Zhihu 20F 2021 Annual report | ZH Filing

Exhibit 4.14

Share Pledge Agreement

This Share Pledge Agreement (this “Agreement”) is entered into by and between the following parties in Beijing city of China on November 9, 2021:

Shanghai Paya Information Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as the “Pledgee”), a limited liability company legally established and validly existing according to the laws of the People’s Republic of China (hereinafter referred to as “China”), has its registered address at Building 1, No. 1036 Xizha Road, Fengxian District, Shanghai;

2.	Changjian Ma, a Chinese citizen, resident ID No. ****************, whose residence is ********;

3.	Wenjing Zhao, a Chinese citizen, resident ID No. ****************, whose residence is ********;

Nanjing Zhixin Technology Co., Ltd., a limited liability company legally established and validly existing according to the laws of China, has its registered address at Science and Technology Innovation Center, Shiqiu Street, Lishui District, Nanjing; (Nanjing Zhixin Technology Co., Ltd., Changjian Ma and Wenjing Zhao are collectively referred to as the “Pledgor”).

Shanghai Biban Network Technology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as the “Target Company”), a limited liability company legally established and validly existing according to Chinese laws, has its registered address at Room 101-J, Building 6, No. 2222 Huancheng Road, Juyuan New Park, Jiading District, Shanghai

In this Agreement, the Pledgee, the Pledgor and the Target Company shall be collectively referred to as the “parties”, each of which is referred to as a “party”.

Whereas:

The Pledgor collectively holds 100% of equity of the Target Company, of which Changjian Ma holds 27% of equity of the Target Company, Wenjing Zhao holds 18% of equity of the Target Company, and Nanjing Zhixin Technology Co., Ltd. holds 55% of equity of the Target Company (as shown in Annex I: Capital Contribution Certificate of Shanghai Biban Network Technology Co., Ltd.).

2	On November 9, 2021, the Pledgee and the Target Company signed the Exclusive Technology Development, Consultancy and Services Agreement (hereinafter referred to as the “Exclusive Service Agreement”).

3	On November 9, 2021, the parties signed the Exclusive Option Agreement (hereinafter referred to as the “Exclusive Option Agreement”).

4	On November 9, 2021, the Pledgor issued a Power of Attorney to the Pledgee (hereinafter referred to as the “Power of Attorney”).

5	In order to ensure that each Pledgor and the Target Company can fulfill their obligations

Exhibit 4.14

under the Exclusive Service Agreement, the Exclusive Option Agreement and the Power of Attorney, each Pledgor provides pledge guarantee with all of its equity of the Target Company respectively.

Through friendly negotiation, the parties reached a consensus on equity pledge. In order to clarify the rights and obligations of the parties, this Agreement is concluded for mutual compliance.

I. Definition and Interpretation

Unless otherwise specified in this Agreement, the following terms shall have the meanings set forth below:

1.	Pledge right: Refers to all the contents listed in Article II of this Agreement.

2.	Pledged equity: Refers to all of the equity legally held by each Pledgor in the Target Company, accounting for 100% of equity of the Target Company in total.

3.	Pledge period: Refers to the period stipulated in Article III of this Agreement.

4.	Event of default: Refers to any situation listed in Article VII of this Agreement.

5.	Notice of default: Refers to the notice issued by the Pledgee announcing the event of default according to this Agreement.

6.	Transaction documents: Exclusive Service Agreement, Exclusive Option Agreement and Power of Attorney and any modifications, amendments and/or restatements to the aforesaid documents.

Secured obligations: Refers to the direct, indirect and derivative losses and the loss of predictable benefits at the time of entering into this Agreement suffered by the Pledgee due to any event of default by the Pledgor and/or the Target Company. The calculation basis for the amount of such losses includes but is not limited to: the Pledgee’s reasonable business plan and profit forecast, the service fees payable by the Target Company under the Exclusive Service Agreement, and all expenses incurred by the Pledgee to force the Pledgor and/or the Target Company to fulfill their contractual obligations.

