UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549 FORM 10-K
(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
| ☐ | TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(D) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 |
For the transition period from to
BREEZE HOLDINGS ACQUISITION CORP.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
| Delaware | 001-39718 | 85-1849315 | ||
| (State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization) | (Commission File Number) | (I.R.S. Employer Identification Number) | ||
955 W. John Carpenter Fwy., Suite 100-929 Irving, TX 75039 | 75039 | |||
| (Address of principal executive offices) | (Zip Code) | |||
Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (619) 500-7747
Not Applicable
(Former name or former address, if changed since last report)
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
Title of Each Class: | Trading Symbol: | Name of Each Exchange on Which Registered: | ||
| Common Stock, par value $0.0001 per share | BREZ | The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC | ||
| Rights exchangeable into one-twentieth of one share of common stock | BREZR | The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC | ||
| Warrants, each whole warrant exercisable for one share of common stock at an exercise price of $11.50 per whole share | BREZW | The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC |
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 Exchange 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 definition of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer, “smaller reporting company” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.
| Large accelerated filer | ☐ | Accelerated filer | ☐ | |||
| Non-accelerated filer | ☒ | Smaller reporting company | ☒ | |||
| Emerging growth company | ☒ | |||||
If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐
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. ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act). Yes ☒ No ☐
As of June 30, 2020, the last business day of the registrant’s most recently completed second fiscal quarter, the registrant’s securities were not publicly traded. The registrant’s units began trading on The Nasdaq Capital Market (“NASDAQ”) on November 23, 2020 and the registrant’s shares of common stock, par value $0.0001 (the “Common stock”), warrants and rights began trading on the NASDAQ on December 23, 2020. The aggregate market value of the common stock outstanding, other than shares held by persons who may be deemed affiliates of the registrant, computed by reference to the closing sales price for the shares of common stock on December 31, 2020, as reported on the NASDAQ, was $116,725,000 (based on the closing sales price of the common stock on December 31, 2020 of $10.15).
As of March 23, 2020, 14,625,000 shares of common stock, par value $0.0001, were issued and outstanding.
Documents Incorporated by Reference: None.
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CERTAIN TERMS
Unless otherwise stated in this Annual Report on Form 10-K (this “Report”), or the context otherwise requires, references to:
| • | “common stock” is to our common stock; |
| • | “founder shares” are to shares of our common stock initially purchased by our sponsor in a private placement prior to our initial public offering; |
| • | “initial stockholders” are to our holders of our founder shares prior to our initial public offering (or their permitted transferees); |
| • | “management” or our “management team” are to our officers and directors; |
| • | “private placement warrants” are to the warrants issued to our sponsor and I-Bankers Securities, Inc. in a private placement simultaneously with the closing of our initial public offering; |
| • | “public shares” are to shares of our common stock sold as part of the units in our initial public offering (whether they were purchased in our initial public offering or thereafter in the open market); |
| • | “public stockholders” are to the holders of our public shares, including our initial stockholders and management team to the extent our initial stockholders and/or members of our management team purchase public shares, provided that each initial stockholder’s and member of our management team’s status as a “public stockholder” shall only exist with respect to such public shares; |
| • | “public warrants” are to our redeemable warrants sold as part of the units in our initial public offering (whether they were purchased in our initial public offering or thereafter in the open market), and to any private placement warrants or warrants issued upon conversion of working capital loans that are sold to third parties that are not our sponsor or executive officers or directors (or permitted transferees) following the consummation of our initial business combination; |
| • | “sponsor” is to Breeze Sponsor, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company formed by our chairman and chief executive officer; |
| • | “warrants” are to our redeemable warrants, which includes the public warrants as well as the private placement warrants to the extent they are no longer held by the initial purchasers of the private placement warrants or their permitted transferees; |
| • | “rights” are to the rights; and |
| • | we,” “us,” “company” or “our company” are to Breeze Holdings Acquisition Corp. |
CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This Report, including, without limitation, statements under the heading “Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations,” includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, (the “Securities Act”) and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, (the “Exchange Act”). These forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology, including the words “believes,” “estimates,” “anticipates,” “expects,” “intends,” “plans,” “may,” “will,” “potential,” “projects,” “predicts,” “continue,” or “should,” or, in each case, their negative or other variations or comparable terminology. There can be no assurance that actual
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results will not materially differ from expectations. Such statements include, but are not limited to, any statements relating to our ability to consummate any acquisition or other business combination and any other statements that are not statements of current or historical facts. These statements are based on management’s current expectations, but actual results may differ materially due to various factors, including, but not limited to:
| • | our ability to complete our initial business combination; |
| • | our success in retaining or recruiting, or changes required in, our officers, key employees or directors following our initial business combination; |
| • | 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; |
| • | our potential ability to obtain additional financing to complete our initial business combination; |
| • | our pool of prospective target businesses; |
| • | the ability of our officers and directors to generate a number of potential investment opportunities; |
| • | our public securities’ potential liquidity and trading; |
| • | the lack of a market for our securities; |
| • | the use of proceeds not held in the trust account or available to us from interest income on the trust account balance; |
| • | the trust account not being subject to claims of third parties; or |
| • | our financial performance following our initial public offering. |
The forward-looking statements contained in this Report are based on our current expectations and beliefs concerning future developments and their potential effects on us. Future developments affecting us may not be those that we have anticipated. These forward-looking statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties (some of which are beyond our control) and other assumptions that may cause actual results or performance to be materially different from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, those factors described under the heading “Risk Factors.” Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should any of our assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary in material respects from those projected in these forward-looking statements. We undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required under applicable securities laws. These risks and others described under “Risk Factors” may not be exhaustive.
By their nature, forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that may or may not occur in the future. We caution you that forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and that our actual results of operations, financial condition and liquidity, and developments in the industry in which we operate may differ materially from those made in or suggested by the forward-looking statements contained in this Report. In addition, even if our results or operations, financial condition and liquidity, and developments in the industry in which we operate are consistent with the forward- looking statements contained in this Report, those results or developments may not be indicative of results or developments in subsequent periods.
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| ITEM 1. | BUSINESS |
Overview
We are a newly organized blank check company incorporated on June 11, 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 Report as our initial business combination. While we may pursue an acquisition opportunity in any industry or sector, we are focusing on assets used in exploring, developing, producing, transporting, storing, gathering, processing, fractionating, refining, distributing or marketing of natural gas, natural gas liquids, crude oil or refined products in North America.
We intend to identify and acquire a business that could benefit from a hands-on owner with extensive operational experience in the energy sector in North America and that presents potential for an attractive risk- adjusted return profile under our stewardship. Even fundamentally sound companies can often under-perform their potential due to underinvestment, a temporary period of dislocation in the markets in which they operate, including the impact of COVID-19, over-levered capital structures, excessive cost structures, incomplete management teams and/or inappropriate business strategies. Our management team has extensive experience in identifying and executing such potential acquisitions across the upstream and midstream energy sectors. In addition, our team has significant hands-on experience working with private companies in preparing for and executing an initial public offering and serving as active owners and directors by working closely with these companies to continue their transformations and to create value in the public markets.
We believe that our management team is well positioned to identify attractive risk-adjusted returns in the marketplace and that our contacts and transaction sources, ranging from industry executives, private owners, private equity funds, and investment bankers, in addition to extensive global industry and geographical reach of the I-Bankers platform, will enable us to pursue a broad range of opportunities. Our management believes that its ability to identify and implement value creation initiatives will remain central to its differentiated acquisition strategy.
We seek to capitalize on the extensive experience of each of the members of our management team who have nearly 30 years average experience in the energy industry. Our management team, including J. Douglas Ramsey, Ph.D., Russell D. Griffin and Charles C. Ross, P.E., has a history of creating significant value and generating attractive shareholder returns. Dr. Ramsey, our Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, was the President and Chief Financial Officer of Saddle Operating, LLC (“Saddle Operating”), a private acquisition and production company that pursued large, long-life producing oil and gas assets in the Barnett Shale region of North America. Mr. Griffin, our President, joined Saddle Operating as Chief Operating Officer in May 2014 and Mr. Ross, our Chief Operating Officer, joined Saddle Operating as Vice President of Compliance in September 2017. In December 2016, Saddle Operating completed two acquisitions of assets in the Barnett Shale totaling approximately $415 million. Prior to Saddle Operating, Dr. Ramsey served as a Director and Chief Financial Officer of EXCO Resources, Inc. (“EXCO”), an independent oil and natural gas company engaged in the acquisition, development and exploitation of properties in the Haynesville, Bossier, Marcellus and Eagle Ford shale plays, Mr. Griffin joined EXCO in January 2007 as Vice President of Environmental, Health and Safety, and Mr. Ross joined EXCO in February 2010 as Director of Regulatory and Governmental Affairs. During their time at EXCO, Dr. Ramsey and Messrs. Griffin and Ross grew EXCO’s assets from $3 million to over $6 billion with over 15,000 wells and more than 1,400 employees and contractors. In 2003, Dr. Ramsey helped lead EXCO through a $354 million management-led buyout. From 2003 to 2006, EXCO successfully closed approximately $900 million of acquisitions and sold Addison Energy Inc. for $443 million. In 2006, EXCO consummated another initial public offering and, following its initial public offering, EXCO’s enterprise value grew from $1.5 billion in 2006 to $8.4 billion in 2008 with the assistance of Dr. Ramsey’s leadership. Before joining EXCO, Dr. Ramsey was appointed as Financial Planning Manager of Coda Energy, Inc. (“Coda”), an independent energy
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company engaged in the acquisition and exploitation of West Texas oil and natural gas properties. Dr. Ramsey served from 1992 until Coda was acquired by Belco Oil & Gas Corp. in November 1997 for approximately $360 million. Dr. Ramsey successfully assisted in the closing of more than 50 transactions at Coda with an aggregate purchase price of more than $172 million.
Our management team has extensive experience in taking companies public, acquisitions, divestitures, corporate sales, and equity and debt capital markets transactions in the energy industry. Additionally, our management team has well-established banking relationships and procured several billion dollars of committed capital in connection with prior investments. Our team has experience investing across a variety of commodity price cycles and a track record of identifying high quality assets and businesses with significant resources, capital and optimization potential.
In addition, our management team has an intense focus on cost management which we believe will translate into meaningful reductions in overall capital and operating costs. Our management team has consistently demonstrated their commitment to cost management. At EXCO, for example, Dr. Ramsey and Messrs. Griffin and Ross were able to significantly improve EXCO’s drilling and development costs and operating costs through renegotiated rig rates and operating efficiencies.
Our management team also has extensive experience in energy joint ventures. In 2009, EXCO entered into upstream and midstream joint ventures in the Haynesville Shale with BG Group PLC in which EXCO received approximately $900 million of cash and $400 million of carried interest. Additionally, in 2010, EXCO entered into an upstream joint venture in the Marcellus Shale with BG Group PLC in which EXCO received $800 million of cash and $150 million of carried interest. These joint ventures, along with the divestiture of approximately $1.1 billion of non-strategic assets, enabled EXCO to reduce its debt approximately $2.1 billion, or 67%, and increase liquidity to nearly $1.2 billion.
Prior to our initial public offering, 13.9% of our common stock was held by I-Bankers Securities, Inc. I-Bankers is a global provider of financial and advisory services. I-Bankers’ main business focus is generating returns to investors and stockholders by providing a diversified range of services to clients. I-Bankers acts on behalf of institutional, corporate and retail clients and counterparties around the world.
I-Bankers comprises advisory, capital raising and principal investing capabilities. The firm provides varied services to corporate, financial sponsor and government clients involved in mergers and acquisitions, debt and equity fund raising, corporate restructuring, and project finance. In the United States, I-Bankers has specialist sector expertise and a comprehensive advisory and capital markets platform.
The past performance of the members of our management team, I-Bankers, or their affiliates is not a guarantee that we will be able to identify a suitable candidate for our initial business combination or of success with respect to any business combination we may consummate. You should not rely on the historical record of the performance of our management team, I-Bankers, or their affiliates as indicative of our future performance. None of our directors have any past experience with any blank check companies or special purpose acquisition companies. In addition, such parties may have conflicts of interest with other entities for which a conflict of interest may or does exist between such persons and the company, as well as the priority and preference that such entity has with respect to performance of obligations and presentation of business opportunities to us, please refer to the table and subsequent explanatory paragraph under “Item 10. Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance—Conflicts of Interest”.
Business Strategy & Competitive Strengths
Our acquisition and value creation strategy is to identify, acquire and, after our initial business combination, build a company in the energy industry in North America that complements the experience of our management team and can benefit from their operational expertise and/or executive oversight. Our acquisition strategy leverages our management team’s network of potential proprietary and public transaction sources where we believe a combination of our relationships, knowledge and experience in the energy industry could effect a positive transformation or augmentation of existing businesses or properties to improve their overall value proposition.
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We utilize the network and industry experience of our management team and business partners in seeking an initial business combination and employing our acquisition strategy. Over the course of their careers, the members of our management team and their affiliates have developed a broad network of contacts and industry relationships that we believe will serve as a useful source of acquisition opportunities. This network has been developed through our management team’s extensive experience in both investing and operating in the energy industry. In addition to our industry and lending community relationships, we leverage relationships with management teams of public and private companies, capital market participants, private equity groups, investment banking firms, consultants, restructuring advisers, attorneys and accounting firms, which we believe should provide us with a number of business combination opportunities. 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 opportunities with value creation potential.
We also leverage the relationships and reputation that our management team has developed at Saddle Operating. As noted above, Saddle Operating was a private acquisition and production company that was founded in December 2013 to focus on long-life producing oil and gas assets in the Barnett Shale. Saddle Operating was backed by First Reserve Corporation, a leading global private equity and infrastructure investment firm focused solely on energy, which provided capital and operational support to Saddle Operating. Saddle Operating completed two acquisitions of assets in the Barnett Shale totaling approximately $415 million in December 2016. Over five years, Saddle Operating developed relationships with other public and private upstream and midstream oil and gas companies, oilfield service providers and investors. These relationships provide additional opportunities for our management team to find and pursue suitable target businesses.
The primary strategies our management team uses to identify a potential business combination to generate favorable returns include seeking to:
| • | Acquire and operate quality, producing assets, with high working interests, in a well-known basin with a large oil and gas reserve base and production, proved reserve and cash flow upside at an attractive valuation. |
| • | Provide development capital and expertise to partner with companies with high quality assets, established infrastructure and core acreage positions at attractive economics. |
| • | Leverage proved developed reserves while targeting multiple productive pay zones to increase upside potential. |
| • | Target producing assets with significant opportunities for cost improvements and application of new technology. |
Acquisition Strategy
Consistent with this strategy, we have identified the following general criteria and guidelines that we believe are important in evaluating prospective target businesses. We use these criteria and guidelines in evaluating acquisition opportunities, but we may decide to enter into our initial business combination with a target business that does not meet these criteria and guidelines. We intend to acquire companies that we believe:
| • | are well positioned to benefit from increased levels of production from key domestic basins; |
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| • | have significant proved developed producing reserves in a well-known basin with proven development opportunities; |
| • | have the ability to generate significant current free cash flow; |
| • | have potential to generate significant growth in shareholder value following our initial business combination; |
| • | are at an inflection point, such as requiring additional management expertise, are able to innovate through new operational techniques and technology, or where we believe we can drive improved financial performance; |
| • | have developed leading positions within the energy industry, based on our evaluation of several factors, including growth profile, competitive environment, profitability profile and sustainability of business plan; |
| • | can utilize the extensive networks, operational experience and insights our management team has built in the energy industry; |
| • | are fundamentally sound but we believe can achieve better results by leveraging the operating and financial experience of our management team and their affiliates; |
| • | 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; and |
| • | can offer attractive risk-adjusted returns on investments for our stockholders. |
We seek to acquire the target on terms and in a manner that leverage our management team’s experience investing within the energy industry. 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 tender offer documents or proxy solicitation materials that we would file with the SEC.
In evaluating a prospective target business, we conduct a thorough due diligence review that encompasses, 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 is made available to us. In conducting our due diligence review, we leverage the experience of members of our management team and I-Bankers on an efficient and cost-effective basis as we deploy them to review matters related to their specific areas of functional expertise.
We are not prohibited from pursuing an initial business combination with a company that is affiliated with 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 the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, or FINRA, or an independent accounting firm that our initial business combination is fair to our company from a financial point of view.
Members of our management team, our sponsor and our independent directors directly or indirectly own founder shares and/or private placement warrants following our initial 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 target 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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We have not selected any specific 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 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. 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.
Our executive officers are not required to commit any specified amount of time to our affairs, and, accordingly, will have conflicts of interest in allocating management time among various business activities, including identifying potential business combination targets and monitoring the related due diligence.
Our sponsor and executive officers have agreed, pursuant to a written letter agreement, not to participate in the formation of, or become an officer of, any other blank check company until we have entered into a definitive agreement regarding our initial business combination or we have failed to complete our initial business combination within 12 months after the closing of our initial public offering (or up to 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination); provided that this agreement would not prevent our executive officers from serving as directors in other blank check companies.
Neither I-Bankers nor any of its affiliates has entered into such an agreement, and, accordingly, are not precluded from participating in any other blank check company or from underwriting an offering by any other blank check company.
Initial Business Combination
As required by NASDAQ rules, our initial business combination will be approved by a majority of our independent directors. NASDAQ rules also require that we must complete one or more business combinations having an aggregate fair market value of at least 80% of the value of the assets held in the trust account (excluding the deferred underwriting commissions and taxes payable) at the time of our signing a definitive agreement in connection with our initial business combination. Our board of directors will make the determination as to the fair market value of 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 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 our initial business combination, it may be unable to do so if it is less familiar or experienced with the business of a particular target or if there is a significant amount of uncertainty as to the value of a target’s assets or prospects. In addition, we have agreed not to enter into a definitive agreement regarding an initial business combination without the prior consent of our sponsor.
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 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 in order to meet certain objectives of the
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target management team or stockholders, or for other reasons. However, we will only complete an initial business combination if the post-transaction company owns or acquires 50% or more of the outstanding voting securities of the target or otherwise acquires a controlling interest in the target sufficient for it not to be required to register as an investment company under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, or 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 initial business combination may collectively own a minority interest in the post-transaction company, depending on valuations ascribed to the target and us in the initial business combination. For example, we could pursue a transaction in which we issue a substantial number of new shares in exchange for all of the outstanding capital stock of a target. In this case, we would acquire a 100% controlling interest in the target. However, as a result of the issuance of a substantial number of new shares, our stockholders immediately prior to our initial business combination could own less than a majority of our outstanding shares subsequent to our initial business combination. If less than 100% of the equity interests or assets of a target business or businesses are owned or acquired by the post-transaction company, the portion of such business or businesses that is owned or acquired is what will be taken into account for purposes of NASDAQ’s 80% of fair market value test. If the initial business combination involves more than one target business, the 80% of fair market value 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 purposes of a tender offer or for seeking stockholder approval, as applicable.
Our Business Combination Process
In evaluating prospective business combinations, we expect to conduct a thorough due diligence review process that may encompass, among other things, a review of historical and projected financial and operating data, meetings with management and their advisors (if applicable), on-site inspection of facilities and assets, discussion with customers and suppliers, legal reviews and other reviews as we deem appropriate.
We will also leverage our operational and capital allocation experience in order to:
| • | Assemble a team of industry and financial experts: For each potential transaction, we intend to assemble a team of industry and financial experts to supplement our management’s efforts to identify and resolve key issues facing the company. We intend to construct an operating and financial plan which optimizes the potential to grow shareholder value. With extensive experience investing in both healthy and underperforming businesses, we expect that our management will be able to demonstrate to the target business and its stakeholders that we have the resources and expertise to lead the combined company through complex and often turbulent market conditions and provide the strategic and operational direction necessary to grow the business in order to maximize cash flows and improve the overall strategic prospects for the business; |
| • | Conduct rigorous research and analysis: Performing disciplined, bottom-up fundamental research and analysis is core to our strategy, and we intend to conduct extensive due diligence to evaluate the impact that a transaction may have on the target business; |
| • | Acquire the target company at an attractive price relative to our view of its intrinsic value: Combining rigorous bottom- up analysis as well as input from industry and financial experts, the management team intends to develop its view of the intrinsic value of the potential business combination. In doing so, the management team will evaluate future cash flow potential, relative industry valuation metrics and precedent transactions to inform its view of intrinsic value, with the intention of creating a business combination at an attractive price relative to such view; |
| • | Implement operating and financial structuring opportunities: We believe our management team has the ability to structure and execute a business combination which will provide the combined business with a capital structure that will support growth in shareholder value and give the combined company the flexibility needed to grow organically and/or through strategic acquisitions or divestitures. We intend to also develop and implement strategies and initiatives to improve the business’s operating and financial performance and create a platform for growth; and |
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| • | Seek follow-on strategic acquisitions and divestitures to further grow shareholder value: The management team intends to analyze the strategic direction of the company and evaluate non-core asset sales to create financial and/or operating flexibility needed for the company to engage in organic or inorganic growth. Specifically, the management team intends to evaluate opportunities for industry consolidation in the company’s core lines of business as well as opportunities to vertically or horizontally integrate with other industry participants. |
Following our initial business combination, we intend to evaluate opportunities to enhance shareholder value, including developing and implementing corporate strategies and initiatives to provide financial and operating runway such that the company can improve its profitability and long-term value. In doing so, the management team anticipates evaluating corporate governance, opportunistically accessing capital markets and other opportunities to enhance liquidity, identifying acquisition and divestiture opportunities, and properly aligning management and board incentives with growing shareholder value.
Corporate Information
Our executive offices are located at 955 W. John Carpenter Fwy., Suite 100-929, Irving, TX 75039 and our telephone number is (619) 500-7747.
