UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
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FORM 10-K
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(Mark One)
☒ ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020
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☐ TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
For the transition period from to
Commission File Number 001-40022
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Spartan Acquisition Corp. III
(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in its Charter)
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Title of each class |
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Trading Symbol(s) |
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Name of each exchange on which registered |
Units, each consisting of one share of Class A common stock and
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SPAQ.U |
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The New York Stock Exchange |
Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 per share |
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SPAQ |
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The New York Stock Exchange |
Warrants, each whole warrant exercisable for one share of
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SPAQ.WS |
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The New York Stock Exchange |
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act:
None
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes ☐ No ☒
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. Yes ☐ No ☒
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant: (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes ☒ No ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§ 232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files). Yes ☒ No ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.
Large accelerated filer ☐ |
Accelerated filer ☐ |
Non-accelerated filer ☒ |
Smaller reporting company ☒ |
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Emerging growth company ☒ |
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report. ☐
If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act). Yes ☒ No ☐
The registrant’s units, each consisting of one share of Class A common stock and one-fourth of one warrant, began trading on the New York Stock Exchange on February 9, 2021. Prior to that date, the registrant’s units were not traded on any national securities exchange. Commencing on April 1, 2021, holders of the registrant’s units will be permitted to elect to separately trade the shares of Class A common stock and public warrants included in the units.
As of March 29, 2021, there were 2,205,343 shares of Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 per share, and 13,800,000 shares of Class B common stock, par value $0.0001 per share, issued and outstanding.
DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE: None.
Table of Contents
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PART I |
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Item 1. |
3 |
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Item 1A. |
25 |
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Item 1B. |
58 |
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Item 2. |
58 |
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Item 3. |
58 |
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Item 4. |
58 |
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PART II |
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Item 5. |
59 |
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Item 6. |
60 |
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Item 7. |
Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations. |
60 |
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Item 7A. |
65 |
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Item 8. |
65 |
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Item 9. |
Changes in and Disagreements With Accountants on Accounting and Financial Disclosure. |
65 |
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Item 9A. |
65 |
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Item 9B. |
66 |
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PART III |
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Item 10. |
67 |
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Item 11. |
75 |
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Item 12. |
Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters. |
76 |
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Item 13. |
Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence. |
76 |
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Item 14. |
78 |
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PART IV |
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Item 15. |
79 |
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CERTAIN TERMS
References to the “Company,” “our,” “us” or “we” refer to Spartan Acquisition Corp. III, a blank check company incorporated on December 23, 2020 as a Delaware corporation and formed for the purpose of effecting a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses, which we refer to throughout this Annual Report on Form 10-K as our “initial business combination.” References to our “Sponsor” refer to Spartan Acquisition Sponsor III LLC, a Delaware limited liability company. References to “Apollo” are to Apollo Global Management, Inc. (NYSE: APO), a Delaware corporation, and its consolidated subsidiaries. References to “Apollo Funds” are to private equity, credit and real assets funds (including parallel funds and alternative investment vehicles), partnerships, accounts (including strategic investment accounts), alternative asset companies and other entities for which Apollo provides investment management or advisory services, including Apollo Natural Resources Partners III, L.P., a Delaware limited partnership (“ANRP III”). References to “equity-linked securities” are to securities of the Company or any of our subsidiaries which are convertible into, or exchangeable or exercisable for, equity securities of the Company or such subsidiary, including any private placement of equity or debt. References to the “SEC” are to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. References to our “Public Offering” refer to our initial public offering, which closed on February 11, 2021 (the “Closing Date”). References to “public shares” are to shares of our Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 per share (“Class A common stock”) sold as part of the units in our Public Offering. References to “public stockholders” are to the holders of our public shares.
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CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
Certain statements in this Annual Report on Form 10-K may constitute “forward-looking statements” for purposes of the federal securities laws. Our forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding our or our management team’s expectations, hopes, beliefs, intentions or strategies regarding the future. In addition, any statements that refer to projections, forecasts or other characterizations of future events or circumstances, including any underlying assumptions, are forward-looking statements. The words “anticipate,” “believe,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend,” “may,” “might,” “plan,” “possible,” “potential,” “predict,” “project,” “should,” “would” and similar expressions may identify forward-looking statements, but the absence of these words does not mean that a statement is not forward-looking. Forward-looking statements in this Annual Report on Form 10-K may include, for example, statements about:
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our being a company with no operating history and no revenues; |
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our ability to select an appropriate target business or businesses; |
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our ability to complete our initial business combination; |
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our expectations around the performance of the prospective target business or businesses; |
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our success in retaining or recruiting, or changes required in, our officers, key employees or directors following our initial business combination; |
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our officers and directors allocating their time to other businesses and potentially having conflicts of interest with our business or in approving our initial business combination; |
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our potential ability to obtain additional financing to complete our initial business combination; |
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our pool of prospective target businesses; |
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our ability to consummate an initial business combination due to the uncertainty resulting from the recent COVID-19 pandemic and other events (such as terrorist attacks, natural disasters or other significant outbreaks of infectious diseases); |
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the ability of our officers and directors to generate a number of potential acquisition opportunities; |
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our public securities’ potential liquidity and trading; |
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the lack of a market for our securities; |
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the use of proceeds not held in the trust account or available to us from interest income on the trust account balance; |
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the trust account not being subject to claims of third parties; |
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our financial performance; |
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risks and uncertainties related to the renewable energy, energy storage, mobility, advanced fuels, and carbon mitigation sectors; or |
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the other risks and uncertainties discussed in “Risk Factors” and elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. |
The forward-looking statements contained in this Annual Report on Form 10-K are based on our current expectations and beliefs concerning future developments and their potential effects on us. There can be no assurance that future developments affecting us will be those that we have anticipated. These forward-looking statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties (some of which are beyond our control) or other assumptions that may cause
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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 “Part I, Item 1A. Risk Factors.” Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should any of our assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary in material respects from those projected in these forward-looking statements. We undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required under applicable securities laws.
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RISK FACTORS SUMMARY
An investment in our securities involves a high degree of risk. You should consider carefully the risks that we deem material described below, together with the other information contained in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, including all the risks described under “Part I, Item 1A. Risk Factors,” before making a decision to invest in our securities.
I. Risks Relating to a Special Purpose Acquisition Company and our Securities
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We are a newly formed company with no operating history and no revenues, and you have no basis on which to evaluate our ability to achieve our business objective. |
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Our public stockholders may not be afforded an opportunity to vote on our proposed business combination, which means we may complete our initial business combination even though a majority of our public stockholders do not support such a combination. |
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Your only opportunity to affect the investment decisions regarding a potential business combination may be limited to the exercise of your right to redeem your shares from us for cash. |
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If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination, our initial stockholders and management team have agreed to vote in favor of such initial business combination, regardless of how our public stockholders vote. |
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The ability of our public stockholders to exercise redemption rights with respect to a large number of our shares could increase the probability that our initial business combination would be unsuccessful and that you would have to wait for liquidation in order to redeem your stock. |
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We may not hold an annual meeting of stockholders until after the consummation of our initial business combination, which could delay the opportunity for our stockholders to elect directors. |
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We have not registered the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants under the Securities Act or any state securities laws, and such registration may not be in place when an investor desires to exercise its warrants, thus precluding such investor from being able to exercise its warrants except on a cashless basis and potentially causing such warrants to expire worthless. |
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We may amend the terms of the warrants in a manner that may be adverse to holders of public warrants with the approval by the holders of at least 50% of the then outstanding public warrants. As a result, the exercise price of your warrants could be increased, the warrant could be converted into cash or stock (at a ratio different than initially provided), the exercise period could be shortened and the number of shares of our Class A common stock purchasable upon exercise of a warrant could be decreased, all without your approval. |
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We may redeem your unexpired warrants prior to their exercise at a time that is disadvantageous to you, thereby making your warrants worthless. |
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We may not be able to complete our initial business combination within the 24 months after the closing of our Public Offering (or 27 months from the closing of our Public Offering if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of our Public Offering), in which case we would cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up and we would redeem our public shares and liquidate, in which case our public stockholders may receive only their pro rata portion of the funds in the trust account that are available for distribution to public stockholders, and our warrants will expire worthless. |
II. Risks Relating to our Search for, Consummation of, or Inability to Consummate a Business Combination and Post-Business Combination:
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Because we are not limited to a particular industry, sector or any specific target businesses with which to pursue our initial business combination, you will be unable to ascertain the merits or risks of any particular target business’s operations. |
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Although we have identified general criteria and guidelines that we believe are important in evaluating prospective target businesses, we may enter into our initial business combination with a target business that does not meet such criteria and guidelines, and as a result, the target business with which we enter into our initial business combination may not have attributes entirely consistent with our general criteria and guidelines. |
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We may seek business combination opportunities with a financially unstable business or an entity lacking an established record of revenue or earnings, which could subject us to volatile revenues, cash flows or earnings or difficulty in retaining key personnel. |
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The requirement that we complete our initial business combination within 24 months after the closing of our Public Offering (or 27 months from the closing of our Public Offering if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of our Public Offering) may give potential target businesses leverage over us in negotiating a business combination and may limit the time we have to conduct due diligence on potential business combination targets as we approach our dissolution deadline, which could undermine our ability to complete our business combination on terms that would produce value for our stockholders. |
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Our search for a business combination, and any target business with which we ultimately consummate a business combination, may be materially adversely affected by the COVID-19 outbreak and the status of debt and equity markets. |
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Our management may not be able to maintain control of a target business after our initial business combination. We cannot provide assurance that, upon loss of control of a target business, new management will possess the skills, qualifications or abilities necessary to profitably operate such business. |
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Our initial business combination and our structure thereafter may not be tax-efficient to our stockholders and warrantholders. As a result of our business combination, our tax obligations may be more complex, burdensome and uncertain. |
III. Risks Relating to Apollo, Sponsor and our Management Team
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Past performance by Apollo, ANRP III, other Apollo Funds, our management team, Spartan I or Spartan II may not be indicative of future performance of an investment in the Company. |
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We may engage in a business combination with one or more target businesses that have relationships with entities that may be affiliated with our Sponsor, officers, directors or existing holders which may raise potential conflicts of interest. |
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Since our Sponsor, officers and directors will lose their entire investment in us if our business combination is not completed (other than with respect to public shares they may acquire during or after our Public Offering), a conflict of interest may arise in determining whether a particular business combination target is appropriate for our initial business combination. |
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Introduction
We are a blank check company incorporated on December 23, 2020 as a Delaware corporation and formed for the purpose of effecting a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses.
In December 2020, 11,500,000 shares of the Company’s Class B common stock, par value $0.0001 per share (the “Founder Shares” or “Class B common stock”) were issued to our Sponsor in exchange for the payment of $25,000 of expenses on our behalf, or approximately $0.002 per share. The number of Founder Shares issued was determined based on the expectation that such Founder Shares would represent 20% of the outstanding shares upon completion of the Public Offering. The per share purchase price of the Founder Shares was determined by dividing the amount of cash contributed to the Company by the aggregate number of Founder Shares issued. In February 2021, we effected a share dividend on 2,300,000 of our Founder Shares resulting in our Sponsor owning 13,800,000 Founder Shares. Additionally, on February 8, 2021, our Sponsor forfeited 100,000 Founder Shares back to the Company and the Company issued an aggregate of 100,000 Founder Shares, in an amount totaling 50,000 to each of our independent directors. The holders of our Founder Shares prior to our Public Offering are referred to herein as our “initial stockholders.”
On the Closing Date, we consummated the Public Offering of 55,200,000 units (the “units”), including 7,200,000 units that were issued pursuant to the underwriters’ full exercise of their over-allotment option. The units were sold at a price of $10.00 per unit, generating gross proceeds to us of $552,000,000. Each unit consists of one share of our Class A common stock and one-fourth of one warrant. Each whole warrant (a “public warrant”) entitles the holder thereof to purchase one share of our Class A common stock at a price of $11.50 per share, subject to adjustment, and only whole warrants are exercisable. The public warrants will become exercisable on the later of 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination and 12 months from the closing of the Public Offering, and will expire five years after the completion of our initial business combination or earlier upon redemption or liquidation.
On February 11, 2021, simultaneously with the consummation of the Public Offering, we completed the private sale of 9,360,000 private placement warrants (the “Private Placement Warrants”) at a purchase price of $1.50 per Private Placement Warrant to our Sponsor, generating gross proceeds to us of approximately $14,040,000. Each Private Placement Warrant entitles the holder to purchase one share of our Class A common stock at $11.50 per share. The Private Placement Warrants (including the Class A common stock issuable upon exercise thereof) may not, subject to certain limited exceptions, be transferred, assigned or sold by the holder until 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination.
Approximately $552,000,000 of the net proceeds from the Public Offering and the private sale of Private Placement Warrants with the Sponsor has been deposited in a trust account established for the benefit of our public stockholders (the “trust account”).
We received gross proceeds from the Public Offering and the sale of the Private Placement Warrants of $552,000,000 and $14,040,000, respectively, for an aggregate of $566,040,000. $552,000,000 of the gross proceeds were deposited into the trust account. The $552,000,000 of net proceeds held in the trust account includes $19,320,000 of deferred underwriting discounts and commissions that will be released to the underwriters of the Public Offering upon completion of our initial business combination. Of the gross proceeds from the Public Offering and the sale of the Private Placement Warrants that were not deposited in the trust account, $11,040,000 was used to pay underwriting discounts and commissions in the Public Offering, $182,000 was used to repay loans and advances from an affiliate of our Sponsor, and the balance was reserved to pay accrued offering and formation costs, business, legal and accounting due diligence expenses on prospective acquisitions and continuing general and administrative expenses.
The shares of our Class B common stock that we issued prior to the Closing Date will automatically convert into shares of our Class A common stock at the time of our initial business combination on a one-for-one basis,
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subject to adjustment for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like. In the case that additional shares of Class A common stock, or equity-linked securities, are issued or deemed issued in excess of the amounts sold in our Public Offering in relation to the closing of the initial business combination, the ratio at which the shares of our Class B common stock will convert into shares of our Class A common stock will be adjusted (unless the holders of a majority of the outstanding shares of our Class B common stock agree to waive such adjustment with respect to any such issuance or deemed issuance) so that the number of shares of Class A common stock issuable upon conversion of all issued and outstanding shares of Class B common stock will equal, in the aggregate, on an as-converted basis, 20% of the sum of the total number of all shares of common stock outstanding upon the completion of our Public Offering plus all shares of Class A common stock and equity-linked securities issued or deemed issued in connection with the business combination (excluding any shares or equity-linked securities issued, or to be issued, to any seller in the business combination).
Commencing April 1, 2021, holders of the units sold in our Public Offering may elect to separately trade the shares of Class A common stock and public warrants included in the units. The shares of Class A common stock and public warrants that are separated will trade on the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) under the symbols “SPAQ” and “SPAQ.WS,” respectively. Those units not separated will continue to trade on the NYSE under the symbol “SPAQ.U.”
Our Company
We are a newly organized blank check company incorporated as a Delaware corporation and formed for the purpose of effecting a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses.
Our Sponsor is an affiliate of a private investment fund managed by Apollo. Apollo is led by its Managing Partners, Leon Black, Joshua Harris and Marc Rowan, who have worked together for over 34 years and who remain involved in Apollo’s strategic leadership, as well as Scott Kleinman and Jim Zelter, Co-Presidents of Apollo who share oversight for all of Apollo’s revenue-generating and investing businesses. Together they lead a team of over 1,700 employees across offices in New York, Los Angeles, San Diego, Houston, Bethesda, London, Frankfurt, Madrid, Luxembourg, Mumbai, Delhi, Singapore, Hong Kong, Shanghai and Tokyo, among other locations throughout the world (as of December 31, 2020). Apollo’s team possesses a broad range of transaction, financial, managerial and investment skills. Apollo operates its businesses in an integrated manner, which we believe distinguishes Apollo from other alternative asset managers. Apollo’s investment professionals frequently collaborate and share information across disciplines including market insight, management, banking and consultant contacts as well as potential investment opportunities. This collaboration contributes to Apollo’s library of industry knowledge and we believe enables Apollo managed funds to invest successfully across a company’s capital structure.
Although we may pursue an acquisition opportunity in any business or industry, we intend to capitalize on the Apollo platform to identify, acquire and operate a business in the energy value chain that may provide opportunities for attractive risk-adjusted returns, with a particular focus on opportunities aligned with energy transition and sustainability themes. Specifically, we are focused on opportunities across the renewable energy, energy storage, mobility, advanced fuels and carbon mitigation sectors, as well as other adjacent services, industrials and technologies, while remaining opportunistic across the energy value chain, including select opportunities within the traditional power generation and energy production verticals. We believe this area of focus represents a favorable and highly fragmented market opportunity to consummate a business combination.
We seek to identify and acquire a target business that could benefit from a hands-on owner with extensive transactional, financial, managerial and investment experience in the energy value chain that presents potential for an attractive risk-adjusted return profile under our stewardship. Even fundamentally sound companies can often underperform their potential due to underinvestment, a temporary period of dislocation in the markets in which they operate, over-levered capital structures, excessive cost structures, incomplete management teams and/or inappropriate business strategies. Apollo has extensive experience in identifying and executing acquisitions across the entire energy value chain and a long-standing commitment to fostering environmental, social and governance (“ESG”) performance in its portfolio.
We seek to capitalize on Apollo’s energy expertise and industry relationships to source and complete our initial business combination. Since 2001 through December 31, 2020, Apollo Funds have invested or committed to invest
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approximately $13.9 billion across 46 natural resources-related opportunities, producing an attractive rate of return. Apollo has extensive experience investing across a variety of commodity price cycles and a track record of identifying high-quality assets, businesses and management teams with significant resources, capital and optimization potential.
Apollo recognizes the importance of ESG issues, and has a long history of taking these issues into account. Apollo believes responsible investment considers how ESG issues impact the firm, the funds it manages and their portfolio companies, the communities in which it and they operate, and the world at large. As one of the world’s largest alternative investment managers, Apollo believes that consideration of ESG issues is essential to companies’ success, by enhancing their ability to manage risks and by identifying areas for cost savings and for growth. Apollo’s ESG program rests on three pillars: thorough ESG diligence; meaningful and tailored engagement with companies post-acquisition; and a commitment to transparency and periodic reporting of qualitative and quantitative ESG information. Apollo believes the processes underlying these three pillars better position company management teams and investment professionals to improve performance on ESG issues. Apollo has endorsed the American Investment Council’s Guidelines for Responsible Investing, and in 2020, Apollo adopted a comprehensive Responsible Investing and ESG Policy with specific policies for each asset class. Apollo also built upon its existing governance infrastructure: firm-wide decisions on ESG issues are now made at the most senior level, led by a steering committee chaired by its Global Head of ESG that includes certain members of Apollo’s senior management. This committee draws on recommendations from cross functional teams of Apollo professionals across its credit, private equity, and real assets businesses.
An affiliate of Apollo sponsored Spartan Energy Acquisition Corp. (“Spartan I”), a special purpose acquisition company that completed its initial public offering in August 2018, in which it sold 55,200,000 units, each consisting of one share of Class A common stock and one-third of one warrant, with each whole warrant entitling the holder thereof to purchase one share of Class A common stock, for an offering price of $10.00 per unit, generating gross proceeds of $552 million. In July 2020, Spartan I announced its initial business combination with Fisker Inc., a Delaware corporation (“Fisker”), which is building a technology-enabled, asset-light automotive business model that it believes has the potential to be among the first of its kind and aligned with the future state of the automotive industry. The transaction closed on October 29, 2020 and the combined entity is listed on the NYSE. We believe that we will benefit from the valuable experience gained by our management team during the launch and operation of Spartan I, including the process of evaluating numerous target companies and industry sectors, selecting Fisker as its business combination partner and negotiating the terms of the business combination agreement and all of the related financing transactions.
Additionally, an affiliate of Apollo sponsored Spartan Acquisition Corp. II (“Spartan II”), a special purpose acquisition company that completed its initial public offering in November 2020, in which it sold 34,500,000 units, each consisting of one share of Class A common stock and one-half of one warrant, with each whole warrant entitling the holder thereof to purchase one share of Class A common stock, for an offering price of $10.00 per unit, generating gross proceeds of $345 million. In January 2021, Spartan II announced its entry into a definitive business combination agreement with Sunlight Financial LLC (“Sunlight”), a premier U.S. residential solar financing platform that provides residential solar contractors with seamless point-of-sale financing capabilities and delivers unique, attractive assets to capital providers. We believe that we have further benefited from the valuable experience gained by our management team during the launch and operation of Spartan II, including the process of evaluating numerous target companies and industry sectors, selecting Sunlight as its business combination partner and negotiating the terms of the business combination agreement and all of the related financing transactions.
We believe that potential sellers of target businesses will view the fact that our management team has successfully negotiated a business combination as a positive factor in considering whether or not to enter into a business combination with us. However, past performance of Apollo, ANRP III, Spartan I, Spartan II and our management team is not a guarantee either (i) that we will be able to identify a suitable candidate for our initial business combination or (ii) of success with respect to any business combination we may consummate. You should not rely on the historical record of Apollo’s, ANRP III’s, our management’s, Spartan I’s or Spartan II’s performance as indicative of our future performance. An investment in us is not an investment in Apollo Funds.
In addition, Apollo or its affiliates and/or the Apollo Funds may sponsor other blank check companies similar to ours during the period in which we are seeking an initial business combination, and members of our management
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team may participate in such blank check companies. Any such companies may present additional conflicts of interest in pursuing an acquisition target, particularly in the event there is overlap among the management teams.
Additionally, we have received an indication of interest from ANRP III to purchase securities in a private placement that will close simultaneously with the closing of our initial business combination, although there is no assurance they will do so.
Further, Apollo or its affiliates, as well as the Apollo Funds, may sponsor other blank check companies similar to ours during the period in which we are seeking an initial business combination, and members of our management team may participate in such blank check companies. For example, certain of our officers and directors currently serve in similar roles for Spartan II, Apollo Strategic Growth Capital (“APSG”) and Apollo Strategic Growth Capital II (“APSG II”). Mr. Strong is the Chief Executive Officer and a director of Spartan II, Mr. Crossen is the Chief Financial Officer and Chief Accounting Officer of Spartan II and Chief Financial Officer of APSG and APSG II and each of Ms. Wassenaar, Mr. Handler, Ms. Hommes, Mr. Romeo, Ms. Wilson and Mr. Stice are directors of Spartan II, and each such officer and director owes fiduciary duties under the Delaware General Corporation Law (“DGCL”) to Spartan II, APSG and APSG II, as applicable. Any such companies may present additional conflicts of interest in pursuing an acquisition target, particularly in the event there is overlap among the management teams.
Business Strategy
Our acquisition and value creation strategy is to identify, acquire and, after our initial business combination, build a company in the energy value chain in North America. Specifically, we intend to focus on opportunities across the renewable energy, energy storage, mobility, advanced fuels, and carbon mitigation sectors, as well as other adjacent services, industrials, and technologies, while remaining opportunistic across the energy value chain, including select opportunities within the traditional power generation and energy production verticals. Our acquisition strategy will leverage Apollo’s network of potential proprietary and public transaction sources where we believe a combination of our relationships, knowledge and experience in the energy value chain could effect a positive transformation or augmentation of existing businesses or properties. Our goal is to build a focused business with multiple competitive advantages that have the potential to improve the target business’s overall value proposition. We plan to utilize the network and industry experience of our management team and Apollo, as well as ANRP III, in seeking an initial business combination and employing our acquisition strategy. Over the course of their careers, the members of our management team have developed a broad network of contacts and corporate relationships that we believe serves as a useful source of acquisition opportunities. In addition to industry and lending community relationships, we plan to leverage relationships with management teams of public and private companies, investment bankers, restructuring advisers, attorneys and accountants, which we believe should provide us with a number of business combination opportunities. Following our Public Offering, members of our management team are communicating with their networks of relationships to articulate the parameters for our search for a target business and a potential business combination and have begun the process of pursuing and reviewing potentially interesting leads.
Acquisition Criteria
Consistent with our business strategy, we have identified the following general criteria and guidelines that we believe are important in evaluating prospective targets for our initial business combination. We will use these criteria and guidelines in evaluating acquisition opportunities, but we may decide to enter into our initial business combination with a target that does not meet these criteria and guidelines. We intend to acquire target businesses that we believe:
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are fundamentally sound but that we believe can improve results by leveraging the transactional, financial, managerial and investment experience of our management team and Apollo, as well as ANRP III; |
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have high-quality and strategically located assets; |
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have a de-risked asset base with meaningful free cash flow; |
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can utilize the extensive networks and insights that our management team and Apollo, as well as ANRP III, have built in the energy value chain; |
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are at an inflection point, such as requiring additional management expertise, are able to innovate through new operational techniques, or where we believe we can drive improved financial performance; |
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exhibit unrecognized value or other characteristics, desirable returns on capital, and a need for capital to achieve the company’s growth strategy, that we believe have been misevaluated by the marketplace based on our analysis and due diligence review; |
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have an attractive valuation at entry and conservative balance sheet to create resiliency across the commodity cycle; and |
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will offer an attractive risk-adjusted return for our stockholders. |
Potential upside from growth in the target business and an improved capital structure will be weighed against any identified downside risks.
These criteria are not intended to be exhaustive. Any evaluation relating to the merits of a particular initial business combination may be based, to the extent relevant, on these general guidelines as well as other considerations, factors and criteria that our management may deem relevant. In the event that we decide to enter into our initial business combination with a target business that does not meet the above criteria and guidelines, we will disclose that the target business does not meet the above criteria in our stockholder communications related to our initial business combination, which would be in the form of proxy solicitation or tender offer materials that we would file with the SEC.
Initial Business Combination
The NYSE rules require that we must complete one or more business combinations having an aggregate fair market value of at least 80% of the net assets held in trust (net of amounts disbursed to management for working capital purposes and excluding the amount of any deferred underwriting discount held in trust) at the time of the agreement to enter into the initial business combination. Our board of directors will make the determination as to the fair market value of a target business or businesses. If our board of directors is not able to independently determine the fair market value of a target business or businesses, we will obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm which is a member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”), or another independent entity that commonly renders valuation opinions with respect to the satisfaction of such criteria. While we consider it unlikely that our board of directors will not be able to make an independent determination of the fair market value of a target business or businesses, it may be unable to do so if our board if directors is less familiar or experienced with the target company’s business or there is a significant amount of uncertainty as to the value of the Company’s assets or prospects.
We may pursue an acquisition opportunity jointly with our Sponsor, Apollo, or one or more of its affiliates, one or more Apollo Funds and/or investors in the Apollo Funds, which we refer to as an “Affiliated Joint Acquisition.” Any such parties may co-invest with us in the target business at the time of our initial business combination, or we could raise additional proceeds to complete the acquisition by issuing to such parties a class of equity or equity-linked securities. Any such issuance of equity or equity-linked securities would, on a fully diluted basis, reduce the percentage ownership of our then-existing stockholders. Notwithstanding the foregoing, pursuant to the anti-dilution provisions of our Class B common stock, issuances or deemed issuances of Class A common stock or equity-linked securities would result in an adjustment to the ratio at which shares of Class B common stock shall convert into shares of Class A common stock such that our initial stockholders and their permitted transferees, if any, would retain their aggregate percentage ownership at 20% of the sum of the total number of all shares of common stock outstanding from our Public Offering plus all shares of Class A common stock and equity-linked securities issued or deemed issued in connection with the business combination (excluding any shares or equity-linked securities issued, or to be issued, to any seller in the business combination), unless the holders of a majority of the then-outstanding shares of Class B common stock agree to waive such adjustment with respect to such issuance or deemed issuance at the time thereof. Neither our Sponsor nor Apollo, nor any of their respective affiliates, have an obligation to make any such investment, and may compete with us for potential business combinations.
We anticipate structuring our initial business combination either (i) in such a way so that the post-transaction company in which our public stockholders own shares will own or acquire 100% of the equity interests or assets of
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the target business or businesses or (ii) in such a way so that the post-transaction company owns or acquires less than 100% of such interests or assets of the target business or businesses in order to meet certain objectives of the target management team or stockholders or for other reasons, including an Affiliated Joint Acquisition as described above. However, we will only complete a business combination if the post-transaction company owns or acquires 50% or more of the outstanding voting securities of the target or otherwise is not required to register as an investment company under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Investment Company Act”). Even if the post-transaction company owns or acquires 50% or more of the voting securities of the target, our stockholders prior to the business combination may collectively own a minority interest in the post-transaction company, depending on valuations ascribed to the target and us in the business combination transaction. For example, we could pursue a transaction in which we issue a substantial number of new shares in exchange for all of the outstanding capital stock, shares or other equity interests of a target. In this case, we would acquire a 100% controlling interest in the target. However, as a result of the issuance of a substantial number of new shares, our stockholders immediately prior to our initial business combination could own less than a majority of our outstanding shares subsequent to our initial business combination. If less than 100% of the equity interests or assets of a target business or businesses are owned or acquired by the post-transaction company, the portion of such business or businesses that is owned or acquired is what will be valued for purposes of the 80% of net assets test. If the business combination involves more than one target business, the 80% of net assets test will be based on the aggregate value of all of the transactions and we will treat the target businesses together as the initial business combination for seeking stockholder approval or for purposes of a tender offer, as applicable.
Our Acquisition Process
In evaluating a prospective target business, we expect to conduct a thorough due diligence review that will encompass, among other things, meetings with incumbent management and employees, document reviews, inspection of facilities, as well as a review of financial and other information that will be made available to us. We will also utilize transactional, financial, managerial and investment experience.
We are not prohibited from pursuing an initial business combination with a company that is affiliated with Apollo, our Sponsor, officers or directors. In the event we seek to complete our initial business combination with a company that is affiliated with our Sponsor, officers or directors, we, or a committee of independent directors, will obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm which is a member of FINRA or an independent accounting firm that our initial business combination is fair to our Company from a financial point of view.
Apollo, Apollo Funds, members of our management team and our independent directors may directly or indirectly own Founder Shares and/or Private Placement Warrants following our Public Offering and, accordingly, may have a conflict of interest in determining whether a particular target business is an appropriate business with which to effectuate our initial business combination. Further, each of our officers and directors may have a conflict of interest with respect to evaluating a particular business combination if the retention or resignation of any such officers and directors was included by a target business as a condition to any agreement with respect to our initial business combination.
All of the members of our management team are employed by Apollo. Apollo is continuously made aware of potential business opportunities, one or more of which we may desire to pursue for a business combination; we have not, however, selected any specific business combination target and we have not, nor has anyone on our behalf, initiated any substantive discussions, directly or indirectly, with any business combination target.
Each of our officers and directors presently has, and any of them in the future may have additional, fiduciary or contractual obligations to other entities pursuant to which such officer or director is or will be required to present a business combination opportunity. Accordingly, if any of our officers or directors becomes aware of a business combination opportunity which is suitable for an entity to which he or she has then-current fiduciary or contractual obligations, he or she will honor his or her fiduciary or contractual obligations to present such opportunity to such other entity. We do not believe, however, that the fiduciary duties or contractual obligations of our officers or directors will materially affect our ability to complete our business combination. In addition, we may pursue an Affiliated Joint Acquisition opportunity with an entity to which an officer or director has a fiduciary or contractual obligation. Any such entity may co-invest with us in the target business at the time of our initial business combination, or we could raise additional proceeds to complete the acquisition by issuing to such entity a class of equity or equity-linked securities. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that we renounce
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our interest in any corporate opportunity offered to any director or officer unless such opportunity is expressly offered to such person solely in his or her capacity as a director or officer of our Company and such opportunity is one we are legally and contractually permitted to undertake and would otherwise be reasonable for us to pursue.
In addition, Apollo and its affiliates and/or Apollo Funds, including our officers and directors who are affiliated with Apollo, may sponsor or form other blank check companies similar to ours during the period in which we are seeking an initial business combination. For example, certain of our officers and directors currently serve in similar roles for Spartan II, APSG and APSG II. Mr. Strong is the Chief Executive Officer and a director of Spartan II, Mr. Crossen is the Chief Financial Officer and Chief Accounting Officer of Spartan II and Chief Financial Officer of APSG and APSG II and each of Ms. Wassenaar, Mr. Handler, Ms. Hommes, Mr. Romeo, Ms. Wilson and Mr. Stice are directors of Spartan II, and each such officer and director owes fiduciary duties under the DGCL to Spartan II, APSG and APSG II, as applicable. Any such companies may present additional conflicts of interest in pursuing an acquisition target.
Status as a Public Company
We believe our structure will make us an attractive business combination partner to target businesses. As an existing public company, we offer a target business an alternative to the traditional initial public offering through a merger or other business combination with us. In a business combination transaction with us, the owners of the target business may, for example, exchange their shares of stock, shares or other equity interests in the target business for shares of our Class A common stock (or shares of a new holding company) or for a combination of shares of our Class A common stock and cash, allowing us to tailor the consideration to the specific needs of the sellers. Although there are various costs and obligations associated with being a public company, we believe target businesses will find this method a more certain and cost effective method to becoming a public company than the typical initial public offering. The typical initial public offering process takes a significantly longer period of time than the typical business combination transaction process, and there are significant expenses in the initial public offering process, including underwriting discounts and commissions, that may not be present to the same extent in connection with a business combination with us.
Furthermore, once a proposed business combination is completed, the target business will have effectively become public, whereas an initial public offering is always subject to the underwriters’ ability to complete the offering, as well as general market conditions, which could delay or prevent the offering from occurring or could have negative valuation consequences. Once public, we believe the target business would then have greater access to capital, an additional means of providing management incentives consistent with stockholders’ interests and the ability to use its equity as currency for acquisitions. Being a public company can offer further benefits by augmenting a company’s profile among potential new customers and vendors and aid in attracting talented employees.
While we believe that our structure and our management team’s backgrounds will make us an attractive business partner, some potential target businesses may view our status as a blank check company, such as our lack of an operating history and our ability to seek stockholder approval of any proposed initial business combination, negatively.
We are an “emerging growth company,” as defined in Section 2(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), as modified by the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act of 2021 (the “JOBS Act”). As such, we are eligible to take advantage of certain exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other public companies that are not “emerging growth companies” including, but not limited to, not being required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports and proxy statements and exemptions from the requirements of holding a non-binding advisory vote on executive compensation and stockholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved. If some investors find our securities less attractive as a result, there may be a less active trading market for our securities and the prices of our securities may be more volatile.
In addition, Section 107 of the JOBS Act also provides that an “emerging growth company” can take advantage of the extended transition period provided in Section 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act for complying with new or revised accounting standards. In other words, an “emerging growth company” can delay the adoption of certain
9
accounting standards until those standards would otherwise apply to private companies. We intend to take advantage of the benefits of this extended transition period.
We will remain an emerging growth company until the earlier of (1) the last day of the fiscal year (a) following the fifth anniversary of the completion of our Public Offering, (b) in which we have total annual gross revenue of at least $1.07 billion (as adjusted for inflation pursuant to SEC rules from time to time), or (c) in which we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer, which means the market value of our Class A common stock that is held by non-affiliates exceeds $700 million as of the prior June 30th, and (2) the date on which we have issued more than $1.0 billion in non-convertible debt securities during the prior three-year period.
Additionally, we are a “smaller reporting company” as defined in Item 10(f)(1) of Regulation S-K. Smaller reporting companies may take advantage of certain reduced disclosure obligations, including, among other things, providing only two years of audited financial statements. We will remain a smaller reporting company until the last day of the fiscal year in which (i) the market value of our common stock held by non-affiliates exceeds $250 million as of the end of that year’s second fiscal quarter or (ii) our annual revenues exceeded $100 million during such completed fiscal year and the market value of our common stock held by non-affiliates exceeds $700 million as of the end of that year’s second fiscal quarter.
Financial Position
With funds available for a business combination initially in the amount of up to $532,680,000, after payment of $19,320,000 of deferred underwriting discounts and commissions, before fees and expenses associated with our initial business combination, we offer a target business a variety of options such as creating a liquidity event for its owners, providing capital for the potential growth and expansion of its operations or strengthening its balance sheet by reducing its debt or leverage ratio. Because we are able to complete our business combination using our cash, debt or equity securities, or a combination of the foregoing, we have the flexibility to use the most efficient combination that will allow us to tailor the consideration to be paid to the target business to fit its needs and desires. However, we have not taken any steps to secure third party financing and there can be no assurance it will be available to us.
Effecting our Initial Business Combination
We are not presently engaged in any operations, and we will not engage in, any operations for an indefinite period of time following our Public Offering. We intend to effectuate our initial business combination using cash from the proceeds of our Public Offering and the sale of the Private Placement Warrants, our capital stock, debt or a combination of the foregoing. We may seek to complete our initial business combination with a company or business that may be financially unstable or in its early stages of development or growth, which would subject us to the numerous risks inherent in such companies and businesses.
If our initial business combination is paid for using equity or debt, or not all of the funds released from the trust account are used for payment of the consideration in connection with our business combination or used for redemptions of our Class A common stock, we may apply the balance of the cash released to us from the trust account for general corporate purposes, including for maintenance or expansion of operations of the post-transaction company, the payment of principal or interest due on indebtedness incurred in completing our initial business combination, to fund the purchase of other businesses or assets or for working capital.
We have not selected any business combination target. Additionally, we have not engaged or retained any agent or other representative to identify or locate any suitable acquisition candidate, to conduct any research or take any measures, directly or indirectly, to locate or contact a target business, other than our officers and directors. Accordingly, there is no current basis for investors to evaluate the possible merits or risks of the target business with which we may ultimately complete our initial business combination. Although our management will assess the risks inherent in a particular target business with which we may combine, we cannot assure you that this assessment will result in our identifying all risks that a target business may encounter. Furthermore, some of those risks may be outside of our control, meaning that we can do nothing to control or reduce the chances that those risks will adversely affect a target business.
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We may need to obtain additional financing to complete our initial business combination, either because the transaction requires more cash than is available from the proceeds held in our trust account or because we become obligated to redeem a significant number of our public shares upon completion of the business combination, in which case we may issue additional securities or incur debt in connection with such business combination. In the case of an initial business combination funded with assets other than the trust account assets, our tender offer documents or proxy materials disclosing the business combination would disclose the terms of the financing and, only if required by applicable law, we would seek stockholder approval of such financing. There are no prohibitions on our ability to issue securities or incur debt in connection with our initial business combination. We are not currently a party to any arrangement or understanding with any third party with respect to raising any additional funds through the sale of securities, the incurrence of debt or otherwise.
Sources of Target Businesses
We anticipate that target business candidates will be brought to our attention from various unaffiliated sources, including investment market participants, private equity groups, investment banking firms, consultants, accounting firms and large business enterprises. Target businesses may be brought to our attention by such unaffiliated sources as a result of being solicited by us through calls or mailings. These sources may also introduce us to target businesses in which they think we may be interested on an unsolicited basis, since many of these sources will have read our prospectus and know what types of businesses we are targeting. Our officers and directors, as well as their affiliates, may also bring to our attention target business candidates that they become aware of through their business contacts as a result of formal or informal inquiries or discussions they may have, as well as attending trade shows or conventions. In addition, we expect to receive a number of proprietary deal flow opportunities that would not otherwise necessarily be available to us as a result of the track record and business relationships of our officers and directors. While we do not presently anticipate engaging the services of professional firms or other individuals that specialize in business acquisitions on any formal basis, we may engage these firms or other individuals in the future, in which event we may pay a finder’s fee, consulting fee or other compensation to be determined in an arm’s length negotiation based on the terms of the transaction. We will engage a finder only to the extent our management determines that the use of a finder may bring opportunities to us that may not otherwise be available to us or if finders approach us on an unsolicited basis with a potential transaction that our management determines is in our best interest to pursue. Our Sponsor or any of our existing officers or directors, or any entity with which they are affiliated, may serve as a finder or provide other services for which they may be paid underwriting discounts and commissions, placement agent fees, initial purchaser fees or discounts, finder’s fees, arrangement fees, commitment fees and transaction, structuring, consulting, advisory and management fees and similar fees for any services they render in order to effectuate, the completion of our initial business combination (regardless of the type of transaction that it is). Payment of a finder’s fee is customarily tied to completion of a transaction, in which case any such fee will be paid out of the funds held in the trust account. We have agreed to pay our Sponsor a total of $10,000 per month for office space, utilities, secretarial support and administrative services and to reimburse our Sponsor for any out-of-pocket expenses related to identifying, investigating and completing an initial business combination. Some of our officers and directors may enter into employment or consulting agreements with the post-transaction company following our initial business combination. The presence or absence of any such fees or arrangements will not be used as a criterion in our selection process of an acquisition candidate.
We are not prohibited from pursuing an initial business combination with a business combination target that is affiliated with our Sponsor, officers or directors, or from making the acquisition through a joint venture or other form of shared ownership with our Sponsor, officers or directors. In the event we seek to complete our initial business combination with a business combination target that is affiliated with our Sponsor, officers or directors, we, or a committee of independent directors, would obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm which is a member of FINRA or an independent accounting firm that such an initial business combination is fair to our Company from a financial point of view. We are not required to obtain such an opinion in any other context.
As more fully discussed in “Part III, Item 10. Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance — Conflicts of Interest,” if any of our officers or directors becomes aware of a business combination opportunity that falls within the line of business of any entity to which he or she has pre-existing fiduciary or contractual obligations, he or she may be required to present such business combination opportunity to such entity prior to presenting such business combination opportunity to us. Our officers and directors currently have certain relevant fiduciary duties or contractual obligations that may take priority over their duties to us. We may pursue an Affiliated Joint Acquisition
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opportunity with an entity to which an officer or director has a fiduciary or contractual obligation. Any such entity may co-invest with us in the target business at the time of our initial business combination, or we could raise additional proceeds to complete the acquisition by issuing to such entity a class of equity or equity-linked securities.
Selection of a Target Business and Structuring of our Initial Business Combination
The NYSE rules require that our initial business combination must occur with one or more operating businesses or assets with a fair market value of at least 80% of the net assets held in trust (net of amounts disbursed to management for working capital purposes and excluding the amount of any deferred underwriting discount held in trust) at the time of the agreement to enter into the initial business combination. The fair market value of the target or targets will be determined by our board based upon one or more standards generally accepted by the financial community, such as discounted cash flow valuation or value of comparable businesses. If our board is not able to independently determine the fair market value of the target business or businesses, we will obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm that is a member of FINRA or from another independent entity that commonly renders valuation opinions with respect to the satisfaction of such criteria. We do not intend to purchase multiple businesses in unrelated industries in conjunction with our initial business combination. Subject to this requirement, our management will have virtually unrestricted flexibility in identifying and selecting one or more prospective target businesses, although we will not be permitted to effectuate our initial business combination solely with another blank check company or a similar company with nominal operations.
In any case, we will only complete an initial business combination in which we own or acquire 50% or more of the outstanding voting securities of the target or otherwise acquire an interest in the target sufficient for the post-transaction company not to be required to register as an investment company under the Investment Company Act. If we own or acquire less than 100% of the equity interests or assets of a target business or businesses, the portion of such business or businesses that are owned or acquired by the post-transaction company is what will be valued for purposes of the NYSE’s 80% of net assets test. There is no basis for investors to evaluate the possible merits or risks of any target business with which we may ultimately complete our business combination.
