consideration | 240,000 | - | ||||||
1,058,037 | 1,168,435 |
17. Borrowings
Borrowings include the following financial liabilities:
Consolidated Group | ||||||||||
2021 A$ |
2020 A$ |
|||||||||
Short term loan | - | 307,577 | ||||||||
Net interest and fees payable on loans | - | 6,493 | ||||||||
Convertible notes | (a) | 435,600 | 405,600 | |||||||
435,600 | 719,670 | |||||||||
Balance at the beginning of the period | 719,670 | 807,091 | ||||||||
Short term loans | - | 440,950 | ||||||||
Net interest and fees payable on loans | - | 17,743 | ||||||||
Repayment of borrowings | (314,070 | ) | (401,114 | ) | ||||||
Conversion of debt to equity | - | (145,000 | ) | |||||||
Convertible notes | (b) | 30,000 | - | |||||||
435,600 | 719,670 |
(a) | As at 30 June 2021 the convertible notes are due and payable. The Company has on issue A$435,600 in unsecured convertible notes, including accrued interest. A$405,600 of these notes have matured, have a fixed repayment amount and are not accruing further interest. These notes automatically convert to equity upon an ASX listing at a 50% discount to the listing price. In the event an ASX listing does not occur the notes will be redeemed in cash at their face value plus interest. All convertible notes are due and payable as at reporting date. |
(b) | The A$30,000 in convertible notes mature in 12 months from the date the funds are received. They are redeemable at 120% of the note’s face value, non-interest bearing and automatically convert to equity upon a NASDAQ listing at a 20% discount to the listing price. |
18. Provisions
Consolidated Group | ||||||||
2021 A$ |
2020 A$ |
|||||||
Employee benefits | ||||||||
Current | 384,914 | 288,224 | ||||||
Non Current | 10,557 | 5,693 | ||||||
395,471 | 293,917 |
The provision for employee benefits represents accrued annual leave and vested and unvested long service leave entitlements.
19. Accrued expenses
Consolidated Group | ||||||||
2021 A$ |
2020 A$ |
|||||||
Current | ||||||||
Accrued expenses | 310,835 | 239,051 | ||||||
Salaries payable | 145,305 | 218,009 | ||||||
456,140 | 457,060 | |||||||
Non-Current | ||||||||
Salaries payable | 1,117,033 | 976,048 | ||||||
1,117,033 | 976,048 |
The net increase in the carrying amount of salaries payable for the current year results from benefits payable to employees who have agreed to defer payment 12 months from the date of signing the financial statements to assist the company with managing its cash flow.
20. Contract liabilities
Contract liabilities consist of the following:
Consolidated Group | ||||||||
2021 A$ |
2020 A$ |
|||||||
Deferred revenue | 24,079 | 32,414 | ||||||
24,079 | 32,414 |
21. Issued capital
Note |
2021 Number of Shares |
2021 Share Capital A$ |
2020 Number of Shares |
2020 Share Capital A$ |
||||||||||||||
Balance at 1 July | 347,795,378 | 33,179,391 | 360,372,075 | 31,599,639 | ||||||||||||||
Shares issued from capital raisings | (a) | 19,150,000 | 1,740,000 | 37,140,573 | 2,301,050 | |||||||||||||
Shares issued to convertible note holders | - | - | 550,000 | 30,800 | ||||||||||||||
Cancellation of ordinary shares due to buy-back | - | - | (52,467,725 | ) | (800,001 | ) | ||||||||||||
Share based payments | (b) | 3,720,400 | 415,832 | 360,000 | 20,000 | |||||||||||||
Shares issued to related parties | (c) | 800,000 | 80,000 | 800,000 | 80,000 | |||||||||||||
Shares issued for assets | (d) | 500,000 | 100,000 | - | - | |||||||||||||
Share issue costs | - | (10,150 | ) | 1,040,455 | (52,097 | ) | ||||||||||||
Balance at 30 June | (e) | 371,965,778 | 35,505,073 | 347,795,378 | 33,179,391 |
* Amounts prior to Reverse Share Split of 20 August 2021 (refer Note 32)
(a) The Company issued ordinary shares for cash at an average price of A$0.091 per share (2020: A$0.062).
(b) Share based payments relate to shares issued as payments to suppliers in lieu of cash at an average price of A$0.11 per share.
(c) These shares were issued for director’s fees in lieu of cash payments at an average price of A$0.10 per share.
(d) Shares issued in relation to the acquisition of the Aussieweb business assets at an average price of A$0.20 per share.
(e) The net change in shares issued during the year corresponds to an increase of 6.9% total shares issued (2020: -3.5%).
F-28 |
22. Reserves
Consolidated Group | ||||||||||
Notes |
2021 A$ |
2020 A$ |
||||||||
Foreign currency translation reserve | (a) | |||||||||
Opening balance at 1 July | 193,886 | 193,886 | ||||||||
Exchange differences arising from foreign operations | (1,653 | ) | (4,205 | ) | ||||||
Closing balance at 30 June | 192,233 | 193,886 | ||||||||
Share option reserve | (b) | |||||||||
Opening balance at 1 July | 3,603,916 | 3,603,916 | ||||||||
Equity-settled employee benefits | 2,615,194 | 2,615,194 | ||||||||
Equity-settled supplier payments | 988,722 | 988,722 | ||||||||
Closing balance at 30 June | 3,603,916 | 3,603,916 | ||||||||
Total reserves | 3,796,149 | 3,797,802 |
22. Reserves (Cont.)
(a) Foreign currency translation reserve
Exchange differences relating to the translation of the results and net assets of the Group’s foreign operations from their functional currencies to the Group’s presentation currency (ie Australian dollars) are recognised directly in other comprehensive income and accumulated in the foreign currency translation reserve.
(b) Share option reserve
The Company had issued share options to certain employees and suppliers. While these options have since expired unexercised, the value of the options at the date of issue are accumulated in the share option reserve.
In addition to the above, the Company has issued Performance Rights (refer Note 29). At the date of issuing the Performance Rights, it was assessed that it would be highly probable that the vesting conditions would not be met and the Performance Right would expire unexercised. Accordingly, there has been no change to share option reserve.
23. Accumulated losses
Consolidated Group | ||||||||
2021 A$ |
2020 A$ |
|||||||
Balance at beginning of year | (39,140,934 | ) | (36,819,107 | ) | ||||
Profit attributable to owners of the Company | (995,766 | ) | (2,321,827 | ) | ||||
Balance at end of year | (40,136,700 | ) | (39,140,934 | ) | ||||
24. Reconciliation of profit for the year to net cash flows from operating activities
Consolidated Group | ||||||||
2021 A$ |
2020 A$ |
|||||||
Loss for the year | (995,766 | ) | (2,321,827 | ) | ||||
Adjustments for: | ||||||||
Depreciation of property, plant and equipment | 2,090 | 9,534 | ||||||
Amortisation of intangible assets | 360,597 | 338,100 | ||||||
Depreciation of right of use asset | 34,819 | 23,213 | ||||||
Share based payments | - | 30,800 | ||||||
Foreign exchange loss | (1,653 | ) | (4,205 | ) | ||||
Expected credit losses | 14,690 | - | ||||||
Operating cash flows before movements in working capital | 410,543 | 397,442 | ||||||
Movements in working capital | ||||||||
(Increase)/decrease in trade and other receivables | (173,689 | ) | (22,123 | ) | ||||
(Increase)/decrease in prepayments and deposits | (115,838 | ) | 14,457 | |||||
Increase/(decrease) in trade and other payables | 65,435 | 529,419 | ||||||
Increase/(decrease) in provisions and accruals | 321,619 | 160,270 | ||||||
Increase/(decrease) in deferred revenue | (8,335 | ) | (242,227 | ) | ||||
Cash generated from operations | 89,192 | 439,796 | ||||||
Net cash generated by operating activities | (496,031 | ) | (1,484,589 | ) |
F-29 |
25. | Earnings per share |
Both basic and diluted earnings per share have been calculating the profit attributable to shareholders of the parent company (Locafy Limited) as the numerator, i.e. no adjustments to profit were necessary in 2021 or 2020.
Consolidated Group | ||||||||
2021 | 2020 | |||||||
Net loss attributable to ordinary equity holders of the company | (A$995,766) | (A$2,321,827) | ||||||
Weighted average number of ordinary shares outstanding during the year used in calculation of basic and diluted loss per share* | 18,598,414 | 17,389,769 | ||||||
Loss per share (cents per share) | (A$0.05) | (A$0.13) | ||||||
On 20 August 2021, the Company’s shareholders authorised, at an extraordinary general shareholders meeting, a one-for-twenty reverse share split of our issued and outstanding ordinary shares (the “Reverse Share Split”). In accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards the weighted average number of ordinary shares for financial years 2021 and 2020 is adjusted retrospectively. A reconciliation of the adjusted weighted average number of shares on issue is as follows:
Consolidated Group | ||||||||
2021 No. |
2020 No. |
|||||||
Issued capital as at reporting date | 371,965,778 | 347,795,378 | ||||||
Adjusted issued capital balance as at reporting date including the twenty to one reverse share split | 18,598,414 | 17,389,769 |
26. Contingent liabilities
There were no contingent liabilities in both 2021 and 2020.
27. Financial risk management and policies
The financial instruments of the Company comprise of (i) cash and cash equivalents; (ii) trade and other receivables; (iii) other financial assets; (iv) trade and other payables and (vi) borrowings (convertible notes).
Risk management is carried out under the policies approved by the Board of Directors. The Board identifies and evaluates the risk and takes appropriate measures to minimise the risk.
The financial instruments expose the Company to certain risks. The nature and extent of such risks, and management’s risk management strategy are noted below.
Fair value of financial instruments |
Consolidated Group | |||||||
2021 A$ |
2020 A$ |
|||||||
Cash and cash equivalents | 650,731 | 161,192 | ||||||
Trade and other receivables 1 | 368,285 | 214,054 | ||||||
Term deposits with financial institutions 2 | 69,942 | 61,960 | ||||||
Trade and other payables 1 | (1,058,037 | ) | (1,168,435 | ) | ||||
Borrowings 3 | - | (314,070 | ) | |||||
30,921 | (1,045,299 | ) |
F-30 |
1. | The fair values are a close approximation of the carrying amounts for trade and other receivables and payables on account of the short term maturity cycle. |
2. | The fair values are a close approximation of the carrying amounts for term deposits as these deposits are interest bearing and are rolled over at short maturity. |
3. | Borrowings relate to short term loan (see Note 17). |
27. Financial risk management and policies (Cont.)
Risk management strategies
Credit risk
The Company’s credit risk arises from potential default of trade and other receivables. The receivable balances primarily relate to advertising and data publication sales, which are largely recurring monthly. The credit risk arising from such balances are mitigated by the Company’s ability to terminate the services provided to the debtor. For services engagements, the Company generally requires an upfront deposit prior to commencing the work.
Credit risk also exists in relation to the probable default of the financial institutions in honouring the cash balances at maturity. However, this is considered to be low as the Company transacts with highly reputed financial institutions which are subject to strict prudential norms by legislation/regulations.
Liquidity risk
The Company’s liquidity risks arise from potential inability of the Company to meet its financial obligations as and when they fall due, generally due to a shortage of cleared funds. The Company is exposed to liquidity risk on account of trade and other payables.
The Company manages its liquidity risk through continuously monitoring the cleared funds position and by utilising short term cash budgets and negotiating extended payment terms.
The contractual maturity analysis of the Company’s financial instruments is noted below:
2021 |
3 months or less A$ |
Over 3 to 12 months A$ |
Total A$ |
|||||||||
Financial liabilities: | ||||||||||||
Trade and other payables | (1,058,037 | ) | - | (1,058,037 | ) | |||||||
(1,058,037 | ) | - | (1,058,037 | ) | ||||||||
Financial assets: | ||||||||||||
Cash and cash equivalents | 650,731 | - | 650,731 | |||||||||
Trade and other receivables | 319,016 | - | 319,016 | |||||||||
Term deposit with financial institutions | - | 69,942 | 69,942 | |||||||||
969,747 | 69,942 | 1,039,689 |
2020 |
3 months or less A$ |
Over 3 to 12 months A$ |
Total A$ |
|||||||||
Financial liabilities: | ||||||||||||
Trade and other payables | (1,168,435 | ) | - | (1,168,435 | ) | |||||||
Borrowings | - | (314,070 | ) | (314,070 | ) | |||||||
(1,168,435 | ) | (314,070 | ) | (1,168,749 | ) | |||||||
Financial assets: |
||||||||||||
Cash and cash equivalents | 161,192 | - | 161,192 | |||||||||
Trade and other receivables | 266,641 | - | 266,641 | |||||||||
Term deposit with financial institutions | - | 61,960 | 61,960 | |||||||||
427,833 | 61,960 | 489,793 |
F-31 |
27. Financial risk management and policies (Cont.)
Interest rate risk
Interest rate risk is the risk that fair values and cash flows of the Company’s financial instruments will be affected by changes in the market interest rates.
The Company’s cash and term deposits with financial institutions are impacted by interest rate risks. Other receivables and payables have short maturities and are non-interest bearing. Management believes that the risk of interest rate movement would not have a material impact on the Company’s operations.
The Company is in the business of software development. Earning interest income is not the primary objective of the business. Hence, management does not closely monitor the movements in market interest rates as these do not have a material impact on the Company’s business activities. The cash balances and term deposits are placed at the prevailing short term market interest rates with credit worthy financial institutions.
At the reporting date, the interest rate risk profile of the consolidated entity’s interest-bearing financial instruments was as follows:
Fixed Interest maturing in: | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2021 |
Floating interest rate
|
1 year or less | Over 1 to 5 years | More than 5 years | Non-Interest bearing | Total | Weighted average interest rate | |||||||||||||||||||||
Financial Liabilities | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Trade and other payables | - | - | - | - | 1,058,037 | 1,058,037 | Nil | |||||||||||||||||||||
Borrowings | - | - | - | - | 435,600 | 435,600 | Nil | |||||||||||||||||||||
- | - | - | - | 1,493,637 | 1,493,637 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Financial Assets: | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Cash and cash equivalents | - | - | - | - | 650,731 | 650,731 | Nil | |||||||||||||||||||||
Trade and other receivables | - | - | - | - | 319,016 | 319,016 | Nil | |||||||||||||||||||||
Term deposits with financial institutions | - | 69,942 | - | - | - | 69,942 | 0.28 | % | ||||||||||||||||||||
- | 69,942 | - | - | 969,747 | 1,039,689 |
Fixed Interest maturing in: | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
2020 | Floating interest rate | 1 year or less | Over 1 to 5 years | More than 5 years | Non-Interest bearing | Total | Weighted average interest rate | |||||||||||||||||||||
Financial Liabilities | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Trade and other payables | - | - | - | - | 1,168,435 | 1,168,435 | Nil | |||||||||||||||||||||
Borrowings | - | 314,070 | - | - | 405,600 | 719,670 | 6.11 | % | ||||||||||||||||||||
- | 314,070 | - | - | 1,574,035 | 1,888,105 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Financial assets |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Cash and cash equivalents | - | - | - | - | 161,192 | 161,192 | Nil | |||||||||||||||||||||
Trade and other receivables | - | - | - | - | 266,641 | 266,641 | Nil | |||||||||||||||||||||
Term deposits with financial institutions | - | 58,810 | - | - | - | 58,810 | 1.42 | % | ||||||||||||||||||||
Other deposits | - | - | - | - | 3,150 | 3,150 | Nil | |||||||||||||||||||||
- | 58,810 | - | - | 430,983 | 489,793 |
F-32 |
27. Financial risk management and policies (Cont.)
The consolidated entity has performed sensitivity analysis relating to its exposure to interest rate risk, at balance date. The sensitivity analysis demonstrates the effect on the current year results and equity which could result from a change in these risks. At 30 June 2021, the effect on profit and equity as a result in changes in the interest rate, with all other variables remaining constant would be as follows:
2021 A$ |
2020 A$ |
|||||||
Impact on profit and equity for a +1% movement | (699 | ) | (2,553 | ) | ||||
Impact on profit and equity for a -1% movement | 699 | 2,553 |
Foreign currency risk
Foreign exchange risk arises from future commercial transaction and recognised assets and liabilities dominated in a currency that is not the entity’s functional currency and net investments in foreign operations. The functional and presentation currency of the Company is Australian Dollars.
The Company manages foreign currency risk by continuously monitoring expected cash receipts and payments in their respective currencies together with movements in foreign currency exchange rates. The Company does not currently engage in any hedging activities.
28. Capital management policies and procedures
The Company’s capital management objectives are:
● | To ensure the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern |
● | To provide an adequate return to shareholders by pricing products and services in a way that reflects the level of risk involved in providing those goods and services. |
Management assesses the Company’s capital requirements in order to maintain an efficient overall financing structure while avoiding excessive leverage. The Company manages the capital structure and makes adjustments to it in the light of changes in economic conditions and the risk characteristics of the underlying assets. In order to maintain or adjust the capital structure, the Company may issue new shares, convert debt to equity or sell assets to reduce debt.
29. Share-based payments
Performance Rights Plan
The Group has a performance-based compensation scheme which allows select employees and consultants the right to acquire ordinary shares in Locafy upon the attainment of certain milestones and performance targets (“Performance Right”). No amounts are paid or payable by the recipient on receipt of the Performance Right or the shares (if issued). The Performance Rights carry neither entitlement to dividends nor voting rights.
F-33 |
Performance Rights Vesting Conditions
Tranche | Vesting Conditions | Expiry Date | ||
1 | Total Group operating revenue greater than A$500,000 for 3 consecutive calendar months. | 31 December 2021 | ||
2 | Total Group operating revenue greater than A$1,000,000 for 3 consecutive calendar months. | 31 December 2022 | ||
3 | Total Group operating revenue greater than A$2,000,000 for 3 consecutive calendar months. | 31 December 2023 | ||
4 | Total Group operating revenue greater than A$2,500,000 for 3 consecutive calendar months. | 31 December 2023 |
29. Share-based payments (Cont.)
Due to the impact of COVID-19 on the Company’s listing and hence its ability to access capital to execute on operational plans, the expiry dates for each vesting conditions were extended by 6 months. On 16 November 2020, when the expiry dates were extended, the Group’s operating revenues were similar to the operating revenues at the time the Performance Rights were initially issued, which was significantly below the vesting conditions thresholds. Accordingly, it was assessed that there was no change in the incremental fair value of the Performance Rights granted and merely affirmed the Company’s initial assessment that it was highly probable that the Performance Rights would expire unexercised. Accordingly, despite the modification to the vesting conditions no incremental change to share-based payments expense has been recognised for these Performance Rights.
Movements in Performance Rights during the year
The following reconciles the Performance Rights outstanding at the beginning and end of the year:
Tranche 1 | Tranche 2 | |||||||||||||||
2021 | 2020 | 2021 | 2020 | |||||||||||||
Balance at beginning of year | 245,000 | - | 367,500 | - | ||||||||||||
Granted during the year | 47,800 | 245,000 | 123,575 | 367,500 | ||||||||||||
Forfeited during the year | (75,000 | ) | - | (112,500 | ) | - | ||||||||||
Exercised during the year | - | - | - | - | ||||||||||||
Expired during the year | - | - | - | - | ||||||||||||
Balance at end of year | 217,800 | 245,000 | 378,575 | 367,500 |
Tranche 3 | Tranche 4 | |||||||||||||||
2021 | 2020 | 2021 | 2020 | |||||||||||||
Balance at beginning of year | 612,500 | - | - | - | ||||||||||||
Granted during the year | 122,625 | 612,500 | - | - | ||||||||||||
Forfeited during the year | (187,500 | ) | - | - | - | |||||||||||
Exercised during the year | - | - | - | - | ||||||||||||
Expired during the year | - | - | - | - | ||||||||||||
Balance at end of year | 547,625 | 612,500 | - | - |
The number of Performance Rights granted under Tranche 4 will increase by the number of expired Performance Rights granted under Tranches 1 to 3, as and when those Performance Rights expire.
On 20 August 2021, our shareholders authorised, at an extraordinary general shareholders meeting, a one-for-twenty reverse share split of our issued and outstanding ordinary shares (the “Reverse Share Split”). All performance rights issued were also subject to the Reverse Share Split and the amounts following the split are reflected in the table above.
F-34 |
30. Key management personnel compensation
The aggregate compensation paid or payable to key management personnel of the Group is set out below:
Consolidated Group | ||||||||
2021 A$ |
2020 A$ |
|||||||
Short-term employee benefits | 617,263 | 655,640 | ||||||
Post-employment benefits | 47,500 | 49,163 | ||||||
Share-based payment | 80,000 | 80,000 | ||||||
744,763 | 784,803 |
31. Related party transactions
Balance and transactions between the Company and its subsidiaries, which are related parties of the Company, have been eliminated on consolidation and are not disclosed in this note. There are otherwise no transactions between the Group and other related parties requiring disclosure.
32. Post-reporting date events
Between the 30 June reporting date and the date of authorisation, the Company has raised a further A$880,000 under the same convertible note instrument disclosed under Note 17(b), namely these convertible notes will mature in 12 months from the date the funds are received. They are redeemable at 120% of the note’s face value, non-interest bearing and automatically convert to equity upon a Nasdaq listing at a 20% discount to the listing price. The Company has engaged advisers to list on the Nasdaq Capital Markets which will involve raising further capital through an Initial Public Offer. The convertible notes disclosed under Note 17(b) will convert to equity upon Nasdaq listing, however, the Company intends to settle all convertible notes disclosed under Note 17(a) with funds raised from the Nasdaq listing.
On 20 August 2021, our shareholders authorised, at an extraordinary general shareholders meeting, a one-for-twenty reverse share split of our issued and outstanding ordinary shares (the “Reverse Share Split”). No fractional ordinary shares were issued in connection with the Reverse Share Split, and all such fractional interests were rounded to the nearest whole number. Issued and outstanding performance rights were split on the same basis. Unless noted otherwise, all information presented in these financial statements, including the share and per share amounts, reflects the Reverse Share Split.
33. Authorisation of financial statements
The consolidated financial statements for the year ended 30 June 2021 (including comparatives) were approved by the board of directors on 10 November 2021.
Gavin Burnett | Melvin Tan | |
Chief Executive Officer | Chief Financial Officer |
F-35 |
Locafy Limited
ACN 136 737 767
Unaudited Consolidated Financial Statements For the six months ended 31 December 2021
F-36 |
Locafy Limited
Consolidated statement of profit or loss and other comprehensive income for the six months ended 31 December 2021
Note |
6 months to 31 Dec 2021 A$ (unaudited) |
6 months to 31 Dec 2020 A$ (unaudited) |
Year to 30 Jun 2021 A$
|
||||||||||||
Revenue | 6 | 1,795,821 | 916,380 | 2,191,425 | |||||||||||
Other income | 7 | 386,245 | 775,058 | 788,258 | |||||||||||
Technology expense | (776,023 | ) | (263,831 | ) | (651,644 | ) | |||||||||
Employee benefits expense | (2,098,756 | ) | (1,083,559 | ) | (2,359,459 | ) | |||||||||
Occupancy expense | (23,167 | ) | (31,673 | ) | (52,219 | ) | |||||||||
Advertising expense | (39,379 | ) | (40,529 | ) | (67,575 | ) | |||||||||
Consultancy expense | (352,609 | ) | (159,283 | ) | (240,928 | ) | |||||||||
Depreciation and amortisation expense | (200,544 | ) | (194,297 | ) | (397,506 | ) | |||||||||
Other expenses | (40,670 | ) | (5,732 | ) | (132,515 | ) | |||||||||
Impairment of financial assets | - | (10,726 | ) | (14,690 | ) | ||||||||||
Operating loss | (1,349,082 | ) | (98,192 | ) | (936,853 | ) | |||||||||
Financial cost | (24,530 | ) | (35,993 | ) | (58,913 | ) | |||||||||
Loss before income tax | (1,373,612 | ) | (134,185 | ) | (995,766 | ) | |||||||||
Income tax expense | - | - | - | ||||||||||||
Loss for the period | (1,373,612 | ) | (134,185 | ) | (995,766 | ) | |||||||||
Other comprehensive income | |||||||||||||||
Items that will be reclassified subsequently to profit and loss: | |||||||||||||||
Exchange differences on translating foreign operations | (18,050 | ) | 21,411 | (1,653 | ) | ||||||||||
Total Comprehensive Loss for the period | (1,391,662 | ) | (112,774 | ) | (997,419 | ) | |||||||||
Earnings per share | |||||||||||||||
Basic loss per share | (0.07 | ) | (0.01 | ) | (0.05 | ) | |||||||||
Diluted loss per share | (0.07 | ) | (0.01 | ) | (0.05 | ) |
This statement should be read in conjunction with the notes to the financial statements.
F-37 |
Locafy Limited
Consolidated statement of financial position as at 31 December 2021
Note |
31 Dec 2021 A$ (unaudited) |
31 Dec 2020 A$ (unaudited) |
30 Jun 2021 A$
|
||||||||||||
Assets | |||||||||||||||
Current assets | |||||||||||||||
Cash and cash equivalents | 762,739 | 399,571 | 650,731 | ||||||||||||
Trade and other receivables | 850,825 | 462,242 | 391,016 | ||||||||||||
Other assets | 302,785 | 145,054 | 234,288 | ||||||||||||
Total current assets | 1,916,349 | 1,006,867 | 1,276,035 | ||||||||||||
Non-current assets | |||||||||||||||
Property, plant and equipment | 42,459 | 5,016 | 12,392 | ||||||||||||
Right of use assets | 9 | 452,711 | 113,165 | 95,756 | |||||||||||
Intangible assets | 1,212,589 | 1,227,115 | 1,397,397 | ||||||||||||
Total non-current assets | 1,707,759 | 1,345,296 | 1,505,545 | ||||||||||||
Total assets | 3,624,108 | 2,352,163 | 2,781,580 | ||||||||||||
Liabilities | |||||||||||||||
Current liabilities | |||||||||||||||
Trade and other payables | 1,322,516 | 1,274,698 | 1,058,037 | ||||||||||||
Borrowings | 10 | 2,182,600 | 405,600 | 435,600 | |||||||||||
Provisions | 467,156 | 344,885 | 384,914 | ||||||||||||
Accrued expenses | 185,397 | 435,779 | 456,140 | ||||||||||||
Lease liabilities | 9 | 19,507 | 33,882 | 43,298 | |||||||||||
Contract and other liabilities | 23,334 | 30,688 | 24,079 | ||||||||||||
Total current liabilities | 4,200,510 | 2,525,532 | 2,402,068 | ||||||||||||
Non-current liabilities | |||||||||||||||
Lease liabilities | 9 | 439,480 | 109,622 | 87,400 | |||||||||||
Provisions | 17,413 | 8,580 | 10,557 | ||||||||||||
Accrued expenses | 1,193,845 | 1,200,429 | 1,117,033 | ||||||||||||
Total non-current liabilities | 1,650,738 | 1,318,631 | 1,214,990 | ||||||||||||
Total liabilities | 5,851,248 | 3,844,163 | 3,617,058 | ||||||||||||
Net liabilities | (2,227,140 | ) | (1,492,000 | ) | (835,478 | ) | |||||||||
Equity | |||||||||||||||
Issued capital | 11 | 35,505,073 | 33,963,905 | 35,505,073 | |||||||||||
Reserves | 3,778,099 | 3,819,214 | 3,796,149 | ||||||||||||
Accumulated losses | (41,510,312 | ) | (39,275,119 | ) | (40,136,700 | ) | |||||||||
Total deficiency | (2,227,140 | ) | (1,492,000 | ) | (835,478 | ) |
This statement should be read in conjunction with the notes to the financial statements.
F-38 |
Locafy Limited
Consolidated statement of changes in equity for the six months ended 31 December 2021
Consolidated | Issued capital | Foreign currency translation reserve | Share option reserve | Accumulated losses | Total | |||||||||||||||
A$ (unaudited) |
A$ (unaudited) |
A$ (unaudited) |
A$ (unaudited) |
A$ (unaudited) |
||||||||||||||||
Balance at 1 July 2021 | 35,505,073 | 192,233 | 3,603,916 | (40,136,700 | ) | (835,478 | ) | |||||||||||||
Loss for the period | - | - | - | (1,373,612 | ) | (1,373,612 | ) | |||||||||||||
Exchange difference on translation of foreign operations | - | (18,050 | ) | - | - | (18,050 | ) | |||||||||||||
Total other comprehensive income | - | (18,050 | ) | - | (1,373,612 | ) | (1,391,662 | ) | ||||||||||||
Issue of ordinary shares | - | - | - | - | - | |||||||||||||||
Share issue costs | - | - | - | - | - | |||||||||||||||
Balance at 31 December 2021 | 35,505,073 | 174,183 | 3,603,916 | (41,510,312 | ) | (2,227,140 | ) | |||||||||||||
Balance at 1 July 2020 | 33,179,391 | 193,886 | 3,603,916 | (39,140,934 | ) | (2,163,741 | ) | |||||||||||||
Loss for the period | - | - | - | (134,185 | ) | (134,185 | ) | |||||||||||||
Exchange difference on translation of foreign operations | - | 21,411 | - | - | 21,411 | |||||||||||||||
Total other comprehensive income | - | 21,411 | - | (134,185 | ) | (112,774 | ) | |||||||||||||
Issue of ordinary shares | 794,665 | - | - | - | 794,665 | |||||||||||||||
Share issue costs | (10,150 | ) | - | - | - | (10,150 | ) | |||||||||||||
Balance at 31 December 2020 | 33,963,906 | 215,297 | 3,603,916 | (39,275,119 | ) | (1,492,000 | ) | |||||||||||||
Balance at 1 July 2020 | 33,179,391 | 193,886 | 3,603,916 | (39,140,934 | ) | (2,163,741 | ) | |||||||||||||
Loss for the year | - | - | - | (995,766 | ) | (995,766 | ) | |||||||||||||
Exchange difference on translation of foreign operations | - | (1,653 | ) | - | - | (1,653 | ) | |||||||||||||
Total other comprehensive income | - | (1,653 | ) | - | (995,766 | ) | (997,419 | ) | ||||||||||||
Issue of ordinary shares | 2,335,832 | - | - | - | 2,335,832 | |||||||||||||||
Share issue costs | (10,150 | ) | - | - | - | (10,150 | ) | |||||||||||||
Balance at 30 June 2021 | 35,505,073 | 192,233 | 3,603,916 | (40,136,700 | ) | (835,478 | ) |
This statement should be read in conjunction with the notes to the financial statements.
F-39 |
Locafy Limited
Consolidated statement of cash flows for the six months ended 31 December 2021
Note |
6 months to 31 Dec 2021 A$ (unaudited) |
6 months to 31 Dec 2020 A$ (unaudited) |
Year to 30 Jun 2021 A$
|
||||||||||||
Operating activities | |||||||||||||||
Receipts from customers | 1,267,516 | 926,525 | 2,192,798 | ||||||||||||
Payments to suppliers and employees | (2,949,753 | ) | (1,111,345 | ) | (3,127,274 | ) | |||||||||
R&D Tax Rebate | 7 | 386,245 | 497,358 | 497,358 | |||||||||||
Financial Cost | (24,530 | ) | (35,993 | ) | (58,913 | ) | |||||||||
Net cash from operating activities | (1,320,522 | ) | 276,545 | (496,031 | ) | ||||||||||
Investing activities | |||||||||||||||
Purchase of intellectual property | (261,737 | ) | (418,965 | ) | (433,639 | ) | |||||||||
Purchase of property, plant and equipment | (33,827 | ) | - | (8,784 | ) | ||||||||||
Net cash used in investing activities | (295,564 | ) | (418,965 | ) | (442,423 | ) | |||||||||
Financing activities | |||||||||||||||
Proceeds from issue of shares | - | 710,000 | 1,739,999 | ||||||||||||
Payment for share issue costs | - | (10,150 | ) | (10,150 | ) | ||||||||||
Borrowings | 1,747,000 | (314,070 | ) | (284,070 | ) | ||||||||||
Leasing liabilities | (18,906 | ) | (4,980 | ) | (17,785 | ) | |||||||||
Net cash from financing activities | 1,728,094 | 380,800 | 1,427,994 | ||||||||||||
Net change in cash and cash equivalents | 112,008 | 238,380 | 489,540 | ||||||||||||
Cash and cash equivalents, beginning of year | 650,731 | 161,191 | 161,191 | ||||||||||||
Cash and cash equivalents, end of period | 762,739 | 399,571 | 650,731 | ||||||||||||
This statement should be read in conjunction with the notes to the financial statements.
F-40 |
Notes to the financial statements
1. Nature of operations
Locafy Limited (the Company) is an unlisted public company incorporated in Australia. The Company’s principal activities are the continued development of Locafy’s technologies and the commercialisation of the Locafy platform. The Locafy platform has the capability to rapidly produce voice, mobile and web search optimised listings, landing pages, locators and lead sites at large scale. The Company’s activities include selling Locafy’s software-as-a-service products direct to end user and through channel partners, related after-sales service and research and development. The Company also owns and operates a number of online properties from which it derives revenues through publishing content and advertising.
2. General information, basis of preparation and statement of compliance with IFRS
The Financial Statements are for the six months ended 31 December 2021 and are presented in Australian Dollars (A$), which is the functional currency of the parent company. They have been prepared in accordance with the accounting principles generally accepted under International Financial Reporting Standards (“IFRS”). They do not include all of the information required in annual financial statements in accordance with IFRS, and should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements for the year ended 30 June 2021.
3. New Standards adopted at 1 July 2021
There are no accounting pronouncements which have become effective from 1 July 2021 that have a significant impact on the Company’s interim consolidated financial statements.
4. Unaudited interim financial statements
In the opinion of the Company’s management, the financial statements reflect all adjustments, consisting only of a normal recurring nature, necessary to present fairly the Company’s Statements of Financial Position at 31 December 2021, Statements of Financial Performance, Statements of Changes in Equity and Statements of Cash Flows for the six months ended 31 December 2021 and 31 December 2020. Certain notes and other information have been condensed or omitted from the interim financial statements. Therefore, these financial statements should be read in conjunction with the audited consolidated financial statements and the related notes thereto for the fiscal year ended 30 June 2021.
There have been no significant changes in accounting policies during the six months ended 31 December 2021 and 31 December 2020, from those disclosed in the annual consolidated financial statements for the year ended 30 June 2021 and the related notes.
5. Estimates and judgements
When preparing the Financial Statements, management undertakes a number of judgements, estimates and assumptions about recognition and measurement of assets, liabilities, income and expenses. The actual results may differ from the judgements, estimates and assumptions made by management, and will seldom equal the estimated results.
The judgements, estimates and assumptions applied in the Financial Statements, including the key sources of estimation uncertainty, were the same as those applied in the Company’s last annual consolidated financial statements for the year ended 30 June 2021.
6. Revenue
The Group’s revenue disaggregated by primary revenue sources are as follows:
F-41 |
6. Revenue (cont.)
Year to 30 June 2021 | ||||||||||||||||
Publishing | Direct | Channel | Total | |||||||||||||
Subscriptions | - | 1,153,255 | 208,855 | 1,362,110 | ||||||||||||
Advertising | 177,126 | - | - | 177,126 | ||||||||||||
Data | 602,304 | - | - | 602,304 | ||||||||||||
Services | - | 29,770 | 20,115 | 49,885 | ||||||||||||
Total | 779,430 | 1,183,025 | 228,970 | 2,191,425 |
The Group’s revenue disaggregated by primary geographical markets is as follows:
Year to 30 June 2021 | ||||||||||||||||
Publishing | Direct | Channel | Total | |||||||||||||
Australia | 34,741 | 1,042,621 | 170,061 | 1,247,423 | ||||||||||||
Europe | 398,406 | 132,000 | - | 530,406 | ||||||||||||
United States | 315,711 | 7,772 | 7,778 | 331,261 | ||||||||||||
Other countries | 30,572 | 632 | 51,131 | 82,335 | ||||||||||||
Total | 779,430 | 1,183,025 | 228,970 | 2,191,425 |
The Group’s revenue disaggregated by pattern of revenue recognition is as follows:
Six months to 31 December 2021 (unaudited) | ||||||||||||||||
Publishing | Direct | Channel | Total | |||||||||||||
Services transferred at a point in time | 161,113 | 22,514 | 27,141 | 210,768 | ||||||||||||
Services transferred over time | 304,702 | 641,003 | 639,348 | 1,585,053 | ||||||||||||
Total | 465,815 | 663,517 | 666,489 | 1,795,821 |
Six months to 31 December 2020 (unaudited) | ||||||||||||||||
Publishing | Direct | Channel | Total | |||||||||||||
Services transferred at a point in time | 102,701 | 17,536 | 15,615 | 135,852 | ||||||||||||
Services transferred over time | 315,405 | 387,458 | 77,665 | 780,528 | ||||||||||||
Total | 418,106 | 404,994 | 93,280 | 916,380 |
F-42 |
6. Revenue (cont.)
Year to 30 June 2021 | ||||||||||||||||
Publishing | Direct | Channel | Total | |||||||||||||
Services transferred at a point in time | 177,126 | 29,770 | 20,115 | 227,011 | ||||||||||||
Services transferred over time | 602,304 | 1,153,255 | 208,855 | 1,964,414 | ||||||||||||
Total | 779,430 | 1,183,025 | 228,970 | 2,191,425 |
7. Other Income
Note |
31 December 2021 A$ (unaudited) |
31 December 2020 A$ (unaudited) |
30 June 2021 A$
|
||||||||||||
Government subsidy | - | 277,700 | 290,900 | ||||||||||||
Research and development grants | (a) | 386,245 | 497,358 | 497,358 | |||||||||||
Total other income | 386,245 | 775,058 | 788,258 |
(a) R&D Tax Incentive.
8. Segment Reporting
Management currently identifies three operating segments: publishing, direct sales and channel sales. In identifying these operating segments, management generally follows the Company’s service lines representing its main products and services. These operating segments are monitored by the Company’s chief operating decision maker who is the Company’s chief executive officer and he makes the strategic decisions on the allocation of resources based on segment reporting results.
Each of these operating segments are managed separately as each requires different technologies, marketing approach and other resources.
During the six month period to 31 December 2021, there have been no changes from prior periods in the measurement methods used to determine operating segments and reported segment profit or loss.
The revenues and profit generated by each of the Company’s operating segments and segment assets and liabilities are summarised as follows:
Six months to 31 December 2021 (unaudited) | ||||||||||||||||
Publishing | Direct | Channel | Total | |||||||||||||
Revenue | ||||||||||||||||
From external customers | 465,815 | 663,517 | 666,489 | 1,795,821 | ||||||||||||
Segment revenues | 465,815 | 663,517 | 666,489 | 1,795,821 | ||||||||||||
Segment operating profit/(loss) | 193,205 | 278,781 | 611,888 | 1,083,874 | ||||||||||||
Segment assets | 1,562,363 | 184,012 | 395,740 | 2,142,115 | ||||||||||||
Segment liabilities | (58,192 | ) | (224,046 | ) | (76,957 | ) | (359,195 | ) |
Six months to 31 December 2020 (unaudited) | ||||||||||||||||
Publishing | Direct | Channel | Total | |||||||||||||
Revenue | ||||||||||||||||
From external customers | 418,106 | 404,994 | 93,280 | 916,380 | ||||||||||||
Segment revenues | 418,106 | 404,994 | 93,280 | 916,380 | ||||||||||||
Segment operating profit/(loss) | (13,458 | ) | 201,708 | 45,302 | 233,552 | |||||||||||
Segment assets | 1,467,214 | 116,753 | 40,207 | 1,624,174 | ||||||||||||
Segment liabilities | (366,243 | ) | (149,241 | ) | (9,242 | ) | (524,726 | ) |
F-43 |
8. Segment Reporting (cont.)
Year to 30 June 2021 | ||||||||||||||||
Publishing | Direct | Channel | Total | |||||||||||||
Revenue | ||||||||||||||||
From external customers | 779,430 | 1,183,025 | 228,970 | 2,191,425 | ||||||||||||
Segment revenues | 779,430 | 1,183,025 | 228,970 | 2,191,425 | ||||||||||||
Segment operating profit/(loss) | (55,158 | ) | 604,585 | 7,420 | 556,847 | |||||||||||
Segment assets | 1,654,054 | 151,460 | 85,889 | 1,891,403 | ||||||||||||
Segment liabilities | (382,104 | ) | (212,644 | ) | (43,251 | ) | (637,999 | ) |
The totals presented for the Group’s operating segments reconcile to the key financial figures as presented in its financial statements as follows:
31 December 2021 A$ (unaudited) |
31 December 2020 A$ (unaudited) |
30 June 2021 A$
|
||||||||||
Profit of loss | ||||||||||||
Segment operating profit/(loss) | 1,083,874 | 233,552 | 556,847 | |||||||||
Other income not allocated | - | 277,700 | 290,900 | |||||||||
Research and development grants | 386,245 | 497,358 | 497,358 | |||||||||
Research and development costs | (316,382 | ) | (397,577 | ) | (761,140 | ) | ||||||
Technology expenses not allocated | (743,703 | ) | (24,537 | ) | (48,750 | ) | ||||||
Employee benefit expense not allocated | (1,331,013 | ) | (460,532 | ) | (986,580 | ) | ||||||
Occupancy expense not allocated | (19,218 | ) | (17,443 | ) | (34,555 | ) | ||||||
Advertising expense not allocated | (22,325 | ) | (13,332 | ) | (20,182 | ) | ||||||
Consultancy expense not allocated | (352,609 | ) | (159,282 | ) | (240,928 | ) | ||||||
Depreciation and amortisation not allocated | 6,386 | (18,092 | ) | (44,916 | ) | |||||||
Impairment of financial assets not allocated | - | (10,727 | ) | (14,690 | ) | |||||||
Other expenses not allocated | (40,337 | ) | (5,280 | ) | (130,217 | ) | ||||||
Group operating loss | (1,349,082 | ) | (98,192 | ) | (936,853 | ) | ||||||
Finance costs | (24,530 | ) | (35,993 | ) | (58,913 | ) | ||||||
Group loss before tax | (1,373,612 | ) | (134,185 | ) | (995,766 | ) |
9. Right of use assets and lease liabilities
Right-of-use assets
The following tables show the movements in right-of-use assets:
Buildings A$ |
||||
Gross carrying amount | ||||
Balance as at 1 July 2021 | 153,788 | |||
Additions | 460,384 | |||
Disposals | (153,788 | ) | ||
Balance as at 31 December 2021 (unaudited) | 460,384 |
|
||||
Amortisation and impairment | ||||
Balance as at 1 July 2021 | (58,032 | ) | ||
Disposals | 72,540 | |||
Amortisation | (22,181 | ) | ||
Balance as at 31 December 2021 (unaudited) | (7,673 | ) | ||
Carrying amount as at 31 December 2021 (unaudited) | 452,711 |
F-44 |
9. Right of use assets and lease liabilities (cont.)
Lease liabilities
Lease liabilities are presented in the consolidated statement of financial position as follows:
31 December 2021 A$ (unaudited) |
31 December 2020 A$ (unaudited) |
30 June 2021 A$
|
||||||||||
Current | 19,507 | 33,882 | 43,298 | |||||||||
Non-current | 439,480 | 109,622 | 87,400 | |||||||||
458,987 | 143,504 | 130,698 |
The Company has a lease for office space. This lease is reflected in the consolidated financial statement of financial position as a right-of-use asset and a lease liability. For the lease over the office space, the Company must keep this property in a good state of repair and return the property in their original condition at the end of lease.
During the current period, the Company entered into a surrender of lease agreement with respect to the lease of existing office space and a new lease agreement with respect to larger office space in anticipation of business growth. The agreements were signed simultaneously giving the effect of replacing the existing lease with the new lease.
F-45 |
9. Right of use assets and lease liabilities (cont.)
The lease liabilities are secured by the related underlying assets. Future minimum lease payments at 31 December 2021 were as follows:
Minimum lease payments due | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Within 1 year | 1-2 years | 2-3 years | 3-4 years | 4-5 years | Total | |||||||||||||||||||
31 December 2021 (unaudited) |
||||||||||||||||||||||||
Lease payments | 53,338 | 81,152 | 145,521 | 149,696 | 140,617 | 570,324 | ||||||||||||||||||
Finance charges | (33,832 | ) | (31,459 | ) | (25,234 | ) | (15,679 | ) | (5,133 | ) | (111,337 | ) | ||||||||||||
Net present values | 19,506 | 49,693 | 120,287 | 134,017 | 135,484 | 458,987 | ||||||||||||||||||
31 December 2020 (unaudited) |
||||||||||||||||||||||||
Lease payments | 43,710 | 52,325 | 53,721 | 13,518 | - | 163,274 | ||||||||||||||||||
Finance charges | (9,828 | ) | (6,684 | ) | (3,091 | ) | (167 | ) | - | (19,770 | ) | |||||||||||||
Net present values | 33,882 | 45,641 | 50,630 | 13,351 | - | 143,504 | ||||||||||||||||||
30 June 2021 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Lease payments | 51,642 | 53,018 | 40,555 | - | - | 145,215 | ||||||||||||||||||
Finance charges | (8,344 | ) | (4,934 | ) | (1,239 | ) | - | - | (14,517 | ) | ||||||||||||||
Net present values | 43,298 | 48,084 | 39,316 | - | - | 130,698 |
Lease payments not recognised as a liability
The Company has elected not to recognise a lease liability for short term leases (leases with an expected term of 12 months or less). Payments made under such leases are expensed on a straight-line basis.
10. Borrowings
Borrowings include the following financial liabilities:
Note |
31 December 2021 A$ (unaudited) |
31 December 2020 A$ (unaudited) |
30 June 2021 A$
|
||||||||||||
ASX Convertible notes | (a) | 405,600 | 405,600 | 405,600 | |||||||||||
NASDAQ Convertible notes | (b) | 1,777,000 | - | 30,000 | |||||||||||
2,182,600 | 405,600 | 435,600 |
(a) | As at 31 December 2021 the convertible notes are due and payable. The Company has on issue A$435,600 in unsecured convertible notes, including accrued interest. A$405,600 of these notes have matured, have a fixed repayment amount and are not accruing further interest. These notes automatically convert to equity upon an ASX listing at a 50% discount to the listing price. In the event an ASX listing does not occur the notes will be redeemed in cash at their face value plus interest. All convertible notes are due and payable as at reporting date. |
(b) | The NASDAQ convertible notes mature in 12 months from the date the funds are received. They are redeemable at 120% of the note’s face value, non-interest bearing and automatically convert to equity upon a NASDAQ listing at a 20% discount to the listing price. |
F-46 |
11. Issued capital
Note |
31 December 2021 (unaudited) |
31 December 2020 (unaudited) |
30 June 2021
|
||||||||||||
Shares issued and fully paid: | |||||||||||||||
- Beginning of the period | 371,965,778 | 347,795,378 | 347,795,378 | ||||||||||||
- Reduction of ordinary shares due to reverse share split | (a) | (353,367,364 | ) | - | - | ||||||||||
- Shares issued from capital raisings | - | 14,000,000 | 19,150,000 | ||||||||||||
- Share based payments to suppliers | - | 1,693,300 | 3,720,400 | ||||||||||||
- Shares issued to related parties | - | - | 800,000 | ||||||||||||
- Shares issued for assets | - | 500,000 | |||||||||||||
Shares issued and fully paid at the end of the period | 18,598,414 | 363,488,678 | 371,965,778 |
(a) | On 20 August 2021, our shareholders authorised, at an extraordinary general shareholders meeting, a one-for-twenty reverse share split of our issued and outstanding ordinary shares (the “Reverse Share Split”). No fractional ordinary shares were issued in connection with the Reverse Share Split, and all such fractional interests were rounded to the nearest whole number. Issued and outstanding performance rights were split on the same basis. |
12. Share-based payments
Performance Rights Plan
The
Group has a performance-based compensation scheme which allows select employees and consultants the right to acquire ordinary shares
in Locafy upon the attainment of certain milestones and performance targets (“Performance Right”). No amounts are paid or
payable by the recipient on receipt of the Performance Right or the shares (if issued). The Performance Rights carry neither entitlement
to dividends nor voting rights.
Performance Rights Vesting Conditions
Tranche | Vesting Conditions | Expiry Date | ||
1 | Total Group operating revenue greater than A$500,000 for 3 consecutive calendar months. | 30 June 2024 | ||
2 | Total Group operating revenue greater than A$1,000,000 for 3 consecutive calendar months. | 30 June 2024 | ||
3 | Total Group operating revenue greater than A$2,000,000 for 3 consecutive calendar months. | 30 June 2024 |
Due to the continued impact of COVID-19 on the Company’s listing and hence its ability to access capital to execute on operational plans, on 16 July 2021, the expiry dates for each vesting condition were extended to 30 June 2024 and the previously issued “Tranche 4” Performance Rights removed altogether. As a consequence of this change, the Company has assessed the fair value of the Performance Rights granted by applying an adjusted Black-Scholes options pricing model as a proxy. Accordingly, the Company has recognised a share-based payment expense in the current financial period. Previously, the Company had assessed that it was highly probable that the Performance Rights would expire unexercised and, hence, no share-based payments expense had been recognised.
F-47 |
12. | Share-based payments (cont.) |
Movements in Performance Rights during the period
The following reconciles the Performance Rights outstanding at the beginning and end of the period:
Tranche 1 | Tranche 2 | Tranche 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
31 December 2021 (unaudited) |
30 June 2021 |
31 December 2021 (unaudited) |
30 June 2021 |
31 December 2021 (unaudited) |
30 June 2021 | |||||||||||||||||||
Balance at beginning of period | 217,800 | 245,000 | 378,575 | 367,500 | 547,625 | 612,500 | ||||||||||||||||||
Granted during the period | 38,750 | 47,800 | 93,125 | 123,575 | 196,875 | 122,625 | ||||||||||||||||||
Forfeited during the period | (25,000 | ) | (75,000 | ) | (72,500 | ) | (112,500 | ) | (62,500 | ) | (187,500 | ) | ||||||||||||
Exercised during the period | - | - | - | - | - | - | ||||||||||||||||||
Balance at end of period | 231,550 | 217,800 | 399,200 | 378,575 | 682,000 | 547,625 |
13. Events after the reporting date
No matters or circumstances have arisen since the end of the reporting period, not otherwise disclosed in this report, which significantly affected, or may significantly affect, the operations of the Group, the results of those operations, or the state of affairs of the Group in future financial years.
F-48 |
_________ Units
each consisting of one ordinary share and
one Warrant to purchase one ordinary share
Locafy Limited
PROSPECTUS
, 2022
H.C. Wainwright & Co.
Until , 2022 (the 25th day after the date of this prospectus), all dealers that effect transactions in these securities, whether or not participating in this offering, may be required to deliver a prospectus. This is in addition to a dealer’s obligation to deliver a prospectus when acting as underwriters and with respect to their unsold allotment or subscription.
PART II
INFORMATION NOT REQUIRED IN PROSPECTUS
Item 6. | Indemnification of Directors and Officers |
Australian law
Australian law provides that a company or a related body corporate of the company may provide for indemnification of officers and directors for liabilities and costs incurred while acting as a director or officer of the company, subject to restrictions imposed under the Corporations Act which provides that a company or a related body corporate of the company must not indemnify an officer or director against any of the following liabilities incurred as an officer or director of the company:
● | a liability owed to the company or a related body corporate of the company; | |
● | a liability for certain pecuniary penalty orders or compensation orders; | |
● | a liability that is owed to someone other than the company or a related body corporate of the company and did not arise out of conduct in good faith; or | |
● | as to legal costs, legal costs incurred in defending an action for a liability incurred as an officer or director of the company if the costs are incurred: |
○ | in defending or resisting proceedings in which the officer or director is found to have a liability for which they could not be indemnified by reason of the limitations on indemnification set out above; | |
○ | in defending or resisting criminal proceedings in which the officer or director is found guilty; | |
○ | in defending or resisting proceedings brought by the Australian Securities & Investments Commission or a liquidator for a court order if the grounds for making the order are found by the court to have been established (except costs incurred in responding to actions taken by the Australian Securities & Investments Commission or a liquidator as part of an investigation before commencing proceedings for a court order); or | |
○ | in connection with proceedings for relief to the officer or director under the Corporations Act, in which the court denies the relief. |
Constitution
Our Constitution provides, except to the extent prohibited by law including under the Corporations Act, for the indemnification of every person who is or has been an officer or a director of the Company against any liability (other than conduct involving a lack of good faith on the part of the officer) incurred by that person as an officer or director. This includes any liability incurred by that person in their capacity as an officer or director of a subsidiary of the Company where the Company requested that person to accept that appointment.
