Description of the Business Combination
On June 24, 2021, the business combination contemplated by the Business Combination Agreement entered into on December 29, 2020, by and among the Sponsor, PWP OpCo, PWP GP, Professional Partners, and Professionals GP, was completed. Pursuant to the Business Combination Agreement, among other things, (i) FTIV acquired certain partnership interests in PWP OpCo, (ii) PWP OpCo became jointly-owned by the Company, Professional Partners and certain existing partners of PWP OpCo, and (iii) PWP OpCo now serves as the Company’s operating partnership as part of an umbrella limited partnership C-corporation.
Pursuant to the Business Combination Agreement, subject to certain conditions set forth therein, in connection with the Closing:
(i) the Company acquired newly-issued common units of PWP OpCo in exchange for cash in an amount equal to the outstanding excess cash balances of the Company (including the proceeds from the PIPE Investment) as of Closing;
(ii) Professional Partners contributed the equity interests of PWP GP, the general partner of PWP OpCo, to the Company;
(iii) the Company issued new shares of Class B-1 common stock and Class B-2 common stock to PWP OpCo, with the Class B-1 common stock being distributed to and owned by Professional Partners and the Class B-2 common stock being distributed to and owned by ILPs, with the number of shares of such common stock to be issued to PWP OpCo equal the number of common units of PWP OpCo that will be held by Professional Partners and ILPs, respectively, following the Closing; and
(iv) the Company repaid certain indebtedness of PWP OpCo and its subsidiaries, and paid certain expenses, and PWP OpCo first redeemed PWP OpCo units held by certain electing ILPs, and second, redeemed PWP OpCo units held by certain Legacy Partners and retained remaining proceeds for general corporate purposes.
Concurrently with the execution of the Business Combination Agreement, the Company also entered into a Subscription Agreement with the PIPE Investors pursuant to, and on the terms and subject to the conditions of, which the PIPE Investors have collectively subscribed for 12.5 million shares of the Company’s Class A common stock for an aggregate purchase price equal to $125 million, including $1.5 million subscribed by entities related to the Sponsor. The PIPE Investment was consummated concurrently with the Closing.
At the Closing, the Company entered into a Tax Receivable Agreement with PWP OpCo, Professional Partners and certain other persons party thereto. The Tax Receivable Agreement generally provides for payment by the Company to ILPs and certain Partners (as defined therein) of 85% of the cash tax savings, if any, in U.S. federal, state, local and foreign income taxes and related interest realized (or deemed realized) in periods after the Closing as a result of (a) exchanges of interests in PWP OpCo for cash or stock of the Company and certain other transactions and (b) payments made under the Tax Receivable Agreement. The Company expects to retain the benefit of the remaining 15% of these cash tax savings.
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