To the extent we effect our business combination with a company or business that may be financially unstable or in its early stages of development or growth, we may be affected by numerous risks inherent in such company or business. Although our management will endeavor to evaluate the risks inherent in a particular target business, we cannot assure you that we will properly ascertain or assess all significant risk factors.
In evaluating a prospective target business, we expect to conduct a thorough due diligence review, which may encompass, among other things, meetings with incumbent management and employees, document reviews, interviews of customers and suppliers, inspection of facilities, as applicable, as well as a review of financial, operational, legal and other information that will be made available to us. If we determine to move forward with a particular target, we will proceed to structure and negotiate the terms of the business combination transaction.
The time required to select and evaluate a target business and to structure and complete our initial business combination, and the costs associated with this process, are not currently ascertainable with any degree of certainty. Any costs incurred with respect to the identification and evaluation of, and negotiation with, a prospective target business with which our business combination is not ultimately completed will result in our incurring losses and will reduce the funds we can use to complete another business combination. The Company may pay underwriting discounts and commissions, placement agent fees, initial purchaser fees or discounts, finder’s fees, arrangement fees, commitment fees and transaction, structuring, consulting, advisory and management fees and similar fees or other compensation to our Sponsor, our directors, members of our management team, or any of their respective affiliates, for services rendered prior to or in connection with our initial business combination.
Lack of Business Diversification
For an indefinite period of time after the completion of our initial business combination, the prospects for our success may depend entirely on the future performance of a single business. Unlike other entities that have the resources to complete business combinations with multiple entities in one or several industries, it is probable that we will not have the resources to diversify our operations and mitigate the risks of being in a single line of business. In addition, we intend to focus our search for an initial business combination in a single industry. By completing our business combination with only a single entity, our lack of diversification may:
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subject us to negative economic, competitive and regulatory developments, any or all of which may have a substantial adverse impact on the particular industry in which we operate after our initial business combination, and |
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cause us to depend on the marketing and sale of a single product or limited number of products or services. |
Limited Ability to Evaluate the Target’s Management Team
Although we intend to closely scrutinize the management of a prospective target business when evaluating the desirability of effecting our business combination with that business, our assessment of the target business’s management may not prove to be correct. In addition, the future management may not have the necessary skills, qualifications or abilities to manage a public company. Furthermore, the future role of members of our management team, if any, in the target business cannot presently be stated with any certainty. The determination as to whether any of the members of our management team will remain with the combined company will be made at the time of our initial business combination. While it is possible that one or more of our directors will remain associated in some capacity with us following our business combination, it is unlikely that any of them will devote their full efforts to our affairs subsequent to our business combination. Moreover, we cannot assure you that members of our management team will have significant experience or knowledge relating to the operations of the particular target business.
We cannot assure you that any of our key personnel will remain in senior management or advisory positions with the combined company. The determination as to whether any of our key personnel will remain with the combined company will be made at the time of our initial business combination.
Following a business combination, we may seek to recruit additional managers to supplement the incumbent management of the target business. We cannot assure you that we will have the ability to recruit additional managers, or that additional managers will have the requisite skills, knowledge or experience necessary to enhance the incumbent management.
Stockholders May Not Have the Ability to Approve our Initial Business Combination
We may conduct redemptions without a stockholder vote pursuant to the tender offer rules of the SEC, subject to the provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation. However, we will seek stockholder approval if it is required by law or applicable stock exchange rule, or we may decide to seek stockholder approval for business or other reasons. Presented in the table below is a graphic explanation of the types of initial business combinations we may consider and whether stockholder approval is currently required under Delaware law for each such transaction.
Type of Transaction |
Whether Stockholder Approval is Required |
Purchase of assets |
No |
Purchase of stock of target not involving a merger with the company |
No |
Merger of target into a subsidiary of the company |
No |
Merger of the company with a target |
Yes |
Under the NYSE’s listing rules, stockholder approval would be required for our initial business combination if, for example:
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we issue shares of Class A common stock that will be equal to or in excess of 20% of the number of shares of our Class A common stock then outstanding; |
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any of our directors, officers or substantial security holders (as defined by the NYSE rules) has a 5% or greater interest, directly or indirectly, in the target business or assets to be acquired and if the number of shares of common stock to be issued, or if the number of shares of common stock into which the securities may be convertible or exercisable, exceeds either (a) 1% of the number of shares of common stock or 1% of the voting power outstanding before the issuance in the case of any of our directors or officers or (b) 5% |
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of the number of shares of common stock or 5% of the voting power outstanding before the issuance in the case of any substantial security holders; or |
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the issuance or potential issuance of common stock will result in our undergoing a change of control. |
Permitted Purchases of our Securities
In the event we seek stockholder approval of our business combination and we do not conduct redemptions in connection with our business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, our initial stockholders, Sponsor, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates may purchase shares or public warrants in privately negotiated transactions or in the open market either prior to or following the completion of our initial business combination. There is no limit on the number of shares our initial stockholders, Sponsor, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates may purchase in such transactions, subject to compliance with applicable law and the rules of the NYSE. However, they have no current commitments, plans or intentions to engage in such transactions and have not formulated any terms or conditions for any such transactions. None of the funds in the trust account will be used to purchase shares or public warrants in such transactions. If they engage in such transactions, they will be subject to restrictions in making any such purchases when they are in possession of any material non-public information not disclosed to the seller or if such purchases are prohibited by Regulation M under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”). Such a purchase may include a contractual acknowledgement that such stockholder, although still the record holder of our shares is no longer the beneficial owner thereof and therefore agrees not to exercise its redemption rights.
In the event that our initial stockholders, Sponsor, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates purchase shares in privately negotiated transactions from public stockholders who have already elected to exercise their redemption rights, such selling stockholders would be required to revoke their prior elections to redeem their shares. We do not currently anticipate that such purchases, if any, would constitute a tender offer subject to the tender offer rules under the Exchange Act or a going-private transaction subject to the going-private rules under the Exchange Act; however, if the purchasers determine at the time of any such purchases that the purchases are subject to such rules, the purchasers will comply with such rules.
The purpose of any such purchases of shares could be to (i) vote such shares in favor of the business combination and thereby increase the likelihood of obtaining stockholder approval of the business combination or (ii) to satisfy a closing condition in an agreement with a target that requires us to have a minimum net worth or a certain amount of cash at the closing of our business combination, where it appears that such requirement would otherwise not be met. The purpose of any such purchases of public warrants could be to reduce the number of public warrants outstanding or to vote such warrants on any matters submitted to the warrantholders for approval in connection with our initial business combination. Any such purchases of our securities may result in the completion of our business combination that may not otherwise have been possible.
In addition, if such purchases are made, the public “float” of our common stock or public warrants may be reduced and the number of beneficial holders of our securities may be reduced, which may make it difficult to maintain or obtain the quotation, listing or trading of our securities on a national securities exchange.
Our initial stockholders, Sponsor, officers, directors and/or their affiliates anticipate that they may identify the stockholders with whom our initial stockholders, Sponsor, officers, directors or their affiliates may pursue privately negotiated purchases by either the stockholders contacting us directly or by our receipt of redemption requests submitted by stockholders (in the case of shares of Class A common stock) following our mailing of proxy materials in connection with our initial business combination. To the extent that our Sponsor, officers, directors, advisors or their affiliates enter into a private purchase, they would identify and contact only potential selling stockholders who have expressed their election to redeem their shares for a pro rata share of the trust account or vote against our initial business combination, whether or not such stockholder has already submitted a proxy with respect to our initial business combination but only if such shares have not already been voted at the stockholder meeting related to our initial business combination. Our Sponsor, officers, directors, advisors or any of their affiliates will select which stockholders to purchase shares from based on the negotiated price and number of shares and any other factors that they may deem relevant, and will only purchase shares if such purchases comply with Regulation M under the Exchange Act and the other federal securities laws.
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Any purchases by our Sponsor, officers, directors and/or their affiliates who are affiliated purchasers under Rule 10b-18 under the Exchange Act will only be made to the extent such purchases are able to be made in compliance with Rule 10b-18, which is a safe harbor from liability for manipulation under Section 9(a)(2) and Rule 10b-5 of the Exchange Act. Rule 10b-18 has certain technical requirements that must be complied with in order for the safe harbor to be available to the purchaser. Our Sponsor, officers, directors and/or their affiliates are subject to restrictions in making purchases of common stock if the purchases would violate Section 9(a)(2) or Rule 10b-5 of the Exchange Act. Any such purchases will be reported pursuant to Section 13 and Section 16 of the Exchange Act to the extent such purchasers are subject to such reporting requirements.
Redemption Rights for Public Stockholders upon Completion of our Initial Business Combination
We will provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their shares of Class A common stock upon the completion of our initial business combination at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account calculated as of two business days prior to the consummation of the initial business combination including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our franchise and income taxes, divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, subject to the limitations described herein. The amount in the trust account is initially anticipated to be $10.00 per public share. The per-share amount we will distribute to investors who properly redeem their shares will not be reduced by the deferred underwriting discounts and commissions we will pay to the underwriters. Our Sponsor, officers and directors have entered into a letter agreement with us, pursuant to which they have agreed to waive their redemption rights with respect to any Founder Shares held by them and any public shares held by them in connection with the completion of our business combination.
Limitations on Redemptions
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that in no event will we redeem our public shares in an amount that would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001 upon consummation of our initial business combination and after payment of underwriters’ fees and commissions (so that we are not subject to the SEC’s “penny stock” rules). However, the proposed business combination may require (i) cash consideration to be paid to the target or its owners, (ii) cash to be transferred to the target for working capital or other general corporate purposes or (iii) the retention of cash to satisfy other conditions in accordance with the terms of the proposed business combination. In the event the aggregate cash consideration we would be required to pay for all shares of Class A common stock that are validly submitted for redemption plus any amount required to satisfy cash conditions pursuant to the terms of the proposed business combination exceed the aggregate amount of cash available to us, we will not complete the business combination or redeem any shares, and all shares of Class A common stock submitted for redemption will be returned to the holders thereof.
Manner of Conducting Redemptions
We will provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their shares of Class A common stock upon the completion of our initial business combination either (i) in connection with a stockholder meeting called to approve the business combination or (ii) by means of a tender offer. The decision as to whether we will seek stockholder approval of a proposed business combination or conduct a tender offer will be made by us, solely in our discretion, and will be based on a variety of factors such as the timing of the transaction and whether the terms of the transaction would require us to seek stockholder approval under applicable law or stock exchange listing requirement. Asset acquisitions and stock purchases would not typically require stockholder approval while direct mergers with our Company where we do not survive and any transactions where we issue more than 20% of our outstanding common stock or seek to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation would require stockholder approval. If we structure a business combination transaction with a target business in a manner that requires stockholder approval, we will not have discretion as to whether to seek a stockholder vote to approve the proposed business combination. We currently intend to conduct redemptions in connection with a stockholder vote unless stockholder approval is not required by applicable law or stock exchange listing requirement and we choose to conduct redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules of the SEC for business or other reasons.
If we hold a stockholder vote to approve our initial business combination, we will, pursuant to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation:
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conduct the redemptions in conjunction with a proxy solicitation pursuant to Regulation 14A of the Exchange Act, which regulates the solicitation of proxies, and not pursuant to the tender offer rules, and |
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file proxy materials with the SEC. |
In the event that we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination, we will distribute proxy materials and, in connection therewith, provide our public stockholders with the redemption rights described above upon completion of the initial business combination.
If we seek stockholder approval, we will complete our initial business combination only if a majority of the outstanding shares of common stock voted are voted in favor of the business combination. A quorum for such meeting will consist of the holders present in person or by proxy of shares of outstanding capital stock of the company representing a majority of the voting power of all outstanding shares of capital stock of the Company entitled to vote at such meeting. Our initial stockholders count toward this quorum and have agreed to vote their Founder Shares and any public shares purchased during or after the Public Offering in favor of our initial business combination. For purposes of seeking approval of the majority of our outstanding shares of common stock voted, non-votes will have no effect on the approval of our initial business combination once a quorum is obtained. As a result, in addition to our initial stockholders’ Founder Shares, we would need 20,700,001, or 37.5%, of the 55,200,000 public shares sold in the Public Offering to be voted in favor of a transaction (assuming all outstanding shares are voted) in order to have our initial business combination approved. We intend to give approximately 30 days (but not less than 10 days nor more than 60 days) prior written notice of any such meeting, if required, at which a vote shall be taken to approve our initial business combination. These quorum and voting thresholds, and the voting agreements of our initial stockholders, may make it more likely that we will consummate our initial business combination. Each public stockholder may elect to redeem its public shares irrespective of whether it votes for or against the proposed transaction. In addition, our Sponsor, officers and directors have entered into a letter agreement with us, pursuant to which they have agreed to waive their redemption rights with respect to any Founder Shares and any public shares held by them in connection with the completion of a business combination.
If we conduct redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules of the SEC, we will, pursuant to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation:
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conduct the redemptions pursuant to Rule 13e-4 and Regulation 14E of the Exchange Act, which regulate issuer tender offers, and |
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file tender offer documents with the SEC prior to completing our initial business combination which contain substantially the same financial and other information about the initial business combination and the redemption rights as is required under Regulation 14A of the Exchange Act, which regulates the solicitation of proxies. Although we are not required to do so, we currently intend to comply with the substantive and procedural requirements of Regulation 14A in connection with any stockholder vote even if we are not able to maintain our NYSE listing or Exchange Act registration. |
Upon the public announcement of our business combination, we or our Sponsor will terminate any plan established in accordance with Rule 10b5-1 to purchase shares of our Class A common stock in the open market if we elect to redeem our public shares through a tender offer, to comply with Rule 14e-5 under the Exchange Act.
In the event we conduct redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules, our offer to redeem will remain open for at least 20 business days, in accordance with Rule 14e-1(a) under the Exchange Act, and we will not be permitted to complete our initial business combination until the expiration of the tender offer period. In addition, the tender offer will be conditioned on public stockholders not tendering more than the number of public shares we are permitted to redeem. If public stockholders tender more shares than we have offered to purchase, we will withdraw the tender offer and not complete the initial business combination.
Limitation on Redemption upon Completion of our Initial Business Combination if we Seek Stockholder Approval
If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination and we do not conduct redemptions in connection with our business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, our amended and restated certificate of
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incorporation provides that a public stockholder, together with any affiliate of such stockholder or any other person with whom such stockholder is acting in concert or as a “group” (as defined under Section 13 of the Exchange Act), will be restricted from seeking redemption rights with respect to more than an aggregate of 15% of the shares sold in our Public Offering, which we refer to as the “Excess Shares.” We believe this restriction will discourage stockholders from accumulating large blocks of shares, and subsequent attempts by such holders to use their ability to exercise their redemption rights against a proposed business combination as a means to force us or our management to purchase their shares at a significant premium to the then-current market price or on other undesirable terms. Absent this provision, a public stockholder holding more than an aggregate of 15% of the shares sold in the Public Offering could threaten to exercise its redemption rights if such holder’s shares are not purchased by us, our Sponsor or our management team at a premium to the then-current market price or on other undesirable terms. By limiting our stockholders’ ability to redeem no more than 15% of the shares sold in the Public Offering without our prior consent, we believe we will limit the ability of a small group of stockholders to unreasonably attempt to block our ability to complete our business combination, particularly in connection with a business combination with a target that requires as a closing condition that we have a minimum net worth or a certain amount of cash. However, we would not be restricting our stockholders’ ability to vote all of their shares (including Excess Shares) for or against our business combination.
Tendering Stock Certificates in Connection with a Tender Offer or Redemption Rights
Public stockholders seeking to exercise their redemption rights, whether they are record holders or hold their shares in “street name,” will be required to either tender their certificates to our transfer agent prior to the date set forth in the proxy solicitation or tender offer materials (as applicable) mailed to such holders, or up to two business days prior to the initially scheduled vote on the proposal to approve the business combination in the event we distribute proxy materials, or to deliver their shares to the transfer agent electronically using the Depository Trust Company’s DWAC (Deposit/Withdrawal At Custodian) System, at the holder’s option. The proxy solicitation or tender offer materials (as applicable) that we will furnish to holders of our public shares in connection with our initial business combination will indicate the applicable delivery requirements. Accordingly, a public stockholder would have from the time we send out our tender offer materials until the close of the tender offer period, or up to two days prior to the vote on the business combination if we distribute proxy materials, as applicable, to tender its shares if it wishes to seek to exercise its redemption rights. Given the relatively short period in which to exercise redemption rights, it is advisable for stockholders to use electronic delivery of their public shares.
There is a nominal cost associated with the above-referenced tendering process and the act of certificating the shares or delivering them through the DWAC System. The transfer agent will typically charge the tendering broker a fee of approximately $80.00 and it would be up to the broker whether or not to pass this cost on to the redeeming holder. However, this fee would be incurred regardless of whether or not we require holders seeking to exercise redemption rights to tender their shares. The need to deliver shares is a requirement of exercising redemption rights regardless of the timing of when such delivery must be effectuated.
The foregoing is different from the procedures used by many blank check companies. In order to perfect redemption rights in connection with their business combinations, many blank check companies would distribute proxy materials for the stockholders’ vote on an initial business combination, and a holder could simply vote against a proposed business combination and check a box on the proxy card indicating such holder was seeking to exercise his or her redemption rights. After the business combination was approved, the company would contact such stockholder to arrange for him or her to deliver his or her certificate to verify ownership. As a result, the stockholder then had an “option window” after the completion of the business combination during which he or she could monitor the price of the company’s stock in the market. If the price rose above the redemption price, he or she could sell his or her shares in the open market before actually delivering his or her shares to the company for cancellation. As a result, the redemption rights, to which stockholders were aware they needed to commit before the stockholder meeting, would become “option” rights surviving past the completion of the business combination until the redeeming holder delivered its certificate. The requirement for physical or electronic delivery prior to the meeting ensures that a redeeming holder’s election to redeem is irrevocable once the business combination is approved.
Any request to redeem such shares, once made, may be withdrawn at any time up to the date set forth in the tender offer materials or two business days prior to the scheduled date of the meeting set forth in our proxy materials, as applicable (unless we elect to allow additional withdrawal rights). Furthermore, if a holder of a public share delivered its certificate in connection with an election of redemption rights and subsequently decides prior to
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the applicable date not to elect to exercise such rights, such holder may simply request that the transfer agent return the certificate (physically or electronically). It is anticipated that the funds to be distributed to holders of our public shares electing to redeem their shares will be distributed promptly after the completion of our business combination.
If our initial business combination is not approved or completed for any reason, then our public stockholders who elected to exercise their redemption rights would not be entitled to redeem their shares for the applicable pro rata share of the trust account. In such case, we will promptly return any certificates delivered by public holders who elected to redeem their shares.
Redemption of Public Shares and Liquidation if no Initial Business Combination
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that we will have only 24 months from the closing of the Public Offering (or 27 months from the closing of the Public Offering if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of the Public Offering) to complete our initial business combination. If we are unable to complete our business combination within such 24-month period, or 27-month period, if applicable, we will: (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up, (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than ten business days thereafter, redeem the public shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our franchise and income taxes (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidating distributions, if any), subject to applicable law, and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining stockholders and our board of directors, dissolve and liquidate, subject in each case to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. There will be no redemption rights or liquidating distributions with respect to our warrants, which will expire worthless if we fail to complete our business combination within the 24-month time period, or 27-month time period, if applicable.
Our Sponsor, officers and directors have entered into a letter agreement with us, pursuant to which they have waived their rights to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to any Founder Shares held by them if we fail to complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of the Public Offering (or 27 months from the closing of the Public Offering if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of the Public Offering). However, if our Sponsor, officers or directors acquire public shares in or after our Public Offering, they will be entitled to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to such public shares if we fail to complete our initial business combination within the allotted 24-month time period, or 27-month time period, if applicable.
Our Sponsor, officers and directors have agreed, pursuant to a written agreement with us, that they will not propose any amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation that would affect the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we have not consummated an initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of the Public Offering (or 27 months from the closing of the Public Offering if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of the Public Offering), unless we provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their shares of Class A common stock upon approval of any such amendment at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our franchise and income taxes, divided by the number of then outstanding public shares. However, we may not redeem our public shares in an amount that would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001 upon consummation of our initial business combination and after payment of underwriters’ fees and commissions (so that we are not subject to the SEC’s “penny stock” rules). If this optional redemption right is exercised with respect to an excessive number of public shares such that we cannot satisfy the net tangible asset requirement, we would not proceed with the amendment or the related redemption of our public shares at such time. Pursuant to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, such an amendment would need to be approved by the affirmative vote of the holders of at least 65% of all then outstanding shares of our common stock.
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We expect that all costs and expenses associated with implementing our plan of dissolution, as well as payments to any creditors, will be funded from amounts remaining as part of the estimated $1,000,000 of cash held outside of the trust account, although we cannot assure you that there will be sufficient funds for such purpose. However, if those funds are not sufficient to cover the costs and expenses associated with implementing our plan of dissolution, to the extent that there is any interest accrued in the trust account not required to pay franchise and income taxes on interest income earned on the trust account balance, we may request the trustee to release to us an additional amount of up to $100,000 of such accrued interest to pay those costs and expenses.
If we were to expend all of the net proceeds of the Public Offering and the sale of the Private Placement Warrants, other than the proceeds deposited in the trust account, and without taking into account interest, if any, earned on the trust account, the per-share redemption amount received by stockholders upon our dissolution would be approximately $10.00. The proceeds deposited in the trust account could, however, become subject to the claims of our creditors which would have higher priority than the claims of our public stockholders. We cannot assure you that the actual per-share redemption amount received by stockholders will not be substantially less than $10.00. Under Section 281(b) of the DGCL, our plan of dissolution must provide for all claims against us to be paid in full or make provision for payments to be made in full, as applicable, if there are sufficient assets. These claims must be paid or provided for before we make any distribution of our remaining assets to our stockholders. While we intend to pay such amounts, if any, we cannot assure you that we will have funds sufficient to pay or provide for all creditors’ claims.
Although we will seek to have all vendors (other than our independent registered public accounting firm), service providers, prospective target businesses and other entities with which we do business execute agreements with us waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to any monies held in the trust account for the benefit of our public stockholders, there is no guarantee that they will execute such agreements or even if they execute such agreements that they would be prevented from bringing claims against the trust account including but not limited to fraudulent inducement, breach of fiduciary responsibility or other similar claims, as well as claims challenging the enforceability of the waiver, in each case in order to gain an advantage with respect to a claim against our assets, including the funds held in the trust account. If any third party refuses to execute an agreement waiving such claims to the monies held in the trust account, our management will perform an analysis of the alternatives available to it and will only enter into an agreement with a third party that has not executed a waiver if management believes that such third party’s engagement would be significantly more beneficial to us than any alternative. Examples of possible instances where we may engage a third party that refuses to execute a waiver include the engagement of a third party consultant whose particular expertise or skills are believed by management to be significantly superior to those of other consultants that would agree to execute a waiver or in cases where we are unable to find a service provider willing to execute a waiver. In addition, there is no guarantee that such entities will agree to waive any claims they may have in the future as a result of, or arising out of, any negotiations, contracts or agreements with us and will not seek recourse against the trust account for any reason. Our Sponsor has agreed that it will be liable to us if and to the extent any claims by a third party (other than our independent public accountants) for services rendered or products sold to us, or a prospective target business with which we have entered into a written letter of intent, confidentiality or other similar agreement or business combination agreement, reduce the amount of funds in the trust account to below (i) $10.00 per public share or (ii) such lesser amount per public share held in the trust account as of the date of the liquidation of the trust account, due to reductions in value of the trust assets, in each case net of the amount of interest which may be withdrawn to pay our taxes, except as to any claims by a third party or prospective target business who executed a waiver of any and all rights to the monies held in the trust account (whether or not such waiver is enforceable) and except as to any claims under our indemnity of the underwriters of the Public Offering against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. However, we have not asked our Sponsor to reserve for such indemnification obligations, nor have we independently verified whether our Sponsor has sufficient funds to satisfy its indemnity obligations, and we believe that our Sponsor’s only assets are securities of our Company. Therefore, we cannot assure you that our Sponsor would be able to satisfy those obligations. As a result, if any such claims were successfully made against the trust account, the funds available for our initial business combination and redemptions could be reduced to less than $10.00 per public share. In such event, we may not be able to complete our initial business combination, and you would receive such lesser amount per share in connection with any redemption of your public shares. None of our officers or directors will indemnify us for claims by third parties including, without limitation, claims by vendors and prospective target businesses.
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In the event that the proceeds in the trust account are reduced below (i) $10.00 per public share or (ii) such lesser amount per public share held in the trust account as of the date of the liquidation of the trust account, due to reductions in value of the trust assets, in each case net of the amount of interest which may be withdrawn to pay our taxes, and our Sponsor asserts that it is unable to satisfy its indemnification obligations or that it has no indemnification obligations related to a particular claim, our independent directors would determine whether to take legal action against our Sponsor to enforce its indemnification obligations. While we currently expect that our independent directors would take legal action on our behalf against our Sponsor to enforce its indemnification obligations to us, it is possible that our independent directors in exercising their business judgment may choose not to do so if, for example, the cost of such legal action is deemed by the independent directors to be too high relative to the amount recoverable or if the independent directors determine that a favorable outcome is not likely. We have not asked our Sponsor to reserve for such indemnification obligations and we cannot assure you that our Sponsor would be able to satisfy those obligations. Accordingly, we cannot assure you that due to claims of creditors the actual value of the per-share redemption price will not be less than $10.00 per public share.
We will seek to reduce the possibility that our Sponsor will have to indemnify the trust account due to claims of creditors by endeavoring to have all vendors, service providers (other than our independent registered public accounting firm), prospective target businesses or other entities with which we do business execute agreements with us waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to monies held in the trust account. Our Sponsor will also not be liable as to any claims under our indemnity of the underwriters of the Public Offering against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. We will have access to up to approximately $1,000,000 from the proceeds of the Public Offering with which to pay any such potential claims (including costs and expenses incurred in connection with our liquidation, currently estimated to be no more than approximately $100,000). In the event that we liquidate and it is subsequently determined that the reserve for claims and liabilities is insufficient, stockholders who received funds from our trust account could be liable for claims made by creditors.
Under the DGCL, stockholders may be held liable for claims by third parties against a corporation to the extent of distributions received by them in a dissolution. The pro rata portion of our trust account distributed to our public stockholders upon the redemption of our public shares in the event we do not complete our business combination within 24 months from the closing of the Public Offering (or 27 months from the closing of the Public Offering if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of the Public Offering) may be considered a liquidating distribution under Delaware law. If the corporation complies with certain procedures set forth in Section 280 of the DGCL intended to ensure that it makes reasonable provision for all claims against it, including a 60-day notice period during which any third-party claims can be brought against the corporation, a 90-day period during which the corporation may reject any claims brought, and an additional 150-day waiting period before any liquidating distributions are made to stockholders, any liability of stockholders with respect to a liquidating distribution is limited to the lesser of such stockholder’s pro rata share of the claim or the amount distributed to the stockholder, and any liability of the stockholder would be barred after the third anniversary of the dissolution.
Furthermore, if the pro rata portion of our trust account distributed to our public stockholders upon the redemption of our public shares in the event we do not complete our business combination within 24 months from the closing of the Public Offering (or 27 months from the closing of the Public Offering if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of the Public Offering) is not considered a liquidating distribution under Delaware law and such redemption distribution is deemed to be unlawful, then pursuant to Section 174 of the DGCL, the statute of limitations for claims of creditors could then be six years after the unlawful redemption distribution, instead of three years, as in the case of a liquidating distribution. If we are unable to complete our business combination within 24 months from the closing of the Public Offering (or 27 months from the closing of the Public Offering if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of the Public Offering), we will: (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up, (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than ten business days thereafter, redeem the public shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our franchise and income taxes (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidating distributions, if any), subject to applicable law, and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible
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following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining stockholders and our board of directors, dissolve and liquidate, subject in each case to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. Accordingly, it is our intention to redeem our public shares as soon as reasonably possible following our 24th month, or 27th month, if applicable, and, therefore, we do not intend to comply with those procedures. As such, our stockholders could potentially be liable for any claims to the extent of distributions received by them (but no more) and any liability of our stockholders may extend well beyond the third anniversary of such date.
Because we will not be complying with Section 280, Section 281(b) of the DGCL requires us to adopt a plan, based on facts known to us at such time that will provide for our payment of all existing and pending claims or claims that may be potentially brought against us within the subsequent 10 years. However, because we are a blank check company, rather than an operating company, and our operations are limited to searching for prospective target businesses to acquire, the only likely claims to arise would be from our vendors (such as lawyers, investment bankers, etc.) or prospective target businesses. As described above, pursuant to the obligation contained in our underwriting agreement, we will seek to have all vendors, service providers (other than our independent registered public accounting firm), prospective target businesses or other entities with which we do business execute agreements with us waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to any monies held in the trust account. As a result of this obligation, the claims that could be made against us are significantly limited and the likelihood that any claim that would result in any liability extending to the trust account is remote. Further, our Sponsor may be liable only to the extent necessary to ensure that the amounts in the trust account are not reduced below (i) $10.00 per public share or (ii) such lesser amount per public share held in the trust account as of the date of the liquidation of the trust account, due to reductions in value of the trust assets, in each case net of the amount of interest withdrawn to pay our taxes and will not be liable as to any claims under our indemnity of the underwriters of the Public Offering against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. In the event that an executed waiver is deemed to be unenforceable against a third party, our Sponsor will not be responsible to the extent of any liability for such third-party claims.
If we file a bankruptcy petition or an involuntary bankruptcy petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, the proceeds held in the trust account could be subject to applicable bankruptcy law, and may be included in our bankruptcy estate and subject to the claims of third parties with priority over the claims of our stockholders. To the extent any bankruptcy claims deplete the trust account, we cannot assure you we will be able to return $10.00 per share to our public stockholders. Additionally, if we file a bankruptcy petition or an involuntary bankruptcy petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, any distributions received by stockholders could be viewed under applicable debtor/creditor and/or bankruptcy laws as either a “preferential transfer” or a “fraudulent conveyance.” As a result, a bankruptcy court could seek to recover some or all amounts received by our stockholders. Furthermore, our board of directors may be viewed as having breached its fiduciary duty to our creditors and/or may have acted in bad faith, and thereby exposing itself and our Company to claims of punitive damages, by paying public stockholders from the trust account prior to addressing the claims of creditors. We cannot assure you that claims will not be brought against us for these reasons.
Our public stockholders will be entitled to receive funds from the trust account only (i) in the event of the redemption of our public shares if we are unable to complete our business combination within 24 months from the closing of the Public Offering (or 27 months from the closing of the Public Offering if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of the Public Offering), subject to applicable law, (ii) in connection with a stockholder vote to approve an amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation that would affect the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we have not consummated an initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of the Public Offering (or 27 months from the closing of the Public Offering if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of the Public Offering) or (iii) if they redeem their respective shares for cash upon the completion of the initial business combination. In no other circumstances will a stockholder have any right or interest of any kind to or in the trust account. In the event we seek stockholder approval in connection with our initial business combination, a stockholder’s voting in connection with the business combination alone will not result in a stockholder’s redeeming its shares to us for an applicable pro rata share of the trust account. Such stockholder must have also exercised its redemption rights described above. These provisions of our amended and
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restated certificate of incorporation, like all provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, may be amended with a stockholder vote.
Limited Payments to Insiders
There will be no finder’s fees, reimbursements or cash payments made by the Company to our Sponsor, officers or directors, or our or their affiliates, for services rendered to us prior to or in connection with the completion of our initial business combination, other than the following payments, none of which will be made from the proceeds of our Public Offering held in the trust account prior to the completion of our initial business combination:
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repayment of up to an aggregate of $300,000 in loans made to us by our Sponsor to cover offering-related and organizational expenses; |
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reimbursement for office space, utilities, secretarial support and administrative services provided to us by our Sponsor, in an amount equal to $10,000 per month; |
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underwriting discounts and commissions, placement agent fees, initial purchaser fees or discounts, finders’ fees, arrangement fees, commitment fees and transaction, structuring, consulting, advisory and management fees and similar fees for services rendered prior to or in connection with the completion of an initial business combination; |
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reimbursement of legal fees and expenses incurred by our Sponsor, officers or directors in connection with our formation, the initial business combination and their services to us; |
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reimbursement for any out-of-pocket expenses related to identifying, investigating, negotiating and completing an initial business combination; and |
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repayment of loans which may be made by our Sponsor or an affiliate of our Sponsor or certain of our officers and directors to finance transaction costs in connection with an intended initial business combination, the terms of which have not been determined nor have any written agreements have been executed with respect thereto. Up to $1,500,000 of such loans may be convertible into warrants of the post business combination entity at a price of $1.50 per warrant at the option of the lender. The warrants would be identical to the Private Placement Warrants, including as to exercise price, exercisability and exercise period. Except for the foregoing, the terms of such loans, if any, have not been determined and no written agreements exist with respect to such loans. |
Competition
In identifying, evaluating and selecting a target business for our business combination, we may encounter intense competition from other entities having a business objective similar to ours, including other blank check companies, private equity groups and leveraged buyout funds, and operating businesses seeking strategic acquisitions. Many of these entities are well established and have extensive experience identifying and effecting business combinations directly or through affiliates. Moreover, many of these competitors possess greater financial, technical, human and other resources than we do. Our ability to acquire larger target businesses will be limited by our available financial resources. This inherent limitation gives others an advantage in pursuing the acquisition of a target business. Furthermore, our obligation to pay cash in connection with our public stockholders who exercise their redemption rights may reduce the resources available to us for our initial business combination and our outstanding warrants, and the future dilution they potentially represent, may not be viewed favorably by certain target businesses. Any of these factors may place us at a competitive disadvantage in successfully negotiating an initial business combination.
Human Capital Management
We currently have two officers. These individuals are not obligated to devote any specific number of hours to our matters but they intend to devote as much of their time as they deem necessary to our affairs until we have completed our initial business combination. The amount of time that any members of our management team will
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devote in any time period will vary based on whether a target business has been selected for our initial business combination and the current stage of the business combination process.
We believe our management team’s operating and transaction experience and relationships with companies provides us with a substantial number of potential business combination targets. Over the course of their careers, the members of our management team have developed a broad network of contacts and corporate relationships around the world. This network has grown through the activities of our management team sourcing, acquiring and financing businesses, our management team’s relationships with sellers, financing sources and target management teams and the experience of our management team in executing transactions under varying economic and financial market conditions. See “Part III, Item 10. Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance” for a more complete description of our management team’s experience.
Periodic Reporting and Financial Information
We have registered our units, Class A common stock and public warrants under the Exchange Act and have reporting obligations, including the requirement that we file annual, quarterly and current reports with the SEC. In accordance with the requirements of the Exchange Act, our annual reports will contain financial statements audited and reported on by our independent registered public accountants.
We will provide stockholders with audited financial statements of the prospective target business as part of the proxy solicitation or tender offer materials (as applicable) sent to stockholders. These financial statements may be required to be prepared in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”), or reconciled to, GAAP, or International Financial Reporting Standards (“IFRS”), depending on the circumstances, and the historical financial statements may be required to be audited in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (the “PCAOB”). These financial statement requirements may limit the pool of potential target businesses we may acquire because some targets may be unable to provide such statements in time for us to disclose such statements in accordance with federal proxy rules and complete our initial business combination within the prescribed time frame. We cannot assure you that any particular target business identified by us as a potential acquisition candidate will have financial statements prepared in accordance with the requirements outlined above, or that the potential target business will be able to prepare its financial statements in accordance with the requirements outlined above. To the extent that any applicable requirements cannot be met, we may not be able to acquire the proposed target business. While this may limit the pool of potential acquisition candidates, we do not believe that this limitation will be material.
We will be required to evaluate our internal control procedures for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2021 as required by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (the “Sarbanes-Oxley Act”). Only in the event we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer or an accelerated filer will we be required to have our internal control procedures audited. A target business may not be in compliance with the provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act regarding adequacy of their internal controls. The development of the internal controls of any such entity to achieve compliance with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act may increase the time and costs necessary to complete any such acquisition.
We are an “emerging growth company,” as defined in Section 2(a) of the Securities Act, as modified by the JOBS Act. As such, we are eligible to take advantage of certain exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other public companies that are not “emerging growth companies” including, but not limited to, not being required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports and proxy statements, and exemptions from the requirements of holding a non-binding advisory vote on executive compensation and stockholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved. If some investors find our securities less attractive as a result, there may be a less active trading market for our securities and the prices of our securities may be more volatile.
In addition, Section 107 of the JOBS Act also provides that an “emerging growth company” can take advantage of the extended transition period provided in Section 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act for complying with new or revised accounting standards. In other words, an “emerging growth company” can delay the adoption of certain accounting standards until those standards would otherwise apply to private companies. We intend to take advantage of the benefits of this extended transition period.
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We will remain an emerging growth company until the earlier of (i) the last day of the fiscal year (a) following the fifth anniversary of the completion of the Public Offering, (b) in which we have total annual gross revenue of at least $1.07 billion (as adjusted for inflation pursuant to SEC rules from time to time), or (c) in which we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer, which means the market value of our Class A common stock that is held by non-affiliates exceeds $700 million as of the prior June 30th, and (ii) the date on which we have issued more than $1.0 billion in non-convertible debt during the prior three-year period.
Additionally, we are a “smaller reporting company” as defined in Item 10(f)(1) of Regulation S-K. Smaller reporting companies may take advantage of certain reduced disclosure obligations, including, among other things, providing only two years of audited financial statements. We will remain a smaller reporting company until the last day of the fiscal year in which (i) the market value of our common stock held by non-affiliates exceeds $250 million as of the end of that year’s second fiscal quarter or (ii) our annual revenues exceeded $100 million during such completed fiscal year and the market value of our common stock held by non-affiliates exceeds $700 million as of the end of that year’s second fiscal quarter.
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An investment in our securities involves a high degree of risk. You should consider carefully all of the risks described below, together with the other information contained in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, including our financial statements and related notes, before making a decision to invest in our securities. If any of the following events occur, our business, financial condition and operating results may be materially adversely affected. In that event, the trading price of our securities could decline, and you could lose all or part of your investment.
We are a newly formed company with no operating history and no revenues, and you have no basis on which to evaluate our ability to achieve our business objective.
We are a newly formed company with no operating results, and we did not commence operations until obtaining funding through our Public Offering. Because we lack an operating history, you have no basis upon which to evaluate our ability to achieve our business objective of completing our initial business combination with one or more target businesses. If we fail to complete our business combination, we will never generate any operating revenues.
Our public stockholders may not be afforded an opportunity to vote on our proposed business combination, which means we may complete our initial business combination even though a majority of our public stockholders do not support such a combination.
We may choose not to hold a stockholder vote to approve our initial business combination if the business combination would not require stockholder approval under applicable law or stock exchange listing requirements. Except as required by applicable law or stock exchange requirement, the decision as to whether we will seek stockholder approval of a proposed business combination or will allow stockholders to sell their shares to us in a tender offer will be made by us, solely in our discretion, and will be based on a variety of factors, such as the timing of the transaction and whether the terms of the transaction would otherwise require us to seek stockholder approval. Accordingly, we may complete our initial business combination even if holders of a majority of our public shares do not approve of the business combination we complete.
Your only opportunity to affect the investment decision regarding a potential business combination may be limited to the exercise of your right to redeem your shares from us for cash.
At the time of your investment in us, you will not be provided with an opportunity to evaluate the specific merits or risks of our initial business combination. Since our board of directors may complete a business combination without seeking stockholder approval, public stockholders may not have the right or opportunity to vote on the business combination, unless we seek such stockholder vote. Accordingly, if we do not seek stockholder approval, your only opportunity to affect the investment decision regarding a potential business combination may be limited to exercising your redemption rights within the period of time (which will be at least 20 business days) set forth in our tender offer documents mailed to our public stockholders in which we describe our initial business combination.
If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination, our initial stockholders and management team have agreed to vote in favor of such initial business combination, regardless of how our public stockholders vote.
Our initial stockholders own 20% of our outstanding shares of common stock. Our initial stockholders and management team also may from time to time purchase shares of Class A common stock prior to our initial business combination. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that, if we seek stockholder approval of an initial business combination, such initial business combination will be approved if we receive the affirmative vote of a majority of the shares voted at such meeting, including the Founder Shares. As a result, in addition to our initial stockholders’ Founder Shares, we would need 20,700,001, or 37.5%, of the 55,200,000 public shares sold in the Public Offering to be voted in favor of an initial business combination in order to have our initial business combination approved (assuming all outstanding shares are voted). Accordingly, if we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination, the agreement by our initial stockholders and management team to vote in favor of our initial business combination will increase the likelihood that we will receive the requisite stockholder approval for such initial business combination.
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The ability of our public stockholders to exercise redemption rights with respect to a large number of our shares could increase the probability that our initial business combination would be unsuccessful and that you would have to wait for liquidation in order to redeem your stock.
If our business combination agreement requires us to use a portion of the cash in the trust account to pay the purchase price, or requires us to have a minimum amount of cash at closing, the probability that our initial business combination would be unsuccessful is increased. If our initial business combination is unsuccessful, you would not receive your pro rata portion of the trust account until we liquidate the trust account. If you are in need of immediate liquidity, you could attempt to sell your stock in the open market; however, at such time our stock may trade at a discount to the pro rata amount per share in the trust account. In either situation, you may suffer a material loss on your investment or lose the benefit of funds expected in connection with our redemption until we liquidate or you are able to sell your stock in the open market.
We may not hold an annual meeting of stockholders until after the consummation of our initial business combination, which could delay the opportunity for our stockholders to elect directors.
In accordance with the NYSE corporate governance requirements, we are not required to hold an annual meeting until no later than one year after our first fiscal year end following our listing on the NYSE. Under Section 211(b) of the DGCL, we are, however, required to hold an annual meeting of stockholders for the purposes of electing directors in accordance with our bylaws unless such election is made by written consent in lieu of such a meeting. We may not hold an annual meeting of stockholders to elect new directors prior to the consummation of our initial business combination, and thus, we may not be in compliance with Section 211(b) of the DGCL, which requires an annual meeting. Therefore, if our stockholders want us to hold an annual meeting prior to the consummation of our initial business combination, they may attempt to force us to hold one by submitting an application to the Court of Chancery in the State of Delaware in accordance with Section 211(c) of the DGCL.
We have not registered the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants under the Securities Act or any state securities laws at this time, and such registration may not be in place when an investor desires to exercise its warrants, thus precluding such investor from being able to exercise its warrants except on a cashless basis and potentially causing such warrants to expire worthless.
