UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
Form 10-K
| ☒ | ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(D) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 |
For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2021
| ☐ | TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(D) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 |
For the transition period from to
Commission file number: 001-41014
JUNIPER II CORP.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
| Delaware | 84-1434822 | |
| (State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization) | (I.R.S. Employer Identification Number) | |
| 3790 El Camino Real #818 Palo Alto, California | 94306 | |
| (Address of principal executive offices) | (Zip Code) | |
(650) 292-9660
(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
Title of Each Class: | Trading Symbol(s) | Name of Each Exchange on Which Registered: | ||
| Units, each consisting of one share of Class A common stock, $0.0001 par value, and one-half of one redeemable warrant | JUN.U | The New York Stock Exchange | ||
| Shares of Class A common stock included as part of the units | JUN | The New York Stock Exchange | ||
| Warrants included as part of the units, each whole warrant exercisable for one share of Class A common stock at an exercise price of $11.50 | JUN WS | The New York Stock Exchange |
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes ☐ No ☒
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. Yes ☐ No ☒
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes ☒ No ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§ 232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files). Yes ☒ No ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.
| Large accelerated filer | ☐ | Accelerated filer | ☐ | |||
| Non-accelerated filer | ☒ | Smaller reporting company | ☒ | |||
| Emerging growth company | ☒ | |||||
If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report. ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act). Yes ☒ No ☐
As of June 30, 2021, the last business day of the registrant’s most recently completed second fiscal quarter, the registrant’s securities were not publicly traded. The registrant’s units began trading on the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) on November 4, 2021 and the registrant’s shares of Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 (the “Class A common stock”), and warrants began trading on the NYSE on December 23, 2021. The aggregate market value of the common stock outstanding, other than shares held by persons who may be deemed affiliates of the registrant, was $304,980,000 (computed by reference to the closing sales price for the Class A common stock on December 31, 2021 of $10.20, as reported on the NYSE).
As of March 30, 2022, 29,900,000 shares of Class A common stock (which includes shares of Class A common stock that are underlying the registrant’s units), par value $0.0001, and 7,475,000 shares of Class B common stock, par value $0.0001, were issued and outstanding.
Documents Incorporated by Reference: None.
JUNIPER II CORP.
Form 10-K
For the Year Ended December 31, 2021
i
Unless otherwise stated in this Annual Report on Form 10-K (this “Report”), or the context otherwise requires, references to:
| • | “we,” “us,” “our” or “company” are to Juniper II Corp.; |
| • | “advisors” are to our strategic advisors identified herein; |
| • | “Class A common stock” are to our Class A common stock, $0.0001 par value per share; |
| • | “Class B common stock” are to our Class B common stock, $0.0001 par value per share; |
| • | “common stock” are to our Class A common stock and our Class B common stock, collectively; |
| • | “DGCL” are to the Delaware General Corporation Law, as the same may be amended from time to time; |
| • | “founder shares” are to shares of our Class B common stock initially purchased by our sponsor in a private placement prior to our initial public offering, and the shares of our Class A common stock issuable upon the conversion thereof as provided herein; |
| • | “initial stockholders” are to holders of our founder shares prior to our initial public offering; |
| • | “management” or our “management team” are to our officers and directors; |
| • | “NYSE” are to the New York Stock Exchange; |
| • | “private placement warrants” are to the warrants issued to our sponsor in a private placement simultaneously with the closing of our initial public offering; |
| • | “public shares” are to shares of our Class A common stock sold as part of the units in our initial public offering (whether they are purchased in our initial public offering or thereafter in the open market); |
| • | “public stockholders” are to the holders of our public shares, including our initial stockholders and management team to the extent our initial stockholders and/or members of our management team purchase public shares, provided that each initial stockholder’s and member of our management team’s status as a “public stockholder” shall only exist with respect to such public shares; and |
| • | “sponsor” are to Juniper II Management, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company, which is owned and controlled by Roger Fradin, our Chairman. |
ii
CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This Report, including, without limitation, statements under the heading “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations,” includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, (the “Securities Act”) and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, (the “Exchange Act”). These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding our or our management team’s expectations, hopes, beliefs, intentions or strategies regarding the future. In addition, any statements that refer to projections, forecasts or other characterizations of future events or circumstances, including any underlying assumptions, are forward-looking statements. The words “anticipate,” “believe,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intends,” “may,” “might,” “plan,” “possible,” “potential,” “predict,” “project,” “should,” “would” and similar expressions may identify forward-looking statements, but the absence of these words does not mean that a statement is not forward-looking. Forward-looking statements in this Report may include, for example, statements about:
| • | our ability to select an appropriate target business or businesses; |
| • | our ability to complete our initial business combination; |
| • | our expectations around the performance of the prospective target business or businesses; |
| • | our success in retaining or recruiting, or changes required in, our officers, key employees or directors following our initial business combination; |
| • | our officers and directors allocating their time to other businesses and potentially having conflicts of interest with our business or in approving our initial business combination, as a result of which they would then receive expense reimbursements; |
| • | our potential ability to obtain additional financing to complete our initial business combination; |
| • | our pool of prospective target businesses; |
| • | the ability of our officers and directors to generate a number of potential acquisition opportunities; |
| • | our public securities’ potential liquidity and trading; |
| • | our ability to consummate an initial business combination due to the uncertainty resulting from the novel coronavirus (“COVID-19”) pandemic, as well as from the emergence of variant strains of COVID-19, including the efficacy and adoption of recently developed vaccines with respect to COVID-19 and variant strains thereof; |
| • | the lack of a market for our securities; |
| • | the use of proceeds not held in the trust account or available to us from interest income on the trust account balance; |
| • | the trust account not being subject to claims of third parties; or |
| • | our financial performance. |
The forward-looking statements contained in this Report are based on our current expectations and beliefs concerning future developments and their potential effects on us. There can be no assurance that future developments affecting us will be those that we have anticipated. These forward-looking statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties (some of which are beyond our control) or other assumptions that may cause actual results or performance to be materially different from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, those factors described under the section of this Report entitled “Risk Factors.” Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should any of our assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary in material respects from those projected in these forward-looking statements. We undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required under applicable securities laws. These risks and others described under “Risk Factors” may not be exhaustive.
iii
By their nature, forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that may or may not occur in the future. We caution you that forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and that our actual results of operations, financial condition and liquidity, and developments in the industry in which we operate may differ materially from those made in or suggested by the forward-looking statements contained in this Report. In addition, even if our results or operations, financial condition and liquidity, and developments in the industry in which we operate are consistent with the forward-looking statements contained in this Report, those results or developments may not be indicative of results or developments in subsequent periods.
vi
The following is a summary of the principal risks described below in Part I, Item 1A “Risk Factors” in this Report. We believe that the risks described in the “Risk Factors” section are material to investors, but other factors not presently known to us or that we currently believe are immaterial may also adversely affect us. The following summary should not be considered an exhaustive summary of the material risks facing us, and it should be read in conjunction with the “Risk Factors” section and the other information contained in this Report.
| • | We are a recently formed company with no operating history and no revenues, and you have no basis on which to evaluate our ability to achieve our business objective. |
| • | Past performance by, or business associated with, our management team, including Juniper Industrial Holdings, Inc., is not indicative of future performance of an investment in us. |
| • | Our public stockholders may not be afforded an opportunity to vote on our proposed business combination, which means we may complete our initial business combination even though a majority of our public stockholders do not support such a combination. |
| • | If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination, our initial stockholders have agreed to vote in favor of such initial business combination, regardless of how our public stockholders vote. |
| • | Your only opportunity to affect the investment decision regarding a potential business combination will be limited to the exercise of your right to redeem your shares from us for cash, unless we seek stockholder approval of the business combination. |
| • | The ability of our public stockholders to redeem their shares for cash may make our financial condition unattractive to potential business combination targets, which may make it difficult for us to enter into a business combination with a target. |
| • | The ability of our public stockholders to exercise redemption rights with respect to a large number of our shares may not allow us to complete the most desirable business combination or optimize our capital structure. |
| • | The ability of our public stockholders to exercise redemption rights with respect to a large number of our shares could increase the probability that our initial business combination would not be consummated and that you would have to wait for liquidation in order to redeem your stock. |
| • | The requirement that we complete our initial business combination within the prescribed time frame may give potential target businesses leverage over us in negotiating a business combination and may decrease our ability to conduct due diligence on potential business combination targets as we approach our dissolution deadline, which could undermine our ability to complete our business combination on terms that would produce value for our stockholders. |
| • | Our search for a business combination, and any target business with which we ultimately consummate a business combination, may be materially adversely affected by the outbreak of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) and variants thereof and the status of debt and equity markets. |
| • | We may not be able to complete our initial business combination within the prescribed time frame, in which case we would cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up and we would redeem our public shares and liquidate, in which case our public stockholders may only receive $10.20 per share, or less than such amount in certain circumstances, and our warrants will expire worthless. |
| • | We may extend our time period to consummate our initial business combination for an additional six months and accordingly have a total of 24 months from the closing of our initial public offering to consummate a business combination without submitting such proposed extension to our stockholders for approval or offering our public stockholders redemption rights in connection therewith. |
v
| • | If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination, our sponsor, directors, officers, advisors and their affiliates may elect to purchase shares from public stockholders, which may influence a vote on a proposed business combination and reduce the public “float” of our Class A common stock. |
| • | If a stockholder fails to receive notice of our offer to redeem our public shares in connection with our business combination, or fails to comply with the procedures for tendering its shares, such shares may not be redeemed. |
| • | You will not have any rights or interests in funds from the trust account, except under certain limited circumstances. Therefore, to liquidate your investment, you may be forced to sell your public shares or warrants, potentially at a loss. |
| • | Because of our limited resources and the significant competition for business combination opportunities, it may be more difficult for us to complete our initial business combination. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.20 per share on our redemption of our public shares, or less than such amount in certain circumstances, and our warrants will expire worthless. |
| • | As the number of special purpose acquisition companies evaluating targets increases, attractive targets may become scarcer and there may be more competition for attractive targets. This could increase the cost of our initial business combination and could even result in our inability to find a target or to consummate an initial business combination. |
| • | If the net proceeds of our initial public offering and the sale of the private placement warrants not being held in the trust account are insufficient to allow us to operate for at least 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering (or 24 months, if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination), we may be unable to complete our initial business combination, in which case our public stockholders may only receive $10.20 per share, or less than such amount in certain circumstances, and our warrants will expire worthless. |
| • | The NYSE may delist our securities from trading on its exchange, which could limit investors’ ability to make transactions in our securities and subject us to additional trading restrictions. |
| • | If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination and we do not conduct redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules, and if you or a “group” of stockholders are deemed to hold in excess of 15% of our Class A common stock, you will lose the ability to redeem all such shares in excess of 15% of our Class A common stock. |
| • | Our warrants are accounted for as a warrant liability and are recorded at fair value upon issuance with changes in fair value each period reported in earnings, which may have an adverse effect on the market price of our Class A common stock or may make it more difficult for us to consummate an initial business combination. |
vi
| Item 1. | Business |
Overview
We are a blank check company incorporated as a Delaware corporation and formed for the purpose of effecting a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses, which we refer to herein as our initial business combination. We have not selected any specific business combination target.
While we may pursue an initial business combination target in any business, industry or geographical location, we intend to focus our search within the industrials sector, where we believe our management team has a competitive advantage due to their prior experiences and roles. We intend to focus our search efforts on North American-based targets with an aggregate enterprise value of $1 billion to $2 billion.
We believe our management team is well positioned to identify attractive businesses within the industrials sector that would benefit from access to the public markets and the skills of our management team. Our objective is to consummate our initial business combination and enhance shareholder value by helping to identify and recruit effective management, enhance existing business models and strategic planning, identify and complete follow-on acquisitions, implement operational improvements, and expand product offerings and geographic footprint. We expect to utilize our management team’s experience and network to achieve their objectives. We intend to focus on evaluating established companies with leading competitive positions, strong management teams, and long-term potential for growth and profitability.
Experience with a Special Purpose Acquisition Vehicle
Our management team has previous experience in the execution of a public acquisition vehicle. Mr. Fradin was appointed to the board of directors of GS Acquisition Holdings Corp., a special purpose acquisition company, in connection with its initial public offering in June 2018. GS Acquisition Holdings Corp. consummated its initial business combination with Vertiv Holdings, LLC in February 2020. The Class A common stock of the combined company, Vertiv Holdings Co, is traded on the NYSE under the symbol “VRT.” Mr. Fradin continues to serve as a member of the board of directors Vertiv following the consummation of the business combination.
In addition, an affiliate of our sponsor formed and sponsored Juniper Industrial Holdings, Inc. (“Juniper Industrial”), a special purpose acquisition company formed for substantially similar purposes as our company that completed its initial public offering in November 2019. Each of Messrs. Fradin, Jacobson and Levy previously served on the board of directors of Juniper Industrial until the consummation of its initial business combination, with Mr. Fradin serving as Chairman and formerly as Juniper Industrial’s Chief Executive Officer. On December 21, 2020, Juniper Industrial entered into a business combination agreement with affiliates of Janus International Group, Inc. (“Janus”) to acquire Janus, which business combination was consummated on June 7, 2021. Janus is the leading global manufacturer and supplier of turn-key self-storage, commercial and industrial building solutions, including: roll up and swing doors, hallway systems, re-locatable storage units, and facility and door automation technologies.