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 2012, or the JOBS Act. As such, we are eligible to take advantage of certain exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other public companies that are not emerging growth companies including, but not limited to, not being required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes- Oxley Act of 2002, or the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports and proxy statements, and exemptions from the requirements of holding a non-binding advisory vote on executive compensation and stockholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved. If some investors find our securities less attractive as a result, there may be a less active trading market for our securities and the prices of our securities may be more volatile.
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.
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 closing of our initial public offering, (b) in which we have total annual gross revenue of at least $1.07 billion, or (c) in which we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer, which means the market value of our common stock that is held by non-affiliates exceeds $700 million as of the prior June 30, 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. References herein to emerging growth company will have the meaning associated with it in the JOBS Act.
Status as a Public Company
We believe our structure will make us an attractive business combination partner to target businesses. As a public company, we offer a target business an alternative to the traditional initial public offering through a merger or other business combination with us. Following an initial business combination, we believe the target business would have greater access to capital and additional means of creating management incentives that are better aligned with stockholders’ interests than it would as a private company. A target business can further benefit by augmenting its
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profile among potential new customers and vendors and aid in attracting talented employees. In a business combination transaction with us, the owners of the target business may, for example, exchange their shares of stock in the target business for our shares of common stock (or shares of a new holding company) or for a combination of our shares of 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 expeditious 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, marketing and road show efforts that may not be present to the same extent in connection with an initial business combination with us.
Furthermore, once a proposed initial 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. Following an initial business combination, we believe the target business would then have greater access to capital and an additional means of providing management incentives consistent with stockholders’ interests and the ability to use its shares 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.
Financial Position
As of December 31, 2020, we had approximately $116.7 million held in the trust account. With the funds available, 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 initial 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 intend to effectuate our initial business combination using cash from the proceeds of our initial public offering and the private placement of the private placement warrants, the proceeds of the sale of our shares in connection with our initial business combination, shares issued to the owners of the target, debt issued to bank or other lenders or the owners of the target, 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 securities, or not all of the funds released from the trust account are used for payment of the consideration in connection with our initial business combination or used for redemptions of our 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 companies or for working capital.
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We may seek to raise additional funds through a private offering of debt or equity securities in connection with the completion of our initial business combination, and we may effectuate our initial business combination using the proceeds of such offering rather than using the amounts held in the trust account. In addition, we intend to target businesses larger than we could acquire with the net proceeds of our initial public offering and the sale of the private placement warrants, and may as a result be required to seek additional financing to complete such proposed initial business combination. Subject to compliance with applicable securities laws, we would expect to complete such financing only simultaneously with the completion of our initial business combination. In the case of an initial business combination funded with assets other than the trust account assets, our proxy materials or tender offer documents disclosing the initial business combination would disclose the terms of the financing and, only if required by law, we would seek stockholder approval of such financing. There are no prohibitions on our ability to raise funds privately or through loans in connection with our initial business combination. At this time, we are not a party to any arrangement or understanding with any third party with respect to raising any additional funds through the sale of securities or otherwise.
Sources of Target Businesses
We anticipate that target business candidates will continue to be brought to our attention from various unaffiliated sources, including investment bankers and investment professionals. Target businesses may be brought to our attention by such unaffiliated sources as a result of being solicited by us by calls or mailings. These sources may also introduce us to target businesses in which they think we may be interested on an unsolicited basis, since many of these sources will have read this Report or the final prospectus relating to our initial public offering and know what types of businesses we are targeting. Our officers and directors, as well as our sponsor and 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 business relationships of our officers and directors and our sponsor and their respective industry and business contacts as well as their affiliates. 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, advisory 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. Payment of finder’s fees 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. In no event will our sponsor or any of our existing officers or directors, or any entity with which our sponsor or officers are affiliated, be paid any finder’s fee, reimbursement, consulting fee, monies in respect of any payment of a loan or other compensation by the company prior to, or in connection with any services rendered 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). Although none of our sponsor, executive officers or directors, or any of their respective affiliates, will be allowed to receive any compensation, finder’s fees or consulting fees from a prospective business combination target in connection with a contemplated initial business combination, we do not have a policy that prohibits our sponsor, executive officers or directors, or any of their respective affiliates, from negotiating for the reimbursement of out-of-pocket expenses by a target business. We have agreed to pay an affiliate of our sponsor a total of $5,000 per month for office space, utilities and secretarial and administrative support 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 initial business combination candidate.
If any of our officers or directors becomes aware of an initial 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.
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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 focus our search for an initial business combination in a single industry. By completing our initial business combination with only a single entity, our lack of diversification may:
| • | subject us to negative economic, competitive and regulatory developments, any or all of which may have a substantial adverse impact on the particular industry in which we operate after our initial business combination, and |
| • | 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 initial business combination with that business, our assessment of the target business’ 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 initial business combination, it is unlikely that any of them will devote their full efforts to our affairs subsequent to our initial 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 an initial 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. 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 legal 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.
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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 NASDAQ’s listing rules, stockholder approval would be required for our initial business combination if, for example:
| • | we issue shares of common stock that will be equal to or in excess of 20% of the number of shares of our common stock then outstanding (other than in a public offering); |
| • | any of our directors, officers or substantial security holders (as defined by NASDAQ rules) has a 5% or greater interest (or such persons collectively have a 10% or greater), directly or indirectly, in the target business or assets to be acquired or otherwise and the present potential issuance of common stock could result in an increase in outstanding common shares or voting power of 5% or more; or |
| • | the issuance or potential issuance of common stock will result in our undergoing a change of control. |
Permitted Purchases of our Securities
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 sponsor, initial stockholders, 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, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates may purchase in such transactions, subject to compliance with applicable law and NASDAQ rules. 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. If they engage in such transactions, they will not make any such purchases when they are in possession of any material nonpublic information not disclosed to the seller or if such purchases are prohibited by Regulation M under the Exchange Act. 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.
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. None of the funds held in the trust account will be used to purchase shares or public warrants in such transactions prior to completion of our initial business combination.
The purpose of any such purchases of shares could be to vote such shares in favor of the initial business combination and thereby increase the likelihood of obtaining stockholder approval of the initial 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 initial 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 warrant holders for approval in connection with our initial business combination. Any such purchases of our securities may result in the completion of our initial business combination that may not otherwise have been possible. In addition, if such purchases are made, the public “float” of our shares of common stock or 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.
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Our sponsor, officers, directors and/or their affiliates anticipate that they may identify the stockholders with whom our 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 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. Our sponsor, officers, directors, advisors or their affiliates will only purchase shares if such purchases comply with Regulation M under the Exchange Act and the other federal securities laws.
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 will not make 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 purchases 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 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 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 approximately $10.15 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 commissions we will pay to the underwriters. The redemption rights will include the requirement that a beneficial holder must identify itself in order to validly redeem its shares. 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 initial business combination.
Ability to Extend Time to Complete Business Combination
We have until 12 months from the closing of our initial public offering to consummate our initial business combination. However, if we anticipate that we may not be able to consummate our initial business combination within 12 months, we may, by resolution of our board if requested by our sponsor, extend the period of time to consummate a business combination up to two times, each by an additional three months (for a total of up to 18 months to complete a business combination), subject to the sponsor depositing additional funds into the trust account as set out below. Pursuant to the terms of the trust agreement entered into between us and Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, LLC on the date of our initial public offering, in order to extend the time available for us to consummate our initial business combination, our initial shareholders or their affiliates or designees, upon five days advance notice prior to the applicable deadline, must deposit into the trust account for each three-month extension, $1,150,000, or $0.10 per share, on or prior to the date of the applicable deadline, up to an aggregate of $2,300,000, or $0.20 per share. Any such payments would be made in the form of a loan. Any such loans will be non-interest bearing and payable upon the consummation of our initial business combination. If we complete our initial business combination, we would repay such loaned amounts out of the proceeds of the trust account released to us. If we do not complete a business combination, we will
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not repay such loans. Furthermore, the letter agreement with our initial stockholders contains a provision pursuant to which our sponsor has agreed to waive its right to be repaid for such loans out of the funds held in the trust account in the event that we do not complete a business combination. In the event that we receive notice from our sponsor five days prior to the applicable deadline of its wish for us to affect an extension, we intend to issue a press release announcing such intention at least three days prior to the applicable deadline. In addition, we intend to issue a press release the day after the applicable deadline announcing whether or not the funds had been timely deposited. Our sponsor and its affiliates or designees are not obligated to fund the trust account to extend the time for us to complete our initial business combination. If we choose to extend the period of time to consummate a business combination as set forth herein, you will not have the ability to vote or redeem your shares of common stock in connection with either of the three-month extensions. However, if we seek to complete a business combination during an extension period, investors will still be able to vote and redeem their shares of common stock in connection with that business combination.
Manner of Conducting Redemptions
We will provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their shares of common stock upon the completion of our initial business combination either (i) in connection with a stockholder meeting called to approve the initial business combination or (ii) by means of a tender offer. The decision as to whether we will seek stockholder approval of a proposed initial 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 the law or stock exchange listing requirement. Under NASDAQ rules, 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 an initial business combination with a target company in a manner that requires stockholder approval, we will not have discretion as to whether to seek a stockholder vote to approve the proposed initial business combination. We may conduct redemptions without a stockholder vote pursuant to the tender offer rules of the SEC unless stockholder approval is required by law or stock exchange listing requirements or we choose to seek stockholder approval for business or other legal reasons. So long as we obtain and maintain a listing for our securities on NASDAQ, we are required to comply with such rules.
If a stockholder vote is not required and we do not decide to hold a stockholder vote for business or other legal reasons, we will, pursuant to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation:
| • | conduct the redemptions pursuant to Rule 13e-4 and Regulation 14E of the Exchange Act, which regulate issuer tender offers, and |
| • | 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. |
Upon the public announcement of our initial business combination, we or our sponsor will terminate any plan established in accordance with Rule 10b5-1 to purchase shares of our 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 a specified number of public shares which are not purchased by our sponsor, which number will be based on the requirement that we may not
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redeem 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) or any greater net tangible asset or cash requirement which may be contained in the agreement relating to our initial business combination. 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.
If, however, stockholder approval of the transaction is required by law or stock exchange listing requirement, or we decide to obtain stockholder approval for business or other legal reasons, we will, pursuant to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation:
| • | 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 |
| • | 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 initial 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 will count toward this quorum and pursuant to the letter agreement, our sponsor, officers and directors have agreed to vote their founder shares and any public shares purchased during or after our initial public offering (including in open market and privately negotiated transactions) 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 and representative shares, we would need only 4,187,501, or 36.4%, of the 11,500,000 public shares sold in our initial public offering to be voted in favor of an initial business combination (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 they vote for or against the proposed transaction. In addition, our initial stockholders have entered into a letter agreement with us, pursuant to which they have agreed to waive their redemption rights with respect to their founder shares and public shares in connection with the completion of a business combination.
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) or any greater net tangible asset or cash requirement which may be contained in the agreement relating to our initial business combination. For example, the proposed initial 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 initial business combination. In the event the aggregate cash consideration we would be required to pay for all shares of common stock that are validly submitted for redemption plus any amount required to satisfy cash conditions pursuant to the terms of the proposed initial business combination exceed the aggregate amount of cash available to us, we will not complete the initial business combination or redeem any shares, and all shares of common stock submitted for redemption will be returned to the holders thereof.
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Limitation on Redemption upon Completion of our Initial Business Combination if we Seek Stockholder Approval
Notwithstanding the foregoing, 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 10% of the shares sold in our initial public offering, which we refer to as the “Excess Shares.” Such restriction shall also be applicable to our affiliates. 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 initial 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 10% of the shares sold in our initial public offering could threaten to exercise its redemption rights if such holder’s shares are not purchased by us or our management at a premium to the then-current market price or on other undesirable terms. By limiting our stockholders’ ability to redeem no more than 10% of the shares sold in our initial 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 initial business combination, particularly in connection with an initial 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 initial business combination.
Tendering Stock Certificates in Connection with a Tender Offer or Redemption Rights
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 tender offer documents or proxy materials mailed to such holders, or up to two business days prior to the initial vote on the proposal to approve the initial 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 tender offer or proxy materials, as applicable, that we will furnish to holders of our public shares in connection with our initial business combination will indicate whether we are requiring public stockholders to satisfy such delivery requirements, which will include the requirement that a beneficial holder must identify itself in order to validly redeem its shares. 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 initial 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 exercise period, 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 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 initial business combination and check a box on the proxy card indicating such holder was
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seeking to exercise his or her redemption rights. After the initial 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 initial 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 initial 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 initial 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 the date of the stockholder meeting set forth in our proxy materials, as applicable. Furthermore, if a holder of a public share delivered its certificate in connection with an election of redemption rights and subsequently decides prior to 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 initial 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.
If our initial proposed initial business combination is not completed, we may continue to try to complete an initial business combination with a different target until 12 months from the closing of our initial public offering (or up to 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination).
Redemption of Public Shares and Liquidation if no Initial Business Combination
We have only 12 months from the closing of our initial public offering (or up to 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination) to complete our initial business combination. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination within such 12-month period (or up to 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination), 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 which interest shall be net of taxes payable), 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 rights or warrants, which will expire worthless if we fail to complete our initial business combination within the 12-month time period.
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 12 months from the closing of our initial public offering (or up to 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination). 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 initial business combination within the allotted 12-month time period.
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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 (i) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 12 months from the closing of our initial public offering (or up to 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination) or (ii) with respect to any other provision relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity, unless we provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their shares of common stock upon approval of any such amendment at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our franchise and income taxes divided by the number of then outstanding public shares. 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 (described above), we would not proceed with the amendment or the related redemption of our public shares at such time.
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 out of the $693,818 of proceeds held outside the trust account (as of December 31, 2020), although we cannot assure you that there will be sufficient funds for such purpose. We will depend on sufficient interest being earned on the proceeds held in the trust account to pay any tax obligations we may owe. 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 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 our initial 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 $10.15. 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 $10.15. Under Section 281(b) of the General Corporation Law of Delaware, as amended (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, service providers, 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 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
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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 management is unable to find a service provider willing to execute a waiver. Marcum LLP, our independent registered public accounting firm, and the underwriters of our initial public offering will not execute agreements with us waiving such claims to the monies held in the trust account.
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 for services rendered or products sold to us, or a prospective target business with which we have entered into a written letter of intent, confidentiality or similar agreement or business combination agreement, reduce the amount of funds in the trust account to below the lesser of (i) $10.15 per public share and (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 taxes, except as to any claims by a third party who executed a waiver of any and all rights to seek access to the trust account and except as to any claims under our indemnity of the underwriters of our initial 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, then our sponsor will not be responsible to the extent of any liability for such third-party claims. We have not asked our sponsor to reserve for such indemnification obligations, and 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. We believe the likelihood of our sponsor having to indemnify the trust account is limited because we will endeavor to have all vendors and prospective target businesses as well as other entities execute agreements with us waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to monies held in the trust account.
In the event that the proceeds in the trust account are reduced below (i) $10.15 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 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 $10.15 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, 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 our initial public offering against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. We will have access to up to $693,818 of proceeds held outside the trust account (as of December 31, 2020) 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 initial business
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combination within 12 months from the closing of our initial public offering (or up to 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination) 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 initial business combination within 12 months from the closing of our initial public offering (or up to 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination), is not considered a liquidating distribution under Delaware law and such redemption distribution is deemed to be unlawful (potentially due to the imposition of legal proceedings that a party may bring or due to other circumstances that are currently unknown), 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 initial business combination within 12 months from the closing of our initial public offering (or up to 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination), 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. Accordingly, it is our intention to redeem our public shares as soon as reasonably possible following our 18th month 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 will be 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, 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) $10.15 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 taxes and will not be liable as to any claims under our indemnity of the underwriters of our initial 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.
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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 $10.15 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, 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 upon the earlier to occur of: (i) the completion of our initial business combination, (ii) the redemption of any public shares properly tendered in connection with a stockholder vote to amend any provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation (A) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 12 months from the closing of our initial public offering (or up to 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination) or (B) with respect to any other provision relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity, and (iii) the redemption of all of our public shares if we are unable to complete our business combination within 12 months from the closing of our initial public offering (or up to 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination), subject to applicable law. 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 initial 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 as described above. 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.
Competition
In identifying, evaluating and selecting a target business for our initial business combination, we may encounter 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 business combinations. 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 initial business combination 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. Either of these factors may place us at a competitive disadvantage in successfully negotiating an initial business combination.
Facilities
Our executive offices are located at 955 W. John Carpenter Fwy., Suite 100-929, Irving, TX 75039 and our telephone number is (619) 500-7747. Our executive offices are provided to us by our sponsor. Commencing on the date our securities were first listed on NASDAQ, we have agreed to pay an affiliate of our sponsor a total of $5,000 per month for office space, utilities and secretarial and administrative support. We consider our current office space adequate for our current operations.
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Employees
We currently have four executive officers. Members of our management team 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 they will devote in any time period will vary based on whether a target business has been selected for our initial business combination and the stage of the initial business combination process we are in. We do not intend to have any full-time employees prior to the completion of our initial business combination.
Periodic Reporting and Financial Information
We will register our units, common stock, rights and 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 tender offer materials or proxy solicitation materials sent to stockholders to assist them in assessing the target business. In all likelihood, these financial statements will need to be prepared in accordance with, or 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 targets we may conduct an initial business combination with because some targets may be unable to provide such statements in time for us to disclose such statements in accordance with federal proxy rules and complete our initial business combination within the prescribed time frame. We cannot assure you that any particular target business identified by us as a potential business combination candidate will have financial statements prepared in accordance with GAAP 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 these requirements cannot be met, we may not be able to acquire the proposed target business. While this may limit the pool of potential business combination 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. Only in the event we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer or an accelerated filer, and no longer qualify as an emerging growth company, will we be required to have our internal control procedures audited. A target company 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 business combination.
We are an “emerging growth company,” as defined in Section 2(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Securities Act, as modified by the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act of 2012, or the JOBS Act. As such, we are eligible to take advantage of certain exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other public companies that are not “emerging growth companies” including, but not limited to, not being required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act 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 (1) the last day of the fiscal year (a) following the fifth anniversary of the completion of our initial public offering, (b) in which we have total annual gross revenue of at least $1.07 billion, or (c) in which we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer, which means the market value of our shares of common stock that are 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 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 (1) the market value of our shares of common stock held by non-affiliates exceeds $250 million as of the prior June 30, or (2) our annual revenues exceeded $100 million during such completed fiscal year and the market value of our shares of common stock held by non-affiliates exceeds $700 million as of the prior June 30.
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| ITEM 1A. | RISK FACTORS |
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 Report, before making a decision to invest in our units. If any of the following events occur, our business, financial condition and operating results may be materially adversely affected. In that event, the trading price of our securities could decline, and you could lose all or part of your investment.
Summary of Risk Factors
| • | 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. |
| • | Our public stockholders may not be afforded an opportunity to vote on our proposed initial 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. |
| • | If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination, our initial stockholders have agreed to vote in favor of such initial business combination, regardless of how our public stockholders vote. |
| • | 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. |
| • | 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. |
| • | The requirement that we complete our initial business combination within the prescribed time frame may give potential target businesses leverage over us in negotiating an initial business combination and may decrease our ability to conduct due diligence on potential business combination targets as we approach our dissolution deadline, which could undermine our ability to complete our initial business combination on terms that would produce value for our stockholders. |
| • | If a stockholder fails to receive notice of our offer to redeem our public shares in connection with our initial business combination, or fails to comply with the procedures for tendering its shares, such shares may not be redeemed. |
| • | You will not be entitled to protections normally afforded to investors of many other blank check companies. |
| • | 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 approximately $10.15 per share on our redemption of our public shares, or less than such amount in certain circumstances, and our warrants will expire worthless. |
| • | 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 $10.15 per share. |
| • | 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. |
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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. |
| • | Because we are neither limited to evaluating a target business in a particular industry sector nor have we selected 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 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 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. |
| • | 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 or the stockholders from a financial point of view. |
| • | 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. Any such issuances would dilute the interest of our stockholders and likely present other risks. |
| • | 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. |
| • | Since our sponsor, officers and directors will lose their entire investment in us if our initial business combination is not completed, a conflict of interest may arise in determining whether a particular business combination target is appropriate for our initial business combination. |
| • | In order to effectuate an initial business combination, blank check companies have, in the recent past, amended various provisions of their charters and other governing instruments, including their warrant agreements. We cannot assure you that we will not seek to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation or governing instruments in a manner that will make it easier for us to complete our initial business combination that our stockholders may not support. |
| • | Our initial stockholders may exert a substantial influence on actions requiring a stockholder vote, potentially in a manner that you do not support. |
| • | Because each unit contains one-twentieth of one right, the units may be worth less than units of other blank check companies. |
| • | The obligation of our sponsor and I-Bankers to purchase rights in the open market as described in this prospectus may allow them to make a substantial profit even if an initial business combination subsequently declines in value or is unprofitable for our public stockholders, and may create conflicts of interest in selecting a target business combination. Additionally, such rights purchases may support the market price of the rights during the buyback period. |
| • | Our warrant agreement and rights agreement will designate 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 or rights, which could limit the ability of warrant or right holders to obtain a favorable judicial forum for disputes with our company. |
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Risks Relating to Our Search For, Consummation of, or Inability to Consummate, a Business Combination
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 will not commence operations until obtaining funding through our initial 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. We have no plans, arrangements or understandings with any prospective target business concerning an initial business combination and may be unable to complete our initial business combination. If we fail to complete our initial business combination, we will never generate any operating revenues.
Our public stockholders may not be afforded an opportunity to vote on our proposed initial 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 unless the initial business combination would require stockholder approval under applicable law or stock exchange listing requirements or if we decide to hold a stockholder vote for business or other legal reasons. Except as required by law, the decision as to whether we will seek stockholder approval of a proposed initial 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 initial business combination we complete.
