EXHIBIT 4.2
DESCRIPTION OF SECURITIES
Austerlitz Acquisition Corporation I, a Cayman Islands exempted company (“we,” “us,” “our” “Austerlitz I,” or “our company”), is a Cayman Islands exempted company and our affairs are governed by our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association, the Companies Act (2020 Revision) of the Cayman Islands (the “Companies Act”) and the common law of the Cayman Islands. Pursuant to our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association we are authorized to issue 800,000,000 Class A ordinary shares, $0.0001 par value, 80,000,000 Class B ordinary shares, $0.0001 par value, 80,000,000 Class C ordinary shares, par value and 1,000,000 preference shares, $0.0001 par value. The following description summarizes certain terms of our shares as set out more particularly in our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association. Because it is only a summary, the below summary is qualified in its entirety by our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association, the Companies Act and the common law of the Cayman Islands.
Units
Each unit consists of one Class A ordinary share and one-fourth of one warrant. Each whole warrant entitles the holder thereof to purchase one Class A ordinary share at a price of $11.50 per share, subject to adjustment as described in this exhibit (this “Exhibit”) to our Annual Report on Form 10-K (the “10-K”). Pursuant to the warrant agreement, a warrant holder may exercise its warrants only for a whole number of the company’s Class A ordinary shares.
Ordinary Shares
Ordinary shareholders of record are entitled to one vote for each share held on all matters to be voted on by shareholders. Prior to our initial business combination, only holders of our founder shares and alignment shares, voting together as a single class, have the right to vote on the appointment and removal of directors, and continuing the company in a jurisdiction outside the Cayman Islands. Holders of our public shares are not entitled to vote on the appointment of directors during such time. These provisions of our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association may only be amended by a special resolution passed by a majority of at least 90% of our Class B ordinary shares and Class C ordinary shares, voting together as a single class in a general meeting. With respect to any other matter submitted to a vote of our shareholders, including any vote in connection with our initial business combination, except as required by law, holders of our founder shares, alignment shares and public shares will vote together as a single class, with each share entitling the holder to one vote. Unless specified in our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association, or as required by applicable provisions of the Companies Act or applicable stock exchange rules, the affirmative vote of a majority of our ordinary shares that are voted is required to approve any such matter voted on by our shareholders.
Our Board is divided into three classes, each of which generally serve for a term of three years with only one class of directors being appointed in each year. Approval of certain actions will require a special resolution under Cayman Islands law, being the affirmative vote of at least two-thirds of our ordinary shares that are voted, and pursuant to our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association; such actions include amending our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association and approving a statutory merger or consolidation with another company. There is no cumulative voting with respect to the appointment of directors, with the result that the holders of more than 50% of the shares voted for the appointment of directors can appoint all of the directors. Our shareholders are entitled to receive ratable dividends when, as and if declared by the Board out of funds
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legally available therefor. In connection with our initial business combination, we may enter into a shareholders agreement or other arrangements with the shareholders of the target with respect to voting and other corporate governance matters following completion of the initial business combination, and such agreement or arrangement may provide for, or the target shareholders may require that such agreement provide for, nomination, designation or representation rights on the board of directors of the combined entity that may be not be proportionate to our shareholders’ or such target shareholders’ ownership interest in the combined company.
Because our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association authorizes the issuance of up to 800,000,000 Class A ordinary shares, if we were to enter into a business combination, we may (depending on the terms of such a business combination) be required to increase the number of our Class A ordinary shares which we are authorized to issue at the same time as our shareholders vote on the business combination to the extent we seek shareholder approval in connection with our initial business combination.
Our Board is divided into three classes with only one class of directors being appointed in each year and each class (except for those directors appointed prior to our first annual general meeting) serving a three-year term. In accordance with the NYSE corporate governance requirements, we are not required to hold an annual general meeting until one year after our first fiscal year end following our listing on the NYSE. There is no requirement under the Companies Act for us to hold annual or extraordinary general meetings or appoint directors. We may not hold an annual general meeting to appoint new directors prior to the completion of our initial business combination. Prior to the completion of an initial business combination, any vacancy on the Board may be filled by a nominee chosen by holders of a majority of our founder shares and alignment shares, voting together as a single class. In addition, prior to the completion of an initial business combination, holders of a majority of our founder shares and alignment shares, voting together as a single class may remove a member of the Board for any reason.
We will provide our public shareholders with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their public shares upon the completion of our initial business combination at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account calculated as of two business days prior to the completion of our initial business combination, including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes, if such funds are held in an interest-bearing account (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses) divided by the number of the then outstanding public shares, subject to the limitations described herein. The amount in the trust account is initially anticipated to be $10.00 per public share. The per-share amount we will distribute to investors who properly redeem their shares will not be reduced by the deferred underwriting commissions we will pay to the underwriters. The redemption rights will include the requirement that a beneficial owner must identify itself in order to validly redeem its shares. Our sponsor and each member of our management team have each entered into a letter agreement with us, pursuant to which they have agreed to waive their redemption rights with respect to their founder shares, alignment shares and public shares in connection with (i) the completion of our initial business combination and (ii) a shareholder vote to approve an amendment to our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association that would affect the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we have not completed an initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of our initial public offering (the “IPO”). Unlike many blank check companies that hold shareholder votes and conduct proxy solicitations in conjunction with their initial business combinations and provide for related redemptions of public shares for cash upon completion of such initial business combinations even when a vote is not required by law, if a shareholder vote is not required by law and we do not decide to hold a shareholder vote for business or other legal reasons, we will, pursuant to our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association, conduct the redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules of the SEC and file tender offer documents with the SEC
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prior to completing our initial business combination. Our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association require these tender offer documents to contain substantially the same financial and other information about the initial business combination and the redemption rights as is required under the SEC’s proxy rules. If, however, a shareholder approval of the transaction is required by law, or we decide to obtain shareholder approval for business or other legal reasons, we will, like many blank check companies, offer to redeem shares in conjunction with a proxy solicitation pursuant to the proxy rules and not pursuant to the tender offer rules. If we seek shareholder approval, we will complete our initial business combination only if we obtain the approval of an ordinary resolution under Cayman Islands law, being the affirmative vote of a majority of the ordinary shares represented in person or by proxy and entitled to vote therein and who vote at a general meeting. However, the participation of our sponsor, officers, directors, advisors or their affiliates in privately-negotiated transactions, if any, could result in the approval of our initial business combination even if a majority of our public shareholders vote, or indicate their intention to vote, against such initial business combination. For purposes of seeking approval of the majority of our outstanding ordinary shares, non-votes will have no effect on the approval of our initial business combination once a quorum is obtained. Our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association require that at least five days’ notice will be given of any general meeting.
If we seek shareholder 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 memorandum and articles of association provide that a public shareholder, together with any affiliate of such shareholder or any other person with whom such shareholder is acting in concert or as a “group” (as defined under Section 13 of the Exchange Act), will be restricted from redeeming its shares with respect to Excess Shares. However, we would not be restricting our shareholders’ ability to vote all of their shares (including Excess Shares) for or against our initial business combination. Our shareholders’ inability to redeem the Excess Shares will reduce their influence over our ability to complete our initial business combination, and such shareholders could suffer a material loss in their investment if they sell such Excess Shares on the open market. Additionally, such shareholders will not receive redemption distributions with respect to the Excess Shares if we complete our initial business combination. And, as a result, such shareholders will continue to hold that number of shares exceeding 15% and, in order to dispose such shares would be required to sell their shares in open market transactions, potentially at a loss.