Our directors and officers or their respective affiliates may in the future become affiliated with other public special purpose acquisition companies that may have acquisition objectives that are similar to ours, including potentially during the period in which we are seeking an initial business combination. Our management team is not required to commit any specified amount of time to our affairs, and, accordingly, will have conflicts of interest in allocating time among various business activities. See “Risk Factors—Certain of our officers and directors may be, or in the future may become, affiliated with entities engaged in business activities similar to those intended to be conducted by us and, accordingly, may have conflicts of interest in allocating their time and determining to which entity a particular business opportunity should be presented.”
1
The past performance of, or businesses associated with, our management team, including Juniper Industrial, is not a guarantee of either (i) success with respect to a business combination that we may consummate or (ii) that we will be able to
successfully identify and execute a transaction. You should not rely on the historical record of such parties as indicative of our future performance. See “Risk Factors—Past performance by, or business associated with, our management team, including Juniper Industrial Holdings, Inc., is not indicative of future performance of an investment in us.” In addition, members of our management team may have conflicts of interest with other entities to which they owe fiduciary or contractual obligations with respect to initial business combination opportunities. For a list of our directors and executive officers and entities for which a conflict of interest may or does exist between such persons and the company, please refer to “Item 10. Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance—Conflicts of Interest.”
Competitive Strengths
We will seek to capitalize on the significant experience and network of Roger Fradin, our Chairman, Murray Grainger, our Chief Executive Officer, and Noah Kindler, our Chief Financial Officer and Chief Technology Officer, as well as the other members of our board of directors in consummating an initial business combination. Our competitive strengths and factors that we believe will contribute to our ability to execute a transaction include the following:
| • | Leading Operating Executives: Mr. Fradin has over 40 years of experience in operating industrial companies. Mr. Fradin served 17 years as a top executive at Honeywell, a Fortune 100 industrial technology company that delivers industry-specific solutions including aerospace products and services, control technologies for buildings and industry, and performance materials globally. Mr. Fradin has a highly successful track record of recruiting and building leadership teams, growing companies at above market rates, improving business operations, expanding margins, maximizing cash flow, and generating robust return on capital. Mr. Fradin was instrumental in co-creating the signature Honeywell Operating System, an integrated program built on Six Sigma principles to drive sustainable safety, quality, delivery, cost, and inventory improvement among Honeywell businesses. During Mr. Fradin’s time at Honeywell, he expanded the business into new markets, drove global expansion, built first-rate leadership teams and executed strategic M&A, including partnering with Mr. Grainger on numerous transactions, to enhance shareholder value. Following Honeywell’s acquisition of Intelligrated, Mr. Grainger was then selected to lead the integration of Intelligrated, where he spearheaded a global, multi-functional team that set the stage for more than 200% business growth under the first three years of Honeywell’s ownership. In addition to the valuable experience of Messrs. Fradin and Grainger, Mr. Kindler brings a wealth of broad and deep technology expertise in areas relevant to our initial business combination criteria and a history of working with emerging growth companies. We believe the notable expertise of Messrs. Fradin and Grainger within the industrials sector, as well as Mr. Kindler’s experience with emerging growth companies, will allow our management team to evaluate and prioritize potential opportunities relevant to Mr. Fradin’s background with growth potential. |
| • | Deep Deal Execution Experience: Mr. Fradin is both highly experienced in mergers and acquisitions across a wide variety of industrial sectors. He has successfully identified, executed and integrated highly synergistic transactions within a variety of product categories including, but not limited to, fire and security, gas detection, safety products, building and HVAC controls, building services, home automation, low voltage products and distribution, sensing and control products, data capture technologies, warehouse automation, supply chain software, process automation, automotive products, field instrumentation and metering. During his tenure at Honeywell, Mr. Fradin was responsible for consummating over 60 discrete acquisitions at attractive net multiples that contributed billions in revenue and represented over $20 billion of capital deployed. Mr. Fradin was instrumental in the creation of several new verticals within Honeywell including Scanning & Mobility Technology, Life Safety/Gas Detection, and Warehouse Automation. In his various roles at Honeywell, Mr. Grainger aided or led multiple buy- and sell-side transactions, partnering directly with Mr. Fradin on numerous transactions in his capacity as President and CEO of ACS and Vice-Chairman of Honeywell. We believe the extensive track records of executing deals possessed by Messrs. Fradin and Grainger, as well of their history of successful collaboration on deal execution, will allow our management team to execute an efficient and successful business combination. |
| • | Highly Leverageable Network: We intend to source initial business combination opportunities through our management team’s extensive network of industrial sector business owners, public and private company executives and board members, investment bankers, private equity and debt investors, high net worth families and their advisors, commercial bankers, attorneys, management consultants, accountants and other transaction intermediaries. Additionally, Mr. Fradin holds the highest level of security clearance approved by the U.S. government, which broadens the scope of potential acquisition targets, especially in regard to companies that |
2
perform government, defense, and/or classified work. We believe leveraging this vast network, together with Mr. Kindler’s experience identifying and developing emerging growth companies and Messrs. Fradin’s and Grainger’s recognized track records of completing acquisitions across a variety of categories within the broader industrials sector, will provide meaningful opportunities to drive value creation for our shareholders. |
| • | Our Board of Directors: Our directors have experience with acquisitions, divestitures and corporate strategy and implementation, as well as the public markets, which we believe will significantly benefit us as we evaluate potential initial business combination candidates as well as, to the extent they remain on our board of directors, following the completion of our initial business combination. |
Business Combination Criteria
Consistent with our strategy, we have identified the following general criteria and guidelines that we believe are important in evaluating prospective target businesses. We expect to conduct a comprehensive due diligence review which will include, among other things, management and employee meetings, review of financial information, facility inspection, and an extensive review of all other material target company information. We intend to use these criteria as guidelines in evaluating potential acquisition opportunities, but an acquisition may be executed even if it does not meet our guidelines.
| • | Focus on companies within the industrials sector such as those within aerospace (including “clean” aviation), defense, automation, building products and construction, business services, capital goods, distribution, industrial services, industrial technology, packaging, safety and security, and supply chain / logistics, among others. We intend to evaluate emerging growth opportunities within the industrial sector and to seek businesses that are currently North American-centric with unrealized potential for global expansion. Additionally, we believe our management team’s deep industry experience and vast network will allow us to identify undervalued assets where we can accelerate operational improvements, organic revenue growth, and potential acquisition opportunities to drive shareholder value. |
| • | Identify market leaders within their particular industries that also have distinguished technologies or proprietary processes that differentiate them from their competitors. Our management team has a track record of identifying market leading technologies across the industrials spectrum and an affinity for businesses with strong brands, mission-critical offerings, and often times an electronic or software foundation. |
| • | Seek opportunities with an attractive financial profile that can be enhanced with the targeted expertise of our management team. While this may include businesses with sound histories of growth and profitability, we may also target underperforming businesses that we believe will benefit from new ownership and the implementation of enhanced operating efficiencies. |
| • | Seek “channel-based” businesses with end-user connections (i.e., businesses that sell through a dealer/installer network of end-users). Our management team has deep experience with this go-to-market approach. |
| • | Target platforms that can be expanded through bolt-on M&A and/or through targeted capital deployment, such as those within fragmented markets. |
| • | Focus on businesses that offer a degree of market strength or competitive advantages through regulation, strong brands, channel access, and/or superior technology. |
| • | Seek target businesses that have a strong leadership team that may benefit from the additional industry expertise of our management team. |
These criteria are not intended to be exhaustive. Any evaluation relating to the merits of a particular initial business combination may be based, to the extent relevant, on these general guidelines as well as other considerations, factors and criteria that our management team may deem relevant. In the event that we decide to enter into our initial business combination with a target business that does not meet the above criteria and guidelines, we will disclose that the target business does not meet the above criteria in our stockholder communications related to our initial business combination, which would be in the form of proxy solicitation materials or tender offer documents that we would file with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”).
3
Our Acquisition Process
In evaluating a prospective target business, we expect to conduct a thorough due diligence review that will encompass, among other things, meetings with incumbent management and employees, document reviews, inspection of facilities, as well as a review of financial and other information that will be made available to us. We will also utilize our operational and capital allocation experience.
We are not prohibited from pursuing an initial business combination with a company that is affiliated with our sponsor, officers or directors. In the event we seek to complete our initial business combination with a company that is affiliated with our sponsor, officers or directors, we, or a committee of independent directors, will obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm which is a member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”) or an independent accounting firm that our initial business combination is fair to our company from a financial point of view.
Certain members of our management team directly or indirectly own founder shares and/or private placement warrants (and may in the future acquire other securities of the company) and, accordingly, may have a conflict of interest in determining whether a particular target business is an appropriate business with which to effectuate our initial business combination. In particular, because the founder shares were purchased at approximately $0.003 per share, the holders of our founder shares (including members of our management team that directly or indirectly own founder shares) could make a substantial profit after our initial business combination even if our public stockholders lose money on their investment as a result of a decrease in the post-combination value of their shares of common stock (after accounting for any adjustments in connection with an exchange or other transaction contemplated by the business combination). See “Risk Factors—Since our officers and directors will be eligible to share in a portion of any appreciation in founder shares purchased at approximately $0.003 per share, a conflict of interest may arise in determining whether a particular business combination target is appropriate for our initial business combination.”
Further, each of our officers and directors may have a conflict of interest with respect to evaluating a particular business combination if the retention or resignation of any such officers and directors was included by a target business as a condition to any agreement with respect to our initial business combination.
Certain of our officers and directors presently have, and any of them in the future may have additional, fiduciary or contractual obligations to other entities, including duties pursuant to which such officer or director may be required to present a business combination opportunity. Accordingly, if any of our officers or directors becomes aware of a business combination opportunity which is suitable for an entity to which he or she has then-current fiduciary or contractual obligations, he or she will honor his or her fiduciary or contractual obligations to present such opportunity to such entity. We do not believe, however, that the fiduciary duties or contractual obligations of our officers or directors will materially affect our ability to complete our business combination. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that we renounce our interest in any corporate opportunity offered to any director or officer unless such opportunity is expressly offered to such person solely in his or her capacity as a director or officer of our company and such opportunity is one we are legally and contractually permitted to undertake and would otherwise be reasonable for us to pursue.
Our executive officers are not required to commit any specified amount of time to our affairs, and, accordingly, will have conflicts of interest in allocating management time among various business activities, including in connection with Mr. Fradin’s service as a director of Janus, a position he has held since the consummation in June 2021 of the business combination between Janus and Juniper Industrial, a special purpose acquisition company that, like us, was focused on the industrial sector. See “Risk Factors—Certain of our officers and directors may be, or in the future may become, affiliated with entities engaged in business activities similar to those intended to be conducted by us and, accordingly, may have conflicts of interest in allocating their time and determining to which entity a particular business opportunity should be presented.”
We have filed a Registration Statement on Form 8-A with the SEC to voluntarily register our securities under Section 12 of the Exchange Act. As a result, we are subject to the rules and regulations promulgated under the Exchange Act. We have no current intention of filing a Form 15 to suspend our reporting or other obligations under the Exchange Act prior or subsequent to the consummation of our initial business combination.
4
Significant Activities Since Inception
On November 8, 2021, we consummated our initial public offering of 29,900,000 units (“units”), including units issued pursuant to the full exercise of the underwriters’ option to purchase additional units to cover over-allotments. Each unit consists of one share of Class A common stock and one-half of one redeemable warrant, with each whole public warrant entitling the holder thereof to purchase one share of Class A common stock at an exercise price of $11.50 per share, subject to adjustment. The units were sold at an offering price of $10.00 per unit, generating gross proceeds of $299,000,000 (before underwriting discounts and commissions and offering expenses). Simultaneous with the consummation of our initial public offering and the sale of the units, we consummated the private placement of 14,960,000 warrants at a price of $1.00 per private placement warrant, issued to our sponsor, generating total proceeds of $14,960,000.
A total of $304,980,000, comprised of $293,020,000 of the proceeds from our initial public offering (which amount includes $10,465,000 of the underwriters’ deferred underwriting commissions) and $11,960,000 of the proceeds from the sale of the private placement warrants to our sponsor were deposited in a trust account (the “trust account”) established for the benefit of our public stockholders.
Our units began trading on November 4, 2021 on the NYSE under the symbol “JUN.U.” Commencing on December 23, 2021, the securities comprising the units began separate trading. The units, Class A common stock, and public warrants currently trade on the NYSE under the symbols “JUN.U,” “JUN” and “JUN WS,” respectively.
Initial Business Combination
We have until 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering to consummate an initial business combination. However, if we anticipate that we may not be able to consummate our initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering, we may extend the period of time to consummate a business combination for six months (for a total of 24 months to complete a business combination) without submitting such proposed extension to our stockholders for approval or offering our public stockholders redemption rights in connection therewith. Pursuant to the terms of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and the trust agreement entered into between us and Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, in order to extend the time available for us to consummate our initial business combination for an additional six months, our sponsor or its affiliates or designees must deposit into the trust account $2,990,000 ($0.10 per unit), on or prior to 18-month anniversary of the closing of our initial public offering. Any such payments would be made in the form of a loan that will be non-interest bearing and payable upon the consummation of our initial business combination. We will issue a press release announcing any extension, at least three days prior to the deadline. In addition, we will issue a press release the day after the deadline, announcing whether the funds have been timely deposited. If we complete our initial business combination, we would repay such loaned amounts out of the proceeds of the trust account released to us. If we do not complete a business combination, we will not repay such loans. We will only be able to effectuate one such extension and only for an additional six months. Our sponsor and its affiliates or designees are not obligated to fund the trust account to extend the time for us to complete our initial business combination.