If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination, our initial stockholders have agreed to vote in favor of such initial business combination, regardless of how our public stockholders vote.
Pursuant to the letter agreement, our sponsor, officers and directors have agreed to vote their founder shares, as well as any public shares purchased during or after our initial public offering (including in open market and privately negotiated transactions), in favor of our initial business combination. As a result, in addition to our initial stockholders’ founder shares and representative shares, we would need only 4,187,501, or 36.4%, of the 11,500,000 public shares sold in our initial public offering to be voted in favor of an initial business combination (assuming all outstanding shares are voted) in order to have our initial business combination approved. Our initial stockholders own shares representing 20% of our outstanding shares of common stock immediately following the completion of our initial public offering. Accordingly, if we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination, the agreement by our initial stockholders 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.
Your only opportunity to affect the investment decision regarding a potential business combination will be limited to the exercise of your right to redeem your shares from us for cash, unless we seek stockholder approval of the initial business combination.
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 an initial business combination without seeking stockholder approval, public stockholders may not have the right or opportunity to vote on the initial business combination, unless we seek such stockholder vote.
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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.
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 an initial business combination with a target.
We may seek to enter into an initial business combination 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 initial 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) or any greater net tangible asset or cash requirement which may be contained in the agreement relating to our initial business combination. 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 an initial business combination 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 initial 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 commissions payable to the underwriters will not be adjusted for any shares that are redeemed in connection with an initial 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 commission and after such redemptions, the per-share value of shares held by non- redeeming stockholders will reflect our obligation to pay the deferred underwriting commissions.
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 initial 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.
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The requirement that we complete our initial business combination within the prescribed time frame may give potential target businesses leverage over us in negotiating an initial business combination and may decrease our ability to conduct due diligence on potential business combination targets as we approach our dissolution deadline, which could undermine our ability to complete our initial business combination on terms that would produce value for our stockholders.
Any potential target business with which we enter into negotiations concerning an initial business combination will be aware that we must complete our initial business combination within 12 months from the closing of our initial public offering (or up to 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination). Consequently, such target business may obtain leverage over us in negotiating an initial 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 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 may not be able to complete our initial business combination within the prescribed time frame, 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 only receive $10.15 per share, or less than such amount in certain circumstances, and our warrants will expire worthless.
We must complete our initial business combination within 12 months from the closing of our initial public offering (or up to 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination). We may not be able to find a suitable target business and complete our initial business combination within such time period. If we have not completed our initial business combination within such time period, 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. In such case, our public stockholders may only receive $10.15 per share, and our warrants will expire worthless. In certain circumstances, our public stockholders may receive less than $10.15 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 $10.15 per share” and other risk factors below.
If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination, our sponsor, directors, officers, advisors and their affiliates may elect to purchase shares or warrants from public stockholders, which may influence a vote on a proposed initial business combination and reduce the public “float” of our 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 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. 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.
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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 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 such purchases could be to vote such shares in favor of the initial business combination and thereby increase the likelihood of obtaining stockholder approval of the initial 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 initial 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 warrant holders for approval in connection with our initial business combination. Any such purchases of our securities may result in the completion of our initial 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 such purchasers are subject to such reporting requirements.
In addition, if such purchases are made, the public “float” of our common stock or public warrants and the number of beneficial holders of our securities may be reduced, possibly making it difficult to obtain or maintain 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 initial business combination, or fails to comply with the procedures for tendering its shares, such shares may not be redeemed.
We will comply with the tender offer rules or proxy rules, as applicable, when conducting redemptions in connection with our initial business combination. Despite our compliance with these rules, if a stockholder fails to receive our tender offer or proxy materials, as applicable, such stockholder may not become aware of the opportunity to redeem its shares. In addition, proxy materials or tender offer documents, as applicable, that we 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 tender or redeem public shares, which will include the requirement that a beneficial holder must identify itself. 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 tender offer documents mailed to such holders, or up to two business days prior to the initial vote on the proposal to approve the initial 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. See the section of this prospectus entitled “Item 1. Business — Redemption Rights for Public Stockholders upon Completion of our Initial Business Combination — Tendering Stock Certificates in Connection with a Tender Offer or Redemption Rights.”
You will not have any rights or interests in funds from the trust account, except under certain limited circumstances. To liquidate your investment, therefore, 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) our completion of an initial business combination, (ii) the redemption of any public shares properly submitted in connection with a stockholder vote to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation (A) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 12 months from the closing of our initial public offering (or up to 18 months from the closing of our initial offering if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination) or (B) with respect to any other provision relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity and (iii) the redemption of our public shares if we are unable to complete an initial business combination within 12 months from the closing of our initial public offering (or up to 18 months from the closing
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of our initial public offering if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination), subject to applicable law and as further described herein. 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.
Because we are neither limited to evaluating a target business in a particular industry sector nor have we selected 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 industry, we may seek to complete a business combination with an operating company in any industry or sector. However, we will not, under our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, be permitted to effectuate our business combination 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 initial 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 sales 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 securities 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 our initial 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 unless they are able to successfully claim that the reduction was due to the breach by our officers or directors of a duty of care or other fiduciary duty owed to them, or if they are able to successfully bring a private claim under securities laws that the proxy solicitation or tender offer materials, as applicable, relating to the business combination contained an actionable material misstatement or material omission.
Past performance by our management team, may not be indicative of future performance of an investment in the Company.
Information regarding performance by, or businesses associated with our management team and their affiliates is presented for informational purposes only. Past performance by our management team 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 our management team’s or their affiliates’ performance as indicative of the future performance of an investment in the company or the returns the company will, or is likely to, generate going forward. Our officers and directors have not had experience with blank check companies or special purpose acquisition companies in the past.
Because we intend to seek a business combination with a target business or businesses in the energy industry, we expect our future operations to be subject to risks associated with this industry.
We intend to focus our search for a target business in the energy industry. Accordingly, we may pursue a target business in these sectors or any other sector within the energy industry. 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 industry include, but are not limited to, the following:
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| • | Volatility of oil and natural gas prices; |
| • | Price and availability of alternative fuels, such as solar, coal, nuclear and wind energy; |
| • | 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; |
| • | Significant federal, state and local regulation, taxation and regulatory approval processes as well as changes in applicable laws and regulations; |
| • | The speculative nature of and high degree of risk involved in investments in the upstream, midstream and energy services sectors, including relying on estimates of oil and gas reserves and the impacts of regulatory and tax changes; |
| • | Drilling, exploration and development risks, including encountering unexpected formations or pressures, premature declines of reservoirs, blow-outs, equipment failures and other accidents, cratering, sour gas releases, uncontrollable flows of oil, natural gas or well fluids, adverse weather conditions, pollution, fires, spills and other environmental risks, any of which could lead to environmental damage, injury and loss of life or the destruction of property; |
| • | Proximity and capacity of oil, natural gas and other transportation and support infrastructure to production facilities; |
| • | Availability of key inputs, such as strategic consumables, raw materials and drilling and processing equipment; |
| • | The supply of and demand for oilfield services and equipment in the United States and internationally; |
| • | Available pipeline, storage and other transportation capacity; |
| • | Changes in global supply and demand and prices for commodities; |
| • | Impact of energy conservation efforts; |
| • | Technological advances affecting energy production and consumption; |
| • | Overall domestic and global economic conditions; |
| • | Availability of, and potential disputes with, independent contractors; |
| • | Natural disasters, terrorist acts and similar dislocations; |
| • | Impact of COVID-19 on demand, labor markets, and other macro-economic factors affecting the energy industry, and |
| • | Value of U.S. dollar relative to the currencies of other countries. |
We may seek business combination opportunities in industries or sectors which may or may not be outside of our management’s area of expertise.
Although we focus on identifying companies in the energy sector, we will consider an initial business combination outside of our management’s area of expertise if an initial business combination candidate is presented to us and we determine that such candidate offers an attractive business combination opportunity for our company or we are unable to identify a suitable candidate in this sector after having expanded 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 securities will not ultimately prove to be less favorable to investors in our initial public offering than a direct investment, if an opportunity were available, in an initial business combination candidate. In the event we elect to pursue a business combination outside of the areas of our management’s expertise, our management’s expertise may not be directly applicable to its evaluation or operation, and the information contained in this prospectus regarding the areas of our
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management’s expertise 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 initial 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 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 legal 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 receive only approximately $10.15 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 $10.15 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 $10.15 per share” and other risk factors below.
Resources could be wasted in researching business combinations that are not completed, which could materially adversely affect subsequent attempts to locate and acquire or merge with another business. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.15 per share, or less than such amount in certain circumstances, on the liquidation of our trust account 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 receive only approximately $10.15 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 $10.15 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 $10.15 per share” and other risk factors below.
Our key personnel may negotiate employment or consulting agreements as well as reimbursement of out-of-pocket expenses, if any, with a target business in connection with a particular business combination. These agreements may provide for them to receive compensation or reimbursement for out-of-pocket expenses, if any, following our initial business combination and as a result, may cause them to have conflicts of interest in determining whether a particular business combination is the most advantageous.
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Our key personnel may be able to remain with the company after the completion of our initial business combination only if they are able to negotiate employment or consulting agreements in connection with the initial business combination. Additionally, they may negotiate reimbursement of any out-of-pocket expenses incurred on our behalf prior to the consummation of our initial business combination, should they choose to do so. Such negotiations would take place simultaneously with the negotiation of the initial 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 initial business combination, or as reimbursement for such out-of-pocket expenses. The personal and financial interests of such individuals may influence their motivation in identifying and selecting a target business. However, we believe the ability of such individuals to remain with us after the completion of our initial business combination will not be the determining factor in our decision as to whether or not we will proceed with any potential business combination. There is no certainty, however, that any of our key personnel will remain with us after the completion of our initial business combination. We cannot assure you that any of our key personnel will remain in senior management or advisory positions with us. The determination as to whether any of our key personnel will remain with us will be made at the time of our initial business combination.
Since our sponsor, officers and directors will lose their entire investment in us if our initial business combination is not completed, a conflict of interest may arise in determining whether a particular business combination target is appropriate for our initial business combination.
Our sponsor and I-Bankers hold 2,875,000 founder shares. The founder shares will be worthless if we do not complete an initial business combination. In addition, our sponsor and I-Bankers purchased an aggregate of 5,425,000 private placement warrants, each exercisable for one share of our common stock at $11.50 per share, for a purchase price of $5,425,000, or $1.00 per warrant, that will also be worthless if we do not complete a business combination.
The personal and financial interests of our executive 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 the initial business combination. This risk may become more acute as the 12-month anniversary of the closing of our initial public offering nears, which is the deadline for our completion of an initial business combination (unless extended to up to 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering).
Since our sponsor, executive officers and directors will not be eligible to be reimbursed for their out-of-pocket expenses if our business combination is not completed, a conflict of interest may arise in determining whether a particular business combination target is appropriate for our initial business combination.
At the closing of our initial business combination, 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. There is no cap or ceiling on the reimbursement of out-of-pocket expenses incurred in connection with activities on our behalf. These financial interests of our sponsor, executive officers and directors may influence their motivation in identifying and selecting a target business combination and completing an initial business combination.
Risks Relating to Our Securities
NASDAQ 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.
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Our securities are currently listed on NASDAQ. However, we cannot assure you that our securities will continue to be listed on NASDAQ in the future or prior to our initial business combination. In order to continue listing our securities on NASDAQ prior to our initial business combination, we must maintain certain financial, distribution and stock price levels. Generally, we must maintain a minimum amount in stockholders’ equity (generally $2,500,000) and a minimum number of holders of our securities (300 round-lot holders). Additionally, in connection with our initial business combination, we will be required to demonstrate compliance with NASDAQ’s initial listing requirements, which are more rigorous than NASDAQ’s continued listing requirements, in order to continue to maintain the listing of our securities on NASDAQ. For instance, our stock price would generally be required to be at least $4.00 per share, our stockholders’ equity would generally be required to be at least $5.0 million and we would be required to have a minimum of 300 round lot holders of our securities. We cannot assure you that we will be able to meet those initial listing requirements at that time. If NASDAQ delists our securities from trading on its exchange 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:
| • | a limited availability of market quotations for our securities; |
| • | reduced liquidity for our securities; |
| • | a determination that our common stock is a “penny stock” which will require brokers trading in our 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; |
| • | a limited amount of news and analyst coverage; and |
| • | a decreased ability to issue additional securities or obtain additional financing in the future. |
You will not be entitled to protections normally afforded to investors of many other blank check companies.
Since the net proceeds of our initial public offering and the sale of the private placement warrants are intended to be used to complete an initial business combination with a target business that has not been identified, we may be deemed to be a “blank check” company under the United States securities laws. However, because we will have net tangible assets in excess of $5,000,000 upon the successful completion of our initial public offering and the sale of the private placement warrants and will file a Current Report on Form 8-K, including an audited balance sheet demonstrating this fact, we are exempt from rules promulgated by the SEC to protect investors 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 have a longer period of time to complete our initial business combination than do companies subject to Rule 419. Moreover, if our initial 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 10% of our common stock, you will lose the ability to redeem all such shares in excess of 10% of our 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 10% of the shares sold in our initial public offering without our prior consent, which we refer to as the “Excess Shares.”
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However, we would not be restricting our stockholders’ ability to vote all of their shares (including Excess Shares) for or against our initial business combination. Your inability to redeem the Excess Shares will reduce your influence over our ability to complete our initial 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 initial business combination. And as a result, you will continue to hold that number of shares exceeding 10% and, in order to dispose of such shares, would be required to sell your stock in open market transactions, potentially at a loss.
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 approximately $10.15 per share on our redemption of our public shares, or less than such amount in certain circumstances, and our warrants will expire worthless.
We have encountered and continue to expect to encounter 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 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 similar technical, human and other resources to ours, and our financial resources are 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 initial 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 are limited by our available financial resources. This inherent competitive limitation gives others an advantage in pursuing the acquisition of certain target businesses. Furthermore, if we are obligated to pay cash for the shares of common stock which our public stockholders redeem in connection with our initial business combination, target companies will be aware that this may reduce the resources available to us for our initial business combination. This may place us at a competitive disadvantage in successfully negotiating an initial business combination. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.15 per share on the liquidation of our trust account and our warrants will expire worthless.
If the net proceeds of our initial 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 12 months from the closing of our initial public offering (or up to 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination), we may be unable to complete our initial business combination.
The funds available to us outside of the trust account may not be sufficient to allow us to operate for 12 months from the closing of our initial public offering (or up to 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination), assuming that our initial business combination is not completed during that time. We believe that, upon the closing of our initial public offering, the funds available to us outside of the trust account will be sufficient to allow us to operate for 12 months from the closing of our initial public offering (or up to 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination); however, we cannot assure you that our estimate is accurate. Of the funds available to us, we could use a portion of the funds available to us 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 initial 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
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target business. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.15 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 $10.15 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 $10.15 per share” and other risk factors below.
If the net proceeds of our initial public offering and the sale of the private placement warrants not being held in the trust account are insufficient, 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 an initial 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 initial public offering and the sale of the private placement warrants, $947,443 was 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 may be forced to liquidate. None of our sponsor, members of our management team or 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. 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 stockholders may only receive approximately $10.15 per share on our redemption of our public shares, and our rights and warrants will expire worthless.
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 $10.15 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, 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 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 management is 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 initial business combination within the prescribed timeframe, or upon the exercise of a redemption right in connection with our initial 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
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received by public stockholders could be less than the $10.15 per share initially held in the trust account, due to claims of such creditors. Our sponsor has agreed that it will be liable to us if and to the extent any claims by a third party for services rendered or products sold to us, or a prospective target business with which we have entered into a written letter of intent, confidentiality or similar agreement or business combination agreement, reduce the amount of funds in the trust account to below the lesser of (i) $10.15 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 $10.15 per share due to reductions in the value of the trust assets, less taxes payable, provided that such liability will not apply to any claims by a third party or prospective target business who executed a waiver of any and all rights to the monies held in the trust account (whether or not such waiver is enforceable) nor will it apply to any claims under our indemnity of the underwriters of our initial 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 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. None of our officers, directors or members of our sponsor will indemnify us for claims by third parties including, without limitation, claims by vendors and prospective target businesses.
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) $10.15 per share and (ii) the actual amount per share held in the trust account as of the date of the liquidation of the trust account if less than $10.15 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 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, 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. 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 $10.15 per share.
We may not have sufficient funds to satisfy indemnification claims of our directors and executive officers.
We have agreed to indemnify our officers and directors to the fullest extent permitted by law. However, our officers and directors have agreed to waive (and any other persons who may become an officer or director prior to the initial business combination will also be required to waive) any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to any monies in the trust account and not to 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 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, 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 we and our board may be exposed to claims of punitive damages.
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If, after we distribute the proceeds in the trust account to our public stockholders, we file a bankruptcy petition or an involuntary bankruptcy petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, any distributions received by stockholders could be viewed under applicable debtor/creditor and/or bankruptcy laws as either a “preferential transfer” or a “fraudulent conveyance.” As a result, a bankruptcy court could seek to recover all amounts received by our stockholders. In addition, our board of directors may be viewed as having breached its fiduciary duty to our creditors and/or having acted in bad faith, thereby exposing itself and us to claims of punitive damages, by paying public stockholders from the trust account prior to addressing the claims of creditors.
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.
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 12 months from the closing of our initial public offering (or up to 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination) 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 18th month from the closing of our initial public offering in the event we do not complete our initial 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 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 will be 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
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event we do not complete our initial business combination within 12 months from the closing of our initial public offering (or up to 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination) is not considered a liquidating distribution under Delaware law and such redemption distribution is deemed to be unlawful (potentially due to the imposition of legal proceedings that a party may bring or due to other circumstances that are currently unknown), 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 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.
We may not hold an annual meeting of stockholders until after we consummate a business combination (unless required by NASDAQ), and thus may not be in compliance with Section 211(b) of the DGCL, which requires an annual meeting of stockholders be held for the purposes of electing directors in accordance with a company’s bylaws unless such election is made by written consent in lieu of such a meeting. Therefore, if our stockholders want us to hold an annual meeting prior to our consummation of a business combination, they may attempt to force us to hold one by submitting an application to the Delaware Court of Chancery in accordance with Section 211(c) of the DGCL.
We have not registered the shares of 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 warrants, thus precluding such investor from being able to exercise its warrants except on a cashless basis. If the issuance of the shares upon exercise of warrants is not registered, qualified or exempt from registration or qualification, the holder of such warrant will not be entitled to exercise such warrant and such warrant may have no value and expire worthless.
We have not registered the shares of 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 with the SEC a registration statement for the registration under the Securities Act of the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants and thereafter will use our best efforts to cause the same to become effective within 60 business days following our initial business combination and to maintain a current prospectus relating to the 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. If the shares issuable upon exercise of the warrants are not registered under the Securities Act, we will be required to permit holders to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis. However, no warrant will be exercisable for cash or on a cashless basis, and we will not be obligated to issue any shares to holders seeking to exercise their warrants, unless the issuance of the shares upon such exercise is registered or qualified under the securities laws of the state of the exercising holder, or an exemption from registration is available. If that exemption, or another exemption, is not available, holders will not be able to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis. 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 applicable state securities laws and there is no exemption available. If the issuance of the shares upon exercise of the warrants is not so registered or qualified or exempt from registration or qualification, the holder of such warrant will 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 common stock included in the units. If and when the warrants become redeemable by us, we may not exercise our redemption right if the issuance of shares of common stock upon exercise of the warrants is not exempt from registration or qualification under applicable state blue sky laws or we are unable to effect such registration or qualification. We will use our best efforts to register or qualify such shares of common stock under the blue sky
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laws of the state of residence in those states in which the warrants were offered by us in our initial public offering. However, there may be instances in which holders of our public warrants may be unable to exercise such public warrants but holders of our private warrants may be able to exercise such private warrants.
The grant of registration rights to our initial stockholders and holders of our private placement warrants 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 common stock.
Pursuant to an agreement to be entered into concurrently with the issuance and sale of the securities in our initial public offering, our initial stockholders and their permitted transferees can demand that we register their shares of our common stock at the time of our initial business combination. In addition, holders of our private placement warrants and their permitted transferees can demand that we register the private placement warrants and the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the private placement warrants, and holders of warrants that may be issued upon conversion of working capital loans may demand that we register such warrants or the common stock issuable upon exercise of such warrants. 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 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 common stock that is expected when the common stock owned by our initial stockholders, holders of our private placement warrants or holders of our working capital loans or their respective permitted transferees are registered.
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. 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 100,000,000 shares of common stock, par value $0.0001 per share and 1,000,000 shares of undesignated preferred stock, par value $0.0001 per share. Immediately after our initial public offering, there were 67,875,000 authorized but unissued shares of common stock available for issuance, which amount takes into account shares of common stock reserved for issuance upon exercise of outstanding warrants and the conversion of the rights. There are no shares of preferred stock issued and outstanding.
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 (although our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that we may not issue securities that can vote with common stockholders on matters related to our pre-initial business combination activity). However, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides, 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 the approval of our stockholders. However, our executive officers, directors and director nominees have agreed, pursuant to a written agreement with us, that they will not propose any amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation (A) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 12 months from the closing of our initial public offering (or up to 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination) or (B) with respect to any other provision relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity, unless we provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their shares of common stock upon approval of any such amendment at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, including interest (which interest shall be net of taxes payable), divided by the number of then outstanding public shares.
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The issuance of additional shares of common or preferred stock:
| • | may significantly dilute the equity interest of investors in our initial public offering; |
| • | may subordinate the rights of holders of common stock if preferred stock is issued with rights senior to those afforded our common stock; |
| • | could cause a change of 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 |
| • | may adversely affect prevailing market prices for our units, common stock, rights and/or warrants. |
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 an initial 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 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. 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 the section of this prospectus entitled “Item 10. Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance — Directors and Executive Officers.”