We have not registered the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants under the Securities Act or any state securities laws at this time. However, under the terms of the warrant agreement, we have agreed that as soon as practicable, but in no event later than 15 business days, after the closing of our initial business combination, we will use our best efforts to file a registration statement under the Securities Act covering such shares and maintain a current prospectus relating to the Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants, until the expiration of the warrants in accordance with the provisions of the warrant agreement. We cannot assure you that we will be able to do so if, for example, any facts or events arise which represent a fundamental change in the information set forth in the registration statement or prospectus, the financial statements contained or incorporated by reference therein are not current or correct or the SEC issues a stop order. Notwithstanding the above, if our Class A common stock is at the time of any exercise of a warrant not listed on a national securities exchange such that it satisfies the definition of a “covered security” under Section 18(b)(1) of the Securities Act, we may, at our option, require holders of public warrants who exercise their warrants to do so on a “cashless basis” in accordance with Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act and, in the event we so elect, we will not be required to file or maintain in effect a registration statement, but we will be required to use our best efforts to register or qualify the shares under applicable blue sky laws to the extent an exemption is not available. To exercise warrants on a cashless basis, each holder would pay the exercise price by surrendering the warrants in exchange for a number of shares of our Class A common stock equal to the lesser of (A) the quotient obtained by dividing (x) the product of (i) the number of shares of our Class A common stock underlying the warrants, and (ii) the excess of the “fair market value” (defined below) over the exercise price of the warrants by (y) the fair market value and (B) the product of the number of warrants surrendered and 0.361 (subject to adjustment). The “fair market value” as used in this paragraph shall mean the average last reported sale price of our Class A common stock for the 10 trading days ending on the trading day prior to the date on which the notice of exercise is received by the warrant agent.
In no event will we be required to net cash settle any warrant, or issue securities or other compensation in exchange for the warrants in the event that we are unable to register or qualify the shares underlying the warrants under the Securities Act or applicable state securities laws, and there is no exemption available. If the issuance of the
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shares upon exercise of the warrants is not so registered or qualified or exempt from registration or qualification, the holder of such warrant shall not be entitled to exercise such warrant and such warrant may have no value and expire worthless. In such event, holders who acquired their warrants as part of a purchase of units will have paid the full unit purchase price solely for the shares of Class A common stock included in the units. If and when the warrants become redeemable by us, we may exercise our redemption right even if we are unable to register or qualify the underlying shares of Class A common stock for sale under all applicable state securities laws.
The grant of registration rights to our initial stockholders may make it more difficult to complete our initial business combination, and the future exercise of such rights may adversely affect the market price of our Class A common stock.
Pursuant to an agreement entered into concurrently with the issuance and sale of the securities in our Public Offering, our initial stockholders and their permitted transferees can demand that we register the Class A common stock into which Founder Shares are convertible, holders of our Private Placement Warrants and their permitted transferees can demand that we register the Private Placement Warrants and the Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the Private Placement Warrants and holders of warrants that may be issued upon conversion of Working Capital Loans (as defined herein) may demand that we register such warrants or the Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of such warrants. Assuming the Founder Shares convert on a one-for-one basis and no warrants are issued upon conversion of Working Capital Loans, an aggregate of up to 13,800,000 shares of Class A common stock and up to 9,360,000 public warrants are subject to registration under these agreements. We will bear the cost of registering these securities. The registration and availability of such a significant number of securities for trading in the public market may have an adverse effect on the market price of our Class A common stock. In addition, the existence of the registration rights may make our initial business combination more costly or difficult to conclude. This is because the stockholders of the target business may increase the equity stake they seek in the combined entity or ask for more cash consideration to offset the negative impact on the market price of our Class A common stock that is expected when the securities owned by our initial stockholders, holders of our Private Placement Warrants, holders of Working Capital Loans or their respective permitted transferees are registered.
If you exercise your warrants on a “cashless basis,” you will receive fewer shares of Class A common stock from such exercise than if you were to exercise such warrants for cash.
There are circumstances in which the exercise of the warrants may be required or permitted to be made on a cashless basis. First, if our shares of Class A common stock are at any time of any exercise of a warrant not listed on a national securities exchange such that it satisfies the definition of a “covered security” under Section 18(b)(1) of the Securities Act, we may, at our option, require holders of redeemable warrants who exercise their redeemable warrants to do so on a cashless basis in accordance with Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act and, in the event we so elect, we will not be required to file or maintain in effect a registration statement, and in the event we do not so elect, we will use commercially reasonable efforts to register or qualify the shares under applicable blue sky laws to the extent an exemption is not available. To exercise warrants on a cashless basis, each holder would pay the exercise price by surrendering the warrants in exchange for a number of shares of our Class A common stock equal to by the lesser of (A) the quotient obtained by dividing (x) the product of (i) the number of shares of our Class A common stock underlying the warrants, and (ii) the excess of the “fair market value” (defined below) over the exercise price of the warrants by (y) the fair market value and (B) the product of the number of warrants surrendered and 0.361 (subject to adjustment). The “fair market value” of our Class A common stock as used in this paragraph shall mean the average last reported sale price of our Class A common stock for the 10 trading days ending on the third trading day prior to the date on which the notice of redemption is sent to the holders of warrants. Second, if we call our redeemable warrants for redemption for cash when the price per share of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00, holders who exercise their warrants will receive that number of shares set forth in the table as described under “Part IV, Item 15. Exhibits and Financial Statement Schedules — Note 6 — Stockholder’s Equity — Redemption of warrants when the price per share of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00.” As a result, you would receive fewer shares of Class A common stock from such exercise than if you were to exercise such warrants for cash.
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Our warrants and Founder Shares may have an adverse effect on the market price of our Class A common stock and make it more difficult to effectuate our business combination.
We issued warrants to purchase 13,800,000 shares of Class A common stock simultaneously with the closing of our Public Offering, and issued in a private placement an aggregate of 9,360,000 Private Placement Warrants, each exercisable to purchase one share of Class A common stock at $11.50 per share. The Founder Shares are convertible into shares of Class A common stock on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment for share splits, share dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like and subject to further adjustment as set forth herein. In addition, if our Sponsor makes any Working Capital Loans, it may convert those loans into up to an additional 1,000,000 Private Placement Warrants, at the price of $1.50 per Private Placement Warrant. To the extent we issue Class A common stock to effectuate a business combination, the potential for the issuance of a substantial number of additional shares of Class A common stock upon exercise of these Private Placement Warrants and conversion rights could make us a less attractive acquisition vehicle to a target business. Any such issuance will increase the number of issued and outstanding shares of Class A common stock and reduce the value of the Class A common stock issued to complete the business combination. Therefore, our Private Placement Warrants and Founder Shares may make it more difficult to effectuate a business combination or increase the cost of acquiring the target business.
Because each unit contains one-fourth of one warrant and only a whole warrant may be exercised, the units may be worth less than units of other blank check companies.
Each of our units contains one-fourth of one warrant. Pursuant to the warrant agreement, no fractional warrants will be issued upon separation of the units, and only whole warrants will trade. This is different from other offerings similar to ours whose units include one share of common stock and one warrant to purchase one whole share. We have established the components of the units in this way in order to reduce the dilutive effect of the warrants upon completion of a business combination since the warrants will be exercisable in the aggregate for one-fourth of the number of shares compared to units that each contain a whole warrant to purchase one share, thus making us, we believe, a more attractive merger partner for target businesses. Nevertheless, this unit structure may cause our units to be worth less than if they included a warrant to purchase one whole share.
We may amend the terms of the warrants in a manner that may be adverse to holders of public warrants with the approval by the holders of at least 50% of the then outstanding public warrants. As a result, the exercise price of your warrants could be increased, the warrant could be converted into cash or stock (at a ratio different than initially provided), the exercise period could be shortened and the number of shares of our Class A common stock purchasable upon exercise of a warrant could be decreased, all without your approval.
Our warrants were issued in registered form under a warrant agreement entered into in connection with the Public Offering between Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, as warrant agent, and us. The warrant agreement provides that the terms of the warrants may be amended without the consent of any holder to cure any ambiguity or correct any defective provision, but requires the approval by the holders of at least 50% of the then outstanding public warrants to make any change that adversely affects the interests of the registered holders of public warrants. Accordingly, we may amend the terms of the public warrants in a manner adverse to a holder if holders of at least 50% of the then outstanding public warrants approve of such amendment. Although our ability to amend the terms of the public warrants with the consent of at least 50% of the then outstanding public warrants is unlimited, examples of such amendments could be amendments to, among other things, increase the exercise price of the warrants, convert the warrants into cash or stock (at a ratio different than initially provided), shorten the exercise period or decrease the number of shares of our Class A common stock purchasable upon exercise of a warrant.
We may redeem your unexpired warrants prior to their exercise at a time that is disadvantageous to you, thereby making your warrants worthless.
We have the ability to redeem the outstanding public warrants at any time after they become exercisable and prior to their expiration, at a price of $0.01 per warrant, provided that the last reported sales price of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $18.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) for any 20 trading days within a 30-trading day period ending on the third trading day prior to the date on which we give proper notice of such redemption and provided certain other conditions are met.
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If and when the warrants become redeemable by us, we may exercise our redemption right even if we are unable to register or qualify the underlying securities for sale under all applicable state securities laws. As a result, we may redeem the warrants as set forth above even if the holders are otherwise unable to exercise the warrants. Redemption of the outstanding warrants could force you (i) to exercise your warrants and pay the exercise price therefor at a time when it may be disadvantageous for you to do so, (ii) to sell your warrants at the then-current market price when you might otherwise wish to hold your warrants or (iii) to accept the nominal redemption price which, at the time the outstanding warrants are called for redemption, is likely to be substantially less than the market value of your warrants.
In addition, we have the ability to redeem the outstanding public warrants at any time after they become exercisable and prior to their expiration, at a price of $0.10 per warrant upon a minimum of 30 days’ prior written notice of redemption provided that the last reported sale price per share of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) on the trading day prior to the date on which we send the notice of redemption to the warrantholders, and provided that certain other conditions are met, including that holders will be able to exercise their warrants prior to redemption for a number of shares of Class A common stock determined based on the redemption date and the fair market value of our Class A common stock. Please see “Part IV, Item 15. Exhibits and Financial Statement Schedules — Note 6 — Stockholder’s Equity — Redemption of warrants when the price per share of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00.” The value received upon exercise of the warrants (1) may be less than the value the holders would have received if they had exercised their warrants at a later time where the underlying share price is higher and (2) may not compensate the holders for the value of the warrants, including because the number of common stock received is capped at 0.361 shares of Class A common stock per warrant (subject to adjustment) irrespective of the remaining life of the warrants.
None of the Private Placement Warrants will be redeemable by us (except as described below under “Part IV, Item 15. Exhibits and Financial Statement Schedules — Note 6 — Stockholder’s Equity — Redemption of warrants when the price per share of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00”) so long as they are held by our Sponsor or its permitted transferees.
We do not have a specified maximum redemption threshold. The absence of such a redemption threshold may make it possible for us to complete a business combination with which a substantial majority of our stockholders do not agree.
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation does not provide a specified maximum redemption threshold, except that in no event will we redeem our public shares in an amount that would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001 upon consummation of our initial business combination and after payment of underwriters’ fees and commissions (such that we are not subject to the SEC’s “penny stock” rules). As a result, we may be able to complete our business combination even though a substantial majority of our public stockholders do not agree with the transaction and have redeemed their shares or, if we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination and do not conduct redemptions in connection with our business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, have entered into privately negotiated agreements to sell their shares to our Sponsor, officers, directors, advisors or any of their affiliates. In the event the aggregate cash consideration we would be required to pay for all shares of Class A common stock that are validly submitted for redemption plus any amount required to satisfy cash conditions pursuant to the terms of the proposed business combination exceed the aggregate amount of cash available to us, we will not complete the business combination or redeem any shares, all shares of Class A common stock submitted for redemption will be returned to the holders thereof, and we instead may search for an alternate business combination.
The exercise price for the public warrants is higher than in some other blank check company offerings, and, accordingly, the warrants are more likely to expire worthless.
The exercise price of the public warrants is higher than in some other blank check companies. For example, historically, the exercise price of a warrant was often a fraction of the purchase price of the units in the initial public offering. The exercise price for our public warrants is $11.50 per share, subject to adjustments as provided herein. As a result, the warrants are less likely to ever be in the money and more likely to expire worthless.
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The provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation that relate to our pre-business combination activity (and corresponding provisions of the agreement governing the release of funds from our trust account) may be amended with the approval of holders of 65% of our common stock, which is a lower amendment threshold than that of some other blank check companies. It may be easier for us, therefore, to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and the trust agreement to facilitate the completion of an initial business combination that some of our stockholders may not support.
Some other blank check companies have a provision in their charter which prohibits the amendment of certain of its provisions, including those which relate to a company’s pre-business combination activity, without approval by a certain percentage of the company’s stockholders. In those companies, amendment of these provisions requires approval by between 90% and 100% of the company’s public stockholders. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that any of its provisions (other than amendments relating to the appointment of directors prior to our initial business combination, which require the approval of a majority of at least 90% of our common stock voting at a stockholder meeting) related to pre-business combination activity (including the requirement to deposit proceeds of our Public Offering and the Private Placement Warrants into the trust account and not release such amounts except in specified circumstances, and to provide redemption rights to public stockholders as described herein) may be amended if approved by holders of 65% of our common stock entitled to vote thereon, and corresponding provisions of the trust agreement governing the release of funds from our trust account may be amended if approved by holders of 65% of our common stock entitled to vote thereon. In all other instances, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation may be amended by holders of a majority of our outstanding common stock entitled to vote thereon, subject to applicable provisions of the DGCL or applicable stock exchange rules. Our initial stockholders, who beneficially own 20% of our common stock, will participate in any vote to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and/or trust agreement and will have the discretion to vote in any manner they choose. As a result, we may be able to amend the provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation which govern our pre-business combination behavior more easily than some other blank check companies, and this may increase our ability to complete a business combination with which you do not agree. Our stockholders may pursue remedies against us for any breach of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation.
Our Sponsor, officers and directors have agreed, pursuant to a letter agreement with us, that they will not propose any amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation that would affect the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we have not consummated an initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of the Public Offering (or 27 months from the closing of the Public Offering if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of the Public Offering), unless we provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their shares of Class A common stock upon approval of any such amendment at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our franchise and income taxes, divided by the number of then outstanding public shares. These agreements are contained in a letter agreement, that we have entered into with our Sponsor, officers and directors. Our public stockholders are not parties to, or third-party beneficiaries of, these agreements and, as a result, will not have the ability to pursue remedies against our Sponsor, officers or directors for any breach of these agreements. As a result, in the event of a breach, our stockholders would need to pursue a stockholder derivative action, subject to applicable law.
Provisions in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and Delaware law may inhibit a takeover of us, which could limit the price investors might be willing to pay in the future for our Class A common stock and could entrench management.
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation contains provisions that may discourage unsolicited takeover proposals that stockholders may consider to be in their best interests. These provisions include a staggered board of directors and the ability of the board of directors to designate the terms of and issue new series of preferred stock, which may make the removal of management more difficult and may discourage transactions that otherwise could involve payment of a premium over prevailing market prices for our securities.
We are also subject to anti-takeover provisions under Delaware law, which could delay or prevent a change of control. Together these provisions may make the removal of management more difficult and may discourage transactions that otherwise could involve payment of a premium over prevailing market prices for our securities.
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Provisions in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and Delaware law may have the effect of discouraging lawsuits against our directors and officers.
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation requires, to the fullest extent permitted by law, that derivative actions brought in our name, actions against directors, officers and employees for breach of fiduciary duty and other similar actions (other than actions arising under the Securities Act or the Exchange Act) may be brought only in the Court of Chancery in the State of Delaware (or, if such court does not have subject matter jurisdiction thereof, any other court located in the State of Delaware with subject matter jurisdiction) and, if brought outside of the State of Delaware, the stockholder bringing such suit will be deemed to have consented to service of process on such stockholder’s counsel. This provision may limit a stockholder’s ability to bring a claim in a judicial forum that it finds favorable for disputes with us and our directors, officers or other employees and may have the effect of discouraging lawsuits against our directors and officers. Section 27 of the Exchange Act creates exclusive federal jurisdiction over all suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Exchange Act or the rules and regulations thereunder and Section 22 of the Securities Act creates concurrent jurisdiction for state and federal courts over all suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Securities Act or the rules and regulations thereunder.
If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination, our initial stockholders, Sponsor, directors, officers, advisors and their affiliates may elect to purchase shares or public warrants from public stockholders or public warrantholders, which may influence a vote on a proposed business combination and reduce the public “float” of our Class A common stock.
If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination and we do not conduct redemptions in connection with our business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, our initial stockholders, Sponsor, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates may purchase shares or public warrants or a combination thereof in privately negotiated transactions or in the open market either prior to or following the completion of our initial business combination, although they are under no obligation to do so. There is no limit on the number of shares our initial stockholders, Sponsor, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates may purchase in such transactions, subject to compliance with applicable law and the rules of the NYSE. However, other than as expressly stated herein, they have no current commitments, plans or intentions to engage in such transactions and have not formulated any terms or conditions for any such transactions. None of the funds in the trust account will be used to purchase shares or public warrants in such transactions.
In the event that our initial stockholders, Sponsor, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates purchase shares in privately negotiated transactions from public stockholders who have already elected to exercise their redemption rights, such selling stockholders would be required to revoke their prior elections to redeem their shares. The purpose of any such purchases of shares could be to vote such shares in favor of the business combination and thereby increase the likelihood of obtaining stockholder approval of the business combination or to satisfy a closing condition in an agreement with a target that requires us to have a minimum net worth or a certain amount of cash at the closing of our business combination, where it appears that such requirement would otherwise not be met. The purpose of any such purchases of public warrants could be to reduce the number of public warrants outstanding or to vote such warrants on any matters submitted to the warrantholders for approval in connection with our initial business combination. Any such purchases of our securities may result in the completion of our business combination that may not otherwise have been possible. Any such purchases will be reported pursuant to Section 13 and Section 16 of the Exchange Act to the extent the purchasers are subject to such reporting requirements.
In addition, if such purchases are made, the public “float” of our Class A common stock or public warrants and the number of beneficial holders of our securities may be reduced, possibly making it difficult to maintain or obtain the quotation, listing or trading of our securities on a national securities exchange.
If a stockholder fails to receive notice of our offer to redeem our public shares in connection with our business combination, or fails to comply with the procedures for tendering its shares, such shares may not be redeemed.
We will comply with the proxy rules or tender offer rules, as applicable, when conducting redemptions in connection with our business combination. Despite our compliance with these rules, if a stockholder fails to receive our proxy solicitation or tender offer materials, as applicable, such stockholder may not become aware of the opportunity to redeem its shares. In addition, the proxy solicitation or tender offer materials, as applicable, that we
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will furnish to holders of our public shares in connection with our initial business combination will describe the various procedures that must be complied with in order to validly redeem or tender public shares. For example, we may require our public stockholders seeking to exercise their redemption rights, whether they are record holders or hold their shares in “street name,” to either tender their certificates to our transfer agent prior to the date set forth in the proxy solicitation or tender offer materials mailed to such holders, or up to two business days prior to the vote on the proposal to approve the business combination in the event we distribute proxy materials, or to deliver their shares to the transfer agent electronically. In the event that a stockholder fails to comply with these or any other procedures, its shares may not be redeemed.
You will not have any rights or interests in funds from the trust account, except under certain limited circumstances. Therefore, to liquidate your investment, you may be forced to sell your public shares or warrants, potentially at a loss.
Our public stockholders will be entitled to receive funds from the trust account only upon the earliest to occur of: (i) the redemption of any public shares properly submitted in connection with our completion of an initial business combination (including the release of funds to pay any amounts due to any public stockholders who properly exercise their redemption rights in connection therewith), (ii) the redemption of any public shares properly submitted in connection with a stockholder vote to approve an amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation that would modify the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we have not consummated an initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of our Public Offering (or 27 months from the closing of our Public Offering if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of our Public Offering), or (iii) the redemption of our public shares if we are unable to complete an initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of our Public Offering (or 27 months from the closing of our Public Offering if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of our Public Offering), subject to applicable law and as further described herein. In addition, if we are unable to complete an initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of our Public Offering (or 27 months from the closing of our Public Offering if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of our Public Offering) for any reason, compliance with Delaware law may require that we submit a plan of dissolution to our then-existing stockholders for approval prior to the distribution of the proceeds held in our trust account. In that case, public stockholders may be forced to wait beyond 24 months from the closing of our Public Offering (or 27 months from the closing of our Public Offering if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of our Public Offering) before they receive funds from our trust account. In no other circumstances will a public stockholder have any right or interest of any kind in the trust account. Holders of warrants will not have any right to the proceeds held in the trust account with respect to the warrants. Accordingly, to liquidate your investment, you may be forced to sell your public shares or warrants, potentially at a loss.
You will not be entitled to protections normally afforded to investors of many other blank check companies.
Because we have net tangible assets in excess of $5,000,000 and timely filed a Current Report on Form 8-K, including an audited balance sheet demonstrating this fact, we are exempt from rules promulgated by the SEC to protect investors in blank check companies, such as Rule 419. Accordingly, investors will not be afforded the benefits or protections of those rules. Among other things, this means our units will be immediately tradable and we will have a longer period of time to complete our business combination than do companies subject to Rule 419. Moreover, if our Public Offering were subject to Rule 419, that rule would prohibit the release of any interest earned on funds held in the trust account to us unless and until the funds in the trust account were released to us in connection with our completion of an initial business combination.
If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination and we do not conduct redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules, and if you or a “group” of stockholders are deemed to hold in excess of 15% of our
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Class A common stock, you will lose the ability to redeem all such shares in excess of 15% of our Class A common stock.
If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination and we do not conduct redemptions in connection with our initial business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that a public stockholder, together with any affiliate of such stockholder or any other person with whom such stockholder is acting in concert or as a “group” (as defined under Section 13 of the Exchange Act), will be restricted from seeking redemption rights with respect to more than an aggregate of 15% of the shares sold in our Public Offering without our prior consent, which we refer to as the “Excess Shares.” However, we would not be restricting our stockholders’ ability to vote all of their shares (including Excess Shares) for or against our business combination. Your inability to redeem the Excess Shares will reduce your influence over our ability to complete our business combination and you could suffer a material loss on your investment in us if you sell Excess Shares in open market transactions. Additionally, you will not receive redemption distributions with respect to the Excess Shares if we complete our business combination. And as a result, you will continue to hold that number of shares exceeding 15% and, in order to dispose of such shares, would be required to sell your stock in open market transactions, potentially at a loss.
Our directors may decide not to enforce the indemnification obligations of our Sponsor, resulting in a reduction in the amount of funds in the trust account available for distribution to our public stockholders.
In the event that the proceeds in the trust account are reduced below the lesser of (i) $10.00 per public share and (ii) the actual amount per public share held in the trust account as of the date of the liquidation of the trust account, if less than $10.00 per share due to reductions in the value of the trust assets, in each case net of the interest which may be withdrawn to pay our taxes, and our Sponsor asserts that it is unable to satisfy its obligations or that it has no indemnification obligations related to a particular claim, our independent directors would determine whether to take legal action against our Sponsor to enforce its indemnification obligations.
While we currently expect that our independent directors would take legal action on our behalf against our Sponsor to enforce its indemnification obligations to us, it is possible that our independent directors in exercising their business judgment and subject to their fiduciary duties may choose not to do so in any particular instance. If our independent directors choose not to enforce these indemnification obligations, the amount of funds in the trust account available for distribution to our public stockholders may be reduced below $10.00 per share.
Our stockholders may be held liable for claims by third parties against us to the extent of distributions received by them upon redemption of their shares.
Under the DGCL, stockholders may be held liable for claims by third parties against a corporation to the extent of distributions received by them in a dissolution. The pro rata portion of our trust account distributed to our public stockholders upon the redemption of our public shares in the event we do not complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of our Public Offering (or 27 months from the closing of our Public Offering if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of our Public Offering) may be considered a liquidating distribution under Delaware law. If a corporation complies with certain procedures set forth in Section 280 of the DGCL intended to ensure that it makes reasonable provision for all claims against it, including a 60-day notice period during which any third-party claims can be brought against the corporation, a 90-day period during which the corporation may reject any claims brought, and an additional 150-day waiting period before any liquidating distributions are made to stockholders, any liability of stockholders with respect to a liquidating distribution is limited to the lesser of such stockholder’s pro rata share of the claim or the amount distributed to the stockholder, and any liability of the stockholder would be barred after the third anniversary of the dissolution. However, it is our intention to redeem our public shares as soon as reasonably possible following the 24th month from the closing of our Public Offering (or 27th month from the closing of our Public Offering if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of our Public Offering) in the event we do not complete our business combination and, therefore, we do not intend to comply with the foregoing procedures.
Because we will not be complying with Section 280, Section 281(b) of the DGCL requires us to adopt a plan, based on facts known to us at such time that will provide for our payment of all existing and pending claims or
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claims that may be potentially brought against us within the 10 years following our dissolution. However, because we are a blank check company, rather than an operating company, and our operations are limited to searching for prospective target businesses to acquire, the only likely claims to arise would be from our vendors (such as lawyers, investment bankers, etc.) or prospective target businesses. If our plan of distribution complies with Section 281(b) of the DGCL, any liability of stockholders with respect to a liquidating distribution is limited to the lesser of such stockholder’s pro rata share of the claim or the amount distributed to the stockholder, and any liability of the stockholder would likely be barred after the third anniversary of the dissolution. We cannot assure you that we will properly assess all claims that may be potentially brought against us. As such, our stockholders could potentially be liable for any claims to the extent of distributions received by them (but no more) and any liability of our stockholders may extend beyond the third anniversary of such date. Furthermore, if the pro rata portion of our trust account distributed to our public stockholders upon the redemption of our public shares in the event we do not complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of our Public Offering (or 27 months from the closing of our Public Offering if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of our Public Offering) is not considered a liquidating distribution under Delaware law and such redemption distribution is deemed to be unlawful, then pursuant to Section 174 of the DGCL, the statute of limitations for claims of creditors could then be six years after the unlawful redemption distribution, instead of three years, as in the case of a liquidating distribution.
We may issue additional common stock or preferred stock to complete our initial business combination or under an employee incentive plan after completion of our initial business combination. We may also issue shares of Class A common stock upon the conversion of the Class B common stock at a ratio greater than one-to-one at the time of our initial business combination as a result of the anti-dilution provisions contained in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation. Any such issuances would dilute the interest of our stockholders and likely present other risks.
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation authorizes the issuance of up to 250,000,000 shares of Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 per share, 20,000,000 shares of Class B common stock, par value $0.0001 per share, and 1,000,000 undesignated shares of preferred stock, par value $0.0001 per share. There are 194,800,000 and 6,200,000 authorized but unissued shares of Class A common stock and Class B common stock, respectively, available for issuance, which amount does not take into account Class A common stock reserved for issuance upon exercise of outstanding warrants, or shares issuable upon conversion of Class B common stock. Our Class B common stock is automatically convertible into Class A common stock at the time of our initial business combination, initially at a one-for-one ratio but subject to adjustment as set forth herein. There are currently no shares of preferred stock issued and outstanding. Our Class B common stock is convertible into Class A common stock initially at a one-for-one ratio but subject to adjustment as set forth herein, including in certain circumstances in which we issue Class A common stock or equity-linked securities related to our initial business combination.
We may issue a substantial number of additional shares of common or preferred stock to complete our initial business combination or under an employee incentive plan after completion of our initial business combination. We may also issue shares of Class A common stock upon conversion of the Class B common stock at a ratio greater than one-to-one at the time of our initial business combination as a result of the anti-dilution provisions contained in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation. However, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation , among other things, that prior to our initial business combination, we may not issue additional shares of capital stock that would entitle the holders thereof to (i) receive funds from the trust account or (ii) vote on any initial business combination. These provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, like all provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, may be amended with a stockholder vote. The issuance of additional shares of common or preferred stock:
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may significantly dilute the equity interest of investors in our Public Offering; |
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may subordinate the rights of holders of common stock if preferred stock is issued with rights senior to those afforded our common stock; |
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could cause a change in control if a substantial number of shares of our common stock are issued, which may affect, among other things, our ability to use our net operating loss carry forwards, if any, and could result in the resignation or removal of our present officers and directors; and |
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may adversely affect prevailing market prices for our units, Class A common stock and/or warrants. |
Unlike some other similarly structured blank check companies, our initial stockholders will receive additional shares of Class A common stock if we issue shares to consummate an initial business combination.
The Founder Shares will automatically convert into shares of Class A common stock at the time of our initial business combination on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like and subject to further adjustment as provided herein. In the case that additional shares of Class A common stock or equity-linked securities convertible or exercisable for shares of Class A common stock are issued or deemed issued in excess of the amounts sold in our Public Offering and related to the closing of our initial business combination, the ratio at which Founder Shares will convert into shares of Class A common stock will be adjusted so that the number of shares of Class A common stock issuable upon conversion of all Founder Shares will equal, in the aggregate, 20% of the sum of our shares of common stock outstanding at the closing of our Public Offering plus the number of shares of Class A common stock and equity-linked securities issued or deemed issued in connection with our initial business combination, excluding any shares of Class A common stock or equity-linked securities issued, or to be issued, to any seller in our initial business combination.
Our warrant agreement designates the courts of the State 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 warrantholders to obtain a favorable judicial forum for disputes with our Company.
Our warrant agreement provides that, subject to applicable law, (i) any action, proceeding or claim against us arising out of or relating in any way to the warrant agreement, including under the Securities Act, will be brought and enforced in the courts of the State of New York or the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York and (ii) that we irrevocably submit to such jurisdiction, which jurisdiction shall be the exclusive forum for any such action, proceeding or claim. We will waive any objection to such exclusive jurisdiction and that such courts represent an inconvenient forum. We note, however, that there is uncertainty as to whether a court would enforce this provision and that investors cannot waive compliance with the federal securities laws and the rules and regulations thereunder. Section 22 of the Securities Act creates concurrent jurisdiction for state and federal courts over all suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Securities Act or the rules and regulations thereunder.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, these provisions of the warrant agreement do not apply to suits brought to enforce any liability or duty created by the Exchange Act or any other claim for which the federal district courts of the United States of America are the sole and exclusive forum. 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. Any person or entity purchasing or otherwise acquiring any interest in any of our warrants shall be deemed to have notice of and to have consented to the forum provisions in our warrant agreement. If any action, the subject matter of which is within the scope of the provisions of the warrant agreement, is filed in a court other than a court of the State of New York or the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (a “foreign action”) in the name of any holder of our warrants, such holder shall be deemed to have consented to: (x) the personal jurisdiction of the state and federal courts located in the State of New York in connection with any action brought in any such court to enforce the forum provisions (an “enforcement action”), and (y) having service of process made upon such warrantholders in any such enforcement action by service upon such warrantholder’s counsel in the foreign action as agent for such warrantholder.
This choice-of-forum provision may limit a warrantholder’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 agreement 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 team and board of directors.
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We may issue notes or other debt securities, or otherwise incur substantial debt, to complete a business combination, which may adversely affect our leverage and financial condition and thus negatively impact the value of our stockholders’ investment in us.
Although we have no commitments as of the date of this Annual Report on Form 10-K to issue any notes or other debt securities, or to otherwise incur outstanding debt following our Public Offering, we may choose to incur substantial debt to complete our business combination. We have agreed that we will not incur any indebtedness unless we have obtained from the lender a waiver of any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to the monies held in the trust account. As such, no issuance of debt will affect the per share amount available for redemption from the trust account. Nevertheless, the incurrence of debt could have a variety of negative effects, including:
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default and foreclosure on our assets if our operating revenues after an initial business combination are insufficient to repay our debt obligations; |
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acceleration of our obligations to repay the indebtedness even if we make all principal and interest payments when due if we breach certain covenants that require the maintenance of certain financial ratios or reserves without a waiver or renegotiation of that covenant; |
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our immediate payment of all principal and accrued interest, if any, if the debt is payable on demand; |
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our inability to obtain necessary additional financing if the debt contains covenants restricting our ability to obtain such financing while the debt is outstanding; |
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our inability to pay dividends on our common stock; |
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using a substantial portion of our cash flow to pay principal and interest on our debt, which will reduce the funds available for dividends on our common stock if declared, to pay expenses, make capital expenditures and acquisitions and fund other general corporate purposes; |
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limitations on our flexibility in planning for and reacting to changes in our business and in the industry in which we operate; |
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increased vulnerability to adverse changes in general economic, industry and competitive conditions and adverse changes in government regulation; |
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limitations on our ability to borrow additional amounts for expenses, capital expenditures, acquisitions, debt service requirements, and execution of our strategy; and |
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other disadvantages compared to our competitors who have less debt. |
In addition, Apollo and its affiliates and certain of the Apollo Funds engage in the business of originating, underwriting, syndicating, acquiring and trading loans and debt securities of corporate and other borrowers, and may provide or participate in any debt financing arrangement in connection with any acquisition of any target business that we may make. If Apollo or any of its affiliates or the Apollo Funds provides or participates in any such debt financing arrangement it may present a conflict of interest and will have to be approved under our related person transaction policy or by our independent directors.
We may not have sufficient funds to satisfy indemnification claims of our directors and officers.
We have agreed to indemnify our officers and directors to the fullest extent permitted by law. However, our officers and directors have agreed, and any persons who may become officers or directors prior to the initial business combination will agree, to waive any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to any monies in the trust account and to not seek recourse against the trust account for any reason whatsoever. Accordingly, any indemnification provided will be able to be satisfied by us only if (i) we have sufficient funds outside of the trust account or (ii) we consummate an initial business combination. Our obligation to indemnify our officers and directors may discourage stockholders from bringing a lawsuit against our officers or directors for breach of their fiduciary duty. These provisions also may have the effect of reducing the likelihood of derivative litigation against
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our officers and directors, even though such an action, if successful, might otherwise benefit us and our stockholders. Furthermore, a stockholder’s investment may be adversely affected to the extent we pay the costs of settlement and damage awards against our officers and directors pursuant to these indemnification provisions.
If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in the trust account could be reduced and the per-share redemption amount received by stockholders may be less than $10.00 per share.
Our placing of funds in the trust account may not protect those funds from third-party claims against us. Although we will seek to have all vendors, service providers (other than our independent registered public accounting firm), prospective target businesses and other entities with which we do business execute agreements with us waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to any monies held in the trust account for the benefit of our public stockholders, such parties may not execute such agreements, or even if they execute such agreements, they may not be prevented from bringing claims against the trust account, including, but not limited to, fraudulent inducement, breach of fiduciary responsibility or other similar claims, as well as claims challenging the enforceability of the waiver, in each case in order to gain an advantage with respect to a claim against our assets, including the funds held in the trust account. If any third party refuses to execute an agreement waiving such claims to the monies held in the trust account, our management will perform an analysis of the alternatives available to it and will only enter into an agreement with a third party that has not executed a waiver if management believes that such third party’s engagement would be significantly more beneficial to us than any alternative. Making such a request of potential target businesses may make our acquisition proposal less attractive to them and, to the extent prospective target businesses refuse to execute such a waiver, it may limit the field of potential target businesses that we might pursue.
Examples of possible instances where we may engage a third party that refuses to execute a waiver include the engagement of a third party consultant whose particular expertise or skills are believed by management to be significantly superior to those of other consultants that would agree to execute a waiver or in cases where we are unable to find a service provider willing to execute a waiver. In addition, there is no guarantee that such entities will agree to waive any claims they may have in the future as a result of, or arising out of, any negotiations, contracts or agreements with us and will not seek recourse against the trust account for any reason. Upon redemption of our public shares, if we are unable to complete our business combination within the prescribed timeframe, or upon the exercise of a redemption right in connection with our business combination, we will be required to provide for payment of claims of creditors that were not waived that may be brought against us within the 10 years following redemption. Accordingly, the per-share redemption amount received by public stockholders could be less than the $10.00 per public share initially held in the trust account, due to claims of such creditors. Pursuant to the letter agreement our Sponsor has agreed that it is liable to us if and to the extent any claims by a third party (other than our independent public accountants) for services rendered or products sold to us, or a prospective target business with which we have entered into a written letter of intent, confidentiality or other similar agreement or business combination agreement, reduce the amount of funds in the trust account to below the lesser of (i) $10.00 per public share and (ii) the actual amount per public share held in the trust account as of the date of the liquidation of the trust account, if less than $10.00 per share due to reductions in the value of the trust assets, in each case net of the interest which may be withdrawn to pay our taxes, provided that such liability will not apply to any claims by a third party or prospective target business who executed a waiver of any and all rights to the monies held in the trust account (whether or not such waiver is enforceable) nor will it apply to any claims under our indemnity of the underwriters of our Public Offering against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. However, we have not asked our Sponsor to reserve for such indemnification obligations, nor have we independently verified whether our Sponsor has sufficient funds to satisfy its indemnity obligations and we believe that our Sponsor’s only assets are securities of our Company. Therefore, we cannot assure you that our Sponsor would be able to satisfy those obligations. As a result, if any such claims were successfully made against the trust account, the funds available for our initial business combination and redemptions could be reduced to less than $10.00 per public share. In such event, we may not be able to complete our initial business combination, and you would receive such lesser amount per share in connection with any redemption of your public shares. None of our officers or directors will indemnify us for claims by third parties including, without limitation, claims by vendors and prospective target businesses.
If, after we distribute the proceeds in the trust account to our public stockholders, we file a bankruptcy petition or an involuntary bankruptcy petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, a bankruptcy court may seek to recover such proceeds, and the members of our board of directors may be viewed as having breached their
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fiduciary duties to our creditors, thereby exposing the members of our board of directors and us to claims of punitive damages.
If, after we distribute the proceeds in the trust account to our public stockholders, we file a bankruptcy petition or an involuntary bankruptcy petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, any distributions received by stockholders could be viewed under applicable debtor/creditor and/or bankruptcy laws as either a “preferential transfer” or a “fraudulent conveyance.” As a result, a bankruptcy court could seek to recover some or all amounts received by our stockholders. In addition, our board of directors may be viewed as having breached its fiduciary duty to our creditors and/or having acted in bad faith, thereby exposing itself and us to claims of punitive damages, by paying public stockholders from the trust account prior to addressing the claims of creditors.
If, before distributing the proceeds in the trust account to our public stockholders, we file a bankruptcy petition or an involuntary bankruptcy petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, the claims of creditors in such proceeding may have priority over the claims of our stockholders and the per-share amount that would otherwise be received by our stockholders in connection with our liquidation may be reduced.
If, before distributing the proceeds in the trust account to our public stockholders, we file a bankruptcy petition or an involuntary bankruptcy petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, the proceeds held in the trust account could be subject to applicable bankruptcy law, and may be included in our bankruptcy estate and subject to the claims of third parties with priority over the claims of our stockholders. To the extent any bankruptcy claims deplete the trust account, the per-share amount that would otherwise be received by our stockholders in connection with our liquidation may be reduced.
As the number of special purpose acquisition companies evaluating targets increases, attractive targets may become scarcer and there may be more competition for attractive targets. This could increase the cost of our initial business combination and could even result in our inability to find a target or to consummate an initial business combination.
In recent years, the number of special purpose acquisition companies that have been formed has increased substantially. Many potential targets for special purpose acquisition companies have already entered into an initial business combination, and there are still many special purpose acquisition companies preparing for an initial public offering, as well as many such companies currently in registration. As a result, at times, fewer attractive targets may be available to consummate an initial business combination.
In addition, because there are more special purpose acquisition companies seeking to enter into an initial business combination with available targets, the competition for available targets with attractive fundamentals or business models may increase, which could cause target companies to demand improved financial terms. Attractive deals could also become scarcer for other reasons, such as economic or industry sector downturns, geopolitical tensions, or increases in the cost of additional capital needed to close business combinations or operate target post-business combination. This could increase the cost of, delay or otherwise complicate or frustrate our ability to find and consummate an initial business combination, and may result in our inability to consummate an initial business combination on terms favorable to our investors altogether.
We may not be able to complete our initial business combination within the 24 months after the closing of our Public Offering (or 27 months from the closing of our Public Offering if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of our Public Offering), in which case we would cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up and we would redeem our public shares and liquidate, in which case our public stockholders may receive only their pro rata portion of the funds in the trust account that are available for distribution to public stockholders, and our warrants will expire worthless.
We may not be able to find a suitable target business and complete our initial business combination within 24 months after the closing of our Public Offering (or 27 months from the closing of our Public Offering if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of our Public Offering). Our ability to complete our initial business combination may be negatively impacted by general market conditions, volatility in the capital and debt markets and the other risks described herein. If we have not completed our initial business combination within such time period, we will
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(i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up, (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than ten business days thereafter, redeem the public shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our franchise and income taxes (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidating distributions, if any), subject to applicable law, and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining stockholders and our board of directors, dissolve and liquidate, subject in each case to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. In such case, our public stockholders may only receive $10.00 per share, and our warrants will expire worthless. In certain circumstances, our public stockholders may receive less than $10.00 per share on the redemption of their shares. See “— If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in the trust account could be reduced and the per-share redemption amount received by stockholders may be less than $10.00 per share” and other risk factors below.
Subsequent to our completion of our initial business combination, we may be required to take write-downs or write-offs, restructuring and impairment or other charges that could have a significant negative effect on our financial condition, results of operations and our stock price, which could cause you to lose some or all of your investment.
Even if we conduct extensive due diligence on a target business with which we combine, we cannot assure you that this diligence will identify all material issues in relation to a particular target business, that it would be possible to uncover all material issues through a customary amount of due diligence, or that factors outside of the target business and outside of our control will not later arise. As a result of these factors, we may be forced to later write-down or write-off assets, restructure our operations, or incur impairment or other charges that could result in our reporting losses. Even if our due diligence successfully identifies certain risks, unexpected risks may arise and previously known risks may materialize in a manner not consistent with our preliminary risk analysis. Even though these charges may be non-cash items and not have an immediate impact on our liquidity, the fact that we report charges of this nature could contribute to negative market perceptions about us or our securities. In addition, charges of this nature may cause us to violate net worth or other covenants to which we may be subject as a result of assuming pre-existing debt held by a target business or by virtue of our obtaining post-combination debt financing. Accordingly, any stockholders who choose to remain stockholders following the business combination could suffer a reduction in the value of their securities. Such stockholders are unlikely to have a remedy for such reduction in value.
An investment in our securities, and certain subsequent transactions with respect to our securities, may result in uncertain or adverse U.S. federal income tax consequences.
An investment in our securities, and certain subsequent transactions with respect to our securities, may result in uncertain or adverse U.S. federal income tax consequences. For instance, because there is no authority that directly addresses the U.S. federal income tax implications of instruments similar to the units we issued in the Public Offering, the allocation an investor makes of the purchase price of a unit between the share of our Class A common stock and the partial warrant to purchase a share of Class A common stock included in each unit could be challenged by the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) or the courts. Furthermore, the U.S. federal income tax consequences of a cashless exercise of warrants is unclear under current law, and certain adjustments to the exercise price or number of shares of common stock issuable upon an exercise of warrants could give rise to taxable “constructive distributions” on the warrants. Additionally, it is unclear whether the redemption rights with respect to our shares of Class A common stock suspend the running of a U.S. Holder’s holding period for purposes of determining whether any gain or loss realized by such holder on the sale or exchange of Class A common stock is long-term capital gain or loss and for determining whether any dividend we pay would be eligible for favorable U.S. federal income tax treatment. Each prospective investor is urged to consult and rely solely upon its own tax advisors with respect to these and other tax consequences when purchasing, holding or disposing of our securities.