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 deferred underwriting commissions and taxes payable on the income earned on the trust account) at the time of the agreement to enter into the initial business combination. The requirement that the target business or businesses together have an aggregate fair market value of at least 80% of the assets held in the trust account will be set forth in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, and will continue to apply to us even if our securities are no longer listed on the NYSE. If our board is not able to independently determine the fair market value of the target business or businesses, we will obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm that is a member of FINRA or an independent accounting firm with respect to the satisfaction of such criteria.
We anticipate structuring our initial business combination so that the post-transaction company in which our public stockholders own shares will own or acquire 100% of the equity interests or assets of the target business or businesses. We may, however, structure our initial business combination such that the post-transaction company owns or acquires less than 100% of such interests or assets of the target business in order to meet certain objectives of the target management team or stockholders or for other reasons. However, we will only complete such business combination if the post-transaction company owns or acquires 50% or more of the outstanding voting securities of the target or otherwise acquires a controlling interest in the target sufficient for it not to be required to register as an investment company under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Investment Company Act”). Even if the post-transaction company owns or acquires 50% or more of the voting securities of the target, our stockholders prior to the business combination may collectively own a
5
minority interest in the post-transaction company, depending on valuations ascribed to the target and us in the business combination transaction. For example, we could pursue a transaction in which we issue a substantial number of new shares in exchange for all of the outstanding capital stock of a target. In this case, we would acquire a 100% controlling interest in the target. However, as a result of the issuance of a substantial number of new shares, our stockholders immediately prior to our initial business combination could own less than a majority of our outstanding shares subsequent to our initial business combination. If less than 100% of the equity interests or assets of a target business or businesses are owned or acquired by the post-transaction company, the portion of such business or businesses that is owned or acquired is what will be valued for purposes of the 80% of net assets test. If the business combination involves more than one target business, the 80% of net assets test will be based on the aggregate value of all of the target businesses and we will treat the target businesses together as the initial business combination for purposes of a tender offer or for seeking stockholder approval, as applicable. In addition, we have agreed not to enter into a definitive agreement regarding an initial business combination without the prior consent of our sponsor.
Our Management Team
Members of our management team are not obligated to devote any specific number of hours to our matters but they intend to devote as much of their time as they deem necessary to our affairs until we have completed our initial business combination. The amount of time that any member of our management team will devote in any time period will vary based on whether a target business has been selected for our initial business combination and the current stage of the business combination process.
We believe our management team’s operating and transaction experience and network of relationships with investment banks, private equity firms, professional advisors and senior industrial executives will provide us with a substantial number of potential business combination targets. Over the course of their careers, the members of our management team have developed a broad network of contacts and corporate relationships around the world. This network has grown through the activities of our management team sourcing, acquiring and financing businesses, our management team’s relationships with sellers, financing sources and target management teams. Our management team is also highly experienced in executing transactions under varying economic and financial market conditions. See the section of this Report entitled “Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance” for a more complete description of our management team’s experience.
Status as a Public Company
We believe our structure will make us an attractive business combination partner to target businesses. As an existing public company, we offer a target business an alternative to the traditional initial public offering through a merger or other business combination. In this situation, the owners of the target business would exchange their shares of stock in the target business for shares of our stock or for a combination of shares of our stock and cash, allowing us to tailor the consideration to the specific needs of the sellers. Although there are various costs and obligations associated with being a public company, we believe certain target businesses will find this method a more certain and cost effective method to becoming a public company than the typical initial public offering. In a typical initial public offering, there are additional expenses incurred in marketing, road show and public reporting efforts that may not be present to the same extent in connection with a business combination with us.
Furthermore, once a proposed business combination is completed, the target business will have effectively become public, whereas an initial public offering is always subject to the underwriters’ ability to complete the offering, as well as general market conditions, which could delay or prevent the offering from occurring or could have negative valuation consequences. Once public, we believe the target business would then have greater access to capital and an additional means of providing management incentives consistent with stockholders’ interests. It can offer further benefits by augmenting a company’s profile among potential new customers and vendors and aid in attracting talented employees.
We are an “emerging growth company,” as defined in Section 2(a) of the Securities Act, as modified by the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act of 2012 (the “JOBS Act”). As such, we are eligible to take advantage of certain exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other public companies that are not emerging growth companies including, but not limited to, not being required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports and proxy statements, and exemptions from the requirements of holding a non-binding advisory vote on executive compensation and stockholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved. If some investors find our securities less attractive as a result, there may be a less active trading market for our securities and the prices of our securities may be more volatile.
6
In addition, Section 107 of the JOBS Act also provides that an emerging growth company can take advantage of the extended transition period provided in Section 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act for complying with new or revised accounting standards. In other words, an emerging growth company can delay the adoption of certain accounting standards until those standards would otherwise apply to private companies. We intend to take advantage of the benefits of this extended transition period.
We will remain an emerging growth company until the earlier of (1) the last day of the fiscal year (a) following the fifth anniversary of the completion of our initial public offering, (b) in which we have total annual gross revenue of at least $1.07 billion, or (c) in which we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer, which means the market value of our Class A common stock that is held by non-affiliates exceeds $700 million as of the end of the prior fiscal year’s second fiscal quarter, and (2) the date on which we have issued more than $1.0 billion in non-convertible debt securities during the prior three-year period.
Financial Position
With funds available for a business combination in the amount of approximately $294.5 million as of December 31, 2021, after payment of $10,465,000 of deferred underwriting fees, in each case before fees and expenses associated with our initial business combination, we offer a target business a variety of options such as creating a liquidity event for its owners, providing access to the expertise of our management team, providing capital for the potential growth and expansion of its operations or strengthening its balance sheet by reducing its debt or leverage ratio. Because we are able to complete our business combination using our cash, debt or equity securities, or a combination of the foregoing, we have the flexibility to use the most efficient combination that will allow us to tailor the consideration to be paid to the target business to fit its needs and desires. However, we have not taken any steps to secure third party financing and there can be no assurance it will be available to us.
Effecting Our Initial Business Combination
We are not presently engaged in, and we will not engage in, any operations for an indefinite period of time following our initial public offering. We intend to effectuate our initial business combination using cash from the proceeds of our initial public offering and the private placement of the private placement warrants, our capital stock, debt or a combination of these as the consideration to be paid in our initial business combination. We may seek to complete our initial business combination with a company or business that may be financially unstable or in its early stages of development or growth, which would subject us to the numerous risks inherent in such companies and businesses.
If our initial business combination is paid for using equity or debt securities, or not all of the funds released from the trust account are used for payment of the consideration in connection with our business combination or used for redemptions of purchases of our Class A common stock, we may apply the balance of the cash released to us from the trust account for general corporate purposes, including for maintenance or expansion of operations of the post-transaction company, the payment of principal or interest due on indebtedness incurred in completing our initial business combination, to fund the purchase of other companies or for working capital.
We currently do not have any specific transaction under consideration with a target business with which to consummate our initial business combination. We may seek to raise additional funds through a private offering of debt or equity securities in connection with the completion of our initial business combination, and we may effectuate our initial business combination using the proceeds of such offering rather than using the amounts held in the trust account. Subject to compliance with applicable securities laws, we would expect to complete such financing only simultaneously with the completion of our business combination. In the case of an initial business combination funded with assets other than the trust account assets, our tender offer documents or proxy materials disclosing the business combination would disclose the terms of the financing and, only if required by law, we would seek stockholder approval of such financing. There are no prohibitions on our ability to raise funds privately or through loans in connection with our initial business combination. At this time, we are not a party to any arrangement or understanding with any third party with respect to raising any additional funds through the sale of securities or otherwise.
7
Sources of Target Businesses
We anticipate that target business candidates will be brought to our attention from various unaffiliated sources, including investment market participants, private equity groups, investment banking firms, consultants, accounting firms and large business enterprises. Target businesses may be brought to our attention by such unaffiliated sources as a result of being solicited by us through calls or mailings. These sources may also introduce us to target businesses in which they think we may be interested on an unsolicited basis, since many of these sources will have read the final prospectus associated with our initial public offering and know what types of businesses we are targeting. Our officers and directors, as well as their affiliates, may also bring to our attention target business candidates that they become aware of through their business contacts as a result of formal or informal inquiries or discussions they may have, as well as attending trade shows or conventions. In addition, we expect to receive a number of proprietary deal flow opportunities that would not otherwise necessarily be available to us as a result of the business relationships of our officers and directors. In connection with a business combination, we may engage the services of professional firms or other individuals that specialize in business acquisitions, in which event we may pay a finder’s fee, consulting fee or other compensation to be determined in an arm’s length negotiation based on the terms of the transaction. We will engage a finder only to the extent our management determines that the use of a finder may bring opportunities to us that may not otherwise be available to us or if finders approach us on an unsolicited basis with a potential transaction that our management determines is in our best interest to pursue. Payment of finder’s fees is customarily tied to completion of a transaction, in which case any such fee will be paid out of the funds held in the trust account. In no event, however, will our sponsor or any of our existing officers or directors, or any entity with which they are affiliated, be paid any finder’s fee, consulting fee or other compensation prior to, or for any services they render in order to effectuate, the completion of our initial business combination (regardless of the type of transaction that it is). We have agreed to pay an affiliate of our sponsor a total of $10,000 per month for office space, utilities and secretarial and administrative support and to reimburse our sponsor for any out-of-pocket expenses related to identifying, investigating and completing an initial business combination. Some of our officers and directors may enter into employment or consulting agreements with the post-transaction company following our initial business combination. The presence or absence of any such fees or arrangements will not be used as a criterion in our selection process of an acquisition candidate.
We are not prohibited from pursuing an initial business combination with a business combination target that is affiliated with our sponsor, officers or directors or making the acquisition through a joint venture or other form of shared ownership with our sponsor, officers or directors. In the event we seek to complete our initial business combination with a business combination target that is affiliated with our sponsor, officers or directors, we, or a committee of independent directors, would obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm which is a member of FINRA or an independent accounting firm that such an initial business combination is fair to our company from a financial point of view. We are not required to obtain such an opinion in any other context.
As more fully discussed in “Item 10. Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance—Conflicts of Interest,” if any of our officers or directors becomes aware of a business combination opportunity that falls within the line of business of any entity to which he or she has pre-existing fiduciary or contractual obligations, he or she may be required to present such business combination opportunity to such entity prior to presenting such business combination opportunity to us. Our officers and directors currently have certain relevant fiduciary duties or contractual obligations that may take priority over their duties to us.
Selection of a Target Business and Structuring of Our Initial Business Combination
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 our assets held in the trust account (excluding the deferred underwriting commissions and taxes payable on the income earned on the trust account) at the time of the agreement to enter into the initial business combination. The fair market value of the target or targets will be determined by our board of directors based upon one or more standards generally accepted by the financial community, such as discounted cash flow valuation or value of comparable businesses. The requirement that the target business or businesses together have an aggregate fair market value of at least 80% of the assets held in the trust account will be set forth in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, and will continue to apply to us even if our securities are no longer listed on the NYSE. If our board is not able to independently determine the fair market value of the target business or businesses, we will obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm that is a member of FINRA or from an independent accounting firm, with respect to the satisfaction of such criteria. We do not intend to purchase multiple businesses in unrelated industries in conjunction with our initial business combination. Subject to this requirement, our management will have virtually unrestricted flexibility in identifying and selecting one or more prospective target businesses, although we will not be permitted to effectuate our initial business combination with another blank check company or a similar company with nominal operations.
8
In any case, we will only complete an initial business combination in which we own or acquire 50% or more of the outstanding voting securities of the target or otherwise acquire a controlling interest in the target sufficient for it not to be required to register as an investment company under the Investment Company Act. If we own or acquire less than 100% of the equity interests or assets of a target business or businesses, the portion of such business or businesses that are owned or acquired by the post-transaction company is what will be valued for purposes of the 80% of net assets test. There is no basis for investors in our Class A common stock to evaluate the possible merits or risks of any target business with which we may ultimately complete our business combination.
To the extent we effect our business combination with a company or business that may be financially unstable or in its early stages of development or growth we may be affected by numerous risks inherent in such company or business. Although our management will endeavor to evaluate the risks inherent in a particular target business, we cannot assure you that we will properly ascertain or assess all significant risk factors.
In evaluating a prospective target business, we expect to conduct a thorough due diligence review, which will encompass, among other things, meetings with incumbent management and employees, document reviews, interviews of customers and suppliers, inspection of facilities, as well as a review of financial and other information that will be made available to us.
The time required to select and evaluate a target business and to structure and complete our initial business combination, and the costs associated with this process, are not currently ascertainable with any degree of certainty. Any costs incurred with respect to the identification and evaluation of a prospective target business with which our business combination is not ultimately completed will result in our incurring losses and will reduce the funds we can use to complete another business combination.