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.
Following the completion of our initial public offering and until we consummate our initial business combination, we intend to engage in the business of identifying and combining with one or more businesses. Our officers and directors are, and may in the future become, affiliated with entities that are engaged in business activities similar to those intended to be conducted by us following our initial business combination. .
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. Any such companies may present additional conflicts of interest in pursuing an acquisition target.
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.
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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 the sections of this prospectus entitled “Item 10. Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance— Directors and Executive Officers,” “Item 10. Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance — Conflicts of Interest” and “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 an initial business combination with a target business that is affiliated with our sponsor, our directors or officers, although we do not intend to do so. 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 order to effectuate an initial business combination, blank check companies have, in the recent past, amended various provisions of their charters and other governing instruments, including their warrant agreements. We cannot assure you that we will not seek to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation or governing instruments in a manner that will make it easier for us to complete our initial business combination that our stockholders may not support.
In order to effectuate an initial business combination, blank check companies have, in the recent past, amended various provisions of their charters and modified governing instruments, including their warrant agreements. For example, blank check companies have amended the definition of business combination, increased redemption thresholds and extended the time to consummate an initial business combination. and, with respect to their warrants, amended their warrant agreements to require the warrants to be exchanged for cash and/or other securities. Amending our amended and restated certificate of incorporation requires the approval of holders of 65% of our common stock, and amending our warrant agreement requires a vote of holders of at least 65% of the public warrants and, solely with respect to any amendment to the terms of the private placement warrants or any provision of the warrant agreement with respect to the private placement warrants, 50% of the number of the then outstanding private placement warrants. In addition, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation requires us to provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their public shares for cash if we propose an amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation (A) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 12 months (or up to 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering if we extend the period of time to consummate a business transaction) or (B) with respect to any other provision relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity. To the extent any such amendments would be deemed to fundamentally change the nature of any securities offered through this registration statement, we would register, or seek an exemption from registration for, the affected securities. We cannot assure you that we will not seek to amend our charter or governing instruments or extend the time to consummate an initial business combination in order to effectuate our initial business combination.
Certain agreements related to our initial public offering may be amended without stockholder approval.
Certain agreements, including the underwriting agreement relating to our initial public offering, the investment management trust agreement between us and Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, the letter agreement among us and our sponsor, executive officers, directors and director nominees, the registration rights agreement among us and our initial stockholders, the administrative services agreement between us and our sponsor, and the business combination marketing agreement may be amended without stockholder approval. These agreements contain various provisions that our public stockholders might deem to be material. While we do not expect our board to approve any amendment to any of these agreements prior to our initial business
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combination, it may be possible that our board, 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. Any such amendment may have an adverse effect on the value of an investment in our securities.
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 outstanding 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 common stock equals or exceeds $18.00 per share for any 20 trading days within a 30 trading-day period ending on the third trading day prior to the date we send the notice of redemption to the warrant holders. We may not redeem the warrants when a holder may not exercise such 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. None of the private placement warrants will be redeemable by us so long as they are held by their initial purchasers or their permitted transferees.
Our warrants and founder shares may have an adverse effect on the market price of our common stock and make it more difficult to effectuate our initial business combination.
We issued warrants to purchase 11,500,000 shares of our common stock as part of the units offered in our initial public offering and, simultaneously with the closing of our initial public offering, we issued in a private placement warrants to purchase an aggregate of 5,425,000 shares of common stock at $11.50 per share. Our initial stockholders currently own an aggregate of 2,875,000 founder shares. The founder shares are convertible into shares of common stock on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment as set forth herein. In addition, if our sponsor makes any working capital loans, up to $1,000,000 of such loans may be converted into warrants, at the price of $1.00 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.
To the extent we issue shares of common stock to effectuate an initial business combination, the potential for the issuance of a substantial number of additional shares of common stock upon exercise of these warrants and conversion rights could make us a less attractive business combination vehicle to a target business. Any such issuance will increase the number of issued and outstanding shares of our common stock and reduce the value of the shares of common stock issued to complete the initial business combination. Therefore, our warrants and founder shares may make it more difficult to effectuate an initial business combination or increase the cost of acquiring the target business.
The private placement warrants are identical to the warrants sold as part of the units in our initial public offering except that, so long as they are held by our sponsor or its permitted transferees, (i) they will not be redeemable by us, (ii) they (including the common stock issuable upon exercise of these warrants) may not, subject to certain limited exceptions, be transferred, assigned or sold by our sponsor until 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination and (iii) they may be exercised by the holders on a cashless basis.
Because each unit contains one-twentieth of one right, the units may be worth less than units of other blank check companies.
Each unit contains one-twentieth of one right. Pursuant to the rights agreement, the rights may only be exercised for a whole number of shares, which means you must hold 20 rights in order to receive one share of common stock. We have established the components of the units in this way in order to reduce the dilutive effect of the rights upon completion of our initial business combination. While we believe this makes us a more attractive merger partner for target businesses, this unit structure may nevertheless cause our units to be worth less than if they included a right to purchase one whole share.
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The obligation of our sponsor and I-Bankers to purchase rights in the open market may allow them to make a substantial profit even if an initial business combination subsequently declines in value or is unprofitable for our public stockholders, and may create conflicts of interest in selecting a target business combination. Additionally, such rights purchases may support the market price of the rights during the buyback period.
Our sponsor and I-Bankers entered into agreements in accordance with the guidelines of Rule 10b5-1 under the Exchange Act, to place limit orders, through an independent broker-dealer registered under Section 15 of the Exchange Act which is not affiliated with us nor part of the underwriting or selling group, to purchase an aggregate of up to 10,000,000 of our rights (7,500,000 by our sponsor and 2,500,000 by I-Bankers) in the open market at market prices, not to exceed $0.10 per right, during the period commencing on the later of (i) the date separate trading of the rights commenced or (ii) sixty calendar days after the end of the “restricted period” under Regulation M, continuing until the date that is the earlier of (a) eight months from the date of our initial public offering and (b) the date that we announce that we have entered into a definitive agreement in connection with our initial business combination. The limit orders will require our sponsor and I-Bankers to purchase any rights offered for sale (and not purchased by another investor) at or below a price of $0.10, until the earlier of (x) the expiration of the foregoing buyback period or (y) the date such purchases reach 10,000,000 rights in total (7,500,000 by our sponsor and 2,500,000 by I-Bankers).
If our sponsor and I-Bankers purchase the maximum number of rights at the maximum purchase price and if we complete a business combination, such rights will convert into an aggregate of 500,000 shares of our common stock at an effective purchase price of $2.00 per share. As a result of the low acquisition cost of such shares, our sponsor and I-Bankers could make a substantial profit even if we select and consummate an initial business combination with an acquisition target that subsequently declines in value or is unprofitable for our public stockholders. Thus, such parties may have more of an economic incentive for us to enter into an initial business combination with a riskier, weaker-performing or financially unstable business, or an entity lacking an established record of revenues or earnings, than would be the case if such parties had paid the full offering price for the shares.
In addition, these rights will be worthless if we do not complete an initial business combination. As such, the personal and financial interests of our affiliates may influence their motivation in identifying and selecting a target business combination and completing an initial business combination. This risk may become more acute as the 12-month deadline following the closing of our initial public offering nears (or up to 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination), which is the deadline for the completion of our initial business combination.
Finally, such right purchases may serve to support the market price of the rights during such period at a price above that which would prevail in the absence of such purchases by our sponsor and I-Bankers. However, the agreement to purchase rights shall terminate at the end of the buyback period or the earlier purchase of the maximum number of rights by our sponsor and I-Bankers. The termination of the support provided by the right purchases may materially adversely affect the market price of any remaining rights held by holders of our rights.
General Risks
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 recent coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.
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 outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) a “Public
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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”. A significant outbreak of COVID-19 and other infectious diseases could result in a widespread health crisis that could adversely affect 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 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 adversely affected in a material way.
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 initial business combination.
If we are deemed to be an investment company under the Investment Company Act, our activities may be restricted, including:
| • | restrictions on the nature of our investments; and |
| • | restrictions on the issuance of securities, each of which may make it difficult for us to complete our initial business combination. |
| • | In addition, we may have imposed upon us burdensome requirements, including: |
| • | registration as an investment company; |
| • | adoption of a specific form of corporate structure; and |
| • | reporting, record keeping, voting, proxy and disclosure requirements and other rules and regulations. |
In order not to be regulated as an investment company under the Investment Company Act, unless we can qualify for an exclusion, we must ensure that we are engaged primarily in a business other than investing, reinvesting or trading in securities and that our activities do not include investing, reinvesting, owning, holding or trading “investment securities” constituting more than 40% of our total assets (exclusive of U.S. government securities and cash items) on an unconsolidated basis. Our business is to identify and complete an initial business combination and thereafter to operate the post-transaction business or assets for the long term. We do not plan to buy businesses or assets with a view to resale or profit from their resale. We do not plan to buy unrelated businesses or assets or to be a passive investor.
We do not believe that our anticipated principal activities will subject us to the Investment Company Act. To this end, the proceeds held in the trust account may only be invested in United States “government securities” within the meaning of Section 2(a)(16) of the Investment Company Act having a maturity of 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
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deemed an “investment company” within the meaning of the Investment Company Act. Our securities are 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 amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation (A) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering or (B) with respect to any other provision relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity; or (iii) absent an initial business combination within 12 months from the closing of our initial public offering (or up to 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination), our return of the funds held in the trust account to our public stockholders as part of our redemption of the public shares. If we do not invest the proceeds as discussed above, we may be deemed to be subject to the Investment Company Act. If we were deemed to be subject to the Investment Company Act, compliance with these additional regulatory burdens would require additional expenses for which we have not allotted funds and may hinder our ability to complete an initial business combination or may result in our liquidation. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.15 per share on the liquidation of our trust account and our rights and warrants will expire worthless.
We are dependent upon our executive officers and directors and their departure could adversely affect our ability to operate.
Our operations are dependent upon a relatively small group of individuals and, in particular, our executive officers and directors. We believe that our success depends on the continued service of our executive officers and directors, at least until we have completed our initial business combination. We do not have an employment agreement with, or key-man insurance on the life of, any of our directors or executive officers. The unexpected loss of the services of one or more of our directors or executive officers could have a detrimental effect on us.
The requirements of being a public company may strain our resources and divert management’s attention.
As a public company, we are subject to the reporting requirements of the Exchange Act, the Sarbanes Oxley Act, the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, the listing requirements of NASDAQ and other applicable securities rules and regulations. Compliance with these rules and regulations increase our legal and financial compliance costs, make some activities more difficult, time-consuming or costly and increase demand on our systems and resources, particularly after we are no longer an “emerging growth company.” The Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires, among other things, that we maintain effective disclosure controls and procedures and internal control over financial reporting. In order to maintain and, if required, improve our disclosure controls and procedures and internal control over financial reporting to meet this standard, significant resources and management oversight may be required. As a result, management’s attention may be diverted from other business concerns, which could adversely affect our business and operating results. We may need to hire more employees in the future or engage outside consultants to comply with these requirements, which will increase our costs and expenses.
We are an emerging growth company within the meaning of the Securities Act, and if we take advantage of certain exemptions from disclosure requirements available to emerging growth 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
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certain 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 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.
Compliance obligations under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act may make it more difficult for us to effectuate our initial business combination, require substantial financial and management resources, and increase the time and costs of completing an 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 on us as compared to other public companies because a target company with which we seek to complete our initial 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 business combination.
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 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 shares, 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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Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation requires, to the fullest extent permitted by law, that derivative actions brought in our name, actions against our directors, officers, other employees or stockholders for breach of fiduciary duty and other similar actions 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, which may have the effect of discouraging lawsuits against our directors, officers, other employees or stockholders.
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation requires, to the fullest extent permitted by law, that derivative actions brought in our name, actions against our directors, officers, other employees or stockholders for breach of fiduciary duty and other similar actions 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 except any action (A) as to which the Court of Chancery in the State of Delaware determines that there is an indispensable party not subject to the jurisdiction of the Court of Chancery (and the indispensable party does not consent to the personal jurisdiction of the Court of Chancery within ten days following such determination), (B) which is vested in the exclusive jurisdiction of a court or forum other than the Court of Chancery, (C) for which the Court of Chancery does not have subject matter jurisdiction, or (D) any action arising under the Securities Act, as to which the Court of Chancery and the federal district court for the District of Delaware shall have concurrent jurisdiction. Any person or entity purchasing or otherwise acquiring any interest in shares of our capital stock shall be deemed to have notice of and consented to the forum provisions in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation. This choice of forum provision may limit a stockholder’s ability to bring a claim in a judicial forum that it finds favorable for disputes with us or any of our directors, officers, other employees or stockholders, which may discourage lawsuits with respect to such claims, although our stockholders will not be deemed to have waived our compliance with federal securities laws and the rules and regulations thereunder. Alternatively, if a court were to find the choice of forum provision contained in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation to be inapplicable or unenforceable in an action, we may incur additional costs associated with resolving such action in other jurisdictions, which could harm our business, operating results and financial condition.
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that the exclusive forum provision will be applicable to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law. 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. As a result, the exclusive forum provision will not apply to suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Exchange Act or any other claim for which the federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction.
The determination of the offering price of our units and the size of our initial public offering was more arbitrary than the pricing of securities and size of an offering of an operating company in a particular industry. You may have less assurance, therefore, that the offering price of our units properly reflects the value of such units than you would have in a typical offering of an operating company.
Prior to our public offering there has been no public market for any of our securities. The public offering price of the units and the terms of the rights and warrants were negotiated between us and the underwriters. In determining the size of our initial public offering, management held customary organizational meetings with representatives of the underwriters, both prior to our inception and thereafter, with respect to the state of capital markets, generally, and the amount the underwriters believed they reasonably could raise on our behalf. Factors considered in determining the size of our initial public offering, prices and terms of the units, including the common stock, rights and warrants underlying the units, included:
| • | the history and prospects of companies whose principal business is the acquisition of other companies; |
| • | prior offerings of those companies; |
| • | our prospects for acquiring an operating business at attractive values; |
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| • | a review of debt-to-equity ratios in leveraged transactions; |
| • | our capital structure; |
| • | an assessment of our management and their experience in identifying operating companies; |
| • | general conditions of the securities markets at the time of our initial public offering; and |
| • | other factors as were deemed relevant. |
Although these factors were considered, the determination of our offering price was more arbitrary than the pricing of securities of an operating company in a particular industry since we have no historical operations or financial results.
Our warrant agreement and rights agreement will designate 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 or rights, which could limit the ability of warrant or right holders to obtain a favorable judicial forum for disputes with our company.
Our warrant agreement and right agreement will provide 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.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, these provisions of the warrant agreement and rights 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. Any person or entity purchasing or otherwise acquiring any interest in any of our warrants or rights shall be deemed to have notice of and to have consented to the forum provisions in our warrant agreement or rights agreement, as applicable. If any action, the subject matter of which is within the scope the forum provisions of the warrant agreement or rights 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 or rights, 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 warrant holder or right holder in any such enforcement action by service upon such warrant or right holder’s counsel in the foreign action as agent for such warrant or right holder.
This choice-of-forum provision may limit a warrant or right holder’s ability to bring a claim in a judicial forum that it finds favorable for disputes with our company, which may discourage such lawsuits. Alternatively, if a court were to find this provision of our warrant agreement or rights 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 and board of directors.
ITEM 1B. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS
None.
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We maintain our principal executive offices at 955 W. John Carpenter Fwy., Suite 100-929, Irving, TX 75039. The cost of our use of this space is included in the $5,000 per month fee we currently pay to an affiliate of our sponsor for office space, administrative and support services. We consider our current office space adequate for our current operations.
To the knowledge of our management, there is no litigation currently pending or contemplated against us, any of our officers or directors in their capacity as such or against any of our property.
ITEM 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES
Not applicable.
ITEM 5. MARKET FOR REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES
(a) Market Information
Our units commenced public trading on November 23, 2020, on the NASDAQ under the symbol “BREZU” until December 23, 2020, at which time our common stock, rights and warrants began separate trading, and units ceased trading. Our common stock, rights and redeemable warrants are each traded on the NASDAQ under the symbol “BREZ”, “BREZR” and “BREZW”, respectively.
(b) Holders
On February 28, 2021, there were 5 holders of record for our shares of common stock, 1 holder of our rights and 3 holders of our warrants. The number of record holders was determined from the records of our transfer agent and does not include beneficial owners of our shares of common stock whose shares are held in the names of various security brokers, dealers and registered clearing agencies.
(c) 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 an initial 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 an initial business combination. The payment of any cash dividends subsequent to an initial business combination will be within the discretion of our board of directors at such time. In addition, 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.
(d) Securities Authorized for Issuance Under Equity Compensation Plans
None.
(e) Performance Graph
Not applicable.
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(f) Recent Sales of Unregistered Securities; Use of Proceeds from Registered Offerings
Unregistered Sales
On June 11, 2020, our sponsor, purchased an aggregate of 2,875,000 founder shares, for an aggregate offering price of $25,000 at an average purchase price of approximately $0.0001 per share. Such securities were issued in connection with our organization pursuant to the exemption from registration contained in Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act. Our sponsor is an accredited investor for purposes of Rule 501 of Regulation D.
In addition, our sponsor and I-Bankers purchased an aggregate of 5,425,000 warrants at a price of $1.00 per warrant ($5,425,000 in the aggregate). This purchase took place on a private placement basis simultaneously with the completion of our initial public offering. This issuance was made pursuant to the exemption from registration contained in Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act.
Use of Proceeds
In connection with the initial public offering, we incurred offering costs of $2,777,557 (including underwriting commissions of approximately $2.3 million). Other incurred offering costs consisted principally of preparation fees related to the initial public offering. After deducting the underwriting discounts and commissions and the initial public offering expenses, $116,725,000 of the net proceeds from our initial public offering and certain of the proceeds from the private placement of the private placement warrants (or $10.15 per Unit sold in the initial public offering) was placed in the trust account. The net proceeds of the initial public offering and certain proceeds from the sale of the private placement warrants are held in the trust account and invested as described elsewhere in this Report.
There has been no material change in the planned use of the proceeds from our initial public offering and the sale of the private placement warrants as is described in our final prospectus related to our initial public offering. Other than as described above, no payments were made by us to directors, officers or persons owning ten percent or more of our common stock or to their associates, or to our affiliates.
(g) Purchases of Equity Securities by the Issuer and Affiliated Purchasers
None.
ITEM 6. SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA
Not applicable.
ITEM 7. MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS
Special Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
All statements other than statements of historical fact included in this Report including, without limitation, statements under “Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” regarding the Company’s financial position, business strategy and the plans and objectives of management for future operations, are forward-looking statements. When used in this Report, words such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend” and similar expressions, as they relate to us or the Company’s management, identify forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs of management, as well as assumptions made by, and information currently available to, the Company’s management. Actual results could differ materially from those contemplated by the forward-looking statements as a result of certain factors detailed in our filings with the SEC.
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The following discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations should be read in conjunction with the financial statements and the notes thereto contained elsewhere in this Report. Certain information contained in the discussion and analysis set forth below includes forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties.
Overview
We are a blank check company formed under the laws of the State of Delaware on June 11, 2020 for the purpose of effecting a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or other similar business combination with one or more businesses. We intend to effectuate our business combination using cash from the proceeds of the initial public offering and the sale of the private placement warrants, our capital stock, debt or a combination of cash, stock and debt.
As indicated in the accompanying financial statements, at December 31, 2020, we had $693,818 in cash and working capital of $624,554 (excluding franchise tax payable). We expect to continue to incur significant costs in the pursuit of our acquisition plans. We cannot assure you that our plans to complete our initial business combination will be successful.
Results of Operations
We have neither engaged in any operations nor generated any revenues to date. Our only activities from June 11, 2020 (inception) through December 31, 2020 were organizational activities, those necessary to prepare for the initial public offering, described below, and, after our initial public offering, identifying a target company for a business combination. We do not expect to generate any operating revenues until after the completion of our business combination. We generate non-operating income in the form of interest income on marketable securities held in the trust account. We incur 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 June 11, 2020 (inception) through December 31, 2020, we had a net loss of ($334,565) which consisted of operating and formation costs of $344,223, offset by interest income in our money market account of $178 and an unrealized gain on marketable securities held in our trust account of $9,480.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
On November 23, 2020, we consummated the initial public offering of 10,000,000 units at a price of $10.00 per unit, generating gross proceeds of $100,000,000. Simultaneously with the closing of the initial public offering, we consummated the sale of 5,425,000 private placement warrants to the Sponsor at a price of $1.00 per warrant, generating gross proceeds of $5,425,000.
On November 23, 2020, in connection with the underwriters’ full exercise of their over-allotment option, we consummated the sale of an additional 1,500,000 units, generating total gross proceeds of $15,000,000.
Following the initial public offering, the exercise of the over-allotment option and the sale of the private placement warrants, a total of $116,725,000 was placed in the trust account. We incurred $2,777,557 in transaction costs, including $2,300,000 of underwriting fees, and $477,557 of other offering costs.
As of December 31, 2020, we had cash and marketable securities held in the trust account of $116,734,480 (including $9,480 of unrealized gains) consisting of U.S. Treasury Bills with a maturity of 180 days or less. Interest income on the balance in the trust account may be used by us to pay taxes. Through December 31, 2020, we did not withdraw any interest earned on the trust account.
For the period from June 11, 2020 (inception) through December 31, 2020, cash used in operating activities was $253,625. Net loss of ($334,565) was affected by interest earned and unrealized gains on marketable securities held in the trust account of $9,658.