Indemnification Agreements
Pursuant to Deeds of Indemnity, Insurance and Access, the form of which is filed as Exhibit 10.3 to this registration statement, we have agreed to indemnify (to the maximum extent permitted by law and our Constitution, subject to certain specified exceptions) our directors against certain liabilities and expenses incurred by such persons in connection with claims made by reason of their being such a director.
SEC Position
Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act may be permitted to directors, officers or persons controlling us pursuant to the foregoing provisions, we have been informed that in the opinion of the SEC such indemnification is against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and is therefore unenforceable.
Pursuant to the underwriting agreement for this offering, the form of which is filed as Exhibit 1.1 to this registration statement, the underwriters will agree to indemnify our directors and officers and persons controlling us, within the meaning of the Securities Act, against certain liabilities that might arise out of or are based upon certain information furnished to us by any such underwriter.
II-1 |
Item 7. | Recent Sales of Unregistered Securities |
Set forth below is information regarding all securities issued by us without registration under the Securities Act in the past three years. The information presented below gives effect to our Reverse Share Split.
Period |
Details | No. |
Issue Price A$ |
Total Value A$ |
||||||||
August 2018 to June 2019 | Shares issued from capital raisings | 309,721 | 2.00 | 619,442 | ||||||||
June 2019 | Shares issued from capital raisings | 90,000 | 1.11 | 100,000 | ||||||||
June 2019 | Shares issued for assets | 50,000 | 7.00 | 350,000 | ||||||||
July 2019 to March 2020 | Shares issued from capital raisings | 213,917 | 2.00 | 427,836 | ||||||||
August 2019 to January 2020 | Shares issued from capital raising (special placement) | 1,543,110 | 1.11 | 1,714,568 | ||||||||
October 2019 | Shares issued to related parties | 40,000 | 2.00 | 80,000 | ||||||||
November 2019 | Share cancellation pursuant to legal settlement approved by shareholders at the Annual General Meeting of the Company held on November 29, 2019 | (2,623,386) | 0.30 | (800,001) | ||||||||
December 2019 | Shares issued from capital raisings | 100,000 | 1.00 | 100,000 | ||||||||
January 2020 | Shares issued to holders of ASX Convertible Notes (as defined below) in relation to maturity date extensions(1) | 27,500 | 1.12 | 30,800 | ||||||||
February 2020 | Shares issued to suppliers in lieu of cash | 70,022 | 1.12 | 78,647 | ||||||||
July to August 2020 | Shares issued from capital raisings | 10,000 | 2.00 | 20,000 | ||||||||
October to December 2020 | Shares issued from capital raisings | 690,000 | 1.00 | 690,000 | ||||||||
October to December 2020 | Shares issued to supplier in lieu of cash | 84,665 | 1.00 | 84,665 | ||||||||
February 2021 | Shares issued to suppliers in lieu of cash | 37,125 | 2.00 | 74,250 | ||||||||
February 2021 | Shares issued to related parties | 40,000 | 2.00 | 80,000 | ||||||||
March 2021 | Shares issued from capital raisings | 257,500 | 4.00 | 1,030,000 | ||||||||
April 2021 | Shares issued for assets | 25,000 | 4.00 | 100,000 | ||||||||
May to June 2021 | Shares issued to suppliers in lieu of cash | 64,230 | 4.00 | 256,918 | ||||||||
May to December 2021 | NASDAQ Convertible Notes(2) |
N/A |
N/A |
(1) In 2015 we privately placed certain non-interest bearing convertible notes (the “ASX Convertible Notes”), in each case constituted by a Convertible Note Deed, in the aggregate principal amount of A$405,600 as of December 31, 2021. The ASX Convertible Notes may be converted under their terms upon notice by the holder thereof, on the basis of one ordinary share (pre-reverse share split) for each ASX Convertible Note. Following a successful listing on the ASX, the ASX Convertible Notes are contemplated to be converted mandatorily into ordinary shares of Locafy, in the case of an IPO, or into common equity of an acquiring company, in the case of a reverse merger into a listed company. The description of the ASX Convertible Notes is qualified in its entirety by the full text of the Convertible Note Deed, a copy of which is filed as Exhibit 4.4.
(2) In 2021 we privately placed certain non-interest bearing Nasdaq Convertible Notes, in each case constituted by a Deed Poll Constituting Convertible Loan Notes, in the aggregate principal amount of A$1,777,000 as of December 31, 2021, each with a face value of A$1.00, which may be converted under their terms, upon notice by the holder thereof, on the basis of one ordinary share for each five Nasdaq Convertible Notes. Following a successful IPO, the Nasdaq Convertible Notes are contemplated to be converted mandatorily into that amount of ordinary shares equal to (i)(A) the face value of such notes being converted multiplied by (B) the foreign exchange conversion rate (A$1 = US$0.7726), divided by (ii) the price that is 80% of the price at which the relevant ordinary shares were issued under a prospectus at the time of listing. The description of the Nasdaq Convertible Notes is qualified in its entirety by the full text of the Deed Poll Constituting Convertible Loan Notes, a copy of which is filed as Exhibit 4.1.
None of the foregoing transactions involved any underwriters, underwriting discounts or commissions or any public offering. All recipients had adequate access, through their relationships with us, to information about us. The sales of these securities were made without any general solicitation or advertising.
II-2 |
Item 8. | Exhibits and Financial Statement Schedules |
The exhibits listed below are filed as part of this Registration Statement.
Exhibit No. | Description | |
1.1** | Form of Underwriting Agreement. | |
3.1* | Constitution of the Registrant, as currently in effect. | |
4.1* | Form of Deed Poll Constituting Convertible Loan Notes. | |
4.2** | Form of Representative’s Warrant. | |
4.3** | Form of Warrant. | |
4.4* | Form of Convertible Note Deed. | |
5.1** | Opinion of Steinepreis Paganin. | |
10.1** | Form of Employment Agreement. | |
10.2#* | Company Performance Rights Plan. | |
10.3* | Form of Deed of Access, Insurance and Indemnity. | |
10.4* | Lease Agreement, by and between Landville Pty Ltd and Victor Vlahos as trustee for the Victor Vlahos Family trust and Locafy Limited. | |
21.1** | List of subsidiaries. | |
23.1* | Consent of Grant Thornton Australia LLP, an Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm. | |
23.2** | Consent of Steinepreis Paganin (included in Exhibit 5.1). | |
24.1* | Powers of Attorney (included on the signature pages of this Registration Statement). |
* Filed herewith.
** To be filed by amendment.
# Indicates management contract or compensatory plan.
All schedules have been omitted because they are not required, are not applicable or the information is otherwise set forth in the financial statements and related notes thereto.
Item 9. | 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;
(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 SEC pursuant to Rule 424(b) (§ 230.424(b) of this chapter) if, in the aggregate, the changes in volume and price represent no more than 20% change in the maximum aggregate offering price set forth in the “Calculation of Registration Fee” table in the effective Registration Statement; and
(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.
II-3 |
(2) That, for the purpose of determining any liability under the Securities Act, 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.
(4) To file a post-effective amendment to the Registration Statement to include any financial statements required by Item 8.A. of Form 20-F (17 CFR § 249.220f) at the start of any delayed offering or throughout a continuous offering. Financial statements and information otherwise required by Section 10(a)(3) of the Securities Act need not be furnished, provided that the registrant includes in the prospectus, by means of a post-effective amendment, financial statements required pursuant to this paragraph (a)(4) and other information necessary to ensure that all other information in the prospectus is at least as current as the date of those financial statements.
(5) That, for the purpose of determining liability of the registrant under the Securities Act to any purchaser in the initial distribution of the securities: The undersigned registrant undertakes that 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 (§ 230.424 of this chapter);
(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.
(f) The undersigned registrant 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.
(h) Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities Act 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 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 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 Securities Act and will be governed by the final adjudication of such issue.
(i) The undersigned registrant hereby undertakes that:
(1) For purposes of determining any liability under the Securities Act, 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, 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-4 |
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, the registrant certifies that it has reasonable grounds to believe that it meets all of the requirements for filing on Form F-1 and has duly caused this Registration Statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, in Perth, Australia on January 31, 2022.
Locafy LIMITED | ||
By: | /s/ Gavin Burnett | |
Name: | Gavin Burnett | |
Title: | Chief Executive Officer |
Each person whose signature appears below constitutes and appoints each of Gavin Burnett and Melvin Tan as his true and lawful attorney-in-fact and agent, each acting alone, with full power of substitution and resubstitution, for him and in his name, place and stead, in any and all capacities, to sign any or all amendments (including post-effective amendments) to this Registration Statement and to sign any related registration statement that is to be effective upon filing pursuant to Rule 462(b) under the Securities Act of 1933, and to file the same, with all exhibits thereto, and other documents in connection therewith, with the Securities and Exchange Commission, granting unto said attorneys-in-fact and agents, each acting alone, full power and authority to do and perform each and every act and thing requisite and necessary to be done in and about the premises, as fully to all intents and purposes as he might or could do in person, hereby ratifying and confirming all that said attorneys-in-fact and agents, each action alone, or his substitute or substitutes, may lawfully do or cause to be done by virtue hereof.
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.
Signatures | Title | Date | ||
/s/ Gavin Burnett | ||||
Gavin Burnett | Chief Executive Officer, and Managing Director | January 31, 2022 | ||
/s/ Melvin Tan | ||||
Melvin Tan | Chief Financial Officer, and Executive Director | January 31, 2022 | ||
/s/ Collin Visaggio | ||||
Collin Visaggio | Chairman and Non-Executive Director | January 31, 2022 |
AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, the undersigned certifies that it is the duly authorized United States representative of the registrant and has duly caused this Registration Statement on Form F-1 to be signed by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, on January 31, 2022.
Puglisi & Associates | ||
(Authorized Representative in the United States) |
||
By: | /s/ Donald J. Puglisi | |
Name: |
Donald J. Puglisi |
|
Title: | Managing Director |
II-5 |
Exhibit 3.1
CORPORATIONS ACT 2001
CONSTITUTION
of
LOCAFY LIMITED
ACN 136 737 767
Adopted by Special Resolution of the members on 20th August 2021
CONTENTS
1. | INTERPRETATION | 1 | |
1.1 | Definitions | 1 | |
1.2 | Interpretation | 4 | |
1.3 | Corporations Act Definitions | 4 | |
1.4 | Status of Constitution | 4 | |
1.5 | General Authorisation | 5 | |
1.6 | Displacement of Replaceable Rules | 5 | |
1.7 | Enforceability | 5 | |
1.8 | Jurisdiction | ||
2. | SHARE CAPITAL AND VARIATION OF RIGHTS | 5 | |
2.1 | Rights Attaching to Shares | 5 | |
2.2 | Issue of Shares | 5 | |
2.3 | Share Options | 5 | |
2.4 | Variation of class rights | 6 | |
2.5 | Effect of share issue on class rights | 6 | |
2.6 | Preference Shares | 6 | |
2.7 | Recognition of Trusts | 6 | |
2.8 | Unregistered Interests | 6 | |
2.9 | Share Certificates and Share Option Certificates | 6 | |
2.10 | Section 1071H of the Corporations Act | 7 | |
2.11 | Commissions | 7 | |
2.12 | Restricted Securities | 7 | |
2.13 | Non-Issue or Cancellation of Certificate | 8 | |
2.14 | No Prohibition on Foreign Ownership | 8 | |
2.15 | Payment of Interest out of Capital | 8 | |
3. | MINIMUM SHAREHOLDING | 8 | |
3.1 | Effect of this Clause | 8 | |
3.2 | Definitions | 8 | |
3.3 | Minimum Shareholding | 9 | |
3.4 | Sale of Listed Securities of Minority Member | 9 | |
3.5 | Acceptance of Offer | 9 | |
3.6 | Appointment of Attorney | 10 | |
3.7 | Transfer | 10 | |
3.8 | Proceeds of Sale | 10 | |
3.9 | Receipt of Proceeds | 10 | |
3.10 | Registration of Purchaser | 10 | |
3.11 | Remedies Limited | 11 | |
3.12 | Cost of Sale of Listed Securities | 11 | |
3.13 | Exemption from clause 3 | 11 | |
3.14 | Notice to Exempt | 11 | |
3.15 | Takeover Offer or Announcement | 11 | |
3.16 | Use by Company of Clause 3 | 12 | |
3.17 | Notice to New Minority Members | 12 | |
4. | UNCERTIFICATED HOLDINGS AND ELECTRONIC TRANSFERS | 12 | |
4.1 | Electronic or Computerised Holding | 12 | |
4.2 | Statement of Holdings | 12 | |
4.3 | Share Certificates | 12 | |
4.4 | Listing Rules | 12 |
i |
5. | LIEN | 13 | |
5.1 | Lien for Members Debts | 13 | |
5.2 | Generally | 13 | |
5.3 | Exemption | 14 | |
5.4 | Dividends | 14 | |
5.5 | Sale of Shares | 14 | |
5.6 | Restrictions on Sale | 14 | |
5.7 | Person Authorised to Sign Transfers | 15 | |
5.8 | Proceeds of Sale | 15 | |
5.9 | Protection of Lien under Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules | 15 | |
5.10 | Further Powers re Forfeited Shares and Liens | 15 | |
6. | CALLS ON SHARES | 15 | |
6.1 | Calls | 15 | |
6.2 | Payment of Calls | 15 | |
6.3 | Quoted Shares | 16 | |
6.4 | Unquoted Shares | 16 | |
6.5 | Joint Liability | 16 | |
6.6 | Deemed Calls | 16 | |
6.7 | Differentiation between Shareholders | 16 | |
6.8 | Payments in Advance of Calls | 16 | |
6.9 | Outstanding Moneys | 17 | |
6.10 | Revocation/Postponement or Extension | 17 | |
6.11 | Compliance with Listing Rules and Corporations Act | 17 | |
6.12 | Waive | 17 | |
7. | FORFEITURE OF SHARES | 17 | |
7.1 | Failure to Pay Call | 17 | |
7.2 | Forfeiture | 17 | |
7.3 | Sale of Forfeited Shares | 18 | |
7.4 | Continuing Liability | 18 | |
7.5 | Officer’s Statement Prima Facie Evidence | 18 | |
7.6 | Procedures | 18 | |
7.7 | Listing Rules and Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules | 18 | |
7.8 | Waive | 18 | |
8. | TRANSFER OF SHARES | 19 | |
8.1 | Form of Transfer | 19 | |
8.2 | Clearing House System Transfers | 19 | |
8.3 | Participation in Clearing House System | 19 | |
8.4 | Registration Procedure | 19 | |
8.5 | Power to Refuse to Register | 20 | |
8.6 | Closure of Register | 20 | |
8.7 | Retention of Transfers by Company | 20 | |
8.8 | Power to suspend registration of transfers | 20 | |
8.9 | Powers of Attorney | 20 | |
8.10 | Other Securities | 20 | |
8.11 | Branch Register | 21 | |
8.12 | Compliance with Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules | 21 | |
8.13 | Issuer Sponsored Subregister | 21 | |
8.14 | Transferor Holds Shares until Registration of Transfer | 21 | |
8.15 | Waive | 21 |
ii |
iii |
13.31 | Proxy Votes | 32 | |
13.32 | Representatives of Corporate Shareholders | 33 | |
13.33 | More than one Representative present | 33 | |
13.34 | Rights of Representatives, proxies and attorneys | 33 | |
13.35 | Board may determine Direct Voting to apply | 33 | |
13.36 | Direct Voting instrument – form, signature and deposit | 34 | |
13.37 | Voting Forms | 34 | |
13.38 | Direct Votes count on a poll | 35 | |
13.39 | Withdrawal of a Direct Vote | 35 | |
13.40 | Validity of Direct Vote | 36 | |
14. | THE DIRECTORS | 36 | |
14.1 | Number of Directors | 36 | |
14.2 | Rotation of Directors | 36 | |
14.3 | Election of Directors | 37 | |
14.4 | Additional Directors | 37 | |
14.5 | Removal of Director | 37 | |
14.6 | Vacation of Office | 38 | |
14.7 | Remuneration | 38 | |
14.8 | Initial Fees to Directors | 38 | |
14.9 | Expenses | 39 | |
14.10 | No Share Qualification | 39 | |
15. | POWERS AND DUTIES OF DIRECTORS | 39 | |
15.1 | Management of the Company | 39 | |
15.2 | Borrowings | 39 | |
15.3 | Attorneys | 40 | |
15.4 | Cheques, etc. | 40 | |
15.5 | Retirement Benefits for Directors | 40 | |
15.6 | Securities to Directors or Shareholders | 40 | |
16. | PROCEEDINGS OF DIRECTORS | 40 | |
16.1 | Convening a Meeting | 40 | |
16.2 | Procedure at Meetings | 41 | |
16.3 | Quorum | 41 | |
16.4 | Secretary May Attend and Be Heard | 41 | |
16.5 | Majority Decisions | 41 | |
16.6 | Casting Votes | 41 | |
16.7 | Alternate Directors | 41 | |
16.8 | Continuing Directors May Act | 42 | |
16.9 | Chairman | 42 | |
16.10 | Committees | 43 | |
16.11 | Written Resolutions | 43 | |
16.12 | Defective Appointment | 43 | |
16.13 | Directors May Hold Other Offices | 43 | |
16.14 | Directors May Hold Shares, etc. | 43 | |
16.15 | Directors Not Accountable for Benefits | 44 | |
16.16 | Disclosure of Interests in Related Matters | 44 | |
16.17 | Disclosure of Shareholding | 44 | |
16.18 | Related Body Corporate Contracts | 44 | |
16.19 | Voting, Affixation of Seal | 44 | |
16.20 | Home Branch to be Advised | 44 |
iv |
17. | MEETING BY INSTANTANEOUS COMMUNICATION DEVICE | 45 | |
17.1 | Meetings to be Effectual | 45 | |
17.2 | Procedure at Meetings | 45 | |
17.3 | Minutes | 45 | |
17.4 | Definition | 46 | |
18. | MANAGING AND EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS AND SECRETARIES | 46 | |
18.1 | Appointment | 46 | |
18.2 | Remuneration | 46 | |
18.3 | Powers | 46 | |
18.4 | Rotation | 46 | |
18.5 | Secretary | 46 | |
19. | SEALS | 47 | |
19.1 | Common Seal | 47 | |
19.2 | Execution of Documents Without a Seal | 47 | |
19.3 | Share Seal | 47 | |
20. | ACCOUNTS, AUDIT AND RECORDS | 48 | |
20.1 | Accounting records to be kept | 48 | |
20.2 | Audit | 48 | |
20.3 | Inspection | 48 | |
21. | MINUTES | 48 | |
21.1 | Minutes to be Kept | 48 | |
21.2 | Signature of Minutes | 48 | |
21.3 | Requirements of the Corporations Act | 48 | |
22. | DIVIDENDS AND RESERVES | 49 | |
22.1 | Dividends | 49 | |
22.2 | Interim Dividend | 49 | |
22.3 | No Interest | 49 | |
22.4 | Reserves | 49 | |
22.5 | Carrying forward profits | 49 | |
22.6 | Alternative Method of Payment of Dividend | 49 | |
22.7 | Shareholders entitled to dividend | 50 | |
22.8 | Payment of Dividends | 50 | |
22.9 | Unclaimed Dividends | 50 | |
22.10 | Breach of Restriction Agreement | 51 | |
23. | CAPITALISATION OF PROFITS | 51 | |
23.1 | Capitalisation | 51 | |
23.2 | Application of Capitalised Amounts | 51 | |
23.3 | Procedures | 51 | |
24. | BONUS SHARE PLAN | 52 | |
24.1 | Authorisation of Bonus Share Plan | 52 | |
24.2 | Amendment and Revocation | 52 | |
25. | DIVIDEND REINVESTMENT PLAN | 52 | |
25.1 | Authorisation of Dividend Reinvestment Plan | 52 | |
25.2 | Amendment and Revocation | 52 | |
26. | NOTICES | 52 | |
26.1 | Service by the Company to Shareholders | 52 | |
26.2 | Service of notices by the Company to Directors | 53 | |
26.3 | Service of notices by Directors, Alternate Directors and Shareholders to the Company | 53 | |
26.4 | Deemed receipt of Notice | 53 |
v |
vi |
CORPORATIONS ACT
CONSTITUTION
of
LOCAFY LIMITED
ACN 136 737 767
1. | INTERPRETATION |
1.1 | Definitions |
In this Constitution:
Alternate Director means a person appointed as an alternate director under clause 16.7.
ASIC means Australian Securities and Investments Commission.
Stock Exchangemeans relevant Stock Exchange that the Company’s securities are listed on.
Stock Exchange Settlement means relevant settlement agency used by the Stock Exchange that the Company’s securities are traded on.
Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules means the operating rules of relevant settlement agency that is used by the Stock Exchange that the Company’s securities are traded on.
Stock Exchange Settlement Transfer means a transfer of quoted securities or quoted rights effected in:
(a) | accordance with the Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules; or | |
(b) | substantial accordance with the Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules and determined by Stock Exchange Settlement to be an effective transfer. |
Auditor means the Company’s auditor.
Bonus Share Plan means a plan implemented under clause 24.
Business Day means a day other than a Saturday, a Sunday, New Year’s Day, Australia Day, Good Friday, Easter Monday, Anzac Day, Christmas Day, Boxing Day and any other day declared and published by Stock Exchange, as applicable, to be a day which is not a business day.
Clearing House System Approved Securities means securities of the Company for which a Clearing House System approval has been given in accordance with the Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules, or such amended definition as may be prescribed by the Listing Rules from time to time.
1 |
Clearing House System means the Clearing House System operated by the Stock Exchange Settlement or such other securities clearing house as is approved pursuant to the regulations applied in the country which the securities are listed and to which the Listing Rules apply.
Company means Locafy Limited (ACN 136 737 767) or as it is from time to time named in accordance with the Corporations Act of this jurisdiction.
Constitution means this Constitution as altered or amended from time to time.
Corporations Act means the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth).
Corporations Regulations means the Corporations Regulations 2001 (Cth).
Director means a person appointed to the position of a director of the Company and where appropriate, includes an Alternate Director.
Directors means all or some of the Directors acting as a board.
Direct Vote means a notice of a Shareholder’s voting intention delivered to the Company by post, fax, electronic or other means approved by the Board and otherwise in accordance with this Constitution and regulations, rules and procedures made by the Board in accordance with clause 13.35.
Dividend Reinvestment Plan means a plan implemented under clause 25.
Duty means any transfer, transaction or registration duty or similar charge imposed by any Government Authority and includes any interest, fine, penalty, charge or other amount imposed in respect of any of them.
Government Authority means a government or government department, a governmental or semi-governmental or judicial person (whether autonomous or not) charged with the administration of any applicable law.
Holding Lock has the meaning ascribed to it by the Listing Rules.
Home Branch means the state branch of the Stock Exchange as applicable, designated as such in relation to the Company by the Stock Exchange.
Listed Securities means any Shares, Share Options, stock, debentures, debenture stock or other securities for the time being issued by the Company and officially quoted by the Stock Exchange, as applicable, on its stock market.
Listing Rules means the listing rules of the Stock Exchange, and any other rules of the Stock Exchange has to comply with in the country which the Company’s securities are listed while the Company is admitted to the Official List, each rule as amended or replaced from time to time, except to the extent of any express written waiver by the Stock Exchange.
Loan Securities includes:
(a) | unsecured notes or unsecured deposit notes; | |
(b) | mortgage debentures or mortgage debenture stock; |
2 |
(c) | debentures or debenture stock; and | |
(d) | for the purposes of the Listing Rules, convertible loan securities. |
Office means the registered office of the Company.
Officer means any Director or Secretary of the Company or such other person within the meaning of that term as defined by the Corporations Act.
Official List has the meaning given to that term in the Listing Rules.
Prescribed Rate means the interest rate which is 2% above the Reserve Bank of Australia cash rate as published or quoted from time to time, or such other rate as may from time to time be fixed by the Directors, calculated daily.
Registered Office means the registered office of the Company in the State.
Register of Shareholders means the register of Shareholders kept by the Company in accordance with section 169 of the Corporations Act (including any branch register and any computerised or electronic sub register established and administered under the Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules).
Related Body Corporate means a corporation which by virtue of the provisions of section 50 of the Corporations Act is deemed to be related to the relevant corporation and related has a corresponding meaning.
Representative means a person authorised to act as a representative of a corporation under clause 13.32.
Restricted Securities has the meaning ascribed to it by the Listing Rules.
Seal means the common seal of the Company and includes any official seal and, where the context so admits, the Share Seal of the Company.
Secretary means any person appointed to perform the duties of a secretary of the Company.
Share means a share in the capital of the Company.
Shareholder means a person or company registered in the Register of Shareholders as the holder of one or more Shares and includes any person or company who is a member of the Company in accordance with or for the purposes of the Corporations Act.
Shareholding Account means an entry in the Register of Shareholders in respect of a Shareholder for the purpose of providing a separate identification of some or all of the ordinary Shares registered from time to time in the name of that Shareholder and Securities Account has an equivalent meaning in relation to Listed Securities of all kinds, including ordinary Shares.
Share Option means an option to require the Company to allot and issue a Share.
Share Seal means the duplicate common seal referred to in clause 19.3.
State means Western Australia.
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1.2 | Interpretation |
(a) | A reference in this Constitution to a partly paid share is a reference to a share on which there is an amount unpaid. | ||
(b) | A reference in this Constitution to an amount unpaid on a share includes a reference to any amount of the issue price which is unpaid. | ||
(c) | Unless the contrary intention appears, in this Constitution: | ||
(i) | the singular includes the plural and the plural includes the singular; | ||
(ii) | words that refer to any gender include all genders; | ||
(iii) | words used to refer to persons generally or to refer to a natural person include a body corporate, body politic, partnership, joint venture, association, board, group or other body (whether or not the body is incorporated); | ||
(iv) | a reference to a person includes that person’s successors and legal personal representatives; | ||
(v) | a reference to a statute or regulation, or a provision of any of them includes all statutes, regulations or provisions amending, consolidating or replacing them, and a reference to a statute includes all regulations, proclamations, ordinances and by-laws issued under that statute; | ||
(vi) | a reference to the Listing Rules or the Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules includes any variation, consolidation or replacement of those rules and is to be taken to be subject to any applicable waiver or exemption; and | ||
(vii) | a reference to writing includes any method of reproducing words in a visible form. | ||
(d) | In this Constitution, headings and body type are only for convenience and do not affect the meaning of this Constitution. |
1.3 | Corporations Act Definitions |
Any word or expression defined in or for the purposes of the Corporations Act shall, unless otherwise defined in clause 1.1 or the context otherwise requires, have the same meaning when used in this Constitution, and the rules of interpretation specified in or otherwise applicable to the Corporations Act shall, unless the context otherwise requires, apply in the interpretation of this Constitution.
1.4 | Status of Constitution |
This Constitution is adopted by the Company in substitution for any former memorandum and articles of association or other consistent documents of the Company. To the extent permitted by law, the replaceable rules provided for in the Corporations Act do not apply to the Company.
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1.5 | General Authorisation |
Where the Corporations Act authorises or permits a company to do any thing, if so authorised by its constitution, the Company is authorised by this rule to do that thing.
1.6 | Displacement of Replaceable Rules |
The provisions of the Corporations Act that apply to public companies as replaceable rules are displaced completely by this Constitution in relation to the Company except to the extent they are repeated in this Constitution.
1.7 | Enforceability |
If any provision of this Constitution is or becomes illegal, invalid or unenforceable in any jurisdiction then that illegality, invalidity or unenforceability does not affect the legality, validity or enforceability in that jurisdiction of any other provision of this Constitution or the legality, validity or enforceability in any other jurisdiction of that provision or any other provision of this Constitution.
1.8 | Jurisdiction |
The courts having jurisdiction in Western Australia have non-exclusive jurisdiction to settle any dispute arising out of or in connection with this Constitution and each Shareholder irrevocably submits to the jurisdiction of those courts.
2. | SHARE CAPITAL AND VARIATION OF RIGHTS |
2.1 | Rights Attaching to Shares |
Subject to this Constitution and to the terms of issue of Shares, all Shares attract the right to receive notice of and to attend and vote at all general meetings of the Company, the right to receive dividends, in a winding up or a reduction of capital, the right to participate equally in the distribution of the assets of the Company (both capital and surplus), subject to any amounts unpaid on the Share and, in the case of a reduction, to the terms of the reduction.
2.2 | Issue of Shares |
Without prejudice to any special rights previously conferred on the holders of any existing Shares or class of Shares, unissued Shares shall be under the control of the Directors and, subject to the Corporations Act, the Listing Rules and this Constitution, the Directors may at any time issue such number of Shares either as ordinary Shares or Shares of a named class or classes (being either an existing class or a new class) at the issue price that the Directors determine and with such preferred, deferred, or other special rights or such restrictions, whether with regard to dividend, voting, return of capital or otherwise, as the Directors shall, in their absolute discretion, determine.
2.3 | Share Options |
Subject to the Listing Rules, the Directors may at any time and from time to time issue Share Options on such terms and conditions as the Directors shall, in their absolute discretion, determine.
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2.4 | Variation of class rights |
If at any time the share capital of the Company is divided into different classes of Shares, the rights attached to any class (unless otherwise provided by the terms of issue of the Shares of that class) may be varied, whether or not the Company is being wound up, with the consent in writing of the holders of three quarters of the issued Shares of that class, or if authorised by a special resolution passed at a separate meeting of the holders of the Shares of the class. Any variation of rights under this clause 2.4 shall be subject to Part 2F.2 of Chapter 2F of the Corporations Act. The provisions of this Constitution relating to general meetings shall apply so far as they are capable of application and with necessary alterations to every such separate meeting except that a quorum is constituted by two persons who together hold or represent by proxy not less than one-third of the issued Shares of the class.
2.5 | Effect of share issue on class rights |
The rights attached to any class of shares are not taken to be varied by the issue or creation of further shares ranking equally with them unless expressly provided by the terms of issue of the shares of that class.
2.6 | Preference Shares |
Subject to the Listing Rules and the Corporations Act, the Company may issue Preference Shares:
(a) | that are liable to be redeemed whether at the option of the Company or otherwise; and |
(b) | including, without limitation preference shares of the kind described in clause 2.6(a) in accordance with the terms of Schedule 1. |
2.7 | Recognition of Trusts |
Except as permitted or required by the Corporations Act, the Company shall not recognise a person as holding a Share or Share Option upon any trust.
2.8 | Unregistered Interests |
The Company is not bound by or compelled in any way to recognise any equitable, contingent, future or partial right or interest in any Share or Share Option (whether or not it has notice of the interest or right concerned) unless otherwise provided by this Constitution or by law, except an absolute right of ownership in the registered holder of the Share or Share Option.
2.9 | Share Certificates and Share Option Certificates |
Subject to the Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules (if applicable), clause 4 and the Listing Rules, a person whose name is entered as a Shareholder in the Register of Shareholders is entitled without payment to receive a Share certificate or notice (as the case may be) in respect of the Share under the Seal in accordance with the Corporations Act but, in respect of a Share or Shares held jointly by several persons, the Company is not bound to issue more than one certificate or notice. Delivery of a certificate or notice for a Share to one of several joint Shareholders is sufficient delivery to all such holders. In addition:
(a) | Share certificates or notices in respect of Shares shall only be issued in accordance with the Listing Rules; |
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(b) | subject to this Constitution, the Company shall dispatch all appropriate Share certificates within one month from the date of issue of any of its Shares and within one month after the date upon which a transfer of any of its Shares is lodged with the Company; | |
(c) | where a Share certificate is lost, worn out or destroyed, the Company shall issue a duplicate certificate in accordance with the requirements of section 1070D of the Corporations Act and the Listing Rules; and | |
(d) | the above provisions of this clause 2.9 shall, with necessary alterations, apply to Share Options. |
If securities of the Company are Clearing House System Approved Securities and held in uncertificated mode, then the preceding provisions of this clause 2.9 do not apply to those Clearing House System Approved Securities and the Company shall allot such Clearing House System Approved Securities and enter those Clearing House System Approved Securities into the Shareholder’s uncertificated holding in accordance with the Listing Rules and the Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules, as applicable.
2.10 | Section 1071H of the Corporations Act |
Clause 2.9 shall not apply if and to the extent that, on an application by or on behalf of the Company, the ASIC has made a declaration under section 1071H(5) of the Corporations Act published in the Commonwealth of Australia Gazette that the Company is a person in relation to whom section 1071H of the Corporations Act does not apply.
2.11 | Commissions |
The Company may, subject to the Listing Rules, exercise the powers of paying commission conferred by section 258C of the Corporations Act. Such commission may be satisfied by the payment of cash or the allotment of fully or partly paid Shares or partly in the one way and partly in the other. The Company may also on any issue of Shares pay such brokerage as may be lawful.
2.12 | Restricted Securities |
The Company shall comply in all respects with the requirements of the Listing Rules with respect to Restricted Securities. Without limiting the generality of the above:
(a) | a holder of Restricted Securities must not Dispose of, or agree or offer to Dispose of, the Securities during the escrow period applicable to those Securities except as permitted by the Listing Rules or the Stock Exchange, as applicable; | |
(b) | if the Restricted Securities are in the same class as quoted Securities, the holder will be taken to have agreed in writing that the Restricted Securities are to be kept on the Company’s issuer sponsored subregister and are to have a Holding Lock applied for the duration of the escrow period applicable to those Securities; |
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(c) | the Company will refuse to acknowledge any Disposal (including, without limitation, to register any transfer) of Restricted Securities during the escrow period applicable to those Securities except as permitted by the Listing Rules or the Stock Exchange, as applicable; | |
(d) | a holder of Restricted Securities will not be entitled to participate in any return of capital on those Securities during the escrow period applicable to those Securities except as permitted by the Listing Rules or the Stock Exchange, as applicable; and | |
(e) | if a holder of Restricted Securities breaches a Restriction Deed or a provision of this Constitution restricting a Disposal of those Securities, the holder will not be entitled to any dividend or distribution, or to exercise any voting rights, in respect of those Securities for so long as the breach continues. |
2.13 | Non-Issue or Cancellation of Certificate |
Notwithstanding any other provision of this Constitution, the Company need not issue a certificate, and may cancel any certificate without issuing a certificate in substitution, in respect of any Shares or Share Options of the Company in any circumstances where the non-issue or cancellation of that certificate is permitted by the Corporations Act or regulations applied in the country which the securities are listed, the Listing Rules or the Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules.
2.14 | No Prohibition on Foreign Ownership |
Nothing in this Constitution shall have the effect of limiting or restricting the ownership of any securities of the Company by foreign persons except where such limits or restrictions are prescribed by Australian law.
2.15 | Payment of Interest out of Capital |
Where any Shares are issued for the purpose of raising money to defray the expenses of the construction of any works or buildings or the provision of any plant which cannot be made profitable for a lengthened period the Company may pay interest on so much of such share capital as is paid up for the period and may charge this interest to capital as part of the cost of construction of the works, buildings or plant.
3. | MINIMUM SHAREHOLDING |
3.1 | Effect of this Clause |
The provisions of this clause have effect notwithstanding any other provision of this Constitution, except clause 33.
3.2 | Definitions |
In this clause:
Authorised Price means the price per share of the Listed Securities equal to the simple average of the last closing price of the Listed Securities quoted on the Stock Exchange, as applicable, for each of the ten trading days immediately preceding the date of any offer received by the Company pursuant to clause 3.5.
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Date of Adoption means the date upon which this clause is inserted in this Constitution by special resolution of the members of the Company.
Date of Effect has the meaning given in clause 3.13.
Minimum Shareholding means a number of shares equal to a “marketable parcel” of Listed Securities within the meaning of the Listing Rules.
Minority Member means a member holding less than the Minimum Shareholding on or at any time after the Date of Adoption.
New Minority Member means a member who is the holder or a joint holder of a New Minimum Shareholding.
New Minimum Shareholding means a holding of shares in the same class created after the Date of Adoption by the transfer of a parcel of shares the aggregate market price of which, at the time at which a transfer of those Listed Securities was initiated or a paper based transfer of those Listed Securities was lodged with the Company, was less than a marketable parcel.
Purchaser means the person or persons (including one or more members) whose offer or offers to purchase Listed Securities is or are accepted by the Company.
3.3 | Minimum Shareholding |
Subject to clauses 3.13 and 3.14, on and from the Date of Effect, the shareholding of a member which is less than the Minimum Shareholding may be sold by the Company pursuant to the provisions of this clause 3.
3.4 | Sale of Listed Securities of Minority Member |
Subject to clauses 3.13 and 3.14, on and from the Date of Effect, each Minority Member shall be deemed to have irrevocably appointed the Company as his agent:
(a) | to sell all the Listed Securities held by him at a price not less than the Authorised Price and without any cost being incurred by the Minority Member; | |
(b) | to deal with the proceeds of the sale of those Listed Securities in accordance with this clause; and | |
(c) | where the Listed Securities are Clearing House System Approved Securities held in uncertificated form, to initiate a Holding Adjustment (as defined in the Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules) to move the securities from the Clearing House System Holding (as defined in the Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules) of the Minority Member to an Issuer Sponsored or Certificated Holding (as defined in the Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules) for the sale of the Listed Securities. |
3.5 | Acceptance of Offer |
Where the Company receives an offer for the purchase of all the Listed Securities of a Minority Member to whom this clause applies at the date of the offer at a price not less than the Authorised Price, the Company may accept the offer on behalf of that Minority Member.
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3.6 | Appointment of Attorney |
The Company shall, by instrument in writing, appoint a person or persons to act as attorney or attorneys of each Minority Member to whom this clause applies, to execute an instrument or instruments of transfer of their Listed Securities to the Purchaser.
3.7 | Transfer |
Where:
(a) | all the Listed Securities of each Minority Member to whom this clause applies at any time are sold to one Purchaser; or | |
(b) | all the Listed Securities of two or more Minority Members to whom this clause applies at any time are sold to one Purchaser, |
the transfer may be effected by one instrument of transfer.
3.8 | Proceeds of Sale |
The Company shall receive the aggregate proceeds of the sale of all of the Listed Securities of each Minority Member to whom this clause applies at any time and shall:
(a) | immediately cause the name of the Purchaser to be entered in the Register of Shareholders as the holder of the Listed Securities sold; and | |
(b) | within fourteen days of receipt of the relevant share certificate or otherwise as soon as is practicable, cause the pro rata proportions of the proceeds attributable to each Minority Member to be sent to each Minority Member by electronic transfer or cheque mailed to his address in the Register of Shareholders (or in the case of joint holders, to the address of the holder whose name is shown first in the Register of Shareholders), this cheque or electronic transfer to be made payable to the Minority Member (or, in the case of joint holders, to them jointly). In the case where a Minority Member’s whereabouts are unknown or where a Minority Member fails to return the share certificate or certificates (where required) relating to the Listed Securities sold, the proceeds of sale shall be applied in accordance with the applicable laws dealing with unclaimed moneys. |
3.9 | Receipt of Proceeds |
The receipt by the Company of the proceeds of sale of Listed Securities of a Minority Member shall be a good discharge to the Purchaser of all liability in respect of the purchase of the Listed Securities.
3.10 | Registration of Purchaser |
Upon entry of the name of the Purchaser in the Register of Shareholders as the holder of the Listed Securities of a Minority Member to whom this clause applies:
(a) | the Purchaser shall not be bound to see to the regularity of the actions and proceedings of the Company pursuant to this Constitution or to the application of the proceeds of sale; and | |
(b) | the validity of the sale shall not be impeached by any person. |
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3.11 | Remedies Limited |
The remedy of any Minority Member to whom this clause applies in respect of the sale of his or her Listed Securities is expressly limited to a right of action in damages against the Company to the exclusion of any other right, remedy or relief against any other person.
3.12 | Cost of Sale of Listed Securities |
The Company shall bear all the costs of the sale of the Listed Securities.
3.13 | Exemption from clause 3 |
(a) | The Company must give written notice to a Minority Member and, where the Shares are Clearing House System Approved Securities, to the Controlling Participant (as defined in the Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules) for the holding of the Minority Member, advising of the Company’s intention to sell his or her shareholding pursuant to this clause 3. | |
(b) | Unless the Minority Member, within 6 weeks from the date the notice was sent from the Company in accordance with this clause 3, gives written notice to the Company that it desires its shareholding to be exempted from clause 3, then the Company will be free to sell the Shares held by the relevant Minority Member immediately following expiry of the 6 week period in accordance with this clause 3 (Date of Effect). | |
(c) | Where Shares are Clearing House System Approved Securities, a written notice by the Company in terms of this clause shall comply with the Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules. |
3.14 | Notice to Exempt |
Where a Minority Member has given written notice to the Company that it desires its shareholding to be exempted from clause 3 it may, at any time prior to the sale of the Listed Securities under clause 3.8, revoke or withdraw that notice. In that event the provisions of clause 3 shall apply to the Minority Member.
3.15 | Takeover Offer or Announcement |
The Company shall not commence to sell Listed Securities comprising less than a Minimum Shareholding following the announcement of a takeover offer or takeover announcement for the Company. If a takeover bid is announced after a notice is given but before an agreement is entered into for the sale of the Listed Securities, this clause 3 ceases to operate for those Listed Securities. However, despite clause 3.16, a new notice under clause 3.13 may be given after the offer period if the takeover bid closes.
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Use by Company of Clause 3
Subject to clause 3.15, this clause 3 may be invoked only once in any twelve month period after its adoption or re-adoption.
3.16 | Notice to New Minority Members |
If the Directors determine that a member is a New Minority Member, the Company may give the member notice in writing stating that the member is a New Minority Member, specifying the number of shares making up the New Minimum Shareholding, the market price of those Listed Securities and the date on which the market price was determined and stating that the Company intends to sell the Listed Securities specified in the notice in accordance with the provisions of its Constitution. Unless the Directors determine otherwise, if the Company gives such a notice, all rights of the member to vote and to receive dividends in respect of the shares specified in the notice are suspended until the Listed Securities are sold or that member ceases to be a New Minority Member and any dividends that would, but for this clause 3.17, have been paid to that member must be held by the Company and paid to that member within 30 days after the earlier of:
(a) | the date the Listed Securities specified in the notice are transferred; and | |
(b) | the date that the Company ceases to be entitled to sell those Listed Securities under the sale notice. |
4. | UNCERTIFICATED HOLDINGS AND ELECTRONIC TRANSFERS |
4.1 | Electronic or Computerised Holding |
The Directors may do anything they consider necessary or desirable and which is permitted under the Corporations Act and the Listing Rules to facilitate the participation by the Company in the Clearing House System and any other computerised or electronic system established or recognised by the Corporations Act or the Listing Rules for the purposes of facilitating dealings in Shares or securities.
4.2 | Statement of Holdings |
Where the Directors have determined not to issue share certificates or to cancel existing Share certificates, a Shareholder shall have the right to receive such statements of the holdings of the Shareholder as are required to be distributed to a Shareholder under the Corporations Act or the Listing Rules.
4.3 | Share Certificates |
If the Directors determine to issue a certificate for Shares held by a Shareholder, the provisions in relation to Share certificates contained in clause 2 shall apply.
4.4 | Listing Rules |
The Company shall comply with the Listing Rules and the Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules in relation to the Clearing House System.
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5. | LIEN |
5.1 | Lien for Members Debts |
The Company has a first and paramount lien on each Share (except where the Share is a Listed Security and is fully paid up) registered in a Shareholder’s name in respect of all money owed to the Company by the Shareholder (including any money payable under clause 5.2 to the extent that the Company has made a payment in respect of a liability or a requirement referred to in that clause) but not any unpaid call once the Share has been forfeited under section 254Q of the Corporations Act. The lien extends to reasonable interest and expenses incurred because the amount is not paid.
5.2 | Generally |
Whenever any law for the time being of any country, state or place imposes or purports to impose any immediate or future possible liability upon the Company to make any payments or empowers any government or taxing authority or governmental official to require the Company to make any payment in respect of any Shares held either jointly or solely by any Shareholder, or in respect of any transfer of Shares, or of any dividends, bonuses or other moneys due or payable or accruing due or which may become due or payable to such Shareholder by the Company on or in respect of any Shares or for or on account or in respect of any Shareholder, and whether in consequence of:
(a) | the death of such Shareholder; | |
(b) | the non-payment of any income tax or other tax by such Shareholder; | |
(c) | the non-payments of any estate, probate, succession or death, duty or of any other Duty by the executor or administrator of such Shareholder or by or out of his estate; or | |
(d) | any other act or thing, | |
the Company in every case: | ||
(e) | shall be fully indemnified by such Shareholder or his executor or administrator from all liability; | |
(f) | shall have a lien upon all dividends, bonuses and other moneys payable in respect of the Shares held either jointly or solely by this Shareholder for all moneys paid by the Company in respect of the Shares or in respect of any dividend, bonus or other money or for an account or in respect of this Shareholder under or in consequence of any law, together with interest at the Prescribed Rate from date of payment to date of repayment, and may deduct or set off against any dividend, bonus or other moneys so paid or payable by the Company together with interest at the Prescribed Rate; | |
(g) | may recover as a debt due from this Shareholder or his or her executor or administrator, wherever constituted or situate, any moneys paid by the Company under or in consequence of any such law and interest on these moneys at the Prescribed Rate and for the period mentioned above in excess of any dividend, bonus or other money as mentioned above then due or payable by the Company to such Shareholder; and |
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(h) | may, subject to the Listing Rules, if any such money be paid or payable by the Company under any such law, refuse to register a transfer of any Shares by this Shareholder or his executor or administrator until the money and interest mentioned above is set off or deducted or, in case the money and interest exceeds the amount of any dividend, bonus or other money then due or payable by the Company to the Shareholder, until this excess is paid to the Company. |
Nothing contained in this clause shall prejudice or affect any right or remedy which any law may confer or purport to confer on the Company, and, as between the Company and every such Shareholder, his or her executor, administrator and estate, wherever constituted or situate, any right or remedy which this law shall confer on the Company shall be enforceable by the Company.
5.3 | Exemption |
The Directors may at any time exempt a Share wholly or in part from the provisions of this clause 5.
5.4 | Dividends |
Whenever the Company has a lien on a Share, the lien extends to all dividends payable in respect of the Share.
5.5 | Sale of Shares |
Subject to clause 5.6, the Company may sell, in such manner as the Directors think fit, any Shares on which the Company has a lien.
5.6 | Restrictions on Sale |
A Share on which the Company has a lien shall not be sold unless:
(a) | the sum in respect of which the lien exists is presently payable; and | |
(b) | the Company has, not less than 14 days before the date of the sale, given to the registered holder for the time being of the Share or the person entitled to the Share by reason of the death or bankruptcy of the registered holder a notice in writing setting out, and demanding payment of, that part of the amount in respect of which the lien exists as is presently payable. |
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5.7 | Person Authorised to Sign Transfers |
For the purpose of giving effect to a sale of a Share under clause 5.5, the Directors may authorise a person to transfer the Shares sold to the purchaser of the Shares. The Company shall register the purchaser as the holder of the Shares comprised in any such transfer and he or she is not bound to see to the application of the purchase money. The title of the purchaser to the Shares is not affected by any irregularity or invalidity in connection with the sale.
5.8 | Proceeds of Sale |
The proceeds of a sale under clause 5.5 shall be applied by the Company in payment of that part of the amount in respect of which the lien exists as is presently payable, and the residue (if any) shall (subject to any like lien for sums not presently payable that existed upon the Shares before the sale) be paid to the person entitled to the Shares at the date of the sale.
5.9 | Protection of Lien under Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules |
The Company may do all such things as may be necessary or appropriate for it to do under the Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules to protect any lien, charge or other right to which it may be entitled under any law or this Constitution.
5.10 | Further Powers re Forfeited Shares and Liens |
Where a transfer following the sale of any Shares after forfeiture or for enforcing a lien, charge or right to which the Company is entitled under any law or under this Constitution is effected by an Stock Exchange Settlement Transfer, the Company may do all things necessary or desirable for it to do under the Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules in relation to that transfer.
6. | CALLS ON SHARES |
6.1 | Calls |
(a) | The Directors may by resolution make calls on Shareholders of partly paid Shares to satisfy the whole or part of the debt owing on those Shares provided that the dates for payment of those Shares were not fixed at the time of issue. | |
(b) | A call shall be deemed to have been made at the time when the resolution of the Directors authorising the call was passed. | |
(c) | A call may be required or permitted to be paid by instalments. | |
(d) | Failure to send a notice of a call to any Shareholder or the non-receipt of a notice by any Shareholder does not invalidate the call. |
6.2 | Payment of Calls |
A Shareholder to whom notice of a call is given in accordance with this Constitution must pay to the Company the amount called in accordance with the notice.
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6.3 | Quoted Shares |
(a) | The Directors must not make the date for payment of calls, (Due Date), for Shareholders who hold quoted partly paid Shares, less than 30 Business Days and no more than 40 Business Days from the date the Company dispatches notices to relevant Shareholders that a call is made. | |
(b) | If after a call is made, new Shareholders purchase the same class of Share subject to the call, or if the holdings of the original Shareholders on whom the call was made change, Directors must dispatch a notice informing these Shareholders that a call has been made at least 4 days before the Due Date. | |
(c) | The Company must enter a call payment on the Company register no more than 5 Business Days after the Due Date. |
6.4 | Unquoted Shares |
The Directors must not make the Due Date for Shareholders who hold unquoted partly paid Shares, less than 5 Business Days from the date the Company dispatches notices to relevant Shareholders that a call is made.
6.5 | Joint Liability |
The joint holders of a Share are jointly and severally liable to pay all calls in respect of the Share.
6.6 | Deemed Calls |
Any amount that, by the terms of issue of a Share, becomes payable on allotment or at a fixed date, shall for the purposes of this Constitution be deemed to be a call duly made and payable, and, in case of non-payment, all the relevant provisions of this Constitution as to payment of interest and expenses, forfeiture or otherwise apply as if the amount had become payable by virtue of a call duly made and notified.
6.7 | Differentiation between Shareholders |
The Directors may, on the issue of Shares, differentiate between the holders as to the amount of calls to be paid and the times of payment.
6.8 | Payments in Advance of Calls |
The Directors may accept from a Shareholder the whole or any part of the amount unpaid on a Share even if no part of that amount has been called up, in which case the Directors shall nominate whether the amount so paid is to be treated as capital or a loan to the Company by the Shareholder, and:
(a) | if the amount paid is nominated to be capital, it shall be deemed as from the date of the nomination to have been applied in paying up (so far as it will extend) the unpaid balance of the total issue price of the Share, but the dividend entitlement attaching to the Share shall remain as it was prior to the payment so made until there is a call in respect of the Share under this clause 6 of an amount equal to or greater than the amount so paid; or |
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(b) | if the amount paid is nominated to be a loan to the Company, it shall carry interest at a rate, not exceeding the Prescribed Rate, as is agreed between the Directors and the Shareholder, shall not be repayable unless the Directors so determine, shall not confer on the Shareholder any rights attributable to subscribed capital, and shall, unless so repaid, be applied in payment of calls on the Share as and when the calls become due. |
6.9 | Outstanding Moneys |
Any moneys payable in respect of a call made in accordance with this Constitution which remain outstanding shall from and including the day for payment until the date payment is received bear interest at the Prescribed Rate.
6.10 | Revocation/Postponement or Extension |
The Directors may revoke or postpone a call or extend time for payment in accordance with the Listing Rules and/or the Corporations Act, if revocation or postponement is not prohibited by either.
6.11 | Compliance with Listing Rules and Corporations Act |
The Company shall comply with the Listing Rules and the Corporations Act in relation to calls. All Listing Rule requirements in relation to calls are not covered in this Constitution.
6.12 | Waive |
The Directors may, to the extent the law permits, waive or compromise all or part of any payment due to the Company under the terms of issue of a Share under this clause 6.
7. | FORFEITURE OF SHARES |
7.1 | Failure to Pay Call |
If a Shareholder fails to pay a call or instalment of a call on the day appointed for payment of the call or instalment, the Directors may, at any time after this day during the time any part of the call or instalment remains unpaid (but subject to this clause 7.1) serve a notice on such Shareholder requiring payment of so much of the call or instalment as is unpaid, together with any interest that has accrued and all costs and expenses incurred by the Company as a result of the non-payment. The notice shall name a further day being not less than 14 days after the date of notice on or before which the payment required by the notice is to be made and shall state that, in the event of non-payment at or before the time appointed, the Shares in respect of which the call was made will be liable to be forfeited.
7.2 | Forfeiture |
If the requirements of a notice served under clause 7.1 are not complied with, any Share in respect of which a call is unpaid at the expiration of 14 days after the day for its payment may be forfeited by a resolution of the Directors to that effect. Such a forfeiture shall include all dividends and other distributions declared in respect of the forfeited Shares and not actually paid or distributed before the forfeiture.