II. Pledge Right

1.	Each Pledgor pledges all the equity owned by each Pledgor in the Target Company to the Pledgee as a guarantee for each Pledgor and the Target Company to perform the transaction documents and repay the secured obligations.

2.	Pledge right refers to the right enjoyed by the Pledgee to be compensated firstly with the price of discount, auction or sale of the equity pledged by each Pledgor to the Pledgee.

III. Pledge Period

This Agreement shall take effect from the date of signing as listed at the beginning of the text, and the pledge right under this Agreement shall be recorded in the register of shareholders of the Target Company (see Annex II: Register of Shareholders of Shanghai Biban Network Technology Co., Ltd.) and shall take effect from the date when Shanghai Jiading District Administration for Market Regulation completes the registration of equity pledge, and shall

Exhibit 4.14

become invalid since the date when the pledge registration of pledged equity is released in accordance with this Agreement.

From the date of signing this Agreement to the validity period of the pledge, if the Target Company fails to pay the consulting service fees as stipulated in the Exclusive Service Agreement, the Pledgee has the right to dispose of the pledge right according to the provisions of this Agreement and relevant laws and regulations.

IV. Custody of Pledge Certificate

After this Agreement takes effect, each Pledgor shall urge the Target Company to sign the capital contribution certificate and register of shareholders attached to this Agreement, and deliver the above formally signed documents to the Pledgee, who shall keep the above documents within the pledge period stipulated in this Agreement.

2.	The Pledgee is entitled to receive all dividends, bonuses and other cash earnings and non-cash earnings generated from the pledged equity from the date of signing this Agreement to the date of terminating this Agreement.

V. Representations and Warranties of the Pledgor and the Target Company

Each Pledgor and the Target Company hereby severally but not jointly warrant to the Pledgee:

1.	Each Pledgor has the full power and authority to sign this Agreement and perform its obligations hereunder, and the terms of this Agreement constitute legal, valid and binding obligations for it;

2.	The Target Company has full corporate power and authority to sign this Agreement and perform its obligations hereunder, and the terms of this Agreement constitute legal, valid and binding obligations for it;

3.	The signing, delivery and performance of this Agreement and other transaction documents by each Pledgor / the Target Company shall not violate:

(a)

Any establishment documents of the Target Company;

(b)

Any law that each Pledgor and the Target Company shall abide by; or

(c)

Any agreement and any obligation in any written documents such as contracts, agreements and memorandums signed and effective by each Pledgor and the Target Company;

4.	During the period of this Agreement, each Pledgor is the legal owner of the pledged equity; except for the Pledgee, each Pledgor has not set any other pledge rights or third-party rights on the pledged equity;

5.	During the period of this Agreement, once the Pledgee exercises the rights of the pledgee in accordance with this Agreement, each Pledgor and the Target Company shall actively cooperate with it.

VI. Undertakings Made by the Pledgor

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1.	Within the term of this Agreement, each Pledgor severally but not jointly undertakes to the Pledgee that each Pledgor shall:

(a)

Not transfer the equity directly or indirectly in any way without the prior written consent of the Pledgee except for equity transfer to the Pledgee or the person designated by the Pledgee according to the Exclusive Option Agreement, or shall provide no pledge or other form of guarantee that may compromise the rights and interests of the Pledgee;

(b)

Abide by and implement all laws and regulations on pledge of rights, and notify the Pledgee within five (5) days upon receipt of any notice, instruction or suggestion in respect of the Pledgee from the competent authority, and comply with such notice, instruction or suggestion, or make objections and statements in respect of such matters upon the Pledgee’s reasonable request or with the Pledgee’s consent;

(c)

Notify the Pledgee promptly of any event or notice received that may affect the pledged equity, and any event or notice received that may change any warranty or obligation of the Pledgor under this Agreement or compromise the Pledgor’s performance of its obligations hereunder.

Each Pledgor agrees that the Pledgee acquires the pledge right in accordance with the terms of this Agreement and that the pledge right shall not be interrupted or impaired by any legal proceedings taken by each Pledgor, each Pledgor’s heirs, spouse (where applicable), each Pledgor’s principal or any other person.