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II. Risks Relating to our Search for, Consummation of, or Inability to Consummate a Business Combination and Post-Business Combination Risks:
Because we are not limited to a particular industry, sector or any specific target businesses with which to pursue our initial business combination, you will be unable to ascertain the merits or risks of any particular target business’s operations.
Although we expect to focus our search for a target business in the energy value chain, with a particular focus on opportunities aligned with energy transition and sustainability themes, we may complete a business combination with an operating company in any industry or sector. However, under our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, we are not permitted to effectuate our business combination solely with another blank check company or similar company with nominal operations. Because we have not yet selected or approached any specific target business with respect to a business combination, there is no basis to evaluate the possible merits or risks of any particular target business’s operations, results of operations, cash flows, liquidity, financial condition or prospects. To the extent we complete our business combination, we may be affected by numerous risks inherent in the business operations with which we combine. For example, if we combine with a financially unstable business or an entity lacking an established record of revenues or earnings, we may be affected by the risks inherent in the business and operations of a financially unstable or a development stage entity. Although our officers and directors will endeavor to evaluate the risks inherent in a particular target business, we cannot assure you that we will properly ascertain or assess all of the significant risk factors or that we will have adequate time to complete due diligence. Furthermore, some of these risks may be outside of our control and leave us with no ability to control or reduce the chances that those risks will adversely impact a target business. We also cannot assure you that an investment in our units will ultimately prove to be more favorable to investors than a direct investment, if such opportunity were available, in a business combination target. Accordingly, any stockholders who choose to remain stockholders following the business combination could suffer a reduction in the value of their securities. Such stockholders are unlikely to have a remedy for such reduction in value.
Because we intend to seek a business combination with a target business or businesses in the energy value chain, we expect our future operations to be subject to risks associated with this industry.
We are focusing our search for a target business in the energy value chain, with a particular focus on opportunities aligned with energy transition and sustainability themes. Specifically, we intend to focus on opportunities across the renewable energy, energy storage, mobility, advanced fuels, and carbon mitigation sectors, as well as other adjacent services, industrials, and technologies, while remaining opportunistic across the energy value chain, including select opportunities within the traditional power generation and energy production verticals. Accordingly, we may pursue a target business in these sectors or any other sector within the energy value chain. Because we have not yet selected or approached any specific target business or sector, we cannot provide specific risks of any business combination. However, risks inherent in investments in the energy value chain include, but are not limited to, the following:
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Volatility of commodity prices; |
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Price and availability of alternative fuels; |
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Competitive pressures in the utility industry, primarily in wholesale markets, as a result of consumer demand, technological advances, greater availability of natural gas and other factors; |
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Denial or delay of receiving requisite regulatory approvals and/or permits; |
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Significant federal, state and local regulation, taxation and regulatory approval processes as well as changes in applicable laws and regulations; |
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The speculative nature of and high degree of risk involved in investments in the energy value chain; |
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Availability of key inputs, such as strategic consumables, raw materials and necessary equipment; |
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The supply of and demand for necessary services and equipment in the United States and internationally; |
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Available transportation, storage and other transportation capacity; |
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Changes in global supply and demand and prices for commodities; |
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Impact of energy conservation efforts; |
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Technological advances affecting energy production and consumption; |
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Overall domestic and global economic conditions; |
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Availability of, and potential disputes with, independent contractors; |
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Natural disasters, terrorist acts and similar dislocations; and |
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Value of U.S. dollar relative to the currencies of other countries. |
We may seek acquisition opportunities in industries or sectors outside of the energy value chain (which industries may or may not be outside of our management’s areas of expertise).
Although we intend to focus on identifying business combination candidates in the energy value chain, with a particular focus on opportunities aligned with energy transition and sustainability themes, we will consider a business combination outside of the energy value chain if a business combination candidate is presented to us and we determine that such candidate offers an attractive acquisition opportunity for our Company or we are unable to identify a suitable candidate in the energy value chain after having expended a reasonable amount of time and effort in an attempt to do so. Although our management will endeavor to evaluate the risks inherent in any particular business combination candidate, we cannot assure you that we will adequately ascertain or assess all of the significant risk factors. We also cannot assure you that an investment in our units will not ultimately prove to be less favorable to investors in our Public Offering than a direct investment, if an opportunity were available, in a business combination candidate. In the event we elect to pursue an acquisition outside of the energy value chain, our management’s expertise may not be directly applicable to its evaluation or operation, and the information contained in this Annual Report on Form 10-K regarding the energy value chain would not be relevant to an understanding of the business that we elect to acquire. As a result, our management may not be able to adequately ascertain or assess all of the significant risk factors. Accordingly, any stockholders who choose to remain stockholders following our business combination could suffer a reduction in the value of their shares. Such stockholders are unlikely to have a remedy for such reduction in value.
Although we have identified general criteria and guidelines that we believe are important in evaluating prospective target businesses, we may enter into our initial business combination with a target business that does not meet such criteria and guidelines, and as a result, the target business with which we enter into our initial business combination may not have attributes entirely consistent with our general criteria and guidelines.
Although we have identified general criteria and guidelines for evaluating prospective target businesses, it is possible that a target business with which we enter into our initial business combination will not have all of these positive attributes. If we complete our initial business combination with a target that does not meet some or all of these guidelines, such combination may not be as successful as a combination with a business that does meet all of our general criteria and guidelines. In addition, if we announce a prospective business combination with a target that does not meet our general criteria and guidelines, a greater number of stockholders may exercise their redemption rights, which may make it difficult for us to meet any closing condition with a target business that requires us to have a minimum net worth or a certain amount of cash. In addition, if stockholder approval of the transaction is required by law, or we decide to obtain stockholder approval for business or other reasons, it may be more difficult for us to attain stockholder approval of our initial business combination if the target business does not meet our general criteria and guidelines. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may only receive their pro rata portion of the funds in the trust account that are available for distribution to public stockholders, and our warrants will expire worthless.
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We may seek business combination opportunities with a financially unstable business or an entity lacking an established record of revenue or earnings, which could subject us to volatile revenues, cash flows or earnings or difficulty in retaining key personnel.
To the extent we complete our initial business combination with a financially unstable business or an entity lacking an established record of revenues, cash flows or earnings, we may be affected by numerous risks inherent in the operations of the business with which we combine. These risks include volatile revenues, cash flows or earnings and difficulties in obtaining and retaining key personnel. Although our officers and directors will endeavor to evaluate the risks inherent in a particular target business, we may not be able to properly ascertain or assess all of the significant risk factors and we may not have adequate time to complete due diligence. Furthermore, some of these risks may be outside of our control and leave us with no ability to control or reduce the chances that those risks will adversely impact a target business.
If the net proceeds of our Public Offering and the sale of the Private Placement Warrants not being held in the trust account are insufficient to allow us to operate for at least the next 24 months, or 27 months, if applicable, we may be unable to complete our initial business combination, in which case our public stockholders may only receive $10.00 per share, or less than such amount in certain circumstances, and our warrants will expire worthless.
The funds available to us outside of the trust account may not be sufficient to allow us to operate for at least the next 24 months, or 27 months, if applicable, assuming that our initial business combination is not completed during that time. We believe that the funds available to us outside of the trust account are sufficient to allow us to operate for at least the next 24 months, or 27 months, if applicable; however, we cannot assure you that our estimate is accurate. Of the funds available to us, we could use a portion of the funds to pay fees to consultants to assist us with our search for a target business. We could also use a portion of the funds as a down payment or to fund a “no-shop” provision (a provision in letters of intent or merger agreements designed to keep target businesses from “shopping” around for transactions with other companies on terms more favorable to such target businesses) with respect to a particular proposed business combination, although we do not have any current intention to do so. If we entered into a letter of intent or merger agreement where we paid for the right to receive exclusivity from a target business and were subsequently required to forfeit such funds (whether as a result of our breach or otherwise), we might not have sufficient funds to continue searching for, or conduct due diligence with respect to, a target business. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.00 per share on the liquidation of our trust account and our warrants will expire worthless. In certain circumstances, our public stockholders may receive less than $10.00 per share upon our liquidation. See “— If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in the trust account could be reduced and the per-share redemption amount received by stockholders may be less than $10.00 per share” and other risk factors below.
If the net proceeds of our Public Offering and the sale of the Private Placement Warrants not being held in the trust account are insufficient to allow us to operate for at least the next 24 months, or 27 months, if applicable, it could limit the amount available to fund our search for a target business or businesses and complete our initial business combination and we will depend on loans from our Sponsor or management team to fund our search for a business combination, to pay our franchise and income taxes and to complete our initial business combination. If we are unable to obtain these loans, we may be unable to complete our initial business combination.
Of the net proceeds of our Public Offering and the sale of the Private Placement Warrants, only approximately $1,000,000 are available to us initially outside the trust account to fund our working capital requirements. If we are required to seek additional capital, we would need to borrow funds from our Sponsor, management team or other third parties to operate or we may be forced to liquidate. None of our Sponsor, members of our management team nor any of their affiliates is under any obligation to advance funds to us in such circumstances. Any such advances would be repaid only from funds held outside the trust account or from funds released to us upon completion of our initial business combination. Up to $1,500,000 of such loans may be convertible into warrants of the post-business combination entity at a price of $1.50 per warrant at the option of the lender. The warrants would be identical to the Private Placement Warrants. Prior to the completion of our initial business combination, we do not expect to seek loans from parties other than our Sponsor or an affiliate of our Sponsor as we do not believe third parties will be willing to loan such funds and provide a waiver against any and all rights to seek access to funds in our trust account. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination because we do not have sufficient funds available to us, we will be forced to cease operations and liquidate the trust account. Consequently, our public
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stockholders may only receive an estimated $10.00 per share, or possibly less, on our redemption of our public shares, and our warrants will expire worthless. See “— If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in the trust account could be reduced and the per-share redemption amount received by stockholders may be less than $10.00 per share” and other risk factors below.
The requirement that we complete our initial business combination within 24 months after the closing of our Public Offering (or 27 months from the closing of our Public Offering if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of our Public Offering) may give potential target businesses leverage over us in negotiating a business combination and may limit the time we have to conduct due diligence on potential business combination targets as we approach our dissolution deadline, which could undermine our ability to complete our business combination on terms that would produce value for our stockholders.
Any potential target business with which we enter into negotiations concerning a business combination will be aware that we must complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of our Public Offering (or 27 months from the closing of our Public Offering if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of our Public Offering). Consequently, such target business may obtain leverage over us in negotiating a business combination, knowing that if we do not complete our initial business combination with that particular target business, we may be unable to complete our initial business combination with any target business. This risk will increase as we get closer to the end of the timeframe described above. In addition, we may have limited time to conduct due diligence and may enter into our initial business combination on terms that we would have rejected upon a more comprehensive investigation.
We are not required to obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm or from an independent accounting firm, and consequently, you may have no assurance from an independent source that the price we are paying for the business is fair to our Company from a financial point of view.
Unless we complete our business combination with an affiliated entity, we are not required to obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm that is a member of FINRA or from an independent accounting firm that the price we are paying is fair to our Company from a financial point of view. If no opinion is obtained, our stockholders will be relying on the judgment of our board of directors, who will determine fair market value based on standards generally accepted by the financial community. Such standards used will be disclosed in our proxy solicitation or tender offer materials, as applicable, related to our initial business combination. If our board of directors is not able to independently determine the fair market value of our initial business combination, we will obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm. However, our stockholders may not be provided with a copy of such opinion, nor will they be able to rely on such opinion.
Because we must furnish our stockholders with target business financial statements, we may lose the ability to complete an otherwise advantageous initial business combination with some prospective target businesses.
The federal proxy rules require that a proxy statement with respect to a vote on a business combination meeting certain financial significance tests include target historical and/or pro forma financial statement disclosure. We will include the same financial statement disclosure in connection with our tender offer documents, whether or not they are required under the tender offer rules. These financial statements may be required to be prepared in accordance with, or be reconciled to GAAP or IFRS, depending on the circumstances and the historical financial statements may be required to be audited in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. These financial statement requirements may limit the pool of potential target businesses we may acquire because some targets may be unable to provide such financial statements in time for us to disclose such financial statements in accordance with federal proxy rules and complete our initial business combination within the prescribed time frame.
Resources could be wasted in researching business combinations that are not completed, which could materially adversely affect subsequent attempts to locate and acquire or merge with another business. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may only receive their pro rata portion of the
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funds in the trust account that are available for distribution to public stockholders, and our warrants will expire worthless.
We anticipate that the investigation of each specific target business and the negotiation, drafting and execution of relevant agreements, disclosure documents and other instruments will require substantial management time and attention and substantial costs for accountants, attorneys, consultants and others. If we decide not to complete a specific initial business combination, the costs incurred up to that point for the proposed transaction likely would not be recoverable. Furthermore, if we reach an agreement relating to a specific target business, we may fail to complete our initial business combination for any number of reasons including those beyond our control. Any such event will result in a loss to us of the related costs incurred which could materially adversely affect subsequent attempts to locate and acquire or merge with another business. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may only receive their pro rata portion of the funds in the trust account that are available for distribution to public stockholders, and our warrants will expire worthless.
We may only be able to complete one business combination with the proceeds of our Public Offering and the sale of the Private Placement Warrants, which will cause us to be solely dependent on a single business which may have a limited number of products or services. This lack of diversification may negatively impact our operations and profitability.
Of the net proceeds from our Public Offering and the sale of the Private Placement Warrants, up to $553.0 million is available to complete our business combination and pay related fees and expenses (which includes $19.3 million, for payment of deferred underwriting discounts and commissions). Of the up to $553.0 million, $1.0 million is held outside the trust account for business, legal and accounting due diligence on prospective acquisitions and continuing general and administrative expenses.
We may effectuate our business combination with a single target business or multiple target businesses simultaneously or within a short period of time. However, we may not be able to effectuate our business combination with more than one target business because of various factors, including the existence of complex accounting issues and the requirement that we prepare and file pro forma financial statements with the SEC that present operating results and the financial condition of several target businesses as if they had been operated on a combined basis. By completing our initial business combination with only a single entity, our lack of diversification may subject us to numerous economic, competitive and regulatory risks. Further, we would not be able to diversify our operations or benefit from the possible spreading of risks or offsetting of losses, unlike other entities which may have the resources to complete several business combinations in different industries or different areas of a single industry. In addition, we intend to focus our search for an initial business combination in a single industry. Accordingly, the prospects for our success may be:
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solely dependent upon the performance of a single business, property or asset, or |
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dependent upon the development or market acceptance of a single or limited number of products, processes or services. |
This lack of diversification may subject us to numerous economic, competitive and regulatory risks, any or all of which may have a substantial adverse impact upon the particular industry in which we may operate subsequent to our business combination.
We may attempt to simultaneously complete business combinations with multiple prospective targets, which may hinder our ability to complete our business combination and give rise to increased costs and risks that could negatively impact our operations and profitability.
If we determine to simultaneously acquire several businesses that are owned by different sellers, we will need for each of such sellers to agree that our purchase of its business is contingent on the simultaneous closings of the other business combinations, which may make it more difficult for us, and delay our ability, to complete our initial business combination. With multiple business combinations, we could also face additional risks, including additional burdens and costs with respect to possible multiple negotiations and due diligence investigations (if there are multiple sellers) and the additional risks associated with the subsequent assimilation of the operations and
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services or products of the acquired companies in a single operating business. If we are unable to adequately address these risks, it could negatively impact our profitability and results of operations.
We may attempt to complete our initial business combination with a private company about which little information is available, which may result in a business combination with a company that is not as profitable as we suspected, if at all.
In pursuing our business combination strategy, we may seek to effectuate our initial business combination with a privately held company. Very little public information generally exists about private companies, and we could be required to make our decision on whether to pursue a potential initial business combination on the basis of limited information, which may result in a business combination with a company that is not as profitable as we suspected, if at all.
Our search for a business combination, and any target business with which we ultimately consummate a business combination, may be materially adversely affected by the COVID-19 outbreak and the status of debt and equity markets.
In December 2019, a novel strain of coronavirus was reported to have surfaced in Wuhan, China, which has and is continuing to spread throughout China and other parts of the world, including the United States. On January 30, 2020, the World Health Organization declared the COVID-19 outbreak a “Public Health Emergency of International Concern.” On January 31, 2020, U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex M. Azar II declared a public health emergency for the United States to aid the U.S. healthcare community in responding to COVID-19, and on March 11, 2020 the World Health Organization characterized the outbreak as a “pandemic.” The COVID-19 outbreak has resulted, and a significant outbreak of other infectious diseases could result, in a widespread health crisis that has adversely affected, in the case of COVID-19, and could adversely affect, in the case of future outbreaks of infectious diseases, the economies and financial markets worldwide, and the business of any potential target business with which we consummate a business combination could be materially and adversely affected. Furthermore, we may be unable to complete a business combination if continued concerns relating to COVID-19 continues to restrict travel, limit the ability to have meetings with potential investors or the target company’s personnel, vendors and services providers are unavailable to negotiate and consummate a transaction in a timely manner. The extent to which COVID-19 impacts our search for a business combination will depend on future developments, which are highly uncertain and cannot be predicted, including new information which may emerge concerning the severity of COVID-19 and the actions to contain COVID-19 or treat its impact, among others. If the disruptions posed by COVID-19 or other matters of global concern continue for an extensive period of time, our ability to consummate a business combination, or the operations of a target business with which we ultimately consummate a business combination, may be materially adversely affected.
In addition, our ability to consummate a transaction may be dependent on the ability to raise equity and debt financing which may be impacted by COVID-19 and other events, including as a result of increased market volatility, decreased market liquidity and third-party financing being unavailable on terms acceptable to us or at all.
Compliance obligations under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act may make it more difficult for us to effectuate our business combination, require substantial financial and management resources, and increase the time and costs of completing our initial business combination.
Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires that we evaluate and report on our system of internal controls beginning with our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ending December 31, 2021. Only in the event we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer or an accelerated filer will we be required to comply with the independent registered public accounting firm attestation requirement on our internal control over financial reporting. Further, for as long as we remain an emerging growth company, we will not be required to comply with the independent registered public accounting firm attestation requirement on our internal control over financial reporting. The fact that we are a blank check company makes compliance with the requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act particularly burdensome for us as compared to other public companies because a target business with which we seek to complete our business combination may not be in compliance with the provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act regarding adequacy of its internal controls. The development of the internal control of any such entity to achieve compliance with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act may increase the time and costs necessary to complete any such acquisition.
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Exchange rate fluctuations and currency policies may cause a target business’ ability to succeed in the international markets to be diminished.
In the event we acquire a non-U.S. target, all revenues and income would likely be received in a foreign currency, and the dollar equivalent of our net assets and distributions, if any, could be adversely affected by reductions in the value of the local currency. The value of the currencies in non-U.S. regions fluctuates and is affected by, among other things, changes in political and economic conditions. Any change in the relative value of such currency against our reporting currency may affect the attractiveness of any target business or, following consummation of our initial business combination, our financial condition and results of operations. Additionally, if a currency appreciates in value against the dollar prior to the consummation of our initial business combination, the cost of a target business as measured in dollars will increase, which may make it less likely that we are able to consummate such transaction.
Our management team may not be able to maintain control of a target business after our initial business combination. We cannot provide assurance that, upon loss of control of a target business, new management will possess the skills, qualifications or abilities necessary to profitably operate such business.
We may structure a business combination so that the post-transaction company in which our public stockholders own shares will own less than 100% of the equity interests or assets of a target business, but we will only complete such business combination if the post-transaction company owns or acquires 50% or more of the outstanding voting securities of the target or otherwise acquires an interest in the target sufficient for the post-transaction company not to be required to register as an investment company under the Investment Company Act. We will not consider any transaction that does not meet such criteria. Even if the post-transaction company owns 50% or more of the voting securities of the target, our stockholders prior to the business combination may collectively own a minority interest in the post business combination company, depending on valuations ascribed to the target and us in the business combination transaction. For example, we could pursue a transaction in which we issue a substantial number of new shares in exchange for all of the outstanding capital stock, shares or other equity interests of a target. In this case, we would acquire a 100% interest in the target. However, as a result of the issuance of a substantial number of new shares, our stockholders immediately prior to such transaction could own less than a majority of our outstanding shares of common stock subsequent to such transaction. In addition, other minority stockholders may subsequently combine their holdings resulting in a single person or group obtaining a larger share of the Company’s stock than we initially acquired. Accordingly, this may make it more likely that our management will not be able to maintain control of the target business.
If we pursue a target business with operations or opportunities outside of the United States for our initial business combination, we may face additional burdens in connection with investigating, agreeing to and completing such an initial business combination, and if we effect such initial business combination, we would be subject to a variety of additional risks that may negatively impact our operations.
If we pursue a target a company with operations or opportunities outside of the United States for our initial business combination, we would be subject to risks associated with cross-border business combinations, including in connection with investigating, agreeing to and completing our initial business combination, conducting due diligence in a foreign jurisdiction, having such transaction approved by any local governments, regulators or agencies and changes in the purchase price based on fluctuations in foreign exchange rates.
If we effect our initial business combination with such a company, we would be subject to any special considerations or risks associated with companies operating in an international setting, including any of the following:
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higher costs and difficulties inherent in executing cross-border transactions, managing cross-border business operations, and complying with different commercial and legal requirements of overseas markets; |
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rules and regulations regarding currency redemption; |
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laws governing the manner in which future business combinations may be effected; |
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exchange listing and/or delisting requirements; |
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tariffs and trade barriers; |
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regulations related to customs and import/export matters; |
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local or regional economic policies and market conditions; |
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unexpected changes in regulatory requirements; |
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longer payment cycles; |
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tax issues, including limits on our ability to change our tax residence from the United States, complex withholding or other tax regimes which may apply in connection with our business combination or to our structure following our business combination, variations in tax laws as compared to the United States, and potential changes in the applicable tax laws in the United States and/or relevant non-U.S. jurisdictions; |
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currency fluctuations and exchange controls; |
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rates of inflation; |
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challenges in collecting accounts receivable; |
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cultural and language differences; |
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employment regulations; |
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underdeveloped or unpredictable legal or regulatory systems; |
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corruption; |
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protection of intellectual property; |
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social unrest, crime, strikes, riots and civil disturbances; |
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regime changes and political upheaval; |
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terrorist attacks and wars; and |
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deterioration of political relations with the United States. |
We may not be able to adequately address these additional risks. If we were unable to do so, we may be unable to complete such initial business combination, or, if we complete such combination, our operations might suffer, either of which may adversely impact our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Our initial business combination and our structure thereafter may not be tax-efficient to our stockholders and warrantholders. As a result of our business combination, our tax obligations may be more complex, burdensome and uncertain.
Although we will attempt to structure our initial business combination in a tax-efficient manner, tax structuring considerations are complex, the relevant facts and law are uncertain and may change, and we may prioritize commercial and other considerations over tax considerations. For example, in connection with our initial business combination and subject to requisite stockholder approval, we may structure our business combination in a manner that requires stockholders and/or warrantholders to recognize gain or income for tax purposes. We do not intend to make any cash distributions to stockholders or warrantholders to pay taxes in connection with our business combination or thereafter. Accordingly, a stockholder or a warrantholder may need to satisfy any liability resulting from our initial business combination with cash from its own funds or by selling all or a portion of such holder’s
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shares or warrants. In addition, we may effect a business combination with a target company in another jurisdiction or reincorporate in a different jurisdiction (including, but not limited to, the jurisdiction in which the target company or business is located). As a result, stockholders and warrantholders may be subject to additional income, withholding or other taxes with respect to their ownership of us after our initial business combination.
Furthermore, we may effect a business combination with a target company that has business operations outside of the United States and, possibly, business operations in multiple jurisdictions. If we effect such a business combination, we could be subject to significant income, withholding and other tax obligations in a number of jurisdictions with respect to income, operations and subsidiaries related to those jurisdictions. Due to the complexity of tax obligations and filings in many jurisdictions, we may have a heightened risk related to audits or examinations by taxing authorities. This additional complexity and risk could have an adverse effect on our after-tax profitability and financial condition.
If our management following our initial business combination is unfamiliar with United States securities laws, they may have to expend time and resources becoming familiar with such laws, which could lead to various regulatory issues.
Following our initial business combination, our management may resign from their positions as officers or directors of the Company and the management of the target business at the time of the business combination could remain in place. Management of the target business may not be familiar with United States securities laws. If new management is unfamiliar with United States securities laws, they may have to expend time and resources becoming familiar with such laws. This could be expensive and time-consuming and could lead to various regulatory issues which may adversely affect our operations.
After our initial business combination, substantially all of our assets may be located in a foreign country and substantially all of our revenue will be derived from our operations in such country. Accordingly, our results of operations and prospects will be subject, to a significant extent, to the economic, political and legal policies, developments and conditions in the country in which we operate.
The economic, political and social conditions, as well as government policies, of the country in which our operations are located could affect our business. Economic growth could be uneven, both geographically and among various sectors of the economy and such growth may not be sustained in the future. If in the future such country’s economy experiences a downturn or grows at a slower rate than expected, there may be less demand for spending in certain industries. A decrease in demand for spending in certain industries could materially and adversely affect our ability to find an attractive target business with which to consummate our initial business combination and if we effect our initial business combination, the ability of that target business to become profitable.
We may be unable to obtain additional financing to complete our initial business combination or to fund the operations and growth of a target business, which could compel us to restructure or abandon a particular business combination. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may only receive their pro rata portion of the funds in the trust account that are available for distribution to public stockholders, and our warrants will expire worthless.
If the net proceeds of our Public Offering and the sale of the Private Placement Warrants prove to be insufficient, either because of the size of our initial business combination, the depletion of the available net proceeds in search of a target business, the obligation to redeem for cash a significant number of shares from stockholders who elect redemption in connection with our initial business combination or the terms of negotiated transactions to purchase shares in connection with our initial business combination, we may be required to seek additional financing or to abandon the proposed business combination. We cannot assure you that such financing will be available on acceptable terms, if at all. To the extent that additional financing proves to be unavailable when needed to complete our initial business combination, we would be compelled to either restructure the transaction or abandon that particular business combination and seek an alternative target business candidate. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may only receive their pro rata portion of the funds in the trust account that are available for distribution to public stockholders, and our warrants will expire worthless. In addition, even if we do not need additional financing to complete our business combination, we may require such financing to fund the operations or growth of the target business. The failure to secure additional financing could have a material
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adverse effect on the continued development or growth of the target business. None of our officers, directors or stockholders is required to provide any financing to us in connection with or after our business combination.
The ability of our public stockholders to redeem their shares for cash may make our financial condition unattractive to potential business combination targets, which may make it difficult for us to enter into a business combination with a target.
We may seek to enter into a business combination transaction agreement with a prospective target that requires as a closing condition that we have a minimum net worth or a certain amount of cash. If too many public stockholders exercise their redemption rights, we would not be able to meet such closing condition and, as a result, would not be able to proceed with the business combination. Furthermore, in no event will we redeem our public shares in an amount that would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001 upon consummation of our initial business combination and after payment of underwriters’ fees and commissions (so that we are not subject to the SEC’s “penny stock” rules). Consequently, if accepting all properly submitted redemption requests would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001 upon consummation of our initial business combination and after payment of underwriters’ fees and commissions or such greater amount necessary to satisfy a closing condition as described above, we would not proceed with such redemption and the related business combination and may instead search for an alternate business combination. Prospective targets will be aware of these risks and, thus, may be reluctant to enter into a business combination transaction with us.
The ability of our public stockholders to exercise redemption rights with respect to a large number of our shares may not allow us to complete the most desirable business combination or optimize our capital structure.
At the time we enter into an agreement for our initial business combination, we will not know how many stockholders may exercise their redemption rights, and therefore will need to structure the transaction based on our expectations as to the number of shares that will be submitted for redemption. If our business combination agreement requires us to use a portion of the cash in the trust account to pay the purchase price, or requires us to have a minimum amount of cash at closing, we will need to reserve a portion of the cash in the trust account to meet such requirements, or arrange for third party financing. In addition, if a larger number of shares are submitted for redemption than we initially expected, we may need to restructure the transaction to reserve a greater portion of the cash in the trust account or arrange for third party financing. Raising additional third party financing may involve dilutive equity issuances or the incurrence of indebtedness at higher than desirable levels. The above considerations may limit our ability to complete the most desirable business combination available to us or optimize our capital structure. The amount of the deferred underwriting discounts and commissions payable to the underwriters will not be adjusted for any shares that are redeemed in connection with a business combination. The per-share amount we will distribute to stockholders who properly exercise their redemption rights will not be reduced by the deferred underwriting discounts and commissions and after such redemptions, the amount held in trust will continue to reflect our obligation to pay the entire deferred underwriting discounts and commissions.
In order to effectuate a business combination, we may seek to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation or other governing instruments in a manner that will make it easier for us to complete our initial business combination but that our stockholders or warrantholders may not support.
In order to effectuate a business combination, we may seek to amend various provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and governing instruments, including the warrant agreement, the underwriting agreement relating to our Public Offering, the letter agreement among us and our Sponsor, officers and directors, and the registration rights agreement among us and our initial stockholders. These agreements contain various provisions that our public stockholders might deem to be material. While we do not expect our board of directors to approve any amendment to any of these agreements prior to our initial business combination, it may be possible that our board of directors, in exercising its business judgment and subject to its fiduciary duties, chooses to approve one or more amendments to any such agreement in connection with the consummation of our initial business combination. Except in relation to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, any such amendments would not require approval from our stockholders and may have an adverse effect on the value of an investment in our securities. We cannot assure you that we will not seek to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation or other governing instruments or change our industry focus in order to effectuate our initial business combination.
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Because of our limited resources and the significant competition for business combination opportunities, it may be more difficult for us to complete our initial business combination. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only their pro rata portion of the funds in the trust account that are available for distribution to public stockholders, and our warrants will expire worthless.
We expect to encounter intense competition from other entities having a business objective similar to ours, including private investors (which may be individuals or investment partnerships), other blank check companies and other entities, domestic and international, competing for the types of businesses we intend to acquire. Many of these individuals and entities are well-established and have extensive experience in identifying and effecting, directly or indirectly, acquisitions of companies operating in or providing services to various industries. Many of these competitors possess greater technical, human and other resources or more local industry knowledge than we do and our financial resources will be relatively limited when contrasted with those of many of these competitors. While we believe there are numerous target businesses we could potentially acquire with the net proceeds of our Public Offering and the sale of the Private Placement Warrants, our ability to compete with respect to the acquisition of certain target businesses that are sizable will be limited by our available financial resources. This inherent competitive limitation gives others an advantage in pursuing the acquisition of certain target businesses. Furthermore, we are obligated to offer holders of our public shares the right to redeem their shares for cash at the time of our initial business combination, in conjunction with a stockholder vote or via a tender offer. Target businesses will be aware that this may reduce the resources available to us for our initial business combination. Any of these obligations may place us at a competitive disadvantage in successfully negotiating a business combination. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only their pro rata portion of the funds in the trust account that are available for distribution to public stockholders, and our warrants will expire worthless. In certain circumstances, our public stockholders may receive less than $10.00 per share upon our liquidation. See “— If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in the trust account could be reduced and the per-share redemption amount received by stockholders may be less than $10.00 per share” and other risk factors below.
The officers and directors of an acquisition candidate may resign upon completion of our initial business combination. The loss of a business combination target’s key personnel could negatively impact the operations and profitability of our post-combination business.
The role of an acquisition candidate’s key personnel upon the completion of our initial business combination cannot be ascertained at this time. Although we contemplate that certain members of an acquisition candidate’s management team will remain associated with the acquisition candidate following our initial business combination, it is possible that members of the management of an acquisition candidate will not wish to remain in place.
III. Risks Relating to Apollo, our Sponsor and Management Team:
Past performance by Apollo, ANRP III, other Apollo Funds, our management team or Spartan Energy Acquisition Corp. may not be indicative of future performance of an investment in the Company.
Information regarding performance by, or businesses associated with, Apollo, ANRP III, other Apollo Funds, our management team, Spartan I or Spartan II is presented for informational purposes only. Past performance by Apollo, ANRP III, other Apollo Funds, our management team, Spartan I or Spartan II is not a guarantee either (i) of success with respect to any business combination we may consummate or (ii) that we will be able to locate a suitable candidate for our initial business combination. You should not rely on the historical record of Apollo, ANRP III, other Apollo Funds, our management team, Spartan I or Spartan II’s performance as indicative of our future performance or of an investment in the Company or the returns the Company will, or is likely to, generate going forward.
We are dependent upon our officers and directors, and their loss could adversely affect our ability to operate.
Our operations are dependent upon a relatively small group of individuals and, in particular, our officers and directors. We believe that our success depends on the continued service of our officers and directors, at least until we have completed our initial business combination. In addition, our officers and directors are not required to commit any specified amount of time to our affairs and, accordingly, will have conflicts of interest in allocating their time among various business activities, including identifying potential business combinations and monitoring the
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related due diligence. We do not have an employment agreement with, or key-man insurance on the life of, any of our directors or officers. The unexpected loss of the services of one or more of our directors or officers could have a detrimental effect on us.
Since only holders of our Founder Shares have the right to vote on the election of directors prior to our initial business combination, we are a “controlled company” within the meaning of the NYSE rules and, as a result, qualify for exemptions from certain corporate governance requirements.
Only holders of our Founder Shares have the right to vote on the election of directors. As a result, we are a “controlled company” within the meaning of the NYSE corporate governance standards. Under the NYSE corporate governance standards, a company of which more than 50% of the voting power is held by an individual, group or another company is a “controlled company” and may elect not to comply with certain corporate governance requirements, including the requirements that:
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we have a board that includes a majority of “independent directors,” as defined under the rules of the NYSE; |
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we have a compensation committee of our board that is comprised entirely of independent directors with a written charter addressing the committee’s purpose and responsibilities; and |
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we have a nominating and corporate governance committee of our board that is comprised entirely of independent directors with a written charter addressing the committee’s purpose and responsibilities. |
We intend to utilize certain of these exemptions, including the exemption from the requirement that we have a board that includes a majority of “independent directors,” as defined under the rules of the NYSE. We intend to comply with the other corporate governance requirements of the NYSE, subject to applicable phase-in rules. Accordingly, you will not have the same protections afforded to stockholders of companies that are subject to all of the NYSE corporate governance requirements.
Our ability to successfully effect our initial business combination and to be successful thereafter will be totally dependent upon the efforts of our key personnel, some of whom may join us following our initial business combination. The loss of key personnel could negatively impact the operations and profitability of our post-combination business.
Our ability to successfully effect our business combination is dependent upon the efforts of our key personnel. The role of our key personnel in the target business, however, cannot presently be ascertained. Although some of our key personnel may remain with the target business in senior management or advisory positions following our business combination, it is likely that some or all of the management of the target business will remain in place. While we intend to closely scrutinize any individuals we engage after our initial business combination, we cannot assure you that our assessment of these individuals will prove to be correct. These individuals may be unfamiliar with the requirements of operating a company regulated by the SEC, which could cause us to have to expend time and resources helping them become familiar with such requirements.
In addition, the officers and directors of an acquisition candidate may resign upon completion of our initial business combination. The departure of a business combination target’s key personnel could negatively impact the operations and profitability of our post-combination business. The role of an acquisition candidate’s key personnel upon the completion of our initial business combination cannot be ascertained at this time. Although we contemplate that certain members of an acquisition candidate’s management team will remain associated with the acquisition candidate following our initial business combination, it is possible that members of the management of an acquisition candidate will not wish to remain in place. The loss of key personnel could negatively impact the operations and profitability of our post-combination business.
Our key personnel may negotiate employment or consulting agreements with a target business in connection with a particular business combination, and a particular business combination may be conditioned on the retention or resignation of such key personnel. These agreements may provide for them to receive compensation following
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our business combination and as a result, may cause them to have conflicts of interest in determining whether a particular business combination is the most advantageous.
Our key personnel may be able to remain with our Company after the completion of our business combination only if they are able to negotiate employment or consulting agreements in connection with the business combination. Such negotiations would take place simultaneously with the negotiation of the business combination and could provide for such individuals to receive compensation in the form of cash payments and/or our securities for services they would render to us after the completion of the business combination. Such negotiations also could make such key personnel’s retention or resignation a condition to any such agreement. The personal and financial interests of such individuals may influence their motivation in identifying and selecting a target business.
Our current officers may not remain in their positions following our business combination. We may have a limited ability to assess the management of a prospective target business and, as a result, may effect our initial business combination with a target business whose management may not have the skills, qualifications or abilities to manage a public company, which could, in turn, negatively impact the value of our stockholders’ investment in us.
When evaluating the desirability of effecting our initial business combination with a prospective target business, our ability to assess the target business’s management may be limited due to a lack of time, resources or information. Our assessment of the capabilities of the target business’s management, therefore, may prove to be incorrect and such management may lack the skills, qualifications or abilities we suspected. Should the target business’s management not possess the skills, qualifications or abilities necessary to manage a public company, the operations and profitability of the post-combination business may be negatively impacted. Accordingly, any stockholders who choose to remain stockholders following the business combination could suffer a reduction in the value of their securities. Such stockholders are unlikely to have a remedy for such reduction in value.
Our officers and directors will allocate their time to other businesses thereby causing conflicts of interest in their determination as to how much time to devote to our affairs. This conflict of interest could have a negative impact on our ability to complete our initial business combination.
Our officers and directors are not required to, and will not, commit their full time to our affairs, which may result in a conflict of interest in allocating their time between our operations and our search for a business combination and their other businesses. We do not intend to have any full-time employees prior to the completion of our initial business combination. Each of our officers is engaged in several other business endeavors for which he may be entitled to substantial compensation, and our officers are not obligated to contribute any specific number of hours per week to our affairs. In particular, all of our officers and certain of our directors are also employed by Apollo, which is an investment manager to various private investment funds which may make investments in companies that we may target for our initial business combination. Our independent directors may also serve as officers or board members for other entities. If our officers’ and directors’ other business affairs require them to devote substantial amounts of time to such affairs in excess of their current commitment levels, it could limit their ability to devote time to our affairs which may have a negative impact on our ability to complete our initial business combination. For a complete discussion of our officers’ and directors’ other business affairs, please see “Part III, Item 10. Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance.”
Certain of our officers and directors are now, and all of them may in the future become, affiliated with entities engaged in business activities similar to those intended to be conducted by us and, accordingly, may have conflicts of interest in allocating their time and determining to which entity a particular business opportunity should be presented. In addition, we may be precluded from opportunities because they are being pursued by Apollo or Apollo Funds and they may outperform any business we acquire.
Until we consummate our initial business combination, we intend to engage in the business of identifying and combining with one or more businesses. Our Sponsor and officers and directors are, and may in the future become, affiliated with entities that are engaged in a similar business. For example, certain of our officers and directors currently serve in similar roles for Spartan II, APSG and APSG II. Mr. Strong is the Chief Executive Officer and a director of Spartan II, Mr. Crossen is the Chief Financial Officer and Chief Accounting Officer of Spartan II and Chief Financial Officer of APSG and APSG II and each of Ms. Wassenaar, Mr. Handler, Ms. Hommes, Mr. Romeo, Ms. Wilson and Mr. Stice are directors of Spartan II, and each such officer and director owes fiduciary duties under
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the DGCL to Spartan II, APSG and APSG II, as applicable. Our officers and directors also may become aware of business opportunities which may be appropriate for presentation to us and the other entities to which they owe certain fiduciary or contractual duties.
Accordingly, they may have conflicts of interest in determining to which entity a particular business opportunity should be presented. These conflicts may not be resolved in our favor and a potential target business may be presented to another entity prior to its presentation to us. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that we renounce our interest in any corporate opportunity offered to any director or officer unless such opportunity is expressly offered to such person solely in his or her capacity as a director or officer of our Company and such opportunity is one we are legally and contractually permitted to undertake and would otherwise be reasonable for us to pursue, and to the extent the director or officer is permitted to refer that opportunity to us without violating another legal obligation.
In addition, Apollo manages a significant number of Apollo Funds which may compete with us for acquisition opportunities and if pursued by them we may be precluded from such opportunities. Investment ideas generated within Apollo may be suitable for both us and for Apollo and/or current or future Apollo Funds and may be directed to them rather than to us. Such opportunities may outperform any businesses we acquire. Neither Apollo nor members of our management team who are also employed by Apollo have any obligation to present us with any opportunity for a potential business combination of which they become aware, unless presented to such member solely in his or her capacity as an officer of the Company. Apollo and/or our management, in their capacities as employees of Apollo or in their other endeavors, may be required to present potential business combinations to other entities, before they present such opportunities to us.
For a complete discussion of our officers’ and directors’ business affiliations and the potential conflicts of interest that you should be aware of, please see “Part III, Item 10. Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance — Conflicts of Interest” and “Part III, Item 13. Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence.”
Our officers, directors, security holders and their respective affiliates may have competitive pecuniary interests that conflict with our interests.
We have not adopted a policy that expressly prohibits our directors, officers, security holders or affiliates from having a direct or indirect pecuniary or financial interest in any investment to be acquired or disposed of by us or in any transaction to which we are a party or have an interest. In fact, we may enter into a business combination with a target business that is affiliated with our Sponsor, our directors or officers, although we do not intend to do so, or we may acquire a target business through an Affiliated Joint Acquisition with one or more affiliates of Apollo, one or more Apollo Funds and/or one or more investors in the Apollo Funds. We do not have a policy that expressly prohibits any such persons from engaging for their own account in business activities of the types conducted by us. Accordingly, such persons or entities may have a conflict between their interests and ours.
In particular, certain of the Apollo Funds are focused on investments in the energy value chain. As a result, there may be substantial overlap between companies that would be a suitable business combination for us and companies that would make an attractive target for the Apollo Funds.
In addition, Apollo and its affiliates and certain of the Apollo Funds engage in the business of originating, underwriting, syndicating, acquiring and trading loans and debt securities of corporate and other borrowers, and may provide or participate in any debt financing arrangement in connection with any acquisition of any target business that we may make. If Apollo or any of its affiliates or the Apollo Funds provides or participates in any such debt financing arrangement it may present a conflict of interest and will have to be approved under our related person transaction policy or by our independent directors.
We may engage in a business combination with one or more target businesses that have relationships with entities that may be affiliated with our Sponsor, officers, directors or existing holders which may raise potential conflicts of interest.