If we seek shareholder approval in connection with our initial business combination, pursuant to the terms of a letter agreement entered into with us, our sponsor, officers and directors have agreed to vote their founder shares, alignment shares and any public shares purchased in or after the IPO, in favor of our initial business combination. As a result, in addition to our initial shareholders’ founder shares and alignment shares, we would need 19,714,286, or approximately 28.6%, of the 69,000,000 public shares sold in the IPO to be voted in favor of an initial business combination in order to have our initial business combination approved (assuming all issued and outstanding shares are voted and the over-allotment option is not exercised). In addition, pursuant to the terms of the forward purchase agreement, Cannae Holdings has agreed to vote any shares purchased in or after the IPO, in favor of our initial business combination. The other members of our management team have entered into letter agreements similar to the one entered into by our sponsor with respect to any public shares acquired by them in or after the IPO. Additionally, each public shareholder may elect to redeem its public shares irrespective of whether they vote for or against the proposed transaction.
Pursuant to our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association, if we have not completed an initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of the IPO, we will (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up; (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but no more than ten business days thereafter subject to lawfully available funds therefor, redeem the public shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account,
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including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes, if such funds are held in an interest-bearing account (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses) divided by the number of the then outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public shareholders’ rights as shareholders (including the right to receive further liquidation distributions, if any), subject to applicable law; and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining shareholders and our Board, liquidate and dissolve, subject in each case to our obligations under Cayman Islands law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. Our sponsor and members of our management team have each entered into letter agreements with us, pursuant to which they have agreed to waive their rights to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to their founder shares and alignment shares if we do not complete an initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of the IPO. However, if our sponsor or members of our management team acquire public shares in or after the IPO, they will be entitled to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to such public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within the prescribed time period. Our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association provide that, if we wind up for any other reason prior to the completion of our initial business combination, we will follow the foregoing procedures with respect to the liquidation of the trust account as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than ten business days thereafter, subject to applicable Cayman Islands law.
In the event of a liquidation, dissolution or winding up of the company after a business combination, our shareholders are entitled to share ratably in all assets remaining available for distribution to them after payment of liabilities and after provision is made for each class of shares, if any, having preference over the ordinary shares. Our shareholders have no preemptive or other subscription rights. There are no sinking fund provisions applicable to the ordinary shares, except that we will provide our public shareholders with the opportunity to redeem their public shares for cash at a per share price 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 taxes, if such funds are held in an interest-bearing account (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses) divided by the number of the then outstanding public shares, upon the completion of our initial business combination, subject to the limitations described herein.
Founder Shares and Alignment Shares
The founder shares and alignment shares are designated as Class B ordinary shares and Class C ordinary shares, respectively, and, except as described below, are identical to the Class A ordinary shares included in the units being sold in the IPO, and holders of founder shares and alignment shares have the same shareholder rights as public shareholders, except that (1) prior to our initial business combination, only holders of our Class B ordinary shares and holders of our Class C ordinary shares, voting together as a single class, have the right to vote on the appointment of directors and holders of a majority of our outstanding Class B ordinary shares and Class C ordinary shares, voting together as a single class, may remove a member of the board of directors for any reason; (2) the founder shares and alignment shares are subject to certain transfer restrictions contained in a letter agreement that our initial shareholders, directors and officers have entered into with us; (3) pursuant to such letter agreement, our initial shareholders, directors and officers have agreed to waive their redemption rights with respect to their founder shares, alignment shares and public shares in connection with (i) the completion of a business combination and (ii) a shareholder vote to amend our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association (A) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of the IPO or (B) with respect to any other provision relating to shareholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity; and (iii) their rights to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to any founder shares and alignment shares
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they hold if we fail to complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of the IPO (although they will be entitled to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to any public shares they hold if we fail to complete our initial business combination within the prescribed time frame); (4) the founder shares will automatically convert into our Class A ordinary shares on the first business day following the completion of our initial business combination, on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment pursuant to certain anti-dilution rights, as described in more detail below; (5) the alignment shares will automatically convert into Class A ordinary shares at the earlier of (i) a time after the completion of our initial business combination in which the last reported sale price of our Class A ordinary shares for any 20 trading days within a 30-trading day period equals or exceeds $15.25 if occurring before the third anniversary of our initial business combination, $23.00 if occurring before the sixth anniversary of our initial business combination or $35.00 if occurring before the ninth anniversary of our initial business combination, and (ii) subsequent to the completion of our initial business combination, the date on which we complete a merger, share exchange, reorganization or other similar transaction that results in both a change of control and all of our public shareholders having the right to exchange their Class A ordinary shares for cash, securities or other property, in each case, on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment pursuant to certain anti-dilution rights, as described in more detail below; (6) the alignment shares will be returned to us for cancellation in the event that they have not converted into our Class A ordinary shares nine years after our initial business combination; and (7) the founder shares and alignment shares are entitled to registration rights. If we submit our initial business combination to our public shareholders for a vote, our sponsor, officers and directors have agreed to vote their founder shares, alignment shares and any public shares purchased during or after the IPO in favor of our initial business combination.
The founder shares will automatically convert into our Class A ordinary shares on the first business day following the completion of our initial business combination, on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment as provided herein. The Class C ordinary shares will automatically convert into Class A ordinary shares at the earlier of (i) our meeting certain share price performance thresholds following the completion of our initial business combination, and (ii) subsequent to the completion of our initial business combination, the date on which we complete a merger, share exchange, reorganization or other similar transaction that results in both a change of control and all of our public shareholders having the right to exchange their Class A ordinary shares for cash, securities or other property, in each case, on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment as provided herein. In the case that additional Class A ordinary shares, or equity-linked securities, are issued or deemed issued in excess of the amounts issued in the IPO and related to the closing of our initial business combination, except if such is the result of the conversion of our Class B ordinary shares or Class C ordinary shares, the ratio at which the Class B ordinary shares and Class C ordinary shares will convert into Class A ordinary shares will be adjusted (unless the holders of a majority of the issued and outstanding Class B ordinary shares and Class C ordinary shares, as applicable in each case, agree to waive such anti-dilution adjustment with respect to any such issuance or deemed issuance) so that the number of Class A ordinary shares issuable upon conversion of all Class B ordinary shares and Class C ordinary shares will equal, in the aggregate, on an as-converted basis, 15% and 15%, respectively, of the sum of (i) the total number of our issued and outstanding ordinary shares upon completion of the IPO, plus (ii) the total number of ordinary shares issued or deemed issued or issuable upon conversion or exercise of any equity-linked securities (as defined herein) or deemed issued by the company in connection with or in relation to the completion of the initial business combination (including the forward purchase shares, but not the forward purchase warrants), excluding (1) any Class A ordinary shares or equity-linked securities exercisable for or convertible into Class A ordinary shares issued, or to be issued, to any seller in the initial business combination, and (2) any private placement warrants issued to our sponsor or any of its affiliates upon conversion of working capital loans. Any conversion of Class B ordinary shares or Class C ordinary shares described herein will take effect as a compulsory redemption of Class B ordinary shares or Class C ordinary shares and an issuance of Class A ordinary shares as a matter of Cayman Islands law. In no event will Class B ordinary shares or Class C ordinary shares convert into Class A ordinary shares at a rate of less than one to one.
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Except as described herein, our sponsor and our directors and executive officers have agreed not to transfer, assign or sell any of their (1) founder shares until (a) one year after the completion of our initial business combination, or (b) the date on which we complete a liquidation, merger, share exchange or other similar transaction after our initial business combination that results in all of our shareholders having the right to exchange their Class A ordinary shares for cash, securities or other property, and (2) alignment shares and any Class A ordinary shares issued upon conversion thereof until the earlier of: (A) their conversion into Class A ordinary shares; and (B) subsequent to our initial business combination, the date on which we complete a merger, share exchange, reorganization or other similar transaction that results in both a change in control and all of our public shareholders having the right to exchange their ordinary shares for cash, securities or other property (except in each case, with respect to permitted transferees as described herein under “Principal Shareholders—Transfers of Founder Shares, Alignment Shares and Private Placement Warrants”). Any permitted transferees would be subject to the same restrictions and other agreements of our initial shareholders with respect to any founder shares and alignment shares. We refer to such transfer restrictions throughout this Exhibit as the lock-up. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if the last reported sale price of our Class A ordinary shares equals or exceeds $12.00 per share (as adjusted for share sub-divisions, share capitalizations, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) for any 20 trading days within any 30-trading day period commencing at least 150 days after the completion of our initial business combination, the converted Class A ordinary shares will be released from the lock-up.