Each Pledgor warrants to the Pledgee that, in order to protect or improve the guarantee of this Agreement for the Pledgor and the Target Company to fulfill the obligations of transaction documents and repay the secured obligations, the Pledgor shall sign in good faith, and cause other interested parties to sign all certificates of rights and agreements required by the Pledgee, and/or perform and cause other interested parties to perform obligations required by the Pledgee, and facilitate the exercise of the rights and authority granted to the Pledgee under this Agreement, sign all the change documents related to the equity certificate with the Pledgee or its designated person (natural person/legal person), and provide the Pledgee with all the notices, orders and decisions related to the pledge right as it deems necessary within a reasonable period of time.

Each Pledgor warrants to the Pledgee that, for the benefit of the Pledgee, each Pledgor shall abide by and perform all warranties, promises, agreements, representations and conditions of the transaction documents. If each Pledgor fails to perform or fails to fully perform its warranties, promises, agreements, representations and conditions, each Pledgor shall indemnify the Pledgee for all actual losses suffered therefrom.

Each Pledgor warrants to the Pledgee that each Pledgor and the Target Company shall register the pledge right of the Agreement in the register of shareholders of the Target Company on the date of signing this Agreement; within two (2) months from the date of signing this Agreement, each Pledgor shall urge the Target Company to handle the equity pledge registration with the Shanghai Jiading District Administration for Market Regulation.

VII. Events of Default

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1.	The following events shall be deemed as events of default:

(a)

Violation of the obligations under the transaction documents by each Pledgor or the Target Company, including but not limited to the failure of the Target Company to pay the consulting service fees payable under the Exclusive Service Agreement in full and on time, or the partial performance or refusal of performance of the Target Company on the obligations under the transaction documents or on the repayment of secured obligations;

(b)

Any representations or warranties made by each Pledgor or the Target Company in Article V of this Agreement and each pledgor's undertakings in Article VI of this Agreement are materially misleading or wrong, and/or the Pledgor and the Target Company violate the representations and warranties made in Article V of this Agreement and/or the undertakings in Article VI of this Agreement;

(c)

Any external loans, guarantees, indemnities, promises or other liabilities of each Pledgor (1) are required to be repaid or performed in advance due to default; or (2) are due but cannot be repaid or performed as scheduled, which causes the Pledgee to believe that the Pledgor's ability to perform its obligations under this Agreement has been affected;

(d)

Each Pledgor is unable to repay due debts or other debts, or there are material adverse changes in the property owned by the pledger, which causes the Pledgee to have reasonable grounds to believe that any Pledgor or the Target Company’s ability to perform the obligations under transaction documents or this Agreement has been seriously affected;

(e)

In the event of withdrawal, suspension, invalidation or material modification of any governmental consent, permission, approval or authorization required for the transaction document or this Agreement to be executed or to make it legal or effective (except as a result of the Pledgee’s reasons);

(f)

The successor or custodian of the Target Company can only partially perform or refuse to perform the obligations under the transaction documents or pay the secured obligations; and

(g)

Other circumstances under which the Pledgee cannot exercise the right to dispose of the pledge right according to relevant laws.

2.	The Pledgor shall immediately notify the Pledgee in writing of any of the matters referred to in clause 1 of this Article which may, will and has occurred. The Pledgee has the right to require the Pledgor to correct the event of default within a time limit.

Unless the events of default listed in clause 1 of this Article has been resolved with the approval of the Pledgee, otherwise, the Pledgee may send a notice of default to the Pledgor in writing when or at any time after the Pledgor’s default occurs, requiring the Target Company to immediately pay all the arrears and other payables under the Exclusive Service Agreement or dispose of pledge right according to Article VIII of this Agreement. If the transaction documents or this Agreement are illegal or the Pledgor or the Target Company cannot continue to perform the obligations under transaction documents or this Agreement due to the

Exhibit 4.14

promulgation of relevant laws, the Pledgor and the Pledgee shall reach a solution satisfactory to the Pledgee within thirty (30) days, otherwise the Pledgee may require the Pledgor to immediately pay all the arrears under the Exclusive Service Agreement, dispose of pledge right according to Article VIII of this Agreement or require the Pledgor to perform the rights under the Exclusive Option Agreement.