In light of the involvement of our Sponsor, officers and directors with other entities, we may decide to acquire one or more businesses affiliated with our Sponsor, officers, directors or existing holders. Our officers and directors
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also serve as officers and board members for other entities, including, without limitation, those described under “Part III, Item 10. Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance — Conflicts of Interest.” They may also have investments in target businesses. Such entities may compete with us for business combination opportunities. Our Sponsor, officers and directors are not currently aware of any specific opportunities for us to complete our business combination with any entities with which they are affiliated, and there have been no preliminary discussions concerning a business combination with any such entity or entities. Although we will not be specifically focusing on, or targeting, any transaction with any affiliated entities, we would pursue such a transaction if we determined that such affiliated entity met our criteria for a business combination as set forth in “Part I, Item 1. Business — Effecting our Initial Business Combination — Selection of a Target Business and Structuring of our Initial Business Combination” and such transaction was approved by a majority of our independent and disinterested directors. Despite our obligation to obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm that is a member of FINRA or from an independent accounting firm regarding the fairness to our Company from a financial point of view of a business combination with one or more domestic or international businesses affiliated with our Sponsor, officers or directors, potential conflicts of interest still may exist and, as a result, the terms of the business combination may not be as advantageous to our public stockholders as they would be absent any conflicts of interest.
Moreover, we may pursue an Affiliated Joint Acquisition opportunity with one or more affiliates of Apollo, one or more Apollo Funds and/or one or more investors in the Apollo Funds. Any such parties may co-invest with us in the target business at the time of our initial business combination, or we could raise additional proceeds to complete the business combination by issuing to such parties a class of equity or equity-linked securities. Accordingly, such persons or entities may have a conflict between their interests and ours.
Since our Sponsor, officers and directors will lose their entire investment in us if our business combination is not completed (other than with respect to public shares they may acquire during or after our Public Offering), a conflict of interest may arise in determining whether a particular business combination target is appropriate for our initial business combination.
In December 2020, 11,500,000 Founder Shares were issued to our Sponsor in exchange for the payment of $25,000 of expenses on our behalf, or approximately $0.002 per share. Prior to the initial investment in the Company of $25,000 by our Sponsor, the Company had no assets, tangible or intangible. The per share price of the Founder Shares was determined by dividing the amount contributed to the Company by the number of Founder Shares issued. The number of Founder Shares issued was determined based on the expectation that the total size of our Public Offering would be a maximum of 55,200,000 units, and therefore that such Founder Shares would represent 20% of the outstanding shares after our Public Offering. In February 20201, our Sponsor forfeited 100,000 Founder Shares back to the Company and the Company issued an aggregate of 100,000 Founder Shares, in an amount totaling 50,000 to each of our independent directors. The Founder Shares will be worthless if we do not complete an initial business combination. In addition, our Sponsor, in connection with the closing of our Public Offering, purchased an aggregate of 9,360,000 Private Placement Warrants, each exercisable for one share of our Class A common stock at $11.50 per share, for an aggregate purchase price of $14,040,000, or $1.50 per Private Placement Warrant, that will also be worthless if we do not complete a business combination. The Founder Shares are identical to the shares of Class A common stock included in the units sold in our Public Offering, except that only holders of the Founder Shares have the right to vote on the appointment of directors prior to our initial business combination and they are shares of Class B common stock that automatically convert into shares of our Class A common stock at the time of our initial business combination on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment pursuant to certain anti-dilution rights, as described herein. However, the holders have agreed (A) to vote any shares owned by them in favor of any proposed business combination and (B) not to redeem any Founder Shares in connection with a stockholder vote to approve a proposed initial business combination. In addition, we may obtain loans from our Sponsor, affiliates of our Sponsor or an officer or director. The personal and financial interests of our officers and directors may influence their motivation in identifying and selecting a target business combination, completing an initial business combination and influencing the operation of the business following our initial business combination. This risk may become more acute as the 24-month anniversary of the closing of our Public Offering (or 27-month anniversary of the closing of our Public Offering if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of our Public Offering) nears, which is the deadline for our completion of an initial business combination.
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Our initial stockholders control the appointment of our board of directors until consummation of our initial business combination and hold a substantial interest in us. As a result, they will appoint all of our directors prior to our initial business combination and may exert a substantial influence on actions requiring a stockholder vote, potentially in a manner that you do not support.
Our initial stockholders own shares representing 20% of our issued and outstanding common stock. In addition, the Founder Shares, all of which are held by our initial stockholders, entitles the holders thereof to appoint all of our directors prior to our initial business combination. Holders of our public shares will have no right to vote on the appointment of directors during such time. These provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation may only be amended by a special resolution passed by a majority of at least 90% of our common stock voting at a stockholder meeting. As a result, you will not have any influence over the appointment of directors prior to our initial business combination. Accordingly, our initial stockholders may exert a substantial influence on actions requiring a stockholder vote, potentially in a manner that you do not support, including amendments to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and approval of major corporate transactions. If our initial stockholders purchase any additional shares of common stock in the aftermarket or in privately negotiated transactions, this would increase their control. Neither our initial stockholders nor, to our knowledge, any of our officers or directors have any current intention to purchase additional securities, other than as disclosed in herein. Factors that would be considered in making such additional purchases would include consideration of the current trading price of our Class A common stock. In addition, our board of directors, whose members were elected by our initial stockholders, is divided into three classes, each of which will generally serve for a term of three years with only one class of directors being elected in each year. We may not hold an annual meeting to appoint new directors prior to the completion of our business combination, in which case all of the current directors will continue in office until at least the completion of the business combination. If there is an annual meeting, as a consequence of our “staggered” board of directors, only a minority of the board of directors will be considered for election and our initial stockholders, because of their ownership position, will have considerable influence regarding the outcome. Accordingly, our initial stockholders will continue to exert control at least until the completion of our business combination.
IV. General Risk Factors:
The NYSE may delist our securities from trading on its exchange, which could limit investors’ ability to make transactions in our securities and subject us to additional trading restrictions.
We have listed our units on the NYSE, and intend to list our Class A common stock and public warrants on the NYSE upon their separation commencing on April 1, 2021. Although after giving effect to our initial business combination we expect to meet, on a pro forma basis, the minimum initial listing standards set forth in the NYSE listing standards, we cannot assure you that our securities will be, or will continue to be, listed on the NYSE in the future or prior to our initial business combination. In order to continue listing our securities on the NYSE prior to our initial business combination, we must maintain certain financial, distribution and stock price levels. Generally, we must maintain a minimum number of holders of our securities (generally 300 round lot holders). Additionally, in connection with our initial business combination, we will be required to demonstrate compliance with the NYSE’s initial listing requirements, which are more rigorous than the NYSE’s continued listing requirements, in order to continue to maintain the listing of our securities on the NYSE. For instance, our stock price would generally be required to be at least $4.00 per share, our aggregate market value would be required to be at least $100,000,000, and the market value of our publicly-held shares would be required to be at least $80,000,000. We cannot assure you that we will be able to meet those initial listing requirements at that time.
If the NYSE delists our securities from trading on its exchange and we are not able to list our securities on another national securities exchange, we expect our securities could be quoted on an over-the-counter market. If this were to occur, we could face significant material adverse consequences, including:
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a limited availability of market quotations for our securities; |
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reduced liquidity for our securities; |
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a determination that our Class A common stock is a “penny stock” which will require brokers trading in our Class A common stock to adhere to more stringent rules and possibly result in a reduced level of trading activity in the secondary trading market for our securities; |
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a limited amount of news and analyst coverage; and |
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a decreased ability to issue additional securities or obtain additional financing in the future. |
The National Securities Markets Improvement Act of 1996, which is a federal statute, prevents or preempts the states from regulating the sale of certain securities, which are referred to as “covered securities.” Because our units are, and our Class A common stock and warrants will be upon separation commencing on April 1, 2021, listed on the NYSE, our units are, and our Class A common stock and warrants will be, covered securities. Although the states are preempted from regulating the sale of our securities, the federal statute does allow the states to investigate companies if there is a suspicion of fraud, and, if there is a finding of fraudulent activity, then the states can regulate or bar the sale of covered securities in a particular case. While we are not aware of a state having used these powers to prohibit or restrict the sale of securities issued by blank check companies, other than the State of Idaho, certain state securities regulators view blank check companies unfavorably and might use these powers, or threaten to use these powers, to hinder the sale of securities of blank check companies in their states. Further, if we were no longer listed on the NYSE, our securities would not be covered securities and we would be subject to regulation in each state in which we offer our securities.
Changes in laws or regulations, or a failure to comply with any laws and regulations, may adversely affect our business, including our ability to negotiate and complete our initial business combination, and results of operations.
We are subject to laws and regulations enacted by national, regional and local governments. In particular, we are required to comply with certain SEC and other legal requirements and numerous complex tax laws. Compliance with, and monitoring of, applicable laws and regulations may be difficult, time consuming and costly. Those laws and regulations and their interpretation and application may also change from time to time and those changes could have a material adverse effect on our business, investments and results of operations. In addition, a failure to comply with applicable laws or regulations, as interpreted and applied, could have a material adverse effect on our business, including our ability to negotiate and complete our initial business combination, and results of operations.
Cyber incidents or attacks directed at us could result in information theft, data corruption, operational disruption and/or financial loss.
We depend on digital technologies, including information systems, infrastructure and cloud applications and services, including those of third parties with which we may deal. Sophisticated and deliberate attacks on, or security breaches in, our systems or infrastructure, or the systems or infrastructure of third parties or the cloud, could lead to corruption or misappropriation of our assets, proprietary information and sensitive or confidential data. As an early stage company without significant investments in data security protection, we may not be sufficiently protected against such occurrences. We may not have sufficient resources to adequately protect against, or to investigate and remediate any vulnerability to, cyber incidents. It is possible that any of these occurrences, or a combination of them, could have adverse consequences on our business and lead to financial loss.
We are an emerging growth company and a smaller reporting company within the meaning of the Securities Act, and if we take advantage of certain exemptions from disclosure requirements available to emerging growth companies or smaller reporting companies, this could make our securities less attractive to investors and may make it more difficult to compare our performance with other public companies.
We are an “emerging growth company” within the meaning of the Securities Act, as modified by the JOBS Act, and we may take advantage of certain exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other public companies that are not emerging growth companies including, but not limited to, not being required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports and proxy statements, and exemptions from the requirements of holding a nonbinding advisory vote on executive compensation and stockholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved. As a result, our stockholders may not have access to certain
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information they may deem important. We could be an emerging growth company for up to five years, although circumstances could cause us to lose that status earlier, including if the market value of our Class A common stock held by non-affiliates exceeds $700 million as of any June 30 before that time, in which case we would no longer be an emerging growth company as of the following December 31. We cannot predict whether investors will find our securities less attractive because we will rely on these exemptions. If some investors find our securities less attractive as a result of our reliance on these exemptions, the trading prices of our securities may be lower than they otherwise would be, there may be a less active trading market for our securities and the trading prices of our securities may be more volatile.
Further, Section 102(b)(1) of the JOBS Act exempts emerging growth companies from being required to comply with new or revised financial accounting standards until private companies (that is, those that have not had a Securities Act registration statement declared effective or do not have a class of securities registered under the Exchange Act) are required to comply with the new or revised financial accounting standards. The JOBS Act provides that a company can elect to opt out of the extended transition period and comply with the requirements that apply to non-emerging growth companies but any such an election to opt out is irrevocable. We have elected not to opt out of such extended transition period, which means that when a standard is issued or revised and it has different application dates for public or private companies, we, as an emerging growth company, can adopt the new or revised standard at the time private companies adopt the new or revised standard. This may make comparison of our financial statements with another public company which is neither an emerging growth company nor an emerging growth company which has opted out of using the extended transition period difficult or impossible because of the potential differences in accounting standards used.
Additionally, we are a “smaller reporting company” as defined in Item 10(f)(1) of Regulation S-K. Smaller reporting companies may take advantage of certain reduced disclosure obligations, including, among other things, providing only two years of audited financial statements. We will remain a smaller reporting company until the last day of the fiscal year in which (i) the market value of our common stock held by non-affiliates exceeds $250 million as of the end of that year’s second fiscal quarter or (ii) our annual revenues exceeded $100 million during such completed fiscal year and the market value of our common stock held by non-affiliates exceeds $700 million as of the end of that year’s second fiscal quarter. To the extent we take advantage of such reduced disclosure obligations, it may also make comparison of our financial statements with other public companies difficult or impossible.
If we are deemed to be an investment company under the Investment Company Act, we may be required to institute burdensome compliance requirements and our activities may be restricted, which may make it difficult for us to complete our business combination.
If we are deemed to be an investment company under the Investment Company Act, our activities may be restricted, including:
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restrictions on the nature of our investments; and |
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restrictions on the issuance of securities, each of which may make it difficult for us to complete our business combination. |
In addition, we may have imposed upon us burdensome requirements, including:
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registration as an investment company; |
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adoption of a specific form of corporate structure; and |
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reporting, record keeping, voting, proxy and disclosure requirements and other rules and regulations. |
In order not to be regulated as an investment company under the Investment Company Act, unless we can qualify for an exclusion, we must ensure that we are engaged primarily in a business other than investing, reinvesting or trading of securities and that our activities do not include investing, reinvesting, owning, holding or trading “investment securities” constituting more than 40% of our assets (exclusive of U.S. government securities and cash items) on an unconsolidated basis. Our business will be to identify and complete a business combination and thereafter to operate the post-transaction business or assets for the long term. We do not plan to buy businesses
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or assets with a view to resale or profit from their resale. We do not plan to buy unrelated businesses or assets or to be a passive investor.
We do not believe that our anticipated principal activities will subject us to the Investment Company Act. To this end, the proceeds held in the trust account may only be invested in United States “government securities” within the meaning of Section 2(a)(16) of the Investment Company Act having a maturity of 185 days or less or in money market funds meeting certain conditions under Rule 2a-7 promulgated under the Investment Company Act which invest only in direct U.S. government treasury obligations. Pursuant to the trust agreement, the trustee is not permitted to invest in other securities or assets. By restricting the investment of the proceeds to these instruments, and by having a business plan targeted at acquiring and growing businesses for the long term (rather than on buying and selling businesses in the manner of a merchant bank or private equity fund), we intend to avoid being deemed an “investment company” within the meaning of the Investment Company Act. Our Public Offering was not intended for persons who are seeking a return on investments in government securities or investment securities. The trust account is intended as a holding place for funds pending the earliest to occur of: (i) the completion of our initial business combination; (ii) the redemption of any public shares properly submitted in connection with a stockholder vote to approve an amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation that would affect the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we have not consummated an initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of our Public Offering (or 27 months from the closing of our Public Offering if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of our Public Offering); or (iii) the redemption of our public shares if we are unable to complete our business combination within 24 months from the closing of our Public Offering (or 27 months from the closing of our Public Offering if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of our Public Offering), subject to applicable law. If we do not invest the proceeds as discussed above, we may be deemed to be subject to the Investment Company Act. If we were deemed to be subject to the Investment Company Act, compliance with these additional regulatory burdens would require additional expenses for which we have not allotted funds and may hinder our ability to complete a business combination, or may result in our liquidation. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may only receive their pro rata portion of the funds in the trust account that are available for distribution to public stockholders, and our warrants will expire worthless.
Not applicable.
Our executive offices are located at 9 West 57th Street, 43rd Floor, New York, NY 10019, and our telephone number is (212) 515-3200. The cost for our use of this space is included in the $10,000 per month fee we have agreed to pay to our Sponsor for office space, utilities, secretarial support and administrative services. We consider our current office space adequate for our current operations.
There is no material litigation, arbitration or governmental proceeding currently pending against us or any members of our management team in their capacity as such.
Not applicable.
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Market for Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities. |
Market Information
Our units began trading on the NYSE under the symbol “SPAQ.U” on February 9, 2021. Commencing on April 1, 2021, holders of the units will be able to elect to separately trade the shares of Class A common stock and public warrants included in the units. The shares of Class A common stock and public warrants will trade on the NYSE under the symbols “SPAQ” and “SPAQ.WS,” respectively. Those units not separated continue to trade on the NYSE under the symbol “SPAQ.U.”
Holders
At March 29, 2021, there was one holder of record of our units, one holder of record of our Class A common stock, three holders of record of our Class B common stock, one holder of record of our public warrants and one holder of record of our Private Placement Warrants.
Dividends
We have not paid any cash dividends on our common stock to date and do not intend to pay cash dividends prior to the completion of a business combination. The payment of cash dividends in the future will be dependent upon our revenues and earnings, if any, capital requirements and general financial conditions subsequent to completion of a business combination. The payment of any cash dividends subsequent to a business combination will be within the discretion of our board of directors at such time. Our board of directors is not currently contemplating and does not anticipate declaring any stock dividends in the foreseeable future. Further, if we incur any indebtedness, our ability to declare dividends may be limited by restrictive covenants we may agree to in connection therewith.
Securities Authorized for Issuance Under Equity Compensation Plans
None.
Recent Sales of Unregistered Securities; Use of Proceeds from Registered Offerings
Unregistered Sales
In December 2020, 11,500,000 shares of the Company’s Class B common stock were issued to the Sponsor in exchange for the payment of $25,000 of expenses on behalf of the Company, or approximately $0.002 per share. In February 2021, our Sponsor forfeited 100,000 Founder Shares back to the Company and the Company issued an aggregate of 100,000 Founder Shares, in an amount totaling 50,000 to each of our independent directors. Additionally, in February 2021, the Company effected a dividend on 2,300,000 Founder Shares, resulting in an aggregate of 13,800,000 shares of Class B common stock outstanding. The Founder Shares were issued in connection with our organization pursuant to the exemption from registration contained in Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act.
Simultaneously with the consummation of the Public Offering, our Sponsor purchased from the Company an aggregate of 9,360,000 Private Placement Warrants at a price of $1.50 per Private Placement Warrant (for a purchase price of approximately $14,040,000). Each Private Placement Warrant entitles the holder thereof to purchase one share of our Class A common stock at an exercise price of $11.50 per share. The sale of the Private Placement Warrants was made pursuant to the exemption from registration contained in Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act.
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Use of Proceeds
On the Closing Date, we consummated the Public Offering of 55,200,000 units, including 7,200,000 units that were issued pursuant to the underwriters’ full exercise of their over-allotment option. The units were sold at a price of $10.00 per unit, generating gross proceeds to us of $552,000,000.
On February 11, 2021, simultaneously with the consummation of the Public Offering, we completed the private sale of 9,360,000 Private Placement Warrants at a purchase price of $1.50 per Private Placement Warrant to the Sponsor, generating gross proceeds to us of approximately $14,040,000.
Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC, Citigroup Global Markets Inc. and Cowen and Company, LLC acted as book-running managers and representatives served as underwriters for the Public Offering. The securities sold in the Public Offering were registered under the Securities Act on registration statements on Form S-1 (File No. 333-252162 and 333-252866) (together, the “Registration Statement”). The SEC declared the Registration Statement effective on February 8, 2021.
From December 23, 2020 (date of inception) through February 11, 2021 (the closing of our Public Offering), we incurred approximately $31.1 for costs and expenses related to the Public Offering. In connection with the closing of the Public Offering, we paid a total of $11,040,000 in underwriting discounts and commissions. In addition, the underwriters agreed to defer $19,320,000 in underwriting discounts and commissions, which amount will be payable upon consummation of the initial business combination. Prior to the closing of the Public Offering, an affiliate of the Sponsor advanced us $19,320,000 to be used for a portion of the expenses of the Public Offering. A total of $182,000 was repaid upon completion of the Public Offering out of the $2,000,000 of Public Offering proceeds that were allocated for the payment of offering expenses other than underwriting discounts and commissions. There has been no material change in the planned use of proceeds from the Public Offering as described in our final prospectus filed with the SEC on February 10, 2021.
After deducting the underwriting discounts and commissions (excluding the deferred portion of $19,320,000, which amount will be payable upon consummation of the initial business combination) and offering expenses, the total net proceeds from our Public Offering and the sale of the Private Placement Warrants were $552,000,000, of which $552,000,000 (or $10.00 per share sold in the Public Offering) was placed in the trust account.
We are a smaller reporting company as defined in Rule 12b-2 under the Exchange Act. As a result, pursuant to Item 301(c) of Regulation S-K, we are not required to provide the information required by this Item.
References to the “Company,” “our,” “us” or “we” refer to Spartan Acquisition Corp. III. The following discussion and analysis of the Company’s financial condition and results of operations should be read in conjunction with the financial statements and the notes thereto contained elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. Certain information contained in the discussion and analysis set forth below includes forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This Annual Report on Form 10-K includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act and Section 21E of the Exchange Act. We have based these forward-looking statements on our current expectations and projections about future events. These forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and assumptions about us that may cause our actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as “may,” “should,” “could,” “would,” “expect,” “plan,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “continue” or the negative of such terms or other similar expressions. Factors that might cause or contribute to such a discrepancy include, but are not limited to, those described in our other SEC filings.
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Overview
We are a blank check company incorporated on December 23, 2020 as a Delaware corporation and formed for the purpose of effecting a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses.
Our Sponsor, Spartan Acquisition Sponsor III LLC, is a Delaware limited liability company. Our Registration Statement for our Public Offering became effective on February 8, 2021. On February 11, 2021, we consummated the Public Offering of 55,200,000 units, including the issuance of 7,200,000 units as a result of the underwriter’s exercise in full of its over-allotment option, at $10.00 per unit, generating gross proceeds of approximately $552.0 million, and incurring offering costs of approximately $31.1 million, inclusive of approximately $19.3 million in deferred underwriting commissions.
Simultaneously with the closing of the Public Offering, we consummated the private placement of 9,360,000 Private Placement Warrants at a price of $1.50 per Private Placement Warrant to our Sponsor, generating additional gross proceeds of $14.0 million.
Upon the closing of the Public Offering, the private placement, and the over-allotment option on February 11, 2021, $552.0 million ($10.00 per unit) of the net proceeds of the sale of the units in the Public Offering and the sale of the Private Placement Warrants were placed in the trust account, located in the United States at J.P. Morgan Chase Bank, N.A. with Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company acting as trustee, and invested only in U.S. “government securities” within the meaning of Section 2(a)(16) of the Investment Company Act having a maturity of 185 days or less or in money market funds meeting certain conditions under Rule 2a-7 promulgated under the Investment Company Act which invest only in direct U.S. government treasury obligations, until the earlier of: (i) the completion of a Business Combination and (ii) the distribution of the assets held in the trust account as described below.
We intend to complete our initial business combination using cash from the proceeds of the Public Offering and the private placement of the Private Placement Warrants, our capital stock, debt or a combination of cash, stock and debt. The issuance of additional shares of our stock in a business combination:
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may significantly dilute the equity interest of investors from our Public Offering, which dilution would increase if the anti-dilution provisions in the Class B common stock resulted in the issuance of shares of Class A common stock on a greater than one-to-one basis upon conversion of the Class B common stock; |
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may subordinate the rights of holders of our common stock if preferred stock is issued with rights senior to those afforded to our common stock; |
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could cause a change in control if a substantial number of shares of our common stock are issued, which may affect, among other things, our ability to use our net operating loss carry forwards, if any, and could result in the resignation or removal of our present officers and directors; |
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may have the effect of delaying or preventing a change of control of us by diluting the stock ownership or voting rights of a person seeking to obtain control of us; and |
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may adversely affect prevailing market prices for our Class A common stock and/or warrants. |
Similarly, if we issue debt securities or otherwise incur significant debt to bank or other lenders or owners of a target business, it could result in:
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default and foreclosure on our assets if our operating revenues after an initial business combination are insufficient to repay our debt obligations; |
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acceleration of our obligations to repay the indebtedness even if we make all principal and interest payments when due if we breach certain covenants that require the maintenance of certain financial ratios or reserves without a waiver or renegotiation of that covenant; |
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our immediate payment of all principal and accrued interest, if any, if the debt security is payable on demand; |
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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; |
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our inability to pay dividends on our common stock; |
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using a substantial portion of our cash flow to pay principal and interest on our debt, which will reduce the funds available for dividends on our common stock if declared, our ability to pay expenses, make capital expenditures and acquisitions, and fund other general corporate purposes; |
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limitations on our flexibility in planning for and reacting to changes in our business and in the industry in which we operate; |
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increased vulnerability to adverse changes in general economic, industry and competitive conditions and adverse changes in government regulation; |
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limitations on our ability to borrow additional amounts for expenses, capital expenditures, acquisitions, debt service requirements, and execution of our strategy; and |
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other purposes and other disadvantages compared to our competitors who have less debt. |
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that, other than the withdrawal of interest to pay franchise and income taxes (less up to $100,000 to pay dissolution expenses), none of the funds held in the trust account will be released until the earliest of: (i) the completion of the initial business combination; (ii) the redemption of any shares of Class A common stock included in the units sold in the Public Offering that have been properly tendered in connection with a stockholder vote to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation to affect the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of such public shares if we have not consummated an initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of the Public Offering, or February 10, 2023 (or 27 months from the closing of the Public Offering, or May 11, 2023, if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of the Public Offering) (the “Combination Period”); or (iii) the redemption of 100% of the public shares we are unable to complete an initial business combination within the Combination Period. The proceeds deposited in the trust account could become subject to the claims of our creditors, if any, which could have priority over the claims of our public stockholders.
Results of Operations
Our entire activity since December 23, 2020 (inception) through December 31, 2020 related to our formation, the preparation for the Public Offering, and since the closing of the Public Offering, the search for a prospective initial business combination. We have neither engaged in any operations nor generated any revenues to date. We will not generate any operating revenues until after completion of our initial business combination. We will generate non-operating income in the form of gain on investment (net), dividends and interest held in trust account. We have incurred increased expenses as a result of being a public company (for legal, financial reporting, accounting and auditing compliance), as well as for due diligence expenses.
For the period from December 23, 2020 (inception) through December 31, 2020, we had a net loss of approximately $2,000, which consisted of approximately $1,600 in general and administrative expenses and approximately $500 of franchise tax expense.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
As of December 31, 2020, we had no cash in our operating bank account and a working capital deficit of approximately $70,000.
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Through December 31, 2020, our liquidity needs have been satisfied through a payment of $25,000 from our Sponsor to pay for certain offering costs in exchange for issuance of the Founder Shares. Subsequent to December 31, 2020, we borrowed approximately $182,000 under a promissory note (the “Note”) with our Sponsor. We repaid the Note in full on February 17, 2021. Upon consummation of the sale of Private Placement Warrants, our liquidity needs will be met by the net proceeds from the sale of Private Placement Warrants not held in the trust account. In addition, in order to finance transaction costs in connection with an initial business combination, our officers, directors and initial stockholders may, but are not obligated to, provide us Working Capital Loans. As of December 31, 2020, there were no amounts outstanding under any Working Capital Loans.
Based on the foregoing, management believes that we will have sufficient working capital and borrowing capacity from our Sponsor or an affiliate of our Sponsor, or certain of our officers and directors to meet its needs through the earlier of the consummation of an initial business combination or one year from this filing. Over this time period, we will be using these funds for paying existing accounts payable, identifying and evaluating prospective initial business combination candidates, performing due diligence on prospective target businesses, paying for travel expenditures, selecting the target business to merge with or acquire, and structuring, negotiating and consummating the business combination.
Management continues to evaluate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and has concluded that while it is reasonably possible that the virus could have a negative effect on our financial position, the specific impact is not readily determinable as of the date of the financial statements. The financial statements do not include any adjustments that might result from the outcome of this uncertainty.
Related Party Transactions
Founder Shares
In December 2020, 11,500,000 shares of the Company’s Founder Shares were issued to our Sponsor in exchange for the payment of $25,000 of certain offering costs on our behalf, or approximately $0.002 per share. In February 2021, we effected a share dividend on 2,300,000 of our Founder Shares resulting in our Sponsor owning 13,800,000 Founder Shares. Additionally, on February 8, 2021, our Sponsor forfeited 100,000 Founder Shares back to the Company and the Company issued an aggregate of 100,000 Founder Shares, in an amount totaling 50,000 to each of our independent directors. All shares and associated amounts had been retroactively restated to reflect the share surrender and the stock dividend. Of the 13,800,000 Founder Shares outstanding, up to 1,800,000 Founder Shares were subject to forfeiture to the extent that the over-allotment option was not exercised by the underwriters, so that the Founder Shares would represent 20.0% of the Company’s issued and outstanding shares after the Public Offering. On February 11, 2021, the underwriters fully exercised the over-allotment option; thus, these 1,800,000 Founder Shares were no longer subject to forfeiture.
The holders of the Founders Shares agreed, subject to limited exceptions, not to transfer, assign or sell any of their Founder Shares until the earlier to occur of: (A) one year after the completion of the initial business combination or (B) subsequent to the initial business combination, (x) if the last reported sale price of the Company’s Class A common stock equals or exceeds $12.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) for any 20 trading days within any 30-trading day period commencing at least 150 days after the initial business combination, or (y) the date on which we complete a liquidation, merger, capital stock exchange, reorganization or other similar transaction that results in all of our stockholders having the right to exchange their shares of common stock for cash, securities or other property.
Private Placement Warrants
Simultaneously with the closing of the Public Offering, we consummated the private sale of 9,360,000 Private Placement Warrants, at a price of $1.50 per Private Placement Warrant to our Sponsor, generating proceeds of $14.0 million.
Each whole Private Placement Warrant is exercisable for one whole share of the Company’s Class A common stock at a price of $11.50 per share. A portion of the purchase price of the Private Placement Warrants was added to the proceeds from the Public Offering held in the trust account. If the initial business combination is not completed
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within the Combination Period, the proceeds from the sale of the Private Placement Warrants held in the trust account will be used to fund the redemption of the public shares (subject to the requirements of applicable law) and the Private Placement Warrants will expire worthless. The Private Placement Warrants are non-redeemable and exercisable on a cashless basis so long as they are held by our Sponsor or its permitted transferees.
Our Sponsor and our officers and directors agreed, subject to limited exceptions, not to transfer, assign or sell any of their Private Placement Warrants until 30 days after the completion of the initial business combination.
Related Party Loans
On December 23, 2020, our Sponsor agreed to loan us an aggregate of up to $300,000 to cover expenses related to the Public Offering pursuant to the Note. The Note is non-interest bearing and payable upon the Closing Date of the Public Offering. Subsequent to December 31, 2020, we borrowed an aggregate of approximately $182,000 under the Note and repaid the Note in full on February 17, 2021.
In addition, in order to finance transaction costs in connection with an initial business combination, our Sponsor or an affiliate of our Sponsor, or certain of our officers and directors may, but are not obligated to, loan us funds as may be required (“Working Capital Loans”). If we complete an initial business combination, we will repay the Working Capital Loans out of the proceeds of the trust account released to us. Otherwise, the Working Capital Loans would be repaid only out of funds held outside the trust account. In the event that an initial business combination does not close, we may use a portion of proceeds held outside the trust account to repay the Working Capital Loans but no proceeds held in the trust account would be used to repay the Working Capital Loans. Except for the foregoing, the terms of such Working Capital Loans, if any, have not been determined and no written agreements exist with respect to such loans. The Working Capital Loans would either be repaid upon consummation of an initial business combination or, at the lender’s discretion, up to $1.5 million of such Working Capital Loans may be convertible into warrants of the post initial business combination entity at a price of $1.50 per warrant. The warrants would be identical to the Private Placement Warrants. To date, we have no borrowings under the Working Capital Loans.
Administrative Support Agreement
Commencing on the date the units were first listed on the NYSE, we agreed to pay our Sponsor a total of $10,000 per month for office space, utilities and secretarial and administrative support. Upon completion of the initial business combination or our liquidation, we will cease paying these monthly fees.
Contractual Obligations
Registration Rights
The holders of the Founder Shares, Private Placement Warrants and warrants that may be issued upon conversion of Working Capital Loans (and any shares of Class A common stock issuable upon the exercise of the Private Placement Warrants and warrants that may be issued upon conversion of Working Capital Loans and upon conversion of the Founder Shares) are entitled to registration rights pursuant to a registration rights agreement, dated February 8, 2021, requiring us to register such securities for resale (in the case of the Founder Shares, only after conversion to our Class A common stock). The holders will be entitled to make up to three demands, excluding short form registration demands, that we register such securities for sale under the Securities Act. In addition, these holders have “piggy-back” registration rights to include their securities in other registration statements filed by us. We will bear the expenses incurred in connection with the filing of any such registration statements.
Underwriting Agreement
We granted the underwriters a 45-day option from the date of the final prospectus to purchase up to 7,200,000 additional units to cover over-allotments, if any, at the Public Offering price less the underwriting discounts and commissions. The underwriters fully exercised the over-allotment option on February 11, 2021.
The underwriters were entitled to an underwriting discount of $0.20 per unit, or $11.0 million in the aggregate, paid upon the closing of the Public Offering. In addition, $0.35 per unit, or approximately $19.3 million in the
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aggregate will be payable to the underwriters for deferred underwriting commissions. The deferred fee will become payable to the underwriters from the amounts held in the trust account solely in the event that we complete an initial business combination, subject to the terms of the underwriting agreement for the Public Offering.
Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements and Contractual Obligations
As of December 31, 2020, we did not have any off-balance sheet arrangements as defined in Item 303(a)(4)(ii) of Regulation S-K and did not have any commitments or contractual obligations.
JOBS Act
On April 5, 2012, the JOBS Act was signed into law. The JOBS Act contains provisions that, among other things, relax certain reporting requirements for qualifying public companies. We qualify as an “emerging growth company” under the JOBS Act and are allowed to comply with new or revised accounting pronouncements based on the effective date for private (not publicly traded) companies. We elected to delay the adoption of new or revised accounting standards, and as a result, we may not comply with new or revised accounting standards on the relevant dates on which adoption of such standards is required for non-emerging growth companies. As a result, our financial statements may not be comparable to companies that comply with new or revised accounting pronouncements as of public company effective dates.
As an “emerging growth company,” we are not required to, among other things, (i) provide an auditor’s attestation report on our system of internal controls over financial reporting pursuant to Section 404 under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, (ii) provide all of the compensation disclosure that may be required of non-emerging growth public companies under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, (iii) comply with any requirement that may be adopted by the PCAOB regarding mandatory audit firm rotation or a supplement to the auditor’s report providing additional information about the audit and the financial statements (auditor discussion and analysis), and (iv) disclose certain executive compensation related items such as the correlation between executive compensation and performance and comparisons of the chief executive officer’s compensation to median employee compensation. These exemptions will apply for a period of five years following the completion of our Public Offering or until we are no longer an “emerging growth company,” whichever is earlier.
Recent Accounting Pronouncements
Our management does not believe there are any other recently issued, but not yet effective, accounting pronouncements, if currently adopted, that would have a material effect on our financial statements.
We are a smaller reporting company as defined by Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act and are not required to provide the information otherwise required under this Item.
Reference is made to Pages F-1 through F-15 comprising a portion of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.
None.
Disclosure Controls and Procedures
Disclosure controls and procedures are controls and other procedures that are designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed in our reports filed or submitted under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the SEC’s rules and forms. Disclosure controls and procedures include, without limitation, controls and procedures designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed in company reports filed or submitted under the Exchange Act is accumulated and communicated to
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management, including our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure.
As required by Rules 13a-15 and 15d-15 under the Exchange Act, our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer carried out an evaluation of the effectiveness of the design and operation of our disclosure controls and procedures as of December 31, 2020. Based upon their evaluation, our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the Exchange Act) were effective.
Internal Control over Financial Reporting
This Annual Report on Form 10-K does not include a report of management’s assessment regarding internal control over financial reporting or an attestation report of the Company’s registered public accounting firm due to a transition period established by rules of the SEC for newly public companies.
During the most recently completed fiscal quarter, there has been no change in our internal control over financial reporting that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.
None.
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Our officers and directors are as follows:
Name |
Age |
Position |
Geoffrey Strong* |
45 |
Chief Executive Officer and Chairman |
James Crossen* |
47 |
Chief Financial Officer and Chief Accounting Officer |
Olivia Wassenaar |
41 |
Director |
Wilson Handler |
36 |
Director |
Christine Hommes |
36 |
Director |
Joseph Romeo |
36 |
Director |
Jan C. Wilson |
48 |
Independent Director |
John M. Stice |
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Independent Director |
* |
Denotes an executive officer. |
Geoffrey Strong — Chief Executive Officer and Chairman. Geoffrey Strong has served as our Chief Executive Officer and Chairman since December 2020. He currently serves as the Chief Executive Officer and director of Spartan Acquisition Corp. II and previously served as Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of Spartan Energy Acquisition Corp. Mr. Strong joined Apollo in 2012 and is currently a Senior Partner and Co-Lead of the firm’s Infrastructure and Natural Resources groups. Previously, he worked in the Private Equity and Infrastructure groups at Blackstone, focusing primarily on investments in the energy sector, and prior to that, as a vice president at Morgan Stanley Capital Partners. Mr. Strong serves or has served on the board of directors of various Apollo portfolio companies or affiliates, including: Apex Energy, LLC; AIE Arlington, LLC; AIE Caledonia Holdings, LLC; Caelus Energy Alaska, LLC; Chisholm Oil and Gas Holdings, LLC; CPV Fairview LLC; DoublePoint Energy, LLC; Double Eagle Energy Holdings, LLC; Double Eagle Energy Holdings II, LLC; Double Eagle Energy Holdings III LLC; Freestone Midstream Holdings, LLC; Great Bay Renewables Holdings, LLC; Momentum Minerals, LLC; Momentum Minerals II, LLC; Northwoods Energy LLC; Pipeline Funding Company, LLC; Roundtable Energy Holdings, LLC; Spartan Energy Acquisition Corp; Spartan Acquisition Corp. II; Tumbleweed Royalty, LLC; Tumbleweed Royalty II, LLC; US Wind Inc. and Vistra Energy Corp. Mr. Strong holds a Bachelor of Science, summa cum laude, in business administration from Western Oregon University, a juris doctor, cum laude, from Lewis & Clark College, and a Masters of Business Administration from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business. Mr. Strong’s extensive experience investing in the energy value chain makes him a valuable addition to our board of directors.
James Crossen — Chief Financial Officer and Chief Accounting Officer. Mr. Crossen has served as our Chief Financial Officer and Chief Accounting Officer since December 2020, and currently serves as Spartan Acquisition Corp. II’s Chief Financial Officer and Chief Accounting Officer, as Apollo Strategic Growth Capital’s Chief Financial Officer and Secretary, and as Apollo Strategic Growth Capital II’s Chief Financial Officer. Mr. Crossen is Chief Financial Officer for Private Equity and Real Assets at Apollo, having joined the firm in 2010. He was Chief Financial Officer and Chief Accounting Officer of Spartan Energy Acquisition Corp. from October 2017 until October 2020. Prior to joining Apollo, Mr. Crossen was a Controller at Roundtable Investment Partners LLC. Prior thereto, Mr. Crossen was a Controller at Fortress Investment Group. Prior to that time, Mr. Crossen was a member of the Funds Management and Tax Group at JP Morgan Partners LLC. Mr. Crossen is a Certified Public Accountant in New York. Mr. Crossen served in the United States Marine Corps and graduated summa cum laude from the University of Connecticut.
Olivia C. Wassenaar — Director. Ms. Wassenaar is a Senior Partner at Apollo and is Co-Lead of the Natural Resources group, having joined in 2018. Prior to that time, Ms. Wassenaar was a Managing Director at Riverstone Holdings and was previously a member of the Investment Banking division of Goldman Sachs. Ms. Wassenaar also serves on the boards of directors of Talos Energy Inc., Jupiter Resources Ltd., Pegasus Optimization Partners, LLC, LifePoint Health, Inc., High Road Resources, LLC (f.k.a. American Petroleum Partners, LLC), AP Shale Logistics Holdco LLC (a.k.a Tidewater Logistics Operating LLC) and Spartan Acquisition Corp. II. During the past five years, Ms. Wassenaar also served as a director of Northern Blizzard Resources Inc., USA Compression Partners, LP, Admiral Permian Resources, LLC, Hammerhead Resources Inc., Canadian Non-Operated Resources GP Inc., Eagle Energy Exploration LLC, Vesta Energy Corp., Canera III, Niska Gas Storage Partners LLC and Apex Energy LLC.
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She received her AB, magna cum laude from Harvard College and an MBA from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. We believe that Ms. Wassenaar’s experience in evaluating financial and strategic options and the operations of companies in our industry and her experience on multiple boards make her a valuable member of the board of directors.
Wilson Handler — Director. Mr. Handler joined Apollo in 2011 and is a Partner of the firm’s Natural Resources group. Prior to joining Apollo, Mr. Handler was an investment professional at First Reserve, where he was involved in the execution and monitoring of investments in the energy sector. Previously, he worked in the Investment Banking Division at Lehman Brothers in the Natural Resources group. Currently, Mr. Handler serves or has served on the board of directors of various companies, including: EP Energy Corporation; CSV Midstream Solutions GP LLC; Jupiter Resources GP LLC; Resource Energy Partners, LLC; Tumbleweed Royalty, LLC; Tumbleweed Royalty II, LLC; Mesquite Energy Inc. (f/k/a Sanchez Energy Corp.); Spartan Acquisition Corp. II; American Petroleum Partners, LLC (n/k/a High Road Resources, LLC); Athlon Energy Inc.; DoublePoint Energy, LLC; Double Eagle Energy Holdings II LLC; Double Eagle Energy Holdings III LLC and Wolfcamp DrillCo LLC. Mr. Handler holds a Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Government from Dartmouth College. Mr. Handler’s extensive experience investing in the energy value chain makes him a valuable addition to our board of directors.
Christine Hommes — Director. Ms. Hommes joined Apollo in January 2011 and is a Partner in the Natural Resources group. Prior to that time, Ms. Hommes was an Associate at First Reserve and prior to that, a member of the Power & Utilities Group at UBS. Ms. Hommes currently serves on the board of directors of Talos Energy Inc., Chisholm Oil and Gas Holdings, LLC, Momentum Minerals, Momentum Minerals II, Belvedere Royalties, LLC, Boardwalk Holdings, LLC (parent of Celeros Flow Technology), Freestone Midstream Holdings, LLC, Northwoods Energy LLC, Roundtable Energy Holdings and Spartan Acquisition Corp. II. Ms. Hommes also serves on the board of directors of Youth, Inc. a non-profit focused on New York City youth. She previously served on the board of Tumbleweed Royalty. Ms. Hommes graduated summa cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania with a BS in Economics and a BAS in Systems Engineering. We believe that Ms. Hommes’s experience in evaluating financial and strategic options and the operations of companies in our industry make her a valuable member of the board of directors.
Joseph Romeo — Director. Mr. Romeo joined Apollo Private Equity in 2013 and is focused on natural resources activities in addition to co-leading Spartan Energy Acquisition Corp. from its initial public offering to business combination. Prior to that time, Mr. Romeo was a member of the Energy Financial Services group at General Electric focused on evaluating, executing and managing principal investments in the energy sector. Mr. Romeo also serves on the board of directors of various Apollo portfolio companies, including Apex Energy, LLC, Caelus Energy Alaska, LLC, Freestone Midstream Holdings, LLC, High Road Resources, LLC, Northwoods Energy, LLC, Roundtable Energy Holdings, LLC and Spartan Acquisition Corp. II. Mr. Romeo graduated from Princeton University with an AB in Politics and received his MBA from Harvard Business School. Mr. Romeo’s extensive experience investing in the energy value chain makes him a valuable addition to our board of directors.
