The foregoing description of the BCG Recapitalization does not purport to be complete and is qualified in its entirety by reference to the Conversion and Exchange Agreement, which is incorporated herein by reference to Exhibit 99.6 of this Schedule 13D.
Item 4. Purpose of Transaction
REU Agreement
Pursuant to The Beneficient Company Group, L.P. 2018 Equity Incentive Plan (as amended, the “Plan”) and the Restricted Stock Equity Award Agreement between the Issuer and the Reporting Person (the “REU Agreement”), the Reporting Person received an award of 115,000 restricted equity units representing 143,750 Class A Shares of the Issuer on April 25, 2019, 100,000 of which vested on the date of grant, April 25, 2019, and 15,000 of which vested 25% on the date of grant, April 25, 2019, and the remaining 75% of which vested in three equal annual installments on April 25th of each subsequent calendar year. The Reporting Person also received an award of 12,000 restricted equity units representing 15,000 Class A Shares of the Issuer, 40% of which vested on June 8, 2023, and the remaining 60% in three equal annual installments on April 1st of each subsequent calendar year.
The foregoing description of the restricted equity unit award does not purport to be complete and is qualified in its entirety by reference to the Plan, the First Amendment to the Plan, and a form of the REU Agreement, which are incorporated herein by reference to Exhibits 99.1, 99.2, and 99.3, respectively, of this Schedule 13D.
Business Combination
On June 7, 2023, the Issuer, completed its previously announced business combination (the “Business Combination”) with Avalon Acquisition, Inc., a Delaware corporation (“Avalon”), pursuant to that certain Business Combination Agreement, dated September 21, 2022, by and among Avalon, The Beneficient Company Group, L.P., a Delaware limited partnership (“BCG”), Beneficient Merger Sub I, Inc., a Delaware corporation and direct, wholly-owned subsidiary of BCG (“Merger Sub I”), and Beneficient Merger Sub II, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company and direct, wholly-owned subsidiary of BCG (“Merger Sub II” and together with Merger Sub I, the “Merger Subs”) (the “Business Combination Agreement” and such transactions described therein, the “Transactions”).
Pursuant to the terms of the Business Combination Agreement, on June 6, 2023, following a series of recapitalization transactions as further described below, BCG converted from a Delaware limited partnership to a Nevada corporation (the “Conversion”) and changed its name to “Beneficient”. On June 7, 2023, Merger Sub I merged with and into Avalon (the “Avalon Merger”), with Avalon surviving the Avalon Merger (the “Avalon Merger Surviving Company”) as a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Issuer. Within two weeks following confirmation of the Avalon Merger, the Avalon Merger Surviving Company will merge with and into Merger Sub II (the “LLC Merger”, and together with the Avalon Merger, the “Mergers”) with Merger Sub II surviving the LLC Merger as a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Issuer. At the effective time of the Avalon Merger (the “Avalon Merger Effective Time”), each share of Avalon Class A common stock and Avalon Class B common stock issued and outstanding immediately prior to the Avalon Merger Effective Time automatically converted into one Class A Share of the Issuer.
The foregoing description of the Transactions does not purport to be complete and is qualified in its entirety by reference to the Business Combination Agreement, which is incorporated herein by reference to Exhibit 99.5 of this Schedule 13D.
Stockholders Agreement
In connection with the consummation of the Transactions and the BCG Recapitalization, the Reporting Person and all other persons who became holders of Class B Shares of the Issuer entered into a Stockholders Agreement (the “Stockholders Agreement”), which became effective at the Avalon Merger Effective Time.
Pursuant to the Stockholders Agreement, the holders of Class B Shares of the Issuer (the “Class B Holders”) have the right to elect at least five directors to the Issuer’s board of directors (the “Board” and the directors elected by the Class B Holders, the “Class B Directors”), and the Board will be required to establish and maintain (i) a compensation committee, (ii) a nominating committee, (iii) an executive committee, and (iv) a community