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7.3 | Sale of Forfeited Shares |
Subject to the Corporations Act and the Listing Rules, a forfeited Share may be sold or otherwise disposed of on the terms and in the manner that the Directors determine and, at any time before a sale or disposition, the forfeiture may be cancelled on the terms the Directors determine.
7.4 | Continuing Liability |
A person whose Shares have been forfeited ceases to be a Shareholder in respect of the forfeited Shares, but remains liable to pay the Company all money that, at the date of forfeiture, was payable by him to the Company in respect of the Shares (including interest at the Prescribed Rate from the date of forfeiture on the money for the time being unpaid if the Directors decide to enforce payment of the interest), but his or her liability ceases if and when the Company receives payment in full of all the money (including interest) payable in respect of the Shares.
7.5 | Officer’s Statement Prima Facie Evidence |
A statement in writing declaring that the person making the statement is a Director or a Secretary of the Company, and that a Share in the Company has been duly forfeited on a date stated in the statement, is prima facie evidence of the facts stated in the statement as against all persons claiming to be entitled to the Share.
7.6 | Procedures |
The Company may receive the consideration (if any) given for a forfeited Share on any sale or disposition of the Share, execute a transfer of the Share in favour of the person to whom the Share is sold or disposed of and take all other steps necessary or desirable to transfer or dispose of those shares to the relevant transferee. Upon the execution of the transfer, the transferee shall be registered as the holder of the Share and is not bound to see to the application of any money paid as consideration. The title of the transferee to the Share is not affected by any irregularity or invalidity in connection with the forfeiture, sale or disposal of the Share.
7.7 | Listing Rules and Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules |
The Company shall comply with the Listing Rules with respect to forfeited Shares and may do all such things as may be necessary or appropriate for it to do under the Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules to protect any lien, charge or other right to which it may be entitled under any law or this Constitution.
7.8 | Waive |
The Directors may:
(a) | exempt a Share from all or part of this clause 7; | |
(b) | waive or compromise all or part of any payment due to the Company under this clause 7; and | |
(c) | before a forfeited Share has been sold, reissued and otherwise disposed of, cancel the forfeiture on the conditions they decide. |
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8. | TRANSFER OF SHARES |
8.1 | Form of Transfer |
Subject to this Constitution, Shareholders may transfer any Share held by them by:
(a) | an Stock Exchange Settlement Transfer or any other method of transferring or dealing in Shares introduced by the Stock Exchange or operated in accordance with the Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules or Listing Rules, as applicable, and in any such case recognised under the Corporations Act; or | |
(b) | an instrument in writing in any usual or common form or in any other form that the Directors approve. |
8.2 | Clearing House System Transfers |
(a) | The Company must comply with all obligations imposed on the Company under the Corporations Act, the Listing Rules and the Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules in respect of an Stock Exchange Settlement Transfer or any other transfer of Shares, as applicable to the transfer. | |
(b) | Notwithstanding any other provision in this Constitution, the Company must not prevent, delay or interfere with the registration of an Stock Exchange Settlement Transfer or any other transfer of Shares. |
8.3 | Participation in Clearing House System |
The Directors may do anything they consider necessary or desirable and which is permitted under the Corporations Act, the Listing Rules and the Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules to facilitate participation by the Company in any system established or recognised by the Corporations Act and the Listing Rules or the Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules in respect of transfers of or dealings in marketable securities.
8.4 | Registration Procedure |
Where an instrument of transfer referred to in clause 8.1(b) is to be used by a Shareholder to transfer Shares, the following provisions apply:
(a) | the instrument of transfer must be executed by or on behalf of both the transferor and the transferee unless it is a sufficient transfer of marketable securities within the meaning of the Corporations Act and any Duty duly paid if required by law; | |
(b) | the instrument of transfer shall be left at the Registered Office for registration accompanied by the certificate for the Shares to be transferred (if any) and such other evidence as the Directors may require to prove the title of the transferor and his right to transfer the shares; | |
(c) | subject to clause 33, a reasonable fee may be charged on the registration of a transfer of Shares or other securities; and | |
(d) | on registration of a transfer of Shares, the Company must cancel the old certificate (if any). |
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8.5 | Power to Refuse to Register |
The Directors may refuse to register any transfer of Shares (other than an Stock Exchange Settlement Transfer) where:
(a) | the Listing Rules permit the Company to do so; | |
(b) | the Listing Rules require the Company to do so; or | |
(c) | the transfer is a transfer of Restricted Securities which is or might be in breach of the Listing Rules or any escrow agreement entered into by the Company in relation to such Restricted Securities pursuant to the Listing Rules. |
Where the Directors refuse to register a transfer in accordance with this clause, they shall send notice of the refusal and the precise reasons for the refusal to the transferee and the lodging broker (if any) in accordance with the Listing Rules.
8.6 | Closure of Register |
Subject to the Listing Rules and the Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules, the Register of Shareholders may be closed during such time as the Directors may determine, not exceeding 30 days in each calendar year or any one period of more than 5 consecutive Business Days.
8.7 | Retention of Transfers by Company |
All instruments of transfer which are registered will be retained by the Company, but any instrument of transfer which the Directors decline or refuse to register (except in the case of fraud) shall on demand be returned to the transferee.
8.8 | Power to suspend registration of transfers |
The Directors may suspend the registration of transfers at any times, and for any periods, permitted by the Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules that they decide.
8.9 | Powers of Attorney |
Any power of attorney granted by a Shareholder empowering the recipient to transfer Shares which may be lodged, produced or exhibited to the Company or any Officer of the Company will be taken and deemed to continue and remain in full force and effect, as between the Company and the grantor of that power, and the power of attorney may be acted on, until express notice in writing that it has been revoked or notice of the death of the grantor has been given and lodged at the Office or at the place where the Register of Shareholders is kept.
8.10 | Other Securities |
The provisions of this clause 8 shall apply, with necessary alterations, to any other Listed Securities for the time being issued by the Company.
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8.11 | Branch Register |
The Company may cause a Register of Shareholders to be kept in any place (including without limitation, a branch register) and the Directors may from time to time make such provisions as they (subject to the Corporations Act, the Listing Rules and the Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules) may think fit with respect to the keeping of any such Register.
8.12 | Compliance with Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules |
The Company shall comply with the Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules and the Listing Rules in relation to all matters covered by those rules.
8.13 | Issuer Sponsored Subregister |
The Company may establish and maintain an issuer sponsored subregister in compliance with any relevant provisions of the Corporations Act, the Listing Rules or the Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules.
8.14 | Transferor Holds Shares until Registration of Transfer |
A transferor of Shares remains the registered holder of the Shares transferred until a Stock Exchange Settlement Transfer has taken effect in accordance with the Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules or the transfer is registered in the name of the transferee and is entered in the Register of Shareholders in respect of them, whichever is the earlier.
8.15 | Waive |
The Directors may, to the extent the law permits, waive any of the requirements of this clause 8 and prescribe alternative requirements instead.
9. | TRANSMISSION OF SHARES |
9.1 | Death of Shareholder Leaving a Will |
On the death of a Shareholder who leaves a will appointing an executor, the executor shall be entitled as from the date of death, and on behalf of the deceased Shareholder’s estate, to the same dividends and other advantages and to the same rights whether in relation to meetings of the Company, or voting or otherwise, as the Shareholder would have been entitled to if he or she had not died, whether or not probate of the will has been granted. Nevertheless, if probate of the will is granted to a person or persons other than the executor first referred to in this clause 9, his or her executor’s rights shall cease, and these rights shall only be exercisable by the person or persons to whom probate is granted as provided in clauses 9.2 and 9.3. The estate of a deceased Shareholder will not be released from any liability to the Company in respect of the Shares.
9.2 | Death or Bankruptcy of Shareholder or the Shareholder becomes of unsound mind |
Subject to clause 9.1, where the registered holder of a Share dies, becomes bankrupt, or the Shareholder becomes of unsound mind, his or her personal representative or the trustee of his or her estate, as the case may be, shall be entitled upon the production of such information as is properly required by the Directors, to the same dividends and other advantages, and to the same rights (whether in relation to meetings of the Company, or to voting or otherwise), as the registered holder would have been entitled to if he or she had not died or become bankrupt.
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9.3 | Registration by Transmission or to Beneficiary |
A person becoming entitled to a Share in consequence of the death or, subject to the Bankruptcy Act 1966, the bankruptcy of a Shareholder or the Shareholder becoming of an unsound mind may, upon information being produced that is properly required by the Directors, elect by written notice to the Company either to be registered himself or herself as holder of the Share or to have some other person nominated by the person registered as the transferee of the Share. If this person elects to have another person registered, he or she shall execute a transfer of the Share to that other person.
9.4 | Limitations to Apply |
All the limitations, restrictions and provisions of this Constitution relating to the right to transfer Shares and the registration of a transfer of Shares are applicable to any notice or transfer as if the death, bankruptcy of the Shareholder or on the Shareholder becoming of unsound mind had not occurred and the notice or transfer were a transfer signed by that Shareholder.
9.5 | Death of a Joint Holder |
In the case of the death of a Shareholder who was a joint holder, the survivor or survivors shall be the only persons recognised by the Company as having any title to the deceased’s interest in the Shares, but this clause 9.5 does not release the estate of a deceased joint holder from any liability in respect of a Share that had been jointly held by this person with one or more other persons.
9.6 | Joint Personal Representatives |
Where two or more persons are jointly entitled to any Share in consequence of the death of the registered holder, they shall, for the purpose of this Constitution, be deemed to be joint holders of the Share.
9.7 | Stock Exchange Settlement Transfer |
In the case of a Stock Exchange Settlement Transfer the provisions of this clause 9 are subject to any obligation imposed on the Company or the person entitled to the relevant Shares on the death or bankruptcy of a member by the Listing Rules, the Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules or any law.
9.8 | Joint Holders |
If more than three persons are registered as holders of Shares in the Company in the Register of Shareholders (or a request is made to register more than three persons), then only the first three persons will be regarded as holders of Shares in the Company and all other names will be disregarded by the Company for all purposes.
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10. | CHANGES TO CAPITAL STRUCTURE |
10.1 | Alterations to Capital |
Subject to the Corporations Act and the Listing Rules, the Company may, by ordinary resolution:
(a) | issue new Shares of such amount specified in the resolution; | |
(b) | consolidate and divide all or any of its Shares into Shares of larger amount than its existing Shares; | |
(c) | subject to the Listing Rules, sub-divide all or any of its Shares into Shares of smaller amount, but so that in the sub-division the proportion between the amount paid and the amount (if any) unpaid on each such Share of a smaller amount remains the same; and | |
(d) | cancel Shares that, at the date of the passing of the resolution, have not been taken or agreed to be taken by any person or have been forfeited and, subject to the Corporations Act, reduce the amount of its share capital by the amount of the Shares so cancelled, |
and the Directors may take such action as the Directors think fit to give effect to any resolution altering the Company’s share capital.
10.2 | Reduction of Capital |
Subject to the Corporations Act and the Listing Rules, the Company may reduce its share capital in any way including, but not limited to, distributing to shareholders securities of any other body corporate and, on behalf of the shareholders, consenting to each shareholder becoming a member of that body corporate and agreeing to be bound by the constitution of that body corporate.
10.3 | Buy-Backs |
(a) | In this clause “Buy-Back Provisions” means the provisions of Part 2J.1 Division 2 of the Corporations Act. | |
(b) | The Company may, subject to the Corporations Act and the Listing Rules and in accordance with the Buy-Back Provisions, purchase its own Shares on such terms and at such times as may be determined by the Directors from time to time. | |
(c) | The Company may give financial assistance to any person or entity for the purchase of its own Shares in accordance with the Buy-Back Provisions on such terms and at such times as may be determined by the Directors from time to time. |
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10.4 | Fractions |
If as a result of any issue of shares or any alteration to the Company’s share capital any Shareholders would become entitled to fractions of a share, the Directors may deal with those fractions as the Directors think fit including by:
(a) |
ignoring fractional entitlements or making cash payments in lieu of fractional entitlements; |
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(b) |
appointing a trustee to deal with any fractions on behalf of Shareholders; and | |
(c) |
rounding up each fractional entitlement to the nearest whole share by capitalising any amount available for capitalisation under clause 23.1 even though only some of the Shareholders participate in the capitalisation.
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11. | Written Resolutions |
Where the Company has only one Shareholder, to the extent permitted by law, a resolution in writing signed by that Shareholder, shall be as valid and effectual as if it had been passed at a meeting of Shareholders duly convened and held. A facsimile transmission, an email bearing the signature of the Shareholder or an email of the Shareholder addressed to an officer of the Company confirming agreement with the resolution and undertaking to sign the resolution as soon as practicable shall be deemed to be a document in writing signed by the Shareholder.
12. | GENERAL MEETINGS |
12.1 | Convening of General Meetings of Shareholders by Directors’ Resolution |
The Directors may, by a resolution passed by a majority of Directors, convene a general meeting of Shareholders in accordance with this clause 11 and the requirements of the Corporations Act.
12.2 | Change of place or postponement of a General Meeting of Shareholders |
The Directors may, subject to the Corporations Act and the Listing Rules, postpone a meeting of Shareholders or change the place for a general meeting of Shareholders by giving written notice to the Stock Exchange, as applicable. If a meeting of Shareholders is postponed for one month or more, the Company must give new notice of the postponed meeting. The only business that may be transacted at a general meeting the holding of which is postponed is the business specified at the original meeting.
12.3 | Convening of General Meetings of Shareholders by a Director or requisition |
Any Director may, whenever he or she thinks fit, convene a general meeting of Shareholders, and a general meeting shall also be convened on requisition as is provided for by the Corporations Act, or in default, may be convened by such requisitions as empowered to do so by the Corporations Act. If there are no Directors for the time being, a Secretary may convene a general meeting of Shareholders for the purpose of enabling the election of Directors but for no other purpose. A general meeting may be held at two or more venues simultaneously using any technology that gives the Shareholders as a whole a reasonable opportunity to participate.
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12.4 | Cancellation of a General Meeting of Shareholders |
(a) | A general meeting of Shareholders convened by the Directors in accordance with clause 12.1 may be cancelled by a resolution passed by a majority of Directors. | |
(b) | A general meeting of shareholders convened on a requisition as provided for by the Corporations Act, may, if the application for requisition is withdrawn in writing, be cancelled by a resolution passed by a majority of Directors. | |
(c) | Notice of the cancellation of a general meeting of Shareholders must be given to the Shareholders in accordance with clause 26, but notice of such cancellation must be given to each Shareholder not less than two (2) days prior to the date on which the meeting was proposed to be held. |
12.5 | Notice |
A notice of a general meeting shall be given in accordance with the requirements of the Corporations Act, clause 26 and the Listing Rules, and:
(a) | must specify the place, the day and the time of the meeting; | |
(b) | must state the general nature of the business to be transacted at the meeting; | |
(c) | must, if a special resolution is proposed at the meeting, set out an intention to propose the special resolution and state the resolution; | |
(d) | must include such statements about the appointment of proxies as are required by the Corporations Act; | |
(e) | must specify a place and fax number for the purposes of receipt of proxy appointments; and | |
(f) | may specify an electronic address for the purposes of receipt of proxy appointments, |
and shall include any other information required to be included in the notice by the Listing Rules. The non-receipt of a notice of a general meeting by a Shareholder or the accidental omission to give this notice to a Shareholder shall not invalidate any resolution passed at the meeting.
12.6 | Irregularities in giving notice |
A person who attends any general meeting waives any objection that the person may have to any failure to give notice or any other irregularity in the notice of that meeting unless that person objects to the holding of the meeting at the start of the meeting. The accidental failure to give notice of a general meeting to, or the non-receipt of the notice by, any person entitled to receive notice of that meeting does not invalidate the proceedings at the meeting or any resolution passed at that meeting.
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12.7 | Business at General Meeting |
Subject to the Corporations Act, only matters that appear in a notice of meeting shall be dealt with at a general meeting or an annual general meeting, as the case may be.
12.8 | Notice to Home Branch |
(a) | The Company shall notify the Home Branch of any meeting at which Directors are to be elected at least 5 Business Days before the closing day for receipt of nominations for Directors, and in any other case (other than a meeting to pass a special resolution) at least 10 Business Days before the meeting is held, and in the case of a meeting convened to pass a special resolution, at least 15 Business Days before the meeting is held. All notices convening meetings shall specify the place, date and hour of the meeting, and shall set out all resolutions to be put to the meeting. | |
(b) | The Company shall notify the Home Branch as soon as is practicable after any general meeting in the case of special business as to whether or not the resolutions were carried and in the case of ordinary business as to which of those resolutions were not carried or were amended or were withdrawn. |
12.9 | Annual General Meeting |
An annual general meeting shall be held in accordance with the requirements of the Corporations Act.
13. | PROCEEDINGS AT GENERAL MEETINGS |
13.1 | Quorum |
No business, the election of a chairman and the adjournment of the meeting, shall be transacted at any general meeting unless a quorum is present comprising two Shareholders present in person, by proxy, attorney or Representative. For the purpose of determining whether a quorum is present, a person attending as a proxy, attorney or Representative, shall be deemed to be the Shareholder present in person. If a quorum is not present within 30 minutes after the time appointed for a general meeting, the meeting, if convened upon a requisition shall be dissolved, but in any other case, it shall stand adjourned to a date and at the time and place to be fixed by the Directors. If at such adjourned meeting a quorum is not present within 30 minutes after the time appointed for the adjourned meeting, the meeting is dissolved.
13.2 | Persons Entitled to Attend a General Meeting |
The persons entitled to attend a general meeting shall be:
(a) | Shareholders, in person, by proxy, attorney or Representative; | |
(b) | Directors and public officers of the Company; | |
(c) | the Company’s auditor; and | |
(d) | any other person or persons as the chairman may approve. |
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13.3 | Refusal of Admission to Meetings |
The chairman of a general meeting may refuse admission to a person, or require a person to leave and not return to, a meeting if the person:
(a) | refuses to permit examination of any article in the person’s possession; | ||
(b) | is in possession of any: | ||
(i) | electronic or broadcasting or recording device; | ||
(ii) | placard or banner; or | ||
(iii) | other article, | ||
which the chairman considers to be dangerous, offensive or liable to cause disruption; | |||
(c) | causes any disruption to the meeting; or | ||
(d) | is not entitled to attend the meeting under the Corporations Act or this Constitution. |
The Chairman may delegate the powers conferred by this clause 13.3 to any person. Nothing in this clause limits the powers conferred on the chairman by law.
13.4 | Insufficient room |
The chairman may arrange for any persons attending the meeting who the chairman considers cannot reasonably be accommodated in the place where the meeting is to take place to attend or observe the meeting from a separate place using any technology that gives members present at the meeting as a whole a reasonable opportunity to participate in the meeting.
13.5 | Chairman |
The person elected as the chairman of the Directors’ meeting under clause 16.9 shall, if willing, preside as chairman at every general meeting. Where a general meeting is held and a chairman has not been elected under clause 16.9 or the chairman or, in his absence, the vice-chairman is not present within 15 minutes after the time appointed for holding of the meeting or is unwilling to act:
(a) | the Directors present may elect a chairman of the meeting; or | |
(b) | if no chairman is elected in accordance with subsection (a), the Shareholders present shall elect one of their number to be the acting chairman of the meeting. |
13.6 | Vacating Chair |
At any time during a meeting and in respect of any specific item or items of business, the chairman may elect to vacate the chair in favour of another person nominated by the chairman (which person must be a Director unless no Director is present or willing to act). That person is to be taken to be the chairman and will have all the power of the chairman (other than the power to adjourn the meeting), during the consideration of that item of business or those items of business.
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13.7 | Disputes Concerning Procedure |
If there is a dispute at a general meeting about a question of procedure, the chairman may determine the question.
13.8 | General Conduct |
The general conduct of each general meeting of the Company and the procedures to be adopted at the meeting will be determined by the chairman, including the procedure for the conduct of the election of Directors.
13.9 | Adjournment |
The chairman may adjourn the meeting from time to time and from place to place, but no business shall be transacted on the resumption of any adjourned meeting other than the business left unfinished at the meeting from which the adjournment took place. A poll cannot be demanded on any resolution concerning the adjournment of a general meeting except by the chairman.
13.10 | Notice of Resumption of Adjourned Meeting |
When a meeting is adjourned for 30 days or more, notice of the resumption of the adjourned meeting shall be given in the same manner as for the original meeting, but otherwise, it is not necessary to give any notice of any adjournment or of the business to be transacted on the resumption of the adjourned meeting.
13.11 | How resolutions are decided |
Subject to the requirements of the Corporations Act, a resolution is taken to be carried if a majority of the votes cast on the resolution are in favour of it.
13.12 | Casting Vote |
In the case of an equality of votes, the chairman of the meeting shall have a second or casting vote.
13.13 | Voting Rights |
Subject to any rights or restrictions for the time being attached to any class or classes of Shares, at meetings of Shareholders or classes of Shareholders:
(a) | each Shareholder entitled to vote may vote in person or by proxy, attorney or Representative or, if a determination has been made by the Board in accordance with clause 13.35, by Direct Vote); | |
(b) | on a show of hands, every person present who is a Shareholder or a proxy, attorney or Representative of a Shareholder has one vote (even though he or she may represent more than one member); [and] |
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(c) | on a poll, every person present who is a Shareholder or a proxy, attorney or Representative of a Shareholder (or where a Direct Vote has been lodged) shall, in respect of each fully paid Share held by him, or in respect of which he is appointed a proxy, attorney or Representative, have one vote for the Share, but in respect of partly paid Shares, shall have such number of votes being equivalent to the proportion which the amount paid (not credited) is of the total amounts paid and payable in respect of those Shares (excluding amounts credited). |
13.14 | Voting - Show of Hands |
At any general meeting a resolution put to the vote of the meeting shall be decided on a show of hands unless a poll is demanded in accordance with clause 13.16.
13.15 | Results of Voting |
Unless a poll is so demanded, a declaration by the chairman that a resolution has on a show of hands been carried or carried unanimously or by a particular majority, or lost, and an entry to that effect in the book containing the minutes of the proceedings of general meetings of the Company, is conclusive evidence of the fact without proof of the number or proportion of the votes recorded in favour of or against the resolution.
13.16 | Poll |
A poll may be demanded before or immediately upon the declaration of the result of the show of hands by:
(a) | the chairman of the general meeting; | |
(b) | at least 5 Shareholders present in person or by proxy, attorney or Representative having the right to vote on the resolution; or | |
(c) | any one or more Shareholders holding not less than 5% of the total voting rights of all Shareholders having the right to vote on the resolution. |
The Chairman must demand a poll if, having regard to the number of votes cast by proxy and Direct Vote, the outcome of the poll will or may be different from the outcome of a show of hands.
13.17 | Manner of Taking Poll |
If a poll is duly demanded, it shall be taken in such manner and either at once or after an interval or adjournment or otherwise as the chairman directs, and the result of the poll shall be the resolution of the meeting at which the poll was demanded. A poll demanded on the election of a chairman or on a question of adjournment shall be taken forthwith.
13.18 | Meeting May Continue |
A demand for a poll shall not prevent the continuation of the meeting for the transaction of other business.
13.19 | Voting by Joint Holders |
In the case of joint holders of Shares, the vote of the senior who tenders a vote, whether in person or by proxy, attorney or Representative or by Direct Vote, shall be accepted to the exclusion of the votes of the other joint holders and, for this purpose, seniority shall be determined by the order in which the names stand in the Register of Shareholders.
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13.20 | Shareholder under Disability |
If a Shareholder is of unsound mind or is a person whose person or estate is liable to be dealt with in any way under the law relating to mental health, his committee or trustee or any other person that properly has the management of his estate may exercise any rights of the Shareholder in relation to a general meeting as if the committee, trustee or other person were the Shareholder.
13.21 | Payment of Calls |
A Shareholder is not entitled to any vote at a general meeting unless all calls presently payable by him in respect of Shares have been paid. Nothing in this clause prevents such a Shareholder from voting at a general meeting in relation to any other Shares held by that Shareholder provided all calls and other sums payable by him have been paid on those other Shares.
13.22 | Objection to Voting |
An objection may be raised to the qualification of a voter only at the meeting or adjourned meeting at which the vote objected to is given or tendered. This objection shall be referred to the chairman of the meeting, whose decision shall be final. A vote not disallowed pursuant to such an objection is valid for all purposes.
13.23 | Restrictions on voting |
A Shareholder is not entitled to vote on a resolution at a general meeting if they are prevented from doing so by the Corporations Act, the Listing Rules or this Constitution. The Company must disregard any vote (including a Direct Vote) purported to be cast on a resolution by a member or a Representative, proxy or attorney in breach of this clause 13.23.
13.24 | Proxies |
A Shareholder who is entitled to attend and cast a vote at a general meeting may appoint a person as the Shareholder’s proxy to attend and vote for the Shareholder at the general meeting. The appointment may specify the proportion or number of votes that the proxy may exercise. Each Shareholder may appoint a proxy. A Shareholder who is entitled to cast 2 or more votes at the meeting may appoint 2 proxies. If the Shareholder appoints 2 proxies and the appointment does not specify the proportion of votes that the proxy may exercise, each proxy may exercise half the votes. Any fraction of votes resulting from the application of this clause 13.23 shall be disregarded. An instrument appointing a proxy:
(a) | shall be in writing under the hand of the appointor or of his attorney, or, if the appointor is a corporation, executed in accordance with the Corporations Act; | |
(b) | may specify the manner in which the proxy is to vote in respect of a particular resolution and, where an instrument of proxy so provides, the proxy is not entitled to vote on the resolution except as specified in the instrument; |
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(c) | shall be deemed to confer authority to demand or join in demanding a poll; | |
(d) | shall be in such form as the Directors determine and which complies with Division 6 of Part 2G.2 of the Corporations Act; | |
(e) | shall not be valid unless the original instrument and the power of attorney or other authority (if any) under which the instrument is signed, or a copy or facsimile which appears on its face to be an authentic copy of that proxy, power or authority, is or are deposited or sent by facsimile or electronic transmission to the Registered Office, or at such other place (being the place or being in the reasonable proximity of the place at which the meeting is to be held) as is specified for that purpose in the notice convening the meeting (with any Duty paid where necessary), by the time (being not less than 48 hours) prior to the commencement of the meeting (or the resumption of the meeting if the meeting is adjourned and notice is given in accordance with clause 13.10) as shall be specified in the notice convening the meeting (or the notice under clause 13.10, as the case may be); and | |
(f) | shall comply with the Listing Rules. |
13.25 | Electronic Appointment of Proxy |
For the purposes of clause 13.24, a proxy appointment received at an electronic address will be taken to be signed by the appointor if:
(a) | a personal identification code allocated by the Company to the appointor has been input into the appointment; | |
(b) | the appointment has been verified in another manner approved by the Directors; or | |
(c) | is otherwise authenticated in accordance with the Corporations Act. |
13.26 | Name of proxy |
A proxy form issued by the Company must allow for the insertion of the name of the person to be primarily appointed as proxy and may provide that, in circumstances and on conditions specified in the form that are not inconsistent with this Constitution, the chairman of the relevant meeting (or another person specified in the form) is appointed as proxy.
13.27 | Incomplete proxy appointment |
Where an instrument appointing a proxy has been received by the Company within the period specified in clause 13.24(e) and the Company considers that the instrument has not been duly executed or authenticated or is otherwise incomplete (other than by reason only that the name or office of the proxy has not been completed), the board, in its discretion, may:
(a) | return the instrument appointing the proxy to the appointing Shareholder; and |
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(b) | request that the appointing Shareholder take such steps to complete, sign, execute or authenticate the proxy instrument within the time period notified to the appointing Shareholder. |
13.28 | No right to speak or vote if appointing Shareholder present |
The appointment of a proxy is not revoked by the appointing Shareholder attending and taking part in the meeting, unless the appointing Shareholder actually votes at the meeting on the resolution for which the proxy is proposed to be used, in which case the proxy’s appointment is deemed to be revoked with respect to voting on that resolution.
13.29 | Rights where 2 proxies or attorneys are appointed |
Where a Shareholder appoints 2 proxies or attorneys to vote at the same general meeting:
(a) | on a show of hands, if more than one proxy or attorney attends, neither may vote; and | |
(b) | on a poll, each proxy or attorney may only exercise votes in respect of those shares or voting rights the proxy or attorney represents. |
13.30 | More than 2 proxies or attorneys appointed |
If the Company receives notice of the appointment of a proxy or attorney in accordance with this Constitution that results in more than 2 proxies or attorneys being entitled to act at a general meeting then in determining which proxies or attorneys may act at that meeting:
(a) | a proxy or attorney appointed for that particular meeting may act ahead of any proxy or attorney whose appointment is a standing appointment; and | |
(b) | subject to clause 13.30(a) the proxies or attorneys whose appointments are received by the Company most recently in time may act. |
13.31 | Proxy Votes |
A vote given in accordance with the terms of an instrument of proxy or attorney is valid notwithstanding the previous death or unsoundness of mind of the principal, the revocation of the instrument (or the authority under which the instrument was executed) or the transfer of the Share in respect of which the instrument or power is given, if no intimation in writing of the death, unsoundness of mind, revocation or transfer has been received by the Company at the Registered Office before the commencement of the meeting or adjourned meeting at which the instrument is used or the power is exercised.
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13.32 | Representatives of Corporate Shareholders |
A body corporate (the appointor) that is a Shareholder may authorise, in accordance with section 250D of the Corporations Act, by resolution of its Directors or other governing body, such person or persons as it may determine to act as its Representative at any general meeting of the Company or of any class of Shareholders. A person so authorised shall be entitled to exercise all the rights and privileges of the appointor as a Shareholder. When a Representative is present at a general meeting of the Company, the appointor shall be deemed to be personally present at the meeting unless the Representative is otherwise entitled to be present at the meeting. The original form of appointment of a Representative, a certified copy of the appointment, or a certificate of the body corporate evidencing the appointment of a Representative is evidence of a Representative having been appointed.
13.33 | More than one Representative present |
If more than one Representative appointed by a Shareholder (and in respect of whose appointment the Company has not received notice of revocation) is present at a general meeting then:
(a) | a Representative appointed for that particular meeting may act to the exclusion of a Representative whose appointment is a standing appointment; and | |
(b) | subject to clause 13.33(a), the Representative appointed most recently in time may act to the exclusion of a Representative appointed earlier. |
13.34 | Rights of Representatives, proxies and attorneys |
Subject to clauses 13.23 to 13.33, unless the terms of appointment of a Representative, proxy or attorney provide otherwise, the Representative, proxy or attorney:
(a) | has the same rights to speak, demand a poll, join in the demanding of a poll or act generally at the meeting as the appointing Shareholder would have if the Shareholder had been present but may not cast a vote by Direct Vote; | |
(b) | is taken to have authority to vote on any amendment moved to the proposed resolutions, any motion that the proposed resolutions not be put or any similar motion and any procedural resolution, including any resolution for the election of a chairman or the adjournment of a general meeting; and | |
(c) | may attend and vote at any postponed or adjourned meeting unless the appointing Shareholder gives the Company notice in writing to the contrary not less than 48 hours before the time to which the holding of the meeting has been postponed or adjourned. |
This clause 13.34 applies even if the terms of appointment of a Representative, proxy or attorney refers to specific resolutions or to a specific meeting to be held at a specific time.
13.35 | Board may determine Direct Voting to apply |
(a) | The Board may determine that Shareholders may cast votes to which they are entitled on any or all of the resolutions (including any special resolution) proposed to be considered at, and specified in the notice convening, a meeting of Shareholders, by Direct vote. |
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(b) | If the Board determines that votes may be cast by Direct Vote, the Board may make such regulations as it considers appropriate for the casting of Direct Votes, including regulations for: | ||
(i) | the form, method and manner of voting by Direct Vote; and | ||
(ii) | the time by which the votes of Shareholders to be cast by Direct Vote must be received by the Company in order to be effective. | ||
(c) | If the Board determines to allow voting by Direct Vote on a resolution at a meeting, the notice of meeting must inform shareholders of their right to vote by direct vote in respect of that resolution. |
13.36 | Direct Voting instrument – form, signature and deposit |
(a) | If sent by post or fax, a Direct Vote must be signed by the Shareholder or properly authorised attorney or, if the Shareholder is a company, either under seal or by a duly authorised officer, attorney or representative. | ||
(b) | If sent by electronic transmission, a Direct Vote is taken to have been signed if it has been signed or authorised by the Shareholder in the manner approved by the Board or specified in the notice of meeting. | ||
(c) | At least 48 hours before the time for holding the relevant meeting, an adjourned meeting or a poll at which a person proposes to vote, the Company must receive at its registered office or such other place as specified for that purpose in the notice of meeting, or be transmitted to a facsimile number or electronic address specified for that purpose in the notice of meeting: | ||
(i) | the Direct Vote; and | ||
(ii) | if relevant, any authority or power under which the Direct Vote was signed or a certified copy of that power or authority if not already lodged with the Company. | ||
(d) | A notice of intention of voting is valid if it contains the following information: | ||
(i) | the Shareholder’s name and address and any applicable identifying notations such as the holder identification number or similar approved by the Board or specified in the notice of meeting; and | ||
(ii) | the Shareholder’s voting intention on any or all of the resolutions to be put before the meeting. |
13.37 | Voting Forms |
(a) | If a single voting form contains instructions for both a Direct Vote and appointment of a proxy, the Shareholder will be understood not to have appointed a proxy by exercising their right to Direct Vote pursuant to that voting form. The authority of any proxy will be revoked and only the Direct Votes will be counted. |
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(b) | If a single voting form is received and neither the direct voting box nor the appointment of proxy box is selected, the Shareholder will be taken to have appointed the person named in the form as proxy and if no person is named, the chair of the meeting as proxy. | |
(c) | The Shareholder may include in their voting form the number of shares to be voted on any resolution by inserting the percentage or number of shares. Otherwise the instructions apply to all Shares held by the Shareholder. | |
(d) | If more than one joint holder votes on a resolution, only the vote of the joint holder whose name appears first in the register of members is counted. |
13.38 | Direct Votes count on a poll |
(a) | Direct Votes are not counted if a resolution is decided on a show of hands. | |
(b) | Subject to clauses 13.39 and 13.40, if a poll is held on a resolution a vote cast by Direct Vote by a Shareholder entitled to vote on the resolution is taken to have been cast on the poll as if the Shareholder had cast the vote in the poll at the meeting. | |
(c) | Direct Votes abstained will not be counted in computing the required majority on a poll. | |
(d) | If the Direct Votes lodged (together with the proxies received) could result in a different outcome from a vote on a show of hands, the Chair of the meeting should call for a poll. | |
(e) | A Direct Vote received by the Company on a resolution which is amended is taken to be a Direct Vote on that resolution as amended, unless the Chair of the meeting determines that this is not appropriate. | |
(f) | Receipt of a Direct Vote from a Shareholder has the effect of revoking (or, in the case of a standing appointment, suspending) the appointment of a proxy, attorney or representative made by the shareholder under an instrument received by the Company before the Direct Vote was received. |
13.39 | Withdrawal of a Direct Vote |
A Direct Vote:
(a) | may be withdrawn by the Shareholder by notice in writing received by the Company before the commencement of the meeting (or in the case of an adjournment, the resumption of the meeting; | ||
(b) | is automatically withdrawn if: | ||
(i) | the Shareholder attends the meeting in person and registers to vote at the meeting (including in the case of a body corporate, by representative); |
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(ii) | the Company receives from the Shareholder a further Direct Vote or Direct Votes (in which case the most recent Direct Vote is, subject to the rules in clause 13.35 to 13.40, counted in lieu of the prior Direct Vote; | ||
(iii) | the Company receives, after the Direct Vote, an instrument under which a representative, proxy or attorney is appointed to act for the Shareholder at the meeting in accordance with clause 13.24 and 13.32. |
A Direct Vote withdrawn under this clause 13.39 is not counted.
13.40 | Validity of Direct Vote |
(a) | A Direct Vote received by the Company is valid even if, before the meeting, the Shareholder: | ||
(i) | dies or becomes mentally incapacitated; | ||
(ii) | becomes bankrupt or an insolvent under administration or is wound up; | ||
(iii) | transfers the Shares in respect of which the Direct vote was given; | ||
(iv) | where the Direct Vote is given on behalf of the Shareholder by an attorney, revokes the appointment of the attorney or the authority under which the appointment was made by a third party, | ||
unless the Company has received written notice of the matter before the commencement or resumption of the meeting. | |||
(b) | A decision by the Chair of the meeting as to whether a Direct Vote is valid is conclusive. |
14. | THE DIRECTORS |
14.1 | Number of Directors |
The Company shall at all times have at least 3 Directors. The number of Directors shall not exceed 9. Subject to the Corporations Act, the Company may, by ordinary resolution, increase or reduce the number of Directors and may also determine in what rotation the increased or reduced number is to go out of office. Subject to any resolution of the Company determining the maximum and minimum numbers of Directors, the Directors may from time to time determine the respective number of Executive and Non Executive Directors.
14.2 | Rotation of Directors |
Subject to clause 18.4, at the Company’s annual general meeting in every year, one-third of the Directors for the time being, or, if their number is not a multiple of 3, then the number nearest one-third (rounded upwards in case of doubt), shall retire from office, provided always that no Director except a Managing Director shall hold office for a period in excess of 3 years, or until the third annual general meeting following his or her appointment, whichever is the longer, without submitting himself for re-election. The Directors to retire at an annual general meeting are those who have been longest in office since their last election, but, as between persons who became Directors on the same day, those to retire shall (unless they otherwise agree among themselves) be determined by drawing lots. A retiring Director is eligible for re-election. An election of Directors shall take place each year.
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In determining the number of Directors to retire, no account is to be taken of:
(a) | a Director who only holds office until the next annual general meeting pursuant to clause 14.4; and/ or |
(b) | a Managing Director, |
each of whom are exempt from retirement by rotation. However, if more than one Managing Director has been appointed by the Directors, only one of them (nominated by the Directors) is entitled to be excluded from any determination of the number of Directors to retire and/or retirement by rotation.
14.3 | Election of Directors |
Subject to the provisions of this Constitution, the Company may elect a person as a Director by resolution passed in general meeting. A Director elected at a general meeting is taken to have been elected with effect immediately after the end of that general meeting unless the resolution by which the Director was appointed or elected specifies a different time. No person other than a Director seeking re-election shall be eligible for election to the office of Director at any general meeting unless the person or some Shareholder intending to propose his or her nomination has, at least 30 Business Days before the meeting, left at the Registered Office a notice in writing duly signed by the nominee giving his or her consent to the nomination and signifying his or her candidature for the office or the intention of the Shareholder to propose the person. Notice of every candidature for election as a Director shall be given to each Shareholder with or as part of the notice of the meeting at which the election is to take place. The Company shall observe the requirements of the Corporations Act with respect to the election of Directors. If the number of nominations exceeds the vacancies available having regard to clause 14.1, the order in which the candidates shall be put up for election shall be determined by the drawing of lots supervised by the Directors and once sufficient candidates have been elected to fill up the vacancies available, the remaining candidates shall be deemed defeated without the need for votes to be taken on their election.
14.4 | Additional Directors |
The Directors may at any time appoint a person to be a Director, either to fill a casual vacancy or as an addition to the existing Directors, but so that the total number of Directors does not at any time exceed the maximum number specified by this Constitution. Any Director so appointed holds office only until the next following annual general meeting and is then eligible for re-election but shall not be taken into account in determining the Directors who are to retire by rotation (if any) at that meeting.
14.5 | Removal of Director |
The Company may by resolution remove any Director before the expiration of his period of office, and may by resolution appoint another person in his place. The person so appointed is subject to retirement at the same time as if he had become a Director on the day on which the Director in whose place he is appointed was last elected a Director.
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14.6 | Vacation of Office |
The office of Director shall automatically become vacant if the Director:
(a) | ceases to be a Director by virtue of section 203D or any other provision of the Corporations Act; | |
(b) | becomes bankrupt or insolvent or makes any arrangement or composition with his creditors generally; | |
(c) | becomes prohibited from being a Director by reason of any order made under the Corporations Act; | |
(d) | becomes of unsound mind or a person whose person or estate is liable to be dealt with in any way under the law relating to mental health; | |
(e) | resigns his or her office by notice in writing to the Company; | |
(f) | is removed from office under clause 14.5; or | |
(g) | is absent for more than 6 months, without permission of the Directors, from meetings of the Directors held during that period. |
14.7 | Remuneration |
The Directors shall be paid out of the funds of the Company, by way of remuneration for their services as Directors. Subject to clause 14.8 below, the total aggregate fixed sum per annum to be paid to the Directors (excluding salaries of executive Directors) from time to time will not exceed the sum determined by the Shareholders in general meeting and the total aggregate fixed sum will be divided between the Directors as the Directors shall determine and, in default of agreement between them, then in equal shares. No non-executive Director shall be paid as part or whole of his remuneration a commission on or a percentage of profits or a commission or a percentage of operating revenue, and no executive Director shall be paid as whole or part of his remuneration a commission on or percentage of operating revenue. The remuneration of a Director shall be deemed to accrue from day to day. Remuneration under this clause 14.7 may be provided in such manner that the Directors decide (including by way of contribution to a superannuation fund on behalf of the Director) and if any part of the fees of any Director is to be provided other than in cash the Directors may determine the manner in which the non-cash component of the fees is to be valued.
14.8 | Initial Fees to Directors |
The total aggregate fixed sum per annum to be paid to Directors (excluding salaries of executive Directors) in accordance with clause 14.7 shall initially be no more than $300,000 and may be varied by ordinary resolution of the Shareholders in general meeting.
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14.9 | Expenses |
The Directors shall be entitled to be paid reasonable travelling, accommodation and other expenses incurred by them respectively in or about the performance of their duties as Directors. If any of the Directors being willing are called upon to perform extra services or make any special exertions on behalf of the Company or its business, the Directors may remunerate this Director in accordance with such services or exertions, and this remuneration may be either in addition to or in substitution for his or her share in the remuneration provided for by clause 14.7.
14.10 | No Share Qualification |
A Director is not required to hold any Shares.
15. | POWERS AND DUTIES OF DIRECTORS |
15.1 | Management of the Company |
Subject to the Corporations Act and the Listing Rules and to any other provision of this Constitution, the business of the Company shall be managed by the Directors, who may pay all expenses incurred in promoting and forming the Company, and may exercise all such powers of the Company as are not, by the Corporations Act or the Listing Rules or by this Constitution, required to be exercised by the Company in general meeting.
15.2 | Borrowings |
Without limiting the generality of clause 15.1, the Directors may at any time:
(a) | exercise all powers of the Company to borrow money, to charge any property or business of the Company or all or any of its uncalled capital and to issue debentures or give any other security for a debt, liability or obligation of the Company or of any other person; | |
(b) | sell or otherwise dispose of the whole or any part of the assets, undertakings and other properties of the Company or any that may be acquired on such terms and conditions as they may deem advisable, but: |
(i) | if the Company is listed on Stock Exchange the Company shall comply with the Listing Rules, as applicable, which relate to the sale or disposal of a company’s assets, undertakings or other properties; and | |
(ii) | on the sale or disposition of the Company’s main undertaking or on the liquidation of the Company, no commission or fee shall be paid to any Director or Directors or to any liquidator of the Company unless it shall have been ratified by the Company in general meeting, with prior notification of the amount of such proposed payments having been given to all Shareholders at least 7 days prior to the meeting at which any such payment is to be considered; and |
(c) | take any action necessary or desirable to enable the Company to comply with the Listing Rules. |
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15.3 | Attorneys |
The Directors may, by power of attorney, appoint any person or persons to be the attorney or attorneys of the Company for the purposes, with the powers, authorities and discretions (being powers, authorities and discretions vested in or exercisable by the Directors), for the period and subject to the conditions as they think fit. This power of attorney may contain provisions for the protection and convenience of persons dealing with the attorney as the Directors may determine and may also authorise the attorney to delegate all or any of the powers, authorities and discretions vested in the person.
15.4 | Cheques, etc. |
All cheques, promissory notes, bankers drafts, bills of exchange, electronic transfers and other negotiable instruments, and all receipts for money paid to the Company, shall be signed, drawn, accepted, endorsed or otherwise executed, as the case may be, by any two Directors or in any other manner as the Directors determine.
15.5 | Retirement Benefits for Directors |
The Directors may at any time, subject to the Listing Rules, adopt any scheme or plan which they consider to be in the interests of the Company and which is designed to provide retiring or superannuation benefits for both present and future non-executive Directors, and they may from time to time vary this scheme or plan. Any scheme or plan may be effected by agreements entered into by the Company with individual Directors, or by the establishment of a separate trust or fund, or in any other manner the Directors consider proper. The Directors may attach any terms and conditions to any entitlement under any such scheme or plan that they think fit, including, without limitation, a minimum period of service by a Director before the accrual of any entitlement and the acceptance by the Directors of a prescribed retiring age. No scheme or plan shall operate to confer upon any Director or on any of the dependants of any Director any benefits exceeding those contemplated in section 200F of the Corporations Act or the Listing Rules, except with the approval of the Company in general meeting.
15.6 | Securities to Directors or Shareholders |
If a Director acting solely in the capacity of Director of the Company shall become personally liable for the payment of any sum primarily due by the Company, the Directors may create any mortgage, charge or security over or affecting the whole or any part of the assets of the Company by way of indemnity to secure the persons or person so becoming liable from any loss in respect of such liability.
16. | PROCEEDINGS OF DIRECTORS |
16.1 | Convening a Meeting |
A Director may at any time, and a Secretary shall, whenever requested to do so by one or more Directors, convene a meeting of the Directors, but not less than 24 hours’ notice of every such meeting shall be given to each Director, and to each Alternate Director, either by personal telephone contact or in writing by the convenor of the meeting. The Directors may by unanimous resolution agree to shorter notice. An accidental omission to send a notice of a meeting of Directors to any Director or the non-receipt of such a notice by any Director does not invalidate the proceedings, or any resolution passed, at the meeting.
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16.2 | Procedure at Meetings |
The Directors may meet together for the despatch of business and adjourn and, subject to this clause 16, otherwise regulate the meetings as they think fit.
16.3 | Quorum |
No business shall be transacted at any meeting of Directors unless a quorum is present, comprising two Directors present in person, or by instantaneous communication device, notwithstanding that less than two Directors may be permitted to vote on any particular resolution or resolutions at that meeting for any reason whatsoever. Where a quorum cannot be established for the consideration of a particular matter at a meeting of Directors, one or more of the Directors may call a general meeting of the Company to deal with the matter. In determining whether a quorum is present, each individual participating as a Director or as an Alternate Director for another Director is to be counted except that an individual participating in more than one capacity is to be counted only once.
16.4 | Secretary May Attend and Be Heard |
The Secretary is entitled to attend any meeting of Directors and is entitled to be heard on any matter dealt with at any meeting of Directors.
16.5 | Majority Decisions |
Questions arising at any meeting of Directors shall be decided by a majority of votes. A resolution passed by a majority of Directors shall for all purposes be deemed a determination of “the Directors”. An Alternate Director has one vote for each Director for whom he or she is an alternate. If an Alternate Director is also a Director, he or she also has a vote as a Director.
16.6 | Casting Votes |
In the case of an equality of votes, the chairman of the meeting shall have a second or casting vote, but the chairman shall have no casting vote where only 2 Directors are competent to vote on the question.
16.7 | Alternate Directors |
A Director may, with the approval of a majority of the other Directors, appoint any person to be an alternate Director in his or her place during any period as he or she thinks fit, and the following provisions shall apply with respect to any Alternate Director:
(a) | he or she is entitled to notice of meetings of the Directors and, if his or her appointor Director is not present at such a meeting, he or she is entitled to attend and vote in the place of the absent Director; | |
(b) | he or she may exercise any powers that his or her appointor Director may exercise (except the power to appoint an Alternate Director), and the exercise of any such power by the alternate Director shall be deemed to be the exercise of the power by his or her appointor Director; |
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(c) | he or she is subject to the provisions of this Constitution which apply to Directors, except that Alternate Directors are not entitled in that capacity to any remuneration from the Company (but Alternate Directors are entitled to reasonable travelling, accommodation and other expenses as the Alternate Director may properly incur in travelling to, attending and returning from meetings of Directors or meetings of a committees by the Directors of which the appointor is not present); | |
(d) | he or she is not required to hold any Shares; | |
(e) | his or her appointment may be terminated at any time by his or her appointor Director notwithstanding that the period of the appointment of the alternate Director has not expired, and the appointment shall terminate in any event if his or her appointor Director vacates office as a Director; | |
(f) | the appointment, or the termination of an appointment, of an alternate Director shall be effected by a written notice signed by the Director who made the appointment given to the Company; and | |
(g) | is, whilst acting as an Alternate Director, an officer of the Company and not the agent of the appointor and is responsible to the exclusion of the appointor for the Alternate Director’s own acts and defaults. |
16.8 | Continuing Directors May Act |
In the event of a vacancy or vacancies in the office of a Director, the remaining Directors may act but, if the number of remaining Directors is not sufficient to constitute a quorum at a meeting of Directors, they may act only for the purposes of appointing a Director or Directors, or in order to convene a general meeting of the Company.
16.9 | Chairman |
The Directors shall elect from their number a chairman of their meetings and may determine the period for which he or she is to hold office. Where a Directors’ meeting is held and a chairman has not been elected or is not present at the meeting within 10 minutes after the time appointed for the meeting to begin, the Directors present shall elect one of their number to be the acting chairman of the meeting. The Directors may elect a Director as deputy chairman to act as chairman in the chairman’s absence.
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16.10 | Committees |
The Directors may delegate any of their powers to a committee or committees consisting of such of their number as they think fit. The Directors may at any time revoke any such delegation of power. A committee to which any powers have been so delegated shall exercise the powers delegated in accordance with any directions of the Directors, and a power so exercised shall be deemed to have been exercised by the Directors. The members of such a committee may elect one of their number as chairman of their meetings. Questions arising at a meeting of a committee shall be determined by a majority of votes of the members present and voting. In the case of an equality of votes, the chairman shall have a casting vote. The provisions of this Constitution applying to meetings and resolutions of Directors apply, so far as they can and with any necessary changes, to meetings and resolutions of a committee of Directors, except to the extent they are contrary to any direction given under this clause 16.10.
16.11 | Written Resolutions |
A resolution in writing signed by all the Directors for the time being (or their respective alternate Directors), except those Directors (or their alternates) who expressly indicate their abstention in writing to the Company and those who would not be permitted, by virtue of section 195 of the Corporations Act to vote, shall be as valid and effectual as if it had been passed at a meeting of the Directors duly convened and held. This resolution may consist of several documents in like form, each signed by one or more Directors. Copies of the documents to be signed under this clause must be sent to every Director who is entitled to vote on the resolution. The resolution is taken to have been passed when the last Director signs the relevant documents. A facsimile transmission, an email bearing the signature of the Director or an email of the Director addressed to another officer of the Company confirming agreement with the resolution and undertaking to sign the resolution as soon as practicable shall be deemed to be a document in writing signed by the Directors.
16.12 | Defective Appointment |
All acts done by any meeting of the Directors or of a committee of Directors or by any person acting as a Director are, notwithstanding that it is afterwards discovered that there was some defect in the appointment of a person to be, or to act as, a Director, or that a person so appointed was disqualified, as valid as if the person had been duly appointed and was qualified to be a Director or to be a member of the committee.
16.13 | Directors May Hold Other Offices |
A Director may hold any other office or place of profit in or in relation to the Company or a related body corporate of the Company (except that of auditor) in conjunction with his or her office of Director and on any terms as to remuneration or otherwise that the Directors shall approve.
16.14 | Directors May Hold Shares, etc. |
A Director may be or become a shareholder in or director of or hold any other office or place of profit in or in relation to any other company promoted by the Company or a related body corporate of the Company or in which the Company may be interested, whether as a vendor, shareholder or otherwise.
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16.15 | Directors Not Accountable for Benefits |
No Director shall be accountable for any benefits received as the holder of any other office or place of profit in or in relation to the Company or any other company referred to in clause 16.14 or as a shareholder in or director of any such company.
16.16 | Disclosure of Interests in Related Matters |
As required by the Corporations Act, a Director must give the Directors notice of any material personal interest in a matter that relates to the affairs of the Company. No Director shall be disqualified by his office from contracting with the Company whether as vendor, purchaser or otherwise, nor shall any such contract or any contract or arrangement entered into by or on behalf of the Company in which any Director shall be in any way interested be avoided or prejudiced on that account, nor shall any Director be liable to account to the Company for any profit arising from any such contract or agreement by reason only of such Director holding that office or of the fiduciary relationship thereby established. A Director who has a material personal interest in a matter that is being considered at a meeting of Directors must not be present while the matter is being considered at the meeting or vote on that matter except where permitted by the Corporations Act. Nothing in this Constitution shall be read or construed so as to place on a Director any restrictions other than those required by the Corporations Act or the Listing Rules.