In addition, we have agreed not to enter into a definitive agreement regarding an initial business combination without the prior consent of our sponsor.
Lack of Business Diversification
For an indefinite period of time after the completion of our initial business combination, the prospects for our success may depend entirely on the future performance of a single business. Unlike other entities that have the resources to complete business combinations with multiple entities in one or several industries, it is probable that we will not have the resources to diversify our operations and mitigate the risks of being in a single line of business. In addition, we intend to focus our search for an initial business combination in a single industry. By completing our business combination with only a single business, our lack of diversification may:
| • | subject us to negative economic, competitive and regulatory developments, any or all of which may have a substantial adverse impact on the particular industry in which we operate after our initial business combination; and |
| • | cause us to depend on the marketing and sale of a single product or limited number of products or services. |
Limited Ability to Evaluate the Target’s Management Team
Although we intend to closely scrutinize the management of a prospective target business when evaluating the desirability of effecting our business combination with that business, our assessment of the target business’ management may not prove to be correct. In addition, the future management may not have the necessary skills, qualifications or abilities to manage a public company. Furthermore, the future role of members of our management team, if any, in the target business cannot presently be stated with any certainty. While it is possible that one or more of our directors will remain associated in some capacity with us following our business combination, it is unlikely that any of them will devote their full efforts to our affairs subsequent to our business combination. Moreover, we cannot assure you that members of our management team will have significant experience or knowledge relating to the operations of the particular target business.
9
We cannot assure you that any of our key personnel will remain in senior management or advisory positions with the combined company. The determination as to whether any of our key personnel will remain with the combined company will be made at the time of our initial business combination.
Following a business combination, we may seek to recruit additional managers to supplement the incumbent management of the target business. We cannot assure you that we will have the ability to recruit additional managers, or that those additional managers will have the requisite skills, knowledge or experience necessary to enhance the incumbent management.
Stockholders May Not Have the Ability to Approve Our Initial Business Combination
We may conduct redemptions without a stockholder vote pursuant to the tender offer rules of the SEC, subject to the provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and our amended and restated bylaws. However, we will seek stockholder approval if it is required by law or applicable stock exchange rule, or we may decide to seek stockholder approval for business or other legal reasons.
Presented in the table below is a graphic explanation of the types of initial business combinations we may consider and whether stockholder approval is currently required under Delaware law for each such transaction.
Type of Transaction | Whether Stockholder Approval is Required | |||
Purchase of assets | No | |||
Purchase of stock of target not involving a merger with the company | No | |||
Merger of target into a subsidiary of the company | No | |||
Merger of the company with a target | Yes | |||
Under the NYSE’s listing rules, stockholder approval would be required for our initial business combination if, for example:
| • | we issue (other than in a public offering) shares of Class A common stock that will either (a) be equal to or in excess of 20% of the number of shares of our Class A common stock then outstanding or (b) have voting power equal to or in excess of 20% of the voting power then outstanding; |
| • | any of our directors, officers or substantial stockholders (as defined by the NYSE rules) has a 5% or greater interest, directly or indirectly, in the target business or assets to be acquired and if the number of shares of Class A common stock to be issued, or if the number of shares of Class A common stock into which the securities may be convertible or exercisable, exceeds either (a) 1% of the number of shares of Class A common stock or 1% of the voting power outstanding before the issuance in the case of any of our directors and officers or (b) 5% of the number of shares of common stock or 5% of the voting power outstanding before the issuance in the case of any substantial stockholders; or |
| • | the issuance or potential issuance of common stock will result in our undergoing a change of control. |
The decision as to whether we will seek stockholder approval of a proposed business combination in those instances in which stockholder approval is not required by law or applicable stock exchange rules will be made by us, solely in our discretion, and will be based on business and legal reasons, which include a variety of factors, including, but not limited to:
| • | the timing of the transaction, including in the event we determine stockholder approval would require additional time and there is either not enough time to seek stockholder approval or doing so would place the company at a disadvantage in the transaction or result in other additional burdens on the company; |
| • | the expected cost of holding a stockholder vote; |
| • | the risk that the stockholders would fail to approve the proposed business combination; |
| • | other time and budget constraints of the company; and |
| • | additional legal complexities of a proposed business combination that would be time-consuming and burdensome to present to stockholders. |
10
Permitted Purchases of Our Securities
In the event we seek stockholder approval of our business combination and we do not conduct redemptions in connection with our business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, our sponsor, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates may purchase shares in privately negotiated transactions or in the open market either prior to or following the completion of our initial business combination. However, they have no current commitments, plans or intentions to engage in such transactions and have not formulated any terms or conditions for any such transactions. None of the funds in the trust account will be used to purchase shares in such transactions. They will be restricted from making any such purchases when they are in possession of any material non-public information not disclosed to the seller or if such purchases are prohibited by Regulation M under the Exchange Act. Such a purchase may include a contractual acknowledgement that such stockholder, although still the record holder of our shares is no longer the beneficial owner thereof and therefore agrees not to exercise its redemption rights. We have adopted an insider trading policy which requires insiders to refrain from purchasing shares during certain blackout periods and when they are in possession of any material non-public information and to clear all trades with our legal counsel prior to execution. We cannot currently determine whether our insiders will make such purchases pursuant to a Rule 10b5-1 plan, as such purchases will be dependent upon several factors, including but not limited to, the timing and size of such purchases. Depending on such circumstances, our insiders may either make such purchases pursuant to a Rule 10b5-1 plan or determine that such a plan is not necessary.
In the event that our sponsor, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates purchase shares in privately negotiated transactions from public stockholders who have already elected to exercise their redemption rights, such selling stockholders would be required to revoke their prior elections to redeem their shares. We do not currently anticipate that such purchases, if any, would constitute a tender offer subject to the tender offer rules under the Exchange Act or a going-private transaction subject to the going-private rules under the Exchange Act; however, if the purchasers determine at the time of any such purchases that the purchases are subject to such rules, the purchasers will comply with such rules.
The purpose of such purchases would be to (i) vote such shares in favor of the business combination and thereby increase the likelihood of obtaining stockholder approval of the business combination or (ii) to satisfy a closing condition in an agreement with a target that requires us to have a minimum net worth or a certain amount of cash at the closing of our business combination, where it appears that such requirement would otherwise not be met. This may result in the completion of our business combination that may not otherwise have been possible.
In addition, if such purchases are made, the public “float” of our common stock may be reduced and the number of beneficial holders of our securities may be reduced, which may make it difficult to maintain or obtain the quotation, listing or trading of our securities on a national securities exchange.
Our sponsor, officers, directors and/or their affiliates anticipate that they may identify the stockholders with whom our sponsor, officers, directors or their affiliates may pursue privately negotiated purchases by either the stockholders contacting us directly or by our receipt of redemption requests submitted by stockholders following our mailing of proxy materials in connection with our initial business combination. To the extent that our sponsor, officers, directors, advisors or their affiliates enter into a private purchase, they would identify and contact only potential selling stockholders who have expressed their election to redeem their shares for a pro rata share of the trust account or vote against the business combination. Our sponsor, officers, directors, advisors or their affiliates will only purchase shares if such purchases comply with Regulation M under the Exchange Act and the other federal securities laws.
Any purchases by our sponsor, officers, directors and/or their affiliates who are affiliated purchasers under Rule 10b-18 under the Exchange Act will only be made to the extent such purchases are able to be made in compliance with Rule 10b-18, which is a safe harbor from liability for manipulation under Section 9(a)(2) and Rule 10b-5 of the Exchange Act. Rule 10b-18 has certain technical requirements that must be complied with in order for the safe harbor to be available to the purchaser. Our sponsor, officers, directors and/or their affiliates will not make purchases of common stock if the purchases would violate Section 9(a)(2) or Rule 10b-5 of the Exchange Act.
11
Redemption Rights for Public Stockholders upon Completion of Our Initial Business Combination
We will provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their shares of Class A common stock upon the completion of our initial business combination at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account as of two business days prior to the consummation of the initial business combination including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our franchise and income taxes, divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, subject to the limitations described herein. The amount in the trust account was approximately $10.20 per public share as of December 31, 2021. The per-share amount we will distribute to investors who properly redeem their shares will not be reduced by the deferred underwriting commissions we will pay to the underwriters. The redemption rights will include the requirement that a beneficial holder must identify itself in order to validly redeem its shares. Our sponsor, officers and directors have entered into a letter agreement with us, pursuant to which they have agreed to waive their redemption rights with respect to any founder shares and any public shares held by them in connection with the completion of our business combination.
Manner of Conducting Redemptions
We will provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their shares of Class A common stock upon the completion of our initial business combination either (i) in connection with a stockholder meeting called to approve the business combination or (ii) by means of a tender offer. The decision as to whether we will seek stockholder approval of a proposed business combination or conduct a tender offer will be made by us, solely in our discretion, and will be based on a variety of factors described above “—Stockholders May Not Have the Ability to Approve Our Initial Business Combination,” such as the timing of the transaction and whether the terms of the transaction would require us to seek stockholder approval under the law or stock exchange listing requirement. Asset acquisitions and stock purchases would not typically require stockholder approval while direct mergers with our company where we do not survive and any transactions where we issue more than 20% of our outstanding common stock or seek to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation would require stockholder approval. If we structure a business combination transaction with a target company in a manner that requires stockholder approval, we will not have discretion as to whether to seek a stockholder vote to approve the proposed business combination. We intend to conduct redemptions without a stockholder vote pursuant to the tender offer rules of the SEC unless stockholder approval is required by law or stock exchange listing requirements or we choose to seek stockholder approval for business or other legal reasons.
If a stockholder vote is not required and we do not decide to hold a stockholder vote for business or other legal reasons, we will, pursuant to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation:
| • | conduct the redemptions pursuant to Rule 13e-4 and Regulation 14E of the Exchange Act, which regulate issuer tender offers; and |
| • | file tender offer documents with the SEC prior to completing our initial business combination which contain substantially the same financial and other information about the initial business combination and the redemption rights as is required under Regulation 14A of the Exchange Act, which regulates the solicitation of proxies. |
Upon the public announcement of our business combination, we or our sponsor will terminate any plan established in accordance with Rule 10b5-1 to purchase shares of our Class A common stock in the open market if we elect to redeem our public shares through a tender offer, to comply with Rule 14e-5 under the Exchange Act.
In the event we conduct redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules, our offer to redeem will remain open for at least 20 business days, in accordance with Rule 14e-1(a) under the Exchange Act, and we will not be permitted to complete our initial business combination until the expiration of the tender offer period. In addition, the tender offer will be conditioned on public stockholders not tendering more than a specified number of public shares which are not purchased by our sponsor, which number will be based on the requirement that we may not redeem public shares in an amount that would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001 upon consummation of our initial business combination (so that we are not subject to the SEC’s “penny stock” rules) or any greater net tangible asset or cash requirement which may be contained in the agreement relating to our initial business combination. If public stockholders tender more shares than we have offered to purchase, we will withdraw the tender offer and not complete the initial business combination.
12
If, however, stockholder approval of the transaction is required by law or stock exchange listing requirement, or we decide to obtain stockholder approval for business or other legal reasons, we will, pursuant to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation:
| • | conduct the redemptions in conjunction with a proxy solicitation pursuant to Regulation 14A of the Exchange Act, which regulates the solicitation of proxies, and not pursuant to the tender offer rules; and |
| • | file proxy materials with the SEC. |
In the event that we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination, we will distribute proxy materials and, in connection therewith, provide our public stockholders with the redemption rights described above upon completion of the initial business combination.
If we seek stockholder approval, we will complete our initial business combination only if a majority of the outstanding shares of common stock voted are voted in favor of the business combination. A quorum for such meeting will consist of the holders present in person or by proxy of shares of outstanding capital stock of the company representing a majority of the voting power of all outstanding shares of capital stock of the company entitled to vote at such meeting. Our initial stockholders will count toward this quorum and have agreed to vote their founder shares and any public shares purchased during or after our initial public offering in favor of our initial business combination. For purposes of seeking approval of the majority of our outstanding shares of common stock voted, non-votes will have no effect on the approval of our initial business combination once a quorum is obtained. As a result, in addition to our initial stockholders’ founder shares, we would need 11,212,500, or 37.5%, of the 29,900,000 public shares sold in our initial public offering to be voted in favor of a transaction (assuming all outstanding shares are voted) in order to have our initial business combination approved (assuming the underwriters’ over-allotment option is not exercised). We intend to give approximately 30 days (but not less than 10 days nor more than 60 days) prior written notice of any such meeting, if required, at which a vote shall be taken to approve our initial business combination. These quorum and voting thresholds, and the voting agreements of our initial stockholders, may make it more likely that we will consummate our initial business combination. Each public stockholder may elect to redeem its public shares irrespective of whether they vote for or against the proposed transaction.
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that in no event will we redeem our public shares in an amount that would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001 upon consummation of our initial business combination (so that we are not subject to the SEC’s “penny stock” rules) or any greater net tangible asset or cash requirement which may be contained in the agreement relating to our initial business combination. For example, the proposed business combination may require: (i) cash consideration to be paid to the target or its owners; (ii) cash to be transferred to the target for working capital or other general corporate purposes; or (iii) the retention of cash to satisfy other conditions in accordance with the terms of the proposed business combination. In the event the aggregate cash consideration we would be required to pay for all shares of Class A common stock that are validly submitted for redemption plus any amount required to satisfy cash conditions pursuant to the terms of the proposed business combination exceed the aggregate amount of cash available to us, we will not complete the business combination or redeem any shares, and all shares of Class A common stock submitted for redemption will be returned to the holders thereof.