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We intend to use substantially all of the funds held in the trust account, including any amounts representing interest earned on the trust account (less deferred underwriting commissions and income taxes payable), to complete our business combination. To the extent that our capital stock or debt is used, in whole or in part, as consideration to complete our business combination, the remaining proceeds held in the trust account will be used as working capital to finance the operations of the target business or businesses, make other acquisitions and pursue our growth strategies.
As of December 31, 2020, we had cash of $693,818 held outside the trust account. We intend to use the funds held outside the trust account primarily to identify and evaluate target businesses, perform business due diligence on prospective target businesses, travel to and from the offices, plants or similar locations of prospective target businesses or their representatives or owners, review corporate documents and material agreements of prospective target businesses, and structure, negotiate and complete a business combination.
In order to fund working capital deficiencies or finance transaction costs in connection with a business combination, the initial stockholders or their affiliates may, but are not obligated to, loan us funds as may be required. If we complete a business combination, we would repay such loaned amounts. In the event that a business combination does not close, we may use a portion of the working capital held outside the trust account to repay such loaned amounts but no proceeds from our trust account would be used for such repayment. Up to $1,000,000 of such loans may be convertible into warrants identical to the private placement warrants, at a price of $1.00 per warrant at the option of the lender. The warrants would be identical to the private placement warrants issued to our sponsor, including as to exercise price, exercisability and exercise period. The terms of such loans by our officers and directors, if any, have not been determined and no written agreements exist with respect to such loans. 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.
We do not believe we will need to raise additional funds in order to meet the expenditures required for operating our business. However, if our estimate of the costs of identifying a target business, undertaking in-depth due diligence and negotiating a business combination are less than the actual amount necessary to do so, we may have insufficient funds available to operate our business prior to our business combination. Moreover, we may need to obtain additional financing either to complete our business combination or because we become obligated to redeem a significant number of our public shares upon consummation of our business combination, in which case we may issue additional securities or incur debt in connection with such business combination. Subject to compliance with applicable securities laws, we would only complete such financing simultaneously with the completion of our business combination. If we are unable to complete our business combination because we do not have sufficient funds available to us, we will be forced to cease operations and liquidate the trust account. In addition, following our business combination, if cash on hand is insufficient, we may need to obtain additional financing in order to meet our obligations.
Off-balance sheet financing arrangements
We did not have any off-balance sheet arrangements as of December 31, 2020.
Contractual obligations
We do not have any long-term debt, capital lease obligations, operating lease obligations or long-term liabilities, other than an agreement to pay Breeze Financial, Inc. a monthly fee of $5,000 for office space, administrative and support services to the Company, and monthly D&O insurance premium payments of $11,697 ending February 28, 2022. We began incurring these fees on November 23, 2020 and will continue to incur these fees monthly until the earlier of the completion of the business combination and the Company’s liquidation.
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The underwriters are entitled to a deferred fee of $0.275 per share, or $3,162,500 in the aggregate. The deferred fee will become payable to the underwriters from the amounts held in the trust account solely in the event that we complete a business combination, subject to the terms of the underwriting agreement.
Critical Accounting Policies
The preparation of financial statements and related disclosures in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements, and income and expenses during the periods reported. Actual results could materially differ from those estimates. We have identified the following critical accounting policies:
Common stock subject to possible redemption
We account for common stock subject to possible redemption in accordance with the guidance in Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) Topic 480, Distinguishing Liabilities from Equity. Common stock subject to mandatory redemption is classified as a liability instrument and is measured at fair value. Conditionally redeemable common stock (including common stock that features redemption rights that are either within the control of the holder or subject to redemption upon the occurrence of uncertain events not solely within the Company’s control) is classified as temporary equity. At all other times, common stock is classified as stockholders’ equity. Our common stock features certain redemption rights that are considered to be outside of our control and subject to occurrence of uncertain future events. Accordingly, common stock subject to possible redemption is presented at redemption value as temporary equity, outside of the stockholders’ equity section of our balance sheet.
Net loss per share of common stock
We apply the two-class method in calculating earnings per share. Common stock subject to possible redemption which is not currently redeemable and is not redeemable at fair value, has been excluded from the calculation of basic net loss per common share since such shares, if redeemed, only participate in their pro rata share of the trust account earnings. Our net income is adjusted for the portion of income that is attributable to common stock subject to possible redemption, as these shares only participate in the earnings of the trust account and not our income or losses.
Recent accounting standards
Management does not believe that any other recently issued, but not yet effective, accounting pronouncements, if currently adopted, would have a material effect on our financial statements.
Emerging Growth Company
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.
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ITEM 7A. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK
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.
ITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA
This information appears following Item 16 of this Report and is included herein by reference.
ITEM 9. CHANGES IN AND DISAGREEMENTS WITH ACCOUNTANTS ON ACCOUNTING AND FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE
None.
ITEM 9A. CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES
Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures
Disclosure controls are procedures that are designed with the objective of ensuring that information required to be disclosed in our reports filed under the Exchange Act, such as this Report, is recorded, processed, summarized, and reported within the time period specified in the SEC’s rules and forms. Disclosure controls are also designed with the objective of ensuring that such information is accumulated and communicated to our management, including the chief executive officer and chief financial officer, as appropriate to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure. Our management evaluated, with the participation of our principal executive officer and principal financial and accounting officer (our “Certifying Officers”), the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures as of December 31, 2020, pursuant to Rule 13a-15(b) under the Exchange Act. Based upon that evaluation, our Certifying Officers concluded that, as of December 31, 2020, our disclosure controls and procedures were effective.
We do not expect that our disclosure controls and procedures will prevent all errors and all instances of fraud. Disclosure controls and procedures, no matter how well conceived and operated, can provide only reasonable, not absolute, assurance that the objectives of the disclosure controls and procedures are met. Further, the design of disclosure controls and procedures must reflect the fact that there are resource constraints, and the benefits must be considered relative to their costs. Because of the inherent limitations in all disclosure controls and procedures, no evaluation of disclosure controls and procedures can provide absolute assurance that we have detected all our control deficiencies and instances of fraud, if any. The design of disclosure controls and procedures also is based partly on certain assumptions about the likelihood of future events, and there can be no assurance that any design will succeed in achieving its stated goals under all potential future conditions.
Management’s Report on Internal Controls 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 our independent registered public accounting firm due to a transition period established by rules of the SEC for newly public companies.
Changes in Internal Control over Financial Reporting
Not applicable.
| ITEM 9B. | OTHER INFORMATION. |
None.
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| ITEM 10. | DIRECTORS, EXECUTIVE OFFICERS AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE |
Directors and Executive Officers
As of the date of this report our directors, director nominees and officers are as follows:
Name | Age | Title | ||
| J. Douglas Ramsey, Ph.D. | 60 | Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer | ||
| Russell D. Griffin | 57 | President and Director | ||
| Charles C. Ross, P.E. | 64 | Chief Operating Officer | ||
| Daniel L. Hunt | 44 | Independent Director Nominee | ||
| Albert McLelland | 62 | Independent Director Nominee | ||
| Robert Lee Thomas | 61 | Independent Director Nominee | ||
| Bill Stark | 64 | Independent Director Nominee |
J. Douglas Ramsey, Ph.D. has served as our Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer since June 2020. Dr. Ramsey was the President and Chief Financial Officer of Saddle Operating and served in that role from May 2014 until February 2019. Prior to joining Saddle Operating, Dr. Ramsey served as the Director of Strategic Planning and Special Projects of EXCO from June 2013 until April 2014, Vice President – Finance and Special Assistant to the Chairman of EXCO Resources from August 2009 until May 2013 and as Treasurer of EXCO Resources from December 1997 until May 2013. From December 1997 until July 2009, Dr. Ramsey served as EXCO Resources’ Chief Financial Officer during which time EXCO Resources completed over 160 transactions and its assets grew from $3 million to over $6 billion with over 15,000 wells and more than 1,400 employees and contractors. Dr. Ramsey also played a key role in EXCO Resources’ $698 million IPO in February 2006 after EXCO Resources had gone private in July 2003. Other key financing transactions in which Dr. Ramsey was involved included a $2 billion mandatory convertible preferred stock offering, a $2.4 billion line of credit with 34 banks in the syndicate, and two bond offerings totaling $750 million. Dr. Ramsey also served as a director of EXCO Resources from March 1998 until July 2003. From March 1992 until December 1997, Dr. Ramsey worked for Coda Energy as the Financial Analyst and Assistant to the President and then as the Financial Planning Manager. Dr. Ramsey also taught finance at various universities including Southern Methodist University in its undergraduate and professional MBA programs and Baylor University in its Executive MBA program. Dr. Ramsey was named the 1996 Distinguished Alumnus of the College of Business Administration at Cal Poly Pomona. Dr. Ramsey earned his BS in Finance from Cal Poly Pomona, an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business and an MA and Ph.D. in Business and Financial Economics from the Claremont Graduate University. Dr. Ramsey is National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD) Directorship Certified. Dr. Ramsey is well qualified to serve as a director because of his strong financial background, including his 29 years of experience as a financial executive.
Russell D. Griffin has served as our President and as a director since June 2020. Mr. Griffin was the Chief Operating Officer of Saddle Operating and served in that role from November 2015 until June 2019. Prior to joining Saddle Operating, Mr. Griffin served as the Vice President of Environmental, Health and Safety of EXCO Resources from June 2010 until November 2015, and as the Vice President of Environmental, Health and Safety of TGGT Holdings, an independent midstream oil and gas company, from 2012 until 2013. Prior to joining EXCO Resources, Mr. Griffin was the Senior Regulatory Representative for Hunt Oil Company, an independent international oil and natural gas company, from August 2005 until January 2008 and held positions in exploration and production operations from August 1984 until August 2005. His areas of expertise include onshore U.S conventional and non-conventional, offshore Gulf of Mexico Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) as well as State waters of both Louisiana and Texas. Mr. Griffin has also led or participated in multiple acquisitions and divestitures, both domestic and international. He is a member of the American Association of Drilling Engineers,
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Society of Petroleum Engineers and American Association of Safety Professionals. Mr. Griffin received his BS degree in Petroleum Engineering Technology and an AS degree in Safety Management from Nicholls State University. Mr. Griffin is well qualified to serve as a director because of his more than 35 years of diverse experience in management, operations, drilling, regulatory compliance and EHS in the oil and gas industry with an in-depth knowledge of federal, state and local compliance requirements with governmental regulations and standards.
Charles C. Ross, P.E. has served as our Chief Operating Officer since June 2020. Mr. Ross was the Vice President of Regulatory Affairs and EHS of Saddle Operating and served in that role from December 2015 until June 2019. In January 2010 until December 2013, Mr. Ross was the Director of Regulatory Affairs of TGGT Midstream. In August 2012, Mr. Ross was named Director of Regulatory Affairs for EXCO Resources, as well, until November 2015. Mr. Ross began his career in 1982 working for the Railroad Commission of Texas Oil and Gas Division as a New Field Discovery Examiner. Mr. Ross continued working for the RRC for 27 more years in various positions including Engineering Supervisor of the Underground Injection Control Section, District Engineer, Assistant District Director, and Director of Field Operations. As Director of Field Operations, Mr. Ross oversaw nine district offices and 247 employees. Mr. Ross is an expert witness at Railroad Commission hearings, civil trials, legislative committee meetings, and legislative hearings on various issues related to oil and gas regulatory and technical matters. Mr. Ross has been a registered Professional Engineer (Petroleum) since 1988, and currently serves as the Chair of the TIPRO (Texas Independent Producers and Royalty Association) Regulatory Committee. Mr. Ross received his BS in Architectural Engineering and a BS in Petroleum Engineering both from the University of Texas at Austin.
Daniel L. Hunt has served as a director since November 2020. Mr. Hunt has served as the President of FC Dallas since 2014. He also serves as a member of MLS’ Board of Governors and the league’s Business Ventures Committee. Mr. Hunt spent years working on the design and construction of Toyota Stadium and Toyota Soccer Center with his late father and American sports icon, Lamar Hunt. Since the venue’s opening in 2005, Mr. Hunt has used the venue to help establish FC Dallas as the leader in youth development in North America. Toyota Soccer Complex, a 145-acre facility complete with 17 professional-grade soccer fields, has quickly become one the most rewarding stadium designs in professional sports. Rated as one of only two five- star facilities by the 2011 U.S. Soccer Development Academy Rankings, Toyota Soccer Center has helped FC Dallas sign an MLS-record 25 Homegrown players in 10 years. Mr. Hunt also oversaw the $58 million construction of the National Soccer Hall of Fame in the south end of Toyota Stadium. The project included more than 70-thousand square feet of renovated space, new locker rooms, premium seats, a private club and the National Soccer Hall of Fame Experience. In May 2017, Mr. Hunt, along with his brother Clark, ESPN and the City of Frisco officially announced that the newly-relocated Frisco Bowl (previously known as Miami Beach Bowl) would call Toyota Stadium home starting on December 20, 2017 at Toyota Stadium. Outside of his responsibilities with FC Dallas, Mr. Hunt is involved in the Hunt family’s long-standing interest in the NFL’s Kansas City Chiefs. Mr. Hunt began his business career as Vice President of New Business Development for Gemini Voice Solutions in New York City, a provider of voice-over internet protocol for home-to-home calling in the United States. Mr. Hunt is well qualified to serve as a director because of his extensive operating, multiple industry and leadership experience.
Albert McLelland has served as a director since November 2020. Mr. McLelland is the Interim CEO of Spout Analytics, Inc., a digital transformation company, since 2020. From 2014 until 2019, Mr. McLelland served as the Managing Director Asia and Chief Executive Officer of Hover Energy LLC and its related companies. From 1998 until 2002, Mr. McLelland was the Director of the Chairman’s Asian Cross-Border Transactions Initiative for PricewaterhouseCoopers. Prior to PricewaterhouseCoopers, between 1993 and 1998, Mr. McLelland founded and sold Pearl Delta Capital Corp. in Taiwan. From 1991 until 1993, Mr. McLelland was Senior Manager for Corporate Finance at CEF Taiwan Limited. In 1990, Mr. McLelland assisted in the formation of Riddell*Tseng where he worked until
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1993. Mr. McLelland started his career at Shearson Lehman as an Associate in Public Finance in 1987 until 1990. Mr. McLelland has served as a Director, Audit Committee Chairman and Special Committee Chairman for a number of public and private companies. Mr. McLelland has also been an Adjunct Professor at Southern Methodist University’s Caruth Institute for Entrepreneurship in the Cox School of Business. Mr. McLelland received his BA in Political Science and History from the University of South Florida, an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business and an MA in International Affairs from Columbia University. Mr. McLelland is National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD) Directorship Certified. Mr. McLelland is well qualified to serve as a director because of his extensive operating, capital markets and corporate governance experience including multiple director roles on behalf of Carlyle Group and other prominent financial services firms.
Robert Lee Thomas has served as a director since November 2020. Mr. Thomas was Vice President and Chief Information Officer at Kosmos Energy from 2015 until May 2020. In this role, Mr. Thomas had corporate information systems oversight, as well as geotechnical systems strategy responsibility. Prior to Kosmos, Mr. Thomas was a corporate officer and Chief Information Officer at EXCO Resources from 2008 until 2015. In addition to corporate information systems oversight, Mr. Thomas had responsibility for the geoscience personnel and technology. From 1994 until 2006, Mr. Thomas held a series of roles, from geotechnical systems leadership to international business management to Chief Information Officer at Burlington Resources Canada with Burlington Resources Oil and Gas. Following the acquisition of Burlington Resources by ConocoPhillips in 2006, Mr. Thomas co-led the integration of systems into ConocoPhillips, earning a President’s Award, and was Director of IT Strategy and Architecture at ConocoPhillips until 2008. From 1981 until 1994, Mr. Thomas held a series of roles from geophysical seismic acquisition and processing to exploration system development in the exploration technology groups with Sun Oil Company and the Oryx Energy spinoff. Mr. Thomas earned his BS in Economics and Finance from The University of Texas at Dallas. Mr. Thomas was elected and served on the City Council in Murphy, Texas, currently sits on the Advisory Board at the University of North Texas school of Information Technology Decision Sciences and has been an active member of the Society of Exploration Geophysicists for over 25 years. Mr. Thomas is National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD) Directorship Certified. Mr. Thomas is well qualified to serve as director, having been involved with many aspects of international oil and gas company management, including many multibillion-dollar corporate acquisitions and integrations.
Bill Stark has served as a director since November 2020. Mr. Stark has served as the Vice President—Western U.S. Operations of Ulterra since 2017. Mr. Stark has operated in different executive positions over the Permian since joining Ulterra. In December 2009, Mr. Stark became the District Manager over the Permian. In January 2012, Mr. Stark was promoted to Area Manager for Ulterra—Permian. Prior to this, he was an agent for Halliburton—Security DBS, as well as President/Owner of Permian Bit Service Inc. and Permian Equipment Rentals Inc. Mr. Stark was one of the first to successfully introduce and continually market PDC bits in the Spraberry Trend. He has over 40 years of experience in the oil industry, all of which were with Halliburton before joining Ulterra. Mr. Stark led a team in the Permian that became one of the largest revenue districts in the U.S. for Halliburton-Security DBS. From 2012 to 2017, Mr. Stark operated as the Director of National Sales which grew Ulterra into becoming number one in market share in the U.S. In addition to his success with Ulterra, in 2012, Mr. Stark also became President and CEO of Cactus Fuel, LLC while continuously maintaining his role at Ulterra. Mr. Stark lives in Midland, Texas. Mr. Stark is well qualified to serve as a director because of his extensive energy services experience, ability to grow profitable companies, vast network with oil and gas producers and leadership skills.
Number and Terms of Office of Officers and Directors
Our board of directors is divided into two 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 two-year term. The class I directors will consist of Messrs. Griffin, Stark and Hunt, and their term will expire at our first annual meeting of stockholders. The class II directors will consist of Messrs. Ramsey, McLelland and Thomas, and their term will expire at the second annual meeting of stockholders. We may not hold an annual meeting of stockholders until after we consummate our initial business combination.
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Our officers are elected 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 Chief Executive Officer, President, Chief Financial Officer, Vice Presidents, Secretary, Assistant Secretaries, Treasurer and such other offices as may be determined by the board of directors.
Involvement in certain legal proceedings
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.
Director Independence
NASDAQ listing standards require that a majority of our board of directors be independent. An “independent director” is defined generally as a person other than an officer or employee of the company or its subsidiaries or any other individual having a relationship which in the opinion of the company’s board of directors, would interfere with the director’s exercise of independent judgment in carrying out the responsibilities of a director. Our board of directors has determined that each of Mr. Hunt, Mr. McLelland, Mr. Thomas and Mr. Stark are “independent directors” as defined in NASDAQ listing standards and applicable SEC rules. Our independent directors will 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. Each committee operates under a charter that has been approved by our board and will have the composition and responsibilities described below. Our audit committee, compensation committee and nominating and corporate governance committee will be composed solely of independent directors.
Audit Committee
Messrs. McLelland, Thomas and Hunt serve as members of our audit committee, and Mr. McLelland serves as its chairman. Under the Nasdaq listing standards and applicable SEC rules, we are required to have at least three members on the audit committee. The rules of Nasdaq and Rule 10A-3 of the Exchange Act require that the audit committee of a listed company be comprised solely of independent directors. Messrs. McLelland, Thomas and Hunt qualify as independent directors under applicable rules. Each member of the audit committee is financially literate and our board of directors has determined that Mr. McLelland qualifies as an “audit committee financial expert” as defined in applicable SEC rules.
We adopted an audit committee charter, which details the principal functions of the audit committee, including:
| • | the appointment, compensation, retention, replacement, and oversight of the work of the independent registered accounting firm and any other independent registered public accounting firm engaged by us; |
| • | pre-approving all audit and non-audit services to be provided by the independent registered accounting firm or any other registered public accounting firm engaged by us, and establishing pre-approval policies and procedures; |
| • | reviewing and discussing with the independent registered accounting firm all relationships the auditors have with us in order to evaluate their continued independence; |
| • | setting clear hiring policies for employees or former employees of the independent registered accounting firm; |
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| • | setting clear policies for audit partner rotation in compliance with applicable laws and regulations; (i) obtaining and reviewing a report, at least annually, from the independent registered accounting firm describing (ii) the independent registered 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; |
| • | 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 |
| • | reviewing with management, the independent registered 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
Messrs. McLelland, Thomas and Stark serve as members of our compensation committee, and Mr. Thomas serves as its chairman. Under the Nasdaq listing standards and applicable SEC rules, we are required to have at least two members on the compensation committee, all of whom must be independent.
We adopted a compensation committee charter, which details the principal functions of the compensation committee, including:
| • | 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’s based on such evaluation; |
| • | reviewing and approving the compensation of all of our other executive officers; |
| • | reviewing our executive compensation policies and plans; |
| • | implementing and administering our incentive compensation equity-based remuneration plans; |
| • | assisting management in complying with our proxy statement and annual report disclosure requirements; |
| • | approving all special perquisites, special cash payments and other special compensation and benefit arrangements for our executive officers and employees; |
| • | producing a report on executive compensation to be included in our annual proxy statement; and |
| • | reviewing, evaluating and recommending changes, if appropriate, to the remuneration for directors. |
The charter 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 Nasdaq and the SEC.
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Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee
Messrs. Hunt, Thomas and Stark serve as members of our nominating and corporate governance committee, and Mr. Hunt serves as its chairman.
The primary purposes of our nominating and corporate governance committee is to assist the board in:
| • | 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; |
| • | developing, recommending to the board of directors and overseeing implementation of our corporate governance guidelines; |
| • | 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 |
| • | 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 Nasdaq.
Code of Ethics
We have adopted a code of ethics that applies to our officers and directors. We have filed copies of our code of ethics, our audit committee charter, our compensation committee charter, and our nominating and corporate governance committee as exhibits to our registration statement in connection with our initial public offering. You may review these documents by accessing our public filings at the Commission’s website at www.sec.gov. In addition, a copy of the code of ethics will be provided without charge upon request to us.