16.17 | Disclosure of Shareholding |
A Director must give to the Company such information about the Shares or other securities in the Company in which the Director has a relevant interest and at the times that the Secretary requires, to enable the Company to comply with any disclosure obligations it has under the Corporations Act or the Listing Rules.
16.18 | Related Body Corporate Contracts |
A Director shall not be deemed to be interested or to have been at any time interested in any contract or arrangement by reason only that in a case where the contract or arrangement has been or will be made with, for the benefit of, or on behalf of a Related Body Corporate, he or she is a shareholder in that Related Body Corporate.
16.19 | Voting, Affixation of Seal |
A Director may in all respects act as a Director in relation to any contract or arrangement in which he or she is interested, including, without limiting the generality of the above, in relation to the use of the Company’s common seal, but a Director may not vote in relation to any contract or proposed contract or arrangement in which the Director has directly or indirectly a material interest except as permitted by the Corporations Act.
16.20 | Home Branch to be Advised |
The Directors shall advise the Home Branch without delay of any material contract involving Director’s or Directors’ interests. The advice shall include at least the following information:
(a) | the names of the parties to the contract; |
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(b) | the name or names of the Director or Directors who has or have any material interest in the contract; | |
(c) | particulars of the contract; and | |
(d) | particulars of the relevant Director’s or Directors’ interest or interests in that contract. |
17. | MEETING BY INSTANTANEOUS COMMUNICATION DEVICE |
17.1 | Meetings to be Effectual |
A Director shall be entitled to attend a Directors’ meeting by means of an instantaneous communication device rather than in person. In those circumstances, a Director shall still receive all materials and information to be made available for the purposes of the Directors’ meeting.
For the purposes of this Constitution, the contemporaneous linking together by instantaneous communication device of a number of consenting Directors not less than the quorum, whether or not any one or more of the Directors is out of Australia, shall be deemed to constitute a Directors’ meeting and all the provisions of this Constitution as to the Directors’ meetings shall apply to such meetings held by instantaneous communication device so long as the following conditions are met:
(a) | all the directors for the time being entitled to receive notice of the Directors’ meeting (including any alternate for any Director) shall be entitled to notice of a meeting by instantaneous communication device for the purposes of such meeting. Notice of any such Directors’ meeting shall be given on the instantaneous communication device or in any other manner permitted by this Constitution; | |
(b) | each of the Directors taking part in the Directors’ meeting by instantaneous communication device must be able to hear each of the other Directors taking part at the commencement of the Directors’ meeting; and | |
(c) | at the commencement of the Directors’ meeting each Director must acknowledge his or her presence for the purpose of a Directors’ meeting of the Company to all the other Directors taking part. |
A Directors’ meeting held by instantaneous communication device shall be deemed to have been held at the Registered Office.
17.2 | Procedure at Meetings |
A Director may leave a Directors’ meeting held under clause 17.1 by informing the Chairman of the Directors’ meeting and then disconnecting his instantaneous communication device. Unless this procedure has been followed a Director shall be conclusively presumed to have been present and to have formed part of the quorum at all times during the Directors’ meeting by instantaneous communication device.
17.3 | Minutes |
A minute of the proceedings at a meeting held under clause 17.1 shall be sufficient evidence of such proceedings and of the observance of all necessary formalities if certified as a correct minute by the chairman or the person taking the chair at the meeting under clause 17.1.
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17.4 | Definition |
For the purposes of this Constitution, “instantaneous communication device” shall include telephone, television or any other audio or visual device which permits instantaneous communication.
18. | MANAGING and executive DIRECTORs AND SECRETARIES |
18.1 | Appointment |
The Directors may from time to time appoint one or more of their number to the office of managing director (Managing Director) of the Company or to any other office, (except that of auditor), or employment under the Company, either for a fixed term or at will, but not for life and, subject to the terms of any agreement entered into in a particular case, may revoke any such appointment. A Director other than a Managing Director so appointed is in this Constitution referred to as an executive director (Executive Director). The appointment of a Managing Director or Executive Director so appointed automatically terminates if he ceases for any reason to be a Director.
18.2 | Remuneration |
Subject to clause 14.7, a Managing Director or Executive Director shall, subject to the terms of any agreement entered into in a particular case, receive remuneration (whether by way of salary, commission or participation in profits, or partly in one way and partly in another) as the Directors may determine.
18.3 | Powers |
The Directors may, upon such terms and conditions and with such restrictions as they think fit, confer upon a Managing Director or Executive Director any of the powers exercisable by them. Any powers so conferred may be concurrent with, or be to the exclusion of, the powers of the Directors. The Directors may at any time withdraw or vary any of the powers so conferred on a Managing Director or Executive Director.
18.4 | Rotation |
Subject to clause 14.2, a Managing Director shall not retire by rotation, but Executive Directors shall.
18.5 | Secretary |
A Secretary of the Company shall hold office on such terms and conditions, as to remuneration and otherwise, as the Directors determine. There must be at least one Secretary of the Company at all times.
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19. | SEALS |
19.1 | Common Seal |
Subject to the Corporations Act, the Company may have a Seal. The Directors shall provide for the safe custody of the Seal. The Seal shall only be used by the authority of the Directors, or of a committee of the Directors authorised by the Directors to authorise the use of the Seal. Every document to which the Seal is affixed shall be signed by a Director and countersigned by another Director, (who may be an alternate Director) a Secretary or another person appointed by the Directors to countersign that document or a class of documents in which that document is included.
19.2 | Execution of Documents Without a Seal |
Without limiting the ways a document can be signed under the Corporations Act, the Company may execute a document without using the Seal if the document is signed by:
(a) | two Directors; | |
(b) | a Director and a Secretary; or | |
(c) | any person or persons authorised by the Directors for the purposes of executing that document or the class of document to which that document belongs. |
19.3 | Share Seal |
Subject to the Corporations Act, the Company may have a duplicate Seal, known as the Share Seal, which shall be a facsimile of the Seal with the addition on its face of the words “Share Seal”, and the following provisions shall apply to its use:
(a) | any certificate for Shares may be issued under the Share Seal and if so issued shall be deemed to be sealed with the Seal; | |
(b) | subject to the following provisions of this clause 19.3, the signatures required by clause 19.1 on a document to which the Seal is affixed may be imposed by some mechanical means; | |
(c) | subject to the following provisions of this clause 19.3, the Directors may determine the manner in which the Share Seal shall be affixed to any document and by whom a document to which the Share Seal is affixed shall be signed, and whether any signature so required on such a document must be actually written on the document or whether it may be imposed by some mechanical means; | |
(d) | the only documents on which the Share Seal may be used shall be Share or stock unit certificates, debentures or certificates of debenture stock, secured or unsecured notes, option certificates and any certificates or other documents evidencing any Share Options or rights to take up any Shares in or debenture stock or debentures or notes of the Company; and |
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(e) | signatures shall not be imposed by mechanical means nor (except when the requirements of clause 19.1 as to signatures are complied with) shall the Share Seal be used on any certificate or other document mentioned in clause 19.3(d) unless the certificate or other document has first been approved for sealing or signature (as the case may be) by the Board or other authorised person or persons. |
20. | ACCOUNTS, AUDIT AND RECORDS |
20.1 | Accounting records to be kept |
The Directors shall cause proper accounting and other records to be kept by the Company and shall distribute copies of the Company’s accounts and reports as required by the Corporations Act and the Listing Rules.
20.2 | Audit |
The Company shall comply with the requirements of the Corporations Act and the Listing Rules as to the audit of accounts, registers and records.
20.3 | Inspection |
The Directors shall determine whether and to what extent, and at what time and places and under what conditions, the accounting records and other documents of the Company or any of them will be open to the inspection of Shareholders other than Directors. A Shareholder other than a Director shall not be entitled to inspect any document of the Company except as provided by law or authorised by the Directors or by the Company in general meeting.
21. | MINUTES |
21.1 | Minutes to be Kept |
The Directors shall cause to be kept, in accordance with section 1306 of the Corporations Act, minutes of:
(a) | all proceedings of general meetings and Directors meetings; and | |
(b) | all appointments of Officers and persons ceasing to be Officers. |
21.2 | Signature of Minutes |
All minutes shall be signed by the chairman of the meeting at which the proceedings took place or by the chairman of the next succeeding meeting.
21.3 | Requirements of the Corporations Act |
The Company and the Officers shall comply with the requirements of Part 2G.3 of Chapter 2G of the Corporations Act.
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22. | DIVIDENDS AND RESERVES |
22.1 | Dividends |
Subject to and in accordance with the Corporations Act, the Listing Rules, the rights of any preference Shareholders and to the rights of the holders of any shares created or raised under any special arrangement as to dividend, the Directors may from time to time decide to pay a dividend to the Shareholders entitled to the dividend which shall be payable on all Shares according to the proportion that the amount paid (not credited) is of the total amounts paid and payable (excluding amounts credited) in respect of such Shares. The Directors may rescind a decision to pay a dividend if they decide, before the payment date, that the Company’s financial position no longer justifies the payment.
22.2 | Interim Dividend |
The Directors may from time to time pay to the Shareholders any interim dividends that they may determine.
22.3 | No Interest |
No dividend shall carry interest as against the Company.
22.4 | Reserves |
The Directors may set aside out of the profits of the Company any amounts that they may determine as reserves, to be applied at the discretion of the Directors, for any purpose for which the profits of the Company may be properly applied. Pending any application of the reserves, the Directors may invest or use the reserves in the business of the Company or in other investments as they think fit. Any amount set aside as a reserve is not required to be held separately from the Company’s other assets and may be used by the Company or invested as the Directors think fit.
22.5 | Carrying forward profits |
The Directors may carry forward any part of the profits of the Company that it decides not to distribute as dividends without transferring those profits to a reserve.
22.6 | Alternative Method of Payment of Dividend |
When declaring any dividend and subject at all times to the Corporations Act and the Listing Rules, the Directors may:
(a) | direct payment of the dividend to be made wholly or in part by the distribution of specific assets or documents of title (including, without limitation, paid-up Shares, debentures or debenture stock of this or any other company, gold, gold or mint certificates or receipts and like documents) or in any one or more of these ways, and where any difficulty arises with regard to the distribution the Directors may settle it as they think expedient and in particular may issue fractional certificates and may fix the value for distribution of specific assets or any part of them and may determine that cash payments shall be made to any Shareholders upon the basis of the value so fixed in order to adjust the rights of all parties and may vest any of these specific assets in trustees upon trusts for the persons entitled to the dividend as may seem expedient to the Directors; or |
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(b) | direct that a dividend be payable to particular Shareholders wholly or partly out of any particular fund or reserve or out of profits derived from any particular source and to the remaining Shareholders wholly or partly or of any other particular fund or reserve or out of profits derived from any other particular source and may so direct notwithstanding that by so doing the dividend will form part of the assessable income for taxation purposes of some Shareholders and will not form part of the assessable income of others. |
For the purposes of this clause, the Company is authorised to distribute securities of another body corporate by way of dividend and, on behalf of the Shareholders, provide the consent of each Shareholder to becoming a member of that body corporate and the agreement of each Shareholder to being bound by the constitution of that body corporate.
22.7 | Shareholders entitled to dividend |
Subject to this Constitution, a dividend in respect of a Share is payable to the person registered as the holder of that share:
(a) | if the Directors have fixed a time for determining entitlements to the dividend, at that time; and | |
(b) | in any other case, on the date on which the dividend is paid. |
22.8 | Payment of Dividends |
Any dividend payable may be paid by:
(a) | cheque sent through the mail directed to: |
(i) | the address of the Shareholder shown in the Register or to the address of the joint holders of Shares shown first in the Register; or | |
(ii) | an address which the Shareholder has, or joint holders have, in writing notified the Company as the address to which dividends should be sent; |
(b) | electronic funds transfer to an account with a bank or other financial institution nominated by the Shareholder and acceptable to the Company; or | |
(c) | any other means determined by the Directors. |
22.9 | Unclaimed Dividends |
Except as otherwise provided by statute, all dividends unclaimed for one year after having been declared may be invested or otherwise made use of by the Directors for the benefit of the Company until claimed.
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22.10 | Breach of Restriction Agreement |
In the event of a breach of the Listing Rules relating to Restricted Securities or of any escrow arrangement entered into by the Company under the Listing Rules in relation to any Shares which are classified under the Listing Rules or by the Stock Exchange, as applicable, as Restricted Securities, the Shareholder holding the Shares in question shall cease to be entitled to be paid any dividends in respect of those Shares for so long as the breach subsists.
23. | CAPITALISATION OF PROFITS |
23.1 | Capitalisation |
The Directors, subject to the Listing Rules and any rights or restrictions for the time being attached to any class or class of shares, may from time to time resolve to capitalise any amount, being the whole or a part of the amount for the time being standing to the credit of any reserve account or the profit and loss account or otherwise available for distribution to Shareholders, and that that amount be applied, in any of the ways mentioned in clause 23.2 for the benefit of Shareholders in the proportions to which those Shareholders would have been entitled in a distribution of that amount by way of dividend.
23.2 | Application of Capitalised Amounts |
The ways in which an amount may be applied for the benefit of Shareholders under clause 23.1 are:
(a) | in paying up any amounts unpaid on Shares held by Shareholders; | |
(b) | in paying up in full, at an issue price decided by Director’s resolution, unissued Shares or debentures to be issued to Shareholders as fully paid; or | |
(c) | partly as mentioned in paragraph (a) and partly as mentioned in paragraph (b). |
23.3 | Procedures |
The Directors shall do all things necessary to give effect to the resolution referred to in clause 23.1 and, in particular, to the extent necessary to adjust the rights of the Shareholders among themselves, may:
(a) | issue fractional certificates or make cash payments in cases where Shares or debentures could only be issued in fractions; and | |
(b) | authorise any person to make, on behalf of all the Shareholders entitled to any further Shares or debentures upon the capitalisation, an agreement with the Company providing for the issue to them, credited as fully paid up, of any further Shares or debentures or for the payment up by the Company on their behalf of the amounts or any part of the amounts remaining unpaid on their existing Shares by the application of their respective proportions of the sum resolved to be capitalised, |
and any agreement made under an authority referred to in paragraph (b) is effective and binding on all the Shareholders concerned.
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24. | BONUS SHARE PLAN |
24.1 | Authorisation of Bonus Share Plan |
Subject to the Listing Rules and the Corporations Act, the Company may, by ordinary resolution in general meeting, authorise the Directors to implement a Bonus Share Plan on such terms and conditions as are referred to in the resolution and which plan provides for any dividend which the Directors may declare from time to time under clause 22, less any amount which the Company shall either pursuant to this Constitution or any law be entitled or obliged to retain, not to be payable on Shares which are participating Shares in the Bonus Share Plan but for those Shares to carry instead an entitlement to receive an allotment of additional fully paid ordinary Shares to be issued as bonus Shares.
24.2 | Amendment and Revocation |
Any resolution passed by the Company in general meeting pursuant to clause 24.1 may, at any time, be amended or revoked by the Company by ordinary resolution in general meeting.
25. | DIVIDEND REINVESTMENT PLAN |
25.1 | Authorisation of Dividend Reinvestment Plan |
Subject to the Listing Rules and the Corporations Act, the Company may, by resolution of the Directors, implement a Dividend Reinvestment Plan on such terms and conditions as are referred to in the resolution and which plan provides for any dividend which the Directors may declare from time to time under clause 22 and payable on Shares which are participating Shares in the Dividend Reinvestment Plan, less any amount which the Company shall either pursuant to this Constitution or any law be entitled or obliged to retain, to be applied by the Company to the payment of the subscription price of ordinary fully paid Shares.
25.2 | Amendment and Revocation |
Any resolution passed by the Directors pursuant to clause 25.1 may, at any time, be amended or revoked by the Company by ordinary resolution in general meeting.
26. | NOTICES |
26.1 | Service by the Company to Shareholders |
A notice may be given by the Company to any Shareholder either by:
(a) | serving it on him or her personally; or | |
(b) | sending it by post to the Shareholder at his or her address as shown in the Register of Shareholders or the address supplied by the Shareholder to the Company for the giving of notices to this person. Notices to Shareholders whose registered address is outside Australia shall be sent by airmail or, where applicable, by the means provided for by clause 26.9; or | |
(c) | sending it by fax or other electronic means (including providing a URL link to any document or attachment) to the fax number or electronic address nominated by the Shareholder for giving notices. |
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26.2 | Service of notices by the Company to Directors |
A notice may be given by the Company to a Director or Alternate Director by:
(a) | serving it on him or her personally; | |
(b) | sending it by ordinary post to his or her usual residential or business address, or any other address he or she has supplied to the Company for giving notices; | |
(c) | sending it by fax or other electronic means (including providing a URL link to any document or attachment) to the fax number or electronic address he or she has supplied to the Company for giving notices. |
26.3 | Service of notices by Directors, Alternate Directors and Shareholders to the Company |
Without limiting any other way that a communication may be given under the Corporations Act, a notice may be given by a Director or Alternate Director or a Shareholder to the Company by:
(a) | delivering it to the Company’s registered office; | |
(b) | sending it by ordinary post to the Company’s registered office; | |
(c) | sending it by fax or other electronic means to the principal fax number or electronic address at the Company’s registered office. |
26.4 | Deemed receipt of Notice |
A notice will be deemed to be received by a Shareholder when:
(a) | where a notice is served personally, service of the notice shall be deemed to be effected when hand delivered to the member in person; | |
(b) | where a notice is sent by post, service of the notice shall be deemed to be effected by properly addressing, pre-paying and posting a letter containing the notice, and to have been effected, in the case of a notice of a meeting, on the date after the date of its posting and, in any other case, at the time at which the letter would be delivered in the ordinary course of post; | |
(c) | where a notice is sent by facsimile, service of the notice shall be deemed to be effected upon confirmation being received by the Company that all pages of the notice have been successfully transmitted to the Shareholder’s facsimile machine at the facsimile number nominated by the Shareholder; and | |
(d) | where a notice is sent to an electronic address by electronic means, service of the notice shall be deemed to be effected once sent by the Company to the electronic address nominated by the Shareholder (regardless of whether or not the notice is actually received by the Shareholder). |
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26.5 | Notice to Joint Holders |
A notice may be given by the Company to the joint holders of a Share by giving the notice to the joint holder first named in the Register of Shareholders in respect of the Share.
26.6 | Notices to Personal Representatives and Others |
A notice may be given by the Company to a person entitled to a Share in consequence of the death or bankruptcy of a Shareholder by serving it on him or her or by sending it to him or her by post addressed to the person by name or by the title or representative of the deceased or assignee of the bankrupt, or by any like description, at the address (if any) supplied for the purpose by the person or, if such an address has not been supplied, at the address to which the notice might have been sent if the death or bankruptcy had not occurred.
26.7 | Persons Entitled to Notice |
Notice of every general meeting shall be given to each person who at the time of giving the notice is:
(a) | a Shareholder; | |
(b) | a person entitled to a Share in consequence of the death or bankruptcy of a Shareholder who, but for his death or bankruptcy, would be entitled to receive notice of the meeting; | |
(c) | a Director or Alternate Director; | |
(d) | the auditor for the time being of the Company; and | |
(e) | if the Company has issued and there are currently any Listed Securities, the Home Branch, |
unless that person waives the right to receive notice by written notice to the Company. No other person is entitled to receive notices of general meetings.
26.8 | Change of Address |
The Company shall acknowledge receipt of all notifications of change of address by Shareholders.
26.9 | Incorrect Address |
Where the Company has bona fide reason to believe that a Shareholder is not known at his or her registered address, and the Company has subsequently made an enquiry in writing at that address as to the whereabouts of the Shareholder and this enquiry either elicits no response or a response indicating that the Shareholder or his present whereabouts are unknown, all future notices will be deemed to be given to the Shareholder if the notice is exhibited in the Registered Office (or, in the case of a Shareholder registered on a Branch Register, in a conspicuous place in the place where the Branch Register is kept) for a period of 48 hours (and shall be deemed to be duly served at the commencement of that period) unless and until the Shareholder informs the Company of a new address to which the Company may send him notices (which new address shall be deemed his registered address).
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27. | WINDING UP |
27.1 | Distribution in Kind |
If the Company is wound up, the liquidator may, with the authority of a special resolution, divide among the Shareholders in kind the whole or any part of the property of the Company, and may for that purpose set a value as the liquidator considers fair upon any property to be so decided, and may determine how the division is to be carried out as between the Shareholders or different classes of Shareholders. No member is obliged to accept any Shares, securities or other assets in respect of which there is any liability.
27.2 | Trust for Shareholders |
The liquidator may, with the authority of a special resolution, vest the whole or any part of any property in trustees upon such trusts for the benefit of the contributories as the liquidator thinks fit, but so that no Shareholder is compelled to accept any Shares or other securities in respect of which there is any liability.
27.3 | Distribution in Proportion to Shares Held |
Subject to the rights of Shareholders (if any) entitled to Shares with special rights in a winding-up and the Corporations Act all monies and property that are to be distributed among Shareholders on a winding-up, shall be distributed in proportion to the Shares held by them respectively, irrespective of the amount paid-up or credited as paid-up on the Shares.
28. | INDEMNITIES AND INSURANCE |
28.1 | Liability to Third Parties |
To the extent permitted by law, the Company:
(a) | indemnifies and agrees to keep indemnified every Director, executive officer or Secretary of the Company; and | |
(b) | may, by deed, indemnify or agree to indemnify an officer (other than a Director, executive officer or Secretary) of the Company, |
against a liability to another person, other than the Company or a related body corporate of the Company, PROVIDED THAT:
(c) | the provisions of the Corporations Act (including, but not limited to, Chapter 2E) are complied with in relation to the giving of the indemnity; and | |
(d) | the liability does not arise in respect of conduct involving a lack of good faith on the part of the officer. |
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28.2 | Defending Proceedings |
To the extent permitted by law, the Company:
(a) | hereby indemnifies and agrees to keep indemnified every Director, executive officer and Secretary of the Company; and | |
(b) | may, by deed, indemnify or agree to indemnify an officer of the Company (other than a director, executive officer or secretary); | |
out of the property of the Company in relation to the period during which that officer held his or her office against a liability for costs and expenses incurred by that officer in that capacity:
(c) | in defending proceedings, whether civil or criminal, in which: |
(i) | judgment is given in favour of that officer; or | |
(ii) | that officer is acquitted; or |
(d) | in connection with an application in relation to any proceedings referred to in clause 28.2(c) in which relief is granted to that officer by the Court under the Corporations Act. |
28.3 | Insurance |
To the extent permitted by law, the Company or a related body corporate of the Company may pay, or agree to pay, a premium under a contract insuring an officer in relation to the period during which that officer held that office, including in respect of a liability for costs and expenses incurred by a person in defending civil or criminal proceedings whether or not the officer has successfully defended himself or herself in these proceedings, provided that:
(a) | the provisions of the Corporations Act (including, but not limited to, Chapter 2E) are complied with in relation to the payment of the premium; and | |
(b) | the liability does not arise out of conduct involving a wilful breach of duty to the Company or a contravention of sections 182 or 183 of the Corporations Act. |
28.4 | Disclosure |
Subject to any exception provided for in the Corporations Act, full particulars of the Company’s indemnities and insurance premiums in relation to the officers must be included each year in the Directors’ Report.
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28.5 | Definition |
For the purposes of this clause 28, “officer” means:
(a) | a Director, Secretary or executive officer of the Company, whether past, present or future by whatever name called and whether or not validly appointed to occupy or duly authorised to act in such a position; and | |
(b) | any person who by virtue of any applicable legislation or law is deemed to be a Director or officer of the Company, including without limitation, the persons defined as an officer of a company by section 9 of the Corporations Act. |
Nothing in this clause 28 precludes the Company from indemnifying employees (other than officers) and consultants or sub-contractors where the Directors consider it is necessary or appropriate in the exercise of their powers to manage the Company.
29. | DIRECTORS’ ACCESS TO INFORMATION |
Where the Directors consider it appropriate, the Company may:
(a) | give a former Director access to certain papers, including documents provided or available to the Directors and other papers referred to in those documents; and | |
(b) | bind itself in any contract with a Director or former Director to give the access. |
30. | OVERSEAS SHAREHOLDERS |
Each Shareholder with a registered address outside Australia acknowledges that, with the approval of the Home Branch, the Company may, as contemplated by the Listing Rules, arrange for a nominee to dispose of any of its entitlement to participate in any issue of Shares or Share Options by the Company to Shareholders.
31. | LOCAL MANAGEMENT |
31.1 | Local Management |
The Directors may from time to time provide for the management and transaction of the affairs of the Company in any specified locality whether in or outside the State in such manner as it thinks fit and the provisions contained in clauses 31.2, 31.3 and 31.4 shall be without prejudice to the general powers conferred by this clause 31.1.
31.2 | Local Boards or Agencies |
The Directors may at any time and from time to time establish any local boards or agencies for managing any of the affairs of the Company in any specified locality and appoint any persons to be Shareholders of a local board or any managers or agents and may fix their remuneration. The Directors may from time to time and at any time delegate to any person so appointed any of the powers, authorities and discretions for the time being vested in the Directors other than the power of making calls and may authorise the Shareholders for the time being of any local board or any of them to fill up any vacancies on a local board and to act notwithstanding vacancies. This appointment or delegation may be made on the terms and subject to the conditions that the Directors think fit and the Directors may at any time remove any person so appointed and may annul or vary any or all of this delegation.
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31.3 | Appointment of Attorneys |
The Company may at any time and from time to time by power of attorney appoint any person or persons to be the attorney or attorneys of the Company for purposes and with powers, authorities and discretions (not exceeding those vested in or exercisable by the Company) and for the period and subject to the conditions that the Company may from time to time think fit. This appointment may (if the Company thinks fit) be made in favour of the Shareholders or any of the Shareholders of any local board established under clause 31.2 or in favour of any company or of the Shareholders, directors, nominees or managers of any company or firm or in favour of any fluctuating body of persons whether or not nominated directly by the Company. The power of attorney may contain any provisions for the protection or convenience of persons dealing with such attorney or attorneys that the Company thinks fit.
31.4 | Authority of Attorneys |
Any such delegates or attorneys as appointed under this Constitution may be authorised by the Company to sub-delegate all or any of the powers, authorities and discretions for the time being vested in them.
32. | DISCOVERY |
Save as provided by the Corporations Act or the Listing Rules no Shareholder shall be entitled to require discovery of any information in respect of any details of the Company’s trading or any matter which is or may be in the nature of a trade secret, mystery of trade or technical process which may relate to the business of the Company and which in the opinion of the Directors it would be expedient in the interests of the Shareholders of the Company to communicate.
33. | COMPLIANCE (OR INCONSISTENCY) WITH THE LISTING RULES |
(a) | In this Constitution, a reference to the Listing Rules is to have effect if, and only if, at the relevant time, the Company has been admitted to and remains on the Official List and is otherwise to be disregarded. | |
(b) | If the Company is admitted to the Official List, the following clauses apply: |
(i) | notwithstanding anything contained in this Constitution, if the Listing Rules prohibit an act being done, the act shall not be done; | |
(ii) | nothing contained in this Constitution prevents an act being done that the Listing Rules require to be done; | |
(iii) | if the Listing Rules require an act to be done or not to be done, authority is given for that act to be done or not to be done (as the case may be); |
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(iv) | if the Listing Rules require this Constitution to contain a provision and it does not contain such a provision, this Constitution is deemed to contain that provision; | |
(v) | if the Listing Rules require this Constitution not to contain a provision and it contains such a provision, this Constitution is deemed not to contain that provision; and | |
(vi) | if any provision of this Constitution is or becomes inconsistent with the Listing Rules, this Constitution is deemed not to contain that provision to the extent of inconsistency. |
34. | CONSISTENCY WITH CHAPTER 2E OF THE CORPORATIONS ACT |
34.1 | Requirements of Chapter 2E |
Notwithstanding any other provision to the contrary contained in this Constitution:
(a) | the Company shall not give a financial benefit to a related party except as permitted by Chapter 2E of the Corporations Act; | |
(b) | all notices convening general meetings for the purposes of section 208 of the Corporations Act shall comply with the requirements of sections 217 to 227 of the Corporations Act; | |
(c) | all meetings convened pursuant to section 221 shall be held in accordance with the requirements of section 225 of the Corporations Act; and | |
(d) | no holder of Shares or person on their behalf shall be entitled to vote or vote on a proposed resolution under Part 2E.1 of the Corporations Act if that holder of Shares is a related party of the public company to whom the resolution would permit a financial benefit to be given or an associate of such a related party. |
34.2 | Definitions |
For the purposes of this clause 34 the terms:
(a) | “financial benefit” and “related party” shall have the meanings given or indicated by Part 2E.1 and Part 2E.2 of the Corporations Act; and | |
(b) | “associate” shall have the meaning given to it in Division 2 of Part 1.2 of the Corporations Act. |
35. | INADVERTENT OMISSIONS |
If some formality required by this Constitution is inadvertently omitted or is not carried out the omission does not invalidate any resolution, act, matter or thing which but for the omission would have been valid unless it is proved to the satisfaction of the Directors that the omission has directly prejudiced any Shareholder financially. The decision of the Directors is final and binding on all Shareholders.
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36. | PARTIAL TAKEOVER PLEBISCITES |
36.1 | Resolution to Approve Proportional Off-Market Bid |
(a) | Where offers have been made under a proportional off-market bid in respect of a class of securities of the Company (“bid class securities”), the registration of a transfer giving effect to a contract resulting from the acceptance of an offer made under the proportional off-market bid is prohibited unless and until a resolution (in this clause 36 referred to as a “prescribed resolution”) to approve the proportional off-market bid is passed in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution. | |
(b) | A person (other than the bidder or a person associated with the bidder) who, as at the end of the day on which the first offer under the proportional off-market bid was made, held bid class securities is entitled to vote on a prescribed resolution and, for the purposes of so voting, is entitled to one vote for each of the bid class securities. | |
(c) | A prescribed resolution is to be voted on at a meeting, convened and conducted by the Company, of the persons entitled to vote on the prescribed resolution. | |
(d) | A prescribed resolution that has been voted on is to taken to have been passed if the proportion that the number of votes in favour of the prescribed resolution bears to the total number of votes on the prescribed resolution is greater than one half, and otherwise is taken to have been rejected. |
36.2 | Meetings |
(a) | The provisions of this Constitution that apply in relation to a general meeting of the Company apply, with modifications as the circumstances require, in relation to a meeting that is convened pursuant to this clause 36.2 as if the last mentioned meeting was a general meeting of the Company. | |
(b) | Where takeover offers have been made under a proportional off-market bid, the Directors are to ensure that a prescribed resolution to approve the proportional off-market bid is voted on in accordance with this clause 36 before the 14th day before the last day of the bid period for the proportional off-market bid (the “resolution deadline”). |
36.3 | Notice of Prescribed Resolution |
Where a prescribed resolution to approve a proportional off-market bid is voted on in accordance with this clause 36 before the resolution deadline, the Company is, on or before the resolution deadline:
(a) | to give the bidder; and | |
(b) | if the Company is listed – each relevant financial market (as defined in the Corporations Act) in relation to the Company; |
a notice in writing stating that a prescribed resolution to approve the proportional off-market bid has been voted on and that the prescribed resolution has been passed, or has been rejected, as the case requires.
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36.4 | Takeover Resolution Deemed Passed |
Where, at the end of the day before the resolution deadline, no prescribed resolution to approve the proportional off-market bid has been voted on in accordance with this clause 36, a resolution to approve the proportional off-market bid is to be, for the purposes of this clause 36, deemed to have been passed in accordance with this clause 36.
36.5 | Takeover Resolution Rejected |
Where a prescribed resolution to approve a proportional off-market bid under which offers have been made is voted on in accordance with this clause 36 before the resolution deadline, and is rejected, then:
(a) | despite section 652A of the Corporations Act: |
(i) | all offers under the proportional off-market bid that have not been accepted as at the end of the resolution deadline; and | |
(ii) | all offers under the proportional off-market bid that have been accepted and from whose acceptance binding contracts have not resulted as at the end of the resolution deadline, | |
are deemed to be withdrawn at the end of the resolution deadline; |
(b) | as soon as practicable after the resolution deadline, the bidder must return to each person who has accepted any of the offers referred to in clause 36.5(a)(ii) any documents that were sent by the person to the bidder with the acceptance of the offer; | |
(c) | the bidder: |
(i) | is entitled to rescind; and | |
(ii) | must rescind as soon as practicable after the resolution deadline, | |
each binding takeover contract resulting from the acceptance of an offer made under the proportional off-market bid; and |
(d) | a person who has accepted an offer made under the proportional off-market bid is entitled to rescind the takeover contract (if any) resulting from the acceptance. |
36.6 | Renewal |
This clause 36 ceases to have effect on the third anniversary of the date of the adoption of the last renewal of this clause 36.
37. | TRANSITIONAL |
37.1 | Provisions Relating to Official Quotation of Securities |
Subject to clause 37.2 the provisions of this Constitution which relate to the official quotation of the Company’s securities on the Stock Exchange (Official Quotation), as the case may be, including but not limited to clauses which refer to the Stock Exchange, the Listing Rules, the Stock Exchange Settlement Operating Rules, the Home Exchange, Stock Exchange Clearing House System, Restricted Securities or Listed Securities shall not have effect except while the Company is admitted to the official list of entities that the Stock Exchange has admitted and not removed.
37.2 | Severance |
To the extent that any of the provisions of this Constitution referred to in clause 37.1 above can continue to have effect following severance of the matters relating to Official Quotation, then such provisions shall be valid and effectual, notwithstanding clause 37.1, as from the date of adoption of this Constitution by special resolution of the Shareholders of the Company.
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Schedule 1 – PREFERENCE SHARES (Clause 2.6) |
1. | In this schedule, unless the context otherwise requires: |
Dividend Date means, in relation to a Preference Share, a date specified in the Issue Resolution on which a dividend in respect of that Preference Share is payable.
Dividend Rate means, in relation to a Preference Share, the term specified in the Issue Resolution for the calculation of the amount of dividend to be paid in respect of that Preference Share on any Dividend Date, which calculation may be wholly or partly established by reference to an algebraic formula.
Franked Dividend has the same meaning ascribed to Franked Distribution in Part 3-6 of the Tax Act.
Issue Resolution means the resolution specified in clause 4 of this schedule.
Preference Share means a preference share issued under clause 2.6.
Redeemable Preference Share means a Preference Share which the Issue Resolution specified as being, or being at the option of the Company to be, liable to be redeemed.
Redemption Amount means, in relation to a Redeemable Preference Share, the amount specified to be paid on redemption of the Redeemable Preference Share.
Redemption Date means, in relation to a Redeemable Preference Share, the date specified in the Issue Resolution for the redemption of that Preference Share.
Tax Act means the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997.
2. | Each Preference Share confers upon its holder: |
(a) | the right in a winding up to payment in cash of the capital (including any premium) then paid up on it, and any arrears of dividend in respect of that Preference Share, in priority to any other class of Shares; | |
(b) | the right in priority to any payment of dividend to any other class of Shares to a cumulative preferential dividend payable on each Dividend Date in relation to that Preference Share calculated in accordance with the Dividend Rate in relation to that Preference Share; and | |
(c) | no right to participate beyond the extent elsewhere specified in clause 2 of this schedule in surplus assets or profits of the Company, whether in a winding up or otherwise. |
3. | Each Preference Share also confers upon its holder the same rights as the holders of ordinary Shares to receive notices, reports, audited accounts and balance sheets of the Company and to attend general meetings and confers upon its holder the right to vote at any general meeting of the Company in each of the following circumstances and in no others: |
(a) | during a period during which a dividend (or part of a dividend) in respect of the Preference Share is in arrears; |
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(b) | on a proposal to reduce the Company’s share capital; | |
(c) | on a resolution to approve the terms of a buy-back agreement; | |
(d) | on a proposal that affects rights attached to the Preference Share; | |
(e) | on a proposal to wind up the Company; | |
(f) | on a proposal for the disposal of the whole of the Company’s property, business and undertaking; | |
(g) | during the winding up of the Company; and | |
(h) | in any other circumstances in which the Listing Rules require holders of preference shares to vote. |
4. | The Board may only allot a Preference Share where by resolution it specifies the Dividend Date, the Dividend Rate, and whether the Preference Share is or is not, or at the option of the Company is to be, liable to be redeemed, and, if the Preference Share is a Redeemable Preference Share, the Redemption Amount and Redemption Date for that Redeemable Preference Share and any other terms and conditions to apply to that Preference Share. |
5. | The Issue Resolution in establishing the Dividend Rate for a Preference Share may specify that the dividend is to be one of: |
(a) | fixed; | |
(b) | variable depending upon any variation of the respective values of any factors in an algebraic formula specified in the Issue Resolution; or | |
(c) | variable depending upon such other factors as the Board may specify in the Issue Resolution, |
and may also specify that the dividend is to be a Franked Dividend or not a Franked Dividend. |
6. | Where the Issue Resolution specifies that the dividend to be paid in respect of the Preference Share is to be a Franked Dividend the Issue Resolution may also specify: |
(a) | the extent to which such dividend is to be franked (within the meaning of the Tax Act); and | |
(b) | the consequences of any dividend paid not being so franked, which may include a provision for an increase in the amount of the dividend to such an extent or by reference to such factors as may be specified in the Issue Resolution. |
7. | Subject to the Corporations Act, the Company must redeem a Redeemable Preference Share on issue: |
(a) | on the specified date where the Company, at least 15 Business Days before that date, has given a notice to the holder of that Redeemable Preference Share stating that the Redeemable Preference Share will be so redeemed on the specified date; and |
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(b) | in any event, on the Redemption Date, |
but no Redeemable Preference Share may be redeemed and no notice of redemption may be given before the date set by the Directors (if any) upon which that Redeemable Preference Share is issued.
8. | The certificate issued by the Company in relation to any Preference Share must specify in relation to that Preference Share: |
(a) | the date of issue of the Preference Share; | |
(b) | the Dividend Rate and Dividend Dates; | |
(c) | whether the Preference Share is a Redeemable Preference Share and if it is: |
(i) | the Redemption Amount and Redemption Date; and | |
(ii) | the conditions of redemption (if any); |
(d) | the conditions of participation (if any) in respect of the Preference Share set out in clause 3 of this schedule; and | |
(e) | any other matter the Board determines. |
9. | On redemption of a Redeemable Preference Share, the Company, after the holder has surrendered to the Company the certificate in respect of that Redeemable Preference Share, must pay to the holder the Redemption Amount in cash, by cheque or in any other form that the holder agrees to in writing. |
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Exhibit 4.1
Deed Poll
Constituting Convertible Loan Notes
between
Locafy Limited ACN 136 737 767
(Company)
and
Each Noteholder
Table of contents
1 | Definitions and interpretation | 2 |
2 | Constitution of the Notes | 5 |
3 | Issue of Notes | 6 |
4 | Interest, conversion, redemption and Disposal | 6 |
5 | Note Certificates | 6 |
6 | Register | 7 |
7 | Obligations of the Company | 7 |
8 | Amendment of the Deed | 8 |
9 | Notices | 8 |
10 | Counterparts | 8 |
11 | Governing law and jurisdiction | 8 |
Annexure A Note Certificate | 10 | |
Annexure B Application Form | 11 | |
Annexure C Note Terms | 12 |
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This deed is made on 28 May 2021
between | Locafy Limited ACN 136 737 767 of 246 Churchill Avenue, Subiaco, Western Australia (Company) |
and | Each Noteholder |
Recital
A | The Company by resolution of the Board on or about the date of this Deed created 2,500,000 convertible loan notes of $1.00 each to be constituted under this Deed. |
Now it is covenanted and agreed as follows:
1 | Definitions and interpretation |
1.1 | Definitions |
In this Deed, unless the context requires another meaning:
Application Form means a form for the application for Notes substantially in the form set out as Annexure B.
Board means the board of directors of the Company from time to time.
Business Day means a day that is not a Saturday or Sunday or a public holiday or a bank holiday in Perth, Australia.
Corporations Act means the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth).
Dollars and $ means the lawful currency of Australia.
Event of Default means in respect of any Group Company, the occurrence of an Insolvency Event.
Face Value means, in relation to each Note, $1.00.
Facility Amount means $2,500,000 less the aggregate principal amount outstanding on the issued Notes from time to time.
Government Agency means, whether foreign or domestic:
(a) | a government, whether federal, state, territorial or local or a department, office or minister of a government acting in that capacity; or | |
(b) | a commission, delegate, instrumentality, agency, board, or other government, semi-government, judicial, administrative, monetary or fiscal body, department, tribunal, entity or authority, whether statutory or not, and includes any self-regulatory organisation established under statute or any stock exchange. |
Group means the Company and its Subsidiaries from time to time and Group Company means any of them.
GST has the meaning given in the A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 (Cth).
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Insolvency Event means the happening of one or more of the following events:
(a) | except for the purpose of a solvent reconstruction or amalgamation which has the prior written consent of the Noteholder Majority: |
(i) | process is filed in a court seeking an order that the Group Company be wound up or that a Controller be appointed to it or any of its assets, unless the application is withdrawn, struck out or dismissed within 7 days of it being filed; or | |
(ii) | an order is made that the Group Company be wound up or that a Controller be appointed to it or any of its assets; or | |
(iii) | a resolution that the Group Company be wound up is passed or proposed by the shareholders of the Group Company; |
(b) | a liquidator, provisional liquidator, Controller or any similar official is appointed to, or takes possession or control of, all or any of the Group Company’s assets or undertaking; | |
(c) | an administrator is appointed to the Group Company, a resolution that an administrator be appointed to it is passed or proposed, or any other steps are taken to appoint an administrator to it; | |
(d) | the Group Company enters into, or resolves to enter into, an arrangement, compromise or composition with any of, or any class of, its creditors or members, or an assignment for the benefit of any of, or any class of, its creditors, or process is filed in a court seeking approval of any such arrangement, compromise or composition; | |
(e) | a reorganisation, moratorium, deed of company arrangement or other administration involving one or more of the Group Company’s creditors is proposed or effected or by reason of financial difficulties it begins negotiations with one or more of its creditors with a view to readjustment or rescheduling of any of its indebtedness; | |
(f) | any action is taken by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission with a view to the Group Company’s deregistration or its dissolution, or an application is made to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission that any such action be taken; | |
(g) | the Group Company is insolvent within the meaning of section 95A of the Corporations Act, as disclosed in its accounts or otherwise, states that it is unable to pay its debts or it is presumed to be insolvent under any applicable law; | |
(h) | as a result of the operation of section 459F(1) of the Corporations Act, the Group Company is taken to have failed to comply with a statutory demand; | |
(i) | the Group Company stops or suspends or threatens to stop or suspend the payment of all or a class of its debts or the conduct of all or a substantial part of its business; | |
(j) | any event or circumstance set out in section 461 of the Corporations Act occurs in relation to the Group Company; or | |
(k) | anything having a substantially similar effect to any of the events specified in paragraphs (a) to (j) inclusive happens to the Group Company under the law of any jurisdiction. |
Maturity Date has the meaning given to that term in the Terms.
Noteholder means a person whose name is entered in the Register as the holder of one or more Notes.
Noteholder Majority means a Noteholder or Noteholders holding more than 50% of the total principal amount of the Notes outstanding at the relevant time.
Note Certificate means a certificate issued by the Company in respect of the Notes held by a Noteholder, substantially in the form set out in Annexure A to the Deed.
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Notes means convertible loan notes of $1.00 each created by the Company, having the rights and being subject to the restrictions in the Terms and Note means any one of them.
Office means the registered office of the Company.
Register means the register of noteholders kept by the Company in accordance with clause 6.
Subsidiary means a subsidiary (as that term is defined in the Corporations Act) of the Company
Tax means:
(a) | a tax, levy, charge, impost, deduction, withholding or duty of any nature (including stamp and transaction duty and GST) at any time imposed or levied by any Government Agency or required to be remitted to, or collected, withheld or assessed by, any Government Agency; and | |
(b) | any related interest, expense, fine, penalty or other charge on those amounts, |
and includes any amount that a person is required to pay to another person on account of that other person’s liability for Tax.
Term means the terms of the Notes as set out in Annexure C as amended from time to time be amended in accordance with those terms.
Unless the context otherwise requires, words and expressions defined in the Terms and not separately defined in this Deed have the same meanings where used in this Deed.
1.2 | Interpretation |
In this Deed:
(a) | unless the context otherwise requires, a reference: |
(i) | to the singular includes the plural and vice versa; | |
(ii) | to a gender includes all genders; | |
(iii) | to a document (including this Deed) is a reference to that document (including any schedules, Terms and annexures) as amended, consolidated, supplemented, novated or replaced; | |
(iv) | to an agreement includes any undertaking, representation, deed, agreement or legally enforceable arrangement or understanding whether written or not; | |
(v) | to parties means the parties to this Deed and in whose favour this Deed is given and to a party means a party to this Deed or in whose favour this Deed is given; | |
(vi) | to an item, recital, clause, schedule or annexure is to an item, recital, clause, schedule or annexure of or to this Deed; | |
(vii) | to a notice means all notices, approvals, demands, requests, nominations or other communications given by one party to another under or in connection with this Deed; | |
(viii) | to a person (including any party) includes a reference to an individual, company, other body corporate, association, partnership, firm, joint venture, trust or Government Agency as the case requires; | |
(ix) | to a person (including any party) includes the person’s successors, permitted assigns, executors and administrators; |
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(x) | to a law: |
(A) | includes a reference to any constitutional provision, subordinate legislation, treaty, decree, convention, statute, regulation, rule, ordinance, proclamation, by-law, judgment, rule of common law or equity or rule of any applicable stock exchange; | |
(B) | is a reference to that law as amended, consolidated, supplemented or replaced; and | |
(C) | is a reference to any regulation, rule, ordinance, proclamation, by-law or judgment made under that law; |
(xi) | to liquidation includes official management, appointment of an administrator, compromise, arrangement, merger, amalgamation, reconstruction, winding-up, dissolution, assignment for the benefit of creditors, scheme, composition or arrangement with creditors, insolvency, bankruptcy, or any similar procedure or, where applicable, changes in the constitution of any partnership or person, or death; | |
(xii) | to a body, other than a party to this Deed (including, an institute, association or authority), whether statutory or not: |
(A) | which ceases to exist; or | |
(B) | whose powers or functions are transferred to another body, | |
(C) | is a reference to the body which replaces it or which substantially succeeds to its powers or functions; |
(xiii) | to proceedings includes litigation, arbitration and investigation; | |
(xiv) | to a judgment includes an order, injunction, decree, determination or award of any court or tribunal; | |
(xv) | the word including or includes means including, but not limited to, or includes, without limitation; and | |
(xvi) | to time is to Perth time; |
(b) | where a word or phrase is defined, its other grammatical forms have a corresponding meaning; | |
(c) | headings are for convenience only and do not affect interpretation; | |
(d) | if a payment or other act must (but for this clause) be made or done on a day which is not a Business Day, then it must be made or done on the next Business Day; and | |
(e) | if a period occurs from, after or before a day or the day of an act or event, it excludes that day. |
2 | Constitution of the Notes |
2.1 | The total principal amount of the Notes constituted by this Deed is limited to $2,500,000. |
2.2 | The Notes may be issued in amounts or integral multiples of $1.00. |
2.3 | The Company may from time to time, by resolution of the Board and on terms previously approved in writing by the Noteholder Majority, but subject always to this Deed, create and issue further Notes so as to form a single series with the original Notes constituted by this Deed and cancel any Notes created but unissued. |
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2.4 | The Notes constituted by this Deed are held subject to the Terms, which are binding on the Company, each Noteholder and any person claiming through or under them. The Terms will have the same effect as if they were set out in this Deed. |
3 | Issue of Notes |
3.1 | Subject to clause 3.4, the Company may issue Notes at any time prior to the date being 28 days prior to the Maturity Date. |
3.2 | The Company may only issue Notes to parties which have completed and delivered to the Company an Application Form. |
3.3 | Upon the issue of any Notes under clause 3.1 the Company must: |
(a) | issue a Note Certificate to the Noteholder in accordance with clause 5; and | |
(b) | update the details of the Register in accordance with clause 6. |
3.4 | The Company must not issue any Notes: |
(a) | while there is a subsisting Event of Default in respect of the Company; or | |
(b) | in excess of the Facility Amount. |
if issuing a Note would cause the value to exceed the Facility Amount
4 | Interest, conversion, redemption and Disposal |
The Notes:
(a) | bear interest in accordance with Term 3; | |
(b) | are convertible in accordance with Term 4; | |
(c) | are redeemable in accordance with Term 6; and | |
(d) | may be disposed of in accordance with Term 7. |
5 | Note Certificates |
5.1 | The Company must issue to a person, at no cost to the Noteholder a Note Certificate for the total principal amount of all Notes registered in that person’s name on that person: |
(a) | becoming a Noteholder; or | |
(b) | acquiring additional Notes and upon delivering to the Company, in respect of all the existing Notes held by that person: |
(i) | the Note Certificate(s) for those Notes; or | |
(ii) | evidence reasonably satisfactory to the Company that the Note Certificate(s) for those Notes have been lost, stolen, worn out, defaced or destroyed and: |
(A) | in the case of a worn out or defaced Note Certificate, that certificate; and | |
(B) | in the case of a lost, stolen or destroyed Note Certificate, if requested by the Company, an indemnity from that person in respect of the lost, stolen or destroyed certificate on terms reasonably satisfactory to the Company. |
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5.2 | When a Noteholder redeems, converts, sells, assigns, transfers or conveys one or more Notes the Company must issue, at no cost to the Noteholder, a Note Certificate for the balance of the total principal amount of the Notes retained by the Noteholder, within 5 Business Days of completion of the redemption, conversion, sale, assignment, transfer or conveyance, as applicable. |
5.3 | The Company is not bound to: |
(a) | register more than four persons as joint holders of a Note; nor | |
(b) | issue more than one Note Certificate for a Note held jointly by two or more persons and delivery of a Note Certificate to one joint holder constitutes delivery to all joint holders. |
5.4 | A Note Certificate must be: |
(a) | substantially in the form set out in Annexure A and must have the Terms endorsed on it; and | |
(b) | executed by or on behalf of the Company in accordance with the Constitution or in such other manner as may be permitted by the Corporations Act. |
5.5 | If a Note Certificate is lost, stolen, worn out, defaced or destroyed, the Company must issue a duplicate certificate within a reasonable period of a request by a Noteholder, at no cost to the Noteholder, provided that the Noteholder delivers to the Company evidence reasonably satisfactory to the Company that the Note Certificate has been lost, stolen, worn out, defaced or destroyed and: |
(a) | in the case of a worn out or defaced Note Certificate, that certificate; and | |
(b) | in the case of a lost, stolen or destroyed Note Certificate, if requested by the Company, an indemnity from that Noteholder in respect of the lost, stolen or destroyed certificate on terms reasonably satisfactory to the Company. |
6 | Register |
6.1 | The Company must keep the Register at the Office and enter in it: |
(a) | the name and address of each Noteholder; | |
(b) | the date on which each Noteholder was registered as a Noteholder; | |
(c) | the total principal amount of all Notes held by each Noteholder; | |
(d) | the serial number of each Note Certificate issued to each Noteholder and the date of its issue; and | |
(e) | the date on which a person ceased to be a Noteholder. |
6.2 | The Company must enter in the Register each change to the information specified in clause 6.1. |
6.3 | A Noteholder may inspect the Register at all reasonable times during office hours and the Company must provide the Noteholder with a copy of it or any part of it, at no cost to the Noteholder, if requested by the Noteholder. |
7 | Obligations of the Company |
7.1 | The Company agrees with each Noteholder to comply with its obligations under this Deed and the Terms. |
7.2 | This Deed and the Terms ensure for the benefit of each Noteholder that a Noteholder may enforce the Company’s observance of its obligations under this Deed and the Terms in relation to each Note held by the Noteholder. |
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7.3 | The Company must pay all Tax in relation to the constitution of the Notes under this Deed and the issue and delivery of those Notes to the Noteholders. |
8 | Amendment of the Deed |
8.1 | The Company may (by a deed expressed to be supplemental to this Deed) amend this Deed only if it is approved by a Noteholder Majority. |
8.2 | The Company must make a notation on the cover of this Deed upon the execution of any deed supplemental to this Deed. |
9 | Notices |
Term 12 applies to any notice given to or by the Company under this Deed as if Term 12 were set out in this Deed in full (with any necessary changes).