Limitation on Redemption upon Completion of Our Initial Business Combination if We Seek Stockholder Approval
Notwithstanding the foregoing, if we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination and we do not conduct redemptions in connection with our business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that a public stockholder, together with any affiliate of such stockholder or any other person with whom such stockholder is acting in concert or as a “group” (as defined under Section 13 of the Exchange Act), will be restricted from seeking redemption rights with respect to more than an aggregate of 15% of the shares sold in our initial public offering, which we refer to as the “Excess Shares.” We believe this restriction will discourage stockholders from accumulating large blocks of shares, and subsequent attempts by such holders to use their ability to exercise their redemption rights against a proposed business combination as a means to force us or our management to purchase their shares at a significant premium to the then-current market price or on other undesirable terms. Absent this provision, a public stockholder holding more than an aggregate of 15% of the shares sold in our initial public offering could threaten to exercise its redemption rights if such holder’s shares are not purchased by us or our management at a premium to the then-current market price or on other undesirable terms. By limiting our stockholders’ ability to redeem no more than 15% of the shares sold in our initial public offering, we believe we will limit the ability of a small group of stockholders to unreasonably attempt to block our ability to complete our business combination, particularly in connection with a business combination with a target that requires as a closing condition that we have a minimum net worth or a certain amount of cash. However, we would not be restricting our stockholders’ ability to vote all of their shares (including Excess Shares) for or against our business combination.
13
Tendering Stock Certificates in Connection with a Tender Offer or Redemption Rights
We may require our public stockholders seeking to exercise their redemption rights, whether they are record holders or hold their shares in “street name,” to either tender their certificates to our transfer agent prior to the date set forth in the tender offer documents or proxy materials mailed to such holders, or up to two business days prior to the initially scheduled vote on the proposal to approve the business combination in the event we distribute proxy materials, or to deliver their shares to the transfer agent electronically using Depository Trust Company’s DWAC (Deposit/Withdrawal At Custodian) System, at the holder’s option. The proxy solicitation or tender offer materials, as applicable, that we will furnish to holders of our public shares in connection with our initial business combination will indicate the applicable delivery requirements, which will include the requirement that a beneficial holder must identify itself in order to validly redeem its shares. Accordingly, a public stockholder would have from the time we send out our tender offer materials until the close of the tender offer period, or up to two days prior to the vote on the business combination if we distribute proxy materials, as applicable, to tender its shares if it wishes to seek to exercise its redemption rights. Given the relatively short exercise period, it is advisable for stockholders to use electronic delivery of their public shares.
There is a nominal cost associated with the above-referenced tendering process and the act of certificating the shares or delivering them through the DWAC System. The transfer agent will typically charge the tendering broker $80.00 and it would be up to the broker whether or not to pass this cost on to the redeeming holder. However, this fee would be incurred regardless of whether or not we require holders seeking to exercise redemption rights to tender their shares. The need to deliver shares is a requirement of exercising redemption rights regardless of the timing of when such delivery must be effectuated.
The foregoing is different from the procedures used by many blank check companies. In order to perfect redemption rights in connection with their business combinations, many blank check companies would distribute proxy materials for the stockholders’ vote on an initial business combination, and a holder could simply vote against a proposed business combination and check a box on the proxy card indicating such holder was seeking to exercise his or her redemption rights. After the business combination was approved, the company would contact such stockholder to arrange for him or her to deliver his or her certificate to verify ownership. As a result, the stockholder then had an “option window” after the completion of the business combination during which he or she could monitor the price of the company’s stock in the market. If the price rose above the redemption price, he or she could sell his or her shares in the open market before actually delivering his or her shares to the company for cancellation. As a result, the redemption rights, to which stockholders were aware they needed to commit before the stockholder meeting, would become “option” rights surviving past the completion of the business combination until the redeeming holder delivered its certificate. The requirement for physical or electronic delivery prior to the meeting ensures that a redeeming holder’s election to redeem is irrevocable once the business combination is approved.
Any request to redeem such shares, once made, may be withdrawn at any time up to the date set forth in the tender offer materials or the date of the stockholder meeting set forth in our proxy materials, as applicable. Furthermore, if a holder of a public share delivered its certificate in connection with an election of redemption rights and subsequently decides prior to the applicable date not to elect to exercise such rights, such holder may simply request that the transfer agent return the certificate (physically or electronically). It is anticipated that the funds to be distributed to holders of our public shares electing to redeem their shares will be distributed promptly after the completion of our business combination.
If our initial business combination is not approved or completed for any reason, then our public stockholders who elected to exercise their redemption rights would not be entitled to redeem their shares for the applicable pro rata share of the trust account. In such case, we will promptly return any certificates delivered by public holders who elected to redeem their shares.
If our initial proposed business combination is not completed, we may continue to try to complete a business combination with a different target until 18 months (or 24 months, if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination) from the closing of our initial public offering.
14
Redemption of Public Shares and Liquidation if no Initial Business Combination
Our sponsor, officers and directors have agreed that we will have only 18 months (or 24 months, if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination) from the closing of our initial public offering to complete our initial business combination. If we are unable to complete our business combination within such applicable period, we will: (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up; (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than 10 business days thereafter, redeem the public shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our franchise and income taxes (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidating distributions, if any), subject to applicable law; and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining stockholders and our board of directors, dissolve and liquidate, subject in each case to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. There will be no redemption rights or liquidating distributions with respect to our warrants, which will expire worthless if we fail to complete our business combination within the 18-month (or 24-month, if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination) time period.
Our sponsor, officers and directors have entered into a letter agreement with us, pursuant to which they have waived their rights to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to any founder shares held by them if we fail to complete our initial business combination within 18 months (or 24 months, if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination) from the closing of our initial public offering. However, if our initial stockholders acquire public shares in or after our initial public offering, they will be entitled to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to such public shares if we fail to complete our initial business combination within the allotted 18-month (or 24-month, if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination) time period.
Our sponsor, officers and directors have agreed, pursuant to a written agreement with us, that they will not propose any amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation that would affect the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 18 months (or 24 months, if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination) from the closing of our initial public offering or with respect to any other provisions relating to the rights of holders of our Class A common stock, unless we provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their shares of Class A common stock upon approval of any such amendment at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our franchise and income taxes, divided by the number of then outstanding public shares. However, we may not redeem our public shares in an amount that would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001 upon consummation of our initial business combination (so that we are not subject to the SEC’s “penny stock” rules).
We expect that all costs and expenses associated with implementing our plan of dissolution, as well as payments to any creditors, will be funded from amounts remaining out of the proceeds held outside of the trust account (which as of December 31, 2021, was approximately $1.8 million), although we cannot assure you that there will be sufficient funds for such purpose. However, if those funds are not sufficient to cover the costs and expenses associated with implementing our plan of dissolution, to the extent that there is any interest accrued in the trust account not required to pay our franchise and income taxes on interest income earned on the trust account balance, we may request the trustee to release to us an additional amount of up to $100,000 of such accrued interest to pay those costs and expenses.
If we were to expend all of the net proceeds of our initial public offering and the sale of the private placement warrants, other than the proceeds deposited in the trust account, and without taking into account interest, if any, earned on the trust account, the per-share redemption amount received by stockholders upon our dissolution would be approximately $10.00. The proceeds deposited in the trust account could, however, become subject to the claims of our creditors which would have higher priority than the claims of our public stockholders. We cannot assure you that the actual per-share redemption amount received by stockholders will not be substantially less than $10.00. Under Section 281(b) of the DGCL, our plan of dissolution must provide for all claims against us to be paid in full or make provision for payments to be made in full, as applicable, if there are sufficient assets. These claims must be paid or provided for before we make any distribution of our remaining assets to our stockholders. While we intend to pay such amounts, if any, we cannot assure you that we will have funds sufficient to pay or provide for all creditors’ claims.
15
Although we will seek to have all vendors, service providers (other than our independent registered public accounting firm), prospective target businesses or other entities with which we do business execute agreements with us waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to any monies held in the trust account for the benefit of our public stockholders, there is no guarantee that they will execute such agreements or even if they execute such agreements that they would be prevented from bringing claims against the trust account including but not limited to fraudulent inducement, breach of fiduciary responsibility or other similar claims, as well as claims challenging the enforceability of the waiver, in each case in order to gain an advantage with respect to a claim against our assets, including the funds held in the trust account. If any third party refuses to execute an agreement waiving such claims to the monies held in the trust account, our management will perform an analysis of the alternatives available to it and will only enter into an agreement with a third party that has not executed a waiver if management believes that such third party’s engagement would be significantly more beneficial to us than any alternative. Examples of possible instances where we may engage a third party that refuses to execute a waiver include the engagement of a third party consultant whose particular expertise or skills are believed by management to be significantly superior to those of other consultants that would agree to execute a waiver or in cases where management is unable to find a service provider willing to execute a waiver.
In addition, there is no guarantee that such entities will agree to waive any claims they may have in the future as a result of, or arising out of, any negotiations, contracts or agreements with us and will not seek recourse against the trust account for any reason. Our sponsor has agreed that it will be liable to us if and to the extent any claims by a vendor for services rendered or products sold to us, or a prospective target business with which we have discussed entering into a transaction agreement, reduce the amount of funds in the trust account to below (i) $10.20 per public share or (ii) such lesser amount per public share held in the trust account as of the date of the liquidation of the trust account, due to reductions in value of the trust assets, in each case net of the interest that may be withdrawn to pay our tax obligations, except as to any claims by a third party who executed a waiver of any and all rights to seek access to the trust account and except as to any claims under our indemnity of the underwriters of our initial public offering against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. In the event that an executed waiver is deemed to be unenforceable against a third party, then our sponsor will not be responsible to the extent of any liability for such third party claims. We have not independently verified whether our sponsor has sufficient funds to satisfy its indemnity obligations and believe that our sponsor’s only assets are securities of our company. We have not asked our sponsor to reserve for such indemnification obligations. Therefore, we cannot assure you that our sponsor would be able to satisfy those obligations. As a result, if any such claims were successfully made against the trust account, the funds available for our initial business combination and redemptions could be reduced to less than $10.20 per public share. In such event, we may not be able to complete our initial business combination, and you would receive such lesser amount per share in connection with any redemption of your public shares. None of our officers will indemnify us for claims by third parties including, without limitation, claims by vendors and prospective target businesses.
In the event that the proceeds in the trust account are reduced below (i) $10.20 per public share or (ii) such lesser amount per public share held in the trust account as of the date of the liquidation of the trust account, due to reductions in value of the trust assets, in each case net of the amount of interest which may be withdrawn to pay our tax obligations, and our sponsor asserts that it is unable to satisfy its indemnification obligations or that it has no indemnification obligations related to a particular claim, our independent directors would determine whether to take legal action against our sponsor to enforce its indemnification obligations. While we currently expect that our independent directors would take legal action on our behalf against our sponsor to enforce its indemnification obligations to us, it is possible that our independent directors in exercising their business judgment may choose not to do so if, for example, the cost of such legal action is deemed by the independent directors to be too high relative to the amount recoverable or if the independent directors determine that a favorable outcome is not likely. We have not asked our sponsor to reserve for such indemnification obligations and we cannot assure you that our sponsor would be able to satisfy those obligations. Accordingly, we cannot assure you that due to claims of creditors the actual value of the per-share redemption price will not be less than $10.20 per public share.
We will seek to reduce the possibility that our sponsor will have to indemnify the trust account due to claims of creditors by endeavoring to have all vendors, service providers (other than our independent registered public accounting firm), prospective target businesses or other entities with which we do business execute agreements with us waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to monies held in the trust account. Our sponsor will also not be liable as to any claims under our indemnity of the underwriters of our initial public offering against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. In the event that we liquidate and it is subsequently determined that the reserve for claims and liabilities is insufficient, stockholders who received funds from our trust account could be liable for claims made by creditors.
16
Under the DGCL, stockholders may be held liable for claims by third parties against a corporation to the extent of distributions received by them in a dissolution. The pro rata portion of our trust account distributed to our public stockholders upon the redemption of our public shares in the event we do not complete our business combination within 18 months (or 24 months, if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination) from the closing of our initial public offering may be considered a liquidating distribution under Delaware law. If the corporation complies with certain procedures set forth in Section 280 of the DGCL intended to ensure that it makes reasonable provision for all claims against it, including a 60-day notice period during which any third-party claims can be brought against the corporation, a 90-day period during which the corporation may reject any claims brought, and an additional 150-day waiting period before any liquidating distributions are made to stockholders, any liability of stockholders with respect to a liquidating distribution is limited to the lesser of such stockholder’s pro rata share of the claim or the amount distributed to the stockholder, and any liability of the stockholder would be barred after the third anniversary of the dissolution.