Conflicts of Interest
I-Bankers and its affiliates engage in a broad spectrum of activities including principal investing, specialized investment vehicle management, asset management, financial advisory, securities underwriting, sales and trading, investment research, lending and other activities. In the ordinary course of business, they engage in activities where their interests or the interests of their clients may conflict with our interests. Accordingly, there may be situations in which I-Bankers or an affiliate has an obligation or an interest that actually or potentially conflicts with our interests. You should assume that these conflicts will not be resolved in our favor and, as a result, we may be denied certain acquisition opportunities or otherwise disadvantaged in certain situations by our relationship with I-Bankers.
I-Bankers, its affiliates and their clients make investments in a variety of different businesses and may directly compete with us for acquisition opportunities provided or created by I-Bankers or its affiliates that meet our initial business combination objectives. Neither I-Bankers nor any of its affiliates has an obligation to offer potential acquisition opportunities to us and may allocate them at its discretion to us or other parties. We will not have any priority in respect of acquisition opportunities provided or created by I-Bankers or its affiliates. You should assume that I-Bankers and its affiliates and clients will have priority over us in terms of access to acquisition opportunities and, as a result, we may be denied certain acquisition opportunities or otherwise disadvantaged in certain situations by our relationship with I-Bankers.
Clients of I-Bankers and its affiliates may also compete with us for investment opportunities meeting our initial business combination objectives. If I-Bankers or any of its affiliates is engaged to act for any such clients, we may be precluded from pursuing opportunities that would conflict with I-Bankers’ or its affiliates’ obligations to such client. In addition, investment ideas generated within I-Bankers or its affiliates may be suitable for our company or a client of I-Bankers or its affiliates, and may be directed to any of such persons or entities rather
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than to us. I-Bankers or its affiliates may also be engaged to advise the seller of a company, business or assets that would qualify as an acquisition opportunity for us. In such cases, we may be precluded from participating in the sale process or from purchasing the company, business or assets. If, however, we are permitted to pursue the opportunity, the interests of I-Bankers or its affiliates, or their obligations to the seller, may diverge from our interests.
Each of our officers and directors presently has, and any of them in the future may have additional, fiduciary or contractual obligations to another entity 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 these fiduciary obligations under applicable law. 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. 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.
Our sponsor and executive officers have agreed, pursuant to a written letter agreement, not to participate in the formation of, or become an officer of, any other blank check company until we have entered into a definitive agreement regarding our initial business combination or we have failed to complete our initial business combination within 12 months after the closing of our initial public offering (or up to 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination); provided that this agreement would not prevent our executive officers from serving as directors in other blank check companies. Neither Bankers nor any of its affiliates has entered into such an agreement, and, accordingly, are not precluded from participating in any other blank check company or from underwriting an offering by any other blank check company. Potential investors should also be aware of the following other potential conflicts of interest:
| • | 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. |
| • | 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. For a complete description of our management’s other affiliations, see “— Directors and Executive Officers.” |
| • | Our initial stockholders have agreed to waive their redemption rights with respect to their founder shares and public shares in connection with the consummation of our initial business combination. Additionally, our initial stockholders have agreed to waive their redemption rights with respect to their founder shares if we fail to consummate our initial business combination within 12 months after the closing of our initial public offering (or up to 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination). If we do not complete our initial business combination within such applicable time period, the proceeds of the sale of the private placement warrants will be used to fund the redemption of our public shares, and the private placement warrants will expire worthless. With certain limited exceptions, the founder shares will not be transferable, assignable or salable by our sponsor until the earlier of (1) one year after the completion of our initial business combination and (2) the date on which we consummate a liquidation, merger, capital stock exchange, reorganization, or other similar transaction after our initial business combination that results in all of our stockholders having the right to exchange their shares of common stock for cash, securities or other property. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if the last sale price of our common stock equals or exceeds $12.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, |
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reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) for any 20 trading days within any 30-trading day period commencing at least 90 days after our initial business combination, the founder shares will be released from the lock-up. With certain limited exceptions, the private placement warrants and the common stock underlying such warrants, will not be transferable, assignable or salable by our sponsor until 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination. Since our sponsor and officers and directors directly or indirectly own common stock and warrants following our initial 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. |
| • | 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. |
| • | 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 $1,000,000 of such loans may be convertible into warrants at a price of $1.00 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. |
| • | We have engaged certain I-Bankers as advisors in connection with our business combination to assist us in holding meetings with our stockholders to discuss the potential business combination and the target business’s attributes, introduce us to potential investors that are interested in purchasing our securities in connection with the potential business combination, assist us in obtaining stockholder approval for the business combination and assist us with our press releases and public filings in connection with the business combination. We will pay the I-Bankers a cash fee for such services upon the consummation of our initial business combination in an amount equal to, in the aggregate, 2.75% of the gross proceeds of our initial public offering, including any proceeds from the full or partial exercise of the over- allotment option. |
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:
| • | the corporation could financially undertake the opportunity; |
| • | the opportunity is within the corporation’s line of business; and |
| • | it would not be fair to the corporation and its stockholders for the opportunity not to be brought to the attention of the corporation. |
Accordingly, as a result of multiple business affiliations, our officers and directors may have similar legal obligations relating to presenting business opportunities meeting the above-listed criteria to multiple entities. Furthermore, our 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 do not believe that these contractual obligations will materially affect our ability to complete our business combination. 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.
We are not prohibited from pursuing an initial business combination with a company that is affiliated with our sponsor, officers or directors. In the event we seek to complete our initial business combination with such a company, we, or a committee of 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 an initial business combination is fair to our company from a financial point of view.
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In the event that we submit our initial business combination to our public stockholders for a vote, 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 and our officers and directors have also agreed to vote any public shares purchased during or after our initial public 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 provides 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 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 will permit us to secure insurance on behalf of any officer, director or employee for any liability arising out of his or her actions, regardless of whether Delaware law would permit such indemnification. We will purchase 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. Except with respect to any public shares they may acquire after our initial public offering (in the event we do not consummate an initial business combination), our officers and directors have agreed to waive (and any other persons who may become an officer or director prior to the initial business combination will also be required to waive) any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to any monies in the trust account, and not to seek recourse against the trust account for any reason whatsoever, including with respect to such indemnification.
These provisions may discourage stockholders from bringing a lawsuit against our directors for breach of their fiduciary duty. These provisions also may have the effect of reducing the likelihood of derivative litigation against 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 officers and directors pursuant to these indemnification provisions.
We believe that these provisions, the directors’ and officers’ liability insurance and the indemnity agreements are necessary to attract and retain talented and experienced officers and directors.
| ITEM 11. | EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION |
Officer and Director Compensation
None of our executive officers or directors have received any cash compensation for services rendered to us. Until the earlier of consummation of our initial business combination and our liquidation, beginning on the effective date of this registration statement, we will pay Breeze Financial, an affiliate of our sponsor, a total of $5,000 per month for office space, utilities, secretarial support and other administrative and consulting services. 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 our sponsor, officers, directors or our or their affiliates.
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After the completion of our initial business combination, directors or members of our management team who remain with us may be paid consulting, management or other fees from the combined company. All of these fees will be fully disclosed to stockholders, to the extent then known, in the tender offer materials or proxy solicitation materials furnished to our stockholders in connection with a proposed business combination. It is unlikely the amount of such compensation will be known at the time, because the directors of the post- combination business will be responsible for determining executive officer and director compensation. Any compensation to be paid to our executive officers will be determined by a compensation committee constituted solely by independent directors.
We do not intend to take any action to ensure that members of our management team maintain their positions with us after the consummation of our initial business combination, although it is possible that some or all of our executive officers and directors may negotiate employment or consulting arrangements to remain with us after the initial business combination. The existence or terms of any such employment or consulting arrangements to retain their positions with us may influence our management’s motivation in identifying or selecting a target business but we do not believe that the ability of our management to remain with us after the consummation of our initial business combination will be a determining factor in our decision to proceed with any potential business combination. We are not party to any agreements with our executive officers and directors that provide for benefits upon termination of employment.
ITEM 12. SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS AND MANAGEMENT AND RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS
The following table sets forth information regarding the beneficial ownership of our common stock as of March 18, 2020 based on information obtained from the persons named below, with respect to the beneficial ownership of our shares of common stock, 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 executive officers, directors and director nominees that beneficially owns shares of our common stock; and |
| • | all our executive officers, directors and director nominees as a group. |
In the table below, percentage ownership is based on 14,625,000 shares of common stock as of December 31, 2020. The following table does not reflect record or beneficial ownership of the private placement warrants as these warrants are not exercisable within 60 days of the date of this Report.
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| Common Stock | ||||||||
Name of Beneficial Owner(1) | Number of Shares Beneficially Owned | Approximate Percentage of Outstanding Common Stock | ||||||
Breeze Sponsor, LLC(2) | 2,575,000 | 17.6 | % | |||||
J. Douglas Ramsey, Ph.D.(3) | — | * | ||||||
Russell D. Griffin(3) | — | * | ||||||
Charles C. Ross(3) | — | * | ||||||
Albert McLelland | — | * | ||||||
Daniel L. Hunt | — | * | ||||||
Robert Lee Thomas | — | * | ||||||
Bill Stark | — | * | ||||||
All directors, director nominees and executive officers as a group (7 individuals) | 2,575,000 | 17.6 | % | |||||
Karpus Investment Management(4) | 2,357,848 | 16.1 | % | |||||
Polar Asset Management Partners Inc.(5) | 1,200,000 | 8.2 | % | |||||
Hudson Bay Capital Management LP(6) | 800,000 | 5.5 | % | |||||
| * | Less than one percent. |
| (1) | Unless otherwise noted, the business address of each of the following entities or individuals is 955 W. John Carpenter Fwy., Suite 100-929, Irving, TX 75039. |
| (2) | Includes shares of common stock beneficially held by our sponsor Breeze Sponsor, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company. Breeze Sponsor, LLC is managed by Dr. J. Douglas Ramsey, who has voting and dispositive control over the securities held by Breeze Sponsor, LLC. |
| (3) | Does not include any securities held by our sponsor, Breeze Sponsor, LLC, of which each person is a direct or indirect member. Each such person disclaims beneficial ownership of the reported securities, except to the extent of his pecuniary interest therein. |
| (4) | Based solely on the Schedule 13G filed with the SEC on January 8, 2021 filed by Karpus Management, Inc., d/b/a Karpus Investment Management, a New York corporation (“Karpus”), with respect to the shares of common stock held by certain managed accounts to which Karpus serves as investment advisor. The business address of reporting persons is 183 Sully’s Trail, Pittsford, New York 14534. |
| (5) | Based solely on the Schedule 13G filed with the SEC on February 8, 2021 filed by Polar Asset Management Partners Inc., a company incorporated under the laws of Ontario, Canada, which serves as the investment advisor to Polar Multi-Strategy Master Fund, a Cayman Islands exempted company (“PMSMF”) with respect to the common stock directly held by PMSMF. The address of such fund and account and such portfolio manager is 401 Bay Street, Suite 1900, PO Box 19, Toronto, Ontario M5H 2Y4, Canada. |
| (6) | Based solely on the Schedule 13G filed with the SEC on February 8, 2021 filed by Hudson Bay Capital Management LP, a Delaware limited partnership (“Hudson Bay”) and Mr. Sander Gerber, with respect to the shares of common stock held by HB Strategies LLC to which Hudson Bay serves as investment manager. Mr. Gerber serves as the managing member of Hudson Bay Capital GP LLC, which is the general partner of Hudson Bay. Mr. Gerber disclaims beneficial ownership of these securities. The business address of reporting persons is 777 Third Avenue, 30th Floor, New York, New York 10017. |
Our sponsor, officers and directors are deemed to be our “promoter” as such term is defined under the federal securities laws.
Changes in Control
None.
| ITEM 13. | CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS, AND DIRECTOR INDEPENDENCE |
On June 11, 2020, our initial shareholders purchased 100 founder shares for an aggregate purchase price of $25,000. On July 15, 2020, we effected a 28,750-for-1 forward stock split and, as a result, our initial shareholders held 2,875,000 founder shares as of the date of our initial public offering. 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 our initial public offering. The founder shares may not, subject to certain limited exceptions, be transferred, assigned or sold by the holder.
Our sponsor and I-Bankers purchased an aggregate of 5,425,000 warrants at a price of $1.00 per warrant in a private placement that occurred simultaneously with the closing of our initial public offering. Of such amount, 4,325,000 warrants were purchased by our sponsor, and 1,100,000 warrants were purchased by I-Bankers. The private placement warrants (including the common stock issuable upon exercise of the private placement warrants) 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.
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 may be required to present such business combination opportunity to such entity prior to presenting such business combination opportunity to us. Our executive officers and directors currently have certain relevant fiduciary duties or contractual obligations that may take priority over their duties to us.
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Commencing on the date our securities were first listed on Nasdaq, we have agreed to pay an affiliate of our sponsor a total of $5,000 per month for office space, utilities and secretarial and administrative support. Upon completion of our initial business combination or our liquidation, we will cease paying these monthly fees.
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 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.
Our sponsor agreed to loan us up to $300,000 to be used for a portion of the expenses of our initial public offering. On November 25, 2020, the outstanding balance under the promissory note in the aggregate amount of $145,617 was repaid.
Our sponsor has agreed, pursuant to a letter agreement with us, to enter into an agreement in accordance with the guidelines of Rule 10b5-1 under the Exchange Act, to place limit orders, through an independent broker- dealer registered under Section 15 of the Exchange Act which is not affiliated with us nor part of the underwriting or selling group, to purchase an aggregate of up to 7,500,000 of our rights in the open market at market prices, not to exceed $0.10 per right during the period commencing on the later of (i) the date separate trading of the rights commences or (ii) sixty calendar days after the end of the “restricted period” under Regulation M, continuing until the date that is the earlier of (a) eight (8) months from the date of our initial public offering and (b) the date that we announce that we have entered into a definitive agreement in connection with our initial business combination, or earlier in certain circumstances as described in the limit order agreement. The limit orders will require our sponsor to purchase any rights offered for sale (and not purchased by another investor) at or below a price of $0.10, until the earlier of (x) the expiration of the buyback period or (y) the date such purchases reach 7,500,000 rights in total. Our sponsor will not have any discretion or influence with respect to such purchases and will not be able to sell or transfer any rights purchased in the open market pursuant to such agreements until following the consummation of a business combination. It is intended that the broker’s purchase obligation will be subject to applicable law, including Regulation M under the Exchange Act, which may prohibit or limit purchases pursuant to the limit order agreement in certain circumstances. The rights will expire worthless if we are unable to consummate a business combination. I- Bankers has also agreed to purchase up to 2,500,000 of our rights in the open market at market prices not to exceed $0.10 per right, on substantially similar terms as our sponsor.
In addition, 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 an initial business combination, we would repay such loaned amounts. In the event that the initial business combination does not close, we may use a portion of the working capital held outside the trust account to repay such loaned amounts but no proceeds from our trust account would be used for such repayment. Up to $1,000,000 of such loans may be convertible into warrants of the post business combination entity at a price of $1.00 per warrant at the option of the lender. The warrants would be identical to the private placement warrants issued to our sponsor, including as to exercise price, exercisability and exercise period. The terms of such loans by our officers and directors, if any, have not been determined and no written agreements exist with respect to such loans. 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.
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 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 officer and director compensation.
We entered into a registration rights agreement with respect to the founder shares, the private placement warrants and warrants issued upon conversion of working capital loans (if any).
Policy for Approval of Related Party Transactions
Our audit committee must review and approve any related person transaction we propose to enter into. Our audit committee charter details the policies and procedures relating to transactions that may present actual, potential or perceived conflicts of interest and may raise questions as to whether such transactions are consistent with the best interest of our company and our stockholders. A summary of such policies and procedures is set forth below.
Any potential related party transaction that is brought to the audit committee’s attention will be analyzed by the audit committee, in consultation with outside counsel or members of management, as appropriate, to determine whether the transaction or relationship does, in fact, constitute a related party transaction. At its meetings, the audit committee will be provided with the details of each new, existing or proposed related party transaction, including the terms of the transaction, the business purpose of the transaction and the benefits to us and to the relevant related party.
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In determining whether to approve a related party transaction, the audit committee must consider, among other factors, the following factors to the extent relevant:
| • | whether the terms of the transaction are fair to us and on the same basis as would apply if the transaction did not involve a related party; |
| • | whether there are business reasons for us to enter into the transaction; |
| • | whether the transaction would impair the independence of an outside director; |
| • | whether the transaction would present an improper conflict of interest for any director or executive officer; and |
| • | any pre-existing contractual obligations. |
Any member of the audit committee who has an interest in the transaction under discussion must abstain from any voting regarding the transaction, but may, if so requested by the chairman of the audit committee, participate in some or all of the audit committee’s discussions of the transaction. Upon completion of its review of the transaction, the audit committee may determine to permit or to prohibit the transaction.
Our sponsor, officers and directors are deemed to be our “promoter” as such term is defined under the federal securities laws.
To further minimize conflicts of interest, we have agreed not to consummate an initial business combination with an entity that is affiliated with any of our sponsor, officers or directors unless we, or a committee of independent directors, have obtained an opinion from an independent investment banking firm or another independent entity that commonly renders valuation opinions that our initial business combination is fair to our company and our stockholders from a financial point of view. No finder’s fees, reimbursements, consulting fee, monies in respect of any payment of a loan or other compensation will be paid by us to our sponsor, officers or directors, or any affiliate of our sponsor or officers, for services rendered to us prior to, or in connection with any services rendered in order to effectuate, the consummation of our initial business combination (regardless of the type of transaction that it is). However, the following payments have been or will be made to our sponsor, officers or directors, or our or their affiliates, none of which will be made from the proceeds of our initial public offering held in the trust account prior to the completion of our initial business combination:
| • | Repayment of up to an aggregate of $145,617 in loans made to us by our sponsor to cover offering related and organizational expenses; |
| • | Payment to an affiliate of our sponsor of $5,000 per month, for up to 18 months, for office space, utilities and secretarial and administrative support; |
| • | Reimbursement for any out-of-pocket expenses related to identifying, investigating and completing an initial business combination; and |
| • | 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 been executed with respect thereto. Up to $1,000,000 of such loans may be convertible into warrants, at a price of $1.00 per warrant at the option of the lender. |
Our audit committee reviews on a quarterly basis all payments that were made to our sponsor, officers or directors, or our or their affiliates.
ITEM 14. PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTANT FEES AND SERVICES
The following is a summary of fees paid or to be paid to Marcum LLP, or Marcum, for services rendered.
Audit Fees. Audit fees consist of fees billed for professional services rendered for the audit of our year-end financial statements and services that are normally provided by Marcum in connection with regulatory filings. The aggregate fees billed by Marcum for professional services rendered for the audit of our annual financial statements, review of the financial information for the respective periods and other required filings with the SEC for the period from June 11, 2020 (inception) through December 31, 2020 totaled $78,045. The above amounts include interim procedures and audit fees, as well as attendance at audit committee meetings.
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Audit-Related Fees. Audit-related services consist of fees billed for assurance and related services that are reasonably related to performance of the audit or review of our financial statements and are not reported under “Audit Fees.” These services include attest services that are not required by statute or regulation and consultations concerning financial accounting and reporting standards. We did not pay Marcum for consultations concerning financial accounting and reporting standards for the period from June 11, 2020 (inception) through December 31, 2020.
Tax Fees. We did not pay Marcum for tax planning and tax advice for the period from June 11, 2020 (inception) through December 31, 2020.
All Other Fees. We did not pay Marcum for other services for the period from June 11, 2020 (inception) through December 31, 2020.
Pre-Approval Policy
Our audit committee was formed upon the consummation of our initial public offering. As a result, the audit committee did not pre-approve all of the foregoing services, although any services rendered prior to the formation of our audit committee were approved by our board of directors. Since the formation of our audit committee, and on a going-forward basis, the audit committee has and will pre-approve all auditing services and permitted non-audit services to be performed for us by our auditors, including the fees and terms thereof (subject to the de minimis exceptions for non-audit services described in the Exchange Act which are approved by the audit committee prior to the completion of the audit).
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| ITEM 15. | EXHIBITS, FINANCIAL STATEMENTS SCHEDULES |
| (a) | The following documents are filed as part of this Form 10-K: |
| (1) | Financial Statements: |
| Page | ||||
Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm | F-2 | |||
Balance Sheet | F-3 | |||
Statement of Operations | F-4 | |||
Statement of Changes in Stockholders’ Equity | F-5 | |||
Statement of Cash Flows | F-6 | |||
Notes to Financial Statements | F-7 | |||
| (2) | Financial Statement Schedules: |
None.
| (3) | Exhibits |
We hereby file as part of this Report the exhibits listed in the attached Exhibit Index. Exhibits which are incorporated herein by reference can be inspected and copied at the public reference facilities maintained by the SEC, 100 F Street, N.E., Room 1580, Washington, D.C. 20549. Copies of such material can also be obtained from the Public Reference Section of the SEC, 100 F Street, N.E., Washington, D.C. 20549, at prescribed rates or on the SEC website at www.sec.gov.
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| * | Filed herewith. |
| ** | Furnished herewith. |
| (1) | Incorporated by reference to the registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K, filed with the SEC on November 27, 2020. |
| ITEM 16. | FORM 10-K SUMMARY |
Not applicable.
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SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this Annual Report on Form 10-K to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
March 31, 2021
| BREEZE HOLDINGS ACQUISITION CORP. |
| /s/ J. Douglas Ramsey |
| Name: J. Douglas Ramsey |
| Title: Chief Executive Officer |
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, this Annual Report on Form 10-K has been signed below by the following persons on behalf of the registrant and in the capacities and on the dates indicated.