VIII. Exercise of Pledge Right

1.	Before the technology development and consultation service fees mentioned in the Exclusive Service Agreement are fully repaid, without the written consent of the Pledgee,

(a)

The Pledgor shall not transfer the pledged equity held by it by any means for any reason;

(b)

The pledgor shall not transfer the pledge right.

2.	When exercising the pledge right, the Pledgee shall issue a notice of default to the Pledgor.

3.	The Pledgee may exercise the right to dispose of pledge right at the same time as or at any time after the notice of default is given in accordance with clause 3 of Article VII.

The Pledgee has the right to discount all or part of the equity under this Agreement according to legal procedures, or to be compensated first with the price of auction or sale of the equity, until the unpaid technical development, consulting service fees and all other payables under the Exclusive Service Agreement are compensated.

5.	When the Pledgee disposes of pledge right in accordance with this Agreement, the Pledgor shall not set up obstacles and shall provide necessary assistance to enable the Pledgee to realize its pledge right.

IX. Transfer

1.	The Pledgor shall not be entitled to grant or transfer its rights and obligations under this Agreement except with the prior consent of the Pledgee.

2.	This Agreement is binding on the Pledgor or its successors, and valid for the Pledgee and each of its successors.

X. Termination

This Agreement is terminated after the Pledgor and the Target Company have fully and completely fulfilled all obligations under transaction document and paid off all secured obligations. The Pledgee shall terminate this Agreement and assist the Pledgor in canceling the registration of the pledged equity within a reasonably feasible time.

XI. Handling Fees and Other Expenses

All expenses and actual expenditures related to this Agreement, including but not limited to legal fees, production costs, stamp duty and any other taxes and expenses, shall be borne by the Target Company. If the law requires the Pledgee to pay the relevant taxes and fees, the Pledgor shall compensate the Pledgee in full for the taxes and fees paid by the Pledgee.

2.	If the Pledgor fails to pay any taxes and fees payable by it in accordance with the provisions

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of this Agreement, or causes the Pledgee to take any recourse by any ways or means due to other reasons, the Pledgor shall bear all expenses arising therefrom (including but not limited to various taxes and fees, handling fees, management fees, legal fees, attorney fees and various insurance premiums).

XII. Force Majeure

1.	If the performance of this Agreement is delayed or hindered by any force majeure event, the party affected by the force majeure shall not bear any responsibility under this Agreement only for this part of the delayed or hindered performance.

“Force majeure event” means any event beyond the reasonable foreseeability and control of a party, which is inevitable and insurmountable with the reasonable attention of the affected party, including but not limited to government actions, natural forces, infectious diseases, fire disasters, explosions, storms, floods, earthquakes, tides or wars. However, the lack of credit, funds or financing shall not be regarded as a matter beyond the reasonable control of a party.

3.	The party seeking exemption from performance under this Agreement or any provision hereof affected by force majeure shall notify the other party of such exemption and inform it of the steps to be taken to complete performance as soon as possible.

The party affected by force majeure shall not be liable for failure to perform its obligations under this Agreement, but the affected party shall try its best to reduce the losses caused to the other party, and the obligations not performed shall be limited to those not performed due to force majeure. After the event of force majeure ends, the parties agree to resume the performance of obligations under this Agreement with their best efforts.

XIII. Governing Laws and Dispute Resolution

1.	The execution, validity, interpretation, performance, amendment and termination of this Agreement and the dispute resolution shall be governed by the laws of China (excluding Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan).