Jan C. Wilson — Independent Director. Ms. Wilson served as a consultant to the Royal Bank of Canada from September 2015 until April 2017. Prior to her service as a consultant to the Royal Bank of Canada, Ms. Wilson was a manager at Enron Corporation from May 1996 until January 2002, senior vice president of RBS Sempra Commodities LLC from January 2002 until January 2011 and director of Freepoint Commodities LLC from June 2011 until June 2013. Since April 2018, Ms. Wilson has served as a senior advisor for the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and is the founder/president of JW 1000 Ltd. a company focused on advising on all project contracts that are required to support financing and allocation of risk for sustainable energy projects. Ms. Wilson currently serves on the board of directors of Spartan Acquisition Corp. II and Crestone Peak Resources. Ms. Wilson previously served on the board of directors of Spartan Energy Acquisition Corp. from April 2020 to October 2020. Ms. Wilson was a private investor from March 2015 to August 2015 and from April 2017 through March 2018. Ms. Wilson holds a B.A. in Economics and a B.A. in Honours Business Administration from the University of Western Ontario and an M.B.A. from Queens University. Ms. Wilson is well-qualified to serve as director due to her extensive experience in risk management and asset acquisition in the electricity, oil and gas and energy storage industries.
John M. Stice — Independent Director. Mr. Stice previously served as Chief Executive Officer of Access Midstream from the time it spun out of Chesapeake Energy until his retirement in 2015. Mr. Stice began his career in 1981 with Conoco, as an associate engineer. For more than 25 years, Mr. Stice held technical and managerial
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positions of increasing responsibility with ConocoPhillips in exploration, production, midstream, and gas marketing worldwide. In November 2008, Mr. Stice joined Chesapeake and served as President of Chesapeake Midstream Development and Senior Vice President of Natural Gas Projects for Chesapeake Energy. He retired in 2015 as Chief Executive Officer of Access Midstream, formerly Chesapeake Midstream Partners. Currently, Mr. Stice serves as Dean of the Mewbourne College of Earth & Energy at the University of Oklahoma, a position he assumed in August 2015. Mr. Stice served on the board of directors of Spartan Energy Acquisition Corp. Mr. Stice serves on the boards of directors of Spartan Acquisition Corp. II, Marathon Petroleum Corporation, MPLX and U.S. Silica Holdings, Inc. Mr. Stice holds a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from the University of Oklahoma, a master’s degree in business from Stanford University, and a doctorate in education from the George Washington University. As a result of his professional and academic experiences, Mr. Stice brings extensive breadth, depth and expertise in the oil and natural gas services industry to our board of directors.
Number and Terms of Office of Officers and Directors
We currently have seven directors. Our board of directors is divided into three classes with only one class of directors being elected in each year and each class (except for those directors appointed prior to our first annual meeting of stockholders) serving a three-year term. The term of office of the first class of directors, consisting of Olivia Wassenaar, Wilson Handler and Christine Hommes, expires at our first annual meeting of stockholders. The term of office of the second class of directors, consisting of Joseph Romeo and Jan C. Wilson, expires at the second annual meeting of stockholders. The term of office of the third class of directors, consisting of Geoffrey Strong and John M. Stice, expires at the third annual meeting of stockholders. We may not hold an annual meeting of stockholders until after we consummate our initial business combination.
Holders of our Founder Shares have the right to appoint all of our directors prior to consummation of our initial business combination and holders of our public shares do not have the right to vote on the appointment of directors during such time. These provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation may only be amended if approved by a majority of at least 90% of our common stock voting at a stockholder meeting.
Our officers are appointed by the board of directors and serve at the discretion of the board of directors, rather than for specific terms of office. Our board of directors is authorized to appoint persons to the offices set forth in our bylaws as it deems appropriate. Our bylaws provide that our officers may consist of a Chairman of the Board, Chief Executive Officer, President, Chief Financial Officer, Vice Presidents, Secretary, Treasurer and such other offices as may be determined by the board of directors.
Status as a Controlled Company
Following our Public Offering, only holders of our Founder Shares have the right to vote on the election of directors. As a result, we are a “controlled company” within the meaning of the NYSE corporate governance standards. Under the NYSE corporate governance standards, a company of which more than 50% of the voting power is held by an individual, group or another company is a “controlled company” and may elect not to comply with certain corporate governance requirements, including the requirements that:
• we have a board that includes a majority of “independent directors,” as defined under the rules of the NYSE;
• we have a compensation committee of our board that is comprised entirely of independent directors with a written charter addressing the committee’s purpose and responsibilities; and
• we have a nominating and corporate governance committee of our board that is comprised entirely of independent directors with a written charter addressing the committee’s purpose and responsibilities.
Upon ceasing to be a controlled company, we will take all action necessary to comply with the NYSE corporate governance standards, including appointing a majority of independent directors to our board of directors, subject to a permitted “phase-in” period.
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Director Independence
We intend to utilize the exemption from the requirement that we have a board that includes a majority of “independent directors,” as defined under the rules of the NYSE. An “independent director” is defined generally as a person who has no material relationship with the listed company (either directly or as a partner, stockholder or officer of an organization that has a relationship with the company). Our board of directors has determined that Jan C. Wilson and John M. Stice are “independent directors” as defined in the NYSE listing standards and applicable SEC rules. Our independent directors have regularly scheduled meetings at which only independent directors are present.
Committees of the Board of Directors
Our board of directors has three standing committees: an audit committee, a compensation committee and a nominating and corporate governance committee. Subject to phase-in rules and a limited exception, the rules of the NYSE and Rule 10A of the Exchange Act require that the audit committee of a listed company be comprised solely of independent directors. Subject to phase-in rules and an exception for “controlled companies,” the rules of the NYSE require that the compensation and nominating and corporate governance committees of a listed company be comprised solely of independent directors. We will comply with these requirements, subject to applicable phase-in rules. The charters for each committee are available on our website.
Audit Committee
We have established an audit committee of the board of directors. Jan C. Wilson, John M. Stice and Geoffrey Strong serve as members of our audit committee. Under the NYSE listing standards and applicable SEC rules, we are required to have at least three members of the audit committee, all of whom must be independent, subject to the exception described below. Jan C. Wilson and John M. Stice are independent. Because we listed our securities on the NYSE in connection with our Public Offering, we have one year from the date of the Public Offering to have our audit committee be comprised solely of independent members. We intend to identify one additional independent director to serve on the audit committee within one year of the closing of the Public Offering, at which time Geoffrey Strong will resign from the committee. We expect such additional director to enter into a letter agreement substantially similar to the letter agreement signed by our Sponsor, officer and directors in connection with our Public Offering.
John M. Stice serves as chair of the audit committee. Each member of the audit committee is financially literate and our board of directors has determined that John M. Stice qualifies as an “audit committee financial expert” as defined in applicable SEC rules.
We have adopted an audit committee charter, which details the principal functions of the audit committee, including:
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the appointment, compensation, retention, replacement, and oversight of the work of the independent registered public accounting firm and any other independent registered public accounting firm engaged by us; |
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pre-approving all audit and permitted non-audit services to be provided by the independent registered public accounting firm or any other registered public accounting firm engaged by us, and establishing pre-approval policies and procedures; |
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reviewing and discussing with the independent registered public accounting firm all relationships the independent registered public accounting firm has with us in order to evaluate their continued independence; |
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setting clear hiring policies for employees or former employees of the independent registered public accounting firm; |
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setting clear policies for audit partner rotation in compliance with applicable laws and regulations; |
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obtaining and reviewing a report, at least annually, from the independent registered public accounting firm describing (i) the independent registered public accounting firm’s internal quality-control procedures and (ii) any material issues raised by the most recent internal quality-control review, or peer review, of the audit firm, or by any inquiry or investigation by governmental or professional authorities within the preceding five years respecting one or more independent audits carried out by the firm and any steps taken to deal with such issues; |
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reviewing and approving any related party transaction required to be disclosed pursuant to Item 404 of Regulation S-K promulgated by the SEC prior to us entering into such transaction; and |
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reviewing with management, the independent registered public accounting firm, and our legal advisors, as appropriate, any legal, regulatory or compliance matters, including any correspondence with regulators or government agencies and any employee complaints or published reports that raise material issues regarding our financial statements or accounting policies and any significant changes in accounting standards or rules promulgated by the Financial Accounting Standards Board, the SEC or other regulatory authorities. |
Compensation Committee
We have established a compensation committee of the board of directors. Jan C. Wilson and John M. Stice serve as members of our compensation committee. Jan C. Wilson and John M. Stice are independent. Jan C. Wilson serves as chair of the compensation committee.
We have adopted a compensation committee charter, which details the principal functions of the compensation committee, including:
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reviewing and approving on an annual basis the corporate goals and objectives relevant to our chief executive officer’s compensation, evaluating our chief executive officer’s performance in light of such goals and objectives and determining and approving the remuneration (if any) of our chief executive officer based on such evaluation; |
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reviewing and approving on an annual basis the compensation of all of our other officers; |
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reviewing on an annual basis our executive compensation policies and plans; |
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implementing and administering our incentive compensation equity-based remuneration plans; |
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assisting management in complying with our proxy statement and annual report disclosure requirements; |
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approving all special perquisites, special cash payments and other special compensation and benefit arrangements for our officers and employees; |
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if required, producing a report on executive compensation to be included in our annual proxy statement; and |
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reviewing, evaluating and recommending changes, if appropriate, to the remuneration for directors. |
The charter also provides that the compensation committee may, in its sole discretion, retain or obtain the advice of a compensation consultant, legal counsel or other adviser and will be directly responsible for the appointment, compensation and oversight of the work of any such adviser. However, before engaging or receiving advice from a compensation consultant, external legal counsel or any other adviser, the compensation committee will consider the independence of each such adviser, including the factors required by the NYSE and the SEC.
Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee
We have established a nominating and corporate governance committee of the board of directors. The members of our nominating and corporate governance are Jan C. Wilson and John M. Stice. Jan C. Wilson serves as chair of the nominating and corporate governance committee.
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The primary purposes of our nominating and corporate governance committee is to assist the board in:
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identifying, screening and reviewing individuals qualified to serve as directors and recommending to the board of directors candidates for nomination for election at the annual meeting of stockholders or to fill vacancies on the board of directors; |
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developing, recommending to the board of directors and overseeing implementation of our corporate governance guidelines; |
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coordinating and overseeing the annual self-evaluation of the board of directors, its committees, individual directors and management in the governance of the company; and |
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reviewing on a regular basis our overall corporate governance and recommending improvements as and when necessary. |
The nominating and corporate governance committee is governed by a charter that complies with the rules of the NYSE.
Director Nominations
Our nominating and corporate governance committee will recommend to the board of directors candidates for nomination for election at the annual meeting of the stockholders. The board of directors will also consider director candidates recommended for nomination by our stockholders during such times as they are seeking proposed nominees to stand for election at the next annual meeting of stockholders (or, if applicable, a special meeting of stockholders). Our stockholders that wish to nominate a director for election to our board of directors should follow the procedures set forth in our bylaws.
We have not formally established any specific, minimum qualifications that must be met or skills that are necessary for directors to possess. In general, in identifying and evaluating nominees for director, our board of directors considers educational background, diversity of professional experience, knowledge of our business, integrity, professional reputation, independence, wisdom, and the ability to represent the best interests of our stockholders. Prior to our initial business combination, holders of our public shares will not have the right to recommend director candidates for nomination to our board of directors.
Section 16(a) Beneficial Ownership Reporting Compliance
Section 16(a) of the Exchange Act requires our officers, directors and persons who beneficially own more than ten percent of any class of equity security which is registered pursuant to Section 12 of the Exchange Act to file reports of ownership and changes in ownership with the SEC. These reporting persons are also required to furnish us with copies of all Section 16(a) forms they file. Based solely upon a review of such forms, we believe that during the year ended December 31, 2020, there were no delinquent filers.
Code of Ethics and Committee Charters
We have adopted a Code of Ethics applicable to our directors, officers and employees. A copy of our Code of Conduct and Ethics is posted on our website. In addition, a copy of the Code of Conduct and Ethics will be provided without charge upon request from us. We intend to disclose any amendments to or waivers of certain provisions of our Code of Ethics in a Current Report on Form 8-K.
Conflicts of Interest
Apollo manages a significant number of Apollo Funds. Apollo and its affiliates, as well as Apollo Funds, may compete with us for acquisition opportunities. If these entities or companies decide to pursue any such opportunity, we may be precluded from procuring such opportunities. In addition, investment ideas generated within Apollo may be suitable for both us and for Apollo affiliates and/or current or future Apollo Funds and may be directed to such affiliates and/or Apollo Funds rather than to us. Neither Apollo nor members of our management team who are also employed by Apollo have any obligation to present us with any opportunity for a potential business combination of
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which they become aware. Apollo and/or our management, in their capacities as partners, officers or employees of Apollo or in their other endeavors, may be required to present potential business combinations to other entities, before they present such opportunities to us.
In addition, Apollo or its affiliates may sponsor other blank check companies similar to ours during the period in which we are seeking an initial business combination, and members of our management team may participate in such blank check companies. For example, certain of our officers and directors currently serve in similar roles for Spartan II, APSG and APSG II. Mr. Strong is the Chief Executive Officer and a director of Spartan II, Mr. Crossen is the Chief Financial Officer and Chief Accounting Officer of Spartan II and Chief Financial Officer of APSG and APSG II and each of Ms. Wassenaar, Mr. Handler, Ms. Hommes, Mr. Romeo, Ms. Wilson and Mr. Stice are directors of Spartan II, and each such officer and director owes fiduciary duties under the DGCL to Spartan II, APSG and APSG II, as applicable. Any such companies may present additional conflicts of interest in pursuing an acquisition target, particularly in the event there is overlap among the management teams.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, we may pursue an Affiliated Joint Acquisition opportunity with any affiliates of Apollo or investors in the Apollo Funds. Such entities may co-invest with us in the target business at the time of our initial business combination, or we could raise additional proceeds to complete the acquisition by issuing to such entity a class of equity or equity-linked securities. We have received an indication of interest from ANRP III, which is a private investment fund managed by Apollo, to purchase securities in a private placement that will close simultaneously with the closing of our business combination, although there is no assurance they will do so. Each of our officers and directors presently has, and any of them in the future may have additional fiduciary or contractual obligations to other entities pursuant to which such officer or director is or will be required to present a business combination opportunity to such entity. Accordingly, if any of our officers or directors becomes aware of a business combination opportunity which is suitable for an entity to which he or she has then-current fiduciary or contractual obligations, he or she will honor his or her fiduciary or contractual obligations to present such opportunity to such other entity. We do not believe, however, that the fiduciary duties or contractual obligations of our officers or directors will materially affect our ability to complete our business combination. In addition, we may pursue an Affiliated Joint Acquisition opportunity with an entity to which an officer or director has a fiduciary or contractual obligation. Any such entity may co-invest with us in the target business at the time of our initial business combination, or we could raise additional proceeds to complete the acquisition by issuing to such entity a class of equity or equity-linked securities. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that we renounce our interest in any corporate opportunity offered to any director or officer unless such opportunity is expressly offered to such person solely in his or her capacity as a director or officer of our Company and such opportunity is one we are legally and contractually permitted to undertake and would otherwise be reasonable for us to pursue. In addition, Apollo and its affiliates and/or Apollo Funds, including our officers and directors who are affiliated with Apollo, may sponsor or form other blank check companies similar to ours during the period in which we are seeking an initial business combination. For example, certain of our officers and directors currently serve in similar roles for Spartan II, APSG and APSG II. Mr. Strong is the Chief Executive Officer and a director of Spartan II, Mr. Crossen is the Chief Financial Officer and Chief Accounting Officer of Spartan II and Chief Financial Officer of APSG and APSG II and each of Ms. Wassenaar, Mr. Handler, Ms. Hommes, Mr. Romeo, Ms. Wilson and Mr. Stice are directors of Spartan II, and each such officer and director owes fiduciary duties under the DGCL to Spartan II, APSG and APSG II, as applicable. Any such companies may present additional conflicts of interest in pursuing an acquisition target.
Potential investors should also be aware of the following other potential conflicts of interest:
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None of our officers or directors is required to commit his or her full time to our affairs and, accordingly, may have conflicts of interest in allocating his or her time among various business activities. |
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In the course of their other business activities, our officers and directors may become aware of investment and business opportunities which may be appropriate for presentation to us as well as the other entities with which they are affiliated. Our management may have conflicts of interest in determining to which entity a particular business opportunity should be presented. |
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Our initial stockholders have agreed to waive their redemption rights with respect to any Founder Shares and any public shares held by them in connection with the consummation of our initial business |
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combination. Additionally, our initial stockholders have agreed to waive their redemption rights with respect to any Founder Shares held by them if we fail to consummate our initial business combination within 24 months after the closing of the Public Offering (or 27 months from the closing of the Public Offering if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of the Public Offering). If we do not complete our initial business combination within such applicable time period (or 27 months from the closing of the Public Offering if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of the Public Offering), the proceeds of the sale of the Private Placement Warrants held in the trust account will be used to fund the redemption of our public shares, and the Private Placement Warrants will expire worthless. Furthermore, our initial stockholders have agreed not to transfer, assign or sell any Founder Shares held by them until one year after the date of the consummation of our initial business combination or earlier if, subsequent to our initial business combination, (i) the last sale price of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $12.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) for any 20 trading days within any 30-trading day period commencing at least 150 days after our initial business combination or (ii) we consummate a subsequent liquidation, merger, stock exchange or other similar transaction which results in all of our stockholders having the right to exchange their shares of common stock for cash, securities or other property. With certain limited exceptions, the Private Placement Warrants and the Class A common stock underlying such warrants will not be transferable, assignable or saleable until 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination. Since our Sponsor, and officers and directors may directly or indirectly own common stock and warrants following the Public Offering, our officers and directors may have a conflict of interest in determining whether a particular target business is an appropriate business with which to effectuate our initial business combination. |
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Our officers and directors may have a conflict of interest with respect to evaluating a particular business combination if the retention or resignation of any such officers and directors was included by a target business as a condition to any agreement with respect to our initial business combination. |
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Our Sponsor, officers or directors may have a conflict of interest with respect to evaluating a business combination and financing arrangements as we may obtain loans from our Sponsor or an affiliate of our Sponsor or any of our officers or directors to finance transaction costs in connection with an intended initial business combination. Up to $1,500,000 of such loans may be convertible into warrants at a price of $1.50 per warrant at the option of the lender. Such warrants would be identical to the Private Placement Warrants, including as to exercise price, exercisability and exercise period. |
The conflicts described above may not be resolved in our favor.
In general, officers and directors of a corporation incorporated under the laws of the State of Delaware are required to present business opportunities to a corporation if:
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the corporation could financially undertake the opportunity; |
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the opportunity is within the corporation’s line of business; and |
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it would not be fair to our Company and its stockholders for the opportunity not to be brought to the attention of the corporation. |
Accordingly, as a result of multiple business affiliations, our officers and directors may have similar legal obligations relating to presenting business opportunities meeting the above-listed criteria to multiple entities. Furthermore, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that the doctrine of corporate opportunity will not apply with respect to any of our officers or directors in circumstances where the application of the doctrine would conflict with any fiduciary duties or contractual obligations they may have.
We are not prohibited from pursuing an initial business combination with a company that is affiliated with Apollo, our Sponsor, officers or directors or making the acquisition through a joint venture or other form of shared ownership with our Sponsor, officers or directors. In the event we seek to complete our initial business combination with a business combination target that is affiliated with our Sponsor, officers or directors, we, or a committee of
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independent directors, would obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm which is a member of FINRA or from an independent accounting firm that such initial business combination is fair to our Company from a financial point of view. We are not required to obtain such an opinion in any other context. Further, commencing on the date our securities are first listed on the NYSE, we have agreed to pay an amount equal to $10,000 per month to our Sponsor for office space, utilities, secretarial support and administrative services provided to us.
We cannot assure you that any of the above mentioned conflicts will be resolved in our favor.
In the event that we submit our initial business combination to our public stockholders for a vote, we will complete our initial business combination only if a majority of the outstanding shares of common stock voted are voted in favor of the initial business combination. Our initial stockholders have agreed to vote any Founder Shares held by them and any public shares purchased during or after the Public Offering in favor of our initial business combination and our officers and directors have also agreed to vote any public shares purchased during or after the offering in favor of our initial business combination.
Limitation on Liability and Indemnification of Officers and Directors
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that our officers and directors will be indemnified by us to the fullest extent authorized by Delaware law, as it now exists or may in the future be amended. In addition, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will provide that our directors will not be personally liable for monetary damages to us or our stockholders for breaches of their fiduciary duty as directors, unless they violated their duty of loyalty to us or our stockholders, acted in bad faith, knowingly or intentionally violated the law, authorized unlawful payments of dividends, unlawful stock purchases or unlawful redemptions, or derived an improper personal benefit from their actions as directors.
We have entered into agreements with our officers and directors to provide contractual indemnification in addition to the indemnification provided for in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation. Our bylaws also permit us to secure insurance on behalf of any officer, director or employee for any liability arising out of his or her actions, regardless of whether Delaware law would permit such indemnification. We have purchased a policy of directors’ and officers’ liability insurance that insures our officers and directors against the cost of defense, settlement or payment of a judgment in some circumstances and insures us against our obligations to indemnify our officers and directors.
Our officers and directors have agreed, and any persons who may become officers or directors prior to the initial business combination will agree, to waive any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to any monies in the trust account, and to waive any right, title, interest or claim of any kind they may have in the future as a result of, or arising out of, any services provided to us and will not seek recourse against the trust account for any reason whatsoever. Accordingly, any indemnification provided will only be able to be satisfied by us if (i) we have sufficient funds outside of the trust account or (ii) we consummate an initial business combination.
Our indemnification obligations may discourage stockholders from bringing a lawsuit against our officers or directors for breach of their fiduciary duty. These provisions also may have the effect of reducing the likelihood of derivative litigation against our officers and directors, even though such an action, if successful, might otherwise benefit us and our stockholders. Furthermore, a stockholder’s investment may be adversely affected to the extent we pay the costs of settlement and damage awards against our officers and directors pursuant to these indemnification provisions.
We believe that these provisions, the insurance and the indemnity agreements are necessary to attract and retain talented and experienced officers and directors. 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.
None of our officers or directors have received any cash compensation for services rendered to us. Commencing on the date that our securities are first listed on the NYSE through the earlier of consummation of our initial
75
business combination and our liquidation, we have agreed to pay our Sponsor a total of $10,000 per month for office space, utilities, secretarial support and administrative services. In addition, our Sponsor, executive officers and directors, or any of their respective affiliates, will be reimbursed for any out-of-pocket expenses incurred in connection with activities on our behalf such as identifying potential target businesses and performing due diligence on suitable business combinations. Our audit committee will review on a quarterly basis all payments that were made to Apollo, our Sponsor, officers or directors, or our or their affiliates. Any such payments prior to an initial business combination will be made using funds held outside the trust account. Other than quarterly audit committee review of such reimbursements, we do not expect to have any additional controls in place governing our reimbursement payments to our directors and officers for their out-of-pocket expenses incurred in connection with our activities on our behalf in connection with identifying and consummating an initial business combination. Other than these payments and reimbursements and the cash retainer to our independent directors, no compensation of any kind, including finder’s and consulting fees, will be paid by the Company to our Sponsor, officers and directors, or any of their respective affiliates, prior to completion of our initial business combination.
After the completion of our initial business combination, directors or members of our management team who remain with us may be paid consulting or management fees from the combined company. All of these fees will be fully disclosed to stockholders, to the extent then known, in the proxy solicitation or tender offer materials (as applicable) furnished to our stockholders in connection with a proposed business combination. We have not established any limit on the amount of such fees that may be paid by the combined company to our directors or members of management. It is unlikely the amount of such compensation will be known at the time of the proposed business combination, because the directors of the post-combination business will be responsible for determining officer and director compensation. Any compensation to be paid to our officers will be determined, or recommended to the board of directors for determination, either by a compensation committee constituted solely by independent directors or by a majority of the independent directors on our board of directors.
We do not intend to take any action to ensure that members of our management team maintain their positions with us after the consummation of our initial business combination, although it is possible that some or all of our officers and directors may negotiate employment or consulting arrangements to remain with us after our initial business combination. The existence or terms of any such employment or consulting arrangements to retain their positions with us may influence our management’s motivation in identifying or selecting a target business but we do not believe that the ability of our management to remain with us after the consummation of our initial business combination will be a determining factor in our decision to proceed with any potential business combination. We are not party to any agreements with our officers and directors that provide for benefits upon termination of employment.
Compensation Committee Interlocks and Insider Participation
None of our officers currently serves, or in the past year has served, as a member of the board of directors or compensation committee of any entity that has one or more officers serving on our board of directors.
The following table sets forth information regarding the beneficial ownership of our common stock as of March 29, 2021 by:
|
• |
each person known by us to be the beneficial owner of more than 5% of our outstanding shares of common stock; |
|
• |
each of our named executive officers and directors that beneficially owns shares of our common stock; and |
|
• |
all our executive officers and directors as a group. |
Unless otherwise indicated, we believe that all persons named in the table have sole voting and investment power with respect to all shares of common stock beneficially owned by them. The following table does not reflect record or beneficial ownership of the public warrants or the Private Placement Warrants.
Name and Address of Beneficial Owner(1)(2) |
Number of Shares Beneficially Owned (2) |
Approximate Percentage of Outstanding Common Stock |
Spartan Acquisition Sponsor III LLC (our Sponsor)(3)(4) |
13,700,000 |
99.2% |
Geoffrey Strong |
— |
— |
James Crossen |
— |
— |
Olivia Wassenaar |
— |
— |
Wilson Handler |
— |
— |
Christine Hommes |
— |
— |
Joseph Romeo |
— |
— |
Jan C. Wilson(4) |
50,000 |
* |
John M. Stice(4) |
50,000 |
* |
All directors and executive officers as a group (8 Individuals) |
13,8000,000(4) |
100% |
* Less than one percent.
(1) Unless otherwise noted, the business address of each of the following entities or individuals is 9 West 57th Street, 43rd Floor, New York, NY 10019.
(2) Interests shown consist solely of Founder Shares, classified as shares of Class B common stock. Such shares will automatically convert into shares of Class A common stock at the time of our initial business combination on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment.
(3) Spartan Acquisition Sponsor III LLC is a Delaware limited partnership (“Spartan III Sponsor”) managed by affiliates of Apollo Global Management, Inc. AP Spartan Energy Holdings III, L.P. (“AP Spartan”) is the sole member of Spartan III Sponsor. Apollo ANRP Advisors III, L.P. (“ANRP Advisors”) is the general partner of AP Spartan. Apollo ANRP Capital Management III, LLC (“ANRP Capital Management”) is the general partner of ANRP Advisors. APH Holdings, L.P. (“APH Holdings”) is the sole member of ANRP Capital Management. Apollo Principal Holdings III GP, Ltd. (“Principal Holdings III GP”) is the general partner of APH Holdings. Messrs. Black, Harris and Rowan are the directors of Principal Holdings III GP, and as such may be deemed to have voting and dispositive control of the ordinary shares held of record by Spartan III Sponsor. The address of each of Spartan III Sponsor, AP Spartan and Messrs. Black, Harris and Rowan is 9 West 57th Street, 43rd Floor, New York, New York 10019. The address of each of ANRP Advisors and Principal Holdings III GP is c/o Walkers Corporate Limited; Cayman Corporate Centre; 27 Hospital Road; George Town; Grand Cayman KY1-9008. The address of each of ANRP Capital Management and APH Holdings is One Manhattanville Road, Suite 201, Purchase, New York, 10577.
Founder Shares
In December 2020, 11,500,000 Founder Shares were issued to our Sponsor in exchange for the payment of $25,000 of expenses on behalf of the Company, or approximately $0.002 per share. In February 2021, we effected a share dividend on 2,300,000 of our Founder Shares resulting in our Sponsor owning 13,800,000 Founder Shares. On February 8, 2021, our Sponsor forfeited 100,000 Founder Shares back to the Company and the Company issued an aggregate of 100,000 Founder Shares, in an amount totaling 50,000 to each of our independent directors, resulting in an aggregate of 13,800,000 shares of Class B common stock outstanding.
Private Placement Warrants
Our Sponsor purchased an aggregate of 9,360,000 Private Placement Warrants for a purchase price of $1.50 per warrant in a private placement that occurred simultaneously with the closing of our Public Offering, generating gross proceeds of $14,040,000. Each Private Placement Warrant entitles the holder to purchase one share of our Class A common stock at $11.50 per share. The Private Placement Warrants (including the Class A common stock issuable upon exercise thereof) may not, subject to certain limited exceptions, be transferred, assigned or sold by the holder until 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination.
76
Conflicts of Interest
As more fully discussed in “Part III, Item 10. Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance —Conflicts of Interest,” if any of our officers or directors becomes aware of a business combination opportunity that falls within the line of business of any entity to which he or she has then-current fiduciary or contractual obligations, he or she will honor his or her fiduciary or contractual obligations to present such business combination opportunity to such entity. Our officers and directors currently have certain relevant fiduciary duties or contractual obligations that may take priority over their duties to us. We may pursue an Affiliated Joint Acquisition opportunity with an entity to which an officer or director has a fiduciary or contractual obligation. Any such entity may co-invest with us in the target business at the time of our initial business combination, or we could raise additional proceeds to complete the acquisition by issuing to such entity a class of equity or equity-linked securities.
Administrative Services Agreement
On February 8, 2021, we entered into an administrative services agreement with our Sponsor, pursuant to which we have agreed to pay our Sponsor a total of $10,000 per month for office space, utilities, secretarial support and administrative services. Upon completion of our initial business combination or our liquidation, we will cease paying these monthly fees.
Other than these monthly fees, no compensation of any kind, including finder’s and consulting fees, will be paid by the Company to our Sponsor, officers and directors, or any of their respective affiliates, for services rendered prior to or in connection with the completion of an initial business combination. However, these individuals will be reimbursed for any out-of-pocket expenses incurred in connection with activities on our behalf such as identifying potential target businesses and performing due diligence on suitable business combinations. Our audit committee will review on a quarterly basis all payments that were made to Apollo, our Sponsor, officers, directors or our or their affiliates and will determine which expenses and the amount of expenses that will be reimbursed. There is no cap or ceiling on the reimbursement of out-of-pocket expenses incurred by such persons in connection with activities on our behalf.
After our initial business combination, members of our management team who remain with us may be paid consulting, management or other fees from the combined company with any and all amounts being fully disclosed to our stockholders, to the extent then known, in the tender offer or proxy solicitation materials (as applicable) furnished to our stockholders. It is unlikely that the amount of such compensation will be known at the time of distribution of such tender offer materials or at the time of a stockholder meeting held to consider our initial business combination, as applicable, as it will be up to the directors of the post-combination business to determine executive and director compensation.
Related Party Loans and Advances
On December 23, 2020, our Sponsor agreed to loan the Company an aggregate of up to $300,000 to cover expenses related to the Public Offering pursuant to the Note. This Note is non-interest bearing and payable upon the earlier of (x) the date that is 180 days following the date of the Note and (y) the Closing Date of the Public Offering. As of December 31, 2020, the Company borrowed $182,000 under the Note. On February 17, 2021, the Company repaid the Note in full.
In addition, in order to finance transaction costs in connection with an initial business combination, the Sponsor or an affiliate of the Sponsor, or certain of the Company’s officers and directors may, but are not obligated to, loan the Company Working Capital Loans. If the Company completes an initial business combination, the Company would repay the Working Capital Loans out of the proceeds of the trust account released to the Company. Otherwise, the Working Capital Loans would be repaid only out of funds held outside the trust account. In the event that an initial business combination does not close, the Company may use a portion of proceeds held outside the trust account to repay the Working Capital Loans but no proceeds held in the trust account would be used to repay the Working Capital Loans. Except for the foregoing, the terms of such Working Capital Loans, if any, have not been determined and no written agreements exist with respect to such loans. The Working Capital Loans would either be repaid upon consummation of an initial business combination or, at the lender’s discretion, up to $1.5 million of such Working Capital Loans may be convertible into warrants of the post business combination entity at a
77
price of $1.50 per warrant. The warrants would be identical to the Private Placement Warrants. To date, the Company had no borrowings under the Working Capital Loans.
Registration Rights
The holders of the Founder Shares, Private Placement Warrants and warrants that may be issued upon conversion of Working Capital Loans (and any shares of Class A common stock issuable upon the exercise of the Private Placement Warrants and public warrants that may be issued upon conversion of Working Capital Loans and upon conversion of the Founder Shares) are entitled to registration rights pursuant to a registration rights agreement, dated February 8, 2021, requiring us to register such securities for resale (in the case of the Founder Shares, only after conversion to our Class A common stock). The holders of these securities, having at least $25 million in the aggregate, are entitled to make up to three demands, excluding short form demands, that we register such securities. In addition, the holders have certain “piggy-back” registration rights with respect to registration statements filed subsequent to our completion of our initial business combination and rights to require us to register for resale such securities pursuant to Rule 415 under the Securities Act. We will bear the expenses incurred in connection with the filing of any such registration statements.
Director Independence
We intend to utilize the exemption from the requirement that we have a board that includes a majority of “independent directors,” as defined under the rules of the NYSE. An “independent director” is defined generally as a person who has no material relationship with the listed company (either directly or as a partner, stockholder or officer of an organization that has a relationship with the company). Our board of directors has determined that Jan C. Wilson and John M. Stice are “independent directors” as defined in the NYSE listing standards and applicable SEC rules. Our independent directors will have regularly scheduled meetings at which only independent directors are present.
The following is a summary of fees paid to WithumSmith+Brown, PC, for services rendered.
Audit Fees. Audit fees consist of fees billed for professional services rendered for the audit of our year-end financial statements, reviews of our quarterly financial statements and services that are normally provided by our independent registered public accounting firm in connection with statutory and regulatory filings. We did not pay WithumSmith+Brown, PC any audit fees during the period from December 23, 2020 (inception) through December 31, 2020.
Audit-Related Fees. Audit-related fees consist of fees billed for assurance and related services that are reasonably related to performance of the audit or review of our year-end financial statements and are not reported under “Audit Fees.” These services include attest services that are not required by statute or regulation and consultation concerning financial accounting and reporting standards. We did not pay WithumSmith+Brown, PC any audit-related fees during the period from December 23, 2020 (inception) through December 31, 2020.
Tax Fees. Tax fees consist of fees billed for professional services relating to tax compliance, tax planning and tax advice. We did not pay WithumSmith+Brown, PC any tax fees during the period from December 23, 2020 (inception) through December 31, 2020.
All Other Fees. All other fees consist of fees billed for all other services. We did not pay WithumSmith+Brown, PC any other fees during the period from December 23, 2020 (inception) through December 31, 2020.
Policy on Board Pre-Approval of Audit and Permissible Non-Audit Services of the Independent Auditors
The audit committee is responsible for appointing, setting compensation and overseeing the work of our independent registered public accounting firm. In recognition of this responsibility, the audit committee shall review and, in its sole discretion, pre-approve all audit and permitted non-audit services to be provided by our independent registered public accounting firm as provided under the audit committee charter.
78
|
(a) |
The following documents are filed as part of this Annual Report on Form 10-K: |
Financial Statements: See “Index to Financial Statements” at “Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data” herein.
|
(b) |
Exhibits: The exhibits listed in the accompanying index to exhibits are filed or incorporated by reference as part of this Annual Report on Form 10-K. |
Exhibit Number |
Description |
3.1 |
|
3.2 |
|
3.3 |
|
4.1 |
|
4.2 |
|
4.3 |
|
4.4 |
|
4.5* |
Description of Capital Securities of Spartan Acquisition Corp. III. |
10.1 |
|
10.2 |
|
10.3 |
79
Exhibit Number |
Description |
10.4 |
|
10.5 |
|
10.6 |
|
10.7 |
|
10.8 |
|
24.1* |
Power of Attorney (included on signature page of this Annual Report on Form 10-K). |
31.1* |
Certification of the Chief Executive Officer required by Rule 13a-14(a) or Rule 15d-14(a). |
31.2* |
Certification of the Chief Financial Officer required by Rule 13a-14(a) or Rule 15d-14(a). |
32.1** |
|
32.2** |
|
101.INS |
XBRL Instance Document |
101.SCH |
XBRLTaxonomy Extension Schema Document |
101.CAL |
XBRLTaxonomy Extension Calculation Linkbase Document |
101.DEF |
XBRLTaxonomy Extension Definition Linkbase Document |
101.LAB |
XBRLTaxonomy Extension Label Linkbase Document |
101.PRE |
XBRLTaxonomy Extension Presentation Linkbase Document |
*Filed herewith.
**Furnished herewith.
80
Pursuant to the requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
SPARTAN ACQUISITION CORP. III
Date: March 29, 2021 |
By: |
/s/ Geoffrey Strong |
|
|
Geoffrey Strong |
|
|
Chief Executive Officer |
|
|
(Principal Executive Officer) |
POWER OF ATTORNEY
KNOW ALL PERSONS BY THESE PRESENTS, that each person whose signature appears below constitutes and appoints Geoffrey Strong and James Crossen and each or any one of them, his or her true and lawful attorney-in-fact and agent, with full power of substitution and resubstitution, for him or her and in his or her name, place and stead, in any and all capacities, to sign any and all amendments to this Annual Report on Form 10-K, and to file the same, with all exhibits thereto, and other documents in connection therewith, with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission, granting unto said attorneys-in-fact and agents, and each of them, full power and authority to do and perform each and every act and thing requisite and necessary to be done in connection therewith, as fully to all intents and purposes as he or she might or could do in person, hereby ratifying and confirming all that said attorneys-in-fact and agents, or any of them, or their or his or her substitutes or substitute, may lawfully do or cause to be done by virtue hereof.
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, this Annual Report on Form 10-K has been signed below by the following persons on behalf of the registrant in the capacities and on the dates indicated.
Name |
Title |
Date |
|
|
|
/s/ Geoffrey Strong |
Chief Executive Officer and Chairman |
March 29, 2021 |
Geoffrey Strong |
(Principal Executive Officer) |
|
|
|
|
/s/ James Crossen |
Chief Financial Officer and Chief Accounting Officer |
March 29, 2021 |
James Crossen |
(Principal Financial Officer and Principal Accounting Officer) |
|
|
|
|
/s/ Olivia Wassenaar |
Director |
March 29, 2021 |
Olivia Wassenaar |
|
|
|
|
|
/s/ Wilson Handler |
Director |
March 29, 2021 |
Wilson Handler |
|
|
|
|
|
/s/ Christine Hommes |
Director |
March 29, 2021 |
Christine Hommes |
|
|
|
|
|
/s/ Joseph Romeo |
Director |
March 29, 2021 |
Joseph Romeo |
|
|
|
|
|
/s/ Jan C. Wilson |
Director |
March 29, 2021 |
Jan C. Wilson |
|
|
|
|
|
/s/ John M. Stice |
Director |
March 29, 2021 |
John M. Stice |
|
|
81
SPARTAN ACQUISITION CORP. III
INDEX TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Page |
|
|
Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm |
|
|
F-2 |
|
Financial Statements: |
|
|
|
|
Balance Sheet as of December 31, 2020 |
|
|
F-3 |
|
Statement of Operations for the period from December 23, 2020 (inception) through December 31, 2020 |
|
|
F-4 |
|
Statement of Changes in Stockholder’s Equity for the period from December 23, 2020 (inception) through December 31, 2020 |
|
|
F-5 |
|
Statement of Cash Flows for the period from December 23, 2020 (inception) through December 31, 2020 |
|
|
F-6 |
|
Notes to Financial Statements |
|
|
F-7 |
|
82
Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm
To the Stockholders and the Board of Directors of
Spartan Acquisition Corp. III
Opinion on the Financial Statements
We have audited the accompanying balance sheet of Spartan Acquisition Corp. III (the “Company”) as of December 31, 2020, the related statements of operations, changes in stockholder’s equity and cash flows for the period from December 23, 2020 (inception) through December 31, 2020, and the related notes (collectively referred to as the “financial statements”). In our opinion, the financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Company as of December 31, 2020, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for the period from December 23, 2020 (inception) through December 31, 2020, in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.
Basis for Opinion
These financial statements are the responsibility of the Company’s management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Company's financial statements based on our audit. We are a public accounting firm registered with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (“PCAOB”) and are required to be independent with respect to the Company in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.
We conducted our audit in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud. The Company is not required to have, nor were we engaged to perform, an audit of its internal control over financial reporting. As part of our audit we are required to obtain an understanding of internal control over financial reporting but not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the Company's internal control over financial reporting. Accordingly, we express no such opinion.
Our audit included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to error or fraud, and performing procedures that respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. Our audit also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial statements. We believe that our audit provides a reasonable basis for our opinion.
/s/ WithumSmith+Brown, PC
We have served as the Company's auditor since 2020.
New York, New York
March 29, 2021
F-1
SPARTAN ACQUISITION CORP. III
BALANCE SHEET
December 31, 2020
Assets: |
|
Deferred offering costs |
$ 93,774 |
Total Assets |
$ 93,774 |
|
|
Liabilities and Stockholder’s Equity: |
|
Current liabilities: |
|
Accrued expenses |
$ 70,374 |
Franchise tax payable |
450 |
Total current liabilities |
70,824 |
|
|
Commitments and Contingencies |
|
|
|
Stockholder’s Equity: |
|
Preferred stock, $0.0001 par value; 1,000,000 shares authorized; none issued and outstanding |
— |
Class A common stock, $0.0001 par value; 250,000,000 shares authorized; none issued and outstanding |
— |
Class B common stock, $0.0001 par value; 20,000,000 shares authorized; 13,800,000 shares issued and outstanding (1)(2) |
1,380 |
Additional paid-in capital |
23,620 |
Accumulated deficit |
(2,050) |
Total stockholder’s equity |
22,950 |
Total Liabilities and Stockholder’s Equity |
$ 93,774 |
Total Liabilities and Stockholder’s Equity |
$ 93,774 |
(1) This number includes up to 1,800,000 shares of Class B common stock subject to forfeiture if the over-allotment option is not exercised in full or in part by the underwriters. On February 11, 2021, the underwriters fully exercised the over-allotment option; thus, these shares are no longer subject to forfeiture.
(2) In February 2021, the Company effected a stock dividend of 2,300,000 shares of Class B common stock, which resulted in an aggregate of 13,800,000 shares of Class B common stock outstanding. All share and associated amounts have been retroactively restated to reflect the stock dividend (see Note 4).
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.
F-2
SPARTAN ACQUISITION CORP. III
STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS
For the Period from December 23, 2020 (inception) through December 31, 2020
General and administrative expenses |
$ 1,600 |
Franchise tax expenses |
450 |
Net Loss |
$ (2,050) |
|
|
Weighted average Class B shares outstanding, basic and diluted(1)(2) |
12,000,000 |
|
|
Basic and diluted net loss per share |
$ (0.00) |
|
|
(1) This number excludes up to 1,800,000 shares of Class B common stock subject to forfeiture if the over-allotment option is not exercised in full or in part by the underwriters. On February 11, 2021, the underwriters fully exercised the over-allotment option; thus, these shares are no longer subject to forfeiture.