Prior to our initial business combination, only holders of our founder shares and alignment shares, voting together as a single class have the right to vote on the appointment and removal of directors, and continuing the company in a jurisdiction outside the Cayman Islands. These provisions of our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association may only be amended by a special resolution passed by a majority of at least 90% of our Class B ordinary shares and Class C ordinary shares, voting together as a single class in a general meeting. With respect to any other matter submitted to a vote of our shareholders, including any vote in connection with our initial business combination, except as required by law, holders of our founder shares, alignment shares and public shares vote together as a single class, with each share entitling the holder to one vote.
Register of Members
Under Cayman Islands law, we must keep a register of members and there is entered therein:
| • | the names and addresses of the members, a statement of the shares held by each member, and of the amount paid or agreed to be considered as paid, on the shares of each member and the voting rights of shares of each member; |
| • | whether voting rights are attached to the share in issue; |
| • | the date on which the name of any person was entered on the register as a member; and |
| • | the date on which any person ceased to be a member. |
Under Cayman Islands law, the register of members of our company is prima facie evidence of the matters set out therein (i.e., the register of members will raise a presumption of fact on the matters referred to above unless rebutted) and a member registered in the register of members will be deemed as a matter of Cayman Islands law to have legal title to the shares as set against their name in the register of members. The register of members reflects the issue of shares by us and the shareholders recorded in the register of members are deemed to have legal title to the shares set against their name. However, there are certain limited circumstances where an application may be made to a Cayman Islands court for a determination on whether the register of members reflects the correct legal position. Further, the Cayman Islands court
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has the power to order that the register of members maintained by a company should be rectified where it considers that the register of members does not reflect the correct legal position. If an application for an order for rectification of the register of members were made in respect of our ordinary shares, then the validity of such shares may be subject to re-examination by a Cayman Islands court.
Preference Shares
Our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association authorize 1,000,000 preference shares and provide that preference shares may be issued from time to time in one or more series. Our Board is authorized to fix the voting rights, if any, designations, powers, preferences, the relative, participating, optional or other special rights and any qualifications, limitations and restrictions thereof, applicable to the shares of each series. Our Board is able to, without shareholder approval, issue preference shares with voting and other rights that could adversely affect the voting power and other rights of the holders of the ordinary shares and could have anti-takeover effects. The ability of our Board to issue preference shares without shareholder approval could have the effect of delaying, deferring or preventing a change of control of us or the removal of existing management. We have no preference shares issued and outstanding at the date hereof. Although we do not currently intend to issue any preference shares, we cannot assure you that we will not do so in the future. No preference shares were issued or registered in the IPO.
Warrants
Public Shareholders’ Warrants
Each whole warrant entitles the registered holder to purchase one Class A ordinary share at a price of $11.50 per share, subject to adjustment as discussed below, at any time commencing 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination, provided that we have an effective registration statement under the Securities Act covering the issuance of the Class A ordinary shares issuable upon exercise of the warrants and a current prospectus relating to them is available (or we permit holders to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis under the circumstances specified in the warrant agreement) and such shares are registered, qualified or exempt from registration under the securities, or blue sky, laws of the state of residence of the holder. Pursuant to the warrant agreement, a warrant holder may exercise its warrants only for a whole number of our Class A ordinary shares. This means only a whole warrant may be exercised at a given time by a warrant holder. The warrants will expire five years after the completion of our initial business combination, at 5:00 p.m., New York City time, or earlier upon redemption or liquidation.
We will not be obligated to deliver any Class A ordinary shares pursuant to the exercise of a warrant and will have no obligation to settle such warrant exercise unless a registration statement under the Securities Act with respect to the Class A ordinary shares underlying the warrants is then effective and a prospectus relating thereto is current, subject to our satisfying our obligations described below with respect to registration, or a valid exemption from registration is available. No warrant will be exercisable and we will not be obligated to issue a Class A ordinary share upon exercise of a warrant unless the Class A ordinary share issuable upon such warrant exercise has been registered, qualified or deemed to be exempt under the securities laws of the state of residence of the registered holder of the warrants. In the event that the conditions in the two immediately preceding sentences are not satisfied with respect to a warrant, the holder of such warrant will not be entitled to exercise such warrant and such warrant may have no value and expire worthless. In no event will we be required to net cash settle any warrant. In the event that a registration statement is not effective for the exercised warrants, the purchaser of a unit containing such warrant will have paid the full purchase price for the unit solely for the Class A ordinary share underlying such unit.
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We have agreed that as soon as practicable, but in no event later than twenty (20) business days after the closing of our initial business combination, we will use our commercially reasonable efforts to file with the SEC a post-effective amendment to the registration statement for the IPO or a new registration statement for the registration, under the Securities Act, of the Class A ordinary shares issuable upon exercise of the warrants. We will use our commercially reasonable efforts to cause the same to become effective within sixty (60) business days after such closing, and to maintain the effectiveness of such registration statement, and a current prospectus relating thereto, until the expiration or redemption of the warrants in accordance with the provisions of the warrant agreement. If a registration statement covering the issuance of the Class A ordinary shares issuable upon exercise of the warrants is not effective by the 60th business day after the closing of the initial business combination, warrant holders may, until such time as there is an effective registration statement and during any period when we will have failed to maintain an effective registration statement, exercise warrants on a “cashless basis” in accordance with Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act or another exemption. In addition, if our Class A ordinary shares are at the time of any exercise of a warrant not listed on a national securities exchange such that they satisfy the definition of a “covered security” under Section 18(b)(1) of the Securities Act, we may, at our option, require holders of our public warrants who exercise their warrants to do so on a “cashless basis” in accordance with Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act and, in the event we elect to do so, we will not be required to file or maintain in effect a registration statement, but we will use our best efforts to register or qualify the shares under applicable blue sky laws to the extent an exemption is not available. In such event, each holder would pay the exercise price by surrendering each such warrant for that number of Class A ordinary shares equal to the number of warrants exchanged multiplied by the lesser of (A) the quotient obtained by dividing (x) the product of the number of our Class A ordinary shares underlying the warrants, multiplied the excess of the “fair market value” less the exercise price of the warrants by (y) the fair market value and (B) by 0.3611 Class A ordinary shares per whole warrant (subject to adjustment). The “fair market value” shall mean the volume weighted average price of our Class A ordinary shares for the 10 trading days ending on the trading day prior to the date on which the notice of exercise is received by the warrant agent.
Redemption of Warrants When the Price per Class A Ordinary Share Equals or Exceeds $18.00
Once the warrants become exercisable, we may redeem the outstanding warrants (except as described herein with respect to the private placement warrants):
| • | in whole and not in part; |
| • | at a price of $0.01 per warrant; |
| • | upon not less than 30 days’ prior written notice of redemption to each warrant holder; and |
| • | if, and only if, the last reported sale price of the Class A ordinary shares for any 20 trading days within a 30-trading day period ending three business days before we send to the notice of redemption to the warrant holders (which we refer to as the “Reference Value”) equals or exceeds $18.00 per share (as adjusted for share sub-divisions, share dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like). |
If and when the warrants become redeemable by us, we may exercise our redemption right even if we are unable to register or qualify the underlying securities for sale under all applicable state securities laws. However, we will not redeem the warrants unless an effective registration statement under the Securities Act covering the public resale of the Class A ordinary shares issuable upon exercise of the warrants is effective and a current prospectus relating to those Class A ordinary shares is available throughout the 30-day redemption period.