10 | Counterparts |
This Deed may be executed in any number of counterparts (including by way of email and facsimile) each of which shall be deemed for all purposes to be an original and all such counterparts taken together shall be deemed to constitute one and the same instrument.
11 | Governing law and jurisdiction |
11.1 | This Deed is governed by the laws of Western Australia. |
11.2 | The Company irrevocably and unconditionally: |
(a) | submits to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Western Australia; and | |
(b) | waives, without limitation, any claim or objection based on absence of jurisdiction or inconvenient forum. |
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Executed as a deed
Executed as a deed by Locafy Limited ACN 136 737 767 in accordance with section 127 of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth): |
/s/ GAVIN BURNETT | /s/ MELVIN TAN | |
Director | Director | |
GAVIN BURNETT |
MELVIN TAN |
|
Name of Director (BLOCK LETTERS) |
Name of Director (BLOCK LETTERS) |
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Annexure A
Note Certificate
Certificate No. [•] issued on [date]
Total principal amount
Locafy Limited (Company)
(ACN 136 737 767)
Convertible Loan Notes
This is to certify that [#] of [#] is the registered holder of [#] convertible loan notes of $1.00 each issued by the Company (Notes) as constituted by the Deed Poll Constituting Loan Notes made by the Company on 28 May 2021 (Deed). The Notes are issued with the benefit of the rights and subject to the restrictions contained in the Deed and the terms endorsed on this certificate (Terms).
The Notes bear interest in accordance with Term 3. The Notes are convertible into Ordinary Shares in accordance with Term 4 and are redeemable in accordance with Term 6.
The Notes may be disposed of in accordance with Term 7. This certificate must be surrendered before any transfer is registered or any new certificate is issued in exchange.
A copy of the Deed is available for inspection at the Company’s registered office.
The Notes are governed by the laws of Western Australia.
Executed by Locafy Limited ACN 136 737 767 in accordance with section 127 of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth): |
*Director/*Company Secretary | Director |
Name of *Director/*Company Secretary (BLOCK LETTERS) *please delete as appropriate |
Name of Director (BLOCK LETTERS) |
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Annexure B
Application Form
To: | The Directors | |
Locafy Limited (Company) | ||
ACN 136 737 767 | ||
PO Box 1988 | ||
Subiaco WA 6904 |
<<specify name of Applicant>> (Applicant), hereby irrevocably applies to subscribe for
<<specify number>> convertible notes of A$1.00 each (Notes) under the terms of the Deed Poll Constituting Convertible Loan Notes dated 28 May 2021 (Deed).
Dated: <<specify date>>
For Company Applicants:
Signed by a director and director/secretary:
Signature of director | Signature of director/secretary | |
Name of director (please print) |
Name of director/secretary (please print) |
IMPORTANT: For regulatory and compliance purposes, please provide details of the company’s current directors and shareholders (eg copy of company extract)
For Individual Applicants:
Signed by:
Signature of Individual Applicant | Signature of Individual Applicant 2 | |
Name of Individual Applicant 1 (please print) |
Name of Individual Applicant 2 (please print) |
Applicant Contact Details:
Contact Name: | <<Please complete>> |
Contact Address: | <<Please complete>> |
Contact Email: | <<Please complete>> |
Contact Telephone: | <<Please complete>> |
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Annexure C
Terms
1 | Definitions and interpretation |
1.1 | Definitions |
In these Terms, unless the context requires another meaning:
Benchmark Date means the date that is 5 Business Days before the Maturity Date;
Board means the board of directors of the Company from time to time.
Business Day means a day that is not a Saturday or Sunday or a public holiday or a bank holiday in Western Australia, Australia.
Company Conversion Notice shall the same meaning as Conversion Notice.
Completion Date means the date of this Deed Poll.
Controller has the meaning given in section 9 of the Corporations Act.
Conversion Date means the date the Note is converted into Ordinary Share pursuant to Term 4.5.
Conversion Event means a conversion pursuant to either Term 4.2 or Term 4.3.
Conversion Notice means Conversion Notice issued by the Company pursuant to Term 4.5.
Conversion Shares means the Ordinary Shares issued pursuant to a Conversion Notice.
Deed means the deed poll constituting convertible loan notes made by the Company and in respect of which these Terms form a part.
Dollars and $ means the lawful currency of Australia.
Event of Default means, in respect of any Group Company, the occurrence of:
(a) | an Insolvency Event; or | |
(b) | any event, fact, circumstance or other matter which is, in the Noteholder Majority’s reasonable opinion, reasonably likely to cause or constitute an Insolvency Event. |
Facility Amount means $2,500,000.
Foreign Exchange Conversion Rate means for every 1 Australian Dollar is equivalent to 0.7766 United States Dollar (being the average rate published by the Reserve Bank of Australia from 27 April 2021 to 27 May 2021, inclusive).
Government Agency means, whether foreign or domestic:
(a) | a government, whether federal, state, territorial or local or a department, office or minister of a government acting in that capacity; or | |
(b) | a commission, delegate, instrumentality, agency, board, or other government, semi-government, judicial, administrative, monetary or fiscal body, department, tribunal, entity or authority, whether statutory or not, and includes any self-regulatory organisation established under statute or any stock exchange. |
Group means the Company and its Subsidiaries from time to time and Group Company means any of them.
GST has the meaning given in the A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 (Cth).
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Insolvency Event means the happening of one or more of the following events:
(a) | except for the purpose of a solvent reconstruction or amalgamation which has the prior written consent of the Noteholder Majority: |
(i) | process is filed in a court seeking an order that the Company be wound up or that a Controller be appointed to it or any of its assets, unless the application is withdrawn, struck out or dismissed within 7 days of it being filed; or | |
(ii) | an order is made that the Company be wound up or that a Controller be appointed to it or any of its assets; or | |
(iii) | a resolution that the Company be wound up is passed or proposed by the Shareholders of the Company; |
(b) | a liquidator, provisional liquidator, Controller or any similar official is appointed to, or takes possession or control of, all or any of the Company’s assets or undertaking; | |
(c) | an administrator is appointed to the Company, a resolution that an administrator be appointed to it is passed or proposed, or any other steps are taken to appoint an administrator to it; | |
(d) | the Company enters into, or resolves to enter into, an arrangement, compromise or composition with any of, or any class of, its creditors or members, or an assignment for the benefit of any of, or any class of, its creditors, or process is filed in a court seeking approval of any such arrangement, compromise or composition; | |
(e) | a reorganisation, moratorium, deed of company arrangement or other administration involving one or more of the Company’s creditors is proposed or effected or by reason of financial difficulties it begins negotiations with one or more of its creditors with a view to readjustment or rescheduling of any of its indebtedness; | |
(f) | any action is taken by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission with a view to the Company’s deregistration or its dissolution, or an application is made to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission that any such action be taken; | |
(g) | the Company is insolvent within the meaning of section 95A of the Corporations Act, as disclosed in its accounts or otherwise, states that it is unable to pay its debts or it is presumed to be insolvent under any applicable law; | |
(h) | as a result of the operation of section 459F(1) of the Corporations Act, the Company is taken to have failed to comply with a statutory demand; | |
(i) | the Company stops or suspends or threatens to stop or suspend the payment of all or a class of its debts or the conduct of all or a substantial part of its business; | |
(j) | any event or circumstance set out in section 461 of the Corporations Act occurs in relation to the Company; or | |
(k) | anything having a substantially similar effect to any of the events specified in paragraphs (a) to (j) inclusive happens to the Company under the law of any jurisdiction. |
IPO means an initial public offering of fully paid ordinary shares in the capital of the Company pursuant to the Prospectus in which the Company obtains quotation of the fully paid ordinary shares in the capital of the Company on the Nasdaq;
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IPO Conditions means the following conditions precedent:
(a) | the receipt by the Company of all application moneys and accompanying application forms in accordance with the requirements of the Prospectus and the depositing of those moneys into a trust account in accordance with section 722 of the Corporations Act; | |
(b) | the receipt by the Company of a letter from the Nasdaq which approves the admission of the Company to the Nasdaq subject only to customary conditions (Nasdaq Letter); and | |
(c) | the serving of a written notice by the Company on the Noteholder confirming that: |
(i) | the matters in clauses (a) and (b) above have been fulfilled; and | |
(ii) | it is able to satisfy, and will satisfy, the conditions set out in the Nasdaq Letter by the date required by the Nasdaq; |
Listing Condition means an IPO Condition;
Maturity Date means the date ending 12 months after the funds are received by the Company.
Nasdaq means the Nasdaq Stock Exchange
Note Certificate means a certificate issued by the Company in respect of the Notes held by a Noteholder, substantially in the form set out in Annexure A to the Deed.
Noteholder means a persons whose name is entered in the Register as the holder of one or more Notes from time to time.
Noteholder Majority means a Noteholder or Noteholders holding more than 50% of the total principal amount of the Notes outstanding at the relevant time.
Notes means convertible loan notes of $1.00 each created by the Company, having the rights and being subject to the restrictions in these Terms and Note means any one of them.
Office means the registered office of the Company.
Outstanding Note means any Note that has not been converted into Ordinary Shares in accordance with Term 4 or redeemed in full in accordance with Term 5.
Redemption Date means, in respect of any Note, the due date for redemption of that Note under Term 6.2(b).
Register means the register of noteholders kept by the Company in accordance with clause 6 of the Deed.
Restricted Overseas Person means a person (including an individual, partnership, unincorporated syndicate, limited liability company, unincorporated organisation, trust, trustee, executor, administrator or other legal representative) in, or resident in, the United Kingdom, Japan, Canada or the United States or a US person.
Securities Act means the United States Securities Act of 1933.
Subsidiary has the meaning given in section 46 of the Corporations Act.
Tax means:
(a) | a tax, levy, charge, impost, deduction, withholding or duty of any nature (including stamp and transaction duty and GST) at any time imposed or levied by any Government Agency or required to be remitted to, or collected, withheld or assessed by, any Government Agency; and | |
(b) | any related interest, expense, fine, penalty or other charge on those amounts, |
and includes any amount that a person is required to pay to another person on account of that other person’s liability for Tax.
Terms means these terms as they may from time to time be amended in accordance with these terms.
Third Party means any party who is not a shareholder of the Company or a previous creditor of the Company or related bodies corporate as defined in the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth).
Third Party Interests means any Security Interest, option, voting arrangement, interest under any agreement, interest under any trust, or other right, equity, entitlement or other interest of any nature held by a third party.
United States means the United States of America, its territories and possessions, any State of the United States and the District of Columbia.
US person means a US person as defined in Regulations of the Securities Act.
Withholding Tax means Tax levied or imposed by a Government Agency that is required to be withheld or deducted from any payment.
1.2 | Interpretation |
In these Terms:
(a) | unless the context otherwise requires, a reference: |
(iii) | to the singular includes the plural and vice versa; | |
(iv) | to a gender includes all genders; | |
(v) | to a document (including these Terms) is a reference to that document (including any schedules and annexures) as amended, consolidated, supplemented, novated or replaced; | |
(vi) | to an agreement includes any undertaking, representation, deed, agreement or legally enforceable arrangement or understanding whether written or not; | |
(vii) | to an item, recital, clause, schedule or annexure is to an item, recital, clause, schedule or annexure of or to these Terms; | |
(viii) | to a notice means all notices, approvals, demands, requests, nominations or other communications given by one party to another under or in connection with these Terms; | |
(ix) | to a person (including any party) includes a reference to an individual, company, other body corporate, association, partnership, firm, joint venture, trust or Government Agency as the case requires; | |
(x) | (viii) to a person (including any party) includes the person’s successors, permitted assigns, executors and administrators; | |
(xi) | to a law: |
(A) | includes a reference to any constitutional provision, subordinate legislation, treaty, decree, convention, statute, regulation, rule, ordinance, proclamation, by-law, judgment, rule of common law or equity or rule of any applicable stock exchange; | |
(B) | is a reference to that law as amended, consolidated, supplemented or replaced; and |
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(C) | is a reference to any regulation, rule, ordinance, proclamation, by-law or judgment made under that law; |
(xii) | to liquidation includes official management, appointment of an administrator, compromise, arrangement, merger, amalgamation, reconstruction, winding-up, dissolution, assignment for the benefit of creditors, scheme, composition or arrangement with creditors, insolvency, bankruptcy, or any similar procedure or, where applicable, changes in the constitution of any partnership or person, or death; | |
(xiii) | to a body (including, an institute, association or authority), whether statutory or not: |
(A) | which ceases to exist; or | |
(B) | whose powers or functions are transferred to another body, | |
(C) | is a reference to the body which replaces it or which substantially succeeds to its powers or functions; |
(xiv) | to proceedings includes litigation, arbitration and investigation; | |
(xv) | (xiii) to a judgment includes an order, injunction, decree, determination or award of any court or tribunal; | |
(xvi) | (xiv) the word including or includes means including, but not limited to, or includes, without limitation; and | |
(xvii) | to time is to Perth time; |
(b) | where a word or phrase is defined, its other grammatical forms have a corresponding meaning; | |
(c) | headings are for convenience only and do not affect interpretation; | |
(d) | if a payment or other act must (but for this clause) be made or done on a day which is not a Business Day, then it must be made or done on the next Business Day; and | |
(e) | if a period occurs from, after or before a day or the day of an act or event, it excludes that day. |
2 | Status and ranking of the Notes |
(a) | The Notes are a debt obligation of the Company. | |
(b) | On a winding up of the Company, or in relation to any arrangement between the Company and its creditors, all amounts outstanding on the Notes must be paid: |
(i) | in accordance with any applicable statutory regime for the distribution of the assets of the Company or, failing such a statutory regime being applicable, on a pari passu basis with all amounts owing by the Company to its secured creditors, which are proven in the winding up or arrangement; | |
(ii) | on a pari passu basis between the Notes themselves; and | |
(iii) | to the Noteholders before any amount is paid to the Company’s shareholders in their capacity as shareholder. |
3 | Interest |
The Notes are non-interest bearing.
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4 | Conversion General |
4.1 | The Company may not convert a Note into Ordinary Shares other than in accordance with this Term 4. |
4.2 | Noteholder entitlement to convert |
At any time prior to the Benchmark Date (Noteholder Conversion Period), a Noteholder may convert all or part of its Notes by giving a Conversion Notice, together with the Certificates relating to the Notes being converted, to the Company requiring the Company to convert all of the Notes held by the Noteholder.
4.3 | Conversion on Listing |
Notwithstanding Term 4.2, if, during the Noteholder Conversion Period a Listing Condition is satisfied, the Company must convert all of the Notes held by the Noteholder and issue to the Noteholder the number of Company Shares calculated under Term 4.4(b).
4.4 | Conversion formula |
(a) | In relation to Notes which are the subject of a Conversion Notice under Term 4.2 and, the Company must issue Ordinary Shares to the Noteholder on the basis of one Share for each five Notes. | |
(b) | In relation to Notes which are the subject of a Company Conversion Notice under Term 4.3(a), if the Listing Conditions are satisfied prior to the Maturity Date, the number of Shares which the Company must issue to the Noteholder will be determined in accordance with the following formula: |
A = B x C
D
where:
A = | the number of Shares to be issued to the Noteholder; | |
B = | the Face Value of the Notes being converted; | |
C = | Foreign Exchange Conversion Rate; | |
D = | 20% discount to the price at which the relevant Ordinary Shares are issued under a Prospectus at the time of the Listing. |
4.5 | Completion of conversion |
(a) | Within 5 Business Days of the relevant Conversion Event in accordance with: |
(i) | clause 4.2, the Company must: |
(A) | issue to the Noteholder a holding statement concerning, or certificates for, the relevant Ordinary Shares by delivering the statement (or certificates) to the Noteholder; | |
(B) | issue the number of Company Shares calculated in accordance with clauses 4.4(a). |
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(ii) | clause 4.3, the Company must: |
(A) | issues to the Noteholder a holding statement concerning, or certificates for, the relevant Ordinary Shares by delivering the statement (or certificates) to the Noteholder; | |
(B) | issue the number of Company Shares calculated in accordance with clauses 4.4(b). |
(b) | A Note in respect of which a Conversion Notice has been given will be treated as having been cancelled and converted into Conversion Shares on the Conversion Date in respect of that Note. |
4.6 | Adjustment |
If prior to conversion of any Notes:
(a) | a consolidation, sub-division or pro-rata cancellation of Ordinary Shares occurs, then the number of Ordinary Shares into which the Notes are convertible will be adjusted so that the Notes are convertible into the same percentage of the issued Ordinary Shares (on a fully diluted basis) as the percentage of issued Ordinary Shares into which they were convertible (on a fully diluted basis) immediately prior to the capital consolidation, sub-division or pro-rata cancellation (as applicable); | |
(b) | a return of capital of the Company occurs, then the valuation amount must be reduced by the same amount as the aggregate amount returned in relation to the Ordinary Shares and the formula set out in Term 4.4 must be adjusted accordingly; | |
(c) | a reduction of capital of the Company occurs by a cancellation of paid up capital that is lost or not represented by available assets where no securities are cancelled, then the number of Notes on issue must remain unaltered; or | |
(d) | any other reorganisation or reconstruction of Ordinary Shares occurs, then the number of Notes on issue must be amended so that the Noteholders do not receive a benefit that the holders of Ordinary Shares do not receive and vice versa. |
5 | Assistance with Listing |
(a) | In relation to Conversion Shares issued upon conversion under Term 4.3, if the Nasdaq requires, as a condition for the Listing to proceed, that any Conversion Shares must be subject to a restriction or hold back agreement pursuant, then the Noteholder (and any other associated parties or controllers) must execute any restriction agreement in relation to those Conversion Shares required by the Nasdaq. | |
(b) | When requested, if a Noteholder does not provide a signed restriction agreement within 3 business days, the Note may be cancelled by the Company and Face Value of each note returned to the Noteholder within 30 days post-listing without interest. | |
(c) | Without limitation the Noteholder shall co-operate in good faith with the Company and execute all relevant documents and comply with any reasonable request by the Company in relation to the Listing and must not do anything which adversely affects, or is likely to adversely affect, the Listing. |
6 | Redemption |
6.1 | General |
(a) | The Company may not redeem and/or purchase a Note other than in accordance with this Term 6. |
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(b) | The Company must cancel a redeemed Note and may not reissue or resell that Note. | |
(c) | The Company must redeem all Notes upon Maturity Date in accordance with this Term 6. | |
(d) | The Company may on its own resolution, elect to redeem the Notes at any time prior to the Maturity Date in accordance with Term 6.6. |
6.2 | Redemption in the event of an Event of Default |
(a) | At any time after the occurrence of an Event of Default in respect of the Company and before the Maturity Date, a Noteholder may request the Company to redeem some or all of the Outstanding Notes by written notice to the Company (Redemption Notice). | |
(b) | The Company must redeem the number of Outstanding Notes specified in a Redemption Notice within ten Business Days after receipt of the Redemption Notice. | |
(c) | The Company must notify each Noteholder immediately if it becomes aware of any fact or circumstance that has caused or constitutes, or will or might reasonably be expected to cause or constitute, an Event of Default. |
6.3 | Completion of redemption |
A Noteholder whose Notes are due to be redeemed under Term 6.2(a) must, on or before the Redemption Date, deliver to the Company:
(a) | the Note Certificate(s) for its Notes; or | |
(b) | evidence reasonably satisfactory to the Company that the Note Certificate(s) for its Notes have been lost, stolen, worn out, defaced or destroyed, together with: |
(i) | in the case of a worn out or defaced Note Certificate, that Note Certificate; and | |
(ii) | in the case of a lost, stolen or destroyed Note Certificate, if requested by the Company, an indemnity from the Noteholder in respect of the lost, stolen or destroyed Note Certificate on terms reasonably satisfactory to the Company. |
6.4 | On the Redemption Date and subject to the Noteholder complying with Term 6.3, the Company must pay to that Noteholder an amount in cash equal to the total principal amount of its Notes outstanding together with all accrued but unpaid and uncapitalised interest on that amount (Redemption Amount) up to and including the day immediately prior to the Redemption Date. |
6.5 | If a Noteholder fails to comply with Term 6.3: |
(a) | the Company must pay the Redemption Amount into a separate bank account pending compliance with Term 6.3; | |
(b) | the payment of the Redemption Amount into a bank account will constitute the Company a trustee in respect of the amount; | |
(c) | the Company will be responsible for the safe custody of the Redemption Amount; and | |
(d) | the Noteholder will be entitled to claim the Redemption, net of any deduction by the Company for any costs or expenses incurred by the Company in connection with the Company’s performance of its obligations under this Term 6.5. |
6.6 | Redemption by Company prior to Maturity |
If the Notes are redeemed by the Company prior to the Maturity Date, the Company will pay the Noteholder the same amount of money that would have been due if they were redeemed pursuant to term 6.7.
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6.7 | Redemption upon Maturity |
(a) | The Company must redeem and paid out all Notes held by the Noteholders within 10 business days from the Maturity Date in the event there is no conversion of the Notes. | |
(b) | If the Company redeems a Noteholder’s Notes pursuant to 6.7(a), the amount paid out to the Noteholder shall be determined in accordance with the following formula: |
X = Y x Z | |
Where: | |
X = Amount Paid | |
Y = Face value | |
Z = 120% |
7 | Disposal |
7.1 | A Noteholder may only Dispose of Notes in accordance with this Term 7. |
7.2 | Subject to compliance with all applicable laws, a Noteholder may transfer a Note by delivering a transfer document duly stamped (if necessary) and signed by or on behalf of the transferor to the Company. The transfer document must be in writing in the usual or common form or in such other form as the Board may from time to time prescribe or, in particular circumstances, agree to accept. |
7.3 | The transferor remains the holder of the Note until the name of the transferee is entered in the Register as the holder of that Note. |
7.4 | The Board must register the transfer of a Note if: |
(a) | no Conversion Notice in respect of the Note has been given by a Noteholder under Term 4.2; | |
(b) | the Note is not due to be redeemed under Term 6.2(a); | |
(c) | it is in favour of not more than four joint transferees; and | |
(d) | it is delivered for registration to the Office or such other place as the Board may decide, accompanied by: |
(i) | the Note Certificate for the Note; or | |
(ii) | evidence reasonably satisfactory to the Company that the Note Certificate for the Note has been lost, stolen, worn out, defaced or destroyed, together with: |
(A) | in the case of a worn out or defaced Note Certificate, that Note Certificate; or | |
(B) | in the case of a lost, stolen or destroyed Note Certificate, if requested by the Company, an indemnity from the Noteholder in respect of the lost, stolen or destroyed Note Certificate on terms reasonably satisfactory to the Company; and |
(iii) | such other evidence as the Board may reasonably require to prove the title of the transferor and the due execution by him of the transfer or, if the transfer is executed by some other person on his behalf, the authority of that person to do so. |
If the Board decides that transfers may be left at a place other than the Office, the Company must notify the Noteholders of the address of that place.
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7.5 | If the Board refuses to register the transfer of a Note it must, within 15 Business Days after the date on which the transfer document was lodged with the Company, send notice of the refusal to the transferee. Failure to give notice will not invalidate the decision of the Board. All transfer documents that are registered must be retained by the Company but any transfer document that the Board refuses to register must (except in the case of fraud or suspected fraud) be returned on demand to the person who deposited it. |
7.6 | The Company may not charge a fee for registering the transfer of a Note or other document relating to or affecting the title to a Note or the right to transfer it or for making any other entry in the Register. |
8 | Dealings |
8.1 | No application has been or will be made to any recognised stock exchange for the Notes to be listed or dealt in. |
8.2 | The Notes have not been and will not be registered under the Securities Act or under the securities laws of any jurisdiction of the United States, no relevant clearances have been, or will be, obtained from the securities commission of any province or territory of Canada, no prospectus has been or will be lodged with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission and no steps have been taken, nor will any be taken, to enable the Notes to be offered in compliance with the Financial Services Act 1986, the Public Offers of Securities Regulations 1995 (as amended) or any other relevant legislation in the United Kingdom nor the applicable securities laws of Japan or any other jurisdiction. |
8.3 | Accordingly, the Notes may only be offered, sold, resold, delivered or distributed (whether directly or indirectly): |
(a) | in and/or into the United States, Canada, Australia, the United Kingdom and/or Japan; and/or | |
(b) | to or for the account or benefit of any Restricted Overseas Person, |
if an exemption from the relevant securities legislation is available or a disclosure document is prepared in accordance with the relevant securities legislation and filed or lodged with the relevant authorities or, in relation to any US person, the Notes are registered under the Securities Act.
9 | Payments |
9.1 | All payments to be made by the Company in relation to a Note will be made: |
(a) | after deduction of all withholdings and deductions required by law, however if the Company withholds or deducts any Withholding Tax from a payment made in relation to a Note, the Company must gross up that payment to equal the amount that the Noteholder would have received if no deduction or withholding of Withholding Tax had been required; and | |
(b) | by way of either, at the Noteholder’s election: |
(i) | a banker’s draft or cheque drawn by a bank as defined in the Banking Act 1959 (Cth); or | |
(ii) | a direct transfer of immediately available funds to the bank account nominated by the Noteholder prior to the due date for payment. |
9.2 | If the Company or another person is required by law to make a deduction or withholding from a payment to the Noteholder, the Company must notify the Noteholder of the amount and reason for the deduction or withholding and pay or procure the payment of the full amount of the deduction or withholding to the appropriate Government Agency under applicable law. |
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9.3 | The Company may withhold payment of principal moneys, interest and all other amounts payable in respect of a Note to a person entitled by transmission to a Note until he has provided such evidence of his entitlement that the Company may reasonably require. |
10 | Recognition of other interests in Notes |
Subject to the Corporations Act, the Company is entitled to treat the registered holder of any Notes as the absolute owner of those Notes and is not bound to recognise any equitable or other claim to or interest in the Notes on the part of any person.
11 | Amendment of the Terms |
11.1 | The Company may (by deed expressed to be supplemental to the Deed) from time to time amend these Terms only if it is approved by the Noteholder Majority. |
11.2 | The Company must make a notation on the cover of the Deed upon the execution of any deed supplemental to the Deed. |
12 | Notices |
12.1 | Requirements |
All notices must be:
(a) | legible and in English; | |
(b) | addressed to the recipient at the address or email set out below or to such other address or email as that party may notify to the other parties: |
to the Company:
Address: | PO Box 1988, Subiaco, Western Australia, 6904 | |
Attention: | Mr Gavin Burnett | |
Email: | Both: gavin.burnett@locafy.com and melvin.tan@locafy.com |
to a Noteholder:
the Noteholder’s address or email as it appears on the Register;
(c) | signed by the party or where the sender is a company by an officer of that company or under the common seal of that company; and | |
(d) | sent to the recipient by hand, prepaid post (airmail if to or from a place outside Australia) or email; | |
(e) | if sent by email, in a form which: |
(i) | identifies the sender; | |
(ii) | is electronically signed by the sender or an authorised officer of the sender; and | |
(iii) | clearly indicates the subject matter of the notice in the subject heading of the email, |
provided that the recipient has not provided written notice to the other parties confirming that it does not wish to receive notices by email. The parties consent to the method of signature contained in clause 12.1(e) and agree that it satisfies the requirements of applicable law for signature on service of notice by email.
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12.2 | Receipt |
Without limiting any other means by which a party may be able to prove that a notice has been received by another party, a notice will be deemed to be duly received:
(a) | if sent by hand when left at the address of the recipient; | |
(b) | if sent by pre-paid post, 3 days (if posted to an address within a country) or 10 days (if posted from one country to another) after the date of posting; or | |
(c) | if sent by email, when the sender receives an automated message confirming delivery; or four hours after the time the email is sent (as recorded on the device from which the sender sent the email) unless the sender receives an automated message that the email has not been delivered, whichever occurs first; |
but if a notice is served by hand, or is received by email on a day which is not a Business Day, or after 5:00 pm (recipient’s local time) on a Business Day, the notice is deemed to be duly received by the recipient at 9:00 am on the first Business Day after that day.
13 | Counterparts |
This Deed may be executed in any number of counterparts (including by way of email) each of which shall be deemed for all purposes to be an original and all such counterparts taken together shall be deemed to constitute one and the same instrument.
14 | Governing law and jurisdiction |
14.1 | These Terms are governed by the laws of Western Australia. |
14.2 | The Company and each Noteholder irrevocably and unconditionally: |
(a) | submits to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Western Australia; and | |
(b) | waives, without limitation, any claim or objection based on absence of jurisdiction or inconvenient forum. |
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Schedule
Conversion Notice
To: | The Directors | |
Locafy Limited (Company) | ||
PO Box 1988 | ||
Subiaco WA 6904 |
<<specify name of Noteholder>> (Noteholder), being the registered holder of <<specify number>> secured convertible notes of $1.00 each (Notes) issued by the Company on 28 May 2021 on the terms endorsed on the certificate for those Notes (Terms), hereby gives notice that it wishes to convert <<insert either all <<or>> <<specify number>> of its Notes into Ordinary Shares (Shares) in accordance with Term 4, completion of the conversion to occur on <<specify date>> or such earlier or later date in accordance with the Terms.
The Noteholder authorises the Company to register it as the holder of the Shares in accordance with the Terms and agrees to be bound by the Constitution of the Company.
Dated: <<specify date>>
Signed by
<<Name of Noteholder>>
by a director and director/secretary:
Signature of director | Signature of director/secretary | |
Name of director (please print) | Name of director/secretary (please print) |
Notes:
1. | This notice is irrevocable. | |
2. | The date specified for completion of the conversion of the Notes into Shares must be at least three Business Days after the date this Conversion Notice is given to the Company, subject to a different period being determined in accordance with the Terms. | |
3. | This Conversion Notice should be lodged at the Company’s registered office or sent by post to the address specified above. The Note Certificate(s) for the Notes must be given to the Company on or before the date of completion of the conversion of the Notes. |
Exhibit 4.4
Level 25, 1 O’Connell Street | |
Sydney NSW 2000 Australia | |
F +61 2 8248 5899 | F +61 2 8248 5899 |
Convertible Note Deed
between
Moboom Limited ACN 136 737 767
(Issuer)
and
The party listed in Schedule 1
(Subscriber)
Table of contents
1 | Definitions and interpretation | 1 | |
1.1 | Definitions | 1 | |
1.2 | Interpretation | 3 | |
2 | Issue of Notes to the Subscriber | 3 | |
2.1 | Subscription and issue | 3 | |
2.2 | Subscription price and payment | 3 | |
2.3 | Certificate | 3 | |
3 | Terms of issue | 4 | |
3.1 | Notes | 4 | |
3.2 | Interest | 4 | |
3.3 | Release of Issuer’s liability | 4 | |
4 | Conversion | 4 | |
4.1 | Entitlement to convert | 4 | |
4.2 | Conversion on Listing | 4 | |
4.3 | Conversion Shares to be issued on conversion | 4 | |
4.4 | Conversion completion | 5 | |
5 | Assistance with Listing | 5 | |
6 | Redemption | 6 | |
6.1 | Early Redemption | 6 | |
6.2 | Redemption time and payment | 6 | |
6.3 | Events of Default | 6 | |
7 | Register of Notes | 6 | |
8 | Transfers | 7 | |
9 | Title to Notes, non-recognition of equities | 7 | |
10 | Noteholder Warranty | 7 | |
11 | Notices | 7 | |
11.1 | General | 7 | |
11.2 | Issuer’s address | 8 | |
12 | General | 8 | |
12.1 | Entire understanding | 8 | |
12.2 | Severability | 8 | |
12.3 | Variation | 8 | |
12.4 | Assignment | 8 | |
12.5 | Further assurance | 8 | |
12.6 | Waiver | 8 | |
12.7 | Costs and outlays | 8 | |
12.8 | Counterparts | 8 | |
12.9 | Governing law and jurisdiction | 8 | |
Schedule 1 – Subscriber details and details of Notes | 9 | ||
Schedule 2 – Note Certificate | 10 | ||
Schedule 3 – Issuer Conversion Notice | 11 | ||
Schedule 4 – Noteholder Conversion Notice | 12 | ||
Schedule 5 – Redemption Notice | 13 |
This deed is made on
between | Moboom Limited ACN 136 737 767 of c/- Flinders Chartered Accountants, Level 4, 1 Howard Street, Perth, Western Australia (Issuer) |
and | The party listed in Schedule 1 (Subscriber) |
Recital
The Subscriber has agreed to subscribe for the Notes in accordance with the terms of this deed.
Now it is covenanted and agreed as follows:
1 | Definitions and interpretation |
1.1 | Definitions |
In this deed:
ASX means the ASX Limited ABN 98 008 624 691;
Back-Door Acquisition means an acquisition (including, but not limited to an acquisition under a share purchase agreement or pursuant to Chapter 6 of the Corporations Act) under which ListCo acquires or agrees to acquire at least 80% of the issued share capital in the Issuer;
Back-Door Listing Conditions means the satisfaction of all the conditions necessary for the completion of the Back-Door Acquisition (other than the conversion of the Notes);
Benchmark Date means the date that is 5 Business Days before the Maturity Date;
Board means the board of directors of the Issuer;
Business Day means a day that is not a Saturday, Sunday or any other day which is a public holiday or a bank holiday in New South Wales;
Certificate means a certificate for a Note in the form of Schedule 2;
Conversion Date means the date on which the Issuer has satisfied its obligations under clause 4.4(a) in respect of a Note the subject of a Conversion Notice;
Conversion Notice means an Issuer Conversion Notice or Noteholder Conversion Notice (as the case may be);
Conversion Shares means Issuer Shares or ListCo Shares (as the case may be);
Corporations Act means Corporations Act 2001 (Cth);
Early Redemption Value means:
(a) | prior to, or on - $ ; or | |
(b) | later than - $ . |
Event of Default has the meaning given to that term in clause 6.3;
Face Value has the meaning given to that term in clause 3.1(b);
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IPO means an initial public offering of fully paid ordinary shares in the capital of the Issuer pursuant to the Prospectus in which the Issuer obtains quotation of the fully paid ordinary shares in the capital of the Issuer on the Official List of the ASX;
IPO Conditions means the following conditions precedent:
(a) | the receipt by the Issuer of all application moneys and accompanying application forms in accordance with the requirements of the Prospectus and the depositing of those moneys into a trust account in accordance with section 722 of the Corporations Act; | |
(b) | the receipt by the Issuer of a letter from the ASX which approves the admission of the Issuer to the Official List of the ASX subject only to customary conditions (ASX Letter); and | |
(c) | the serving of a written notice by the Issuer on the Noteholder confirming that: |
(i) | the matters in clauses (a) and (b) above have been fulfilled; and | |
(ii) | it is able to satisfy, and will satisfy, the conditions set out in the ASX Letter by the date required by the ASX; |
Issue Price is the issue price set out in item 4 of Schedule 1;
Issuer Conversion Notice means a notice in the form of Schedule 2;
Issuer Shares means fully paid ordinary shares in the share capital of the Issuer;
ListCo means a company admitted to the official list of the ASX which enters into a Backdoor Acquisition with the Issuer;
ListCo Shares means fully paid ordinary shares in the share capital of ListCo;
Issuer Conversion Notice means a notice in the form of Schedule 2;
Listing means either an IPO or a Backdoor Acquisition;
Listing Condition means either the IPO Conditions or the Back-Door Listing Conditions;
Maturity Date means ;
Maturity Redemption Value means $ ;
Note means an unsecured redeemable convertible note issued by the Issuer to the Subscriber pursuant to this deed and “Notes” has a corresponding meaning;
Noteholder Conversion Notice means a notice in the form of Schedule 3;
Noteholder Conversion Period has the meaning set out in clause 4.1;
Noteholder means a person entered on the Register as the holder of a Note, including the Subscriber upon the issue of Notes to the Subscriber pursuant to clause 2;
Principal Sum means, in respect of a Note, the Face Value of the Note;
Prospectus means the Prospectus to be issued by the Issuer or ListCo (as the case may be) in accordance with Chapter 6D of the Corporations Act in connection with the IPO or Backdoor Acquisition (as the case may be);
Redemption Notice means a notice in the form of Schedule 5;
Register means the register of Noteholders to be established and maintained pursuant to this deed;
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Subscription Date means the date of this deed; and
Term means the period commencing on the date of this deed and ending on the Maturity Date.
1.2 | Interpretation |
(a) | Reference to: |
(i) | one gender includes the other genders; | |
(ii) | the singular includes the plural and the plural includes the singular; | |
(iii) | a person includes a body corporate; | |
(iv) | a party includes the party’s executors, administrators, successors and permitted assigns; and | |
(v) | a statute, regulation or provision of a statute or regulation (Statutory Provision) includes: |
(A) | that Statutory Provision as amended or re-enacted; | |
(B) | a statute, regulation or provision enacted in replacement of that Statutory Provision; and | |
(C) | another regulation or other statutory instrument made or issued under that Statutory Provision. |
(b) | Including and similar expressions are not words of limitation. | |
(c) | Where a word or expression is given a particular meaning, other parts of speech and grammatical forms of that word or expression have a corresponding meaning. | |
(d) | Headings and any table of contents or index are for convenience only and do not form part of this deed or affect its interpretation. | |
(e) | A provision of this deed must not be construed to the disadvantage of a party merely because that party was responsible for the preparation of the Deed or the inclusion of the provision in the deed. | |
(f) | If an act must be done on a specified day that is not a Business Day, it must be done instead on the next Business Day. |
2 | Issue of Notes to the Subscriber |
2.1 | Subscription and issue |
On the Subscription Date the Subscriber must subscribe for, and the Issuer must issue to the Subscriber, such number of Notes specified in Item 3 of Schedule 1, upon and subject to the terms of this deed.
2.2 | Subscription price and payment |
The Subscriber must subscribe for each of the Notes for an amount equal to the Face Value of the Note.
2.3 | Certificate |
Subject to the Subscriber complying with clause 2.2, the Issuer must issue a Certificate to the Noteholder on the Subscription Date.
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3 | Terms of issue |
3.1 | Notes |
Each Note:
(a) | is held subject to, and with the benefit of, this deed; | |
(b) | has a face value equal to the Issue Price (Face Value); and | |
(c) | confers rights in the Noteholder as a creditor of the Issuer and the Issuer acknowledges that it is indebted to the Noteholder in respect of the Principal Sum on the Notes held by the Noteholder. |
3.2 | Interest |
No interest is payable by the Issuer to the Noteholder in respect of the Noteholder’s Notes.
3.3 | Release of Issuer’s liability |
The Issuer will be immediately discharged and released from its liabilities, obligations and covenants under this deed upon all Notes being either redeemed in accordance with this deed or cancelled and converted into Conversion Shares in accordance with clause 4.
4 | Conversion |
4.1 | Entitlement to convert |
At any time during the period commencing on and ending on the Benchmark Date (Noteholder Conversion Period), the Noteholder may convert all or part of its Notes by giving a Noteholder Conversion Notice, together with the Certificates relating to the Notes being converted, to the Issuer requiring the Issuer to convert all of the Notes held by the Noteholder.
4.2 | Conversion on Listing |
Notwithstanding clause 4.1, if, during the Term, a Listing Condition is satisfied, the Issuer must (by giving an Issuer Conversion Notice to the Noteholder) convert all of the Notes held by the Noteholder. If the relevant Listing Condition which is satisfied:
(a) | is the IPO Condition, the Issuer shall issue to the Noteholder the number of Issuer Shares calculated under clause 4.3(b); and | |
(b) | is the Back-Door Condition, the Issuer shall procure that ListCo issues to the Noteholder the number of ListCo Shares calculated under clause 4.3(b). |
4.3 | Conversion Shares to be issued on conversion |
(a) | In relation to Notes which are the subject of a Noteholder Conversion Notice under clause 4.1, the Issuer must issue Issuer Shares to the Noteholder on the basis of one Share for each Note. |
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(b) | In relation to Notes which are the subject of an Issuer Conversion Notice under clause 4.2, if the Listing Conditions are satisfied prior to the Maturity Date, the number of Shares which the Issuer or ListCo (as the case may be) must issue to the Noteholder will be determined in accordance with the following formula: |
A = |
B
C x D |
where:
A | = | the number of Conversion Shares to be issued to the Noteholder; | |
B | = | the Face Value of the Notes being converted; | |
C | = | 0.50, if the Listing Conditions are satisfied prior to or before the Maturity Date; and | |
D | = | the price at which the relevant ordinary shares are issued under a Prospectus at the time of the Listing. |
(c) | If the number of Conversion Shares to be issued under clause 4.3(b) includes a fraction, the fraction will be rounded up to the nearest Conversion Share. | |
(d) | Conversion Shares issued upon the conversion of a Note will rank equally and form one class with the ordinary shares of the Issuer or ListCo (as the case may be) on issue on the Conversion Date. | |
(e) | In the event of any share splits, share issues, share dividends or consolidation of shares, the number of Conversion Shares to be issued on conversion under this clause 4.3 will be adjusted to ensure that the Noteholder is neither disadvantaged or otherwise benefits from an advantage due to such reorganisation. |
4.4 | Conversion completion |
(a) | Within 5 Business Days of the giving of a Conversion Notice in accordance with: |
(i) | clause 4.1 or 4.2(a), the Issuer must: |
(A) | issue to the Noteholder a holding statement concerning, or certificates for, the relevant Issuer Shares by delivering the statement (or certificates) to the Noteholder; | |
(B) | issue the number of Issuer Shares calculated in accordance with clauses 4.3(a) or 4.3(b) (as the case may be). |
(ii) | clause 4.2(b), the Issuer must procure that ListCo: |
(A) | issues to the Noteholder a holding statement concerning, or certificates for, the relevant ListCo Shares by delivering the statement (or certificates) to the Noteholder; | |
(B) | issue the number of ListCo Shares calculated in accordance with clauses 4.3(b) . |
(b) | A Note in respect of which a Conversion Notice has been given will be treated as having been cancelled and converted into Conversion Shares on the Conversion Date in respect of that Note. |
5 | Assistance with Listing |
(a) | In relation to Conversion Shares issued upon conversion under clause 4.2, if the ASX requires, as a condition for the Listing to proceed, that any Conversion Shares must be subject to a restriction agreement pursuant to the ASX’s cash formula, then the Noteholder (and any other associated parties or controllers) must execute any restriction agreement in relation to those Conversion Shares required by the ASX. |
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(b) | The Noteholder hereby appoints the Issuer as its attorney to execute on its behalf the documents referred to in clause 5(a) and any other related or ancillary documents which are necessary or desirable to support the transactions or arrangements referred to in those documents. | |
(c) | Without limitation the Noteholder shall co-operate in good faith with the Issuer and comply with any reasonable request by the Issuer in relation to the Listing and must not do anything which adversely affects, or is likely to adversely affect, the Listing. |
6 | Redemption |
6.1 | Early Redemption |
At any time prior to the Maturity Date, the Issuer may redeem any or all of the Notes held by the Noteholder that have not been redeemed or converted, or are the subject of a Conversion Notice, by giving a Redemption Notice to the Noteholder and paying to the Noteholder an amount equal to the Early Redemption Value in cash in respect of each Note specified in the Redemption Notice.
6.2 | Redemption time and payment |
The Issuer must redeem each Note that has not been redeemed, converted, or is the subject of a Conversion Notice on the earlier of:
(a) | the Maturity Date; and | |
(b) | the date of receipt by the Issuer of a written notice from the Noteholder that an Event of Default has occurred, |
by paying to the Noteholder an amount equal to the Maturity Redemption Value in cash in respect of the Note.
6.3 | Events of Default |
Each of the following is an Event of Default:
(a) | Insolvency event |
The Issuer is, or is or may be deemed within the meaning of any applicable law to be, insolvent or unable to pay its debts; and
(b) | Covenant |
The Issuer defaults in the due performance of any undertaking, condition or obligation on its part to be performed in accordance with the Notes or this deed and has not rectified such default within 20 Business Days of being requested to do so in writing by the Noteholder.
7 | Register of Notes |
The Issuer must:
(a) | establish and maintain, or cause to be established and maintained, a Register of Noteholders in accordance with all laws and record the details of the Noteholders’ interests; | |
(b) | ensure that the Register is open on each Business Day during normal business hours for inspection free of charge by a Noteholder or any person authorised in writing by a Noteholder; and |
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(c) | provide a copy of the Register or any part of it to a Noteholder within 2 Business Days of a request from the Noteholder. The Noteholder may rely on, and treat as genuine, the document provided by the Issuer in accordance with the request and purporting to be a copy. |
8 | Transfers |
A Noteholder may not transfer any Notes without the consent of the Issuer. |
9 | Title to Notes, non-recognition of equities |
(a) | The Issuer must recognise only the Noteholder whose name appears in the Register as the absolute owner of the Note in respect of which it is entered in the Register. | |
(b) | The Issuer is not, except as ordered by a court of competent jurisdiction or as required by statute, bound to take notice of any trust or equity to which a Note may be subject or otherwise affecting the ownership of a Note or incidental rights. No details of any equity or trust contemplated by this clause 9(b) may be entered in the Register. | |
(c) | The receipt by the Noteholder of any money payable on the redemption of a Note will have the effect of discharging the obligations of the Issuer in respect of the amount payable on redemption despite any notice the Issuer may have of the right, title or interest of any person to, or in, that Note or money. |
10 | Noteholder Warranty |
The Noteholder represents, warrants and agrees that it falls within one of the following categories:
(a) | a “Sophisticated Investor” pursuant to section 708(8) of the Corporations Act; | |
(b) | a “Professional Investor” within the meaning of section 9 and pursuant to section 708(11) of the Corporations Act; or | |
(c) | a person to whom an offer is made pursuant to section 708(10) of the Corporations Act. |
11 | Notices |
11.1 | General |
A notice or other communication connected with this deed (Notice) has no legal effect unless it is in writing and in addition to any other method of service provided by law, the Notice may be: | ||
(a) | sent by prepaid post to the address of the addressee set out in this deed or subsequently notified, in which case it must be treated as given to and received by the party to which it is addressed on the second Business Day (at the address to which it is posted) after posting; | |
(b) | sent by facsimile to the facsimile number of the addressee notified by the addressee in which case if sent by facsimile before 5pm on a Business Day at the place of receipt it must be treated as given to and received by the party to which it is addressed on the day it is sent and otherwise on the next Business Day at the place of receipt; | |
(c) | sent by email to the email address of the addressee if sent by before 5pm on a Business Day at the place of receipt it must be treated as given to and received by the party to which it is addressed on the day it is sent and otherwise on the next Business Day at the place of receipt; or |
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(d) | delivered at the address of the addressee set out in this deed or subsequently notified, in which case if delivered before 5pm on a Business Day at the place of delivery it must be treated as given to and received by the party to which it is addressed upon delivery, and otherwise on the next Business Day at the place of delivery. |
11.2 | Issuer’s address |
The Issuer’ address for service, facsimile number and electronic mail address are:
Name: | Moboom Limited | |
Address: | Level 4, 1 Howard Street, Perth WA 6000 | |
Fax: | +61 8 9481 0744 | |
Email address: | melvin@moboom.com |
12 | General |
12.1 | Entire understanding |
(a) | This deed: |
(i) | is the entire agreement and understanding between the parties on everything connected with the subject matter of this deed; and | |
(ii) | supersedes any prior agreement or understanding on anything connected with that subject matter. |
(b) | Each party has entered into this deed without relying on any information or advice given or statement made (whether negligently or not) by any other party or any person purporting to represent that party. |
12.2 | Severability |
If anything in this deed is unenforceable, illegal or void then it is severed and the rest of this deed remains in force.
12.3 | Variation |
An amendment or variation to this deed is not effective unless it is in writing and signed by all of the parties.
12.4 | Assignment |
A party may not assign or otherwise deal with this deed except with the prior written consent of every other party. A party is not required to give consent or to justify the withholding of consent.
12.5 | Further assurance |
Each party must promptly at its own cost do all things (including executing and if necessary delivering all documents) necessary or desirable to give full effect to this deed.
12.6 | Waiver |
(a) | A party’s failure or delay to exercise a power or right does not operate as a waiver of that power or right. |
(b) | The exercise of a power or right does not preclude either its exercise in the future or the exercise of any other power or right. | |
(c) | A waiver is not effective unless it is in writing. | |
(d) | Waiver of a power or right is effective only in respect of the specific instance to which it relates and for the specific purpose for which it is given. |
12.7 | Costs and outlays |
(a) | Each party must pay its own costs and outlays connected with the negotiation, preparation and execution of this deed. | |
(b) | The Issuer must pay all stamp duty payable in connection with this deed and the issue of the Notes. |
12.8 | Counterparts |
This deed may be executed in any number of counterparts. Each counterpart is an original but the counterparts together are one and the same deed.
12.9 | Governing law and jurisdiction |
The law of New South Wales governs this deed and the parties submit to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of New South Wales.
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Schedule 1 – Subscriber details and details of Notes
1 | Subscriber |
|
2 | Address for service of Notice | |
3 | Number of Notes | |
4 | Issue Price |
|
Page 10 |
Schedule 2– Note Certificate
Moboom
Limited ACN 136 737 767
(Issuer)
Notes Certificate
This is to certify that:
(Noteholder)
of:
is the registered holder of Notes in the Issuer, such Notes being constituted by, issued pursuant to, and subject to the benefit and obligations of the Convertible Note Deed dated made between, inter alia, the Issuer and the Noteholder (Convertible Note Deed).
Dated | 20 |
Noteholders are entitled to the benefit of, and are bound by, and are taken to have notice of, all the provisions of the Convertible Note Deed.
Executed by Moboom Limited ACN 136 737 767 in accordance with section 127 of the Corporations Act 2001:
|
||
*Director/*Company Secretary | Director | |
Name of *Director/*Company Secretary
(BLOCK LETTERS)
*please delete as appropriate |
Name of Director
(BLOCK LETTERS) |
Page 11 |
Schedule 3 – Issuer Conversion Notice
To: | The Directors |
(Noteholder)
Moboom Limited (Issuer) give notice of election to convert the Notes specified below:
The Issuer hereby advises that it shall redeem the Notes specified above and apply the Principal Sum in consideration for the issue and allotment to the Noteholder of the shares in Issuer to which the Noteholder is entitled upon conversion of Notes in accordance with the Convertible Note Deed dated made between, inter alia, the Issuer and Noteholder.
Dated | 20 |
Executed by Moboom Limited ACN 136 737 767 in accordance with section 127 of the Corporations Act 2001:
|
||
*Director/*Company Secretary | Director | |
Name of *Director/*Company Secretary
(BLOCK LETTERS)
*please delete as appropriate |
Name of Director
(BLOCK LETTERS) |
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Schedule 4 – Noteholder Conversion Notice
To: | The Directors |
Moboom Limited (Issuer)
I/We whose full name(s) and address(es) appear below give notice of election to convert the Notes specified below:
I/We request that the Issuer redeem the Notes specified above and apply the Principal Sum in consideration for the issue and allotment to me/us of the shares to which I am/we are entitled upon conversion of Notes in accordance with the Convertible Note Deed dated made between, inter alia, the Issuer and . I/We agree to accept the shares issued and allotted to me/us subject to the Constitution of the Issuer.
Dated | 20 |
|
||
*Director/*Company Secretary | Director | |
Name of *Director/*Company Secretary
(BLOCK LETTERS)
*please delete as appropriate |
Name of Director
(BLOCK LETTERS) |
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Schedule 5– Redemption Notice
To: | The Directors |
(Noteholder)
Moboom Limited (Issuer) give notice of election to redeem the Notes specified below:
The Issuer hereby advises that it shall redeem the Notes specified above and pay to the Noteholder the Early Redemption Amount in respect of each of the Notes referred to above in accordance with the Convertible Note Deed dated made between, inter alia, the Issuer and Noteholder.