(2) In February 2021, the Company effected a stock dividend of 2,300,000 shares of Class B common stock, which resulted in an aggregate of 13,800,000 shares of Class B common stock outstanding. All share and associated amounts have been retroactively restated to reflect the stock dividend (see Note 4).
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.
F-3
SPARTAN ACQUISITION CORP. III
STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN STOCKHOLDER’S EQUITY
For the Period from December 23, 2020 (inception) through December 31, 2020
|
|
Common Stock |
|
|
Additional |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Total |
|
|||||||||||||||
|
|
Class A |
|
|
Class B |
|
|
Paid-in |
|
|
Accumulated |
|
|
Stockholder’s |
|
|||||||||||||
|
|
Shares |
|
|
Amount |
|
|
Shares |
|
|
Amount |
|
|
Capital |
|
|
Deficit |
|
|
Equity |
|
|||||||
Balance - December 23, 2020 (inception) |
|
|
— |
|
|
$ |
— |
|
|
|
— |
|
|
$ |
— |
|
|
$ |
— |
|
|
$ |
— |
|
|
$ |
— |
|
Issuance of Class B common stock to Sponsor(1)(2) |
|
|
— |
|
|
|
— |
|
|
|
13,800,000 |
|
|
|
1,380 |
|
|
|
23,620 |
|
|
|
— |
|
|
|
25,000 |
|
Net loss |
|
|
— |
|
|
|
— |
|
|
|
— |
|
|
|
— |
|
|
|
— |
|
|
|
(2,050 |
) |
|
|
(2,050 |
) |
Balance - December 31, 2020 |
|
|
— |
|
|
$ |
— |
|
|
|
13,800,000 |
|
|
$ |
1,380 |
|
|
$ |
23,620 |
|
|
$ |
(2,050 |
) |
|
$ |
22,950 |
|
(1) This number includes up to 1,800,000 Class B common stock subject to forfeiture if the over-allotment option is not exercised in full or in part by the underwriters. On February 11, 2021, the underwriters fully exercised the over-allotment option; thus, these shares are no longer subject to forfeiture.
(2) In February 2021, the Company effected a stock dividend of 2,300,000 shares of Class B common stock, which resulted in an aggregate of 13,800,000 shares of Class B common stock outstanding. All share and associated amounts have been retroactively restated to reflect the stock dividend (see Note 4).
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.
F-4
SPARTAN ACQUISITION CORP. III
STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS
For the Period from December 23, 2020 (inception) through December 31, 2020
Cash Flows from Operating Activities: |
|
|
|
Net loss |
|
$ |
(2,050) |
Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash used in operating activities: |
|
|
|
Changes in operating assets and liabilities: |
|
|
|
Accrued expenses |
|
|
1,600 |
Franchise tax payable |
|
|
450 |
Net cash used in operating activities |
|
|
— |
|
|
|
|
Net change in cash |
|
|
— |
|
|
|
|
Cash – beginning of the period |
|
|
— |
Cash – end of the period |
|
$ |
— |
|
|
|
|
Supplemental disclosure of noncash financing activities: |
|
|
|
Deferred offering costs paid by Sponsor in exchange for issuance of
|
|
$ |
25,000 |
Deferred offering costs included in accrued expenses |
|
$ |
68,774 |
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.
F-5
SPARTAN ACQUISITION CORP. III
NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
Note 1 - Description of Organization and Business Operations
Spartan Acquisition Corp. III (the “Company”) was incorporated in Delaware on December 23, 2020. The Company was formed for the purpose of effecting a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses (the “Initial Business Combination”). The Company is not limited to a particular industry or sector for purposes of consummating an Initial Business Combination. The Company is an early stage and emerging growth company and, as such, the Company is subject to all the risks associated with early stage and emerging growth companies.
As of December 31, 2020, the Company had not commenced any operations. All activity for the period from December 23, 2020 (date of inception) to December 31, 2020 relates to the Company’s formation and the initial public offering (the “Initial Public Offering”) described below. The Company will not generate any operating revenues until after completion of its Initial Business Combination, at the earliest. The Company will generate non-operating income in the form of interest income on cash and cash equivalents from the net proceeds derived from the Initial Public Offering. The Company has selected December 31st as its fiscal year end.
The Company’s sponsor is Spartan Acquisition Sponsor III LLC, a Delaware limited liability company (the “Sponsor”). The registration statement for the Company’s Initial Public Offering was declared effective on February 8, 2021. On February 11, 2021, the Company consummated its Initial Public Offering of 55,200,000 units (the “Units” and, with respect to the shares of Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 per share (“Class A common stock”), included in the Units being offered, the “Public Shares”), including 7,200,000 additional Units to cover over-allotments (the “Over-Allotment Units”), at $10.00 per Unit, generating gross proceeds of $552.0 million, and incurring offering costs of approximately $31.1 million, of which approximately $19.3 million was for deferred underwriting commissions (Note 5).
Simultaneously with the closing of the Initial Public Offering, the Company consummated the private placement (“Private Placement”) of 9,360,000 warrants (the “Private Placement Warrants”) at a price of $1.50 per Private Placement Warrant to the Sponsor, generating proceeds of approximately $14.0 million (Note 4).
Following the closing of the Initial Public Offering and the Private Placement, $552.0 million ($10.00 per Unit) from the net proceeds of the Initial Public Offering and certain of the proceeds of the Private Placement was placed in a trust account (the “Trust Account”) located in the United States. The proceeds held in the Trust Account will be invested only in U.S. government securities with a maturity of 180 days or less or in money market funds that meet certain conditions under Rule 2a-7 under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, and that invest only in direct U.S. government treasury obligations, as determined by the Company. Funds will remain in the Trust Account until the earlier of (i) the consummation of the Initial Business Combination or (ii) the distribution of the Trust Account proceeds as described below. The remaining proceeds outside the Trust Account may be used to pay for business, legal and accounting due diligence on prospective acquisitions and continuing general and administrative expenses.
The Company’s amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that, other than the withdrawal of interest to pay franchise and income taxes (less up to $100,000 to pay dissolution expenses), none of the funds held in the Trust Account will be released until the earlier of: (i) the completion of the Initial Business Combination; (ii) the redemption of any Public Shares sold in the Initial Public Offering that have been properly tendered in connection with a stockholder vote to amend the Company’s amended and restated certificate of incorporation (A) to modify the substance or timing of its obligation to redeem 100% of Public Shares if it has not consummated an Initial Business Combination within 24 months from the closing of the Initial Public Offering, or February 11, 2023 (or 27 months from the closing of the Initial Public Offering, or May 11, 2023, if the Company has executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for an Initial Business Combination within 24 months from the closing of the Initial Public Offering) (the “Combination Period”); and (iii) the redemption of 100% of the Public Shares if the Company is unable to complete an Initial Business Combination within 24 months from the closing of the Initial Public Offering (or 27 months from the closing of the Initial Public Offering if the Company has executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for an Initial Business Combination within 24 months from the
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closing of the Initial Public Offering). The proceeds deposited in the Trust Account could become subject to the claims of the Company’s creditors, if any, which could have priority over the claims of the Company’s holders (the “public stockholders”) of the Public Shares.
The Company’s management has broad discretion with respect to the specific application of the net proceeds of the Initial Public Offering, although substantially all of the net proceeds of the Initial Public Offering are intended to be generally applied toward consummating an Initial Business Combination. The Initial Business Combination must occur with one or more target businesses that together have a fair market value of at least 80% of the assets held in the Trust Account (excluding the deferred underwriting discounts and commissions and taxes payable on interest earned on the Trust Account) at the time of the agreement to enter into the Initial Business Combination. Furthermore, there is no assurance that the Company will be able to successfully effect an Initial Business Combination.
The Company, after signing a definitive agreement for an Initial Business Combination, will either (i) seek stockholder approval of the Initial Business Combination at a meeting called for such purpose in connection with which stockholders may seek to redeem their Public Shares, regardless of whether they vote for or against the Initial Business Combination, for cash equal to their pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the Trust Account as of two business days prior to the consummation of the Initial Business Combination, including interest not previously released to the Company to pay its franchise and income taxes, or (ii) provide stockholders with the opportunity to sell their Public Shares to the Company by means of a tender offer (and thereby avoid the need for a stockholder vote) for an amount in cash equal to their pro rata share of the aggregate amount on deposit in the Trust Account as of two business days prior to the consummation of the Initial Business Combination, including interest not previously released to the Company to pay its franchise and income taxes. The decision as to whether the Company will seek stockholder approval of the Initial Business Combination or will allow stockholders to sell their Public Shares in a tender offer will be made by the Company, solely in its discretion, and will be based on a variety of factors such as the timing of the transaction and whether the terms of the transaction would otherwise require the Company to seek stockholder approval, unless a vote is required by law or under the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) rules. If the Company seeks stockholder approval, it will complete its Initial Business Combination only if a majority of the outstanding shares of common stock voted are voted in favor of the Initial Business Combination. However, in no event will the Company redeem its Public Shares in an amount that would cause its net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001. In such case, the Company would not proceed with the redemption of its Public Shares and the related Initial Business Combination, and instead may search for an alternate Initial Business Combination.
If the Company holds a stockholder vote or there is a tender offer for shares in connection with an Initial Business Combination, a public stockholder will have the right to redeem his, her or its Public Shares for an amount in cash equal to his, her or its pro rata share of the aggregate amount on deposit in the Trust Account as of two business days prior to the consummation of the Initial Business Combination, including interest not previously released to the Company to pay its franchise and income taxes. As a result, such Public Shares are recorded at redemption amount and classified as temporary equity upon the completion of the Initial Public Offering, in accordance with the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) 480, “Distinguishing Liabilities from Equity.”
Pursuant to the Company’s amended and restated certificate of incorporation, if the Company is unable to complete the Initial Business Combination within the Combination Period, the Company will (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up, (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but no more than ten business days thereafter subject to lawfully available funds therefor, redeem the Public Shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the Trust Account including interest earned on the funds held in the Trust Account and not previously released to the Company to pay the Company’s franchise and income taxes (less up to $100,000 of such net interest to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of then outstanding Public Shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholder’s rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidating distributions, if any), subject to applicable law, and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of the Company’s remaining stockholders and the Company’s board of directors, dissolve and liquidate, subject in each case to the Company’s obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. The Sponsor and the Company’s officers and directors have entered into a letter agreement, in connection with the Initial Public Offering, with the Company, pursuant to which they agreed to waive their rights to liquidating distributions from the Trust Account with respect to any Founder Shares (as defined in Note 4) held by them if the Company fails to complete the Initial Business
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Combination within the Combination Period. However, if the Sponsor or any of the Company’s directors, officers or affiliates acquires shares of Class A common stock in or after the Initial Public Offering, they will be entitled to liquidating distributions from the Trust Account with respect to such shares if the Company fails to complete the Initial Business Combination within the prescribed time period.
In the event of a liquidation, dissolution or winding up of the Company after an Initial Business Combination, the Company’s stockholders are entitled to share ratably in all assets remaining available for distribution to them after payment of liabilities and after provision is made for each class of stock, if any, having preference over the common stock. The Company’s stockholders have no preemptive or other subscription rights. There are no sinking fund provisions applicable to the common stock, except that the Company will provide its stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their Public Shares for cash equal to their pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the Trust Account, upon the completion of the Initial Business Combination, subject to the limitations described herein.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
As of December 31, 2020, the Company had no cash, and a working capital deficit of approximately $70,000 (not taking into account tax obligations of approximately $500 that may be paid using investment income earned in Trust Account).
The Company’s liquidity needs prior to the consummation of the Initial Public Offering were satisfied through the payment of $25,000 from the Sponsor to cover for certain offering costs on the Company’s behalf in exchange for issuance of Founder Shares, and loan proceeds from the Sponsor of approximately $182,000 under the Note (as defined in Note 4). The Company repaid the Note in full on February 17, 2021. Subsequent to the consummation of the Initial Public Offering, the Company’s liquidity has been satisfied through the net proceeds from the consummation of the Initial Public Offering and the Private Placement held outside of the Trust Account.
Based on the foregoing, management believes that the Company will have sufficient working capital and borrowing capacity to meet its needs through the earlier of the consummation of an Initial Business Combination or one year from this filing. Over this time period, the Company will be using the funds held outside of the Trust Account for paying existing accounts payable, identifying and evaluating prospective Initial Business Combination candidates, performing due diligence on prospective target businesses, paying for travel expenditures, selecting the target business to merge with or acquire, and structuring, negotiating and consummating an Initial Business Combination.
Risks and Uncertainties
Management continues to evaluate the impact of the COVID-19 global pandemic on the industry and has concluded that while it is reasonably possible that the virus could have a negative effect on the Company’s financial position, results of its operations, and/or search for a target company, the specific impact is not readily determinable as of the date of these financial statements. The financial statements do not include any adjustments that might result from the outcome of this uncertainty.
Note 2 - Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
Basis of Presentation
The accompanying financial statements are presented in in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”) and pursuant to the rules and regulations of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”).
Emerging Growth Company
The Company is an “emerging growth company,” as defined in Section 2(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), as modified by the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act of 2021 (the “JOBS Act”), and it may take advantage of certain exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other public companies that are not emerging growth companies including, but not limited to, not being required to comply with the independent registered public accounting firm attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act
F-8
of 2002 (the “Sarbanes-Oxley Act”), reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in its periodic reports and proxy statements, and exemptions from the requirements of holding a nonbinding advisory vote on executive compensation and stockholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved.
Further, Section 102(b)(1) of the JOBS Act exempts emerging growth companies from being required to comply with new or revised financial accounting standards until private companies (that is, those that have not had a Securities Act registration statement declared effective or do not have a class of securities registered under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended) are required to comply with the new or revised financial accounting standards. The JOBS Act provides that a company can elect to opt out of the extended transition period and comply with the requirements that apply to non-emerging growth companies but any such election to opt out is irrevocable. The Company has elected not to opt out of such extended transition period, which means that when a standard is issued or revised and it has different application dates for public or private companies, the Company, as an emerging growth company, can adopt the new or revised standard at the time private companies adopt the new or revised standard. This may make comparison of the Company’s financial statements with another public company which is neither an emerging growth company nor an emerging growth company which has opted out of using the extended transition period difficult or impossible because of the potential differences in accounting standards used.
Use of Estimates
The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires the Company’s management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements. Making estimates requires management to exercise significant judgment. It is at least reasonably possible that the estimate of the effect of a condition, situation or set of circumstances that existed at the date of the financial statements, which management considered in formulating its estimate, could change in the near term due to one or more future confirming events. Accordingly, the actual results could differ significantly from those estimates.
Fair Value of Financial Instruments
The fair value of the Company’s assets and liabilities, which qualify as financial instruments under FASB ASC Topic 820, “Fair Value Measurements,” approximates the carrying amounts represented in the balance sheet, primarily due to their short-term nature.
Deferred Offering Costs Associated with the Initial Public Offering
The Company complies with the requirements of FASB ASC Topic 340-10-S99-1 and SEC Staff Accounting Bulletin Topic 5A — “Expenses of Offering.” Offering costs consisted of costs incurred in connection with preparation for the Initial Public Offering. These costs, together with the underwriting discounts and commissions, were charged to capital upon completion of the Initial Public Offering.
Net Income (Loss) Per Share of Common Stock
Net loss per share of common stock is computed by dividing net loss attributable to common stockholders by the weighted average number of shares of common stock outstanding during the period, plus, to the extent dilutive, the incremental number of shares of common stock to settle warrants, as calculated using the treasury stock method. Weighted average shares were reduced for the effect of an aggregate of 1,800,000 shares of the Company’s Class B common stock, par value $0.0001 per share (“Class B common stock”), that were subject to forfeiture if the over-allotment option was not exercised by the underwriters (Note 4). At December 31, 2020, the Company did not have any dilutive securities and other contracts that could, potentially, be exercised or converted into common stock and then share in the earnings of the Company under the treasury stock method. As a result, diluted loss per share of common stock is the same as basic loss per share of common stock for the period.
Income Taxes
The Company follows the asset and liability method of accounting for income taxes under FASB ASC Topic 740, “Income Taxes.” Deferred tax assets and liabilities are recognized for the estimated future tax consequences
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attributable to differences between the financial statements’ carrying amounts of existing assets and liabilities and their respective tax bases. Deferred income tax assets and liabilities are measured using enacted tax rates expected to apply to taxable income in the years in which those temporary differences are expected to be recovered or settled. The effect on deferred tax assets and liabilities of a change in tax rates is recognized in income in the period that included the enactment date. Valuation allowances are established, when necessary, to reduce deferred tax assets to the amount expected to be realized. Deferred taxes were deemed immaterial as of December 31, 2020.
FASB ASC Topic 740 prescribes a recognition threshold and a measurement attribute for the financial statements recognition and measurement of tax positions taken or expected to be taken in a tax return. For those benefits to be recognized, a tax position must be more likely than not to be sustained upon examination by taxing authorities. There were no unrecognized tax benefits as of December 31, 2020. The Company recognizes accrued interest and penalties related to unrecognized tax benefits as income tax expense. No amounts were accrued for the payment of interest and penalties at December 31, 2020. The Company is currently not aware of any issues under review that could result in significant payments, accruals or material deviation from its position. The Company is subject to income tax examinations by major taxing authorities since inception.
The provision for income taxes, including deferred taxes and any valuation allowance, was deemed to be de minimis for the period from December 23, 2020 (inception) through December 31, 2020.
Recent Accounting Standards
Management does not believe that any recently issued, but not yet effective, accounting pronouncements, if currently adopted, would have a material effect on the Company’s financial statements.
Note 3 - Initial Public Offering
On February 11, 2021, the Company consummated its Initial Public Offering of 55,200,000 Units, including 7,200,000 Over-Allotment Units, at $10.00 per Unit, generating gross proceeds of $552.0 million, and incurring offering costs of approximately $31.1 million, of which approximately $19.3 million was for deferred underwriting commissions.
Each Unit consists of one share of the Company’s Class A common stock, $0.0001 par value, and one-fourth of one warrant (the “Public Warrants”).
Note 4 - Related Party Transactions
Founder Shares
On December 23, 2020, 11,500,000 shares of the Company’s Class B common stock (the “Founder Shares”) were issued to the Sponsor in exchange for the payment of $25,000 of offering costs on behalf of the Company, or approximately $0.002 per share. In February 2021, the Sponsor forfeited 100,000 Founder Shares back to the Company and the Company issued an aggregate of 100,000 Founder Shares, in an amount totaling 50,000, to each of the Company’s independent directors. In February 2021, the Company effected a dividend on 2,300,000 of the Company’s Founder Shares, which resulted in an aggregate of 13,800,000 Founder Shares outstanding. Up to 1,800,000 Founder Shares were subject to forfeiture to the extent that the over-allotment option is not exercised by the underwriters, so that the Founder Shares would represent 20.0% of the Company’s issued and outstanding shares after the Initial Public Offering. The underwriters exercised the over-allotment option in full on February 11, 2021; thus, these 1,800,000 Founder Shares were no longer subject to forfeiture.
The holders of the Founders Shares agreed, subject to limited exceptions, not to transfer, assign or sell any of their Founder Shares until the earlier to occur of: (A) one year after the completion of the Initial Business Combination or (B) subsequent to the Initial Business Combination, (x) if the reported last sale price of the Company’s Class A common stock equals or exceeds $12.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) for any 20 trading days within any 30-trading day period commencing at least 150 days after the Initial Business Combination, or (y) the date on which the Company completes a liquidation, merger, capital stock exchange, reorganization or other similar transaction that results in all of the Company’s stockholders having the right to exchange their shares of common stock for cash, securities or other property.
F-10
Private Placement Warrants
Simultaneously with the closing of the Initial Public Offering, the Company consummated the Private Placement of 9,360,000 Private Placement Warrants at a price of $1.50 per Private Placement Warrant to the Sponsor, generating proceeds of approximately $14.0 million.
Each whole Private Placement Warrant is exercisable for one whole share of the Company’s Class A common stock at a price of $11.50 per share. A portion of the purchase price of the Private Placement Warrants was added to the proceeds from the Initial Public Offering held in the Trust Account. If the Initial Business Combination is not completed within the Combination Period, the proceeds from the sale of the Private Placement Warrants held in the Trust Account will be used to fund the redemption of the Public Shares (subject to the requirements of applicable law) and the Private Placement Warrants will expire worthless. The Private Placement Warrants will be non-redeemable and exercisable on a cashless basis so long as they are held by the Sponsor or its permitted transferees.
The Sponsor and the Company’s officers and directors agreed, subject to limited exceptions, not to transfer, assign or sell any of their Private Placement Warrants until 30 days after the completion of the Initial Business Combination.
Related Party Loans
On December 23, 2020, the Sponsor agreed to loan the Company an aggregate of up to $300,000 to cover expenses related to the Initial Public Offering pursuant to an unsecured promissory note (the “Note”). This Note was non-interest bearing and payable upon the closing date of the Initial Public Offering. As of December 31, 2020, no amounts were outstanding under the Note. Subsequent to December 31, 2020, the Company borrowed approximately $182,000 under the Note. On February 17, 2021, the Company repaid the Note in full.
In addition, in order to finance transaction costs in connection with an Initial Business Combination, the Sponsor or an affiliate of the Sponsor, or certain of the Company’s officers and directors may, but are not obligated to, loan the Company funds as may be required (“Working Capital Loans”). If the Company completes an Initial Business Combination, the Company will repay the Working Capital Loans out of the proceeds of the Trust Account released to the Company. Otherwise, the Working Capital Loans would be repaid only out of funds held outside the Trust Account. In the event that an Initial Business Combination does not close, the Company may use a portion of proceeds held outside the Trust Account to repay the Working Capital Loans but no proceeds held in the Trust Account would be used to repay the Working Capital Loans. Except for the foregoing, the terms of such Working Capital Loans, if any, have not been determined and no written agreements exist with respect to such loans. The Working Capital Loans would either be repaid upon consummation of an Initial Business Combination or, at the lenders’ discretion, up to $1.5 million of such Working Capital Loans may be convertible into warrants of the post Initial Business Combination entity at a price of $1.50 per warrant. The warrants would be identical to the Private Placement Warrants. As of December 31, 2020, the Company had no borrowings under the Working Capital Loans.
Administrative Support Agreement
Commencing on the date the Units were first listed on the NYSE, the Company agreed to pay the Sponsor a total of $10,000 per month for office space, utilities and secretarial and administrative support. Upon completion of the Initial Business Combination or the Company’s liquidation, the Company will cease paying these monthly fees.
Note 5 - Commitments and Contingencies
Registration Rights
The holders of the Founder Shares, Private Placement Warrants and warrants that may be issued upon conversion of Working Capital Loans, if any, (and any shares of Class A common stock issuable upon the exercise of the Founder Shares, Private Placement Warrants and warrants that may be issued upon conversion of Working Capital Loans, if any) are entitled to registration rights pursuant to a registration rights agreement signed in connection with the Initial Public Offering. The holders of these securities are entitled to make up to three demands, excluding short form demands, that the Company register such securities. In addition, the holders have certain “piggy-back” registration
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rights with respect to registration statements filed subsequent to the consummation of an Initial Business Combination. The Company will bear the expenses incurred in connection with the filing of any such registration statements.
Underwriting Agreement
The Company granted the underwriters a 45-day option from the date of the final prospectus relating to the Initial Public Offering to purchase up to 7,200,000 additional Units to cover over-allotments, if any, at the Initial Public Offering price less the underwriting discounts and commissions. The underwriters exercised the over-allotment option in full on February 11, 2021.
The underwriters were entitled to an underwriting discount of $0.20 per Unit, or approximately $11.0 million in the aggregate, paid upon the closing of the Initial Public Offering. In addition, $0.35 per Unit, or approximately $19.3 million in the aggregate will be payable to the underwriters for deferred underwriting commissions. The deferred fee will become payable to the underwriters from the amounts held in the Trust Account solely in the event that the Company completes an Initial Business Combination, subject to the terms of the underwriting agreement for the Initial Public Offering.
Note 6 - Stockholder’s Equity
Preferred Stock — The Company is authorized to issue 1,000,000 shares of preferred stock, with a par value of $0.0001 per share, with such designations, voting and other rights and preferences as may be determined from time to time by the Company’s board of directors. As of December 31, 2020, there were no shares of preferred stock issued or outstanding.
Class A Common Stock — The Company is authorized to issue 250,000,000 shares of Class A common stock with a par value of $0.0001 per share. As of December 31, 2020, there were no shares of Class A common stock issued or outstanding.
Class B Common Stock — The Company is authorized to issue 20,000,000 shares of Class B common stock with a par value of $0.0001 per share. As of December 31, 2020, there were 13,800,000 shares of Class B common stock issued and outstanding, which such amount having been retroactively restated to reflect the stock dividend in February 2021 as discussed in Note 4. Of the 13,800,000 shares of Class B common stock outstanding, 1,800,000 shares of Class B common stock are subject to forfeiture to the Company by the initial stockholders for no consideration to the extent that the underwriters’ over-allotment option is not exercised in full or in part so that the Founder Shares will collectively represent 20% of the Company’s issued and outstanding common stock after the Initial Public Offering. The underwriters exercised the over-allotment option in full on February 11, 2021; thus, these 1,800,000 shares of Class B common stock are no longer subject to forfeiture.
Holders of Class A common stock and Class B common stock will vote together as a single class on all matters submitted to a vote of the stockholders, except as required by law. Each share of common stock will have one vote on all such matters.
The Class B common stock will automatically convert into Class A common stock at the time of the Initial Business Combination on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like and subject to further adjustment as provided herein. In the case that additional shares of Class A common stock, or equity-linked securities, are issued or deemed issued in excess of the amounts sold in the Initial Public Offering and related to the closing of the Initial Business Combination, the ratio at which shares of Class B common stock shall convert into shares of Class A common stock will be adjusted (unless the holders of a majority of the outstanding shares of Class B common stock agree to waive such adjustment with respect to any such issuance or deemed issuance) so that the number of shares of Class A common stock issuable upon conversion of all shares of Class B common stock will equal, in the aggregate, on an as-converted basis, 20% of the sum of the total number of all shares of common stock outstanding upon the completion of the Initial Public Offering plus all shares of Class A common stock and equity-linked securities issued or deemed issued in connection with the Initial Business Combination (excluding any shares or equity-linked securities issued, or to be issued, to any seller in the Initial Business Combination).
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Warrants — Public Warrants may only be exercised for a whole number of shares of Class A common stock. No fractional Public Warrants will be issued upon separation of the Units and only whole Public Warrants will trade. The Public Warrants have an exercise price of $11.50 per share, subject to adjustments, and will expire five years after the completion of an Initial Business Combination or earlier upon redemption or liquidation. The warrants will become exercisable on the later of (a) 30 days after the completion of an Initial Business Combination or (b) 12 months from the closing of the Initial Public Offering; provided in each case that the Company has an effective registration statement under the Securities Act covering the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the Public Warrants and a current prospectus relating to them is available (or the Company permits holders to exercise their Public Warrants on a cashless basis and such cashless exercise is exempt from registration under the Securities Act). The Company agreed that as soon as practicable, but in no event later than 15 business days after the closing of the Initial Business Combination, the Company will use its best efforts to file with the SEC and have an effective registration statement covering the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants and to maintain a current prospectus relating to those shares of Class A common stock until the warrants expire or are redeemed. Notwithstanding the above, if the Company’s shares of Class A common stock are at the time of any exercise of a warrant not listed on a national securities exchange such that they satisfy the definition of a “covered security” under Section 18(b)(1) of the Securities Act, the Company may, at its option, require holders of Public Warrants who exercise their warrants to do so on a “cashless basis” in accordance with Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act and, in the event the Company so elect, it will not be required to file or maintain in effect a registration statement, and in the event the Company does not so elect, it will use its best efforts to register or qualify the shares under applicable blue sky laws to the extent an exemption is not available.
The Private Placement Warrants (including the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the Private Placement Warrants) will not be transferable, assignable or salable until 30 days after the completion of an Initial Business Combination, subject to certain limited exceptions, and they will not be redeemable by the Company, subject to certain limited exceptions, so long as they are held by the Sponsor or its permitted transferees. The Sponsor, or its permitted transferees, has the option to exercise the Private Placement Warrants for cash or on a cashless basis. Except as described below, the Private Placement Warrants have terms and provisions that are identical to those of the Public Warrants, including as to exercise price, exercisability and exercise period. If the Private Placement Warrants are held by holders other than the Sponsor or its permitted transferees, the Private Placement Warrants will be redeemable by the Company in all redemption scenarios and exercisable by the holders on the same basis as the Public Warrants.
Redemption of warrants when the price per share of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $18.00
Once the warrants become exercisable, the Company may redeem the outstanding warrants:
• in whole and not in part;
• at a price of $0.01 per warrant;
• upon a minimum of 30 days’ prior written notice of redemption, or the 30-day redemption period, to each warrant holder; and
• if, and only if, the reported last sale price of the Class A common stock equals or exceeds $18.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) for any 20 trading days within a 30-trading day period ending on the third trading day prior to the date on which the Company sends the notice of redemption to the warrant holders.
The Company will not redeem the warrants as described above unless a registration statement under the Securities Act covering the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants is effective and a current prospectus relating to those shares of Class A common stock is available throughout the 30-day redemption period. If and when the warrants become redeemable by the Company, it may exercise its redemption right even if the it is unable to register or qualify the underlying securities for sale under all applicable state securities laws.
The Company has established the last of the redemption criterion discussed above to prevent a redemption call unless there is at the time of the call a significant premium to the warrant exercise price. If the foregoing conditions are satisfied and the Company issues a notice of redemption of the warrants, each warrantholder will be entitled to exercise
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its warrant prior to the scheduled redemption date. However, the price of the Class A common stock may fall below the $18.00 redemption trigger price (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) as well as the $11.50 (for whole shares) warrant exercise price after the redemption notice is issued.
Redemption of warrants when the price per share of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00
Once the warrants become exercisable, the Company may redeem the outstanding warrants:
• in whole and not in part;
• at a price of $0.10 per warrant, provided that holders will be able to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis prior to redemption and receive that number of shares of Class A common stock determined in part by the redemption date and the “fair market value” of the Class A common stock except as otherwise described below;
• upon a minimum of 30 days’ prior written notice to each warrantholder; and
• if, and only if, the reported last sale price of the Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) on the trading day prior to the date on which the Company sends notice of redemption to the warrantholders.
The “fair market value” of the Class A common stock shall mean the average reported last sale price of the Class A common stock for the 10 trading days immediately following the date on which the notice of redemption is sent to the holders of warrants. The Company will provide the warrant holders with the final fair market value no later than one business day after the ten-trading day period described above ends. In no event will the warrants be exercisable on a cashless basis in connection with this redemption feature for more than 0.361 shares of Class A common stock per whole warrant (subject to adjustment). This redemption feature differs from the typical warrant redemption features used in some other blank check offerings.
No fractional shares of Class A common stock will be issued upon redemption. If, upon redemption, a holder would be entitled to receive a fractional interest in a share, the Company will round down, to the nearest whole number, the number of shares of Class A common stock to be issued to the holder.
In no event will the Company be required to net cash settle any warrant. If the Company is unable to complete an Initial Business Combination within the Combination Period and the Company liquidates the funds held in the Trust Account, holders of warrants will not receive any of such funds with respect to their warrants, nor will they receive any distribution from the Company’s assets held outside of the Trust Account with the respect to such warrants. Accordingly, the warrants may expire worthless.
Note 7 - Subsequent Events
The Company evaluated events that have occurred after the balance sheet date through the date the financial statements were issued. Other than as described in Notes 1, 3, 4, 5 and 6, the Company did not identify any subsequent events that would have required adjustment or disclosure in these financial statements.
F-14
DESCRIPTION OF SECURITIES
The following description of Spartan Acquisition Corp. III’s (the “Company,” “we,” “us” or “our”) units, Class A common stock, $0.0001 par value per share (“Class A common stock” or “public shares”), Class B common stock, $0.0001 par value per share (“Class B common stock” or “founder shares” and, together with the Class A common stock, “common stock”), undesignated preferred stock, $0.0001 par value per share, and warrants, each whole warrant exercisable for one Class A common stock at an exercise price of $11.50 per share, is based upon the Company’s amended and restated certificate of incorporation, bylaws and applicable provisions of law. We have summarized certain portions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and bylaws below. The summary is not complete and is subject to, and is qualified in its entirety by express reference to, the provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and bylaws, each of which is filed as an exhibit to the Annual Report on Form 10-K of which this exhibit is a part. The following also summarizes certain provisions of the General Corporation Law of the State of Delaware (the “DGCL”) and is subject to and qualified in its entirety by reference to the DGCL. Terms used, but not defined herein, shall have the meaning ascribed to such terms in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K of which this exhibit is a part.
General
Pursuant to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, our authorized capital stock consists of 250,000,000 shares of Class A common stock, 20,000,000 shares of Class B common stock and 1,000,000 shares of undesignated preferred stock.
Each unit consists of one whole share of Class A common stock and one-fourth of one warrant. Each whole warrant entitles the holder thereof to purchase one share of our Class A common stock at a price of $11.50 per share, subject to adjustment as discussed below (each, a “public warrant”). Pursuant to the warrant agreement, a warrantholder may exercise its warrants only for a whole number of shares of Class A common stock. This means that only a whole warrant may be exercised at any given time by a warrantholder. No fractional warrants will be issued upon separation of the units, and only whole warrants will trade.
Our units are listed on the New York Stock Exchange (the “NYSE”) under the symbol “SPAQ.U.” On April 1, 2021, we will announce that, commencing on April 1, 2021, holders of our units may elect to separately trade the shares of Class A common stock and warrants included in the units. The shares of Class A common stock and warrants that are separated will trade on the NYSE under the symbols “SPAQ” and “SPAQ.WS,” respectively. Those units not separated will continue to trade on the NYSE under the symbol “SPAQ.U.”
Additionally, any units that are not separated prior to the completion of our initial business combination will automatically separate into their component parts and will not be traded after completion of our initial business combination.
Common Stock
As of the date of this Annual Report on Form 10-K, 2,205,343 shares of our Class A common stock and 8,625,000 shares of our Class B common stock were outstanding.
Common stockholders of record are entitled to one vote for each share held on all matters to be voted on by stockholders. Holders of our Class B common stock have the right to appoint all of our directors prior to our initial business combination. On any other matter submitted to a vote of our stockholders, holders of Class A common stock and Class B common stock will vote together as a single class on all matters submitted to a vote of our stockholders except as required by law. Unless specified in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation or bylaws, or as required by applicable provisions of the DGCL or applicable stock exchange rules, the affirmative vote of a majority of our shares of common stock that are voted is required to approve any such matter voted on by our
stockholders. Our board of directors is divided into three classes, each of which generally serves for a term of three years with only one class of directors being elected in each year. There is no cumulative voting with respect to the election of directors, with the result that the holders of more than 50% of the shares of common stock voted for the election of directors can elect all of the directors. Our stockholders are entitled to receive ratable dividends when, as and if declared by the board of directors out of funds legally available therefor. Pursuant to the terms of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, holders of our Class B common stock have the exclusive right to elect, remove and replace any director prior to the consummation of our initial business combination. This provision may only be amended if approved by holders of 90% of our common stock entitled to vote thereon.
Because our amended and restated certificate of incorporation authorizes the issuance of up to 250,000,000 shares of Class A common stock, if we were to enter into a business combination, we may (depending on the terms of such a business combination) be required to increase the number of shares of Class A common stock which we are authorized to issue at the same time as our stockholders vote on the business combination to the extent we seek stockholder approval in connection with our business combination.
Our board of directors is divided into three classes with only one class of directors being elected in each year and each class (except for those directors appointed prior to our first annual meeting of stockholders) serving a three-year term. In accordance with the NYSE corporate governance requirements, we are not required to hold an annual meeting until no later than one year after our first fiscal year end following our listing on the NYSE. Under Section 211(b) of the DGCL, we are, however, required to hold an annual meeting of stockholders for the purposes of electing directors in accordance with our bylaws, unless such election is made by written consent in lieu of such a meeting. We may not hold an annual meeting of stockholders to elect new directors prior to the consummation of our initial business combination, and thus, we may not be in compliance with Section 211(b) of the DGCL, which requires an annual meeting. Therefore, if our stockholders want us to hold an annual meeting prior to the consummation of our initial business combination, they may attempt to force us to hold one by submitting an application to the Court of Chancery in the State of Delaware in accordance with Section 211(c) of the DGCL.
We will provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their public shares upon the completion of our initial business combination at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account calculated as of two business days prior to the consummation of our initial business combination including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our franchise and income taxes, divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, subject to the limitations described herein. The per-share amount we will distribute to investors who properly redeem their public shares will not be reduced by the deferred underwriting discounts and commissions that we will pay to the underwriters of our initial public offering. Spartan Acquisition Sponsor III, LLC (our “sponsor”), officers and directors have entered into a letter agreement with us, pursuant to which they have agreed to waive their redemption rights with respect to any founder shares and any public shares held by them in connection with the completion of our business combination. Unlike many blank check companies that hold stockholder votes and conduct proxy solicitations in conjunction with their initial business combinations and provide for related redemptions of public shares for cash upon completion of such initial business combinations even when a vote is not required by law, if a stockholder vote is not required by law and we do not decide to hold a stockholder vote for business or other reasons, we will, pursuant to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, conduct the redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules of the SEC, and file tender offer documents with the SEC prior to completing our initial business combination. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation requires these tender offer documents to contain substantially the same financial and other information about the initial business combination and the redemption rights as is required under the SEC’s proxy rules. If, however, stockholder approval of the transaction is required by law, or we decide to obtain stockholder approval for business or other reasons, we will, like many blank check companies, offer to redeem shares in conjunction with a proxy solicitation pursuant to the proxy rules and not pursuant to the tender offer rules. If we seek stockholder approval, we will complete our initial business combination only if a majority of the outstanding shares of common stock voted are voted in favor of the business combination. A quorum for such meeting will consist of the holders present in person or by proxy of shares of outstanding capital stock of the company representing a majority of the voting power of all outstanding shares of capital stock of the company entitled to vote at such meeting. However, the participation of our sponsor, officers, directors, advisors or their affiliates in privately-negotiated transactions, if any, could result in the approval of our business combination even if a majority of our public stockholders vote, or indicate their intention to vote, against such business combination. For purposes of seeking approval of the majority of our outstanding shares of
common stock voted, non-votes will have no effect on the approval of our business combination once a quorum is obtained. We intend to give approximately 30 days (but not less than 10 days nor more than 60 days) prior written notice of any such meeting, if required, at which a vote shall be taken to approve our business combination. These quorum and voting thresholds, and the voting agreements of our initial stockholders, may make it more likely that we will consummate our initial business combination.
If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination and we do not conduct redemptions in connection with our business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that a public stockholder, together with any affiliate of such stockholder or any other person with whom such stockholder is acting in concert or as a “group” (as defined under Section 13 of the Exchange Act), will be restricted from redeeming its shares with respect to more than an aggregate of 15% of the public shares, which we refer to as the Excess Shares. However, we would not be restricting our stockholders’ ability to vote all of their shares (including Excess Shares) for or against our business combination. Our stockholders’ inability to redeem the Excess Shares will reduce their influence over our ability to complete our business combination, and such stockholders could suffer a material loss in their investment if they sell such Excess Shares on the open market. Additionally, such stockholders will not receive redemption distributions with respect to the Excess Shares if we complete the business combination. And, as a result, such stockholders will continue to hold that number of shares exceeding 15% and, in order to dispose such shares would be required to sell their stock in open market transactions, potentially at a loss.
If we seek stockholder approval in connection with our business combination, our initial stockholders have agreed to vote their founder shares and any public shares purchased during or after our initial public offering in favor of our initial business combination. As a result, in addition to our initial stockholders’ founder shares, we would need 20,700,001, or 37.5%, of the 55,200,000 public shares sold in our initial public offering to be voted in favor of the business combination (assuming all outstanding shares are voted) in order to have our initial business combination approved. Additionally, each public stockholder may elect to redeem its public shares irrespective of whether it votes for or against the proposed transaction (subject to the limitation described in the preceding paragraph).
Pursuant to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, if we are unable to complete our business combination within 24 months from the closing of our initial public offering (or 27 months from the closing of our initial public offering if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of our initial public offering), we will (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up, (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but no more than ten business days thereafter subject to lawfully available funds therefor, redeem the public shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our franchise and income taxes (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidating distributions, if any), subject to applicable law, and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining stockholders and our board of directors, dissolve and liquidate, subject in each case to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. Our sponsor, officers and directors have entered into a letter agreement with us, pursuant to which they have agreed to waive their rights to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to any founder shares held by them if we fail to complete our business combination within 24 months from the closing of our initial public offering (or 27 months from the closing of our initial public offering if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of our initial public offering). However, if our sponsor, officers or directors acquire public shares in or after our initial public offering, they will be entitled to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to such public shares if we fail to complete our business combination within the prescribed time period.
In the event of a liquidation, dissolution or winding up of the company after a business combination, our stockholders are entitled to share ratably in all assets remaining available for distribution to them after payment of liabilities and after provision is made for each class of stock, if any, having preference over the common stock. Our stockholders have no preemptive or other subscription rights. There are no sinking fund provisions applicable to the common stock, except that we will provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their public
shares for cash equal to their pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, upon the completion of our initial business combination, subject to the limitations described herein.
Founder Shares
The founder shares are identical to the shares of Class A common stock included in the units sold in our initial public offering, and holders of founder shares have the same stockholder rights as public stockholders, except that (i) only holders of the founder shares have the right to vote on the appointment of directors prior to our initial business combination, (ii) the founder shares are subject to certain transfer restrictions, as described in more detail below, (iii) our sponsor, officers and directors have entered into a letter agreement with us, pursuant to which they have agreed to waive (A) their redemption rights with respect to any founder shares and any public shares held by them in connection with the completion of our business combination, (B) their redemption rights with respect to any founder shares and public shares held by them in connection with a stockholder vote to approve an amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation that would affect the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we have not consummated an initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of our initial public offering (or 27 months from the closing of our initial public offering if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of our initial public offering) and (C) their rights to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to any founder shares held by them if we fail to complete our business combination within 24 months from the closing of our initial public offering (or 27 months from the closing of our initial public offering if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of our initial public offering), although they will be entitled to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to any public shares they hold if we fail to complete our business combination within such time period, (iv) the founder shares are shares of our Class B common stock that will automatically convert into shares of our Class A common stock at the time of our initial business combination on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment pursuant to certain anti-dilution rights, as described herein and (v) the founder shares are subject to registration rights. If we submit our business combination to our public stockholders for a vote, we will complete our initial business combination only if a majority of the outstanding shares of common stock voted are voted in favor of the initial business combination. Our initial stockholders have agreed to vote any founder shares held by them and any public shares purchased during or after our initial public offering in favor of our initial business combination.