Furthermore, if the pro rata portion of our trust account distributed to our public stockholders upon the redemption of our public shares in the event we do not complete our business combination within 18 months (or 24 months, if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination) from the closing of our initial public offering, is not considered a liquidating distribution under Delaware law and such redemption distribution is deemed to be unlawful, then pursuant to Section 174 of the DGCL, the statute of limitations for claims of creditors could then be six years after the unlawful redemption distribution, instead of three years, as in the case of a liquidating distribution. If we are unable to complete our business combination within the required time period, we will: (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up; (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than 10 business days thereafter, redeem the public shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our franchise and income taxes (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidating distributions, if any), subject to applicable law; and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining stockholders and our board of directors, dissolve and liquidate, subject in each case to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. Accordingly, it is our intention to redeem our public shares as soon as reasonably possible following our 18th month (or 24th month, if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination) and, therefore, we do not intend to comply with those procedures. As such, our stockholders could potentially be liable for any claims to the extent of distributions received by them (but no more) and any liability of our stockholders may extend well beyond the third anniversary of such date.
Because we will not be complying with Section 280, Section 281(b) of the DGCL requires us to adopt a plan, based on facts known to us at such time that will provide for our payment of all existing and pending claims or claims that may be potentially brought against us within the subsequent 10 years. However, because we are a blank check company, rather than an operating company, and our operations are limited to searching for prospective target businesses to acquire, the only likely claims to arise would be from our vendors (such as lawyers, investment bankers, etc.) or prospective target businesses. As described above, pursuant to the obligation contained in our underwriting agreement, we will seek to have all vendors, service providers (other than our independent registered public accounting firm), prospective target businesses or other entities with which we do business execute agreements with us waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to any monies held in the trust account. As a result of this obligation, the claims that could be made against us are significantly limited and the likelihood that any claim that would result in any liability extending to the trust account is remote. Further, our sponsor may be liable only to the extent necessary to ensure that the amounts in the trust account are not reduced below (i) $10.20 per public share or (ii) such lesser amount per public share held in the trust account as of the date of the liquidation of the trust account, due to reductions in value of the trust assets, in each case net of the amount of interest withdrawn to pay our franchise and income taxes and will not be liable as to any claims under our indemnity of the underwriters of our initial public offering against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. In the event that an executed waiver is deemed to be unenforceable against a third party, our sponsor will not be responsible to the extent of any liability for such third-party claims.
If we file a bankruptcy petition or an involuntary bankruptcy petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, the proceeds held in the trust account could be subject to applicable bankruptcy law, and may be included in our bankruptcy estate and subject to the claims of third parties with priority over the claims of our stockholders. To the extent any bankruptcy claims deplete the trust account, we cannot assure you we will be able to return $10.20 per share to our public stockholders. Additionally, if we file a bankruptcy petition or an involuntary bankruptcy petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, any distributions received by stockholders could be viewed under applicable debtor/creditor and/or bankruptcy laws as either
17
a “preferential transfer” or a “fraudulent conveyance.” As a result, a bankruptcy court could seek to recover all amounts received by our stockholders. Furthermore, our board may be viewed as having breached its fiduciary duty to our creditors and/or may have acted in bad faith, and thereby exposing itself and our company to claims of punitive damages, by paying public stockholders from the trust account prior to addressing the claims of creditors. We cannot assure you that claims will not be brought against us for these reasons.
Our public stockholders will be entitled to receive funds from the trust account only in the event of the redemption of our public shares if we do not complete our business combination within 18 months (or 24 months, if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination) from the closing of our initial public offering or if they redeem their respective shares for cash upon the completion of the initial business combination. In no other circumstances will a stockholder have any right or interest of any kind to or in the trust account. In the event we seek stockholder approval in connection with our initial business combination, a stockholder’s voting in connection with the business combination alone will not result in a stockholder’s redeeming its shares to us for an applicable pro rata share of the trust account. Such stockholder must have also exercised its redemption rights described above.
Competition
In identifying, evaluating and selecting a target business for our business combination, we may encounter intense competition from other entities having a business objective similar to ours, including other blank check companies, private equity groups and leveraged buyout funds, and operating businesses seeking strategic acquisitions. Many of these entities are well established and have extensive experience identifying and effecting business combinations directly or through affiliates. Moreover, many of these competitors possess greater financial, technical, human and other resources than we do. Our ability to acquire larger target businesses will be limited by our available financial resources. This inherent limitation gives others an advantage in pursuing the acquisition of a target business. Furthermore, our obligation to pay cash in connection with our public stockholders who exercise their redemption rights may reduce the resources available to us for our initial business combination and our outstanding warrants, and the future dilution they potentially represent, may not be viewed favorably by certain target businesses. Either of these factors may place us at a competitive disadvantage in successfully negotiating an initial business combination.
Employees
We currently have two officers. Members of our management team are not obligated to devote any specific number of hours to our matters but they intend to devote as much of their time as they deem necessary to our affairs until we have completed our initial business combination. The amount of time that any such person will devote in any time period will vary based on whether a target business has been selected for our initial business combination and the current stage of the business combination process.
Periodic Reporting and Financial Information
We have registered our units, Class A common stock and public warrants under the Exchange Act and have reporting obligations, including the requirement that we file annual, quarterly and current reports with the SEC. In accordance with the requirements of the Exchange Act, our annual reports will contain financial statements audited and reported on by our independent registered public accounting firm.
We will provide stockholders with audited financial statements of the prospective target business as part of the tender offer materials or proxy solicitation materials sent to stockholders to assist them in assessing the target business. In all likelihood, these financial statements will need to be prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”) or international financial reporting standards (“IFRS”), depending on the circumstances and the historical financial statements may be required to be audited in accordance with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (“PCAOB”). We cannot assure you that any particular target business identified by us as a potential acquisition candidate will have financial statements prepared in accordance with such requirements or that the potential target business will be able to prepare its financial statements in accordance with such requirements. To the extent that this requirement cannot be met, we may not be able to acquire the proposed target business. While this may limit the pool of potential acquisition candidates, we do not believe that this limitation will be material.
18
We will be required to evaluate our internal controls over financial reporting procedures for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2022 as required by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Only in the event we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer or an accelerated filer will we be required to have our internal control over financial reporting procedures audited. A target company may not be in compliance with the provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act regarding adequacy of their internal controls over financial reporting. The development of the internal controls of any such entity to achieve compliance with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act may increase the time and costs necessary to complete any such acquisition.
We will remain an emerging growth company until the earlier of (1) the last day of the fiscal year (a) following the fifth anniversary of the completion of our initial public offering, (b) in which we have total annual gross revenue of at least $1.07 billion, or (c) in which we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer, which means the market value of our Class A common stock that is held by non-affiliates equaled or exceeded $700 million as of the prior June 30th, and (2) the date on which we have issued more than $1.0 billion in non-convertible debt securities during the prior three-year period.
Additionally, we are a “smaller reporting company” as defined in Item 10(f)(1) of Regulation S-K. Smaller reporting companies may take advantage of certain reduced disclosure obligations, including, among other things, providing only two years of audited financial statements. We will remain a smaller reporting company until the last day of the fiscal year in which (1) the market value of our shares of common stock held by non-affiliates equaled or exceeded $250 million as of the prior June 30th, and (2) our annual revenues equaled or exceeded $100 million during such completed fiscal year or the market value of our shares of common stock held by non-affiliates equaled or exceeded $700 million as of the prior June 30th.
19
| Item 1A. | Risk Factors |
An investment in our securities involves a high degree of risk. You should consider carefully all of the risks described below, together with the other information contained in this Report and the final prospectus associated with our initial public offering, before making a decision to invest in our securities. If any of the following events occur, our business, financial condition and operating results may be materially adversely affected. In that event, the trading price of our securities could decline, and you could lose all or part of your investment.
Risks Relating to Our Search for, Consummation of, or Inability to Consummate, a Business Combination and Post-Business Combination Risks
We are a recently formed company with no operating history and no revenues, and you have no basis on which to evaluate our ability to achieve our business objective.
We are a recently formed company with no operating results. Because we lack an operating history, you have no basis upon which to evaluate our ability to achieve our business objective of completing our initial business combination with one or more target businesses. We may be unable to complete our business combination. If we fail to complete our business combination, we will never generate any operating revenues.
Past performance by, or business associated with, our management team, including Juniper Industrial Holdings, Inc., is not indicative of future performance of an investment in us.
Information regarding performance by, or businesses associated with, our management team, including Juniper Industrial Holdings, Inc., is presented for informational purposes only. Any past experience and performance of our management team is not a guarantee either: (1) that we will be able to successfully identify a suitable candidate for our initial business combination; or (2) of any results with respect to any initial business combination we may consummate. You should not rely on the historical record of the performance of, or businesses associated with, our management team as being indicative of the future performance of an investment in us or the returns we will, or are likely to, generate going forward.
Our public stockholders may not be afforded an opportunity to vote on our proposed business combination, which means we may complete our initial business combination even though a majority of our public stockholders do not support such a combination.
We may choose not to hold a stockholder vote to approve our initial business combination unless the business combination would require stockholder approval under applicable law or stock exchange listing requirements or if we decide to hold a stockholder vote for business or other legal reasons. Except as required by law, the decision as to whether we will seek stockholder approval of a proposed business combination or will allow stockholders to sell their shares to us in a tender offer will be made by us, solely in our discretion, and will be based on a variety of factors, such as the timing of the transaction and whether the terms of the transaction would otherwise require us to seek stockholder approval. Accordingly, we may complete our initial business combination even if holders of a majority of our public shares do not approve of the business combination we complete.
If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination, our initial stockholders have agreed to vote in favor of such initial business combination, regardless of how our public stockholders vote.
Unlike many other blank check companies in which the initial stockholders agree to vote their founder shares in accordance with the majority of the votes cast by the public stockholders in connection with an initial business combination, our initial stockholders have agreed to vote their founder shares, as well as any public shares purchased during or after our initial public offering, in favor of our initial business combination. As a result, in addition to our initial stockholders’ founder shares, we would need 11,212,500, or 37.5%, of the 29,900,000 public shares sold in our initial public offering to be voted in favor of a transaction (assuming all outstanding shares are voted) in order to have our initial business combination approved. Our initial stockholders own shares representing 20% of our outstanding shares of common stock. Accordingly, if we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination, it is more likely that the necessary stockholder approval will be received than would be the case if our initial stockholders agreed to vote their founder shares in accordance with the majority of the votes cast by our public stockholders.
20
Your only opportunity to affect the investment decision regarding a potential business combination will be limited to the exercise of your right to redeem your shares from us for cash, unless we seek stockholder approval of the business combination.
At the time of your investment in us, you will not be provided with an opportunity to evaluate the specific merits or risks of one or more target businesses. Since our board of directors may complete a business combination without seeking stockholder approval, public stockholders may not have the right or opportunity to vote on the business combination, unless we seek such stockholder vote. Accordingly, if we do not seek stockholder approval, your only opportunity to affect the investment decision regarding a potential business combination may be limited to exercising your redemption rights within the period of time (which will be at least 20 business days) set forth in our tender offer documents mailed to our public stockholders in which we describe our initial business combination.
The ability of our public stockholders to redeem their shares for cash may make our financial condition unattractive to potential business combination targets, which may make it difficult for us to enter into a business combination with a target.
We may seek to enter into a business combination transaction agreement with a prospective target that requires as a closing condition that we have a minimum net worth or a certain amount of cash. If too many public stockholders exercise their redemption rights, we would not be able to meet such closing condition and, as a result, would not be able to proceed with the business combination. Furthermore, in no event will we redeem our public shares in an amount that would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001 upon consummation of our initial business combination (so that we are not subject to the SEC’s “penny stock” rules) or any greater net tangible asset or cash requirement which may be contained in the agreement relating to our initial business combination. Consequently, if accepting all properly submitted redemption requests would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001 upon consummation of our initial business combination or such greater amount necessary to satisfy a closing condition as described above, we would not proceed with such redemption and the related business combination and may instead search for an alternate business combination. Prospective targets will be aware of these risks and, thus, may be reluctant to enter into a business combination transaction with us.
The ability of our public stockholders to exercise redemption rights with respect to a large number of our shares may not allow us to complete the most desirable business combination or optimize our capital structure.
At the time we enter into an agreement for our initial business combination, we will not know how many stockholders may exercise their redemption rights, and therefore will need to structure the transaction based on our expectations as to the number of shares that will be submitted for redemption. If our business combination agreement requires us to use a portion of the cash in the trust account to pay the purchase price, or requires us to have a minimum amount of cash at closing, we will need to reserve a portion of the cash in the trust account to meet such requirements, or arrange for third party financing. In addition, if a larger number of shares are submitted for redemption than we initially expected, we may need to restructure the transaction to reserve a greater portion of the cash in the trust account or arrange for third party financing. Raising additional third party financing may involve dilutive equity issuances or the incurrence of indebtedness at higher than desirable levels. The above considerations may limit our ability to complete the most desirable business combination available to us or optimize our capital structure. The amount of the deferred underwriting commissions payable to the underwriters will not be adjusted for any shares that are redeemed in connection with a business combination. The per-share amount we will distribute to stockholders who properly exercise their redemption rights will not be reduced by the deferred underwriting commission and after such redemptions, the per-share value of shares held by non-redeeming stockholders will reflect our obligation to pay the deferred underwriting commissions.