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We have established the last of the redemption criterion discussed above to prevent a redemption call unless there is at the time of the call a significant premium to the warrant exercise price. If the foregoing conditions are satisfied and we issue a notice of redemption of the warrants, each warrant holder will be entitled to exercise his, her or its warrant prior to the scheduled redemption date. Any such exercise would not be done on a “cashless” basis and would require the exercising warrant holder to pay the exercise price for each warrant being exercised. However, the price of the Class A ordinary shares may fall below the $18.00 redemption trigger price (as adjusted for share sub-divisions, share dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) as well as the $11.50 (for whole shares) warrant exercise price after the redemption notice is issued.
Redemption of Warrants When the Price per Class A Ordinary Share Equals or Exceeds $10.00
Once the warrants become exercisable, we may redeem the outstanding warrants:
| • | in whole and not in part; |
| • | at $0.10 per warrant upon a minimum of 30 days’ prior written notice of redemption; provided that holders will be able to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis prior to redemption and receive that number of shares determined by reference to the table below, based on the redemption date and the “fair market value” of our Class A ordinary shares (as defined below); |
| • | if, and only if, the Reference Value (as defined above under “Redemption of Warrants When the Price per Class A Ordinary Share Equals or Exceeds $18.00”) equals or exceeds $10.00 per share (as adjusted for share sub-divisions, share dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like); and |
| • | if the Reference Value is less than $18.00 per share (as adjusted for share sub-divisions, share dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) the private placement warrants must also be concurrently called for redemption on the same terms (except as described above with respect to a holder’s ability to cashless exercise its warrants) as the outstanding public warrants, as described above. |
Beginning on the date the notice of redemption is given until the warrants are redeemed or exercised, holders may elect to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis. The numbers in the table below represent the number of our Class A ordinary shares that a warrant holder will receive upon exercise in connection with a redemption by us pursuant to this redemption feature, based on the “fair market value” of our Class A ordinary shares on the corresponding redemption date (assuming holders elect to exercise their warrants and such warrants are not redeemed for $0.10 per warrant), determined based on volume-weighted average price of our Class A ordinary shares as reported during the 10 trading days immediately following the date on which the notice of redemption is sent to the holders of warrants, and the number of months that the corresponding redemption date precedes the expiration date of the warrants, each as set forth in the table below.
Pursuant to the warrant agreement, references above to Class A ordinary shares shall include a security other than Class A ordinary shares into which the Class A ordinary shares have been converted or exchanged for in the event we are not the surviving company in our initial business combination. The numbers in the table below will not be adjusted when determining the number of Class A ordinary shares to be issued upon exercise of the warrants if we are not the surviving entity following our initial business combination.
The share prices set forth in the column headings of the table below will be adjusted as of any date on which the number of shares issuable upon exercise of a warrant or the exercise price of the warrant is adjusted as set forth under the heading “- Anti-dilution Adjustments” below. If the number of shares issuable upon exercise of a warrant is adjusted, the adjusted share prices in the column headings will equal
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the share prices immediately prior to such adjustment, multiplied by a fraction, the numerator of which is the exercise price of the warrant after such adjustment and the denominator of which is the price of the warrant immediately prior to such adjustment. In such an event, the number of shares in the table below shall be adjusted by multiplying such share amounts by a fraction, the numerator of which is the number of shares deliverable upon exercise of a warrant immediately prior to such adjustment and the denominator of which is the number of shares deliverable upon exercise of a warrant as so adjusted. If the exercise price of the warrant is adjusted, as a result of raising capital in connection with the initial business combination, the adjusted share prices in the column headings will by multiplied by a fraction, the numerator of which is the higher of the Market Value and the Newly Issued Price as set forth under the heading “- Anti-dilution Adjustments” and the denominator of which is $10.00.
Fair Market Value of Our Class A Ordinary Shares
| Redemption Date | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
(period to expiration of warrants) | <$10.00 | $11.00 | $12.00 | $13.00 | $14.00 | $15.00 | $16.00 | $17.00 | >$18.00 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
60 months | 0.261 | 0.281 | 0.297 | 0.311 | 0.324 | 0.337 | 0.348 | 0.358 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
57 months | 0.257 | 0.277 | 0.294 | 0.310 | 0.324 | 0.337 | 0.348 | 0.358 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
54 months | 0.252 | 0.272 | 0.291 | 0.307 | 0.322 | 0.335 | 0.347 | 0.357 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
51 months | 0.246 | 0.268 | 0.287 | 0.304 | 0.320 | 0.333 | 0.346 | 0.357 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
48 months | 0.241 | 0.263 | 0.283 | 0.301 | 0.317 | 0.332 | 0.344 | 0.356 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
45 months | 0.235 | 0.258 | 0.279 | 0.298 | 0.315 | 0.330 | 0.343 | 0.356 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
42 months | 0.228 | 0.252 | 0.274 | 0.294 | 0.312 | 0.328 | 0.342 | 0.355 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
39 months | 0.221 | 0.246 | 0.269 | 0.290 | 0.309 | 0.325 | 0.340 | 0.354 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
36 months | 0.213 | 0.239 | 0.263 | 0.285 | 0.305 | 0.323 | 0.339 | 0.353 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
33 months | 0.205 | 0.232 | 0.257 | 0.280 | 0.301 | 0.320 | 0.337 | 0.352 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
30 months | 0.196 | 0.224 | 0.250 | 0.274 | 0.297 | 0.316 | 0.335 | 0.351 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
27 mouths | 0.185 | 0.214 | 0.242 | 0.268 | 0.291 | 0.313 | 0.332 | 0.350 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
24 months | 0.173 | 0.204 | 0.233 | 0.260 | 0.285 | 0.308 | 0.329 | 0.348 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
21 months | 0.161 | 0.193 | 0.223 | 0.252 | 0.279 | 0.304 | 0.326 | 0.347 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
18 months | 0.146 | 0.179 | 0.211 | 0.242 | 0.271 | 0.298 | 0.322 | 0.345 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
15 months | 0.130 | 0.164 | 0.197 | 0.230 | 0.262 | 0.291 | 0.317 | 0.342 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
12 months | 0.111 | 0.146 | 0.181 | 0.216 | 0.250 | 0.282 | 0.312 | 0.339 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
9 months | 0.090 | 0.125 | 0.162 | 0.199 | 0.237 | 0.272 | 0.305 | 0.336 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
6 months | 0.065 | 0.099 | 0.137 | 0.178 | 0.219 | 0.259 | 0.296 | 0.331 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
3 months | 0.034 | 0.065 | 0.104 | 0.150 | 0.197 | 0.243 | 0.286 | 0.326 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
0 mouths | — | — | 0.042 | 0.115 | 0.179 | 0.233 | 0.281 | 0.323 | 0.361 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The exact fair market value and redemption date may not be set forth in the table above, in which case, if the fair market value is between two values in the table or the redemption date is between two redemption dates in the table, the number of Class A ordinary shares to be issued for each warrant exercised will be determined by a straight-line interpolation between the number of shares set forth for the higher and lower fair market values and the earlier and later redemption dates, as applicable, based on a 365 or 366-day year, as applicable. For example, if the volume-weighted average price of our Class A ordinary shares as reported during the 10 trading days immediately following the date on which the notice of redemption is sent to the holders of the warrants is $11.00 per share, and at such time there are 57 months until the expiration of the warrants, holders may choose to, in connection with this redemption feature, exercise their warrants for 0.277 Class A ordinary shares for each whole warrant. For an example where the exact fair market value and redemption date are not as set forth in the table above, if the volume-weighted average price of our Class A ordinary shares as reported during the 10 trading days immediately following the date on which the notice of redemption is sent to the holders of the warrants is $13.50 per share, and at such time there are 38 months until the expiration of the warrants, holders may choose to, in connection with this redemption feature, exercise their warrants for 0.298 Class A ordinary shares for each whole warrant. In no event will the warrants be exercisable in connection with this redemption feature for more than 0.3611 Class A ordinary shares per whole warrant (subject to adjustment).