Name | Position | Date | ||
| /s/ J. Douglas Ramsey | Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and Chief | March 31, 2021 | ||
| J. Douglas Ramsey | Financial Officer (Principal Executive, Financial and Accounting Officer) | |||
| /s/ Russell D. Griffin | President and Director | March 31, 2021 | ||
| Russell D. Griffin | ||||
| /s/ Daniel L. Hunt | Director | March 31, 2021 | ||
| Daniel L. Hunt | ||||
| /s/ Albert S. McLelland | Director | March 31, 2021 | ||
| Albert S. McLelland | ||||
| /s/ Bill Stark | Director | March 31, 2021 | ||
| Bill Stark | ||||
| /s/ Robert L. Thomas | Director | March 31, 2021 | ||
| Robert L. Thomas | ||||
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BREEZE HOLDINGS ACQUISITION CORP.
INDEX TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
| F-2 | ||||
Financial Statements: | ||||
| F-3 | ||||
| F-4 | ||||
| F-5 | ||||
| F-6 | ||||
| F-7 |
F-1
REPORT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM
To the Stockholders and the Board of Directors of
Breeze Holdings Acquisition Corp.
Opinion on the Financial Statements
We have audited the accompanying balance sheet of Breeze Holdings Acquisition Corp. (the “Company”) as of December 31, 2020, the related statement of operations, changes in stockholders’ equity and cash flows for the period from June 11, 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 June 11, 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/ Marcum LLP
Marcum LLP
We have served as the Company’s auditor since 2020.
New York, NY
March 31, 2021
F-2
BREEZE HOLDINGS ACQUISITION CORP.
DECEMBER 31, 2020
ASSETS Current assets | ||||
Cash | $ | 693,818 | ||
Prepaid expenses | 136,949 | |||
|
| |||
Total Current Assets | 830,767 | |||
Cash and marketable securities held in Trust Account | 116,734,480 | |||
Prepaid expenses | 23,292 | |||
|
| |||
Total Assets | $ | 117,588,539 | ||
|
| |||
LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY | ||||
Current liabilities | ||||
Accounts payable and accrued expenses | $ | 67,264 | ||
Franchise tax payable | 23,156 | |||
Current maturities of long-term liabilities | 136,949 | |||
|
| |||
Total Current Liabilities | 227,369 | |||
Long-term liabilities | 23,292 | |||
|
| |||
Total Liabilities | 250,661 | |||
|
| |||
Commitments | ||||
Common stock subject to possible redemption, 11,067,771 shares at redemption value | 112,337,876 | |||
|
| |||
Stockholders’ Equity | ||||
Preferred stock, $0.0001 par value; 1,000,000 authorized; none issued and outstanding | — | |||
Common stock, $0.0001 par value; 100,000,000 shares authorized; 3,557,229 shares issued and outstanding (excluding 11,067,771 shares subject to possible redemption) | 356 | |||
Additional paid-in capital | 5,334,211 | |||
Retained loss | (334,565 | ) | ||
|
| |||
Total Stockholders’ Equity | 5,000,002 | |||
|
| |||
TOTAL LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY | $ | 117,588,539 | ||
|
| |||
The accompanying notes are an integral part of the financial statements.
F-3
BREEZE HOLDINGS ACQUISITION CORP.
FOR THE PERIOD FROM JUNE 11, 2020 (INCEPTION) THROUGH DECEMBER 31, 2020
Operating and formation costs | $ | 344,223 | ||
|
| |||
Loss from operations | (344,223 | ) | ||
|
| |||
Other income: | ||||
Interest income | 178 | |||
Unrealized gain on marketable securities held in Trust Account | 9,480 | |||
|
| |||
Other income | 9,658 | |||
|
| |||
Net loss | $ | (334,565 | ) | |
|
| |||
Basic and diluted weighted average shares outstanding, Redeemable Common Stock | 11,067,771 | |||
|
| |||
Basic and diluted net earnings per share, Redeemable Common Stock | $ | 0.00 | ||
|
| |||
Basic and diluted weighted average shares outstanding, Non-Redeemable Common Stock | 3,557,229 | |||
|
| |||
Basic and diluted net loss per share, Non-Redeemable Common Stock | $ | (0.09 | ) | |
|
|
The accompanying notes are an integral part of the financial statements.
F-4
BREEZE HOLDINGS ACQUISITION CORP.
STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY
FOR THE PERIOD FROM JUNE 11, 2020 (INCEPTION) THROUGH DECEMBER 31, 2020
| Common Stock | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Shares | Amount | Additional Paid in Capital | Retained Loss | Total Stockholders’ Equity | ||||||||||||||||
Balance – June 11, 2020 (inception) | — | $ | — | $ | — | $ | — | $ | — | |||||||||||
Common stock issued to the Sponsor (1) | 2,875,000 | 288 | 24,712 | — | 25,000 | |||||||||||||||
Common stock issued to the Representative | 250,000 | 25 | (25 | ) | — | — | ||||||||||||||
Sale of 5,425,000 Private Placement Warrants | — | — | 5,425,000 | — | 5,425,000 | |||||||||||||||
Sale of 11,500,000 Units, net of underwriting discount and offering expenses | 11,500,000 | 1,150 | 112,221,293 | — | 112,222,443 | |||||||||||||||
Common stock subject to possible redemption | (11,067,771 | ) | (1,107 | ) | (112,336,769 | ) | — | (112,337,876 | ) | |||||||||||
Net loss | — | — | — | (334,565 | ) | (334,565 | ) | |||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |||||||||||
Balance – December 31, 2020 | 3,557,229 | $ | 356 | $ | 5,334,211 | $ | (334,565 | ) | $ | 5,000,002 | ||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |||||||||||
| (1) | On June 11, 2020, the Company issued an aggregate of 100 shares of common stock to the Sponsor for an aggregate purchase price of $25,000. On July 15, 2020, the Company effected a stock split of 28,750-for-1 of its common stock resulting in an aggregate of 2,875,000 shares of common stock held by the Sponsor. |
The accompanying notes are an integral part of the financial statements.
F-5
BREEZE HOLDINGS ACQUISITION CORP.
FOR THE PERIOD FROM JUNE 11, 2020 (INCEPTION) THROUGH DECEMBER 31, 2020
Cash Flows from Operating Activities: | ||||
Net loss | $ | (334,565 | ) | |
Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash used in operating activities: | ||||
Unrealized gain on marketable securities held in Trust Account | (9,480 | ) | ||
Changes in operating assets and liabilities: | ||||
Accounts payable and accrued expenses | 67,264 | |||
Franchise tax payable | 23,156 | |||
|
| |||
Net cash used in operating activities | (253,625 | ) | ||
|
| |||
Cash Flows from Investing Activities: | ||||
Investment of cash in Trust Account | (116,725,000 | ) | ||
|
| |||
Net cash used in investing activities | (116,725,000 | ) | ||
|
| |||
Cash Flows from Financing Activities: | ||||
Proceeds from sale of common stock to initial stockholders and representative | 25,000 | |||
Proceeds from sale of Units, net of underwriting discounts paid | 112,700,000 | |||
Proceeds from sale of Private Placement Warrants | 5,425,000 | |||
Proceeds from promissory note – related party | 145,617 | |||
Repayment of promissory note – related party | (145,617 | ) | ||
Payment of offering costs | (477,557 | ) | ||
|
| |||
Net cash provided by financing activities | 117,672,443 | |||
|
| |||
Net Change in Cash | 693,818 | |||
Cash – Beginning of period, June 11, 2020 (inception) | — | |||
|
| |||
Cash – End of period | $ | 693,818 | ||
|
| |||
Supplemental disclosure of non-cash financing activities: | ||||
Value of common stock subject to redemption | $ | 112,337,876 | ||
|
| |||
The accompanying notes are an integral part of the financial statements.
F-6
BREEZE HOLDINGS ACQUISITON CORP.
DECEMBER 31, 2020
Note 1 — Description of Organization and Business Operations
Breeze Holdings Acquisition Corp. (the “Company”) is a blank check company incorporated in Delaware on June 11, 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 “Business Combination”).
The Company is an early stage and emerging growth company and, as such, the Company is subject to all of the risks associated with early stage and emerging growth companies.
As of December 31, 2020, the Company had not commenced any operations. All activity for the period from June 11, 2020 (inception) through December 31, 2020 relates to the Company’s formation, the initial public offering (“Initial Public Offering”), which is described below, and, after the Initial Public Offering, identifying a target company for a Business Combination. The Company will not generate any operating revenues until after the completion of its initial Business Combination, at the earliest. The Company will generate non-operating income in the form of interest income from the proceeds derived from the Initial Public Offering.
The registration statement for the Company’s Initial Public Offering was declared effective on November 23, 2020. On November 25, 2020, the Company consummated the Initial Public Offering of 11,500,000 units (the “Units” and, with respect to the shares of common stock included in the Units sold, the “Public Shares”), generating gross proceeds of $115,000,000, which is described in Note 3.
Simultaneously with the closing of the Initial Public Offering, the Company consummated the sale of 5,425,000 warrants (the “Private Placement Warrants”) at a price of $1.00 per Private Placement Warrant in a private placement to Breeze Sponsor, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company (the “Sponsor”) and I-Bankers Securities, Inc., generating gross proceeds of $5,425,000, which is described in Note 4.
Following the closing of the Initial Public Offering on November 25, 2020, an amount of $116,725,000 ($10.15 per Unit) from the net proceeds of the sale of the Units in the Initial Public Offering and the sale of the Private Placement Warrants was placed in a trust account (the “Trust Account”) and invested in U.S. government securities, within the meaning set forth in Section 2(a)(16) of the Investment Company Act, with a maturity of 185 days or less or in any open-ended investment company that holds itself out as a money market fund selected by the Company meeting the conditions of Rule 2a-7 of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Investment Company Act”), as determined by the Company, until the earlier of: (i) the completion of a Business Combination or (ii) the distribution of the Trust Account to the Company’s stockholders, as described below.
Transaction costs incurred in connection with the Initial Public Offering amounted to $2,777,557, consisting of $2,300,000 of underwriting fees, and $477,557 of other offering costs. As of December 31, 2020, cash of $693,818 was held outside of the Trust Account and was available for working capital purposes.
The Company’s management has broad discretion with respect to the specific application of the net proceeds of the Initial Public Offering and the sale of the Private Placement Warrants, although substantially all of the net proceeds are intended to be applied generally toward consummating a Business Combination. There is no assurance that the Company will be able to complete a Business Combination successfully. The Company must complete an initial Business Combination having an aggregate fair market value of at least 80% of the assets held in the Trust Account (excluding the deferred underwriting commissions and taxes payable) at the time of the agreement to enter into the initial Business Combination. The Company will only complete a Business Combination if the post-transaction company owns or acquires 50% or more of the outstanding voting securities of the target or otherwise acquires a controlling interest in the target sufficient for it not to be required to register as an investment company under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Investment Company Act”).
The Company will provide its stockholders with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their Public Shares upon the completion of a Business Combination either (i) in connection with a stockholder meeting called to approve the Business Combination or (ii) by means of a tender offer. The decision as to whether the Company will seek stockholder
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approval of a Business Combination or conduct a tender offer will be made by the Company, solely in its discretion. The stockholders will be entitled to redeem their shares for a pro rata portion of the amount then in the Trust Account (initially $10.15 per share), plus any pro rata interest earned on the funds held in the Trust Account and not previously released to the Company to pay its tax obligations. The per-share amount to be distributed to stockholders who redeem their shares will not be reduced by the deferred underwriting commissions the Company will pay to the underwriters (as discussed in Note 6). There will be no redemption rights upon the completion of a Business Combination with respect to the Company’s warrants.
The Company will proceed with a Business Combination only if the Company has net tangible assets of at least $5,000,001 upon such consummation of a Business Combination and, if the Company seeks stockholder approval, a majority of the outstanding shares voted are voted in favor of the Business Combination. If a stockholder vote is not required and the Company does not decide to hold a stockholder vote for business or other legal reasons, the Company will, pursuant to its Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, conduct the redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules of the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) and file tender offer documents containing substantially the same information as would be included in a proxy statement with the SEC prior to completing a Business Combination. If the Company seeks stockholder approval in connection with a Business Combination, the Company’s Sponsor has agreed to vote its Founder Shares (as defined in Note 5) and any Public Shares purchased by it during or after the Initial Public Offering in favor of approving a Business Combination. Additionally, each public stockholder may elect to redeem their Public Shares, regardless of whether they vote for or against a Business Combination.
If the Company seeks stockholder approval of a Business Combination and it does not conduct redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules, the Company’s Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation provides that a public stockholder, together with any affiliate of such stockholder or any other person with whom such stockholder is acting in concert or as a “group” (as defined under Section 13 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”)), will be restricted from seeking redemption rights with respect to 15% or more of the Public Shares, without the Company’s prior written consent.
The Sponsor has agreed (a) to waive its redemption rights with respect to any Founder Shares and Public Shares held by it in connection with the completion of a Business Combination, (b) to waive its liquidation rights with respect to the Founder Shares if the Company fails to complete a Business Combination by November 25, 2021 (which can be extended up to 6 months) and (c) not to propose an amendment to the Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation (i) to modify the substance or timing of the Company’s obligation to allow redemption in connection with the Company’s initial Business Combination or to redeem 100% of its Public Shares if the Company does not complete a Business Combination or (ii) with respect to any other provision relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity, unless the Company provides the public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their Public Shares in conjunction with any such amendment. However, if the Sponsor acquires Public Shares in or after the Initial Public Offering, such Public Shares will be entitled to liquidating distributions from the Trust Account if the Company fails to complete a Business Combination within the Combination Period.
The Company will have until November 25, 2021 (which can be extended up to 6 months) to complete a Business Combination (the “Combination Period”). If the Company is unable to complete a Business Combination within the Combination Period, the Company will (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up, (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than ten business days thereafter, redeem the Public Shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the Trust Account including interest earned on the funds held in the Trust Account and not previously released to the Company to pay its tax obligations (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), and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of the Company’s remaining stockholders and the Company’s board of directors, dissolve and liquidate, subject in each case to the Company’s obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. There will be no redemption rights or liquidating distributions with respect to the Company’s warrants, which will expire worthless if the Company fails to complete a Business Combination within the Combination Period.
In order to protect the amounts held in the Trust Account, the Sponsor has agreed to be liable to the Company if and to the extent any claims by a third party for services rendered or products sold to the Company, or a prospective target business with which the Company has discussed entering into a transaction agreement, reduce the amount of funds in the Trust Account to below (1) $10.15 per Public Share or (2) the actual amount per Public Share held in the Trust Account
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as of the date of the liquidation of the Trust Account 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. This liability will not apply with respect to any claims by a third party who executed a waiver of any and all rights to seek access to the Trust Account and will not apply to any claims under the Company’s indemnity of the underwriters of the Initial Public Offering against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”). Moreover, in the event that an executed waiver is deemed to be unenforceable against a third party, the Sponsor will not be responsible to the extent of any liability for such third-party claims. The Company will seek to reduce the possibility that the Sponsor will have to indemnify the Trust Account due to claims of creditors by endeavoring to have all vendors, service providers (except the Company’s independent registered public accounting firm), prospective target businesses or other entities with which the Company does business, execute agreements with the Company waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to monies held in the Trust Account.
Liquidity
As of December 31, 2020, the Company had $693,818 in cash held outside of the Trust Account and working capital of $624,554 (excluding franchise tax payable).
The Company’s liquidity needs prior to the consummation of the Initial Public Offering were satisfied through the proceeds of $25,000 from the sale of the Founder Shares, and a loan of $300,000 under an unsecured and non-interest bearing promissory note (see Note 5). Subsequent to the consummation of the Initial Public Offering, the Company’s liquidity needs have been satisfied from the net proceeds from 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 a 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 and accrued liabilities, 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.
Risks and uncertainties
Management is currently evaluating the impact of the COVID-19 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 have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”) and pursuant to the rules and regulations of the SEC.
Emerging growth company
The Company is an “emerging growth company,” as defined in Section 2(a) of the Securities Act, as modified by the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act of 2012 (the “JOBS Act”), and it may take advantage of certain exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other public companies that are not emerging growth companies including, but not limited to, not being required to comply with the independent registered public accounting firm attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in its periodic reports and proxy statements, and exemptions from the requirements of holding a nonbinding advisory vote on executive compensation and stockholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved.
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Further, Section 102(b)(1) of the JOBS Act exempts emerging growth companies from being required to comply with new or revised financial accounting standards until private companies (that is, those that have not had a Securities Act registration statement declared effective or do not have a class of securities registered under the Exchange Act) are required to comply with the new or revised financial accounting standards. The JOBS Act provides that a company can elect to opt out of the extended transition period and comply with the requirements that apply to non-emerging growth companies but any such election to opt out is irrevocable. The Company has elected not to opt out of such extended transition period which means that when a standard is issued or revised and it has different application dates for public or private companies, the Company, as an emerging growth company, can adopt the new or revised standard at the time private companies adopt the new or revised standard. This may make comparison of the Company’s financial statements with another public company which is neither an emerging growth company nor an emerging growth company which has opted out of using the extended transition period difficult or impossible because of the potential differences in accounting standards used.
Use of estimates
The preparation of the financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires the Company’s management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period.
Making estimates requires management to exercise significant judgment. It is at least reasonably possible that the estimate of the effect of a condition, situation or set of circumstances that existed at the date of the financial statements, which management considered in formulating its estimate, could change in the near term due to one or more future confirming events. Accordingly, the actual results could differ significantly from those estimates.
Cash and cash equivalents
The Company considers all short-term investments with an original maturity of three months or less when purchased to be cash equivalents. The Company did not have any cash equivalents as of December 31, 2020.
Cash and marketable securities held in Trust Account
At December 31, 2020, substantially all of the assets held in the Trust Account were U.S. Treasury securities. The Company accounts for its securities held in the Trust Account in accordance with the guidance in Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) Topic 320 “Debt and Equity Securities.” These securities are classified as trading securities with unrealized gains/losses, if any, recognized through the statement of operations.
Common stock subject to possible redemption
The Company accounts for its common stock subject to possible redemption in accordance with the guidance in Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) Topic 480, Distinguishing Liabilities from Equity. Common stock subject to mandatory redemption is classified as a liability instrument and is measured at fair value. Conditionally redeemable common stock (including common stock that features redemption rights that are either within the control of the holder or subject to redemption upon the occurrence of uncertain events not solely within the Company’s control) is classified as temporary equity. At all other times, common stock is classified as stockholders’ equity. The Company’s common stock features certain redemption rights that are considered to be outside of the Company’s control and subject to occurrence of uncertain future events. Accordingly, common stock subject to possible redemption is presented at redemption value as temporary equity, outside of the stockholders’ equity section of the Company’s balance sheet.
Income taxes
The Company follows the asset and liability method of accounting for income taxes under ASC 740, Income Taxes. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are recognized for the estimated future tax consequences attributable to differences between the financial statements carrying amounts of existing assets and liabilities and their respective tax bases. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are measured using enacted tax rates expected to apply to taxable income in the years in which those temporary differences are expected to be recovered or settled. The effect on deferred tax assets and liabilities of a change in tax rates is recognized in income in the period that included the enactment date. Valuation allowances are established, when necessary, to reduce deferred tax assets to the amount expected to be realized.
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ASC 740 prescribes a recognition threshold and a measurement attribute for the financial statement’s recognition and measurement of tax positions taken or expected to be taken in a tax return. For those benefits to be recognized, a tax position must be more likely than not to be sustained upon examination by taxing authorities. The Company recognizes accrued interest and penalties related to unrecognized tax benefits as income tax expense. There were no unrecognized tax benefits and no amounts accrued for interest and penalties as of 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.
Net earnings (loss) per share
Net earnings (loss) per share is computed by dividing net earnings by the weighted-average number of shares of common stock outstanding during the period. The Company has not considered the effect of the warrants sold in the Initial Public Offering and Private Placement to purchase an aggregate of 16,925,000 shares in the calculation of diluted loss per share, since the exercise of the warrants are contingent upon the occurrence of future events and the inclusion of such warrants would be anti-dilutive.
The Company’s statement of operations includes a presentation of earnings (loss) per share for common shares subject to possible redemption and applies the two-class method in calculating earnings (loss) per share. Net earnings per common share, basic and diluted, for redeemable common stock is calculated by dividing the allocable interest income earned on the Trust Account, net of applicable franchise and income taxes, by the weighted average number of shares of redeemable common stock outstanding since original issuance. Net loss per share, basic and diluted, for non-redeemable common stock is calculated by dividing the net loss, adjusted for income attributable to redeemable common stock, by the weighted average number of shares of non-redeemable common stock outstanding for the period. Non-redeemable common stock includes the Founder Shares and representative shares as these shares do not have any redemption features and do not participate in the income earned on the Trust Account.
The following table reflects the calculation of basic and diluted net income (loss) per common share (in dollars, except per share amounts):
| For the Period from June 11, 2020 (Inception) through December 31, 2020 | ||||
Redeemable Common Stock | ||||
Numerator: Earnings allocable to Redeemable Common Stock | ||||
Unrealized gain on investments held in Trust Account | $ | 7,174 | ||
Franchise tax expense | (7,174 | ) | ||
|
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Net earnings | $ | — | ||
|
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Denominator: Weighted average Redeemable Common Stock | ||||
Basic and diluted weighted average shares outstanding, Redeemable Common Stock | 11,067,771 | |||
|
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Basic and diluted net earnings per share, Redeemable Common Stock | $ | 0.00 | ||
|
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Non-Redeemable Common Stock | ||||
Numerator: Net loss minus net earnings | ||||
Net loss | $ | (334,565 | ) | |
Net earnings | — | |||
|
| |||
Non-redeemable net loss | $ | (334,565 | ) | |
|
| |||
Denominator: Weighted average Non-Redeemable Common Stock | ||||
Basic and diluted weighted average shares outstanding, Non-Redeemable Common Stock | 3,557,229 | |||
|
| |||
Basic and diluted net loss per share, Non-Redeemable Common Stock | $ | (0.09 | ) | |
|
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Concentration of credit risk
Financial instruments that potentially subject the Company to concentrations of credit risk consist of cash accounts in a financial institution, which, at times may exceed the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporate coverage of $250,000. The Company has not experienced losses on these accounts and management believes the Company is not exposed to significant risks on such accounts.