Dated | 20 |
Executed by Moboom Limited ACN 136 737 767 in accordance with section 127 of the Corporations Act 2001:
|
||
*Director/*Company Secretary | Director | |
Name of *Director/*Company Secretary
(BLOCK LETTERS)
*please delete as appropriate |
Name of Director
(BLOCK LETTERS) |
Page 14 |
Executed as a deed
Executed by Moboom Limited ACN 136 737 767 in accordance with section 127 of the Corporations Act 2001:
|
||
*Director/*Company Secretary | Director | |
Name of *Director/*Company Secretary
(BLOCK LETTERS)
*please delete as appropriate |
Name of Director
(BLOCK LETTERS) |
Executed by ACN 156 208 285 in accordance with section 127 of the Corporations Act 2001:
|
||
*Director/*Company Secretary | Director | |
Name of *Director/*Company Secretary
(BLOCK LETTERS)
*please delete as appropriate |
Name of Director
(BLOCK LETTERS) |
Exhibit 10.2
LOCAFY
Limited
ACN 136 737 767
(Company)
INCENTIVE PERFORMANCE RIGHTS PLAN
Table of Contents
1. | DEFINITIONS AND INTERPRETATION | 1 | |
1.1 | Definitions | 1 | |
1.2 | Interpretation | 5 | |
2. | PurposE | 6 | |
3. | COMMENCEMENT AND TERM | 7 | |
4. | OFFER OF PERFORMANCE RIGHTS | 7 | |
4.1 | Offer | 7 | |
4.2 | Offer Document | 7 | |
4.3 | Personal Offer | 7 | |
4.4 | Nominee | 7 | |
4.5 | Minimum Contents of Offer Document | 8 | |
4.6 | Number of Performance Rights | 8 | |
4.7 | No Consideration | 8 | |
4.8 | Vesting Conditions | 8 | |
4.9 | Share Restriction Period | 8 | |
4.10 | Deferred Taxation | 8 | |
4.11 | Quotation of Performance Rights | 8 | |
4.12 | Limit on Offers | 9 | |
5. | ACCEPTANCE OF OFFER | 9 | |
5.1 | Acceptance of Offer | 9 | |
5.2 | Board’s right to reject | 9 | |
5.3 | Participant Agrees to be Bound | 9 | |
5.4 | Lapse of Offer | 9 | |
6. | GRANT OF PERFORMANCE RIGHTS | 10 | |
6.1 | Grant of Performance Rights | 10 | |
6.2 | Approvals | 10 | |
6.3 | Restrictions on Transfers, Dealings and Hedging | 10 | |
7. | VESTING AND EXERCISE of Performance Rights | 10 | |
7.1 | Vesting Conditions | 10 | |
7.2 | Vesting Condition Exceptions | 11 | |
7.3 | Exercise on Vesting | 11 | |
7.4 | One or Several Parcels | 11 | |
8. | issue/TRANSFER of shares OR CASH PAYMENT | 11 | |
8.1 | Issue/transfer of Shares | 11 | |
8.2 | Cash Payment Facility | 12 | |
8.3 | Blackout Period, Takeover Restrictions and Insider Trading | 12 | |
8.4 | Withholding | 12 | |
8.5 | Rights attaching to Shares | 12 | |
8.6 | Share ranking | 13 | |
8.7 | Quotation on ASX or NSX | 13 | |
8.8 | Sale of Shares | 13 | |
9. | Restriction on Dealing in Shares | 13 | |
9.1 | Restriction Period | 13 | |
9.2 | Waiver of Restriction Period | 14 | |
9.3 | No disposal of Restricted Shares | 14 | |
9.4 | ASX or NSX Imposed Escrow | 14 | |
9.5 | Enforcement of Restriction Period | 14 | |
9.6 | Lapse of Restriction Period | 14 |
i |
ii |
LOCAFY Limited
INCENTIVE PERFORMANCE RIGHTS PLAN
The Directors are empowered to operate the Locafy Limited Incentive Performance Rights Plan (Plan) on the following terms and in accordance with the Listing Rules (where applicable).
1. | DEFINITIONS AND INTERPRETATION |
1.1 | Definitions |
For the purposes of the Plan, the following words have the following meanings.
Application Form means the Application Form by which an Eligible Participant or Nominee (as applicable) applies for Performance Rights in response to an Offer for Performance Rights, in substantially the same form as set out in Schedule 2 or as otherwise approved by the Company from time to time.
ASIC means the Australian Securities and Investments Commission.
Associated Body Corporate means:
(a) | a related body corporate (as defined in the Corporations Act) of the Company; | |
(b) | a body corporate which has an entitlement to not less than 20% of the voting Shares of the Company; and | |
(c) | a body corporate in which the Company has an entitlement to not less than 20% of the voting shares. |
Blackout Period means a period when the Participant is prohibited from trading in the Company’s securities by the Company’s written policies.
Board means the board of Directors of the Company or committee appointed by the Board for the purposes of the Plan.
Business Day means those days other than a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday in the State and any other day which the Nasdaq shall declare and publish is not a business day.
Cash Payment means, in respect of a vested Performance Right, except as otherwise provided for in the Offer for that Performance Right, a cash amount equal to the current Market Value of a Share.
Cash Payment Facility has the meaning given to it in Rule 8.2.
Change of Control means:
(a) | a bona fide Takeover Bid is declared unconditional and the bidder has acquired a Relevant Interest in at least 50.1% of the Company’s issued Shares; | |
(b) | a court approves, under Section 411(4)(b) of the Corporations Act, a proposed compromise or arrangement for the purposes of, or in connection with, a scheme for the reconstruction of the Company or its amalgamation with any other company or companies; or |
1 |
(c) | in any other case, a person obtains Voting Power in the Company which the Board (which for the avoidance of doubt will comprise those Directors immediately prior to the person acquiring that Voting Power) determines, acting in good faith and in accordance with their fiduciary duties, is sufficient to control the composition of the Board |
Class Order means ASIC Class Order 14/1000 as amended or replaced.
Closing Date means the date on which an Offer is stated to close.
Company means Locafy Limited (ACN 136 737 767).
Constitution means the constitution of the Company from time to time.
Corporations Act means the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth).
Director means any person occupying the position of a director of any Group Company (including an alternate director or managing director appointed in accordance with the relevant constitution).
Dispose means, in relation to a Share or Performance Right:
(a) | sell, assign, buy-back, redeem, transfer, convey, grant an option over, grant or allow a Security Interest over; | |
(b) | enter into any swap arrangement, any derivative arrangements or other similar arrangement; or | |
(c) | otherwise directly or indirectly dispose of a legal, beneficial or economic interest in the Share or Performance Right, |
(and Disposal has a corresponding meaning).
Eligible Participant means:
(a) | a Director (whether executive or non-executive) of any Group Company; | |
(b) | a full or part time employee of any Group Company; | |
(c) | a casual employee or contractor of a Group Company (but, if the Class Order is being relied on, only to the extent permitted by the Class Order); or | |
(d) | a prospective participant, being a person to whom the Offer is made but who can only accept the Offer if an arrangement has been entered into that will result in the person becoming an Eligible Participant under Rules (a), (b) or (c) above, |
who is declared by the Board to be eligible to receive grants of Performance Rights under the Plan.
Expiry Date means, in respect of a Performance Right, the date on which the Performance Right lapses (if it has not already otherwise lapsed in accordance with the Plan).
Grant Date means, in relation to a Performance Right, the date on which the Performance Right is granted.
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Group means the Company and each other Associated Body Corporate.
Group Company means the Company or any Associated Body Corporate.
Holding Lock means a facility that prevents Shares from being deducted from or entered into a holding pursuant to a transfer or conversion.
Listing Rules means the listing rules of Nasdaq and any other rules of Nasdaq which apply while the Company is admitted to the Nasdaq, each rule as amended or replaced from time to time, except to the extent of any express written waiver by Nasdaq.
Market Value, in respect of a Share, means:
(a) | where the Company is not listed on Nasdaq, the more recent of: |
(i) | the most recent cash or cash equivalent price at which Shares were issued or sold for valuable consideration in a bona fide, arms’ length transaction (not being Shares issued under this Plan); and | |
(ii) | the market value of a Share as determined by the Company, acting reasonably, such valuation being no less than twelve (12) months old as at the date the Market Value is to be determined; or |
(b) | where the Company is listed on Nasdaq, the volume weighted average market price for Shares traded on Nasdaq over the 10 most recent trading days on which the Shares were traded prior to the day on which the Market Value is to be determined. |
Nasdaq means The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC.
Nominee means a nominee of an Eligible Participant that is one of the following:
(a) | an immediate family member of the Eligible Participant or (subject to Board approval) a trustee of an Eligible Participant’s family trust whose beneficiaries are limited to the Eligible Participant and/or the Eligible Participant’s immediate family members; | |
(b) | a company whose members comprise no persons other than the Eligible Participant or immediate family members of the participant; or | |
(c) | a corporate trustee of a self-managed superannuation fund (within the meaning of the Superannuation Industry (Supervision) Act 1993) where the Eligible Participant is a director of the trustee. |
Offer means an invitation to treat made to an Eligible Participant to be granted one or more Performance Rights under the Plan as set out in an Offer Document.
Offer Document means an offer document in substantially the same form as set out in Schedule 1 to this Plan, or such other form as approved by the Board from time to time consistent with the Corporations Act (and the Class Order to the extent it is being relied upon).
Participant means an Eligible Participant to whom Performance Rights have been granted under the Plan or, if Rule 4.4 applies, a Nominee of the Eligible Participant to whom Performance Rights have been granted under the Plan.
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Performance Right means a right to be issued or transferred into a Share (or paid a Cash Payment), upon and subject to the terms of these Rules and the terms of any applicable Offer.
Plan means the plan as set out in this document, subject to any amendments or additions made under Rule 14.
Redundancy means termination of the employment, office or engagement of a Relevant Person due to economic, technological, structural or other organisational change where:
(a) | no Group Company requires the duties and responsibilities carried out by the Relevant Person to be carried out by anyone; or | |
(b) | no Group Company requires the position held by the Relevant Person to be held by anyone. |
Relevant Interest has the meaning given in the Corporations Act.
Relevant Person means:
(a) | in respect of an Eligible Participant, that person; and | |
(b) | in respect of a Nominee of an Eligible Participant, that Eligible Participant. |
Restricted Shares means Shares issued on the exercise of a Performance Right granted under the Plan that the Board has determined are subject to a Restriction Period.
Restriction Period means the period during which a Share issued on the exercise of a Performance Right cannot be transferred or otherwise dealt with in accordance with Rule 9.
Retirement means where a Relevant Person intends to permanently cease all gainful employment in circumstances where the Relevant Person provides, in good faith, a written statutory declaration to the Board to that effect.
Round Lot has the meaning given to that term in the Listing Rules.
Rules means the rules of the Plan set out in this document.
Security Interest means an interest or power:
(a) | reserved in or over an interest in any asset including any retention of title; or | |
(b) | created or otherwise arising in or over any interest in any asset under a security agreement, a bill of sale, mortgage, charge, lien, pledge, trust or power, |
by way of, or having similar commercial effect to, security for the payment of a debt, any other monetary obligation or the performance of any other obligation, and includes, but is not limited to:
(c) | any agreement to grant or create any of the above; and | |
(d) | a security interest within the meaning of section 12 of the Personal Property Securities Act 2009 (Cth). |
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Severe Financial Hardship means that the Relevant Person is unable to provide themselves, their family or other dependents with basic necessities such as food, accommodation and clothing, including as a result of family tragedy, financial misfortune, serious illness, impacts of natural disaster and other serious or difficult circumstances.
Share means a fully paid ordinary share in the capital of the Company.
Shareholder means a holder of Shares.
Special Circumstances means:
(a) | a Relevant Person ceasing to be an Eligible Participant due to: |
(i) | death or Total or Permanent Disability of a Relevant Person; or | |
(ii) | Retirement or Redundancy of a Relevant Person; |
(b) | a Relevant Person suffering Severe Financial Hardship; | |
(c) | any other circumstance stated to constitute “Special Circumstances” in the terms of the relevant Offer made to and accepted by the Participant; or | |
(d) | any other circumstances determined by the Board at any time (whether before or after the Offer) and notified to the relevant Participant which circumstances may relate to the Participant, a class of Participant, including the Participant or particular circumstances or class of circumstances applying to the Participant. |
State means Western Australia.
Takeover Bid means a takeover bid (as defined in the Corporations Act) to acquire Shares.
Total and Permanent Disability means that the Relevant Person has, in the opinion of the Board, after considering such medical and other evidence as it sees fit, become incapacitated to such an extent as to render the Relevant Person unlikely ever to engage in any occupation with the Company or its Associated Bodies Corporate for which he or she is reasonably qualified by education, training or experience.
Vesting Condition means, in respect of a Performance Right, any condition set out in the Offer which must be satisfied (unless waived in accordance with the Plan) before that Performance Right can be exercised or any other restriction on exercise of that Performance Right specified in the Offer or in this Plan.
Voting Power has the meaning given to that term in Section 9 of the Corporations Act.
1.2 | Interpretation |
In this Plan unless the context otherwise requires:
(a) | headings are for convenience only and do not affect the interpretation of this Plan; |
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(b) | any reference in the Plan to any enactment of the Listing Rules, as applicable, includes a reference to that enactment or those Listing Rules as from time to time amended, consolidated, re-enacted or replaced; | |
(c) | the singular includes the plural and vice versa; | |
(d) | any words denoting one gender include the other gender; | |
(e) | where any word or phrase is given a definite meaning in this Plan, any part of speech or other grammatical form of that word or phrase has a corresponding meaning; | |
(f) | a reference to: |
(i) | a person includes a natural person, partnership, joint venture, government agency, association, corporation or other body corporate; | |
(ii) | a document includes all amendments or supplements to that document; | |
(iii) | a Rule is a reference to a Rule of this Plan; | |
(iv) | a law includes a constitutional provision, treaty, decree, convention, statute, regulation, ordinance, by-law, judgment, rule of common law or equity and is a reference to that law as amended, consolidated or replaced; | |
(v) | an agreement other than this Plan includes an undertaking, or legally enforceable arrangement or understanding, whether or not in writing; and | |
(vi) | a monetary amount is in Australian dollars; and |
(g) | when the day on which something must be done is not a Business Day, that thing must be done on the following Business Day. |
2. | PURPOSE |
The purpose of the Plan is to:
(a) | assist in the reward, retention and motivation of Eligible Participants; | |
(b) | link the reward of Eligible Participants to performance and the creation of Shareholder value; | |
(c) | align the interests of Eligible Participants more closely with the interests of Shareholders by providing an opportunity for Eligible Participants to receive Shares; | |
(d) | provide Eligible Participants with the opportunity to share in any future growth in value of the Company; and | |
(e) | provide greater incentive for Eligible Participants to focus on the Company’s longer term goals. |
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3. | COMMENCEMENT AND TERM |
(a) | This Plan will commence on the date determined by resolution of the Board and will continue until terminated by the Board. | |
(b) | The Board may terminate the Plan at any time by resolution. Termination shall not affect the rights or obligations of a Participant or the Company which have arisen under the Plan before the date of termination and the provisions of the Plan relating to a Participant’s Performance Rights shall survive termination of the Plan until fully satisfied and discharged. |
4. | OFFER OF PERFORMANCE RIGHTS |
4.1 | Offer |
(a) | The Board may, from time to time, in its absolute discretion, make a written invitation to any Eligible Participant (including an Eligible Participant who has previously received an Offer) to apply for Performance Rights, upon the terms set out in the Plan and upon such additional terms and conditions as the Board determines (Offer). | |
(b) | In exercising that discretion, the Board may have regard to the following (without limitation): |
(i) | the Eligible Participant’s length of service with the Group; | |
(ii) | the contribution made by the Eligible Participant to the Group; | |
(iii) | the potential contribution of the Eligible Participant to the Group; or | |
(iv) | any other matter the Board considers relevant. |
(c) | For the avoidance of doubt, nothing in this document obliges the Company at any time to make an Offer, or further Offer, to any Eligible Participant. |
4.2 | Offer Document |
An Offer must be made using an Offer Document.
4.3 | Personal Offer |
Subject to Rule 4.4, an Offer is personal and is not assignable.
4.4 | Nominee |
(a) | Upon receipt of an Offer, an Eligible Participant may, by notice in writing to the Board, nominate a Nominee in whose favour the Eligible Participant wishes to renounce the Offer. | |
(b) | The Board may, in its discretion, resolve not to allow a renunciation of an Offer in favour of a Nominee without giving any reason for that decision. |
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4.5 | Minimum Contents of Offer Document |
An Offer Document must advise the Eligible Participant of the following minimum information regarding the Performance Rights:
(a) | the maximum number of Performance Rights that the Eligible Participant may apply for, or the formula for determining the number of Performance Rights that may be applied for; | |
(b) | the maximum number of Shares that the Participant is entitled to be issued or transferred on the exercise of each Performance Right or the formula for determining the maximum number of Shares; | |
(c) | any applicable Vesting Conditions; | |
(d) | any Restriction Period applied by this Plan or that the Board has resolved to apply to Shares issued on exercise of the Performance Rights; | |
(e) | when Performance Rights will expire (Expiry Date); | |
(f) | the date by which an Offer must be accepted (Closing Date); and | |
(g) | any other information required by law or the Listing Rules or considered by the Board to be relevant to the Performance Rights or the Shares to be issued on the exercise of the Performance Rights. |
4.6 | Number of Performance Rights |
(a) | Subject to Rule 4.12, the number of Performance Rights to be offered to an Eligible Participant from time to time will be determined by the Board in its discretion and in accordance with applicable law and the Listing Rules. | |
(b) | Each Performance Right will entitle the holder to be issued or transferred one Share (or to be paid a Cash Payment in lieu of the issue or transfer of one Share) unless the Plan or an applicable Offer otherwise provides. |
4.7 | No Consideration |
Performance Rights granted under the Plan will be issued for nil cash consideration.
4.8 | Vesting Conditions |
A Performance Right may be made subject to Vesting Conditions as determined by the Board in its discretion and as specified in the Offer for the Performance Right.
4.9 | Share Restriction Period |
A Share issued on exercise of a Performance Right may be subject to a Restriction Period as determined in accordance with Rule 9 of this Plan.
4.10 | Deferred Taxation |
Subdivision 83A-C of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 applies to the Plan except to the extent an Offer provides otherwise.
4.11 | Quotation of Performance Rights |
Performance Rights will not be quoted on Nasdaq, except to the extent provided for by this Plan or unless the Offer provides otherwise.
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4.12 | Limit on Offers |
Where the Company has relied or intends relying on the Class Order to make an Offer, the Company must have reasonable grounds to believe, when making an Offer, that the number of Shares to be received on exercise of Performance Rights offered under an Offer, when aggregated with the number of Shares issued or that may be issued as a result of offers made in reliance on the Class Order at any time during the previous 3 year period under an employee incentive scheme covered by the Class Order or an ASIC exempt arrangement of a similar kind to an employee incentive scheme, will not exceed 5% of the total number of Shares on issue at the date of the Offer.
5. | ACCEPTANCE OF OFFER |
5.1 | Acceptance of Offer |
An Eligible Participant (or permitted Nominee) may accept an Offer in whole or in part, by signing and returning an Application Form to the Company no later than the Closing Date.
5.2 | Board’s right to reject |
(a) | The Board may accept or reject any Application Form in its absolute discretion. | |
(b) | Before accepting or rejecting the Application Form, the Board may require the applicant to provide any information that the Board requests concerning the person’s entitlement to lodge an Application Form under this Plan. | |
(c) | The Board must promptly notify an applicant if an Application Form has been rejected, in whole or in part. |
5.3 | Participant Agrees to be Bound |
(a) | An Eligible Participant, by submitting an Application Form, agrees to be bound by the terms and conditions of the Offer and the Application Form, the Plan and the Constitution of the Company, as amended from time to time. | |
(b) | If the Board resolves to allow a renunciation of an Offer in favour of a Nominee, the Eligible Participant will procure that the permitted Nominee accepts the Offer made to that Eligible Participant and that both the Eligible Participant and the Nominee agree to be bound by the terms and conditions of the Offer and Application Form, the Plan and the Constitution of the Company, as amended from time to time. |
5.4 | Lapse of Offer |
To the extent an Offer is not accepted in accordance with Rule 5.1, the Offer will lapse on the date following the Closing Date, unless the Board determines otherwise.
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6. | GRANT OF PERFORMANCE RIGHTS |
6.1 | Grant of Performance Rights |
(a) | Subject to Rule 6.2, once the Board has received and approved a duly signed and completed Application Form for Performance Rights, the Company must, provided the Eligible Participant to whom the Offer was made remains an Eligible Participant, promptly grant Performance Rights to the applicant, upon the terms set out in the Offer, the Application Form and the Plan and upon such additional terms and conditions as the Board determines. | |
(b) | The Company will, within a reasonable period after the Grant Date of the Performance Rights, issue the applicant with a certificate evidencing the grant of the Performance Rights. |
6.2 | Approvals |
The Company’s obligation to grant Performance Rights is conditional on:
(a) | the grant of the Performance Rights complying with all applicable legislation, the Listing Rules and the Constitution; and | |
(b) | all necessary approvals required under any applicable legislation and the Listing Rules being obtained prior to the grant of the Performance Rights. |
6.3 | Restrictions on Transfers, Dealings and Hedging |
(a) | Subject to the Listing Rules, as applicable, and except as otherwise provided for by an Offer, a Performance Right granted under the Plan is only transferable, assignable or able to be otherwise Disposed: |
(i) | in Special Circumstances with the consent of the Board (which may be withheld in its absolute discretion); or | |
(ii) | by force of law upon death to the Participant’s legal personal representative or upon bankruptcy to the Participant’s trustee in bankruptcy. |
(b) | A Participant must not enter into any arrangement for the purpose of hedging, or otherwise affecting their economic exposure, to their Performance Rights. | |
(c) | Where the Participant purports to transfer, assign, mortgage, charge or otherwise dispose or encumber a Performance Right, other than in accordance with Rule 6.3(a), or hedge a Performance Right contrary to Rule 6.3(b), the Performance Right immediately lapses. |
7. | VESTING AND EXERCISE of Performance Rights |
7.1 | Vesting Conditions |
(a) | Subject to Rules 7.2 and 7.3, a Performance Right granted under the Plan will not vest and be exercisable unless the Vesting Conditions (if any) attaching to that Performance Right have been satisfied, as determined by the Board acting reasonably, and the Board has notified the Participant of that fact. | |
(b) | The Board must notify a Participant in writing within 10 Business Days of becoming aware that any Vesting Condition attaching to a Performance Right has been satisfied. |
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7.2 | Vesting Condition Exceptions |
Notwithstanding Rule 7.1, the Board may in its absolute discretion except in respect of Rule 7.2(b), where (unless an Offer provides otherwise) Vesting Conditions are deemed to be automatically waived, by written notice to a Participant, resolve to waive any of the Vesting Conditions applying to Performance Rights due to:
(a) | Special Circumstances arising in relation to an Eligible Participant; | |
(b) | a Change of Control occurring; or | |
(c) | the Company passing a resolution for voluntary winding up, or an order is made for the compulsory winding up of the Company, |
in which case Rule 7.3 applies.
7.3 | Exercise on Vesting |
A Participant (or their personal legal representative where applicable) may, subject to the terms of this Plan and any Offer, exercise any vested Performance Right at any time after the Board notifies that the Performance Right has vested and before it lapses by providing the Company with:
(a) | the certificate for the Performance Rights or, if the certificate for the Performance Rights has been lost, mutilated or destroyed, a declaration to that effect, accompanied by an indemnity in favour of the Company against any loss, costs or expenses which might be incurred by the Company as a consequence of its relying on the declaration that the certificate has been lost, mutilated or destroyed; and | |
(b) | a notice in the form of Schedule 3 addressed to the Company and signed by the Participant stating that the Participant exercises the Performance Rights and specifying the number of Performance Rights which are exercised. |
7.4 | One or Several Parcels |
Performance Rights may be exercised in one or more parcels of any size, provided that the number of Shares issued or transferred upon exercise of the number of Performance Rights in any parcel is not less than a Round Lot.
8. | ISSUE/TRANSFER OF SHARES OR CASH PAYMENT |
8.1 | Issue/transfer of Shares |
If the items specified in Rule 7.3 are delivered in accordance with that Rule, and provided the Board has not determined that a Cash Payment applies, the Company will, subject to the Corporations Act, the Listing Rules, this Plan and any applicable Offer:
(a) | within 10 Business Days of satisfaction of Rule 7.3, issue or transfer to the Participant the Shares credited as being fully paid in respect of which the Performance Rights are exercised, together with any additional Shares an entitlement to which has arisen under Rule 12 in consequence of the exercise of the Performance Rights; |
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(b) | despatch a share certificate or enter the Shares in the Participant’s uncertificated holding, as the case may be, upon the terms set out in the Offer, the Application Form and the Plan and upon such additional terms and conditions as the Board determines; and | |
(c) | cancel the certificate delivered pursuant to Rule 7.3 and, if any Performance Rights which have not lapsed remain unexercised, deliver to the Participant a replacement certificate reflecting the number of those Performance Rights which remain unexercised. |
8.2 | Cash Payment Facility |
(a) | Subject to the Corporations Act, the Listing Rules, this Plan and the terms of any Offer, where all Vesting Conditions in respect of a Performance Right have been satisfied or waived, the Board may, in its absolute discretion, within 10 Business Days of receipt of a valid notice of exercise for vested Performance Right, in lieu of issuing or transferring a Share to the Participant on exercise of the Performance Right under Rule 8.1, pay the Participant or his or her personal representative (as the case may be) a Cash Payment for the Performance Right exercised (which may be nil if the Cash Payment is a negative amount). | |
(b) | A vested Performance Right automatically lapses upon payment of a Cash Payment in respect of the vested Performance Right. |
8.3 | Blackout Period, Takeover Restrictions and Insider Trading |
If the issue or transfer of Shares on exercise of a Performance Right would otherwise fall within a Blackout Period, or breach the insider trading or takeover provisions of the Corporations Act, or the Listing Rules, the Company may delay the issue of the Shares until 10 Business Days following the expiration, as applicable, of the Blackout Period or the day on which the insider trading or takeover provisions or the Listing Rules, no longer prevent the issue or transfer of the Shares.
8.4 | Withholding |
If a Participant is liable for tax, duties or other amounts in respect of their Performance Rights, and the Company is liable to make a payment to the appropriate authorities on account of that liability, unless the Participant and the Company agree otherwise, the Company must either deduct from any Cash Payment due, or issue to the Participant and arrange (as the Participant’s attorney) for a nominee to sell on Nasdaq, such number of Shares which would otherwise be issued and allocated to the Participant so that the net proceeds of sale (after allowing for reasonable sale costs) equal the payment the Company is required to pay to the appropriate authorities. The Company is entitled to apply such net sale costs to pay to the appropriate authorities, with any excess sale proceeds to be remitted to the Participant.
8.5 | Rights attaching to Shares |
A Participant will, from and including the issue date of Shares under this Plan, be the legal owner of the Shares issued in respect of them and will be entitled to dividends and to exercise voting rights attached to the Shares.
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8.6 | Share ranking |
All Shares issued under the Plan will rank equally in all respects with the Shares of the same class for the time being on issue except as regards any rights attaching to such Shares by reference to a record date prior to the date of their issue.
8.7 | Quotation on Nasdaq |
(a) | If Shares of the same class as those issued under the Plan are quoted on Nasdaq, the Company will, subject to the Listing Rules, as applicable, apply to Nasdaq, as the case may be, for those Shares to be quoted on Nasdaq within the later of 10 Business Days after: |
(i) | the date the Shares are issued; and | |
(ii) | the date any Restriction Period that applies to the Shares ends. |
(b) | The Company will not apply for quotation of any Performance Rights on Nasdaq. |
8.8 | Sale of Shares |
(a) | Subject to Rules 8.8(d) and 9 and the Company’s Constitution, there will be no transfer restrictions on Shares issued or transferred under the Plan unless the sale, transfer or disposal by the Participant of the Shares issued or transferred to them on exercise of the Performance Rights (or any interest in them) would require the preparation of a disclosure document (as that term is defined in the Corporations Act). | |
(b) | If a disclosure document is required, the Participant agrees to enter into such arrangements with the Company as the Board considers appropriate to prevent the sale, transfer or disposal of the relevant Shares in a manner that would require a disclosure document to be prepared. | |
(c) | The Company will issue, where required to enable Shares issued on exercise of Performance Rights to be freely tradeable on Nasdaq (subject to any Restriction Period), a cleansing statement under Section 708A(5) of the Corporations Act at the time Shares are issued. Where a cleansing statement is required, but cannot be issued, the Company will lodge a prospectus in relation to the Shares with ASIC which complies with the requirements of the Corporations Act and allows the Shares to be freely tradeable on Nasdaq (subject to any Restriction Period). | |
(d) | A Participant must not sell, transfer or dispose of any Shares issued to them on exercise of the Performance Rights (or any interest in them) in contravention of the Corporations Act, including the insider trading and on-sale provisions. |
9. | Restriction on Dealing in Shares |
9.1 | Restriction Period |
Subject to clause 9.4, the Board may, in its discretion, determine at any time up until exercise of Performance Rights, that a restriction period will apply to some or all of the Shares issued or transferred to a Participant on exercise of those Performance Rights (Restricted Shares), up to a maximum of seven (7) years from the Grant Date of the Performance Rights (Restriction Period).
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9.2 | Waiver of Restriction Period |
Subject to Rule 9.4, the Board may, in its sole discretion, having regard to the circumstances at the time, waive a Restriction Period determined pursuant to Rule 9.1.
9.3 | No disposal of Restricted Shares |
A Participant must not dispose of or otherwise deal with any Shares issued to them under the Plan while they are Restricted Shares.
9.4 | Escrow |
Shares are deemed to be subject to a Restriction Period to the extent necessary to comply with any escrow restrictions imposed.
9.5 | Enforcement of Restriction Period |
(a) | The Company may implement any procedure it considers appropriate to restrict a Participant from dealing with any Shares for as long as those Shares are subject to a Restriction Period. | |
(b) | The Participant agrees to: |
(i) | execute a restriction agreement in relation to the Restricted Shares reflecting any Restriction Period applying to the Restricted Shares under the Plan or any escrow imposed; | |
(ii) | if required, the Company lodging the share certificates for the Shares (where issuer sponsored) with a bank or recognised trustee to hold until the expiry of any Restriction Period applying to the Shares or until the Shares are otherwise released from restrictions (at which time the Company shall arrange for the share certificates to be provided to the Participant); and | |
(iii) | if required, the application of a Holding Lock over Shares until any Restriction Period applying to the Shares under the Plan has expired (at which time the Company shall arrange for the Holding Lock to be removed). |
9.6 | Lapse of Restriction Period |
When a Share ceases to be a Restricted Share, all restrictions on disposing of or otherwise dealing or purporting to deal with that Share provided in or under these Rules will cease.
10. | Lapse of Performance Rights |
10.1 | Lapsing of Performance Right |
A Performance Right will lapse upon the earlier to occur of:
(a) | an unauthorised dealing in, or hedging of, the Performance Right occurring, as governed by Rule 6.3(c); | |
(b) | a Vesting Condition in relation to the Performance Right is not satisfied by the due date, or becomes incapable of satisfaction, as determined by the Board acting reasonably, unless the Board exercises its discretion to waive the Vesting Condition and vest the Performance Right under Rule 7.2 (Vesting Condition Exceptions) or Rule 10.1(c)(ii) applies; |
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(c) | in respect of an unvested Performance Right only, a Relevant Person ceases to be an Eligible Participant, unless the Board: | |||
(i) | exercises its discretion to vest the Performance Right under Rule 7.2 (Vesting Condition Exceptions); or | |||
(ii) | in its absolute discretion, resolves to allow the unvested Performance Rights to remain unvested after the Relevant Person ceases to be an Eligible Participant; | |||
(d) | in respect of a vested Performance Right only: | |||
(i) | a Relevant Person ceases to be an Eligible Participant and the Board, in its absolute discretion, resolves that the Performance Right granted in respect of that Relevant Person must: | |||
(A) | be exercised within one (1) month (or such later date as the Board determines) of the date the Relevant Person ceases to be an Eligible Participant and the Performance Right is not exercised within that period; or; | |||
(B) | be cancelled by the Company in consideration for a Cash Payment to the Participant, and a Cash Payment is made in respect of the vested Performance Right; or | |||
(ii) | upon payment of a Cash Payment in respect of the vested Option under Rule 8.2; | |||
(e) | the Board deems that a Performance Right lapses due to fraud, dishonesty or other improper behaviour of the holder/Eligible Participant under Rule 10.2 (Fraud and Related Matters); | |||
(f) | in respect of an unvested Performance Right, the Company undergoes a Change of Control or a winding up resolution or order is made, and the Performance Right does not vest in accordance with Rule 7.2 (Vesting Condition Exceptions); and | |||
(g) | the Expiry Date of the Performance Right. |
10.2 | Fraud and Related Matters | |
Notwithstanding any other provision of this document, where a Relevant Person: | ||
(a) | in the opinion of the Board, acts fraudulently or dishonestly, is grossly negligent, demonstrates serious and wilful misconduct, or causes a material adverse effect on the reputation of the Company; | |
(b) | has his or her employment or office terminated due to serious or wilful misconduct or otherwise for cause without notice; | |
(c) | deals with or disposes of Performance Rights or Restricted Shares contrary to the provisions of this Plan or any applicable Offer; or | |
(d) | becomes ineligible to hold his or her office due to Part 2D.6 of the Corporations Act, | |
the Board may, by written notice to the Participant, deem any unvested, or vested but unexercised, Performance Rights of the Participant to have lapsed, or require the Participant to pay back any Cash Payment paid to the Participant, which is deemed to be a debt due and payable by the Participant on demand, or require the Participant to do all such things necessary to cancel any Shares issued on exercise of the Participant’s Performance Rights. |
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11. | ExCHANGE DUE TO CHANGE OF CONTROL |
If a company (Acquiring Company) obtains control of the Company as a result of a Change of Control and both the Company, the Acquiring Company and the Participant agree, a Participant may, in respect of any vested Performance Rights that are exercised, be provided with shares of the Acquiring Company, or its parent, in lieu of Shares, on substantially the same terms and subject to substantially the same conditions as the Shares, but with appropriate adjustments to the number and kind of shares subject to the Performance Rights. |
12. | PArticipation rights AND reORGANISATION | ||
12.1 | Participation Rights | ||
(a) | There are no participation rights or entitlements inherent in the Performance Rights and Participants will not be entitled to participate in new issues of capital offered to Shareholders during the currency of the Performance Rights without exercising the Performance Right. | ||
(b) | A Performance Right does not confer the right to a change in the number of underlying Shares over which the Performance Right can be exercised. | ||
(c) | A Participant who is not a Shareholder is not entitled to: | ||
(i) | notice of, or to vote or attend at, a meeting of the Shareholders of the Company; or | ||
(ii) | receive any dividends declared by the Company, | ||
unless and until any Performance Right is exercised and the Participant holds Shares that provide the right to notice and dividends. | |||
12.2 | Adjustment for Reorganisation | ||
If, at any time, the issued capital of the Company is reorganised (including consolidation, subdivision, reduction or return), all rights of a Participant are to be changed in a manner consistent with the Corporations Act and the Listing Rules (if applicable) at the time of the reorganisation. | |||
12.3 | Notice of Adjustments | ||
Whenever the number of Shares to be issued on the exercise of a Performance Right is adjusted pursuant to these Rules, the Company will give notice of the adjustment to the Participant and Nasdaq, as applicable, together with calculations on which the adjustment is based. | |||
12.4 | Cumulative Adjustments | ||
Effect will be given to Rule 12.3 in such manner that the effect of the successive applications of them is cumulative, with the intention being that the adjustments they progressively effect will reflect previous adjustments. |
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13. | OVERRIDING RESTRICTIONS ON ISSUE AND EXERCISE | |
Notwithstanding the Rules or the terms of any Performance Right, no Performance Right may be offered, granted or exercised and no Share may be issued under the Plan if to do so: | ||
(a) | would contravene the Corporations Act, the Listing Rules or any other applicable law; or | |
(b) | would contravene the local laws or customs of an Eligible Participant’s country of residence or in the opinion of the Board would require actions to comply with those local laws or customs which are, in the absolute discretion of the Board, impractical. |
14. | amendments | |
14.1 | Power to amend Plan | |
Subject to Rule 14.2, the Corporations Act and the Listing Rules: | ||
(a) | the Board may, at any time, by resolution amend or add to all or any of the provisions of the Plan, an Offer or the terms or conditions of any Performance Right granted under the Plan; and | |
(b) | any amendment may be given such retrospective effect as is specified in the written instrument or resolution by which the amendment is made. | |
14.2 | Adjustment to Performance Right Terms | |
No adjustment or variation of the terms of a Performance Right will be made without the consent of the Participant who holds the relevant Performance Right if such adjustment or variation would have a materially prejudicial effect upon the Participant (in respect of his or her outstanding Performance Rights), other than an adjustment or variation introduced primarily: | ||
(a) | for the purpose of complying with or conforming to present or future State, Territory or Commonwealth legislation governing or regulating the maintenance or operation of the Plan or like plans; | |
(b) | to correct any manifest error or mistake; | |
(c) | to enable a member of the Group to comply with the Corporations Act, the Listing Rules, applicable foreign law, or a requirement, policy or practice of the ASIC or other foreign or Australian regulatory body; or | |
(d) | to take into consideration possible adverse taxation implications in respect of the Plan, including changes to applicable taxation legislation or the interpretation of that legislation by a court of competent jurisdiction or any rulings from taxation authorities administering such legislation. |
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14.3 | Notice of amendment | ||
As soon as reasonably practicable after making any amendment under Rule 14.1, the Board will give notice in writing of that amendment to any Participant affected by the amendment. | |||
15. | Trust | ||
(a) | The Board may, at any time, establish a trust for the sole purpose of acquiring and holding Shares in respect of which a Participant may exercise, or has exercised, vested Performance Rights, including for the purpose of enforcing the disposal restrictions and appoint a trustee to act as trustee of the trust. | ||
(b) | The trustee will hold the Shares as trustee for and on behalf of a Participant as beneficial owner upon the terms of the trust. | ||
(c) | The Board may at any time amend all or any of the provisions of this Plan to effect the establishment of a trust and the appointment of a trustee as detailed in this Rule. | ||
(d) | Securities held by or for this Plan must only be voted on a resolution under the Listing Rules if and to the extent that: | ||
(i) | they are held for the benefit of a nominated Participant; | ||
(ii) | the nominated Participant is not excluded from voting on the resolution under the Listing Rules; and | ||
(iii) | the nominated Participant has directed how the securities are to be voted. |
16. | miscellaneous | ||
16.1 | Rights and obligations of Participant | ||
(a) | The rights and obligations of an Eligible Participant under the terms of their office, employment or contract with a Group Company are not affected by their participating in the Plan. This Plan will not form part of, and is not incorporated into, any contract of any Eligible Participant (whether or not they are an employee of a Group Company). | ||
(b) | No Participant will have any rights to compensation or damages in consequence of: | ||
(i) | the termination, for any reason, of the office, employment or other contract with a Group Company of the Participant (or, where the Participant is a Nominee of the Eligible Participant, that Eligible Participant) where those rights arise, or may arise, as a result of the Participant ceasing to have rights under the Plan as a result of such termination; or | ||
(ii) | the lapsing of Performance Rights in accordance with this Plan. |
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(c) | Nothing in this Plan, participation in the Plan or the terms of any Performance Right: | ||
(i) | affects the rights of any Group Company to terminate the employment, engagement or office of an Eligible Participant or a Participant (as the case may be); | ||
(ii) | affects the rights and obligations of any Eligible Participant or Participant under the terms of their employment, engagement or office with any Group Company; | ||
(iii) | confers any legal or equitable right on an Eligible Participant or a Participant whatsoever to take action against any Group Company in respect of their employment, engagement or office; | ||
(iv) | confers on an Eligible Participant or a Participant any rights to compensation or damages in consequence of the termination of their employment, engagement or office by any Group Company for any reason whatsoever including ceasing to have rights under the Plan as a result of such termination; or | ||
(v) | confers any responsibility or liability on any Group Company or its directors, officers, employees, representatives or agents in respect of any taxation liabilities of the Eligible Participant or Participant. | ||
(d) | If a Vesting Condition attached to a Performance Right requires a Participant to remain an employee of a Group Company, then the Participant will be treated as having ceased to be an employee of a Group Company at such time the Participant’s employer ceases to be a Group Company. | ||
(e) | A Participant who is granted an approved leave of absence and who exercises their right to return to work under any applicable award, enterprise agreement, other agreement, statute or regulation before the exercise of a Performance Right under the Plan will be treated for those purposes as not having ceased to be such an employee. | ||
16.2 | Power of the Board | ||
(a) | The Plan is administered by the Board which has power to: | ||
(i) | determine appropriate procedures for administration of the Plan consistent with this Plan; and | ||
(ii) | delegate to any one or more persons, for such period and on such conditions as it may determine, the exercise of any of its powers or discretions arising under the Plan. | ||
(b) | Except as otherwise expressly provided in this Plan, the Board has absolute and unfettered discretion to act, or refrain from acting, under or in connection with the Plan or any Performance Rights under the Plan and in the exercise of any power or discretion under the Plan. | ||
16.3 | Dispute or disagreement | ||
In the event of any dispute or disagreement as to the interpretation of the Plan, or as to any question or right arising from or related to the Plan or to any Performance Rights granted under it, the decision of the Board is final and binding. |
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16.4 | ASIC relief | |
(a) | Notwithstanding any other provisions of the Plan, every covenant or other provisions set out in an exemption or modification granted from time to time by ASIC in respect of the Plan pursuant to its power to exempt and modify the Corporations Act and required to be included in the Plan in order for that exemption or modification to have full effect, is deemed to be contained in the Plan. | |
(b) | To the extent that any covenant or other provision deemed by this Rule to be contained in the Plan is inconsistent with any other provision in the Plan, the deemed covenant or other provision shall prevail. | |
16.5 | Non-residents of Australia | |
(a) | The Board may adopt additional rules of the Plan applicable in any jurisdiction outside Australia under which rights offered under the Plan may be subject to additional or modified terms, having regard to any securities, exchange control or taxation laws or regulations or similar factors which may apply to the Participant or to any Group Company in relation to the rights. Any additional rule must conform to the basic principles of the Plan. | |
(b) | When a Performance Right is granted under the Plan to a person who is not a resident of Australia the provisions of the Plan apply subject to such alterations or additions as the Board determines having regard to any securities, exchange control or taxation laws or regulation or similar factors which may apply to the Participant or to any Group Company in relation to the Performance Right. |
16.6 | Communication | ||
(a) | Any notice or other communication under or in connection with the Plan may be given by personal delivery or by sending the same by post or facsimile or other electronic means: | ||
(i) | in the case of a company, to its registered office; | ||
(ii) | in the case of an individual, to the individual’s last notified address; or | ||
(iii) | where a Participant is a Director or employee of a Group Company, either to the Participant’s last known address or to the address of the place of business at which the Participant performs the whole or substantially the whole of the duties of the Participant’s office of employment. | ||
(b) | Where a notice or other communication is given by post, it is deemed to have been received 48 hours after it was put into the post properly addressed and stamped. Where a notice or other communication is given by facsimile, it is deemed to have been received on completion of transmission. Where a notice is given by electronic transmission, the notice is taken to have been received at the time the electronic transmission is sent unless the sender receives a message that the electronic message has not been delivered. | ||
(c) | Despite Rule 16.6(b) if any communication is received, or taken to be received under Rule 16.6(b), after 5.00pm in the place of receipt or on a non-Business Day, it is taken to be received at 9.00am on the next Business Day and take effect from that time unless a later time is specified. |
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16.11 | Error in Allocation | ||
If any Performance Rights are provided under this Plan in error or by mistake to a person (Mistaken Recipient) who is not the intended recipient, the Mistaken Recipient shall have no right or interest, and shall be taken never to have had any right or interest, in those Performance Rights and those Performance Rights will immediately lapse. |
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Schedule 1 – performance rights plan – OFFER DOCUMENT
[insert date]
[Name and address of Eligible Participant]
Dear [insert]
LOCAFY LIMITED – PERFORMANCE RIGHTS PLAN
The board of directors of Locafy Limited (ACN 136 737 767) (Company) is pleased to make an invitation to you to apply for Performance Rights under its Performance Rights Plan (Plan) on the terms of this offer letter (Offer). Terms used in this Offer have the same meaning as used in the Plan.
The Company is pleased to advise you of the following: | ||
(a) | this Offer is subject to the terms and conditions of the Plan, a copy of which is attached to this Offer; | |
(b) | subject to the following, the Company is willing to offer you the following Performance Rights under the Plan with the following Expiry Date and subject to the following Vesting Conditions: | |
(i) | [insert details of Performance Rights, Expiry Date and Vesting Conditions]; | |
(c) | on exercise of your vested Performance Right you (or your Nominee) will be entitled to receive, at the absolute discretion of the Board, either: | |
(ii) | Shares; or | |
(iii) | a Cash Payment; | |
(d) | the grant of the Performance Rights is subject to the terms of the Plan, including the Company obtaining any necessary Shareholder approvals and you remaining an Eligible Participant at the time the Performance Rights are to be granted and (subject to a number of exceptions), exercised and converted into Shares; | |
(e) | the Performance Rights under the Plan will be granted to you for [nil] cash consideration; | |
(f) | Shares issued on exercise of the Performance Rights [will be subject to the following Restriction Periods/will not be subject to any Restriction Periods]: | |
(i) | [insert]; | |
(ii) | [insert]; and | |
(iii) | [insert]. | |
(g) | this Offer remains open for acceptance by you until 5pm (in the State) on [insert date] (Closing Date) at which time the Offer will close and lapse; |
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(h) | you may apply for the Performance Right by filling out Application Form below and returning to the Company Secretary before the Closing Date. In accordance with Rule 5.2 of the Plan, the Board may, in its absolute discretion, reject your Application Form and not grant the Performance Rights; |
(i) | you may apply for the Performance Right to be registered in your name, or in a Nominee’s name. Examples of acceptable Nominees are set out in the Plan. Please discuss this with the Company Secretary if you have any queries; |
(j) | unless the Plan provides otherwise, the Shares to which you are entitled on exercise of the Performance Right will be issued to you as soon as practicable after the exercise date as will any Cash Payment; |
(k) | Performance Rights are only transferrable in special circumstances as set out in the Plan; |
(l) | If listed, the Company will apply for the Shares to be quoted in accordance with the Listing Rules within 10 Business Days of the later of the date the Shares are issued and the date any Restriction Period that applies to the Shares ends. The Shares may be subject to restrictions on disposal in accordance with the Plan in which case the Company will impose a Holding Lock with the Company’s share registry and the Shares will not be able to be traded until the Holding Lock is lifted by the Company; |
(m) | the Company will issue, where required to enable Shares issued on exercise of Performance Rights to be freely tradeable on Nasdaq (subject to any Restriction Period), a cleansing statement under Section 708A(5) of the Corporations Act at the time Shares are issued. Where a cleansing statement is required, but cannot be issued, the Company will have a prospectus available in relation to the Shares which complies with the requirements of the Corporations Act; |
(n) | the Company undertakes that, during the period commencing on the date of this Offer and expiring on the Closing Date, it will, within a reasonable period of you so requesting, make available to you the current market price of the underlying Shares to which the Performance Rights relate; |
(o) | the current market price of the underlying Shares to which the Performance Rights relate can be found on the Company’s website at www.locafy.com; |
(p) | Subdivision 83A-C of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997¸ which enables tax deferral on Performance Rights, [will/will not] apply (subject to the conditions in that Act) to Performance Rights granted to you under this Offer; and |
(q) | you must not sell, transfer or dispose of any Shares issued to you on the exercise of Performance Rights where to do so would contravene the insider trading or on-sale provisions of the Corporations Act. |
You should be aware that the business, assets and operations of the Company are subject to certain risk factors that have the potential to influence the operating and financial performance of the Company in the future. These risks can impact on the value of an investment in the securities of the Company, including Performance Rights offered under the Plan, and Shares issued on exercise of the Performance Rights.
Any advice given by the Company in relation to the Performance Rights, or underlying Shares offered under the Plan, does not take into account your objectives, financial situation and needs (including financial or taxation issues).
This Offer and all other documents provided to you at the time of this Offer contain general advice only and you should consider obtaining your own financial product advice from an independent person who is licensed by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission to give such advice. You are advised to seek independent professional advice regarding the Australian tax consequences of the grant of Performance Rights and the acquiring and disposing of any Shares that are issued on exercise of Performance Rights under the Plan according to your own particular circumstances.
Please confirm your (or your Nominee’s) acceptance of the Offer set out in this letter by completing the Application Form below and returning it to the Company by no later than [insert].
Yours faithfully
[insert name]
Director
For and on behalf of
Locafy Limited
Encl.
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Schedule 2 – performance rights plan Application Form
Locafy Limited (ACN 136 737 767) (Company) has invited you (or your Nominee), by an invitation dated [insert] (Offer), to apply for the grant under its Performance Rights Plan (Plan) of certain Performance Rights.
The entity below hereby applies for the Performance Rights under the terms of the Offer, this Application Form and the Plan.
Full Name: | |||
ACN (if applicable) | |||
Address: | |||
Ph: | Email: | ||
Tax file number(s) or exemption: |
In applying for the grant of Performance Rights under the Offer, the entity below acknowledges and agrees: | |
(a) | that, in accordance with Rule 5.2 of the Plan, the Board may, in its absolute discretion, reject this Application Form and not grant the Performance Rights; |
(b) | to be entered on the register of performance rights holders of the Company as the holder of the Performance Rights applied for, and any Shares issued on the exercise of the Performance Rights; |
(c) | to be bound by the terms of the Constitution of the Company; |
(d) | to be bound by the terms and conditions of the Plan; |
(e) | to be bound by the terms and conditions of the Offer; |
(f) | a copy of the full terms of the Plan has been provided to it; |
(g) | that, by completing this Application Form, it agrees to appoint the Company Secretary as its attorney to complete and execute any documents and do all acts on its behalf which may be convenient or necessary for the purpose of giving effect to the provisions of the Plan and the Offer; |
(h) | that any tax liability arising from the Company accepting its application for Performance Rights under the Plan or the issue or transfer of Shares or the making of a Cash Payment on exercise of the Performance Rights is its responsibility and not that of the Company; and |
(i) | to the extent required by the terms of the Plan and the Listing Rules, to enter into any necessary restriction agreement in relation to any Shares provided on the exercise of the Performance Rights and to the placing of a Holding Lock on those Shares. |
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Where an individual
SIGNED by [INSERT NAME OF | ) | |
INDIVIDUAL] in the presence of: | ) | |
Signature of witness | Signature | |
Name of witness |
Where an Australian company
EXECUTED by [INSERT COMPANY NAME] | ) | |
ACN [INSERT ACN] | ) | |
in accordance with section 127 of the | ) | |
Corporations Act 2001 (Cth): | ) | |
Signature of director | Signature of director/company secretary* | |
Name of director | Name of director/company secretary* |
*please delete as applicable
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SCHEDULE 3 – Notice of exercise of PERFORMANCE RIGHTS
To: | The Directors |
Locafy Limited |
I/We _______________________________ of _______________________________________ _________________________________ being registered holder(s) of performance rights as set out on the certificate annexed to this notice, hereby exercise _________________ of the abovementioned performance rights.
I/ We authorise and direct the Company, except to the extent a Cash Payment is made, to register me/us as the holder(s) of the Shares to be allotted to me/us and I/we agree to accept such Shares subject to the provisions of the Constitution of the Company.