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This redemption feature differs from the typical warrant redemption features used in many other blank check offerings, which typically only provide for a redemption of warrants for cash (other than the private placement warrants) when the trading price for the Class A ordinary shares exceeds $18.00 per share for a specified period of time. This redemption feature is structured to allow for all of the outstanding warrants to be redeemed when the Class A ordinary shares are trading at or above $10.00 per share, which may be at a time when the trading price of our Class A ordinary shares is below the exercise price of the warrants. We have established this redemption feature to provide us with the flexibility to redeem the warrants without the warrants having to reach the $18.00 per share threshold set forth above under “—Redemption of Warrants When the Price per Class A Ordinary Share Equals or Exceeds $18.00.” Holders choosing to exercise their warrants in connection with a redemption pursuant to this feature will, in effect, receive a number of shares for their warrants based on an option pricing model with a fixed volatility input. This redemption right provides us with an additional mechanism by which to redeem all of the outstanding warrants, and therefore have certainty as to our capital structure as the warrants would no longer be outstanding and would have been exercised or redeemed. We will be required to pay the applicable redemption price to warrant holders if we choose to exercise this redemption right and it will allow us to quickly proceed with a redemption of the warrants if we determine it is in our best interest to do so. As such, we would redeem the warrants in this manner when we believe it is in our best interest to update our capital structure to remove the warrants and pay the redemption price to the warrant holders.
As stated above, we can redeem the warrants when the Class A ordinary shares are trading at a price starting at $10.00, which is below the exercise price of $11.50, because it will provide certainty with respect to our capital structure and cash position while providing warrant holders with the opportunity to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis for the applicable number of shares. If we choose to redeem the warrants when the Class A ordinary shares are trading at a price below the exercise price of the warrants, this could result in the warrant holders receiving fewer Class A ordinary shares than they would have received if they had chosen to wait to exercise their warrants for Class A ordinary shares if and when such Class A ordinary shares were trading at a price higher than the exercise price of $11.50.
No fractional Class A ordinary shares will be issued upon exercise. If, upon exercise, a holder would be entitled to receive a fractional interest in a share, we will round down to the nearest whole number of the number of Class A ordinary shares to be issued to the holder. If, at the time of redemption, the warrants are exercisable for a security other than the Class A ordinary shares pursuant to the warrant agreement (for instance, if we are not the surviving company in our initial business combination), the warrants may be exercised for such security. At such time as the warrants become exercisable for a security other than the Class A ordinary shares, the company (or surviving company) will use its commercially reasonable efforts to register under the Securities Act the security issuable upon the exercise of the warrants.
Redemption Procedures. A holder of a warrant may notify us in writing in the event it elects to be subject to a requirement that such holder will not have the right to exercise such warrant, to the extent that after giving effect to such exercise, such person (together with such person’s affiliates), to the warrant agent’s actual knowledge, would beneficially own in excess of 9.8% (as specified by the holder) of the Class A ordinary shares issued and outstanding immediately after giving effect to such exercise.
Anti-dilution Adjustments. If the number of outstanding Class A ordinary shares is increased by a share capitalization or share dividend payable in Class A ordinary shares, or by a split-up of ordinary shares or other similar event, then, on the effective date of such share capitalization or share dividend, split-up or similar event, the number of Class A ordinary shares issuable on exercise of each warrant will be increased in proportion to such increase in the outstanding ordinary shares. A rights offering to holders of ordinary shares entitling holders to purchase Class A ordinary shares at a price less than the “historical fair market value” (as defined below) will be deemed a share dividend of a number of Class A ordinary shares equal to the product of (i) the number of Class A ordinary shares actually sold in such rights offering (or issuable under any other equity securities sold in such rights offering that are convertible into
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or exercisable for Class A ordinary shares) and (ii) one minus the quotient of (x) the price per Class A ordinary shares paid in such rights offering and (y) the historical fair market value. For these purposes, (i) if the rights offering is for securities convertible into or exercisable for Class A ordinary shares, in determining the price payable for Class A ordinary shares, there will be taken into account any consideration received for such rights, as well as any additional amount payable upon exercise or conversion and (ii) “historical fair market value” means the volume-weighted average price of our Class A ordinary shares as reported during the 10 trading day period ending on the trading day prior to the first date on which the Class A ordinary shares trade on the applicable exchange or in the applicable market, regular way, without the right to receive such rights.
In addition, if we, at any time while the warrants are outstanding and unexpired, pay a dividend or make a distribution in cash, securities or other assets to the holders of Class A ordinary shares on account of such Class A ordinary shares (or other securities into which the warrants are convertible), other than (a) as described above, (b) any cash dividends or cash distributions which, when combined on a per share basis with all other cash dividends and cash distributions paid on our Class A ordinary shares during the 365-day period ending on the date of declaration of such dividend or distribution does not exceed $0.50 (as adjusted to appropriately reflect any other adjustments and excluding cash dividends or cash distributions that resulted in an adjustment to the exercise price or to the number of our Class A ordinary shares issuable on exercise of each warrant) but only with respect to the amount of the aggregate cash dividends or cash distributions equal to or less than $0.50 per share, (c) to satisfy the redemption rights of the holders of our Class A ordinary shares in connection with a proposed initial business combination, (d) to satisfy the redemption rights of the holders of our Class A ordinary shares in connection with a shareholder vote to amend our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association (A) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of the IPO or (B) with respect to any other provision relating to shareholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity, or (e) in connection with the redemption of our public shares upon our failure to complete our initial business combination, then the warrant exercise price will be decreased, effective immediately after the effective date of such event, by the amount of cash and/or the fair market value of any securities or other assets paid on each Class A ordinary share in respect of such event.
If the number of outstanding Class A ordinary shares is decreased by a consolidation, combination or reclassification of our Class A ordinary shares or other similar event, then, on the effective date of such consolidation, combination, reclassification or similar event, the number of Class A ordinary shares issuable on exercise of each warrant will be decreased in proportion to such decrease in outstanding Class A ordinary share.
Whenever the number of our Class A ordinary shares purchasable upon the exercise of the warrants is adjusted, as described above, the warrant exercise price will be adjusted by multiplying the warrant exercise price immediately prior to such adjustment by a fraction (x) the numerator of which will be the number of our Class A ordinary shares purchasable upon the exercise of the warrants immediately prior to such adjustment and (y) the denominator of which will be the number of our Class A ordinary shares so purchasable immediately thereafter.
In addition, if (x) we issue additional Class A ordinary shares or equity-linked securities for capital raising purposes in connection with the closing of our initial business combination at an issue price or effective issue price of less than $9.20 per ordinary share (with such issue price or effective issue price to be determined in good faith by our Board and, in the case of any such issuance to our sponsor or its affiliates, without taking into account any founder shares or alignment shares held by our initial shareholders or such affiliates, as applicable, prior to such issuance (the “Newly Issued Price”), (y) the
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aggregate gross proceeds from such issuances represent more than 60% of the total equity proceeds, and interest thereon, available for the funding of our initial business combination on the date of the completion of our initial business combination (net of redemptions), and (z) the volume-weighted average trading price of our Class A ordinary shares during the 20 trading day period starting on the trading day prior to the day on which we complete our initial 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 the Market Value and the Newly Issued Price, and the $18.00 and $10.00 per share redemption trigger prices described adjacent to “Redemption of Warrants When the Price per Class A Ordinary Share Equals or Exceeds $18.00” and “Redemption of Warrants When the Price per Class A Ordinary Share Equals or Exceeds $10.00” will be adjusted (to the nearest cent) to be equal to 180% and 100% of the higher of the Market Value and the Newly Issued Price, respectively.