In the event of any dispute between the parties concerning the interpretation and performance of the terms of this Agreement, the parties shall resolve the dispute through negotiation. If the dispute cannot be resolved through negotiation within fifteen (15) working days after its occurrence, either party shall be entitled to submit the dispute to the China International Economic and Trade Arbitration Commission for arbitration in Beijing in accordance with its arbitration rules in effect at that time. The arbitral tribunal shall consist of three (3) arbitrators appointed in accordance with the arbitration rules, one (1) arbitrator appointed by the claimant and one (1) arbitrator appointed by the respondent, and the third arbitrator shall be appointed by the first two arbitrators through consultation or by the China International Economic and Trade Arbitration Commission. The arbitration language is Chinese. The arbitration award shall be final and binding on the parties. During the dispute resolution, the party shall continue to enjoy its other rights under this Agreement and shall continue to perform its corresponding obligations.

3.	The arbitral tribunal may award the indemnity or compensation to the Pledgee for losses caused to the Pledgee due to the default by other parties hereto in respect of the equity

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interests, assets or property interests of the Target Company, award injunctive relief in respect of the relevant business or compulsory asset transfer, or order the Target Company to go bankrupt. After the arbitration award becomes effective, either party shall be entitled to apply to the court with jurisdiction for enforcement of arbitration award. If necessary, before making a final ruling on the disputes between the parties, the arbitration institution shall be entitled to rule that the breaching party should immediately stop the breach of agreement or that the breaching party should not engage in any act that may further expand the losses suffered by the Pledgee. The courts of Hong Kong, the Cayman Islands or other courts with jurisdiction (the court where the domicile of the Target Company is located, and the court where the main assets of the Target Company or the Pledgee are located shall be deemed to have jurisdiction) shall also be entitled to grant or enforce the award of arbitral tribunal, to award or enforce provisional relief for the equity interest or property interest of the Target Company, and to make an award or judgment to give provisional relief to the party initiating arbitration while awaiting the formation of arbitral tribunal or in other appropriate circumstances, such as an award or judgment that the breaching party should immediately stop the breach of agreement or that the breaching party should not engage in any act that may further expand the losses suffered by the Pledgee.

XIV. Notice

Unless there is a written notice to change the address below, the notice under this Agreement shall be sent by personal delivery or registered mail to the address below. If the notice is sent by registered mail, the date of receipt recorded on the receipt of registered mail shall be the date of service; if it is sent by personal delivery, the date of service shall be the date of delivery:

Pledgee: Shanghai Paya Information Technology Co., Ltd.

Address: Building 1, No. 1036 Xizha Road, Fengxian District, Shanghai

Tel: ***********

Recipient: Changjian Ma

Pledgor: Changjian Ma

Address: **********

Tel: ***********

Recipient: Changjian Ma

Pledgor: Wenjing Zhao

Address: **********

Tel: ***********

Recipient: Wenjing Zhao

Pledgor: Nanjing Zhixin Technology Co., Ltd.

Address: Science and Technology Innovation Center, Shiqiu Street, Lishui District, Nanjing

Tel: ***********

Recipient: Ning Zhang

Target Company: Shanghai Biban Network Technology Co., Ltd.

Address: Room 1904, Hopson International Plaza, No. 2218 Huangxing Road, Yangpu

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District, Shanghai

Tel: ***********

Recipient: Changjian Ma

XV. Annexes

The annexes listed in this Agreement are an integral part of this Agreement.

XVI. Severability

If any clause hereunder is invalid or unenforceable due to inconsistency with relevant laws, such clause shall only be invalid or unenforceable within the jurisdiction of such law, and shall not affect the legal effect of other clauses hereunder.

XVII. Effective

1.	This Agreement and any modification, supplement or alteration shall be in written form and shall come into effect after being signed and sealed by the parties.

2.	This Agreement is made in quintuplicate, with two natural persons and one legal person as the Pledgor holding one copy, and the Pledgee and the Target Company holding one copy respectively, which have the same legal effect.

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Exhibit 4.14

There is no text in this page. It is the signature page for the Share Pledge Agreement.


Shanghai Paya Information Technology Co., Ltd. (Seal)

Signature:	/s/ Changjian Ma
Name:	Changjian Ma
Position:	Legal representative