Dated: | ||
Signature of Holder(s) |
Note:
1. | Each holder must sign. |
2. | An application by a company must be executed in accordance with section 127 of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) and, if signing for a company as a sole director/secretary – ensure “sole director/secretary” is written beside the signature. |
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Exhibit 10.3
Form of Deed of indemnity, insurance and access
Locafy Limited
Company
______
Director
Contents
1. | Definitions and interpretation | 1 | |
1.1 | Definitions | 1 | |
1.2 | Business Days | 4 | |
1.3 | Interpretation | 4 | |
2. | Indemnity | 4 | |
2.1 | Indemnity against liabilities incurred | 4 | |
2.2 | Indemnity not to extend to certain matters | 5 | |
2.3 | Payments under the Indemnity | 5 | |
2.4 | No deduction | 5 | |
2.5 | Taxation | 5 | |
2.6 | Repayment | 5 | |
2.7 | Time limit | 6 | |
2.8 | Effect of termination of Indemnity | 6 | |
2.9 | Operation of Indemnity | 6 | |
2.10 | Rights against third parties | 6 | |
2.11 | Subrogation rights | 6 | |
3. | Director’s costs for advice | 7 | |
3.1 | Advance by Company | 7 | |
3.2 | Treatment of advances | 7 | |
3.3 | Costs of other independent professional advice | 7 | |
4. | Conduct of claims | 7 | |
4.1 | Notification | 7 | |
4.2 | Director’s obligations in relation to Indemnified Proceedings | 7 | |
4.3 | Company’s right to assume conduct of claim | 8 | |
4.4 | Director’s obligations where Company assumes conduct | 8 | |
4.5 | Company’s obligations where Company assumes conduct | 8 | |
4.6 | Counsel’s Opinion on settlement | 8 | |
4.7 | Conflict of interest | 9 | |
4.8 | Counsel’s Opinion on conflict of interest | 9 | |
5. | Insurance Cover | 9 | |
5.1 | Insurance Cover during Relevant Period | 9 | |
5.2 | Insurance premium | 9 | |
5.3 | Company’s other obligations | 9 | |
5.4 | Director’s obligations | 10 | |
5.5 | Disclosure | 10 | |
6. | Corporate Records | 10 | |
6.1 | Maintenance | 10 | |
6.2 | Ownership | 11 | |
6.3 | Return or destruction | 11 | |
6.4 | Requests for access to Corporate Records | 11 | |
6.5 | Response to Access Request | 11 | |
6.6 | Counsel’s Opinion in relation to an Access Request | 12 | |
6.7 | Manner of access to Corporate Records | 12 | |
6.8 | Confidential Information | 12 | |
6.9 | Permitted disclosure | 12 | |
7. | Privileged documents | 13 | |
7.1 | Joint or multiple privilege | 13 | |
7.2 | Withholding consent | 13 | |
7.3 | Access for defence of Proceedings | 13 | |
7.4 | Retainers | 13 | |
8. | Counsel’s Opinion | 13 | |
8.1 | Appointment of Counsel | 13 | |
8.2 | Counsel’s Opinion | 14 | |
8.3 | Further acts and documents | 14 | |
9. | GST | 14 | |
9.1 | Interpretation | 14 | |
9.2 | Reimbursements and similar payments | 14 | |
9.3 | GST payable | 14 | |
9.4 | Variation | 14 | |
10. | Notices | 15 | |
10.1 | How notice to be given | 15 | |
10.2 | When notice taken to be received | 15 | |
11. | General | 16 | |
11.1 | Amendments | 16 | |
11.2 | Assignment | 16 | |
11.3 | Consents | 16 | |
11.4 | Costs | 16 | |
11.5 | Counterparts | 16 | |
11.6 | Entire agreement | 16 | |
11.7 | Severance | 16 | |
11.8 | Stamp duties | 16 | |
11.9 | Waivers | 16 | |
12. | Governing law and jurisdiction | 16 |
Deed of indemnity, insurance and access | i |
Director’s deed
Date | Locafy Limited ACN 136 737 767 of 246 Churchill Avenue, Subiaco WA 6008 (Company) |
Parties | [Name] [Address] (Director) |
Background
A. | The Director is an Officer of the Company and may from time to time be an Officer of other Group Entities. |
B. | The Company has agreed to indemnify the Director in respect of certain liabilities incurred by the Director while acting as an Officer of any Group Entity. |
C. | The Company has agreed to arrange insurance for the benefit of the Director against certain risks to which the Director is exposed as an Officer of any Group Entity. |
D. | The Company and the Director have agreed to regulate in certain respects the right of access the Director has to Corporate Records and the Company further wishes to clarify the Director’s duty to preserve the confidentiality of Confidential Information. |
Operative provisions
1. | Definitions and interpretation |
1.1 | Definitions |
In this deed:
Abandoned means, in relation to Indemnified Proceedings, if the claimant does not serve legal proceedings on the Director within 24 months after the date on which the Director gives notice to the Company under clause 4.1.
Access Request has the meaning given to it in clause 6.4.
Board means, in relation to a Group Entity, the board of directors of that Group Entity from time to time.
Business Day means a day that is not a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday and on which banks are open for business generally in Perth, Western Australia.
Confidential Information means any information contained in any Corporate Records of any Group Entity which is confidential to any Group Entity or to a third party, other than Public Information.
Corporate Records means, in relation to a Group Entity:
(a) | all books and records in any form that the Group Entity is required by law to keep; | |
(b) | all documents which that Group Entity circulates or makes available to any director or any other Officer of that Group Entity for the purposes of meetings of the Board or of any committee of the Board of that Group Entity; and |
(c) | all documents in the possession, custody or control of that Group Entity which are referred to in any of the books, records or documents described in paragraphs (a) and (b), |
during the period in which the Director is an Officer of that Group Entity.
Corporations Act means the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth).
Counterclaim has the meaning given in clause 4.4(c).
Counsel has the meaning given in clause 8.1.
Court has the meaning given in section 58AA of the Corporations Act.
Group Entities means the Company and its Subsidiaries.
GST has the meaning given in the GST Act.
GST Act means the A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) Act 1999 (Cth).
Indemnified Proceedings has the meaning given in clause 4.1.
Indemnity has the meaning given in clause 2.1.
Instructing Party has the meaning given in clause 8.1.
Insurance Cover means a contract insuring the Director against:
(a) | liabilities incurred by the Director as an Officer of a Group Entity, other than liabilities which, if insured under the contract, would result in the Company being prohibited by law from paying any part of the insurance premium for the contract unless the Director pays the Prohibited Premium in accordance with clause 5.2; and | |
(b) | liabilities for Legal Costs. |
Legal Costs means all reasonable legal costs and disbursements incurred by the Director as an Officer of a Group Entity or as a consequence of having been an Officer of a Group Entity:
(a) | in obtaining advice or preparing for, responding to, defending or resisting, or otherwise in connection with, any Proceedings; or | |
(b) | in challenging any rejection of a Director’s claim by the provider of the Company’s Insurance Cover. |
Officer means an officer of a company as defined in section 9 of the Corporations Act.
Opinion has the meaning given in clause 8.1.
Privileged Document means all or part of any Corporate Record to which legal professional privilege attaches.
Proceedings means any:
(a) | litigation, arbitration, expert determination or other procedure for resolution of civil disputes in any court, tribunal or other forum; and | |
(b) | any inquiry, investigation or proceedings by any Regulatory Authority, |
involving or relating to the Director personally or a Group Entity or its affairs.
Deed of indemnity, insurance and access | 2 |
Prohibited Premium has the meaning given in clause 5.2.
Public Information means any information contained in the Corporate Records of any Group Entity that is in or comes into the public domain, other than as a result of a breach of this deed or a breach by any person of an obligation of confidence.
Regulatory Authority means:
(a) | any government or local authority and any department, minister or agency of any government; and | |
(b) | any other authority, agency, commission or similar entity having powers or jurisdiction under any law or regulation or the listing rules of any recognised stock or securities exchange. |
Relevant Company means:
(a) | the Company; | |
(b) | any Subsidiary in respect of which the Director was appointed as an Officer before, at or after the date of this deed; and | |
(c) | any other company in respect of which the Director was appointed as an Officer before, at or after the date of this deed at the nomination of any company referred to in paragraph (a) or (b). |
Relevant Period means the period starting on the date the Director is appointed as an Officer of a Group Entity and ending on the later of:
(a) | the date which is 7 years after the date on which the Director ceases to hold any office as an Officer of a Group Entity; and | |
(b) | if any Indemnified Proceedings are outstanding on the date referred to in paragraph (a), the date that all those Indemnified Proceedings become either Abandoned or Resolved. |
Resolved means, in relation to Indemnified Proceedings:
(a) | the claimant withdrawing the Indemnified Proceedings; | |
(b) | all parties to the Indemnified Proceedings agreeing in writing on a settlement of the Indemnified Proceedings; | |
(c) | a court of competent jurisdiction, arbitrator or expert appointed for the purposes of an expert determination, making a final award of relief, or a determination that no relief should be granted, in respect of the Indemnified Proceedings; or | |
(d) | the completion by any Regulatory Authority of an inquiry. |
Retirement Date means, in relation to a Group Entity, the date on which the Director ceases to hold office as Officer of that Group Entity (provided that for the purposes of this definition the Director is taken not to cease to hold office as a director of the Group Entity where the Director retires by rotation at a general meeting of the Group Entity held in accordance with the Group Entity’s constitution or the listing rules of ASX Limited and is re-elected as a director of the Group Entity at that general meeting or any adjournment of it).
Subsidiary has the meaning given in section 9 of the Corporations Act and refers to any corporation which before, at or after the date of this deed was, is or becomes a subsidiary of the Company.
Deed of indemnity, insurance and access | 3 |
Tax means any tax, levy, excise, duty, charge, surcharge, contribution, withholding tax, impost or withholding obligation of whatever nature, whether direct or indirect, by whatever method collected or recovered, together with any fees, penalties, fines, interest or statutory charges.
1.2 | Business Days |
If the day on which any act is to be done under this deed is a day other than a Business Day, the act must be done on the immediately preceding Business Day except where this deed expressly specifies otherwise.
1.3 | Interpretation |
In this deed headings are for convenience only and do not affect interpretation and, unless the contrary intention appears:
(a) | a word importing the singular includes the plural and vice versa, and a word of any gender includes the corresponding words of any other gender; | |
(b) | the word including or any other form of that word is not a word of limitation; | |
(c) | if a word or phrase is given a defined meaning, any other part of speech or grammatical form of that word or phrase has a corresponding meaning; | |
(d) | a reference to a person includes an individual, the estate of an individual, a corporation, a Regulatory Authority, an incorporated or unincorporated association or parties in a joint venture, a partnership and a trust; | |
(e) | a reference to a party includes that party’s executors, administrators, successors and permitted assigns, including persons taking by way of novation and, in the case of a trustee, includes any substituted or additional trustee; | |
(f) | a reference to a document or a provision of a document is to that document or provision as varied, novated, ratified or replaced from time to time; | |
(g) | a reference to this deed is a reference to this deed as varied, novated, ratified or replaced from time to time; | |
(h) | a reference to a party, clause, schedule, exhibit, attachment or annexure is a reference to a party, clause, schedule, exhibit, attachment or annexure to or of this deed, and a reference to this deed includes all schedules, exhibits, attachments and annexures to it; | |
(i) | a reference to a statute includes any regulations or other instruments made under it (delegated legislation) and a reference to a statute or delegated legislation or a provision of either includes consolidations, amendments, re-enactments and replacements; | |
(j) | a reference to $ or dollar is to Australian currency; and | |
(k) | this deed must not be construed adversely to a party just because that party prepared it or caused it to be prepared. |
2. | Indemnity |
2.1 | Indemnity against liabilities incurred |
To the maximum extent permitted by law, the Company indemnifies the Director against, and must pay to the Director on demand the amount of, any loss, cost, charge, damage, expense or other liability suffered or incurred by the Director as an Officer of any Group Entity or as a consequence of having been an Officer of any Group Entity, including any liability arising out of or in connection with any negligence, breach of duty or breach of true (Indemnity).
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2.2 | Indemnity not to extend to certain matters |
The Indemnity does not extend to indemnify the Director:
(a) | in bringing or prosecuting any claim, unless the claim is a claim in the nature of: |
(i) | a challenge to any rejection of a Director’s claim by the provider of the Company’s Insurance Cover; or | |
(ii) | a cross-claim or a third-party claim for contribution or indemnity in, and results directly from, any Proceedings in respect of which the Director has made a claim under the Indemnity; or |
(b) | to the extent that the amount of the claim under the Indemnity is increased as a result of the failure of the Director to comply with the Director’s obligations under clause 4.2 or 4.4; or | |
(c) | against any loss, cost, charge, damage, expense or other liability suffered or incurred by the Director arising out of or in connection with any pecuniary penalty order in relation to a Relevant Company under section 1317G of the Corporations Act or any compensation order in relation to a Relevant Company under section 1317H of the Corporations Act; or | |
(d) | against any loss, cost, charge, damage, expense or other liability suffered or incurred by the Director arising out of or in connection with any negligence, breach of duty or breach of trust in relation to a Relevant Company of which the Director is found to be guilty by a Court. |
2.3 | Payments under the Indemnity |
The Company must pay any amount due to the Director under the Indemnity within 5 Business Days after the date on which the Director provides evidence reasonably satisfactory to the Company (in its sole and absolute discretion) that the Director has suffered or incurred the relevant loss, cost, charge, damage, expense or other liability.
2.4 | No deduction |
Any payment to be made under the Indemnity must be made free and clear of any set-off, deduction, or withholding, except where the set-off, deduction or withholding is required or compelled by law.
2.5 | Taxation |
If for any reason the Director incurs a liability under any law relating to Tax in respect of a payment received by the Director under the Indemnity or taken to be received under the Indemnity, then the Company must pay to the Director an amount sufficient to ensure that the amount received by the Director equals the full amount that would have been received by the Director if that liability had not been incurred.
2.6 | Repayment |
If the Company pays an amount to the Director under the Indemnity (including any amount the Company advances to the Director under clause 2.10(b) or clause 3.1), to the extent that:
(a) | it is subsequently determined that the Company is prohibited under the Corporations Act or any other legislation from indemnifying the Director in respect of the liability to which the amounts paid or advanced relate; |
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(b) | after the amount is paid or advanced, the Director receives any payment, benefit or credit from a third party in respect of the liability to which the amounts paid or advanced relate; or | |
(c) | the Director receives a payment under clause 3.1 which exceeds the actual Legal Costs, |
(each a Repayment Event) the Director must, within 30 Business Days of the date of the Repayment Event, repay that amount to the Company, together with any additional amount paid to the Director under clause 2.4 in respect of that amount.
2.7 | Time limit |
The Indemnity continues in full force and effect after the Director has ceased to be an Officer of a Group Entity until it is terminated automatically on the earlier of:
(a) | the end of the Relevant Period; and |
(b) | the date which is 20 Business Days after the date on which the Company gives notice to the Director terminating the Indemnity on the basis that it would be unreasonable in the circumstances for the Company to continue to provide the benefit of the Indemnity to the Director. |
2.8 | Effect of termination of Indemnity |
In the Indemnity is terminated in accordance with clause 2.7(b) the Director retains all rights against the Company in respect of any claim under the Indemnity made before termination.
2.9 | Operation of Indemnity |
Without limiting any other provision of this deed, the parties agree that it is not necessary for the Director to incur expense or to make any payment before enforcing any right to claim under the Indemnity.
2.10 | Rights against third parties |
If the Director is insured (other than under the Insurance Cover) or has the benefit of an indemnity from any person (other than the Company) in connection with any loss, cost, charge, damage, expense or other liability which the Company is required to pay to the Director under the Indemnity:
(a) | the Director must promptly take all reasonable steps to claim under the other insurance policy or the other indemnity; and | |
(b) | to the extent necessary to ensure that the Director receives the full benefit of any other insurance cover or other indemnity, any payment made to the Director under clause 2.1 will be taken to be an advance which is repayable in accordance with clause 2.6. |
2.11 | Subrogation rights |
If the Company pays an amount to the Director under the Indemnity in respect of a matter:
(a) | the Director must take all steps reasonably requested by the Company to subrogate the Company to any rights of the Director against any person in respect of that matter; and | |
(b) | if subrogation does not occur the Director must take all action as the Company reasonably requests to pursue his or her rights against any person in respect of that matter and: |
(i) | the Director must account to the Company for any amounts recovered from that person less the amount of any loss, cost, charge, damage, expense or other liability suffered or incurred by the Director in taking action under this clause 2.11(b); and |
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(ii) | the Company indemnifies the Director against, and must pay to the Director on demand the amount of, any loss, cost, charge, damage, expense or other liability suffered or incurred by the Director in taking action under this clause 2.11(b) that is not recovered and retained by the Director under clause 2.11(b)(i). |
3. | Director’s costs for advice |
3.1 | Advance by Company |
The Company must advance to the Director the amount of the Director’s Legal Costs on terms (including as to interest, repayment and security) the Company reasonably determines. The Company must advance any amount it is required to advance to the Director under this clause 3.1 within 5 Business Days after the date on which the Director provides evidence reasonably satisfactory to the Company (in its sole and absolute discretion) that the Director has incurred, or is likely to incur, the relevant Legal Costs.
3.2 | Treatment of advances |
All amounts advanced to the Director under clause 3.1 in respect of Legal Costs will be taken to have been paid to the Director pursuant to the Indemnity except to the extent that it is subsequently determined that the Company is not or was not permitted by law to indemnify the Director in respect of those Legal Costs.
3.3 | Costs of other independent professional advice |
Without limiting any other provision of this deed, if the Director obtains independent professional advice in performing his or her duties to the Company, the Company must meet the reasonable costs of the advice if:
(a) | the advice is obtained in accordance with any Company policy regarding obtaining that advice; or | |
(b) | the Board of the Company approves the Director obtaining that advice. |
4. | Conduct of claims |
4.1 | Notification |
The Director must immediately notify the Company and any relevant Group Entity on becoming aware that any Proceedings have been commenced or are threatened against the Director which may give rise to a claim by the Director under the Indemnity (Indemnified Proceedings).
4.2 | Director’s obligations in relation to Indemnified Proceedings |
The Director must:
(a) | at the same time as the Director gives notice of any Proceedings under clause 4.1, give the Company and any relevant Group Entity a copy of all materials served on or otherwise within the possession of the Director in connection with any Indemnified Proceedings unless the Director receives written legal advice that to do so would be reasonably likely to prejudice materially the interests of the Director; and |
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(b) | not make any admission of liability, agreement, settlement or compromise in relation to any Indemnified Proceedings without the prior written consent of the Company, which consent must not be unreasonably withheld or delayed. |
4.3 | Company’s right to assume conduct of claim |
The Company may, within 30 Business Days after the Director gives notice under clause 4.1, give notice to the Director assuming the conduct of the negotiation or defence of any Indemnified Proceedings, either by itself or jointly with an insurer, except to the extent that the interests of the Director and of the Company might reasonably be expected to conflict in relation to the Indemnified Proceedings.
4.4 | Director’s obligations where Company assumes conduct |
If the Company gives notice under clause 4.3 assuming the conduct of any Indemnified Proceedings, the Director must, in addition to complying with his or her obligations under clause 4.2:
(a) | take all action that the Company may reasonably request to avoid, dispute, resist, defend, appeal, compromise or mitigate the Indemnified Proceedings; | |
(b) | give the Company and each relevant Group Entity all other information and assistance as the Company may reasonably require in relation to the Indemnified Proceedings and in particular must sign all documents as the Company reasonably requires for the conduct of the Indemnified Proceedings; and | |
(c) | if requested to do so by the Company, give the Company and each relevant Group Entity all reasonable assistance to enable the relevant Group Entity or its insurers to be subrogated to and enjoy the benefit of the Director’s rights against any third party in relation to the Indemnified Proceedings or any claim or counterclaim in connection with the Indemnified Proceedings (Counterclaim). |
4.5 | Company’s obligations where Company assumes conduct |
If the Company gives notice under clause 4.3 assuming the conduct of any Indemnified Proceedings, the Company:
(a) | must ensure that the Indemnified Proceedings and any Counterclaim are conducted under the management and control of the Company or its insurers; | |
(b) | must give the Director all information as the Director may reasonably require in relation to the conduct of the Indemnified Proceedings and any Counterclaim, and consult with the Director to the extent practicable in relation to the conduct of the Indemnified Proceedings and any Counterclaim’ | |
(c) | must not without the Director’s prior consent take any action in respect of the Indemnified Proceedings or any Counterclaim that prejudices the Indemnity; and | |
(d) | indemnifies the Director against, and must pay to the Director on demand the amount of, any reasonable cost or expense suffered or incurred by the Director arising out of or in connection with any action the Director takes under clause 4.4 or otherwise in connection with the Indemnified Proceedings or any Counterclaim. |
4.6 | Counsel’s Opinion on settlement |
If the Director does not provide any consent requested under clause 4.5(c), the Company may instruct a Queen’s Counsel or Senior Counsel in accordance with clause 8 to provide a legal opinion on whether it is reasonable to make an admission of liability, agreement, settlement or compromise in relation to the Indemnified Proceedings.
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4.7 | Conflict of interest |
If the Company and the Director agree that the interests of the Director and of the Company might reasonably be expected to conflict in relation to any Indemnified Proceedings or any Counterclaim:
(a) | the Director is entitled to engage separate legal advisers of his or her choice in respect of the conduct of the Indemnified Proceedings and any Counterclaim; and | |
(b) | if the Company has assumed conduct of the Indemnified Proceedings under clause 4.3, the Company must withdraw from the conduct of the Indemnified Proceedings and any Counterclaim on behalf of the Director. |
4.8 | Counsel’s Opinion on conflict of interest |
If the Company and the Director cannot agree on whether there is a conflict of interest for the purposes of clause 4.7, the Company or the Director may instruct a Queen’s Counsel or Senior Counsel in accordance with clause 8 to provide a legal opinion on whether the interests of the Director and of the Company might reasonably be expected to conflict in relation to any Indemnified Proceedings or any Counterclaim.
5. | Insurance Cover |
5.1 | Insurance Cover during Relevant Period |
To the maximum extent permitted by law, the Company must use its best endeavours to obtain and maintain in full force and effect during the Relevant Period Insurance Cover for the benefit of the Director on terms that are not materially less favourable to the Director than:
(a) | the terms of the directors’ and officers’ insurance policy applicable to the directors of the Company at the time the Insurance Cover is effected or renewed for the Director from time to time (notwithstanding that the Director has ceased to be an Officer of the Company); or | |
(b) | if there is no insurance policy of this type at that time, the terms of a directors’ and officers’ insurance policy typically maintained at that time by other groups of companies similar to the Group Entities and which would have been available to the Group Entities at the relevant time, to the extent that coverage of this type is available on the market on terms and at a cost which the Company considers reasonable, |
having regard to the amount of cover, the scope of cover, the excess and other terms that would be relevant to a director.
5.2 | Insurance premium |
To the extent the Company or a Group Entity is prohibited by law from paying the insurance premium for a contract insuring the Director as an Officer of a Group Entity against certain liabilities (Prohibited Premium), the Company must give, and must procure that each Group Entity gives, the Director a reasonable opportunity to contribute the Prohibited Premium if it is reasonable for the Director to do so.
5.3 | Company’s other obligations |
If the Company obtains Insurance Cover as contemplated by clause 5.1, the Company must (and must procure that each Group Entity must):
(a) | not do or permit to be done anything which prejudices or renders any part of the Insurance Cover void, voidable or unenforceable, and must immediately rectify anything reasonably within its control which might prejudice or render any part of the Insurance Cover void, voidable or unenforceable, or might prejudice recovery under it; |
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(b) | if requested by the Director to do so, provide the Director with a certificate of insurance for the Insurance Cover once in every 12 month period and within 20 Business Days after receipt of the certificate; | |
(c) | make the policy relating to the Insurance Cover available for the Director to inspect upon reasonable notice at the Company’s registered office or principal place of business between 9.00 am and 5.00 pm on any Business Day, except where that disclosure would involve a breach of the terms of the policy; and | |
(d) | notify the Director immediately in writing if, for any reason, the Insurance Cover is cancelled or not renewed. |
5.4 | Director’s obligations |
If the Company obtains Insurance Cover as contemplated by clause 5.1, the Director must:
(a) | take all steps as the Company may reasonably require to enable the Company to take out and maintain the Insurance Cover at the Company’s expense; | |
(b) | at all times comply with all obligations and requirements of the Director under the Insurance Cover; | |
(c) | not do or permit to be done anything which prejudices or renders any part of the Insurance Cover void, voidable or unenforceable, and must immediately rectify anything reasonably within the Director’s control which might prejudice or render any part of the Insurance Cover void, voidable or unenforceable, or might prejudice recovery under it; | |
(d) | immediately inform the Company and the insurer in writing on becoming aware of any circumstances which could give rise to a claim under the policy relating to the Insurance Cover; and | |
(e) | immediately inform the Company in writing on becoming aware of anything done or omitted to be done which is reasonably likely to prejudice the Insurance Cover. |
5.5 | Disclosure |
Before the Company obtains Insurance Cover, each party must disclose to the proposed insurer and to the other party (and, in the case of the Director, to each Group Entity of which the Director is an Officer) all facts material to the insurer’s risk, including the existence of this deed.
6. | Corporate Records |
6.1 | Maintenance |
The Company must:
(a) | use reasonable endeavours to maintain during the Relevant Period a complete set of Corporate Records in relation to the Company; and | |
(b) | procure that each other Group Entity uses reasonable endeavours to maintain during the Relevant Period a complete set of Corporate Records in relation to that Group Entity, |
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where there are reasonable grounds to believe that the relevant Corporate Record will be relevant to any Proceedings commenced or threatened in writing before the expiry of that 10 year period.
6.2 | Ownership |
The Director acknowledges that the Company or the relevant Group Entity retains ownership of copies of all Corporate Records of any Group Entity provided to the Director while an Officer of the Company.
6.3 | Return or destruction |
Immediately upon the Director ceasing to be an Officer of the Company, the Director must:
(a) | return to the Company or destroy all copies of Corporate Records relating to any Group Entity which the Director possesses, has power over or controls; | |
(b) | delete all copies of Corporate Records relating to any Group Entity that are contained on any computer, database or other electronic means of data storage which the Director possesses, has power over or controls; and | |
(c) | provide a written confirmation to the Company that he or she has complied with this clause 6.3. |
The obligations of the Director in this clause 6.3 also apply immediately upon the Director ceasing to require, for the purpose for which it was provided, any information provided to the Director in response to an Access Request.
6.4 | Requests for access to Corporate Records |
In addition to any other rights of access that the Director has under the Corporations Act, the Director may at any time during the Relevant Period request access to the Corporate Records of any Group Entity that may be relevant to any Proceedings commenced before the date which is 7 years after the Retirement Date by giving notice in writing to the company secretary of the Company identifying generally the Corporate Records to which the Director seeks access and stating the purpose for which the Director seeks access to those Corporate Records (Access Request).
6.5 | Response to Access Request |
The Company must consider any Access Request within 5 Business Days after it is received by the company secretary and must approve the Access Request except to the extent that the Board of the Company, acting in good faith, considers that:
(a) | the Director is seeking access to the relevant Corporate Records for the purposes of bringing or prosecuting any claim against any Group Entity; or | |
(b) | granting the Director access to the relevant Corporate Records: |
(i) | would have a material adverse effect on the ability of any Group Entity to perform any of its obligations under any agreement or arrangement to which it is party or on any other aspect of the business or operations of any Group Entity; or | |
(ii) | might reasonably be expected to result in any Group Entity waiving or otherwise prejudicing legal professional privilege attaching to any Privileged Document in circumstances where the waiver of that privilege would be reasonably likely to prejudice materially the interests of the relevant Group Entity. |
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6.6 | Counsel’s Opinion in relation to an Access Request |
If the Company refuses an Access Request, the Director may instruct a Queen’s Counsel or Senior Counsel in accordance with clause 8.1 to provide a legal opinion on whether the Company has the right under clause 6.5 to do so.
6.7 | Manner of access to Corporate Records |
If the Company approves any Access Request, the Company must:
(a) | allow the Director and, provided the Director complies with clause 6.9(b), the Director’s legal advisers on reasonable notice to inspect and take copies (at the Company’s expense) of the Corporate Records which are the subject of the Access Request at the registered office or principal place of business of the Company between 9.00 am and 5.00 pm on any Business Day; | |
(b) | provide all information, assistance and facilities as the Director and, provided the Director complies with clause 6.9(b), the Director’s legal advisors may reasonably require in order to inspect, and make and take away copies of, the Corporate Records which are the subject of the Access Request. |
6.8 | Confidential Information |
If in response to an Access Request the Director is granted access to Confidential Information, the Director must observe the same duties of confidentiality in relation to the Confidential Information as applied while the Director was an Officer of the Company and must not without the Company’s prior written consent disclose the Confidential Information to any person.
6.9 | Permitted disclosure |
Notwithstanding clause 6.8, the Director may disclose Confidential Information:
(a) | to the Director’s insurer or prospective insurer in connection with effecting, maintaining or complying with the terms of an insurance policy; | |
(b) | to the Director’s legal or financial advisers for the purposes of preparing for, responding to, defending or resisting, or otherwise in connection with any Proceedings provided that the Director has first obtained undertakings of confidentiality from those advisers in relation to the Confidential Information; | |
(c) | where the disclosure of the Confidential Information is required by law or the rules of a recognised stock or securities exchange; or | |
(d) | where the Director reasonably requires disclosure of the Confidential Information for the purposes of any Indemnified Proceedings and: |
(i) | the Director reasonably believes that disclosure of the Confidential Information would not materially prejudice the interests of any Group Entity; | |
(ii) | the Director has given the Company not less than 5 Business Days notice of the Director’s intention to disclose the Confidential Information; and | |
(iii) | the Director uses best endeavours to ensure that the confidentiality of the Confidential Information is maintained. |
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7. | Privileged documents |
7.1 | Joint or multiple privilege |
Where the Company and the Director both have the benefit of legal professional privilege in respect of a Privileged Document forming part of the Corporate Records, then neither party may waive that privilege:
(a) | without the written consent of the other, which consent must not be unreasonably withheld; and | |
(b) | where persons other than the Company or the Director also have the benefit of that privilege, without the written consent of those persons. |
7.2 | Withholding consent |
Notwithstanding any other provision of this deed, it will be reasonable for a party to withhold consent to a waiver of privilege where the party requested to waive the privilege reasonably determines that the waiver of privilege would materially prejudice its interests.
7.3 | Access for defence of Proceedings |
Unless clause 7.2 applies, the Company may not refuse to consent to a waiver of privilege where the Director reasonably requires access to and copies of documents for the defence of any Proceedings.
7.4 | Retainers |
By its execution of this deed the Company will be deemed to have instructed its legal advisers from time to time that all legal advice provided to the Company in relation to any Proceedings which may be relevant to the Director is also to be provided for the Director’s benefit, so that the Director has the benefit of legal professional privilege in relation to that advice, except where, at the time the advice is obtained, the interests of the Company and the Director are in conflict.
8. | Counsel’s Opinion |
8.1 | Appointment of Counsel |
If a party (Instructing Party) has the right under this deed to instruct a Queen’s Counsel or Senior Counsel to provide an opinion in relation to a specific matter (Opinion) the Instructing Party must appoint a Queen’s Counsel or Senior Counsel agreed by the Company and the Director in writing, or failing agreement within 10 Business Days, appointed by the President of the Western Australian Bar Association, or his or her nominee, to appoint a barrister who:
(a) | is a Queen’s Counsel or Senior Counsel; | |
(b) | practices at the Western Australian Bar; and | |
(c) | has company law expertise, |
(Counsel) to provide the Opinion in accordance with clause 8.2.
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8.2 | Counsel’s Opinion |
The Instructing Party must procure that Counsel provides the Opinion in accordance with the following provisions:
(a) | the Instructing Party must instruct Counsel to provide a copy of Counsel’s written Opinion to the Company and the Director within the shortest possible time but, in any event, within 20 Business Days after the date on which Counsel is instructed to provide the Opinion; | |
(b) | the Company and the Director must provide Counsel with any information and assistance reasonably required by Counsel to enable Counsel to provide the Opinion; | |
(c) | Counsel will act as an independent expert and not as an arbitrator and the Opinion of Counsel will be final and binding on the Director and the Company; and | |
(d) | the costs of Counsel in connection with the Opinion are payable by the Company. |
8.3 | Further acts and documents |
The Company and the Director must do all things necessary, and execute all documents, authorities and directions as are required by the Instructing Party to give effect to Counsel’s advice as set out in the Opinion.
9. | GST |
9.1 | Interpretation |
The parties agree that:
(a) | except where the context suggests otherwise, terms used in this clause 8 have the meanings given to those terms by the GST Act (as amended from time to time); | |
(b) | any part of a supply that is treated as separate supply for GST purposes (including attributing GST payable to tax periods) will be treated as a separate supply for the purposes of this clause 8; and | |
(c) | any consideration that is specified to be inclusive of GST must not be taken into account in calculating the GST payable in relation to a supply for the purpose of this clause 8. |
9.2 | Reimbursements and similar payments |
Any payment or reimbursement required to be made under this deed that is calculated by reference to a cost, expense, or other amount paid or incurred will be limited to the total cost, expense or amount less the amount of any input tax credit to which an entity is entitled for the acquisition to which the cost, expense or amount relates.
9.3 | GST payable |
If GST is payable in relation to a supply made under or in connection with this deed then any party (Recipient) that is required to provide consideration to another party (Supplier) for that supply must pay an additional amount to the Supplier equal to the amount of that GST at the same time as other consideration is to be provided for that supply or, if later, within 5 Business Days of the Supplier providing a valid tax invoice to the Recipient.
9.4 | Variation |
If the GST payable in relation to a supply made under or in connection with this deed varies from the additional amount paid by the Recipient under clause 9.3 then the Supplier must provide a corresponding refund or credit to, or will be entitled to receive the amount of that variation from, the Recipient. Any ruling, advice, document or other information received by the Recipient from the Australian Tax Office in relation to any supply made under this deed will be conclusive as to the GST payable in relation to that supply. Any payment, credit or refund under this paragraph is deemed to be a payment, credit or refund of the additional amount payable under clause 9.3.
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10. | Notices |
10.1 | How notice to be given |
Each communication (including each notice, consent, approval, request and demand) under or in connection with this deed:
(a) | may be given by personal service or post; | |
(b) | must be in writing and in English (or accompanied by a certified translation into English); | |
(c) | must be addressed as follows (or as otherwise notified by that party to each other party from time to time): |
(i) | if to the Company: | |
Attention: | ||
Address: | ||
(ii) | if to the Director: | |
Attention: | ||
Address: |
(d) | (in the case of personal service or post) must be signed by the party making it or (on that party’s behalf) by the solicitor for, or any attorney, director, secretary or authorised agent of, that party; and | |
(e) | must be delivered by hand or posted by prepaid post to the address of the addressee, in accordance with clause 10.1(c). |
10.2 | When notice taken to be received |
Each communication (including each notice, consent, approval, request and demand) under or in connection with this deed is taken to be received by the addressee:
(a) | (in the case of prepaid post sent to an address in the same country) on the third day after the date of posting; | |
(b) | (in the case of prepaid post sent to an address in another country) on the fifth day after the date of posting by airmail; and | |
(c) | (in the case of delivery by hand) on delivery, |
but if the communication would otherwise be taken to be received on a day that is not a working day or after 5.00 pm, it is taken to be received at 9.00 am on the next working day (“working day” meaning a day that is not a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday and on which banks are open for business generally, in the place to which the communication is posted, sent or delivered).
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11. | General |
11.1 | Amendments |
This deed may only be varied by a deed executed by or on behalf of each party.
11.2 | Assignment |
A party cannot assign or otherwise transfer any of its rights under this deed without the prior consent of the other party.
11.3 | Consents |
Unless this deed expressly provides otherwise, a consent under this deed may be given or withheld in the absolute discretion of the party entitled to give the consent and to be effective must be given in writing.
11.4 | Costs |
Except as otherwise provided in this deed, each party must pay its own costs and expenses in connection with negotiating, preparing, executing and performing this deed.
11.5 | Counterparts |
This deed may be executed in any number of counterparts and by the parties on separate counterparts. Each counterpart constitutes the deed of each party who has executed and delivered that counterpart.
11.6 | Entire agreement |
To the extent permitted by law, this deed constitutes the entire agreement between the parties in relation to its subject matter and supersedes all previous agreements and understandings between the parties in relation to its subject matter.
11.7 | Severance |
If any provision or part of a provision of this deed is held or found to be void, invalid or otherwise unenforceable (whether in respect of a particular party or generally), it will be deemed to be severed to the extent that it is void or to the extent of voidability, invalidity or unenforceability, but the remainder of that provision will remain in full force and effect.
11.8 | Stamp duties |
The Company:
(a) | must pay all stamp duties and other duties, together with any related fees, penalties, fines, interest or statutory charges, and similar Taxes in respect of this deed, the performance of this deed and each transaction effected or contemplated by or made under this deed; and | |
(b) | indemnifies the Director against, and must pay to the Director on demand the amount of, any loss, cost, charge, damage, expense or other liability suffered or incurred by the Director arising out of or in connection with any delay or failure to comply with clause 11.8(a). |
11.9 | Waivers |
Without limiting any other provision of this deed, the parties agree that:
(a) | failure to exercise or enforce, or a delay in exercising or enforcing, or the partial exercise or enforcement of, a right, power or remedy provided by law or under this deed by a party does not preclude, or operate as a waiver of, the exercise or enforcement, or further exercise or enforcement, of that or any other right, power or remedy provided by law or under this deed; | |
(b) | a waiver given by a party under this deed is only effective and binding on that party if it is given or confirmed in writing by that party; and | |
(c) | no waiver of a breach of a term of this deed operates as a waiver of another breach of that term or of a breach of any other term of this deed. |
12. | Governing law and jurisdiction |
This deed is governed by the law applying in Western Australia. Each party irrevocably submits to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of the courts having jurisdiction in that state and the courts competent to determine appeals from those courts, with respect to any proceedings that may be brought at any time relating to this deed and waives any objection it may have now or in the future to the venue of any proceedings, and any claim it may have now or in the future that any proceedings have been brought in an inconvenient forum, if that venue falls within this clause 12.
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Executed as a deed.
Executed by Locafy Limited ACN 136 737 767 in accordance with section 127 of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth): | |||
Signature of director | Signature of company secretary/director | ||
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|
||
Full name of director | Full name of company secretary/director |
Signed, sealed and delivered by in the presence of: | |||
Signature of witness | Signature | ||
Full name of witness |
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Exhibit 10.4
The Quadrant, 1 William Street Perth Western Australia 6000 |
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Tel +61 8 9288 6000 Fax +61 8 9288 6001 |
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lavan.com.au |
Lease
- Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B
Churchill Avenue, Subiaco
Landville
Pty Ltd and Victor Vlahos as trustee for the Victor Vlahos Family Trust
Locafy Limited
Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
Table of contents
Reference Schedule | 1 | |
Parties | 3 | |
1 | Definitions | 3 |
Definitions | 3 | |
Interpretation | 9 | |
2 | Basic obligations | 10 |
The Lease | 10 | |
The Tenant’s right to be free from interference | 10 | |
The Tenant’s duty to pay Rent | 11 | |
3 | Other payments to be made | 11 |
Rates and Taxes | 11 | |
Services charges | 11 | |
The Landlord’s Operating Costs | 12 | |
Costs of this Lease | 12 | |
Costs of insurance | 13 | |
Subdivision levies | 13 | |
4 | Bank guarantee | 13 |
5 | GST | 14 |
Amounts otherwise payable do not include GST | 14 | |
Liability to pay GST | 14 | |
Time for payment | 14 | |
Tax Invoices | 14 | |
Refunds | 14 | |
Exclusion of Input Tax Credit items | 14 | |
Default GST | 15 | |
6 | Premises | 15 |
The Tenant’s right to have access to Premises | 15 | |
The Tenant’s right to use Common Areas | 15 | |
The Tenant’s right to use Services | 15 | |
Adequacy of Services | 16 | |
After hours air-conditioning | 16 | |
Purpose of use of Premises | 16 | |
Conduct of the business | 16 | |
Storage of chemical and hazardous things | 17 | |
The Tenant’s duty in relation to events and risk | 17 | |
The Tenant’s duties in relation to serious infectious disease | 17 | |
The Tenant’s duty to maintain Premises | 17 | |
The Tenant’s duty in relation to the Tenant’s Property | 18 | |
The Tenant’s duty to clean | 18 | |
The Tenant’s duty to redecorate Premises | 18 | |
The Tenant’s duty to get consent for work | 18 | |
Standard of work | 19 | |
The Tenant must give the Landlord evidence of completion | 19 | |
The Tenant must pay the Landlord’s costs in relation to work | 19 |
Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
Signs | 19 | |
The Tenant must comply with Laws | 19 | |
Occupational Safety and Health | 20 | |
Tenant must comply with rules relating to the Building | 20 | |
The Tenant’s duty in relation to a subdivision | 20 | |
The Landlord’s right to inspect Premises | 20 | |
Inspection by prospective tenants or purchasers | 20 | |
7 | Liability, insurance and indemnity | 21 |
Exclusion of liability | 21 | |
The Tenant’s duty to arrange insurance | 21 | |
Details of insurance cover | 21 | |
The Landlord’s duty to insure | 22 | |
The Tenant’s other obligations in relation to insurance | 22 | |
Indemnity | 22 | |
8 | Damage and repairs | 22 |
The Tenant’s responsibilities | 22 | |
The Landlord’s responsibilities | 23 | |
The Landlord’s duty to fix damage | 23 | |
Effect of major damage on Lease | 23 | |
Effect of major damage on Rent | 24 | |
Dispute about application of clauses 8.11 and 8.12 | 24 | |
9 | Environmental matters | 24 |
Environmental Rating | 24 | |
Greenhouse gas emissions and energy reporting | 25 | |
10 | Extension of this Lease | 26 |
The Tenant’s right to an extension | 26 | |
How the Tenant may exercise its option to extend | 26 | |
Loss of right to extend | 26 | |
Terms applicable to extension | 27 | |
Documentation | 27 | |
11 | Holding Over | 27 |
12 | Assignment and subletting | 28 |
No interest to be created without consent | 28 | |
Requirements for assignment and Subletting | 28 | |
Tenant remains liable | 29 | |
13 | Change in the Tenant’s ownership or control | 29 |
14 | Trustee provisions | 30 |
15 | Breach of this Lease | 31 |
The Landlord’s right to require the Tenant to correct breach | 31 | |
Damages in case of breach | 31 | |
Landlord’s right to terminate | 31 | |
The Landlord’s entitlement to end this Lease if this Tenant is insolvent | 32 | |
Damages for breach of Essential Terms | 33 | |
The Landlord’s duty to try to relet | 33 | |
Tender of money after the Landlord ends this Lease | 34 | |
No loss of rights | 34 |
Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
16 | Tenant’s obligations at the end of this Lease | 35 |
The Tenant’s duties when this Lease ends or is ended | 35 | |
17 | Notices | 37 |
Form and delivery | 37 | |
Execution of emails | 37 | |
Receipt and effect | 38 | |
18 | Caveat | 38 |
19 | Power of attorney | 38 |
20 | WAPC consent | 39 |
21 | Retail Shops Act | 39 |
22 | Special conditions | 39 |
23 | Guarantee and indemnity of the Tenant’s obligations under this Lease | 40 |
Guarantor’s main obligations | 40 | |
Guarantor’s other obligations | 41 | |
Time for payment | 41 | |
Persons benefited by guarantee and indemnity | 41 | |
Guarantee and indemnity basis of entry into Lease | 42 | |
24 | General | 42 |
No right to set off by Tenant | 42 | |
Time for payment | 42 | |
Interest on overdue amounts | 42 | |
Obligation in relation to employees, agents, contractors and others | 42 | |
Variation | 42 | |
Waiver | 42 | |
Entire agreement | 43 | |
Severability | 43 | |
Further co-operation | 43 | |
Relationship of the parties | 43 | |
Governing law and jurisdiction | 43 | |
Execution of separate documents | 43 | |
No merger | 43 | |
Third party rights | 43 | |
Exclusion of contrary legislation | 43 | |
Execution | 44 | |
Schedule 1 | 46 | |
Schedule 2 | 47 | |
Schedule 3 | 52 |
Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
Reference Schedule
Item 1 | Parties |
Landlord |
Landville Pty Ltd ACN 099 096 107 and Victor Vlahos as trustee for the Victor Vlahos Family Trust |
||
Address: | care of Level 25 | ||
Allendale Square | |||
77 St Georges Terrace | |||
PERTH WA 6000 | |||
Attention: | Chris Zelestis | ||
Email: | czelestis@francisburt.com.au | ||
Tenant | Locafy Limited | ||
ACN 136 737 767 | |||
Address: | 246B Churchill Avenue | ||
SUBIACO WA 6008 | |||
Attention: | Melvin Tan | ||
Email: | melvin.tan@locafy.com | ||
Guarantor | Not applicable |
Item 2 | Land |
Lot 2 on Diagram 52017 being the whole of the land comprised in Certificate of Title Volume 1461 Folio 933.
Premises
That part of the Building known as 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco having a total area of approximately 603.7 square metres consisting of approximately 419.7 square metres on the ground floor and approximately 184 square metres on the Mezzanine floor as is shown with designation “Office 2” on the Plan in Schedule 3.
Item 3 | Period of Lease |
Term: | Five (5) years | ||
Commencement date: | 20/11/2021 | . | |
End date: | Five (5) years after the Commencement Date. |
Item 4 | Rent payable |
$45,540.00 (plus GST) per annum payable in advance by equal monthly instalments of $3,795.00 (plus GST).
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
Dates for review or adjustment of Rent
In accordance with Schedule 1.
Item 5 | The Tenant’s percentage of the Operating Costs at the commencement of the Lease |
In accordance with special condition 7.
Item 6 | Bank Guarantee |
(a) | Bank guarantee (clause 4.1): | |
Yes. | ||
(b) | Bank guarantee amount: (clause 4.1.1): | |
The sum of $29,370.00. Equivalent to four (4) months gross Rent (Rent, Operating Costs and Licence Fees plus GST). |
Item 7 | Normal hours for air conditioning (excluding Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays) |
8.00 am to 5.30 pm. | |
Item 8 | Use of Premises |
Commercial Offices. | |
Item 9 | Time for redecoration |
As part of the Make Good to be performed by the Tenant. | |
Item 10 | Extension |
Period of extension: | Not applicable | |
Period of additional extension: | Not applicable |
Calculation of Rent for extension
In accordance with Schedule 1.
Item 11 | Rate of interest |
That rate of interest that is 4% in excess of the interest rate quoted by the Landlord’s bank for the time being on loans not exceeding $100,000.00.
Item 12 | Specified Landlord’s Fixtures |
Any floor or window covering, partitions, light fittings and other fixtures or fittings installed by the Landlord in the Premises and any replacement of those items.
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
Parties
The Landlord
The Tenant
The Guarantor
1 | Definitions |
Definitions
1.1 | In this Lease the following definitions apply: |
AC Report | means a written report to be provided by the Tenant to the Landlord from a suitably qualified engineer approved by the Landlord (such approval not to be unreasonably withheld) on the condition of the air-conditioning system in the Premises. |
Authority | includes a government, a local, statutory or public authority, and a person entitled to carry out a statutory function. |
BEED Act | means the Building Energy Efficiency Disclosure Act 2010 (Cth). |
Building | means the building erected on the Land described in Item 2 of the Reference Schedule in which the Premises are located. |
Business Day | means a day other than a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday in Western Australia. |
Carbon Cost | means any cost or tax incurred, whether directly or indirectly, in respect of the Building or the Landlord’s ownership of the Building arising out of, incidental to, or resulting from a Carbon Regime. |
Carbon Regime | means any Law or any requirement or condition of an Authority in connection with the emission, monitoring, reduction, offset, removal or sequestration of Greenhouse Gas emissions. This includes any statutory emissions trading scheme or tax or similar charge on the emission of Greenhouse Gas or the carbon content of fuels. |
Commencement Date | means the commencement date of this Lease specified in Item 3 of the Reference Schedule. |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
Energy Information | means: |
(a) | a record of the total: | ||
(i) | amount of Greenhouse Gases emitted; | ||
(ii) | the total amount of Energy consumed; and | ||
(iii) | the total amount of Energy produced | ||
in respect of the Premises, as defined in the NGER Act, including all information as to how such amounts were calculated; and | |||
(b) | a record of the information required under the relevant Sustainability Legislation. |
Environmental Rating | means a rating assigned to a building in accordance with an industry recognised rating method which rates the building’s environmental impact, which may include the building’s rates of usage of any one or more of: |
(a) | energy; | |
(b) | water; | |
(c) | water production; | |
(d) | air quality and carbon; | |
(e) | waste generation; and | |
(f) | waste recycling rates. |
Essential Term | means any of the following obligations: | |
(a) | to pay Rent; | |
(b) | to pay GST; |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
(c) | to make any other payments required by this Lease; | |
(d) | to use the Premises solely for the use specified in Item 8 of the Reference Schedule; | |
(e) | to comply with laws and requirements; | |
(f) | not to assign, mortgage, sub-let, part with possession or create in favour of any person an interest in this Lease or any part of the Premises in any way without prior written consent; and | |
(g) | if required, to arrange and maintain insurance and not to do anything to prejudice it. |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
(b) | this document is not registered on the certificate of title for the Land; or | |
(c) | the Tenant remaining in possession of the Premises after the Lease evidenced by this document ends. |
(a) | Rates and Taxes; | |
(b) | insuring the Premises in accordance with the provisions of this Lease and against any risk that the Landlord considers prudent to insure against; | |
(c) | employing a managing agent; | |
(d) | property management fees; | |
(e) | property inspection fees (initial property condition report and ongoing inspections); | |
(f) | cleaning; | |
(g) | maintaining, repairing, renovating, repainting, redecorating and refurbishing; | |
(h) | removing garbage and trade waste; | |
(i) | engaging professional pest control agents; | |
(j) | gardening, landscaping and reticulating; | |
(k) | maintaining and repairing car parking; | |
(l) | security and caretaking; | |
(m) | Carbon Costs; |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
(n) |
supplying Services including the operation, inspection, maintenance and replacement and upgrading of Services to comply with the requirements or orders of any Authority or Laws; |
|
(o) | audits carried out by the Landlord’s auditors to determine the Operating Costs payable by the Tenant; | |
(P) | legal fees and disbursements incurred by the Landlord; | |
(q) | contributions to a sinking fund established by the Landlord to cover repairs and maintenance of a substantial but infrequent nature to the Premises or Services (provided always that the contributions in a Financial Year do not exceed 5% of the Operating Costs for that Financial Year); | |
(r) | obtaining an Environmental Rating for the Building; | |
(s) | maintaining any Environmental Rating that has been given to the Building; | |
(t) | safety, environmental and sustainability audits and reports of the Building and the land on which the Building is located; and | |
(U) | complying with any Authority in relation to the Landlord’s environmental obligations under this Lease or at Law, | |
but excluding: | ||
(v) | interest on borrowed money; | |
(w) | capital expenditure; | |
(x) | income tax and capital gains tax; | |
(y) | land tax in respect of the Premises in excess of the amount payable on a single property basis; and | |
(Z) | a cost which the Law does not allow the Landlord to recover from the Tenant. |
Premises | means the premises more particularly described in item 2 of the Reference Schedule: |
(a) | extending vertically from the upper surface of the floor slab to the under surface of the ceiling of the Premises: and |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
(b) | extending horizontally to the Lease Line and to the outer surface of external walls and windows extending beyond the Lease Line and to the middle or centre line of adjoining or intertenancy walls or partitions, | |
and includes the Landlord’s Fixtures and any other improvements and other fixtures, fittings, plant and machinery of the Landlord in or on that area. |
Primary Payment | means payment by the Tenant to the Landlord of any Rent, Operating Costs or other amount payable by the Tenant to the Landlord under this Lease. |
Rates and Taxes | means any amount charged or assessed against the Premises, the Tenant or the Landlord in respect of the ownership, occupation or use of the Premises by any Authority and includes, but is not limited to, each of the following: |
(a) | council rates and charges together with all rubbish removal rates and charges; | |
(b) | land tax and metropolitan region improvement tax on a single holding basis; and | |
(c) | water, drainage and sewerage rates and service charges including, but not limited to, meter rents, charges for the disposal of stormwater and water consumption charges. |
Taxable Supply | has the same meaning as in the GST Act. |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
Tax Invoice | has the meaning given in the GST Act and includes any document or record treated by the Commissioner of Taxation as a tax invoice. |
Tenant | means the tenant described in Item 1 of the Reference Schedule. |
Tenant’s Property | includes property that the Tenant owns, hires or leases. |
Term | means the period specified in Item 3 of the Reference Schedule and any extension of that period. |
Value | has the same meaning as in the GST Act. |
Interpretation
1.2 | In this Lease, unless the context otherwise requires: |
1.2.1 | Headings or subheadings are for convenience only and do not affect the interpretation of any provision of this Lease. | |
1.2.2 | A reference to any agreement or document is to that agreement or document as amended, novated, supplemented or replaced from time to time. | |
1.2.3 | The singular includes the plural and vice versa. | |
1.2.4 | Words expressed in one gender include the other gender. | |
1.2.5 | A “person” includes an individual, partnership, firm, company, government, joint venture, association, authority, corporation or other body corporate. | |
1.2.6 | References to the parties, background, parts, clauses, schedules and annexures are references to the parties, background, parts, clauses, schedules and annexures to this Lease | |
1.2.7 | The expression “this Lease” includes the agreement, arrangement, understanding or transaction recorded in this Lease. | |
1.2.8 | References to a party to this Lease include that party’s executors, administrators, substitutes, successors and permitted assigns. | |
1.2.9 | A reference to a group of persons is a reference to all of them collectively and to each of them individually. | |
1.2.10 | References to time are to time in Perth, Western Australia. | |
1.2.11 | If the date on or by which any act must be done under this Lease is not a Business Day, the act must be done on or by the next Business Day. | |
1.2.12 | A covenant or agreement made by, or for the benefit of, two or more persons binds, and is enforceable against, or may be exercised by (as the case may be), those persons jointly and each of them severally. |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
1.2.13 | A reference to any statute or to any statutory provision includes any amendment, re-enactment or consolidation of it or any statutory provision substituted for it, and all ordinances, by-laws, regulations, rules and statutory instruments (however described) issued under it. | |
1.2.14 | $ or “dollars” is a reference to Australian currency. | |
1.2.15 | A reference to a thing or an amount includes the whole or part of that thing or amount. |
2 | Basic obligations |
The Lease
2.1 | The Landlord leases to the Tenant the Premises for the Term. |
The Tenant’s right to be free from interference
2.2 | The Tenant is entitled to quiet enjoyment of the Premises. |
2.3 | The Tenant may occupy and use the Premises free from interruption or interference by the Landlord or anyone who claims through the Landlord. |
2.4 | However, the Landlord reserves the right to do anything the Landlord believes necessary or desirable in relation to any of the following: |
2.4.1 | maintaining, repairing or upgrading the Building: | |
2.4.2 | providing or maintaining any Service to any part of the Building; | |
2.4.3 | complying with any Law; | |
2.4.4 | using the exterior of the Premises for signs; | |
2.4.5 | creating any easement or other right through or around the Premises; or | |
2.4.6 | subdividing the Building. |
2.5 | The Landlord may enter the Premises at any reasonable time in order to exercise its right under clause 2.4. |
2.6 | Except in an emergency, the Landlord must give the Tenant reasonable notice before exercising that right. |
2.7 | The Landlord must exercise that right at a reasonable time and in a way which minimises any interference with the Tenant’s occupation and use of the Premises. |
2.8 | If, despite the Landlord giving reasonable notice to the Tenant under clause 2.6, the Tenant refuses or fails to provide the Landlord with access to the Premises, the Landlord may engage a locksmith (at the Tenant’s cost) to gain entry to the Premises. |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
2.9 | The Landlord’s action under clause 2.8 is without prejudice to any of the Landlord’s rights under this Lease. |
The Tenant’s duty to pay Rent
2.10 | The Tenant must pay the Landlord the Rent. |
2.11 | The Landlord is entitled to adjust or review the Rent on the dates stated in Item 4 of the Reference Schedule in accordance with Schedule 1. |
2.12 | The Tenant must pay the Rent monthly in advance on the first day of each month. |
2.13 | If the Lease does not begin on the first day of a month, the Tenant must pay the pro rata proportion of the Rent for the period at the beginning and end of the Lease that is less than a month. |
3 | Other payments to be made |
Rates and Taxes
3.1 | The Tenant must pay Rates and Taxes. |
3.2 | If the Rates and Taxes are assessed directly against the Tenant or the Premises, the Tenant must pay them by the due date for payment. |
3.3 | At the beginning and end of the Lease, the Tenant must pay the daily pro rata proportion of the Rates and Taxes for any period that is less than the full rates or tax period. |
3.4 | The Tenant must give the Landlord copies of assessments and receipts in respect of the Rates and Taxes if the Landlord asks for them. |
3.5 | If the Rates and Taxes are assessed directly against the Landlord, then, at the Landlord’s election, either of the following applies: |
3.5.1 | the Rates and Taxes will be included in the Operating Costs which the Tenant must contribute to; or | |
3.5.2 | the Tenant must pay to the Landlord a proportion of the Rates and Taxes (being the same proportion that the Lettable Area of the Premises is of the Lettable Area of the Building). This proportion will increase or decrease automatically with changes in the Lettable Area of the Building. |
3.6 | The Landlord must pay any rates, taxes and charges in respect of the Land that the Tenant and other Tenants do not have to pay. |
Services charges
3.7 | The Tenant must pay the charges for the Services. |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
3.8 | If the Landlord elects to supply the Services to the Tenant each, of the following applies: |
3.8.1 | the amount which the Landlord charges to the Tenant: |
(a) | may not be the same as that which is charged by the Service supplier to the Landlord; | |
(b) | must not exceed the amount which would have been payable by the Tenant if the Tenant had purchased the Service direct from the Service supplier on a single consumer basis (but cannot be less than the amount paid by the Landlord to the Service supplier for that Service); and | |
(c) | must not exceed that which the Law allows to be charged to the Tenant by the Landlord. |
The Landlord’s Operating Costs
3.9 | The Tenant must pay the Landlord the Tenant’s share of the Operating Costs. This will be based on the proportion that the Lettable Area of the Premises bears to the Lettable Area of the Building. The proportion at the commencement of this Lease may be set out in Item 5 of the Reference Schedule. It will increase or decrease automatically with changes in the Lettable Area of the Building. |
3.10 | Before the start of each Financial Year, the Landlord may give the Tenant a written estimate of the Operating Costs. If the Landlord does this, the Tenant must pay the Landlord the Tenant’s share of that estimate by monthly instalments in advance on the dates for payment of Rent. |
3.11 | If the Tenant pays its share of the Operating Costs by monthly instalments, as soon as practicable after the end of each Financial Year, the Landlord will give the Tenant details of the Landlord’s actual Operating Costs. The Tenant must pay the Landlord any shortfall between what the Tenant has paid and what is due on the basis of the Landlord’s actual costs. If the Tenant has overpaid, the Landlord must pay the Tenant the amount overpaid, or credit it against the Tenant’s next payment. |
Costs of this Lease
3.12 | The Tenant must pay: |
3.12.1 | the Landlord’s reasonable costs for the negotiation, preparation and completion of this Lease; and | |
3.12.2 | any charges, duties and taxes (except income tax) that are payable by either the Landlord or the Tenant in respect of each of: |
(a) | this Lease; | |
(b) | the registration of this Lease on the title to the Land; and | |
(c) | any payment made under this Lease. |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
Costs of insurance
3.13 | The Tenant: |
3.13.1 | must pay the premiums associated with the insurance policies referred to in clause 7.2; and |
3.13.2 | is responsible for any excess payable on any claim for indemnity made on its behalf under any of the insurance policies referred to in clause 7.2. |
Subdivision levies
3.14 | If the Landlord subdivides the Building, and creates a strata company within the meaning of the Strata Titles Act 1985 (WA), the Tenant must, at the Landlord’s option, pay or reimburse the Landlord for a levy by the strata company, to the extent that it is not recoverable as an Operating Cost. |
4 | Bank guarantee |
4.1 | If Item 6(a) provides for a bank guarantee, on or before the Commencement Date, the Tenant must give the Landlord an unconditional bank guarantee: |
4.1.1 | for the amount in Item 6(b) of the Reference Table; and |
4.1.2 | on terms and conditions acceptable to the Landlord including a condition that the bank guarantee have no expiry date. |
4.2 | Where the Rent and Operating Costs increase over the Term, the amount of the bank guarantee shall increase in the same proportion. The Tenant must at each rent review date, or as soon as practicable thereafter, provide to the Landlord: |
4.2.1 | a new replacement bank guarantee for the amount specified in Item 6(b) plus the amount of any increase; or |
4.2.2 | a further bank guarantee for the amount of any increase. |
Any replacement or further bank guarantee provided pursuant to this clause 4.2 must be in accordance with the requirements of clause 4.1.