Recent accounting pronouncements
Management does not believe that any recently issued, but not yet effective, accounting pronouncements, if currently adopted, would have a material effect on the Company’s financial statements.
Note 3 — Initial Public Offering
Pursuant to the Initial Public Offering, the Company sold 10,000,000 units at a price of $10.00 per unit (the “Units”). Each Unit consists of one share of the Company’s common stock, $0.0001 par value, one right to receive one-twentieth (1/20) of one share of common stock upon the consummation of an initial business combination and one redeemable warrant (the “Warrants”). In connection with the underwriters’ exercise of the over-allotment option on November 25, 2020, the Company sold an additional 1,500,000 Units, at a purchase price of $10.00 per Unit. Each Warrant entitles the holder to purchase one share of common stock at a price of $11.50 per share. Each Warrant will become exercisable on the later of 30 days after the completion of the Company’s initial Business Combination or 12 months from the closing of the Initial Public Offering and will expire five years after the completion of the Company’s initial Business Combination or earlier upon redemption or liquidation. However, if the Company does not complete its initial Business Combination on or prior to the 12-month period allotted to complete the Business Combination (or up to 18 months if the Company extends the period of time), the Warrants will expire at the end of such period. If the Company is unable to deliver registered shares of common stock to the holder upon exercise of Warrants issued in connection with the 11,500,000 public Units during the exercise period, there will be no net cash settlement of these Warrants and the Warrants will expire worthless, unless they may be exercised on a cashless basis in the circumstances described in the warrant agreement.
Note 4 — Private Placement
Simultaneously with the closing of the Initial Public Offering, the Sponsor purchased an aggregate of 5,425,000 Private Placement Warrants at a price of $1.00 per Private Placement Warrant, for an aggregate purchase price of $5,425,000. Each Private Placement Warrant is exercisable to purchase one share of common stock at a price of $11.50 per share. A portion of the proceeds from the sale of the Private Placement Warrants were added to the proceeds from the Initial Public Offering held in the Trust Account. If the Company does not complete a Business Combination within the Combination Period, certain of the proceeds from the sale of the Private Placement Warrants 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.
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Note 5 — Related Party
Transactions Founder Shares
On June 11, 2020, the Company issued an aggregate of 100 shares of common stock to the Sponsor for an aggregate purchase price of $25,000. Accordingly, as of June 30, 2020, the $25,000 payment due to the Company was recorded to the par value and additional paid-in-capital sections of the balance sheet. On July 15, 2020, the Company effected a stock split of 28,750-for-1 of its common stock resulting in an aggregate of 2,875,000 shares of common stock held by the initial stockholders so that the initial stockholders will own 20.0% of the Company’s issued and outstanding shares after the Initial Public Offering (assuming the initial shareholders do not purchase any Units in the Initial Public Offering and excluding the representative and consultant shares). The Founder Shares are identical to the common stock included in the Units that were sold in the Initial Public Offering except that the Founder Shares are subject to certain transfer restrictions, as described in more detail below.
The Company’s initial stockholders have agreed not to transfer, assign or sell any of their Founder Shares until the earlier of (A) one year after the completion of the Company’s initial Business Combination, or earlier if, subsequent to the Company’s initial Business Combination, the last sale price of the Company’s 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 90 days after the Company’s initial Business Combination or (B) the date on which the Company completes a liquidation, merger, stock exchange or other similar transaction after the initial Business Combination 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.
Representative Shares
The Company issued to I-Bankers Securities (or its designees) 250,000 representative shares for an aggregate price of $25. The Company accounted for these shares as an offering cost of the Initial Public Offering, with a corresponding credit to stockholders’ equity. The holders of the representative shares have agreed not to transfer, assign or sell any such shares without the Company’s prior consent until the completion of the Company’s initial Business Combination. In addition, the holders of the representative shares have agreed (i) to waive their conversion rights (or right to participate in any tender offer) with respect to such shares in connection with the completion of the Company’s initial business combination and (ii) to waive their rights to liquidating distributions from the Trust Account with respect to such shares if the Company fails to complete our initial business combination within 12 months from the closing of the Initial Public Offering (or up to 18 months if the Company extends the period of time).
Private Placement Warrants
The Sponsor and I-Bankers Securities purchased from the Company an aggregate of 5,425,000 Warrants at a price of $1.00 per Warrant (a purchase price of $5,425,000), in a private placement that occurred simultaneously with the completion of the Initial Public Offering (the “Private Placement Warrants”). Each Private Placement Warrant entitles the holder to purchase one share of common stock at $11.50. The purchase price of the Private Placement Warrants were added to the proceeds from the Initial Public Offering to be held in the Trust Account pending completion of the Company’s initial Business Combination. The Private Placement Warrants (including the common stock issuable upon exercise of the Private Placement Warrants) will not be transferable, assignable or salable until 30 days after the completion of the initial Business Combination and they will be non-redeemable so long as they are held by the original holders or their permitted transferees. If the Private Placement Warrants are held by someone other than the original holders or their permitted transferees, the Private Placement Warrants will be redeemable by the Company and exercisable by such holders on the same basis as the Warrants included in the Units being sold in the Initial Public Offering. Otherwise, the Private Placement Warrants have terms and provisions that are substantially identical to those of the Warrants being sold as part of the Units in the Initial Public Offering.
If the Company does not complete a Business Combination, then the proceeds will be part of the liquidating distributions to the public stockholders and the Warrants issued to the Sponsor and I-Bankers Securities will expire worthless.
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Administrative Support Agreement
The Company entered into an agreement whereby, commencing on November 23, 2020 through the earlier of the Company’s consummation of a Business Combination and its liquidation, the Company will pay an affiliate of the Sponsor a total of $5,000 per month for office space, utilities and secretarial and administrative support services. For the period from November 23, 2020 through December 31, 2020, the Company incurred $6,333 in fees for these services, of which such amount is included in accounts payable and accrued expenses in the accompanying balance sheet.
Related Party Loans and Costs
On June 11, 2020, the Sponsor agreed to loan the Company an aggregate of up to $300,000 pursuant to an unsecured promissory note (the “Note”) to cover expenses related to the Initial Public Offering and the Company’s organizational and initial financing activities. The Note was non-interest bearing and payable on the earlier of (i) December 31, 2020, (ii) the consummation of the Initial Public Offering or (iii) the date on which the Company determined not to proceed with the Initial Public Offering. The outstanding amount of $145,617 under the Promissory Note was repaid on November 25, 2020.
In addition, in order to finance transaction costs in connection with an intended 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”). The Working Capital Loans may be repaid upon completion of a Business Combination, without interest, or, at the lender’s discretion, up to $1,000,000 of the Working Capital Loans may be converted upon completion of a Business Combination into warrants at a price of $1.00 per warrant. Such warrants would be identical to the Private Placement Warrants. In the event that a Business Combination does not close, the Company may use a portion of proceeds held outside the Trust Account to repay the Working Capital Loans but no proceeds held in the Trust Account would be used to repay the Working Capital Loans.
The Company will have until 12 months from the closing of the Initial Public Offering to consummate its initial Business Combination. However, if the Company anticipates that it may not be able to consummate its initial Business Combination within 12 months, it may, by resolution of its board if requested by the Sponsor, extend the period of time to consummate a Business Combination up to two times, each by an additional three months (for a total of up to 18 months to complete a Business Combination), subject to the Sponsor depositing additional funds into the Trust Account. In order to extend the time available for the Company to consummate its initial Business Combination, the Sponsor or its affiliates or designees, upon five days advance notice prior to the applicable deadline, must deposit into the Trust Account for each three-month extension, $1,150,000 ($0.10 per share) on or prior to the date of the applicable deadline, up to an aggregate of $2,300,000, or approximately $0.20 per share. Any such payments would be made in the form of a loan. Any such loans will be non-interest bearing and payable upon the consummation of the Company’s initial Business Combination. If the Company completes an initial Business Combination, it would repay such loaned amounts out of the proceeds of the Trust Account released to it. If the Company does not complete a Business Combination, it will not repay such loans. Furthermore, the letter agreement with the Company’s initial stockholders contains a provision pursuant to which the Sponsor has agreed to waive its right to be repaid for such loans out of the funds held in the Trust Account in the event that the Company does not complete a Business Combination. In the event that the Company receives notice from the Sponsor five days prior to the applicable deadline of its wish for the Company to effect an extension, the Company intends to issue a press release announcing such intention at least three days prior to the applicable deadline. In addition, the Company intends to issue a press release the day after the applicable deadline announcing whether or not the funds had been timely deposited. The Sponsor and its affiliates or designees are not obligated to fund the Trust Account to extend the time for the Company to complete its initial Business Combination.
Note 6 — Commitments
Pursuant to a registration rights and stockholder agreement entered into on November 23, 2020, 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 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 and stockholder rights requiring the Company to register such securities for resale (in the case of the Founder Shares, only after conversion to the Company’s common stock). The holders of the majority 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 rights with respect to registration statements filed subsequent to the completion of a Business Combination and rights to require the Company to register for resale such securities pursuant to Rule 415 under the Securities Act. The Company will bear the expenses incurred in connection with the filing of any such registration statements. In the case of the private placement warrants and representative shares issued to I-Bankers Securities, the demand registration rights provided will not be exercisable for longer than five years from the effective date of the registration statement in compliance with FINRA Rule 5110(g)(8)(C) and the piggyback registration right provided will not be exercisable for longer than seven years from the effective date of the registration statement in compliance with FINRA Rule 5110(g)(8)(D). The Company will bear the expenses incurred in connection with the filing of any such registration statements.
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Underwriting Agreement
The Company granted the underwriters a 45-day option from the date of Initial Public Offering to purchase up to 1,500,000 additional Units to cover over-allotments, if any, at the Initial Public Offering price less the underwriting discounts and commissions. On November 25, 2020, the underwriters fully exercised their over-allotment option to purchase an additional 1,500,000 Units at $10.00 per Unit.
Business Combination Marketing Agreement
The Company has engaged I-Bankers Securities, Inc. as an advisor in connection with a Business Combination to assist the Company in holding meetings with its stockholders to discuss the potential Business Combination and the target business’ attributes, introduce the Company to potential investors that are interested in purchasing the Company’s securities in connection with a Business Combination, assist the Company in obtaining stockholder approval for the Business Combination and assist the Company with its press releases and public filings in connection with the Business Combination. The Company will pay I-Bankers Securities, Inc. a cash fee for such services upon the consummation of a Business Combination in an amount equal to 2.75% of the gross proceeds of Initial Public Offering, or $3,162,500.
Open Market Purchases
The Sponsor has agreed to enter into an agreement in accordance with the guidelines of Rule 10b5-1 under the Exchange Act, to place limit orders, through an independent broker-dealer registered under Section 15 of the Exchange Act which is not affiliated with the Company nor part of the underwriting or selling group, to purchase an aggregate of up to 7,500,000 of our rights in the open market at market prices, not to exceed $0.10 per right during the period commencing on the later of (i) the date separate trading of the rights commences or (ii) sixty calendar days after the end of the “restricted period” under Regulation M, continuing until the date that is the earlier of (a) eight (8) months from the date of the prospectus utilized in the Initial Public Offering and (b) the date that the Company announces that it has entered into a definitive agreement in connection with its initial Business Combination, or earlier in certain circumstances as described in the limit order agreement. The limit orders will require the Sponsor to purchase any rights offered for sale (and not purchased by another investor) at or below a price of $0.10, until the earlier of (x) the expiration of the buyback period or (y) the date such purchases reach 7,500,000 rights in total. The Sponsor will not have any discretion or influence with respect to such purchases and will not be able to sell or transfer any rights purchased in the open market pursuant to such agreements until following the consummation of a Business Combination. It is intended that the broker’s purchase obligation will be subject to applicable law, including Regulation M under the Exchange Act, which may prohibit or limit purchases pursuant to the limit order agreement in certain circumstances. I-Bankers Securities has also agreed to purchase up to 2,500,000 of the Company’s rights in the open market at market prices not to exceed $0.10 per right, on substantially similar terms as the Sponsor.
Note 7 — Stockholders’ 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. At December 31, 2020, there were no shares of preferred stock issued or outstanding.
Common Stock — The Company is authorized to issue 100,000,000 shares of common stock with a par value of $0.0001 per share. Holders of common stock are entitled to one vote for each share. At December 31, 2020, there were 3,557,229 shares of common stock issued and outstanding, excluding 11,067,771 shares of common stock subject to possible redemption.
Warrants — Public Warrants will become exercisable on the later of (a) 30 days after the completion of a Business Combination or (b) 12 months from the closing of the Initial Public Offering. No warrants will be exercisable for cash unless the Company has an effective and current registration statement covering the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants and a current prospectus relating to such shares of common stock. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if a registration statement covering the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the Public Warrants is not effective within a specified period following the consummation of a Business Combination, warrant holders may, until such time as there is an effective registration statement and during any period when the Company shall have failed to maintain an effective registration statement, exercise warrants on a cashless basis pursuant to the exemption provided by Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act, provided that such exemption is available. If that exemption, or another exemption, is not available, holders will not be able to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis. The Public Warrants will expire five years after the completion of a Business Combination or earlier upon redemption or liquidation.
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The Company may redeem the Public Warrants (excluding the Private Placement Warrants):
| • | in whole and not in part; |
| • | at a price of $0.01 per warrant; |
| • | at any time after the warrants become exercisable; |
| • | upon not less than 30 days’ prior written notice of redemption to each warrant holder; |
| • | if, and only if, the reported last sale price of the shares of common stock equals or exceeds $18.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations and recapitalizations), for any 20 trading days within a 30 trading day period ending on the third business day prior to the notice of redemption to warrant holders; and |
| • | if, and only if, there is a current registration statement in effect with respect to the shares of common stock underlying the warrants. |
If the Company calls the Public Warrants for redemption, management will have the option to require all holders that wish to exercise the Public Warrants to do so on a “cashless basis,” as described in the warrant agreement. The exercise price and number of shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants may be adjusted in certain circumstances including in the event of a stock dividend, or recapitalization, reorganization, merger or consolidation. However, the warrants will not be adjusted for issuance of common stock at a price below its exercise price. Additionally, in no event will the Company be required to net cash settle the warrants. If the Company is unable to complete a Business Combination within the Combination Period and the Company liquidates the funds held in the Trust Account, holders of warrants will not receive any of such funds with respect to their warrants, nor will they receive any distribution from the Company’s assets held outside of the Trust Account with the respect to such warrants. Accordingly, the warrants may expire worthless.
In addition, if (x) the Company issues additional shares of common stock or equity-linked securities for capital raising purposes in connection with the closing of a Business Combination at an issue price or effective issue price of less than $9.20 per share (with such issue price or effective issue price to be determined in good faith by the Company’s board of directors, and in the case of any such issuance to the Sponsor or its affiliates, without taking into account any Founder Shares held by the Sponsor or such affiliates, as applicable, prior to such issuance) (the “Newly Issued Price”), (y) the aggregate gross proceeds from such issuances represent more than 60% of the total equity proceed, and interest thereon, available for the funding of a Business Combination on the date of the consummation of a Business Combination (net of redemptions), and (z) the volume weighted average trading price of the Company’s common stock during the 20 trading day period starting on the trading day prior to the day on which the Company consummates a Business Combination (such price, the “Market Value”) is below $9.20 per share, the exercise price of the warrants will be adjusted (to the nearest cent) to be equal to 115% of the higher of (i) the Market Value or (ii) the price at which the Company issue the additional shares of common stock or equity-linked securities.
The Private Placement Warrants are identical to the Public Warrants underlying the Units sold in the Initial Public Offering, except that the Private Placement Warrants and the common stock issuable upon the exercise of the Private Placement Warrants will not be transferable, assignable or salable until after the completion of a Business Combination, subject to certain limited exceptions. Additionally, the Private Placement Warrants will be exercisable for cash or on a cashless basis, at the holder’s option, and be non-redeemable so long as they are held by the initial purchasers or their permitted transferees. If the Private Placement Warrants are held by someone other than the initial purchasers or their permitted transferees, the Private Placement Warrants will be redeemable by the Company and exercisable by such holders on the same basis as the Public Warrants.
Rights
Except in cases where the Company is not the surviving company in a Business Combination, each holder of a right will automatically receive one-twentieth (1/20) of a share of common stock upon consummation of the Business Combination, even if the holder of a right converted all shares held by him, her or it in connection with the Business Combination or an amendment to the Company’s certificate of incorporation with respect to its pre-business combination activities. In the event that the Company will not be the surviving company upon completion of the Business Combination, each holder of a right will be required to affirmatively convert his, her or its rights in order to receive the one-twentieth (1/20) of a share of common stock underlying each right upon consummation of the Business Combination. No additional consideration will be required to be paid by a holder of rights in order to receive his, her or its additional share of common stock upon consummation of the Business Combination. The shares issuable upon exchange of the rights will be freely tradable (except
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to the extent held by affiliates of the Company). If the Company enters into a definitive agreement for a Business Combination in which the Company will not be the surviving entity, the definitive agreement will provide for the holders of rights to receive the same per share consideration the holders of shares of common stock will receive in the transaction on an as-converted into common stock basis.
The Company will not issue fractional shares in connection with an exchange of rights. As a result, the holders of the rights must hold rights in multiples of 20 in order to receive shares for all of the holders’ rights upon closing of a Business Combination. If the Company is unable to complete an initial Business Combination within the required time period and the Company liquidates the funds held in the trust account, holders of rights will not receive any of such funds with respect to their rights, nor will they receive any distribution from the Company’s assets held outside of the Trust Account with respect to such rights, and the rights will expire worthless. Additionally, in no event will the Company be required to net cash settle the rights. Accordingly, the rights may expire worthless.
Note 8 — Income Tax
The Company’s net deferred tax assets (liabilities) as of December 31, 2020 is as follows:
Deferred tax assets: | ||||
Net operating loss carryforwards | $ | 72,250 | ||
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Total deferred tax assets | 72,250 | |||
Valuation allowance | (70,259 | ) | ||
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Deferred tax liabilities: | ||||
Unrealized gain on investments | (1,991 | ) | ||
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Total deferred tax liabilities | (1,991 | ) | ||
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Deferred tax assets, net of allowance | $ | — | ||
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The income tax provision for the period from June 11, 2020 (inception) through December 31, 2020 consists of the following:
Federal | ||||
Current | $ | — | ||
Deferred | (70,259 | ) | ||
State | ||||
Current | — | |||
Deferred | — | |||
Change in valuation allowance | 70,259 | |||
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Income tax provision | $ | — | ||
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As of December 31, 2020, the Company has available U.S. federal operating loss carry forward of approximately $334,565 that may be carried forward indefinitely.
In assessing the realization of deferred tax assets, management considers whether it is more likely than not that some portion or all of the deferred tax assets will not be realized. The ultimate realization of deferred tax assets is dependent upon the generation of future taxable income during the periods in which temporary differences representing future deductible amounts become deductible. Management considers the scheduled reversal of deferred tax assets, projected future taxable income and tax planning strategies in making this assessment. After consideration of all the information available, management believes that significant uncertainty exists with respect to future realization of the deferred tax assets and has therefore established a full valuation allowance. For the period ended December 31, 2020, the valuation allowance was $70,259.
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A reconciliation of the federal income tax rate to the Company’s effective tax rate at December 31, 2020 is as follows:
Statutory federal income tax rate | 21.0 | % | ||
Change in valuation allowance | (21.0 | )% | ||
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Income tax provision | 0.0 | % | ||
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The Company files income tax returns in the U.S. federal and Texas jurisdictions both of which remain open and subject to examination.
Note 9 — Fair Value Measurements
The Company follows the guidance in ASC 820 for its financial assets and liabilities that are re-measured and reported at fair value at each reporting period, and non-financial assets and liabilities that are re-measured and reported at fair value at least annually.
The fair value of the Company’s financial assets and liabilities reflects management’s estimate of amounts that the Company would have received in connection with the sale of the assets or paid in connection with the transfer of the liabilities in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. In connection with measuring the fair value of its assets and liabilities, the Company seeks to maximize the use of observable inputs (market data obtained from independent sources) and to minimize the use of unobservable inputs (internal assumptions about how market participants would price assets and liabilities). The following fair value hierarchy is used to classify assets and liabilities based on the observable inputs and unobservable inputs used in order to value the assets and liabilities:
| Level 1: | Quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities. An active market for an asset or liability is a market in which transactions for the asset or liability occur with sufficient frequency and volume to provide pricing information on an ongoing basis. | |
| Level 2: | Observable inputs other than Level 1 inputs. Examples of Level 2 inputs include quoted prices in active markets for similar assets or liabilities and quoted prices for identical assets or liabilities in markets that are not active. | |
| Level 3: | Unobservable inputs based on our assessment of the assumptions that market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability. | |
The following table presents information about the Company’s assets that are measured at fair value on a recurring basis at December 31, 2020, and indicates the fair value hierarchy of the valuation inputs the Company utilized to determine such fair value:
Description | Level | December 31, 2020 | ||||||
Assets: | ||||||||
Cash and marketable securities held in Trust Account | 1 | $ | 116,734,480 | |||||
Note 10 — Subsequent Events
The Company evaluated subsequent events and transactions that occurred after the balance sheet date up to the date that the financial statements were issued. Based upon this review, the Company did not identify any subsequent events that would have required adjustment or disclosure in the financial statements.
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