The ability of our public stockholders to exercise redemption rights with respect to a large number of our shares could increase the probability that our initial business combination would not be consummated and that you would have to wait for liquidation in order to redeem your stock.
If our business combination agreement requires us to use a portion of the cash in the trust account to pay the purchase price, or requires us to have a minimum amount of cash at closing, the probability that our initial business combination would not be consummated is increased. If our initial business combination is unsuccessful, you would not receive your pro rata portion of the trust account until we liquidate the trust account. If you are in need of immediate liquidity, you could attempt to sell your stock in the open market; however, at such time our stock may trade at a discount to the pro rata amount per share in the trust account. In either situation, you may suffer a material loss on your investment or lose the benefit of funds expected in connection with our redemption until we liquidate or you are able to sell your stock in the open market.
21
The requirement that we complete our initial business combination within the prescribed time frame may give potential target businesses leverage over us in negotiating a business combination and may decrease our ability to conduct due diligence on potential business combination targets as we approach our dissolution deadline, which could undermine our ability to complete our business combination on terms that would produce value for our stockholders.
Any potential target business with which we enter into negotiations concerning a business combination will be aware that we must complete our initial business combination within 18 months (or 24 months, if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination) from the closing of our initial public offering. Consequently, such target business may obtain leverage over us in negotiating a business combination, knowing that if we do not complete our initial business combination with that particular target business, we may be unable to complete our initial business combination with any target business. This risk will increase as we get closer to the timeframe described above. In addition, we may have limited time to conduct due diligence and may enter into our initial business combination on terms that we would have rejected upon a more comprehensive investigation.
Our search for a business combination, and any target business with which we ultimately consummate a business combination, may be materially adversely affected by the outbreak of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) and variants thereof and the status of debt and equity markets.
COVID-19 has resulted in volatile economic conditions, business disruptions and reductions in consumer spending across the globe. Although several COVID-19 vaccines are currently being widely administered in both the U.S. and Europe, the severity, magnitude and duration of the effects of the pandemic continue to evolve, remain uncertain and may be impacted by various factors, including the acceptance of COVID-19 vaccines and vaccine effectiveness, rates of infection from new COVID-19 variants and actions taken throughout the world, including in the markets in which potential business combination targets operate, to contain COVID-19 and manage its impact. Macro-economic conditions as a direct or indirect result of COVID-19 may also affect our search for a business combination and the businesses and operations of target companies.
COVID-19’s extensive impact has and could continue to adversely affect the economies and financial markets worldwide, and the business of any potential target business with which we consummate a business combination could be materially and adversely affected. Furthermore, we may be unable to complete a business combination if continued concerns relating to COVID-19 and variants thereof continue to restrict travel, limit the ability to have meetings with potential investors or the target company’s personnel, vendors and services providers are unavailable to negotiate and consummate a transaction in a timely manner. The extent to which COVID-19 impacts our search for a business combination will depend on future developments, which are highly uncertain and cannot be predicted, including new information which may emerge concerning the severity of COVID-19 and the actions to contain COVID-19 or treat its impact, among others. If the disruptions posed by COVID-19 or other matters of global concern continue for an extensive period of time, our ability to consummate a business combination, or the operations of a target business with which we ultimately consummate a business combination, may be materially adversely affected.
In addition, our ability to consummate a transaction may be dependent on the ability to raise equity and debt financing which may be impacted by COVID-19 and other events, including as a result of increased market volatility, decreased market liquidity in third-party financing being unavailable on terms acceptable to us or at all.
The severity, magnitude and duration of the outbreak of COVID-19 and variants of COVID-19 continue to be uncertain and evolving and depend on events beyond our knowledge or control. As such, we might not be able to predict, or respond to, all impacts on a timely basis to prevent near- or long-term adverse impacts on our business, results of operations, financial condition and cash flows, which impacts may be material. Additionally, the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic could have the effect of heightening many of the other risks described herein.
22
We may not be able to complete our initial business combination within the prescribed time frame, in which case we would cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up and we would redeem our public shares and liquidate, in which case our public stockholders may only receive $10.20 per share, or less than such amount in certain circumstances, and our warrants will expire worthless.
Our sponsor, officers and directors have agreed that we must complete our initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering (or 24 months from the closing of our initial public offering, if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination, subject to our sponsor depositing additional funds into the trust account as described in more detail in herein). We may not be able to find a suitable target business and complete our initial business combination within such time period. For example, the outbreak of COVID-19 (including variants thereof) continues to grow both in the U.S. and globally and, while the extent of the impact of the outbreak on us will depend on future developments, it could limit our ability to complete our initial business combination, including as a result of increased market volatility, decreased market liquidity and third-party financing being unavailable on terms acceptable to us or at all. Additionally, the outbreak of COVID-19 and variants of COVID-19 may negatively impact businesses we may seek to acquire. If we have not completed our initial business combination within such time period, we will: (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up; (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than ten business days thereafter, redeem the public shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our franchise and income taxes (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidating distributions, if any), subject to applicable law; and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining stockholders and our board of directors, dissolve and liquidate, subject in each case to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. In such case, our public stockholders may only receive $10.20 per share, and our warrants will expire worthless. In certain circumstances, our public stockholders may receive less than $10.20 per share on the redemption of their shares. See “—If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in the trust account could be reduced and the per-share redemption amount received by stockholders may be less than $10.20 per share” and other risk factors below.
We may extend our time period to consummate our initial business combination for an additional six months and accordingly have a total of 24 months from the closing of our initial public offering to consummate a business combination without submitting such proposed extension to our stockholders for approval or offering our public stockholders redemption rights in connection therewith.
We will have until 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering to consummate an initial business combination. However, if we anticipate that we may not be able to consummate our initial business combination within 18 months, we may extend the period of time to consummate a business combination by an additional six months (for a total of 24 months to complete a business combination) without submitting such proposed extension to our stockholders for approval or offering our public stockholders redemption rights in connection therewith. Pursuant to the terms of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and subject to deposit of additional funds by our sponsor or its affiliates or designees into our trust account as set forth thereunder, we may effectuate such extension without submitting such proposed extension to our stockholders for approval or offering our public stockholders redemption rights in connection with the proposed extension. We will only be able to effectuate one such extension and only for an additional six months.
If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination, our sponsor, directors, officers, advisors and their affiliates may elect to purchase shares from public stockholders, which may influence a vote on a proposed business combination and reduce the public “float” of our Class A common stock.
If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination and we do not conduct redemptions in connection with our business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, our sponsor, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates may purchase shares in privately negotiated transactions or in the open market either prior to or following the completion of our initial business combination, although they are under no obligation to do so. Such a purchase may include a contractual acknowledgement that such stockholder, although still the record holder of our shares is no longer the beneficial owner thereof and therefore agrees not to exercise its redemption rights. In the event that our sponsor, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates purchase shares in privately negotiated transactions from public stockholders who have already elected to exercise their redemption rights, such selling stockholders would be required to revoke their prior elections to redeem their shares. The purpose of such purchases could be to vote such shares in favor of the business combination and thereby increase the likelihood of obtaining stockholder approval of the business combination, or to satisfy a closing condition in an agreement with a target that requires us to have a minimum net worth or a certain amount of cash at the closing of our business combination, where it appears that such requirement would otherwise not be met. This may result in the completion of our business combination that may not otherwise have been possible.
23
In addition, if such purchases are made, the public “float” of our Class A common stock and the number of beneficial holders of our securities may be reduced, possibly making it difficult to obtain or maintain the quotation, listing or trading of our securities on a national securities exchange.
If a stockholder fails to receive notice of our offer to redeem our public shares in connection with our business combination, or fails to comply with the procedures for tendering its shares, such shares may not be redeemed.
We will comply with the tender offer rules or proxy rules, as applicable, when conducting redemptions in connection with our business combination. Despite our compliance with these rules, if a stockholder fails to receive our tender offer or proxy materials, as applicable, such stockholder may not become aware of the opportunity to redeem its shares. In addition, the proxy solicitation or tender offer materials, as applicable, that we will furnish to holders of our public shares in connection with our initial business combination will indicate the applicable delivery requirements, which will include the requirement that a beneficial holder must identify itself in order to validly redeem its shares. For example, we may require our public stockholders seeking to exercise their redemption rights, whether they are record holders or hold their shares in “street name,” to either tender their certificates to our transfer agent prior to the date set forth in the tender offer documents or proxy materials mailed to such holders, or up to two business days prior to the initially scheduled vote on the proposal to approve the business combination in the event we distribute proxy materials, or to deliver their shares to the transfer agent electronically. In the event that a stockholder fails to comply with these or any other procedures, its shares may not be redeemed.
You will not have any rights or interests in funds from the trust account, except under certain limited circumstances. Therefore, to liquidate your investment, you may be forced to sell your public shares or warrants, potentially at a loss.
Our public stockholders will be entitled to receive funds from the trust account only upon the earliest to occur of: (i) our completion of an initial business combination; (ii) the redemption of any public shares properly tendered in connection with a stockholder vote to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation (a) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 18 months (or 24 months, if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination) from the closing of our initial public offering, or (b) with respect to any other provisions relating to rights of holders of our Class A common stock; and (iii) the redemption of our public shares if we are unable to complete an initial business combination within 18 months (or 24 months, if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination) from the closing of our initial public offering, subject to applicable law and as further described herein. In addition, if we are unable to complete an initial business combination within 18 months (or 24 months, if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination) from the closing of our initial public offering for any reason, compliance with Delaware law may require that we submit a plan of dissolution to our then-existing stockholders for approval prior to the distribution of the proceeds held in our trust account. In that case, public stockholders may be forced to wait beyond 18 months (or 24 months, if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination) from the closing of our initial public offering before they receive funds from our trust account. In no other circumstances will a public stockholder have any right or interest of any kind in the trust account. Accordingly, to liquidate your investment, you may be forced to sell your public shares or warrants, potentially at a loss.
Because of our limited resources and the significant competition for business combination opportunities, it may be more difficult for us to complete our initial business combination. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.20 per share on our redemption of our public shares, or less than such amount in certain circumstances, and our warrants will expire worthless.
We expect to encounter intense competition from other entities having a business objective similar to ours, including private investors (which may be individuals or investment partnerships), other blank check companies and other entities, domestic and international, competing for the types of businesses we intend to acquire. Many of these individuals and entities are well-established and have extensive experience in identifying and effecting, directly or indirectly, acquisitions of companies operating in or providing services to various industries. Many of these competitors possess greater technical, human and other resources or more local industry knowledge than we do and our financial resources are relatively limited when contrasted with those of many of these competitors. While we believe there are numerous target businesses we could
24
potentially acquire with the net proceeds of our initial public offering and the sale of the private placement warrants, our ability to compete with respect to the acquisition of certain target businesses that are sizable is limited by our available financial resources. This inherent competitive limitation gives others an advantage in pursuing the acquisition of certain target businesses. Furthermore, because we are obligated to pay cash for the shares of Class A common stock which our public stockholders redeem in connection with our initial business combination, target companies will be aware that this may reduce the resources available to us for our initial business combination. This may place us at a competitive disadvantage in successfully negotiating a business combination. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.20 per share on the liquidation of our trust account and our warrants will expire worthless. In certain circumstances, our public stockholders may receive less than $10.20 per share upon our liquidation. See “—If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in the trust account could be reduced and the per-share redemption amount received by stockholders may be less than $10.20 per share” and other risk factors below.
Changes in the market for directors and officers liability insurance could make it more difficult and more expensive for us to negotiate and complete an initial business combination.
Recently, the market for directors and officers liability insurance for special purpose acquisition companies has changed in ways adverse to us and our management team. Fewer insurance companies are offering quotes for directors and officers liability coverage, the premiums charged for such policies have generally increased and the terms of such policies have generally become less favorable. These trends may continue into the future.
The increased cost and decreased availability of directors and officers liability insurance could make it more difficult and more expensive for us to negotiate an initial business combination. In order to obtain directors and officers liability insurance or modify its coverage as a result of becoming a public company, the post-business combination entity might need to incur greater expense, accept less favorable terms or both. However, any failure to obtain adequate directors and officers liability insurance could have an adverse impact on the post-business combination’s ability to attract and retain qualified officers and directors.
In addition, even after we were to complete an initial business combination, our directors and officers could still be subject to potential liability from claims arising from conduct alleged to have occurred prior to the initial business combination. As a result, in order to protect our directors and officers, the post-business combination entity may need to purchase additional insurance with respect to any such claims (“run-off insurance”). The need for run-off insurance would be an added expense for the post-business combination entity, and could interfere with or frustrate our ability to consummate an initial business combination on terms favorable to our investors.
As the number of special purpose acquisition companies evaluating targets increases, attractive targets may become scarcer and there may be more competition for attractive targets. This could increase the cost of our initial business combination and could even result in our inability to find a target or to consummate an initial business combination.
In recent years, the number of special purpose acquisition companies that have been formed has increased substantially. Many potential targets for special purpose acquisition companies have already entered into an initial business combination, and there are still many special purpose acquisition companies seeking targets for their initial business combinations, as well as many such companies currently in registration. As a result, at times, fewer attractive targets may be available to consummate an initial business combination.