4.3 | The Landlord may present the bank guarantee to recover the Landlord’s loss due to the Tenant’s breach. The Tenant must promptly replace the bank guarantee if it is presented. On or before the date which is six months after the date on which this Lease ends and provided that the Tenant has: |
4.3.1 | vacated the Premises; and |
4.3.2 | complied with all of the Tenant’s obligations under this Lease, | |
the Landlord must return the bank guarantee to the Tenant unless it is needed to recover the Landlord’s loss. |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
4.4 | If the Landlord sells the Premises, the Tenant must do whatever is necessary on the Tenant’s part to give the new owner the benefit of the bank guarantee and together with the Guarantor must, if requested by the Landlord, sign a deed of covenant agreeing to continue to be bound by the terms of the Lease on and from the change of ownership of the Land. |
5 | GST |
Amounts otherwise payable do not include GST
5.1 | Subject to: |
5.1.1 | express provision to the contrary; and |
5.1.2 | this clause, |
the Consideration payable by the Tenant is exclusive of GST and represents the Value of the Taxable Supply for which payment is to be made.
Liability to pay GST
5.2 | If the Landlord is liable by Law for GST on a Primary Payment, the Tenant must pay to the Landlord the amount of the GST. |
Time for payment
5.3 | The Tenant must pay to the Landlord any amount in respect of GST that the Tenant is required to pay under this Lease at the same time and in the same manner, as the Tenant is required to pay the Primary Payment in respect of which the GST relates. |
Tax Invoices
5.4 | The Landlord must issue to the Tenant Tax Invoices in respect of Primary Payments as and when required by the GST Act. |
Refunds
5.5 | If the Landlord refunds to the Tenant an amount under this Lease, the Landlord must also refund to the Tenant at the same time any amount paid by the Tenant under clause 5.3 with respect to the refunded amount. |
Exclusion of Input Tax Credit items
5.6 | For the purposes of this clause 5, a Primary Payment excludes any outgoing or other expense to the extent that the Landlord is entitled to an Input Tax Credit for the outgoing or expense. |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
Default GST
5.7 | Where an amount required to be paid by the Tenant under this clause 5 is not so paid when due, the Tenant must also pay to the Landlord: |
5.7.1 | any Default GST payable by the Landlord in relation to the particular Taxable Supply for which the amount was required to be paid; and |
5.7.2 | interest at the rate specified in Item 11 of the Reference Schedule on the amount unpaid from the due date for payment until payment. |
5.8 | For the purposes of clause 5, it shall not be a defence to a claim against the Tenant for payment to the Landlord of Default GST that the Landlord has failed to mitigate the Landlord’s damages by paying an amount of GST when it fell due under the GST Act. |
6 | Premises |
The Tenant’s right to have access to Premises
6.1 | The Tenant may have access to the Premises at any time. However, the Tenant must comply with the Landlord’s security arrangements and the terms of any easements burdening the Land. |
6.2 | If the Tenant requires access after the normal business hours of the Building, the Tenant must reimburse the Landlord for any additional costs the Landlord reasonably incurs in relation to providing that access. |
6.3 | If it is necessary to prevent a right of way being created by law, the Landlord may close access to the Premises for a period of 24 hours once a year. However, the Landlord must use its best endeavours to exercise that right in a way which the Landlord believes will cause the Tenant as little inconvenience as possible. |
The Tenant’s right to use Common Areas
6.4 | The Tenant may use the Common Areas in the Building for the purpose for which they were designed provided that the Tenant: |
6.4.1 | ensures that any use of those areas by the Tenant, the Tenant’s employees, agents, contractors or customers is lawful; and |
6.4.2 | complies, and uses its best endeavours to make sure that its employees, agents, contractors and customers comply, with any rules the Landlord has made or makes in relation to the use of those areas. |
The Tenant’s right to use Services
6.5 | The Tenant is entitled to use the Services that are supplied to the Premises and the Common Areas. |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
6.6 | The Tenant must not interfere with the Services, except where it is necessary to effect routine maintenance to the Services pursuant to a maintenance contract that has received the prior written approval of the Landlord. |
6.7 | Except to the extent directly attributable to the Landlord, the Landlord is not responsible in any way if a Service fails (wholly or partially). |
Adequacy of Services
6.8 | The Tenant acknowledges that the Services are adequate for its use of the Premises under this Lease. |
6.9 | The Landlord is not responsible in any way if a Service is inadequate for the Tenant’s use of the Premises under this Lease. |
After hours air-conditioning
6.10 | If the Tenant wants the Landlord to provide air-conditioning outside the hours stated in Item 7 of the Reference Schedule, the Tenant must ask the Landlord. The Tenant must pay separately for it. The Landlord will tell the Tenant the cost when the Tenant asks the Landlord to supply it. If the Landlord gives the Tenant a blanket consent, the Landlord can change the cost, but only after telling the Tenant. |
Purpose of use of Premises
6.11 | The Tenant must use the Premises only for the purpose stated in Item 8 of the Reference Schedule. |
6.12 | The Landlord makes no promise or representation that the Premises are fit for that purpose. |
6.13 | The Tenant must do everything necessary for the Tenant to use the Premises lawfully. |
Conduct of the business
6.14 | The Tenant must conduct the Tenant’s business on the Premises in accordance with best practice for that type of business. |
6.15 | The Tenant must not do anything to or on the Premises, or allow anything to be done to or on the Premises which, in the Landlord’s reasonable opinion: |
6.15.1 | detracts from their appearance or value; |
6.15.2 | might detract from the value of the Building or the income derived from it; |
6.15.3 | is dangerous to people or property; |
6.15.4 | overloads any part of the Premises or any of the Services; |
6.15.5 | interferes with anyone’s use or enjoyment of the Building or any other property; or |
6.15.6 | is unlawful. |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
Storage of chemical and hazardous things
6.16 | The Tenant must not store any chemical or hazardous thing on the Premises except to the extent that it is necessary for the conduct of the type of business stated in Item 8 of the Reference Schedule. |
The Tenant’s duty in relation to events and risk
6.17 | The Tenant must immediately notify the Landlord in writing if: |
6.17.1 | any damage or injury is caused by the condition of the Premises; or |
6.17.2 | the Tenant becomes aware of anything that may be dangerous to people or property. |
6.18 | The Tenant must do everything reasonable to remove the danger. |
The Tenant’s duties in relation to serious infectious disease
6.19 | The Tenant must immediately tell the Landlord, and the relevant Authorities, in writing if the Tenant becomes aware that a serious infectious disease is or has been on the Premises. |
6.20 | If the disease results from anything the Tenant has done or not done, the Tenant must do everything necessary to remove the cause, to the satisfaction of: |
6.20.1 | the Landlord (acting reasonably); and |
6.20.2 | all relevant Authorities. |
6.21 | if the Landlord has to do anything to remove the cause from the rest of the Building, the Tenant must reimburse the Landlord for the cost of doing so. |
The Tenant’s duty to maintain Premises
6.22 | The Tenant must keep the Premises and the Landlord’s property in the Premises in good and tenantable repair and in good working order and condition to the Landlord’s reasonable satisfaction. |
6.23 | The obligation in clause 6.22 does not apply to: |
6.23.1 | fair wear and tear; | |
6.23.2 | structural damage not caused by the Tenant or anyone the Tenant is responsible for; or | |
6.23.3 | damage that is not caused by the Tenant or anyone the Tenant is responsible for, and against which the Landlord is required to insure under this Lease. |
6.24 | Despite the previous clause, the Tenant must replace light bulbs, tubes, starters and power points within the Premises that wear out. |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
The Tenant’s duty in relation to the Tenant’s Property
6.25 | The Tenant is responsible for the repair or replacement of any part of the Tenant’s Property which wears out or becomes dilapidated. |
6.26 | If the Tenant replaces anything under clause 6.25, it must be with something of equivalent quality to the original. |
The Tenant’s duty to clean
6.27 | The Tenant must keep the Premises clean and free of vermin and insects. |
6.28 | If the Landlord engages cleaning contractors for the whole Building, the Tenant must allow them to clean the Premises. |
6.29 | The Tenant must also remove rubbish from the Premises regularly and make sure that none of the Tenant’s rubbish is left anywhere in the Building except at collection points the Landlord provides. |
The Tenant’s duty to redecorate Premises
6.30 | The Landlord is entitled to require the Tenant, at any time after the date stated in Item 9 of the Reference Schedule (in a proper manner, using suitable, good quality materials of a colour and quantity first approved by the Landlord) do each of the following: |
6.30.1 | paint with at least 2 coats those parts of the Premises usually painted; |
6.30.2 | paper all parts of the Premises usually papered; and |
6.30.3 | redecorate in any other fashion all parts of the Premises usually decorated. |
The Tenant’s duty to get consent for work
6.31 | The Tenant must get the Landlord’s written consent before any of the following occurs: |
6.31.1 | work is done to the Premises; |
6.31.2 | an application is made to an Authority for approval for work to the Premises; or |
6.31.3 | a contractor is engaged to do work to the Premises. |
6.32 | If the Tenant’s proposed work affects the structure of the Building or the Services to it, the Landlord may withhold consent at its absolute discretion. In other cases, the Landlord must not withhold consent unreasonably. |
6.33 | The Landlord will require each contractor engaged to carry out any of the work to the Premises to have insurance to cover all risks associated with that work. |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
Standard of work
6.34 | Any work the Tenant does to the Premises at any time must be done to the Landlord’s reasonable satisfaction by the contractors the Landlord has approved (acting reasonably). |
The Tenant must give the Landlord evidence of completion
6.35 | When the work is complete, the Tenant must give the Landlord, at the Tenant’s expense: |
6.35.1 | each certificate of compliance or statement of satisfactory completion that is required by each relevant Authority; and |
6.35.2 | a certificate issued by each consultant approved by the Landlord that the work has been carried out satisfactorily. |
The Tenant must pay the Landlord’s costs in relation to work
6.36 | Notwithstanding clause 6.34, the Tenant must pay for any costs the Landlord reasonably incurs because: |
6.36.1 | the Tenant asks for the Landlord’s permission to do work; |
6.36.2 | work by the Tenant is not done properly; or |
6.36.3 | the Landlord does work (to the Premises, the Building, any equipment in it, or any of its Services) because of work the Tenant has done or proposes to do. |
Signs |
6.37 | The Tenant cannot do, or allow to be done, any of the following without the Landlord’s prior written consent: |
6.37.1 | erect any signs, notices or advertisements on the external walls or in any of the windows of the Premises; |
6.37.2 | erect any signs, notices or advertisements within the Premises which are visible from outside the Premises; or |
6.37.3 | install either temporarily or permanently any flashing or moving lights or signs on the external walls or in any of the windows of the Premises. |
6.38 | The Tenant must ensure that any sign, notice or advertisement complies with the requirements of any relevant Authority. |
The Tenant must comply with Laws
6.39 | The Tenant must (at its cost) comply with any Law that: |
6.39.1 | affects this Lease; or |
6.39.2 | relates to the Tenant’s occupation or use of the Premises. |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
6.40 | The Tenant must tell the Landlord immediately when the Tenant becomes aware of any such Law. |
6.41 | Nothing in clause 6.39 requires the Tenant to perform any structural work or to install additional Services, unless such work or additional Services are required because of the Tenant’s particular use of the Premises. |
Occupational Safety and Health
6.42 | The Tenant agrees that: |
6.42.1 | for the purposes of the Occupational Safety and Health Act 1984 (WA), it has control of the Premises; and |
6.42.2 | it will comply with the provisions of that Act which must be complied with by a person having control of the Premises. |
Tenant must comply with rules relating to the Building
6.43 | The Tenant must comply with any rules the Landlord makes in relation to access and use of the Premises. The Tenant must also comply with any rules the Landlord has made or makes in relation to access to and use of the Building. The rules must not unreasonably affect the Tenant’s rights. |
The Tenant’s duty in relation to a subdivision
6.44 | The Tenant must consent to a subdivision of the Building if the Landlord asks the Tenant to. If the Landlord subdivides the Building and creates a strata company within the meaning of the Strata Titles Act 1985 (WA), the Tenant must comply with any Law or requirement that becomes applicable. |
The Landlord’s right to inspect Premises
6.45 | The Landlord: |
6.45.1 | may inspect the Premises at any reasonable time; and |
6.45.2 | must give the Tenant reasonable notice prior to making that inspection, except in an emergency (when no notice is required). |
Inspection by prospective tenants or purchasers
6.46 | The Landlord may, after giving reasonable notice to the Tenant, do each of the following: |
6.46.1 | enter the Premises to allow prospective tenants or purchasers to inspect them; |
6.46.2 | in order to relet the Premises, within three months before the expiration of the Term, put signs outside the Premises with information indicating the availability of the Premises for lease; or |
6.46.3 | at any time, put a sign outside the Premises with information indicating that the Premises are for sale. |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
7 | Liability, insurance and indemnity |
Exclusion of liability
7.1 | The Landlord is not liable for any damage or loss to any property, or injury to any person, no matter how it happens, except to the extent that the Landlord (or someone the Landlord is responsible for) causes that damage, loss or injury. |
The Tenant’s duty to arrange insurance
7.2 | The Tenant must arrange and maintain insurance on usual terms with an insurer authorised under the insurance Act 1973 (Cth) against each of the following: |
7.2.1 | public liability in respect of the Premises; | |
7.2.2 | damage to, and loss of, internal and external glass (including plate glass), doors, display cases, fittings, chattels, the Landlord’s Fixtures and the Tenant’s Property, that are on or in the Premises; and | |
7.2.3 | employer’s liability in respect of the Tenant’s employees (including workers’ compensation insurance). |
7.3 | The Tenant must: |
7.3.1 | arrange for the insurance to commence from the beginning of the Lease; | |
7.3.2 | maintain that insurance for the Term and any additional period during which the Tenant uses the Premises; and | |
7.3.3 | on or before the earlier to occur of the: |
(a) | Commencement Date; or | |
(b) | the date the Tenant is given access to or possession of the Premises, |
give to the Landlord a copy of the insurance policy, certificate of currency or receipt in respect of that insurance without delay when requested by the Landlord. |
Details of insurance cover
7.4 | The following applies to the insurance the Tenant must arrange and maintain: |
7.4.1 | the public liability insurance must be for at least $20 million or a higher amount the Landlord reasonably requires from time to time; | |
7.4.2 | the insurance against damage or loss must: |
(a) | be for at least the full replacement cost of the relevant property; |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
(b) | include cover against malicious acts by third parties; and | |
(c) | contain such other terms as are acceptable to the Landlord (acting reasonably). |
7.5 | The public liability insurance policy and the policy of insurance against damage to or loss of the property must be endorsed to note the interest of the Landlord in the Premises. |
The Landlord’s duty to insure
7.6 | The Landlord must make sure that the Building is kept insured on usual terms with an insurer authorised under the Insurance Act 1973 (Cth). The Landlord must also insure against public liability in relation to the Building and the Common Areas. |
The Tenant’s other obligations in relation to insurance
7.7 | The Tenant must not do, fail to do, or allow anything to be done or not done that might: |
7.7.1 | increase the cost of any insurance the Tenant or the Landlord arranges; or | |
7.7.2 | adversely affect the Tenant’s or the Landlord’s rights under any insurance the Tenant or the Landlord arranges. |
7.8 | The Tenant must pay the Landlord for any increase in the cost of any insurance the Landlord arranges which results from anything the Tenant does, fails to do, or allows to be done or not done. |
Indemnity
7.9 | The Tenant is responsible for, and must indemnify the Landlord against, any liability, loss, claim, damage, cost or expense arising out of its use or occupation of the Premises. |
7.10 | This does not apply to the extent caused or contributed to by the Landlord or anyone for whom the Landlord is responsible. |
8 | Damage and repairs |
The Tenant’s responsibilities
8.1 | The Tenant is responsible for all damage to the Premises, except to the extent that it is caused by the Landlord or anyone the Landlord is responsible for. |
8.2 | The Tenant is responsible for any damage to which the Tenant or anyone the Tenant is responsible for causes to the Building. |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
The Landlord’s responsibilities
8.3 | The Landlord is responsible for each of the following: |
8.3.1 | structural damage, except damage the Tenant is responsible for under the previous clause; | |
8.3.2 | items of a capital nature; and | |
8.3.3 | damage caused by the Landlord or by the Landlord’s employees, agents or contractors. |
The Landlord’s duty to fix damage
8.4 | The Landlord must repair damage that the Landlord is responsible for under the previous clause unless the Landlord reasonably believes it is impracticable or undesirable to do so. |
Effect of major damage on Lease
8.5 | If the Premises or the Building are damaged to such an extent that the Tenant is completely unable to use the Premises or to get access to them, the Landlord must notify the Tenant in writing within a reasonable time of what the Landlord intends to do. |
8.6 | If the Landlord is responsible for the damage under clause 8.5, the following rules apply: |
8.6.1 | If the Landlord notifies the Tenant that the Landlord does not intend to repair the damage, the Lease ends on the day the Landlord states in the notice. It must be at least 30 days after the date the Landlord gives the Tenant the notice. | |
8.6.2 | If: |
(a) | the Landlord does not give the Tenant the notice within a reasonable time; or | |
(b) | the Landlord notifies the Tenant that the Landlord intends to repair the damage but fails to do so within a reasonable time, |
the Tenant may end the Lease by giving the Landlord at least 30 days written notice. |
8.7 | If: |
8.7.1 | the Landlord is not responsible for the damage under clause 8.5; and | |
8.7.2 | it is apparent that the Tenant will be completely unable to use the Premises for at least 6 months, |
either the Landlord or the Tenant may end this Lease by giving the other 30 days written notice. |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
8.8 | Notwithstanding any other provision of this Lease, the Tenant is not entitled to end this Lease if the Landlord is unable to recover from its insurer because of something the Tenant, or someone the Tenant is responsible for, did or failed to do. |
Effect of major damage on Rent
8.9 | If the Premises or the Building are damaged in such a way that the Tenant is completely unable to use the Premises or to get access to them, the Tenant does not have to pay Rent until the Tenant is able to use the Premises again. |
8.10 | Clause 8.9 does not apply if: |
8.10.1 | the Tenant is responsible for the damage under clause 8.9; or | |
8.10.2 | the Landlord loses the benefit of the Landlord’s insurance because of something the Tenant or someone the Tenant is responsible for did or failed to do. |
8.11 | The Tenant will have to pay a proportion of the Rent if, despite damage to the Building or the Premises, the Tenant is able to use the Premises to some extent. |
8.12 | The Landlord will set the proportion according to the effect the damage has on the Tenant’s ability to use the Premises. |
Dispute about application of clauses 8.11 and 8.12
8.13 | If a dispute arises in relation to the application of clauses 8.11 and 8.12, a member of the Australian Property Institute (or a successor), chosen by the President of the State or Territory Division, will decide it. |
8.14 | He or she will do so as an expert, not as an arbitrator. |
8.15 | Either the Landlord or the Tenant may ask the President to choose a member. |
8.16 | The Tenant and the Landlord must pay their own costs, and pay half each of the cost of the member. |
8.17 | Until the dispute is resolved, the Tenant must continue to pay the proportion of rent the Landlord has set. |
9 | Environmental matters |
Environmental Rating
9.1 | The Tenant must do what is reasonably necessary or reasonably desirable, at the direction of the Landlord, to assist the Landlord to: |
9.1.1 | maintain any Environmental Rating that applies to the Building; or |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
9.1.2 | if requested by the Landlord, obtain an Environmental Rating in respect of the Building. |
9.2 | The Tenant’s obligations under clause 9.1 include complying with any reasonable directions of the Landlord relating to: |
9.2.1 | waste and recycling management; | |
9.2.2 | indoor air quality guidelines; | |
9.2.3 | energy use guidelines; | |
9.2.4 | water use guidelines; and | |
9.2.5 | emission guidelines. |
9.3 | The Tenant must not do anything which may: |
9.3.1 | have a negative impact on the Building’s Environmental Rating; or | |
9.3.2 | prejudice the Landlord’s ability to obtain an Environmental Rating for the Building. |
9.4 | The Tenant will cooperate with the Landlord to enable the Landlord to maintain and improve the environmental performance of the Building. |
Greenhouse gas emissions and energy reporting
9.5 | Despite any other provision of this Lease, the Tenant must introduce and implement all: |
9.5.1 | operating policies; | |
9.5.2 | health and safety policies; and | |
9.5.3 | environmental policies, |
relating to the Premises. |
9.6 | The Tenant must comply with all reporting obligations imposed on the Tenant by the Sustainability Legislation relating to the Premises. |
9.7 | The Tenant must cooperate with the Landlord to enable the Landlord to comply with the Lessor’s obligations under the Sustainability Legislation including: |
9.7.1 | keeping accurate records and making available to the Landlord all Energy Information and operating, health, safety and environmental policies relating to the Tenant’s use and occupation of the Premises; | |
9.7.2 | providing all information, Energy Information and records that the Landlord reasonably requires the Tenant to provide to assist the Landlord to comply with its obligations under the Sustainability Legislation; and |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
9.7.3 | providing the Landlord with access to the Premises for the purpose of collecting the Energy Information or otherwise in connection with the Landlord’s obligations under the Sustainability Legislation. |
9.8 | The Landlord has the right to use the Tenant’s Energy Information, records and information obtained under this clause 9: |
9.8.1 | as required by Law; and | |
9.8.2 | in any way the Landlord chooses provided the identity of the Tenant is not disclosed if the Tenant requests the Landlord to keep the Tenant’s identity confidential. |
10 | Extension of this Lease |
The Tenant’s right to an extension
10.1 | Subject to clause 10.2, the Tenant only has the right to extend this Lease if an extension period is stated in Item 10 of the Reference Schedule. |
10.2 | The Tenant does not have the right to extend this Lease if any of the following applies: |
10.2.1 | the Landlord has given the Tenant notice of a breach and the Tenant is still in breach when the Tenant gives the Landlord the extension notice or when this Lease ends; | |
10.2.2 | the Tenant has been frequently in breach during the period of this Lease and the Landlord has given the Tenant notice of those breaches; or | |
10.2.3 | this Lease has ended. |
How the Tenant may exercise its option to extend
10.3 | To exercise the right of extension, the Tenant must give the Landlord notice in writing between 6 and 3 months before this Lease is due to end that it wishes to extend this Lease. |
Loss of right to extend
10.4 | If: |
10.4.1 | the Tenant gives the notice referred to in clause 10.3 but between the date of the notice and the last day of the Term: |
(a) | the Tenant breaches another obligation and it is not remedied or waived; or | |
(b) | any of the events in clause 15.8 occurs, |
the Tenant will lose its right to extend this Lease. |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
Terms applicable to extension
10.5 | The extension of lease will be: |
10.5.1 | for the period stated in Item 10 of the Reference Schedule; and | |
10.5.2 | on the same conditions as this Lease except that: |
(a) | the extension will commence on the day after this Lease ends; | |
(b) | the Rent for the extension will be calculated in the way set out in Item 10 of the Reference Schedule; | |
(c) | the extension will not include any further right of extension (except any right stated in Item 10 of the Reference Schedule); and | |
(d) | if Item 10 of the Reference Schedule creates a right to more than one extension period, the extension will not include the earlier of those rights. |
Documentation
10.6 | The Tenant and Guarantor must (at the Tenant’s cost) promptly sign a deed of extension, to be prepared by the Landlord’s solicitors, when requested to do so by the Landlord. |
11 | Holding Over |
11.1 | If the Tenant, with the Landlord’s consent, continues to occupy the Premises after the expiration of the Term, the Tenant is a monthly tenant of the Premises and: |
11.1.1 | the monthly tenancy may be terminated by the Tenant or the Landlord giving to the other at least one month’s written notice which may expire on any day; | |
11.1.2 | the monthly Rent is the same as the Rent payable immediately before the end of the Term; and | |
11.1.3 | all the other provisions of this Lease apply to the monthly tenancy, except any right to extend this Lease, insofar as they are consistent with a monthly tenancy. |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
12 | Assignment and subletting |
No interest to be created without consent
12.1 | Subject to clause 12.2, the Tenant must not: |
12.1.1 | assign this Lease; | |
12.1.2 | create in favour of any person an interest in this Lease or the Premises; or | |
12.1.3 | allow any person to use or occupy the Premises, |
without the Landlord’s consent. |
Requirements for assignment and subletting
12.2 | The Tenant may assign the Lease or sublet the Premises if each of the following is done: |
12.2.1 | at least 21 days before the date of the proposed change in the occupation of the Premises, the Tenant: |
(a) | applies for the Landlord’s consent; | |
(b) | supplies to the Landlord evidence reasonably acceptable to the Landlord that the proposed assignee or sub-tenant is: |
(i) | experienced in and of good reputation in relation to conducting a business permitted by this Lease; and | |
(ii) | financially able to conduct that business; and |
(c) | the Landlord consents to the assignment or sub-lease; |
12.2.2 | the Tenant delivers to the Landlord, before the date of the proposed change in possession, a completed agreement (or deed), in a form prepared, or approved, by the Landlord’s solicitors, by which: |
(a) | the proposed assignee or sub-tenant agrees with the Landlord to be bound by this Lease as and from the date that the assignment or sub-lease takes effect; and | |
(b) | any guarantor required under clause 12.2.5 gives to the Landlord a guarantee and indemnity in the terms of that clause in respect of the liability of the assignee or sub-tenant; |
12.2.3 | the Tenant is either not in breach of this Lease, has remedied any outstanding breach, or the Landlord has waived any such breach; |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
12.2.4 | the Tenant pays to the Landlord on demand the Landlord’s costs and expenses (including legal costs on a full indemnity basis): | ||
(a) | incurred in making enquiries to satisfy itself concerning the matters specified in clause 12.2.1(b); and | ||
(b) | in connection with the preparation and completion of the assignment or sub-lease and any other documents; | ||
12.2.5 | if requested by the Landlord, the Tenant arranges for the proposed assignee or sub-tenant to obtain from a bank or other person acceptable to the Landlord a guarantee of the obligations under this Lease to be assumed by the proposed assignee or sub-tenant; and | ||
12.2.6 | in the case of an assignment, the Tenant has withdrawn any caveat lodged by it in respect of its interest in the Premises. |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
13.3.3 |
the Tenant gives the Landlord any information the Landlord reasonably requires about the change in interest or control;
|
|
13.3.4 |
any guarantee or other security the Landlord reasonably requires is provided; and
|
|
13.3.5 |
the Tenant pays the Landlord any costs the Landlord reasonably incurs In relation to the change. |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
14.2.5 | retire as trustee of the trust, permit the appointment of another trustee or allow the trust deed to be varied; or | ||
14.2.6 | blend or mix the trust’s assets. | ||
14.3 | The Tenant acknowledges and agrees that this Lease will bind it both personally and in its capacity as trustee. |
15 | Breach of this Lease |
The Landlord’s right to require the Tenant to correct breach | |
15.1 | If the Tenant breaches an obligation under this Lease, the Landlord may give the Tenant a notice that the Tenant is in breach, and require the Tenant to correct it within a time specified in the notice. |
15.2 | If the Tenant fails to remedy the breach, the Landlord may do anything that the Landlord reasonably believes is necessary or desirable to correct it. |
15.3 | The Tenant must reimburse the Landlord for any costs the Landlord incurs in correcting the breach. |
15.4 | Nothing in clauses 15.1-15.3 affects any other right of the Landlord in respect of that breach. |
Damages in case of breach | ||
15.5 | The Tenant must: | |
15.5.1 | reimburse the Landlord for any costs the Landlord incurs as a result of any breach of this Lease by the Tenant; and | |
15.5.2 | pay damages to the Landlord for any loss the Landlord suffers as a result of a breach of this Lease by the Tenant. | |
Landlord’s right to terminate | ||
15.6 | Subject to clause 15.7, if the Tenant breaches an obligation under this Lease, the Landlord may terminate this Lease by: | |
15.6.1 | re-entering the Premises without notice; or | |
15.6.2 | written notice to the Tenant. |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
17 | Notices |
Form and delivery
17.1 | A notice, consent, information or request that must or may be given or made to a party under this Lease is only given or made if it is: |
17.1.1 | delivered or posted to that party at the address stated in Item 1 of the Reference Schedule; | |
17.1.2 | faxed to that party at the fax number stated in Item 1 of the Reference Schedule; or | |
17.1.3 | emailed to that person at the email address stated in Item 1 of the Reference Schedule, |
or to such other address, fax number or email (as the case may be) that has been notified by that party to the other parties in writing, from time to time.
Execution of emails
17.2 | If notice is given by email, the sending party must ensure that it is either signed by means of an electronically produced signature of a person authorised by that party to send the email or states that it is being sent by a person authorised to send the email on behalf of that person. |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
Receipt and effect
17.3 | A notice, consent, information or request is to be treated as given or made at the following time if it is: |
17.3.1 | delivered, when it is left at the relevant address; | |
17.3.2 | sent by post, 3 Business Days after it is posted; | |
17.3.3 | sent by fax, as soon as the sender receives from the sender’s fax machine a report of an error free transmission to the correct fax number; or | |
17.3.4 | sent by email, as soon as it enters the recipient’s information system. |
17.4 | If: |
17.4.1 | a notice, consent, information or request is delivered; | |
17.4.2 | an error free transmission report in relation to a fax of a notice, consent, information or request is received; or | |
17.4.3 | the email enters the recipient’s information system, |
after the normal business hours of the party to whom it is delivered or sent, it is to be treated as having been given or made at 9.00 am the next Business Day.
18 | Caveat |
18.1 | The Tenant must not lodge an absolute caveat over the title of the Land to protect its interest under this Lease. |
18.2 | The Tenant must immediately withdraw any caveat lodged by it, or on its behalf, over the title of the Land under this Lease when this Lease ends or is ended. |
19 | Power of attorney |
19.1 | The Tenant, for valuable consideration, irrevocably appoints the Landlord and every manager, director and secretary of the Landlord (all jointly and severally) the Tenant’s attorney for the purpose of: |
19.1.1 | withdrawing any caveat which the Tenant is required to withdraw or which it lodges in breach of the preceding clause; | |
19.1.2 | if this Lease is registered, surrendering this Lease after the termination of this Lease; and |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
19.1.3 | signing any necessary withdrawal of caveat or surrender of lease. |
19.2 | The Landlord may register this deed as a power of attorney at any time even after the termination of this deed, if that is required for the exercise of any power. |
19.3 | The Tenant ratifies and confirms any power when exercised by the Landlord under this clause, as attorney and agent for the Tenant. |
19.4 | A statutory declaration of an officer of the Landlord concerning the circumstances in which the Landlord exercised this power will be conclusive evidence for the purpose of registration of any document. |
20 | WAPC consent |
20.1 | If for any reason this Lease requires by law the consent of the Western Australian Planning Commission, this Lease is made expressly subject to, and conditional upon the granting of consent of the Western Australian Planning Commission. |
21 | Retail Shops Act |
21.1 | If: |
21.1.1 | at any time the Commercial Tenancy (Retail Shops) Agreements Act 1985 (WA) applies to this Lease; and | |
21.1.2 | a provision of that Act conflicts with and prevails over a provision of this Lease, |
each conflicting provision of this Lease is deemed to be amended to the extent necessary to comply with that Act.
22 | Special conditions |
22.1 | The special conditions specified in Schedule 2 are incorporated into, and form part of, this Lease. |
22.2 | To the extent of an inconsistency between a special condition and another term of this Lease, the special condition will prevail. |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
23 | Guarantee and indemnity of the Tenant’s obligations under this Lease |
Guarantor’s main obligations
23.1 | The Guarantor: |
23.1.1 | guarantees that the Tenant will do everything that the Tenant is required to do under this Lease; and | |
23.1.2 | will separately continually indemnify the Landlord against any loss that the Landlord suffers because the Tenant fails to comply with this Lease. |
23.2 | The Guarantor is liable under this guarantee and indemnity even if one or more of the following happens: |
23.2.1 | the Landlord does not enforce this Lease against the Tenant or the Landlord delays in enforcing it; | |
23.2.2 | the Landlord does, or fails to do, something else which, under the law in relation to guarantees and indemnities, would have affected the Guarantor’s liability; | |
23.2.3 | the Rent is changed in accordance with the provisions governing rent review; | |
23.2.4 | this Lease is varied, extended or assigned without the consent of the Guarantor, | |
23.2.5 | the Landlord does not obtain a guarantee, indemnity or security which it was agreed or contemplated the Landlord would obtain; | |
23.2.6 | The Landlord fails to give a notice the Landlord is required to give the Tenant or the Guarantor; | |
23.2.7 | the Landlord is unable to enforce this Lease against the Tenant; | |
23.2.8 | anyone else, including another guarantor, does not sign this Lease or is released from it or from this guarantee; and | |
23.2.9 | this Lease is not effective as a Lease or has ended. |
23.3 | If the Guarantor is more than one person: |
23.3.1 | each of them is liable individually under this guarantee and indemnity; and | |
23.3.2 | each of them is also liable jointly with any one or more of the others. |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
Guarantor’s other obligations
23.4 | The Guarantor must not do any of the following without the Landlord’s consent: |
23.4.1 | raise a set-off or counterclaim available to it or the Tenant against the Landlord to reduce the Guarantor’s liability under this guarantee and indemnity; | |
23.4.2 | take security from the Tenant for performance of the Tenant’s obligation to indemnify the guarantor against any liability the Guarantor incurs under this guarantee and indemnity; | |
23.4.3 | claim to be entitled in any way (including by contribution, indemnity, subrogation and marshalling) to the benefit of a security or guarantee the Landlord holds in connection with this Lease; | |
23.4.4 | make a claim or enforce a right against the Tenant or any property of the Tenant; or | |
23.4.5 | prove in competition with the Landlord if a liquidator, provisional liquidator, receiver, administrator or trustee in bankruptcy is appointed in respect of the Tenant, or if the Tenant is unable to pay the Tenant’s debts as they fall due. |
Time for payment
23.5 | The Guarantor must pay any money the Landlord is entitled to under this guarantee and indemnity within 14 days after the Landlord makes a written demand. |
23.6 | The Guarantor must pay interest, calculated daily and compounded monthly, on any money that the Guarantor does not pay on lime. |
23.7 | The interest is payable on the amount outstanding from the day the money becomes due until it is paid. |
23.8 | The rate of interest is stated in Item 11 of the Reference Schedule. |
23.9 | If the Guarantor fails to comply with its obligations under any part of this clause 23, the Landlord may recover from the Guarantor any costs (including solicitor’s costs) it incurs by reason of the Guarantor’s breach. |
Persons benefited by guarantee and indemnity
23.10 | Each of the following persons are also entitled to the benefit of the Landlord’s rights under this guarantee and indemnity: |
23.10.1 | the owner at the relevant time of the Premises; and | |
23.10.2 | a person entitled at the relevant time to Rent or other money payable by the Tenant under this Lease. |
23.11 | An assignment of the benefit of the Landlord’s rights under this guarantee and indemnity is not necessary. |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
23.12 | The Landlord does not have to give the Guarantor notice of any such assignment, unless that is required by Law. |
Guarantee and indemnity basis of entry into Lease
23.13 | The Landlord enters into this Lease on the basis of this guarantee and indemnity, and at the Guarantor’s request. |
24 | General |
No right to set off by Tenant
24.1 | The Tenant is not entitled to set off any amount the Landlord owes it (whether under this Lease or not) against any amount the Tenant owes the Landlord under this Lease. |
Time for payment
24.2 | Unless otherwise provided by this Lease, the Tenant and the Landlord must pay any amount due to the other within 14 days after being notified that the amount is due. |
Interest on overdue amounts
24.3 | The Tenant must pay interest, calculated daily and compounded monthly, on any money that the Tenant owes the Landlord but does not pay on time. The interest is payable on the amount outstanding from the day the money becomes due until it is paid. The rate of interest is stated in Item 11 of the Reference Schedule. |
Obligation in relation to employees, agents, contractors and others
24.4 | The Tenant must make sure that the Tenant’s employees, agents and contractors, and all other people on the Tenant’s Premises do not do or fail to do anything on the Premises which, if the Tenant did it or failed to do it, would be a breach of this Lease. |
Variation
24.5 | This Lease, including the schedules, can only be varied by the parties in writing, signed by all of the parties. |
Waiver
24.6 | The fact that a party fails to do, or delays in doing, something that party is entitled to do under this Lease does not amount to a waiver of that party’s right to do it. |
24.7 | A waiver by a party is only effective if it is in writing. |
24.8 | A written waiver by a party is: |
24.8.1 | only effective in relation to the particular obligation or breach in respect of which it is given; and |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
24.8.2 | is not to be taken as an implied waiver of: |
(a) | any other obligation or breach; or | |
(b) | that obligation or breach in relation to any other occasion. |
Entire agreement
24.9 | This Lease contains everything that the parties have agreed on in relation to the matters it deals with. No party can rely on an earlier document or anything said or done by another party (or a director, officer, agent or employee of that party) before this Lease was executed. |
Severability
24.10 | If: |
24.10.1 | a clause or part of a clause can be read in a way that makes it illegal, unenforceable or invalid, but can also be read in a way that makes it legal, enforceable and valid, it must be read in the latter way; | |
24.10.2 | any clause or part of a clause is illegal, unenforceable or invalid, that clause or part is to be treated as removed from this Lease, but the rest of this Lease is not affected; and | |
24.10.3 | the removal of a clause or part of a clause under clause 24.10.2 materially alters the commercial allocation of benefit and risk (or management of risk) under this Lease, the parties agree to negotiate in good faith to amend or modify the terms of the Lease as may be necessary or desirable having regard to the original terms of the bargain and the prevailing circumstances. |
Further co-operation
24.11 | Each party must do anything (including executing a document) another party reasonably requires in writing to give full effect to this Lease. |
Relationship of the parties
24.12 | This Lease does not create a partnership, agency, fiduciary or any other relationship, except the relationship of contracting parties, between the parties. |
24.13 | No party is liable for an act or omission of another party, except to the extent set out in this Lease. |
Governing law and jurisdiction
24.14 | This Lease is governed by the Law of the State of Western Australia. The parties submit to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of its courts. The parties will not object to the exercise of the jurisdiction by those courts on any basis. |
Execution of separate documents
24.15 | This Lease is properly executed if each party executes this document or an identical document. In the former case, this Lease takes effect when the last party executes this document. In the latter case, this Lease takes effect when the last of the identical documents is executed. |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
24.16 | Evidence of execution of this Lease by a party may be shown by fax, email or a PDF copy of this document. |
No merger
24.17 | The provisions of this Lease do not merge with any action performed or document executed by any party for the performance of this Lease. |
Third party rights
24.18 | A person who is not a party to this Lease does not have any rights under or in connection with it. |
Exclusion of contrary legislation
24.19 | To the full extent permitted by Law, any legislation that adversely affects a right, remedy or obligation of a party, under or relating to this Lease is excluded. |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
Schedule 1
Rent Review
Fixed Reviews of Rent
Definitions
Fixed Review Date | means each anniversary of the Commencement Date, with the exception of the third anniversary of the Commencement Date (being the anniversary occurring in 2024). |
Fixed Adjustment
On and from each Fixed Review Date, the Rent will be increased to the amount set out below next to the corresponding Fixed Review Date.
Date | Rent per annum (plus GST) | |||
First anniversary of the Commencement Date | $ | 70,000.00 | ||
Second anniversary of the Commencement Date | $ | 134,700.00 | ||
Fourth anniversary of the Commencement Date | $ | 138,741.00 |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
Schedule 2
Special conditions
1 | Condition Precedent - Surrender of Lease |
1.1 | In this special condition, Existing Lease means the lease dated 9 March 2020 between the Landlord as landlord and the Tenant as tenant (formerly known as Moboom Limited) of “Office 1”, Part Ground Floor, 246 Churchill Avenue, Subiaco for a term of three years commencing 1 April 2021. | |
1.2 | The grant of this Lease is subject to and conditional upon the Tenant executing and returning to the Landlord, on or before 30 November 2021 (or any later date as may be agreed between the parties), a surrender of the Existing Lease with an effective date of the day before the commencement date of this lease. |
2 | Condition Precedent - Change of Use |
2.1 | The grant of this Lease is subject to and conditional upon the Tenant obtaining approval from all required Authorities to a change of use in respect of the Premises from showroom to offices on or before 31 March 2022 (or any later date as may be agreed between the parties). | |
2.2 | The Tenant must use its best endeavours to satisfy the condition precedent in special condition 2.1 and must, if it obtains the required approval, promptly advise the Landlord. |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
4.1.2 | acknowledges and agrees that it has: | ||
(a) | undertaken its own due diligence and inspection of the Premises and is satisfied that the Premises is acceptable in its current form; and | ||
(b) | not relied on any representations or warranties made by the Landlord in relation to the Premises. |
5 | Car parking licence | |
Grant of parking licence | ||
5.1 | The Landlord grants to the Tenant an exclusive licence to use and occupy four (4) permanent tandem car parking bays on the western side of the car park on the Land as allocated by the Landlord from time to time (Car Parking Licence). |
(a) | are parked within the defined area of each of the car parking spaces; | |
(b) | are kept locked; |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
(c) | are not left with the engine running; | |
(d) | do not contain any inflammable liquid or gas except fuel normally used for the propulsion of the vehicle and stored in accordance with all laws in connection with the retention of fuel in a motor vehicle; | |
(e) | do not drip oil or any other deleterious substance on the floor of the car parking spaces or the Land; | |
(f) | any rubbish and debris accumulating upon the car parking spaces is regularly removed; and | |
(g) | that the car parking spaces and the driveways and the Land are kept clear and free from obstruction. |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
5.10 | The Tenant must at the end or sooner determination of the term of this Lease peaceably yield up to the Landlord the car parking spaces. |
Additional car parking spaces
5.11 | The Landlord will provide the Tenant, at no additional cost, the exclusive use of six (6) additional tandem car parking spaces on the western side of the car park on the Land from the Commencement Date until the date that is 2 years and 6 months after the Commencement Date (Additional Car Parking Licence Period) on the same terms set out in this special condition in relation to the licence of the permanent bays. | |
5.12 | On and from the expiry of the Additional Car Parking Licence Period, the Tenant will have an option to enter into a further licence in respect of the additional six (6) car parking spaces on the same terms set out in this special condition in relation to the licence of the permanent bays. | |
5.13 | If the Tenant exercises the option to enter into a licence in respect of the six (6) additional car parking spaces, the Tenant must commence paying a licence fee in relation to those car parking spaces on and from the day following the expiry of the Additional Car Parking Licence Period. The licence fee payable will be a market licence fee agreed between the parties or, failing agreement, as determined by a valuer appointed by the Landlord. | |
5.14 |
On the fourth anniversary of the Commencement Date the licence fee in respect of each of the six (6) additional car parking spaces will increase by 3%. |
|
6 | Fitout | |
6.1 | Subject to the approval of the Tenant’s proposed fitout by the Landlord (which approval is not to be unreasonably withheld) the Tenant is to fit out the Premises, at its own cost. | |
6.2 | Prior to commencing its fitout, the Tenant must provide the Landlord with drawings and specifications of the proposed fitout for approval (Plans and Specifications). | |
6.3 | The Landlord’s approval or refusal to approve a request for amendments to the Plans and Specifications must be given as promptly as is reasonably possible. | |
6.4 | The Landlord’s approval may not be unreasonably withheld. | |
6.5 | The Landlord’s approval will be indicated by the return to the Tenant of one set of the Plans and Specifications, marked to indicate the Landlord’s approval. | |
6.6 | The Landlord’s approval does not mean that the Plans and Specifications are adequate or suitable for the Tenant’s purpose or comply with any statutory or other relevant requirements. |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
Year | Percentage of Operating Costs payable | |||
Commencement Date - day preceding the first anniversary of the Commencement Date | 31.7 | % | ||
First anniversary of the Commencement Date - day preceding the fifth anniversary of the Commencement Date | 68.3 | % |
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Lease: Office, Part Ground Floor and Mezzanine Floor, 246B Churchill Avenue, Subiaco |
Schedule 3
Plan
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Exhibit 23.1
CONSENT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM
We have issued our report dated November 10, 2021, with respect to the consolidated financial statements of Locafy Limited contained in the Registration Statement on Form F-1. We consent to the use of the aforementioned report in the Registration Statement and prospectus and to the use of our name as it appears under “Experts.”
/s/ GRANT THORNTON AUDIT PTY LTD
Perth, Australia
January 31, 2022
Exhibit 107
CALCULATION OF REGISTRATION FEE
Title of Each Class of Securities To Be Registered |
Proposed
Maximum Aggregate Offering Price(1)(2)(3) |
Amount of
Registration Fee |
||||||
Units, each consisting of one ordinary share, no par value, and one Warrant | $ | $ | ||||||
(1) Ordinary shares included as part of the Units | — | — | (4) | |||||
(2) Warrants included as part of the Units | — | — | (4) | |||||
Representative’s warrants to purchase ordinary shares(5) | $ | $ | ||||||
Ordinary shares issuable upon exercise of the Warrants | $ | $ | ||||||
Ordinary shares issuable upon exercise of the representative’s warrants(6) | $ | $ | ||||||
Total | $ | 10,000,000 | $ | 927.00 |
(1) | Estimated solely for the purpose of calculating the registration fee in accordance with Rule 457(o) under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), based on an estimate of the proposed maximum offering price. |
(2) | Pursuant to Rule 416, the securities being registered hereunder include such indeterminate number of additional securities as may be issuable to prevent dilution resulting from stock splits, stock dividends or similar transactions. |
(3) | Includes the aggregate offering price of additional ordinary shares and/or warrants to purchase ordinary shares that may be acquired by the underwriters to cover the option to purchase additional securities, if any. |
(4) | No additional registration fee is payable pursuant to Rule 457(i) under the Securities Act. |
(5) | No fee required pursuant to Rule 457(g) under the Securities Act. |
(6) | Estimated solely for the purposes of calculating the registration fee pursuant to Rule 457(g) under the Securities Act. We have calculated the proposed maximum aggregate offering price of the ordinary shares underlying the representative’s warrants assuming that such warrants are exercisable at a price per ordinary share equal to 125% of the initial public offering price per Unit. |