In case of any reclassification or reorganization of the outstanding Class A ordinary shares (other than those described above or that solely affects the par value of such Class A ordinary shares), or in the case of any merger or consolidation of us with or into another corporation (other than a consolidation or merger in which we are the continuing corporation and that does not result in any reclassification or reorganization of our outstanding Class A ordinary shares), or in the case of any sale or conveyance to another corporation or entity of the assets or other property of us as an entirety or substantially as an entirety in connection with which we are dissolved, the holders of the warrants will thereafter have the right to purchase and receive, upon the basis and upon the terms and conditions specified in the warrants and in lieu of the Class A ordinary shares immediately theretofore purchasable and receivable upon the exercise of the rights represented thereby, the kind and amount of our Class A ordinary shares or other securities or property (including cash) receivable upon such reclassification, reorganization, merger or consolidation, or upon a dissolution following any such sale or transfer, that the holder of the warrants would have received if such holder had exercised their warrants immediately prior to such event. If less than 70% of the consideration receivable by the holders of our Class A ordinary shares in such a transaction is payable in the form of our Class A ordinary shares in the successor entity that is listed for trading on a national securities exchange or is quoted in an established over-the-counter market, or is to be so listed for trading or quoted immediately following such event, and if the registered holder of the warrant properly exercises the warrant within thirty days following public disclosure of such transaction, the warrant exercise price will be reduced as specified in the warrant agreement based on the Black-Scholes value (as defined in the warrant agreement) of the warrant. The purpose of such exercise price reduction is to provide additional value to holders of the warrants when an extraordinary transaction occurs during the exercise period of the warrants pursuant to which the holders of the warrants otherwise do not receive the full potential value of the warrants.
The warrants are issued in registered form under a warrant agreement between Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, as warrant agent, and us. The warrant agreement provides that the terms of the public warrants may be amended without the consent of any holder to cure any ambiguity or correct any defective provision, but requires the approval by the holders of at least 65% of the then-outstanding public warrants, to make any change to the terms of such warrants that adversely affects the interests of the registered holders of the public warrants, and solely with respect to the terms of the private placement warrants and forward purchase warrants, requires the approval by the holders of at least 65% of the then-outstanding private placement warrants and forward purchase warrants, voting together as a single class. You should review a copy of the warrant agreement, which is filed as an exhibit to the 10-K, for a complete description of the terms and conditions applicable to the warrants.
The warrants may be exercised upon surrender of the warrant certificate on or prior to the expiration date at the offices of the warrant agent, with the exercise form on the reverse side of the warrant certificate completed and executed as indicated, accompanied by full payment of the exercise price (or on a cashless basis, if applicable), by certified or official bank check payable to us, for the number of
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warrants being exercised. The warrant holders do not have the rights or privileges of holders of ordinary shares and any voting rights until they exercise their warrants and receive Class A ordinary shares. After the issuance of our Class A ordinary shares upon exercise of the warrants, each holder will be entitled to one vote for each share held of record on all matters to be voted on by shareholders.
No fractional shares will be issued upon exercise of the warrants. If, upon exercise of the warrants, a holder would be entitled to receive a fractional interest in a share, we will, upon exercise, round down to the nearest whole number, the number of Class A ordinary shares to be issued to the warrant holder.
We have agreed that, subject to applicable law, any action, proceeding or claim against us arising out of or relating in any way to the warrant agreement will be brought and enforced in the courts of the State of New York or the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, and we irrevocably submit to such jurisdiction, which jurisdiction will be the exclusive forum for any such action, proceeding or claim. See “Risk Factors—Our warrant 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, which could limit the ability of warrant holders to obtain a favorable judicial forum for disputes with our company.” This provision applies to claims under the Securities Act but does not apply to claims under the Exchange Act or any claim for which the federal district courts of the United States of America are the sole and exclusive forum.
Private Placement Warrants and Forward Purchase Warrants
The private placement warrants (including the Class A ordinary shares issuable upon exercise of the private placement warrants) are not transferable, assignable or salable until 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination (except pursuant to limited exceptions as described under “Principal Shareholders—Transfers of Founder Shares, Alignment Shares and Private Placement Warrants,” to our officers and directors and other persons or entities affiliated with the initial purchasers of the private placement warrants) and they are not redeemable by us so long as they are held by our sponsor or its permitted transferees (except as otherwise set forth herein). Our sponsor, or its permitted transferees, have the option to exercise the private placement warrants on a cashless basis. Except as described below, the private placement warrants have terms and provisions that are identical to those of the warrants being sold as part of the units in the IPO. If the private placement warrants are held by holders other than our sponsor or its permitted transferees, the private placement warrants are redeemable by us in all redemption scenarios and exercisable by the holders on the same basis as the warrants included in the units being sold in the IPO.
Except as described under “Description of Securities—Warrants—Redemption of Warrants When the Price per Class A Ordinary Share Equals or Exceeds $10.00,” if holders of the private placement warrants elect to exercise them on a cashless basis, they would pay the exercise price by surrendering his, her or its warrants for that number of Class A ordinary shares equal to the quotient obtained by dividing (x) the product of the number of Class A ordinary shares underlying the warrants, multiplied by the excess of the “historical fair market value” (defined below) over the exercise price of the warrants by (y) the historical fair market value. For these purposes, the “historical fair market value” shall mean the average last reported sale price of the Class A ordinary shares for the 10 trading days ending on the third trading day prior to the date on which the notice of warrant exercise is sent to the warrant agent. The reason that we have agreed that these warrants will be exercisable on a cashless basis so long as they are held by our initial shareholders and their permitted transferees is because it is not known at this time whether they will be affiliated with us following a business combination. If they remain affiliated with us, their ability to sell our securities in the open market will be significantly limited. We expect to have policies in place that restrict insiders from selling our securities except during specific periods of time. Even during such
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periods of time when insiders will be permitted to sell our securities, an insider cannot trade in our securities if he or she is in possession of material non-public information. Accordingly, unlike public shareholders who could exercise their warrants and sell the Class A ordinary shares received upon such exercise freely in the open market in order to recoup the cost of such exercise, the insiders could be significantly restricted from selling such securities. As a result, we believe that allowing the holders to exercise such warrants on a cashless basis is appropriate.
In order to fund working capital deficiencies or 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 loan us funds as may be required, although they are under no obligation to advance funds or invest in us. Up to $1,500,000 of such loans may be convertible into warrants of the post business combination entity at a price of $1.50 per warrant at the option of the lender. Such warrants would be identical to the private placement warrants.
The warrant agreement provides that any change to the terms of the private placement warrants and forward purchase warrants requires the approval by the holders of at least 65% of the then outstanding private placement warrants and forward purchase warrants, voting together as a single class.
Dividends
We have not paid any cash dividends on our ordinary shares to date and do not intend to pay cash dividends prior to the completion of a business combination. The payment of cash dividends in the future will be dependent upon our revenues and earnings, if any, capital requirements and general financial condition subsequent to completion of a business combination. The payment of any cash dividends subsequent to a business combination will be within the discretion of our Board at such time. Further, if we incur any indebtedness, our ability to declare dividends may be limited by restrictive covenants we may agree to in connection therewith.
Our Transfer Agent and Warrant Agent
The transfer agent for our ordinary shares and warrant agent for our warrants is Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company. We have agreed to indemnify Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company in its roles as transfer agent and warrant agent, its agents and each of its shareholders, directors, officers and employees against all claims and losses that may arise out of acts performed or omitted for its activities in that capacity, except for any claims and losses due to any gross negligence or intentional misconduct of the indemnified person or entity.
Certain Differences in Corporate Law
Cayman Islands companies are governed by the Companies Act. The Companies Act is modeled on English Law but does not follow recent English Law statutory enactments, and differs from laws applicable to United States corporations and their shareholders. Set forth below is a summary of the material differences between the provisions of the Companies Act applicable to us and the laws applicable to companies incorporated in the United States and their shareholders.
Mergers and Similar Arrangements. In certain circumstances, the Companies Act allows for mergers or consolidations between two Cayman Islands companies, or between a Cayman Islands exempted company and a company incorporated in another jurisdiction (provided that is facilitated by the laws of that other jurisdiction).