The shares of Class B common stock will automatically convert into shares of Class A common stock at the time of our initial business combination on a one-for-one basis (subject to adjustment for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like), and subject to further adjustment as provided herein. In the case that additional shares of Class A common stock, or equity-linked securities, are issued or deemed issued in excess of the amounts sold in our initial public offering and related to the closing of the business combination, the ratio at which shares of Class B common stock shall convert into shares of Class A common stock will be adjusted (unless the holders of a majority of the outstanding shares of Class B common stock agree to waive such adjustment with respect to any such issuance or deemed issuance) so that the number of shares of Class A common stock issuable upon conversion of all shares of Class B common stock will equal, in the aggregate, on an as-converted basis, 20% of the sum of the total number of all shares of common stock outstanding upon completion of our initial public offering plus all shares of Class A common stock and equity-linked securities issued or deemed issued in connection with the business combination (excluding any shares or equity-linked securities issued, or to be issued, to any seller in the business combination).
Our initial stockholders have agreed not to transfer, assign or sell any founder shares held by them until one year after the date of the consummation of our initial business combination or earlier if, subsequent to our business combination, (i) the last reported sale price of our common stock equals or exceeds $12.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations and recapitalizations) for any 20 trading days within any 30-trading day period commencing at least 150 days after our initial business combination or (ii) we consummate a subsequent liquidation, merger, stock exchange or other similar transaction that results in all of our stockholders having the right to exchange their shares of common stock for cash, securities or other property.
Preferred Stock
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that shares of preferred stock may be issued from time to time in one or more series. Our board of directors will be authorized to fix the voting rights, if any, designations, powers, preferences, the relative, participating, optional or other special rights and any qualifications, limitations and restrictions thereof, applicable to the shares of each series. Our board of directors will be able to, without stockholder approval, issue preferred stock with voting and other rights that could adversely affect the voting power and other rights of the holders of the common stock and could have anti-takeover effects. The ability of our board of directors to issue preferred stock without stockholder approval could have the effect of delaying, deferring or preventing a change of control of us or the removal of existing management. We have no preferred stock outstanding at the date hereof. Although we do not currently intend to issue any shares of preferred stock, we cannot assure you that we will not do so in the future.
Warrants
Public Stockholders’ Warrants
Each whole warrant entitles the registered holder to purchase one whole share of our Class A common stock at a price of $11.50 per share, subject to adjustment as discussed below, at any time commencing on the later of 12 months from the closing of our initial public offering or 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination, provided in each case that we have an effective registration statement under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”) covering the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants and a current prospectus relating to them is available (or we permit holders to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis under the circumstances specified in the warrant agreement) and such shares are registered, qualified or exempt from registration under the securities, or blue sky, laws of the state of residence of the holder. Pursuant to the warrant agreement, a warrantholder may exercise its warrants only for a whole number of shares of Class A common stock. This means that only a whole warrant may be exercised at any given time by a warrantholder. No fractional warrants will be issued upon separation of the units and only whole warrants will trade. The warrants will expire five years after the completion of our initial business combination, at 5:00 p.m., New York City time, or earlier upon redemption or liquidation.
We will not be obligated to deliver any shares of Class A common stock pursuant to the exercise of a warrant and will have no obligation to settle such warrant exercise unless a registration statement under the Securities Act with respect to the shares of Class A common stock underlying the warrants is then effective and a prospectus relating thereto is current, subject to our satisfying our obligations described below with respect to registration. No warrant will be exercisable and we will not be obligated to issue shares of Class A common stock upon exercise of a warrant unless the Class A common stock issuable upon such warrant exercise has been registered, qualified or deemed to be exempt under the securities laws of the state of residence of the registered holder of the warrants. In the event that the conditions in the two immediately preceding sentences are not satisfied with respect to a warrant, the holder of such warrant will not be entitled to exercise such warrant and such warrant may have no value and expire worthless. In no event will we be required to net cash settle any warrant. In the event that a registration statement is not effective for the exercised warrants, the purchaser of a unit containing such warrant will have paid the full purchase price for the unit solely for the share of Class A common stock underlying such unit.
We have agreed that as soon as practicable, but in no event later than 15 business days, after the closing of our initial business combination, we will use our best efforts to file with the SEC a registration statement for the registration, under the Securities Act, of the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants. We will use our best efforts to cause the same to become effective and to maintain the effectiveness of such registration statement, and a current prospectus relating thereto, until the expiration of the warrants in accordance with the provisions of the warrant agreement. Notwithstanding the above, if our Class A common stock is at the time of any exercise of a warrant not listed on a national securities exchange such that it satisfies the definition of a “covered security” under Section 18(b)(1) of the Securities Act, we may, at our option, require holders of public warrants who exercise their warrants to do so on a “cashless basis” in accordance with Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act and, in the event we so elect, we will not be required to file or maintain in effect a registration statement, but we will be required to use our best efforts to register or qualify the shares under applicable blue sky laws to the extent an exemption is not available. To exercise warrants on a cashless basis, each holder would pay the exercise price by surrendering the warrants in exchange for a number of shares of our Class A common stock equal to the lesser of (A) the quotient obtained by dividing (x) the product of (i) the number of shares of our Class A
common stock underlying the warrants, and (ii) the excess of the “fair market value” (defined below) over the exercise price of the warrants by (y) the fair market value and (B) the product of the number of warrants surrendered and 0.361 (subject to adjustment). The “fair market value” as used in this paragraph shall mean the average last reported sale price of our Class A common stock for the 10 trading days ending on the trading day prior to the date on which the notice of exercise is received by the warrant agent.
Redemption of warrants for cash when the price per share of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $18.00
Once the warrants become exercisable, the Company may redeem the outstanding public warrants for cash:
|
• |
in whole and not in part; |
|
• |
at a price of $0.01 per warrant; |
|
• |
upon a minimum of 30 days’ prior written notice of redemption, or the 30-day redemption period, to each warrant holder; and |
|
• |
if, and only if, the last reported sale price of the Class A common stock equals or exceeds $18.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) for any 20 trading days within a 30-trading day period ending on the third trading day prior to the date on which the Company sends the notice of redemption to the warrantholders. |
We will not redeem the warrants as described above unless a registration statement under the Securities Act covering the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants is effective and a current prospectus relating to those shares of Class A common stock is available throughout the 30-day redemption period. If and when the warrants become redeemable by us, we may exercise our redemption right even if we are unable to register or qualify the underlying securities for sale under all applicable state securities laws.
We have established the last of the redemption criterion discussed above to prevent a redemption call unless there is at the time of the call a significant premium to the warrant exercise price. If the foregoing conditions are satisfied and we issue a notice of redemption of the warrants, each warrantholder will be entitled to exercise its warrant prior to the scheduled redemption date. However, the price of the Class A common stock may fall below the $18.00 redemption trigger price (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) as well as the $11.50 (for whole shares) warrant exercise price after the redemption notice is issued.
Redemption of warrants for cash when the price per share of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00
Once the warrants become exercisable, the Company may redeem the outstanding public warrants for cash:
|
• |
in whole and not in part; |
|
• |
at a price of $0.10 per warrant, provided that holders will be able to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis prior to redemption and receive that number of shares of Class A common stock determined in part by the redemption date and the “fair market value” of the Class A common stock except as otherwise described below; |
|
• |
upon a minimum of 30 days’ prior written notice to each warrantholder; and |
|
• |
if, and only if, the last reported sale price of the Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00 per share |
(as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) on the trading
day prior to the date on which the Company sends notice of redemption to the warrantholders.
Beginning on the date the notice of redemption is given until the warrants are redeemed or exercised, holders may elect to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis. The numbers in the table below represent the number of shares of Class A common stock that a warrantholder will receive upon a cashless exercise in connection with a redemption by us pursuant to this redemption feature, based on the “fair market value” of our Class A common
stock on the corresponding redemption date (assuming holders elect to exercise their warrants and such warrants are not redeemed for $0.10 per warrant), and the number of months that the corresponding redemption date precedes the expiration date of the warrants, each as set forth in the table below.
Redemption Date |
|
Fair Market Value of Class A Common Stock |
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
(period to expiration
|
|
|
≤$10.00 |
|
|
$ |
11.00 |
|
|
$ |
12.00 |
|
|
$ |
13.00 |
|
|
$ |
14.00 |
|
|
$ |
15.00 |
|
|
$ |
16.00 |
|
|
$ |
17.00 |
|
|
|
≥$18.00 |
|
60 months |
|
|
0.261 |
|
|
|
0.281 |
|
|
|
0.297 |
|
|
|
0.311 |
|
|
|
0.324 |
|
|
|
0.337 |
|
|
|
0.348 |
|
|
|
0.358 |
|
|
|
0.361 |
|
57 months |
|
|
0.257 |
|
|
|
0.277 |
|
|
|
0.294 |
|
|
|
0.310 |
|
|
|
0.324 |
|
|
|
0.337 |
|
|
|
0.348 |
|
|
|
0.358 |
|
|
|
0.361 |
|
54 months |
|
|
0.252 |
|
|
|
0.272 |
|
|
|
0.291 |
|
|
|
0.307 |
|
|
|
0.322 |
|
|
|
0.335 |
|
|
|
0.347 |
|
|
|
0.357 |
|
|
|
0.361 |
|
51 months |
|
|
0.246 |
|
|
|
0.268 |
|
|
|
0.287 |
|
|
|
0.304 |
|
|
|
0.320 |
|
|
|
0.333 |
|
|
|
0.346 |
|
|
|
0.357 |
|
|
|
0.361 |
|
48 months |
|
|
0.241 |
|
|
|
0.263 |
|
|
|
0.283 |
|
|
|
0.301 |
|
|
|
0.317 |
|
|
|
0.332 |
|
|
|
0.344 |
|
|
|
0.356 |
|
|
|
0.361 |
|
45 months |
|
|
0.235 |
|
|
|
0.258 |
|
|
|
0.279 |
|
|
|
0.298 |
|
|
|
0.315 |
|
|
|
0.330 |
|
|
|
0.343 |
|
|
|
0.356 |
|
|
|
0.361 |
|
42 months |
|
|
0.228 |
|
|
|
0.252 |
|
|
|
0.274 |
|
|
|
0.294 |
|
|
|
0.312 |
|
|
|
0.328 |
|
|
|
0.342 |
|
|
|
0.355 |
|
|
|
0.361 |
|
39 months |
|
|
0.221 |
|
|
|
0.246 |
|
|
|
0.269 |
|
|
|
0.290 |
|
|
|
0.309 |
|
|
|
0.325 |
|
|
|
0.340 |
|
|
|
0.354 |
|
|
|
0.361 |
|
36 months |
|
|
0.213 |
|
|
|
0.239 |
|
|
|
0.263 |
|
|
|
0.285 |
|
|
|
0.305 |
|
|
|
0.323 |
|
|
|
0.339 |
|
|
|
0.353 |
|
|
|
0.361 |
|
33 months |
|
|
0.205 |
|
|
|
0.232 |
|
|
|
0.257 |
|
|
|
0.280 |
|
|
|
0.301 |
|
|
|
0.320 |
|
|
|
0.337 |
|
|
|
0.352 |
|
|
|
0.361 |
|
30 months |
|
|
0.196 |
|
|
|
0.224 |
|
|
|
0.250 |
|
|
|
0.274 |
|
|
|
0.297 |
|
|
|
0.316 |
|
|
|
0.335 |
|
|
|
0.351 |
|
|
|
0.361 |
|
27 months |
|
|
0.185 |
|
|
|
0.214 |
|
|
|
0.242 |
|
|
|
0.268 |
|
|
|
0.291 |
|
|
|
0.313 |
|
|
|
0.332 |
|
|
|
0.350 |
|
|
|
0.361 |
|
24 months |
|
|
0.173 |
|
|
|
0.204 |
|
|
|
0.233 |
|
|
|
0.260 |
|
|
|
0.285 |
|
|
|
0.308 |
|
|
|
0.329 |
|
|
|
0.348 |
|
|
|
0.361 |
|
21 months |
|
|
0.161 |
|
|
|
0.193 |
|
|
|
0.223 |
|
|
|
0.252 |
|
|
|
0.279 |
|
|
|
0.304 |
|
|
|
0.326 |
|
|
|
0.347 |
|
|
|
0.361 |
|
18 months |
|
|
0.146 |
|
|
|
0.179 |
|
|
|
0.211 |
|
|
|
0.242 |
|
|
|
0.271 |
|
|
|
0.298 |
|
|
|
0.322 |
|
|
|
0.345 |
|
|
|
0.361 |
|
15 months |
|
|
0.130 |
|
|
|
0.164 |
|
|
|
0.197 |
|
|
|
0.230 |
|
|
|
0.262 |
|
|
|
0.291 |
|
|
|
0.317 |
|
|
|
0.342 |
|
|
|
0.361 |
|
12 months |
|
|
0.111 |
|
|
|
0.146 |
|
|
|
0.181 |
|
|
|
0.216 |
|
|
|
0.250 |
|
|
|
0.282 |
|
|
|
0.312 |
|
|
|
0.339 |
|
|
|
0.361 |
|
9 months |
|
|
0.090 |
|
|
|
0.125 |
|
|
|
0.162 |
|
|
|
0.199 |
|
|
|
0.237 |
|
|
|
0.272 |
|
|
|
0.305 |
|
|
|
0.336 |
|
|
|
0.361 |
|
6 months |
|
|
0.065 |
|
|
|
0.099 |
|
|
|
0.137 |
|
|
|
0.178 |
|
|
|
0.219 |
|
|
|
0.259 |
|
|
|
0.296 |
|
|
|
0.331 |
|
|
|
0.361 |
|
3 months |
|
|
0.034 |
|
|
|
0.065 |
|
|
|
0.104 |
|
|
|
0.150 |
|
|
|
0.197 |
|
|
|
0.243 |
|
|
|
0.286 |
|
|
|
0.326 |
|
|
|
0.361 |
|
0 months |
|
|
— |
|
|
|
— |
|
|
|
0.042 |
|
|
|
0.115 |
|
|
|
0.179 |
|
|
|
0.233 |
|
|
|
0.281 |
|
|
|
0.323 |
|
|
|
0.361 |
|
The “fair market value” of our Class A common stock shall mean the average last reported sale price of our Class A common stock for the 10 trading days immediately following the date on which the notice of redemption is sent to the holders of warrants. We will provide our warrantholders with the final fair market value no later than one business day after the 10-trading day period described above ends.
The exact fair market value and redemption date may not be set forth in the table above, in which case, if the fair market value is between two values in the table or the redemption date is between two redemption dates in the table, the number of shares of Class A common stock to be issued for each warrant exercised will be determined by a straight-line interpolation between the number of shares set forth for the higher and lower fair market values and the earlier and later redemption dates, as applicable, based on a 365-day or 366-day year, as applicable. For example, if the average last reported sale price of our Class A common stock for the 10 trading days immediately following the date on which the notice of redemption is sent to the holders of the warrants is $11.00 per share, and at such time there are 57 months until the expiration of the warrants, holders may choose to, in connection with this redemption feature, exercise their warrants for 0.277 shares of Class A common stock for each whole warrant. For an example where the exact fair market value and redemption date are not as set forth in the table above, if the average last reported sale price of our Class A common stock for the 10 trading days immediately following the date on which the notice of redemption is sent to the holders of the warrants is $13.50 per share, and at such time there are 38 months until the expiration of the warrants, holders may choose to, in connection with this redemption feature, exercise their warrants for 0.298 shares of Class A common stock for each whole warrant. In no event will the warrants be exercisable on a cashless basis in connection with this redemption feature for more than 0.361 shares of Class A common stock per whole warrant (subject to adjustment). Finally, as reflected in the table above, if the warrants are “out of the money” (i.e. the trading price of our Class A common stock is below the exercise price of the warrants) and about to expire, they cannot be exercised on a cashless basis in connection with a redemption by us pursuant to this redemption feature, since they will not be exercisable for any shares of Class A common stock.
This redemption feature differs from the typical warrant redemption features used in some other blank check offerings, which typically only provide for a redemption of warrants for cash (other than the Private Placement
Warrants) when the trading price for the Class A common stock exceeds $18.00 per share for a specified period of time. This redemption feature is structured to allow for all of the outstanding warrants to be redeemed when the Class A common stock is trading at or above $10.00 per share, which may be at a time when the trading price of our Class A common stock is below the exercise price of the warrants. We have established this redemption feature to provide us with the flexibility to redeem the warrants without the warrants having to reach the $18.00 per share threshold. Holders choosing to exercise their warrants in connection with a redemption pursuant to this feature will, in effect, receive a number of shares for their warrants, based on the “redemption price” as determined pursuant to the above table. We have calculated the “redemption prices” as set forth in the table above to reflect a Black-Scholes option pricing model with a fixed volatility input as of the date of our final prospectus filed with the SEC on February 10, 2021. This redemption right provides us with an additional mechanism by which to redeem all of the outstanding warrants and therefore have certainty as to our capital structure as the warrants would no longer be outstanding and would have been exercised or redeemed, and we will effectively be required to pay the redemption price to warrantholders. If we choose to exercise this redemption right, it will allow us to quickly proceed with a redemption of the warrants if we determine it is in our best interest to do so. As such, we would redeem the warrants in this manner when we believe it is in our best interest to update our capital structure to remove the warrants and pay the redemption price to the warrantholders.
As stated above, we can redeem the warrants when the Class A common stock is trading at a price starting at $10.00, which is below the exercise price of $11.50, because it will provide certainty with respect to our capital structure and cash position while providing warrantholders with the opportunity to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis for the applicable number of shares of Class A common stock. If we choose to redeem the warrants when the Class A common stock is trading at a price below the exercise price of the warrants, this could result in the warrantholders receiving fewer shares of Class A common stock than they would have received if they had chosen to wait to exercise their warrants for shares of Class A common stock if and when such shares of Class A common stock were trading at a price higher than the exercise price of $11.50.
No fractional shares of Class A common stock will be issued upon exercise. If, upon exercise, a holder would be entitled to receive a fractional interest in a share, we will round down to the nearest whole number, the number of shares of Class A common stock to be issued to the holder.
Redemption Procedures
A holder of a warrant may notify us in writing in the event it elects to be subject to a requirement that such holder will not have the right to exercise such warrant, to the extent that after giving effect to such exercise, such person (together with such person’s affiliates), to the warrant agent’s actual knowledge, would beneficially own in excess of 9.8% (or such other amount as a holder may specify) of the shares of Class A common stock outstanding immediately after giving effect to such exercise.
Anti-Dilution Adjustments
The stock prices set forth in the column headings of the table above shall be adjusted as of any date on which the number of shares issuable upon exercise of a warrant is adjusted pursuant to the following two paragraphs. The adjusted stock prices in the column headings shall equal the stock prices immediately prior to such adjustment, multiplied by a fraction, the numerator of which is the number of shares deliverable upon exercise of a warrant immediately prior to such adjustment and the denominator of which is the number of shares deliverable upon exercise of a warrant as so adjusted. The number of shares in the table above shall be adjusted in the same manner and at the same time as the number of shares issuable upon exercise of a warrant.
If the number of outstanding shares of Class A common stock is increased by a stock dividend payable in shares of Class A common stock, or by a split-up of shares of Class A common stock or other similar event, then, on the effective date of such stock dividend, split-up or similar event, the number of shares of Class A common stock issuable on exercise of each warrant will be increased in proportion to such increase in the outstanding shares of Class A common stock. A rights offering to holders of Class A common stock entitling holders to purchase shares of Class A common stock at a price less than the fair market value will be deemed a stock dividend of a number of shares of Class A common stock equal to the product of (i) the number of shares of Class A common stock actually sold in such rights offering (or issuable under any other equity securities sold in such rights offering that are
convertible into or exercisable for Class A common stock) multiplied by (ii) one minus the quotient of (x) the price per share of Class A common stock paid in such rights offering divided by (y) the fair market value. For these purposes (i) if the rights offering is for securities convertible into or exercisable for Class A common stock, in determining the price payable for Class A common stock, there will be taken into account any consideration received for such rights, as well as any additional amount payable upon exercise or conversion and (ii) fair market value means the average last reported sale price of Class A common stock as reported for the 10-trading day period ending on the trading day prior to the first date on which the shares of Class A common stock trade on the applicable exchange or in the applicable market, regular way, without the right to receive such rights.
If the number of outstanding shares of our Class A common stock is decreased by a consolidation, combination, reverse stock split or reclassification of shares of Class A common stock or other similar event, then, on the effective date of such consolidation, combination, reverse stock split, reclassification or similar event, the number of shares of Class A common stock issuable on exercise of each warrant will be decreased in proportion to such decrease in outstanding shares of Class A common stock.
Whenever the number of shares of Class A common stock purchasable upon the exercise of the warrants is adjusted, as described above, the warrant exercise price will be adjusted by multiplying the warrant exercise price immediately prior to such adjustment by a fraction (x) the numerator of which will be the number of shares of Class A common stock purchasable upon the exercise of the warrants immediately prior to such adjustment, and (y) the denominator of which will be the number of shares of Class A common stock so purchasable immediately thereafter.
In case of any reclassification or reorganization of the outstanding shares of Class A common stock (other than those described above or that solely affects the par value of such shares of Class A common stock), or in the case of any merger or consolidation of us with or into another corporation (other than a consolidation or merger in which we are the continuing corporation and that does not result in any reclassification or reorganization of our outstanding shares of Class A common stock), or in the case of any sale or conveyance to another corporation or entity of the assets or other property of us as an entirety or substantially as an entirety in connection with which we are dissolved, the holders of the warrants will thereafter have the right to purchase and receive, upon the basis and upon the terms and conditions specified in the warrants and in lieu of the shares of our Class A common stock immediately theretofore purchasable and receivable upon the exercise of the rights represented thereby, the kind and amount of shares of stock or other securities or property (including cash) receivable upon such reclassification, reorganization, merger or consolidation, or upon a dissolution following any such sale or transfer, that the holder of the warrants would have received if such holder had exercised his, her or its warrants immediately prior to such event. If less than 70% of the consideration receivable by the holders of Class A common stock in such a transaction is payable in the form of common stock in the successor entity that is listed for trading on a national securities exchange or is quoted in an established over-the-counter market, or is to be so listed for trading or quoted immediately following such event, and if the registered holder of the warrant properly exercises the warrant within thirty days following public disclosure of such transaction, the warrant exercise price will be reduced as specified in the warrant agreement based on the Black-Scholes value (as defined in the warrant agreement) of the warrant. The purpose of such exercise price reduction is to provide additional value to holders of the warrants when an extraordinary transaction occurs during the exercise period of the warrants pursuant to which the holders of the warrants otherwise do not receive the full potential value of the warrants. The warrant exercise price will not be adjusted for other events.
The warrants have been issued in registered form under a warrant agreement between Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, as warrant agent, and us. The warrant agreement provides that the terms of the warrants may be amended without the consent of any holder to cure any ambiguity or correct any defective provision, but requires the approval by the holders of at least 50% of the then outstanding public warrants to make any change that adversely affects the interests of the registered holders of public warrants. You should review a copy of the warrant agreement, which is filed as an exhibit to the Annual Report on Form 10-K, for a complete description of the terms and conditions applicable to the warrants.
The warrants may be exercised upon surrender of the warrant certificate on or prior to the expiration date at the offices of the warrant agent, with the exercise form on the reverse side of the warrant certificate completed and executed as indicated, accompanied by full payment of the exercise price (or on a cashless basis, if applicable), by
certified or official bank check payable to us, for the number of warrants being exercised. The warrantholders do not have the rights or privileges of holders of Class A common stock or any voting rights until they exercise their warrants and receive shares of Class A common stock. After the issuance of shares of Class A common stock upon exercise of the warrants, each holder will be entitled to one vote for each share held of record on all matters to be voted on by stockholders.
No fractional shares will be issued upon exercise of the warrants. If, upon exercise of the warrants, a holder would be entitled to receive a fractional interest in a share, we will, upon exercise, round down to the nearest whole number, the number of shares of Class A common stock to be issued to the warrantholder.
We have agreed that, subject to applicable law, any action, proceeding or claim against us arising out of or relating in any way to the warrant agreement, including under the Securities Act, will be brought and enforced in the courts of the State of New York or the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, and we irrevocably submit to such jurisdiction, which jurisdiction will be the exclusive forum for any such action, proceeding or claim. We note, however, that there is uncertainty as to whether a court would enforce this provision and that investors cannot waive compliance with the federal securities laws and the rules and regulations thereunder. Section 22 of the Securities Act creates concurrent jurisdiction for state and federal courts over all suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Securities Act or the rules and regulations thereunder. Notwithstanding the foregoing, these provisions of the warrant agreement will not apply to suits brought to enforce any liability or duty created by the Exchange Act or any other claim for which the federal district courts of the United States of America are the sole and exclusive forum. 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.
Private Placement Warrants
The Private Placement Warrants (including the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the Private Placement Warrants) will not be transferable, assignable or salable until 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination (except, among other limited exceptions to our officers and directors and other persons or entities affiliated with our sponsor), and they will not be redeemable by us (except as described above under “—Redemption of warrants when the price per share of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00”) so long as they are held by our sponsor or its permitted transferees. Our sponsor, or its permitted transferees, has the option to exercise the Private Placement Warrants for cash or on a cashless basis. Except as described below, the Private Placement Warrants have terms and provisions that are identical to those of the warrants sold as part of the units in our initial public offering, including as to exercise price, exercisability and exercise period. If the Private Placement Warrants are held by holders other than our sponsor or its permitted transferees, the Private Placement Warrants will be redeemable by us in all redemption scenarios and exercisable by the holders on the same basis as the warrants included in the units sold in our initial public offering.
If holders of the Private Placement Warrants elect to exercise them on a cashless basis, they would pay the exercise price by surrendering his, her or its warrants in exchange for a number of shares of our Class A common stock equal to the quotient obtained by dividing (x) the product of (A) the number of shares of our Class A common stock underlying the warrants and (B) the excess of the “fair market value” (defined below) over the exercise price of the warrants by (y) the fair market value. The “fair market value” shall mean the average last reported sale price of the Class A common stock as reported for the 10 trading days ending on the third trading day prior to the date on which the notice of warrant exercise is sent to the warrant agent. The reason that we have agreed that these warrants will be exercisable on a cashless basis so long as they are held by our sponsor and its permitted transferees is because it is not known at this time whether they will be affiliated with us following a business combination. If they remain affiliated with us, their ability to sell our securities in the open market will be significantly limited. We expect to have policies in place that prohibit insiders from selling our securities except during specific periods of time. Even during such periods of time when insiders will be permitted to sell our securities, an insider cannot trade in our securities if he or she is in possession of material non-public information. Accordingly, unlike public stockholders who could sell the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants freely in the open market to fund their cash exercise price, the insiders could be significantly restricted from doing so. As a result, we believe that allowing the holders to exercise such warrants on a cashless basis is appropriate.
In order to finance transaction costs in connection with an intended initial business combination, our sponsor or an affiliate of our sponsor or certain of our officers and directors may, but are not obligated to, loan us funds as may be required. If we complete our initial business combination, we would repay such loaned amounts out of the proceeds of the trust account released to us. In the event that our initial business combination does not close, we may use a portion of the working capital held outside the trust account to repay such loaned amounts but no proceeds from our trust account would be used to repay such loaned amounts. Up to $1,500,000 of such loans may be convertible into warrants at a price of $1.50 per warrant at the option of the lender. Such warrants would be identical to the Private Placement Warrants, including as to exercise price, exercisability and exercise period.
Our sponsor has agreed not to transfer, assign or sell any of the Private Placement Warrants (including the Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of any of these warrants) until the date that is 30 days after the date we complete our initial business combination (except, among other limited exceptions, to our officers and directors and other persons or entities affiliated with our sponsor). If our sponsor transfers our Private Placement Warrants to any person other than a permitted transferee, the transferred warrants will become identical to our public warrants, including that they will be subject to redemption in certain circumstances, they generally will not be exercisable on a cashless basis, and they will be exercisable solely for shares of Class A common stock.
Dividends
We have not paid any cash dividends on our common stock to date and do not intend to pay cash dividends prior to the completion of a business combination. The payment of cash dividends in the future will be dependent upon our revenues and earnings, if any, capital requirements and general financial conditions subsequent to completion of a business combination. The payment of any cash dividends subsequent to a business combination will be within the discretion of our board of directors at such time. Our board of directors is not currently contemplating and does not anticipate declaring any stock dividends in the foreseeable future. Further, if we incur any indebtedness, our ability to declare dividends may be limited by restrictive covenants we may agree to in connection therewith.
Our Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation contains certain requirements and restrictions relating to our initial public offering that will apply to us until the completion of our initial business combination. These provisions (other than amendments relating to the appointment of directors, which require the approval of a majority of at least 90% of our common stock voting at a stockholder meeting) cannot be amended without the approval of the holders of 65% of our common stock. Our initial stockholders, who collectively beneficially own 20% of our common stock, will participate in any vote to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and will have the discretion to vote in any manner they choose. Specifically, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides, among other things, that:
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If we are unable to complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of our initial public offering (or 27 months from the closing of our initial public offering if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of our initial public offering), we will (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up, (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than 10 business days thereafter subject to lawfully available funds therefor, redeem 100% of the public shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our franchise and income taxes (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidating distributions, if any), subject to applicable law, and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining stockholders and our board of directors, dissolve and liquidate, subject in each case to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law; |
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Prior to our initial business combination, we may not issue additional shares of capital stock that would entitle the holders thereof to (i) receive funds from the trust account or (ii) vote on any initial business combination; |
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Although we do not intend to enter into a business combination with a target business that is affiliated with our sponsor, our directors or our officers, we are not prohibited from doing so. In the event we enter into such a transaction, we, or a committee of independent directors, will obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm that is a member of FINRA or an independent accounting firm that such a business combination is fair to our company from a financial point of view; |
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● |
If a stockholder vote on our initial business combination is not required by law and we do not decide to hold a stockholder vote for business or other reasons, we will offer to redeem our public shares pursuant to Rule 13e-4 and Regulation 14E of the Exchange Act, and will file tender offer documents with the SEC prior to completing our initial business combination which contain substantially the same financial and other information about our initial business combination and the redemption rights as is required under Regulation 14A of the Exchange Act; |
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The NYSE rules require that our initial business combination must occur with one or more target businesses that together have an aggregate fair market value of at least 80% of the net assets held in trust (net of amounts disbursed to management for working capital purposes and excluding the amount of any deferred underwriting discount held in trust) at the time of the agreement to enter into the initial business combination; |
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If our stockholders approve an amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation that would affect the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we have not consummated an initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of our initial public offering (or 27 months from the closing of our initial public offering if we have executed a letter of intent, agreement in principle or definitive agreement for a business combination within 24 months from the closing of our initial public offering), we will provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their shares of Class A common stock upon such approval at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our franchise and income taxes, divided by the number of then outstanding public shares; and |
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We will not effectuate our initial business combination with another blank check company or a similar company with nominal operations. |
In addition, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that under no circumstances will we redeem our public shares in an amount that would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001 upon consummation of our initial business combination and after payment of underwriters’ fees and commissions.
Certain Anti-Takeover Provisions of Delaware Law and our Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation and Bylaws
We have opted out of Section 203 of the DGCL. However, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation contains similar provisions providing that we may not engage in certain “business combinations” with any “interested stockholder” for a three-year period following the time that the stockholder became an interested stockholder, unless:
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prior to such time, our board of directors approved either the business combination or the transaction which resulted in the stockholder becoming an interested stockholder; |
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● |
upon consummation of the transaction that resulted in the stockholder becoming an interested stockholder, the interested stockholder owned at least 85% of our voting stock outstanding at the time the transaction commenced, excluding certain shares; or |
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at or subsequent to that time, the business combination is approved by our board of directors and by the affirmative vote of holders of at least 66-2/3% of the outstanding voting stock that is not owned by the interested stockholder. |
Generally, a “business combination” includes a merger, asset or stock sale or certain other transactions resulting in a financial benefit to the interested stockholder. Subject to certain exceptions, an “interested stockholder” is a person who, together with that person’s affiliates and associates, owns, or within the previous three years owned, 20% or more of our voting stock.
Under certain circumstances, this provision will make it more difficult for a person who would be an “interested stockholder” to effect various business combinations with a corporation for a three-year period. This provision may encourage companies interested in acquiring our company to negotiate in advance with our board of directors because the stockholder approval requirement would be avoided if our board of directors approves either the business combination or the transaction which results in the stockholder becoming an interested stockholder. These provisions also may have the effect of preventing changes in our board of directors and may make it more difficult to accomplish transactions which stockholders may otherwise deem to be in their best interests.
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that our sponsor and its respective affiliates, any of their respective direct or indirect transferees of at least 20% of our outstanding common stock and any group as to which such persons are party to, do not constitute “interested stockholders” for purposes of this provision.
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that our board of directors is classified into three classes of directors. As a result, in most circumstances, a person can gain control of our board only by successfully engaging in a proxy contest at two or more annual meetings.
Our authorized but unissued shares of common stock and preferred stock are available for future issuances without stockholder approval and could be utilized for a variety of corporate purposes, including future offerings to raise additional capital, acquisitions and employee benefit plans. The existence of authorized but unissued and unreserved shares of common stock and preferred stock could render more difficult or discourage an attempt to obtain control of us by means of a proxy contest, tender offer, merger or otherwise.
Exclusive Forum For Certain Lawsuits
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation requires, to the fullest extent permitted by law, that derivative actions brought in our name, actions against directors, officers and employees for breach of fiduciary duty and other similar actions (other than actions arising under the Securities Act or the Exchange Act) may be brought only in the Court of Chancery in the State of Delaware and, if brought outside of Delaware, the stockholder bringing the suit will be deemed to have consented to service of process on such stockholder’s counsel. Section 27 of the Exchange Act creates exclusive federal jurisdiction over all suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Exchange Act or the rules and regulations thereunder and Section 22 of the Securities Act creates concurrent jurisdiction for state and federal courts over all suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Securities Act or the rules and regulations thereunder. Although we believe this provision benefits us by providing increased consistency in the application of Delaware law in the types of lawsuits to which it applies, the provision may have the effect of discouraging lawsuits against our directors and officers.
Special meeting of stockholders
Our bylaws provide that special meetings of our stockholders may be called only by a majority vote of our board of directors, by our chief executive officer or by our chairman.
Advance notice requirements for stockholder proposals and director nominations
Our bylaws provide that stockholders seeking to bring business before our annual meeting of stockholders, or to nominate candidates for election as directors at our annual meeting of stockholders must provide timely notice of their intent in writing. To be timely, a stockholder’s notice will need to be received by the company secretary at our
principal executive offices not later than the close of business on the 90th day nor earlier than the close of business on the 120th day prior to the anniversary date of the immediately preceding annual meeting of stockholders. Pursuant to Rule 14a-8 under the Exchange Act, proposals seeking inclusion in our annual proxy statement must comply with the notice periods contained therein. Our bylaws also specify certain requirements as to the form and content of a stockholders’ meeting. These provisions may preclude our stockholders from bringing matters before our annual meeting of stockholders or from making nominations for directors at our annual meeting of stockholders. Our bylaws allow the chairman of the meeting of the stockholders to adopt rules and regulations for the conduct of meetings which may have the effect of precluding the conduct of certain business at a meeting if the rules and regulations are not followed. These provisions may also defer, delay or discourage a potential acquirer from conducting a solicitation of proxies to elect the acquirer’s own slate of directors or otherwise attempting to influence or obtain control of us.
Action by Written Consent
Any action required or permitted to be taken by our common stockholders must be effected by a duly called annual or special meeting of such stockholders and may not be effected by written consent of the stockholders other than with respect to our Class B common stock.
Classified Board of Directors
Our board of directors is divided into three classes, Class I, Class II and Class III, with members of each class serving staggered three-year terms. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that the authorized number of directors may be changed only by resolution of the board of directors. Subject to the terms of any preferred stock, any or all of the directors may be removed from office at any time, but only for cause and only by the affirmative vote of holders of a majority of the voting power of all then outstanding shares of our capital stock entitled to vote generally in the election of directors, voting together as a single class. Any vacancy on our board of directors, including a vacancy resulting from an enlargement of our board of directors, may be filled only by vote of a majority of our directors then in office.
Class B Common Stock Consent Right
For so long as any shares of Class B common stock remain outstanding, we may not, without the prior vote or written consent of the holders of a majority of the shares of Class B common stock then outstanding, voting separately as a single class, amend, alter or repeal any provision our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, whether by merger, consolidation or otherwise, if such amendment, alteration or repeal of would alter or change the powers, preferences or relative, participating, optional or other or special rights of the Class B common stock. Any action required or permitted to be taken at any meeting of the holders of Class B common stock may be taken without a meeting, without prior notice and without a vote, if a consent or consents in writing, setting forth the action so taken, shall be signed by the holders of the outstanding Class B common stock having not less than the minimum number of votes that would be necessary to authorize or take such action at a meeting at which all shares of Class B common stock were present and voted.
Registration Rights
The holders of the founder shares, Private Placement Warrants and warrants that may be issued upon conversion of working capital loans (and any shares of Class A common stock issuable upon the exercise of the Private Placement Warrants and warrants that may be issued upon conversion of working capital loans and upon conversion of the founder shares) will be entitled to registration rights pursuant to a registration rights agreement dated February 8, 2021, requiring us to register such securities for resale (in the case of the founder shares, only after conversion to our Class A common stock). The holders of these securities, having at least $25 million in the aggregate, are entitled to make up to three demands, excluding short form demands, that we register such securities. In addition, the holders have certain “piggy-back” registration rights with respect to registration statements filed subsequent to our completion of our initial business combination and rights to require us to register for resale such securities pursuant to Rule 415 under the Securities Act. We will bear the expenses incurred in connection with the filing of any such registration statements.
EXHIBIT 31.1
CERTIFICATION PURSUANT TO
RULES 13a-14(a) AND 15d-14(a) UNDER THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934,
AS ADOPTED PURSUANT TO SECTION 302 OF THE SARBANES-OXLEY ACT OF 2002
I, Geoffrey Strong, certify that:
1. I have reviewed this Annual Report on Form 10-K of Spartan Acquisition Corp. III (the “registrant”) for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020;
2. Based on my knowledge, this report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by this report;
3. Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information included in this report, fairly present in all material respects the financial condition, results of operations and cash flows of the registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this report;
4. The registrant’s other certifying officer and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e)) for the registrant and have:
(a) Designed such disclosure controls and procedures, or caused such disclosure controls and procedures to be designed under our supervision, to ensure that material information relating to the registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within those entities, particularly during the period in which this report is being prepared;
(b) [Intentionally omitted];
(c) Evaluated the effectiveness of the registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures and presented in this report our conclusions about the effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures, as of the end of the period covered by this report based on such evaluation; and
(d) Disclosed in this report any change in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the registrant’s most recent fiscal quarter (the registrant’s fourth fiscal quarter in the case of an annual report) that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting; and
5. The registrant’s other certifying officer and I have disclosed, based on our most recent evaluation of internal control over financial reporting, to the registrant’s auditors and the audit committee of the registrant’s board of directors (or persons performing the equivalent functions):
(a) All significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or operation of internal control over financial reporting which are reasonably likely to adversely affect the registrant’s ability to record, process, summarize and report financial information; and
(b) Any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.
Date: March 29, 2021
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/s/ Geoffrey Strong |
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Geoffrey Strong |
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Chief Executive Officer |
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(Principal Executive Officer) |
EXHIBIT 31.2
CERTIFICATION PURSUANT TO
RULES 13a-14(a) AND 15d-14(a) UNDER THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934,
AS ADOPTED PURSUANT TO SECTION 302 OF THE SARBANES-OXLEY ACT OF 2002
I, James Crossen, certify that:
1. I have reviewed this Annual Report on Form 10-K of Spartan Acquisition Corp. III (the “registrant”) for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020;
2. Based on my knowledge, this report does not contain any untrue statement of a material fact or omit to state a material fact necessary to make the statements made, in light of the circumstances under which such statements were made, not misleading with respect to the period covered by this report;
3. Based on my knowledge, the financial statements, and other financial information included in this report, fairly present in all material respects the financial condition, results of operations and cash flows of the registrant as of, and for, the periods presented in this report;
4. The registrant’s other certifying officer and I are responsible for establishing and maintaining disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e)) for the registrant and have:
(a) Designed such disclosure controls and procedures, or caused such disclosure controls and procedures to be designed under our supervision, to ensure that material information relating to the registrant, including its consolidated subsidiaries, is made known to us by others within those entities, particularly during the period in which this report is being prepared;
(b) [Intentionally omitted];
(c) Evaluated the effectiveness of the registrant’s disclosure controls and procedures and presented in this report our conclusions about the effectiveness of the disclosure controls and procedures, as of the end of the period covered by this report based on such evaluation; and
(d) Disclosed in this report any change in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the registrant’s most recent fiscal quarter (the registrant’s fourth fiscal quarter in the case of an annual report) that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting; and
5. The registrant’s other certifying officer and I have disclosed, based on our most recent evaluation of internal control over financial reporting, to the registrant’s auditors and the audit committee of the registrant’s board of directors (or persons performing the equivalent functions):
(a) All significant deficiencies and material weaknesses in the design or operation of internal control over financial reporting which are reasonably likely to adversely affect the registrant’s ability to record, process, summarize and report financial information; and
(b) Any fraud, whether or not material, that involves management or other employees who have a significant role in the registrant’s internal control over financial reporting.
Date: March 29, 2021
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/s/ James Crossen |
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James Crossen |
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Chief Financial Officer and Chief Accounting Officer |
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(Principal Financial Officer and Principal Accounting Officer) |
EXHIBIT 32.1
CERTIFICATION PURSUANT TO 18 U.S.C. 1350
(SECTION 906 OF THE SARBANES-OXLEY ACT OF 2002)
I, Geoffrey Strong, Chief Executive Officer of Spartan Acquisition Corp. III (the “Company”), certify, pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350, as adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, that, to my knowledge:
(1) the Annual Report on Form 10-K of the Company for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020 (the “Report”) fully complies with the requirements of Sections 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended; and
(2) the information contained in the Report fairly presents, in all material respects, the financial condition and results of operations of the Company.
This certificate is being furnished solely for the purposes of 18 U.S.C. Section 1350 and is not being filed as part of the Report or as a separate disclosure document.
Date: March 29, 2021
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/s/ Geoffrey Strong |
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Geoffrey Strong |
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Chief Executive Officer |
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(Principal Executive Officer) |
EXHIBIT 32.2
CERTIFICATION PURSUANT TO 18 U.S.C. 1350
(SECTION 906 OF THE SARBANES-OXLEY ACT OF 2002)
I, James Crossen, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Accounting Officer of Spartan Acquisition Corp. III (the “Company”), certify, pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350, as adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, that, to my knowledge:
(1) the Annual Report on Form 10-K of the Company for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020 (the “Report”) fully complies with the requirements of Sections 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended; and
(2) the information contained in the Report fairly presents, in all material respects, the financial condition and results of operations of the Company.
This certificate is being furnished solely for the purposes of 18 U.S.C. Section 1350 and is not being filed as part of the Report or as a separate disclosure document.
Date: March 29, 2021
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/s/ James Crossen |
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James Crossen |
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Chief Financial Officer and Chief Accounting Officer |
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(Principal Financial Officer and Principal Accounting Officer) |