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Where the merger or consolidation is between two Cayman Islands companies, the directors of each company must approve a written plan of merger or consolidation containing certain prescribed information. That plan or merger or consolidation must then be authorized by either (a) a special resolution (usually a majority of 66 2/3% in value of the voting shares voted at a general meeting) of the shareholders of each company; or (b) such other authorization, if any, as may be specified in such constituent company’s articles of association. No shareholder resolution is required for a merger between a parent company (i.e., a company that owns at least 90% of the issued shares of each class in a subsidiary company) and its subsidiary company. The consent of each holder of a fixed or floating security interest of a constituent company must be obtained, unless the court waives such requirement. If the Cayman Islands Registrar of Companies is satisfied that the requirements of the Companies Act (which includes certain other formalities) have been complied with, the Registrar of Companies will register the plan of merger or consolidation.
Where the merger or consolidation involves a foreign company, the procedure is similar, save that with respect to the foreign company, the directors of the Cayman Islands exempted company are required to make a declaration to the effect that, having made due enquiry, they are of the opinion that the requirements set out below have been met: (i) that the merger or consolidation is permitted or not prohibited by the constitutional documents of the foreign company and by the laws of the jurisdiction in which the foreign company is incorporated, and that those laws and any requirements of those constitutional documents have been or will be complied with; (ii) that no petition or other similar proceeding has been filed and remains outstanding or order made or resolution adopted to wind up or liquidate the foreign company in any jurisdictions; (iii) that no receiver, trustee, administrator or other similar person has been appointed in any jurisdiction and is acting in respect of the foreign company, its affairs or its property or any part thereof; and (iv) that no scheme, order, compromise or other similar arrangement has been entered into or made in any jurisdiction whereby the rights of creditors of the foreign company are and continue to be suspended or restricted.
Where the surviving company is the Cayman Islands exempted company, the directors of the Cayman Islands exempted company are further required to make a declaration to the effect that, having made due enquiry, they are of the opinion that the requirements set out below have been met: (i) that the foreign company is able to pay its debts as they fall due and that the merger or consolidated is bona fide and not intended to defraud unsecured creditors of the foreign company; (ii) that in respect of the transfer of any security interest granted by the foreign company to the surviving or consolidated company (a) consent or approval to the transfer has been obtained, released or waived; (b) the transfer is permitted by and has been approved in accordance with the constitutional documents of the foreign company; and (c) the laws of the jurisdiction of the foreign company with respect to the transfer have been or will be complied with; (iii) that the foreign company will, upon the merger or consolidation becoming effective, cease to be incorporated, registered or exist under the laws of the relevant foreign jurisdiction; and (iv) that there is no other reason why it would be against the public interest to permit the merger or consolidation.
Where the above procedures are adopted, the Companies Act provides for a right of dissenting shareholders to be paid a payment of the fair value of his shares upon their dissenting to the merger or consolidation if they follow a prescribed procedure. In essence, that procedure is as follows: (a) the shareholder must give his written objection to the merger or consolidation to the constituent company before the vote on the merger or consolidation, including a statement that the shareholder proposes to demand payment for his shares if the merger or consolidation is authorized by the vote; (b) within 20 days following the date on which the merger or consolidation is approved by the shareholders, the constituent company must give written notice to each shareholder who made a written objection; (c) a shareholder must within 20 days following receipt of such notice from the constituent company, give the constituent company a written notice of his intention to dissent including, among other details, a demand for payment
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of the fair value of his shares; (d) within seven days following the date of the expiration of the period set out in paragraph (b) above or seven days following the date on which the plan of merger or consolidation is filed, whichever is later, the constituent company, the surviving company or the consolidated company must make a written offer to each dissenting shareholder to purchase his shares at a price that the company determines is the fair value and if the company and the shareholder agree the price within 30 days following the date on which the offer was made, the company must pay the shareholder such amount; and (e) if the company and the shareholder fail to agree a price within such 30 day period, within 20 days following the date on which such 30 day period expires, the company (and any dissenting shareholder) must file a petition with the Cayman Islands Grand Court to determine the fair value and such petition must be accompanied by a list of the names and addresses of the dissenting shareholders with whom agreements as to the fair value of their shares have not been reached by the company. At the hearing of that petition, the court has the power to determine the fair value of the shares together with a fair rate of interest, if any, to be paid by the company upon the amount determined to be the fair value. Any dissenting shareholder whose name appears on the list filed by the company may participate fully in all proceedings until the determination of fair value is reached. These rights of a dissenting shareholder are not available in certain circumstances, for example, to dissenters holding shares of any class in respect of which an open market exists on a recognized stock exchange or recognized interdealer quotation system at the relevant date or where the consideration for such shares to be contributed are shares of any company listed on a national securities exchange or shares of the surviving or consolidated company.
Moreover, Cayman Islands law has separate statutory provisions that facilitate the reconstruction or amalgamation of companies in certain circumstances, schemes of arrangement will generally be more suited for complex mergers or other transactions involving widely held companies, commonly referred to in the Cayman Islands as a “scheme of arrangement” which may be tantamount to a merger. In the event that a merger was sought pursuant to a scheme of arrangement (the procedures for which are more rigorous and take longer to complete than the procedures typically required to complete a merger in the United States), the arrangement in question must be approved by a majority in number of each class of shareholders and creditors with whom the arrangement is to be made and who must in addition represent three-fourths in value of each such class of shareholders or creditors, as the case may be, that are present and voting either in person or by proxy at an annual general meeting, or extraordinary general meeting summoned for that purpose. The convening of the meetings and subsequently the terms of the arrangement must be sanctioned by the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands. While a dissenting shareholder would have the right to express to the court the view that the transaction should not be approved, the court can be expected to approve the arrangement if it satisfies itself that:
| • | we are not proposing to act illegally or beyond the scope of our corporate authority and the statutory provisions as to majority vote have been complied with; |
| • | the shareholders have been fairly represented at the meeting in question; |
| • | the arrangement is such as a businessman would reasonably approve; and |
| • | the arrangement is not one that would more properly be sanctioned under some other provision of the Companies Act or that would amount to a “fraud on the minority.” |
If a scheme of arrangement or takeover offer (as described below) is approved, any dissenting shareholder would have no rights comparable to appraisal rights (providing rights to receive payment in cash for the judicially determined value of the shares), which would otherwise ordinarily be available to dissenting shareholders of United States corporations.
Squeeze-out Provisions. When a takeover offer is made and accepted by holders of 90% of the shares to whom the offer relates within four months, the offeror may, within a two-month period, require the holders of the remaining shares to transfer such shares on the terms of the offer. An objection can be made to the Grand Court of the Cayman Islands, but this is unlikely to succeed unless there is evidence of fraud, bad faith, collusion or inequitable treatment of the shareholders.
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Further, transactions similar to a merger, reconstruction and/or an amalgamation may in some circumstances be achieved through means other than these statutory provisions, such as a share capital exchange, asset acquisition or control, or through contractual arrangements of an operating business.
Shareholders’ Suits. Maples and Calder, our Cayman Islands legal counsel, is not aware of any reported class action having been brought in a Cayman Islands court. Derivative actions have been brought in the Cayman Islands courts, and the Cayman Islands courts have confirmed the availability for such actions. In most cases, we will be the proper plaintiff in any claim based on a breach of duty owed to us, and a claim against (for example) our officers or directors usually may not be brought by a shareholder. However, based both on Cayman Islands authorities and on English authorities, which would in all likelihood be of persuasive authority and be applied by a court in the Cayman Islands, exceptions to the foregoing principle apply in circumstances in which:
| • | a company is acting, or proposing to act, illegally or beyond the scope of its authority; |
| • | the act complained of, although not beyond the scope of the authority, could be effected if duly authorized by more than the number of votes which have actually been obtained; or |
| • | those who control the company are perpetrating a “fraud on the minority.” |
A shareholder may have a direct right of action against us where the individual rights of that shareholder have been infringed or are about to be infringed.
Enforcement of Civil Liabilities. The Cayman Islands has a different body of securities laws as compared to the United States and provides less protection to investors. Additionally, Cayman Islands companies may not have standing to sue before the Federal courts of the United States.
We have been advised by Maples and Calder, our Cayman Islands legal counsel, that the courts of the Cayman Islands are unlikely (i) to recognize or enforce against us judgments of courts of the United States predicated upon the civil liability provisions of the federal securities laws of the United States or any state; and (ii) in original actions brought in the Cayman Islands, to impose liabilities against us predicated upon the civil liability provisions of the federal securities laws of the United States or any state, so far as the liabilities imposed by those provisions are penal in nature. In those circumstances, although there is no statutory enforcement in the Cayman Islands of judgments obtained in the United States, the courts of the Cayman Islands will recognize and enforce a foreign money judgment of a foreign court of competent jurisdiction without retrial on the merits based on the principle that a judgment of a competent foreign court imposes upon the judgment debtor an obligation to pay the sum for which judgment has been given provided certain conditions are met. For a foreign judgment to be enforced in the Cayman Islands, such judgment must be final and conclusive and for a liquidated sum, and must not be in respect of taxes or a fine or penalty, inconsistent with a Cayman Islands judgment in respect of the same matter, impeachable on the grounds of fraud or obtained in a manner, and or be of a kind the enforcement of which is, contrary to natural justice or the public policy of the Cayman Islands (awards of punitive or multiple damages may well be held to be contrary to public policy). A Cayman Islands Court may stay enforcement proceedings if concurrent proceedings are being brought elsewhere.
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Special Considerations for Exempted Companies. We are an exempted company with limited liability under the Companies Act. The Companies Act distinguishes between ordinary resident companies and exempted companies. Any company that is registered in the Cayman Islands but conducts business mainly outside of the Cayman Islands may apply to be registered as an exempted company. The requirements for an exempted company are essentially the same as for an ordinary company except for the exemptions and privileges listed below:
| • | an exempted company does not have to file an annual return of its shareholders with the Registrar of Companies; |
| • | an exempted company’s register of members is not open to inspection; |
| • | an exempted company does not have to hold an annual general meeting; |
| • | an exempted company may issue shares with no par value; |
| • | an exempted company may obtain an undertaking against the imposition of any future taxation (such undertakings are usually given for 20 years in the first instance); |
| • | an exempted company may register by way of continuation in another jurisdiction and be deregistered in the Cayman Islands; |
| • | an exempted company may register as a limited duration company; and |
| • | an exempted company may register as a segregated portfolio company. |
“Limited liability” means that the liability of each shareholder is limited to the amount unpaid by the shareholder on the shares of the company (except in exceptional circumstances, such as involving fraud, the establishment of an agency relationship or an illegal or improper purpose or other circumstances in which a court may be prepared to pierce or lift the corporate veil).
Amended and Restated Memorandum and Articles of Association
Our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association contain provisions designed to provide certain rights and protections that apply to us until the completion of our initial business combination. These provisions cannot be amended without a special resolution under Cayman Islands law. As a matter of Cayman Islands law, a resolution is deemed to be a special resolution where it has been approved by either (i) the affirmative vote of at least two-thirds (or any higher threshold specified in a company’s articles of association) of a company’s shareholders entitled to vote and so voting at a general meeting for which notice specifying the intention to propose the resolution as a special resolution has been given; or (ii) if so authorized by a company’s articles of association, by a unanimous written resolution of all of the company’s shareholders. Our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association provide that special resolutions must be approved either by at least two-thirds of our shareholders who attend and vote at a general meeting of the company (i.e., the lowest threshold permissible under Cayman Islands law), or by a unanimous written resolution of all of our shareholders.
Our initial shareholders and their permitted transferees, if any, who collectively beneficially own 30% of our issued and outstanding ordinary shares, will participate in any vote to amend our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association and will have the discretion to vote in any manner they choose. Specifically, our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association provide, among other things, that:
| • | If we have not completed an initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of the IPO, we will (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up; (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but no more than ten business days thereafter, 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 taxes, if such funds are held in an interest-bearing account (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of the then outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public shareholders’ rights as shareholders (including the right to receive further liquidation distributions, if any); and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining shareholders and our Board, liquidate and dissolve, subject in each case to our obligations under Cayman Islands law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law; |
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| • | Prior to or in connection with our initial business combination, we may not issue additional securities that would entitle the holders thereof to (i) receive funds from the trust account or (ii) vote on our initial business combination or on any other proposal presented to shareholders prior to or in connection with the completion of an initial business combination; |
| • | Although we do not intend to enter into a business combination with a target business that is affiliated with our sponsor, our directors or our executive officers, we are not prohibited from doing so. In the event we enter into such a transaction, we, or a committee of independent directors, will obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm or from an independent accounting firm that such a business combination is fair to our unaffiliated shareholders from a financial point of view; |
| • | If a shareholder vote on our initial business combination is not required by law and we do not decide to hold a shareholder vote for business or other legal reasons, we will offer to redeem our public shares pursuant to Rule 13e-4 and Regulation 14E of the Exchange Act, and will file tender offer documents with the SEC prior to completing our initial business combination which contain substantially the same financial and other information about our initial business combination and the redemption rights as is required under Regulation 14A of the Exchange Act; |
| • | Our initial business combination must occur with one or more target businesses that together have an aggregate fair market value of at least 80% of the assets held in the trust account (excluding the amount of deferred underwriting discounts held in trust and taxes payable on the income earned on the trust account) at the time of the agreement to enter into the initial business combination; |
| • | If our shareholders approve an amendment to our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association that would affect the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete an initial business combination within 24 months from the closing of the IPO, or with respect to any other provisions relating to shareholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity, we will provide our public shareholders with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their Class A ordinary shares upon such approval at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes, if any (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses) divided by the number of the then outstanding public shares, subject to the limitations described herein; and |
| • | We will not effectuate our initial business combination with another blank check company or a similar company with nominal operations. |
In addition, our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association provide that under no circumstances will we redeem our public shares in an amount that would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001.
The Companies Act permits a company incorporated in the Cayman Islands to amend its memorandum and articles of association with the approval of a special resolution which requires the approval of the holders of at least two-thirds of such company’s issued and outstanding ordinary shares who attend and vote at a general meeting or by way of unanimous written resolution. A company’s articles of association may specify that the approval of a higher majority is required but, provided the approval of the required majority is obtained, any Cayman Islands exempted company may amend its memorandum and articles of association regardless of whether its memorandum and articles of association provide otherwise. Accordingly, although we could amend any of the provisions relating to our structure and
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business plan which are contained in our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association, we view all of these provisions as binding obligations to our shareholders and neither we, nor our officers or directors, will take any action to amend or waive any of these provisions unless we provide dissenting public shareholders with the opportunity to redeem their public shares.
Certain Anti-Takeover Provisions of Our Amended and Restated Memorandum and Articles of Association
Our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association provide that our Board is classified into three classes of directors. As a result, in most circumstances, a person can gain control of our Board only by successfully engaging in a proxy contest at two or more annual general meetings.
Our authorized but unissued Class A ordinary shares and preference shares are available for future issuances without shareholder approval and could be utilized for a variety of corporate purposes, including future offerings to raise additional capital, acquisitions and employee benefit plans. The existence of authorized but unissued and unreserved Class A ordinary shares and preference shares could render more difficult or discourage an attempt to obtain control of us by means of a proxy contest, tender offer, merger or otherwise.
Listing of Securities
Our units are listed on the NYSE under the symbol “AUS.U.” Our Class A ordinary shares and warrants are listed on the NYSE under the symbols “AUS” and “AUS WS,” respectively. The units will automatically separate into their component parts and will not be traded following the completion of our initial business combination.
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