In addition, because there are more special purpose acquisition companies seeking to enter into an initial business combination with available targets, the competition for available targets with attractive fundamentals or business models may increase, which could cause target companies to demand improved financial terms. Attractive deals could also become scarcer for other reasons, such as economic or industry sector downturns, geopolitical tensions, or increases in the cost of additional capital needed to close business combinations or operate targets post-business combination. This could increase the cost of, delay or otherwise complicate or frustrate our ability to find and consummate an initial business combination, and may result in our inability to consummate an initial business combination on terms favorable to our investors altogether.
If the net proceeds of our initial public offering and the sale of the private placement warrants not being held in the trust account are insufficient to allow us to operate for at least 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering (or 24 months, if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination), we may be unable to complete our initial business combination, in which case our public stockholders may only receive $10.20 per share, or less than such amount in certain circumstances, and our warrants will expire worthless.
25
The funds available to us outside of the trust account may not be sufficient to allow us to operate for at least 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering (or 24 months, if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination), assuming that our initial business combination is not completed during that time. We believe that the funds currently available to us outside of the trust account will be sufficient to allow us to operate for at least 18 months from the closing of our initial public offering (or 24 months, if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination); however, we cannot assure you that our estimate is accurate. Of the funds available to us, we could use a portion of the funds available to us to pay fees to consultants to assist us with our search for a target business. We could also use a portion of the funds as a down payment or to fund a “no-shop” provision (a provision in letters of intent designed to keep target businesses from “shopping” around for transactions with other companies on terms more favorable to such target businesses) with respect to a particular proposed business combination, although we do not have any current intention to do so. If we entered into a letter of intent where we paid for the right to receive exclusivity from a target business and were subsequently required to forfeit such funds (whether as a result of our breach or otherwise), we might not have sufficient funds to continue searching for, or conduct due diligence with respect to, a target business. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.20 per share on the liquidation of our trust account and our warrants will expire worthless. In certain circumstances, our public stockholders may receive less than $10.20 per share upon our liquidation. See “—If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in the trust account could be reduced and the per-share redemption amount received by stockholders may be less than $10.20 per share” and other risk factors below.
If the net proceeds of our initial public offering and the sale of the private placement warrants not being held in the trust account are insufficient, it could limit the amount available to fund our search for a target business or businesses and complete our initial business combination and we will depend on loans from our sponsor or management team to fund our search for a business combination, to pay our franchise and income taxes and to complete our initial business combination. If we are unable to obtain these loans, we may be unable to complete our initial business combination.
Of the net proceeds of our initial public offering and the sale of the private placement warrants, as of December 31, 2021, only approximately $1.8 million is available to us outside the trust account to fund our working capital requirements. If we are required to seek additional capital, we would need to borrow funds from our sponsor, management team or other third parties to operate or may be forced to liquidate. Neither our sponsor, members of our management team nor any of their affiliates is under any obligation to advance funds to us in such circumstances. Any such advances would be repaid only from funds held outside the trust account or from funds released to us upon completion of our initial business combination. We do not expect to seek loans from parties other than our sponsor or an affiliate of our sponsor as we do not believe third parties will be willing to loan such funds and provide a waiver against any and all rights to seek access to funds in our trust account. If we are unable to obtain these loans, we may be unable to complete our initial business combination. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination because we do not have sufficient funds available to us, we will be forced to cease operations and liquidate the trust account. Consequently, our public stockholders may only receive approximately $10.20 per share on our redemption of our public shares, and our warrants will expire worthless. In certain circumstances, our public stockholders may receive less than $10.20 per share on the redemption of their shares. See “—If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in the trust account could be reduced and the per-share redemption amount received by stockholders may be less than $10.20 per share” and other risk factors below.
Because we must furnish our stockholders with target business financial statements, we may lose the ability to complete an otherwise advantageous initial business combination with some prospective target businesses.
The federal proxy rules require that a proxy statement with respect to a vote on a business combination meeting certain financial significance tests include historical and/or pro forma financial statement disclosure in periodic reports. We will include the same financial statement disclosure in connection with our tender offer documents, whether or not they are required under the tender offer rules. These financial statements may be required to be prepared in accordance with, or be reconciled to, GAAP or IFRS, depending on the circumstances and the historical financial statements may be required to be audited in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. These financial statement requirements may limit the pool of potential target businesses we may acquire because some targets may be unable to provide such financial statements in time for us to disclose such statements in accordance with federal proxy rules and complete our initial business combination within the prescribed time frame.
26
Subsequent to our completion of our initial business combination, we may be required to take write-downs or write-offs, restructuring and impairment or other charges that could have a significant negative effect on our financial condition, results of operations and our stock price, which could cause you to lose some or all of your investment.
Even if we conduct extensive due diligence on a target business with which we combine, we cannot assure you that this diligence will surface all material issues that may be present inside a particular target business, that it would be possible to uncover all material issues through a customary amount of due diligence, or that factors outside of the target business and outside of our control will not later arise. As a result of these factors, we may be forced to later write-down or write-off assets, restructure our operations, or incur impairment or other charges that could result in our reporting losses. Even if our due diligence successfully identifies certain risks, unexpected risks may arise and previously known risks may materialize in a manner not consistent with our preliminary risk analysis. Even though these charges may be non-cash items and not have an immediate impact on our liquidity, the fact that we report charges of this nature could contribute to negative market perceptions about us or our securities. In addition, charges of this nature may cause us to violate net worth or other covenants to which we may be subject as a result of assuming pre-existing debt held by a target business or by virtue of our obtaining post-combination debt financing. Accordingly, any stockholders who choose to remain stockholders following the business combination could suffer a reduction in the value of their shares. Such stockholders are unlikely to have a remedy for such reduction in value unless they are able to successfully claim that the reduction was due to the breach by our officers or directors of a duty of care or other fiduciary duty owed to such stockholders, or if they are able to successfully bring a private claim under securities laws that the tender offer materials or proxy statement related to our initial business combination contained an actionable material misstatement or material omission.
We may be unable to obtain additional financing to complete our initial business combination or to fund the operations and growth of a target business, which could compel us to restructure or abandon a particular business combination.
Although we believe that the net proceeds of our initial public offering and the sale of the private placement warrants will be sufficient to allow us to complete our initial business combination, we cannot currently ascertain the capital requirements for any particular transaction. If the net proceeds of our initial public offering and the sale of the private placement warrants prove to be insufficient, either because of the size of our initial business combination, the depletion of the available net proceeds in search of a target business, the obligation to repurchase for cash a significant number of shares from stockholders who elect redemption in connection with our initial business combination or the terms of negotiated transactions to purchase shares in connection with our initial business combination, we may be required to seek additional financing or to abandon the proposed business combination. We cannot assure you that such financing will be available on acceptable terms, if at all. To the extent that additional financing proves to be unavailable when needed to complete our initial business combination, we would be compelled to either restructure the transaction or abandon that particular business combination and seek an alternative target business candidate. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.20 per share plus any pro rata interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our franchise and income taxes on the liquidation of our trust account and our warrants will expire worthless. In addition, even if we do not need additional financing to complete our business combination, we may require such financing to fund the operations or growth of the target business. The failure to secure additional financing could have a material adverse effect on the continued development or growth of the target business. None of our officers, directors or stockholders is required to provide any financing to us in connection with or after our initial business combination. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may only receive approximately $10.20 per share on the liquidation of our trust account, and our warrants will expire worthless.
We may issue notes or other debt securities, or otherwise incur substantial debt, to complete a business combination, which may adversely affect our leverage and financial condition and thus negatively impact the value of our stockholders’ investment in us.
We may choose to incur substantial debt to complete our business combination. We have agreed that we will not incur any indebtedness unless we have obtained from the lender a waiver of any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to the monies held in the trust account. As such, no issuance of debt will affect the per-share amount available for redemption from the trust account. Nevertheless, the incurrence of debt could have a variety of negative effects, including:
| • | default and foreclosure on our assets if our operating revenues after an initial business combination are insufficient to repay our debt obligations; |
27
| • | acceleration of our obligations to repay the indebtedness even if we make all principal and interest payments when due if we breach certain covenants that require the maintenance of certain financial ratios or reserves without a waiver or renegotiation of that covenant; |
| • | our immediate payment of all principal and accrued interest, if any, if the debt security is payable on demand; |
| • | our inability to obtain necessary additional financing if the debt security contains covenants restricting our ability to obtain such financing while the debt security is outstanding; |
| • | our inability to pay dividends on our common stock; |
| • | using a substantial portion of our cash flow to pay principal and interest on our debt, which will reduce the funds available for dividends on our common stock if declared, our ability to pay expenses, make capital expenditures and acquisitions, and fund other general corporate purposes; |
| • | limitations on our flexibility in planning for and reacting to changes in our business and in the industry in which we operate; |
| • | increased vulnerability to adverse changes in general economic, industry and competitive conditions and adverse changes in government regulation; |
| • | limitations on our ability to borrow additional amounts for expenses, capital expenditures, acquisitions, debt service requirements, and execution of our strategy; and |
| • | other disadvantages compared to our competitors who have less debt. |
If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in the trust account could be reduced and the per-share redemption amount received by stockholders may be less than $10.20 per share.
Our placing of funds in the trust account may not protect those funds from third-party claims against us. Although we will seek to have all vendors, service providers (other than our independent registered public accounting firm), prospective target businesses or other entities with which we do business execute agreements with us waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to any monies held in the trust account for the benefit of our public stockholders, such parties may not execute such agreements, or even if they execute such agreements they may not be prevented from bringing claims against the trust account, including, but not limited to, fraudulent inducement, breach of fiduciary responsibility or other similar claims, as well as claims challenging the enforceability of the waiver, in each case in order to gain advantage with respect to a claim against our assets, including the funds held in the trust account. If any third party refuses to execute an agreement waiving such claims to the monies held in the trust account, our management will perform an analysis of the alternatives available to it and will only enter into an agreement with a third party that has not executed a waiver if management believes that such third party’s engagement would be significantly more beneficial to us than any alternative.
Examples of possible instances where we may engage a third party that refuses to execute a waiver include the engagement of a third party consultant whose particular expertise or skills are believed by management to be significantly superior to those of other consultants that would agree to execute a waiver or in cases where management is unable to find a service provider willing to execute a waiver. In addition, there is no guarantee that such entities will agree to waive any claims they may have in the future as a result of, or arising out of, any negotiations, contracts or agreements with us and will not seek recourse against the trust account for any reason. Upon redemption of our public shares, if we are unable to complete our business combination within the prescribed timeframe, or upon the exercise of a redemption right in connection with our business combination, we will be required to provide for payment of claims of creditors that were not waived that may be brought against us within the 10 years following redemption. Accordingly, the per-share redemption amount received by public stockholders could be less than the $10.20 per share initially held in the trust account, due to claims of such creditors. Our sponsor has agreed that it will be liable to us if and to the extent any claims by a vendor for services rendered or products sold to us, or a prospective target business with which we have discussed entering into a transaction agreement, reduce the amount of funds in the trust account to below (i) $10.20 per public share or (ii) such lesser amount per public share held in the trust account as of the date of the liquidation of the trust account due to reductions in the value of the trust assets, in each
28
case net of the interest that may be withdrawn to pay our franchise and income taxes. This liability will not apply with respect to any claims by a third party who executed a waiver of any and all rights to seek access to the trust account and except as to any claims under our indemnity of the underwriters of our initial public offering against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. Moreover, in the event that an executed waiver is deemed to be unenforceable against a third party, then our sponsor will not be responsible to the extent of any liability for such third party claims. We have not independently verified whether our sponsor has sufficient funds to satisfy its indemnity obligations and believe that our sponsor’s only assets are securities of our company. We have not asked our sponsor to reserve for such indemnification obligations. Therefore, our sponsor may not be able to satisfy those obligations. As a result, if any such claims were successfully made against the trust account, the funds available for our initial business combination and redemptions could be reduced to less than $10.20 per public share. In such event, we may not be able to complete our initial business combination, and you would receive such lesser amount per share in connection with any redemption of your public shares. None of our officers will indemnify us for claims by third parties including, without limitation, claims by vendors and prospective target businesses.
Our directors may decide not to enforce the indemnification obligations of our sponsor, resulting in a reduction in the amount of funds in the trust account available for distribution to our public stockholders.
In the event that the proceeds in the trust account are reduced below the lesser of (i) $10.20 per public share or (ii) such lesser amount per share held in the trust account as of the date of the liquidation of the trust account due to reductions in the value of the trust assets, in each case net of the interest which may be withdrawn to pay our franchise and income taxes, and our sponsor asserts that it is unable to satisfy its obligations or that it has no indemnification obligations related to a particular claim, our independent directors would determine whether to take legal action against our sponsor to enforce its indemnification obligations.
While we currently expect that our independent directors would take legal action on our behalf against our sponsor to enforce its indemnification obligations to us, it is possible that our independent directors in exercising their business judgment may choose not to do so if, for example, the cost of such legal action is deemed by the independent directors to be too high relative to the amount recoverable or if the independent directors determine that a favorable outcome is not likely. If our independent directors choose not to enforce these indemnification obligations, the amount of funds in the trust account available for distribution to our public stockholders may be reduced below $10.20 per share.
We do not have a specified maximum redemption threshold. The absence of such a redemption threshold may make it possible for us to complete a business combination with which a substantial majority of our stockholders do not agree.
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation does not provide a specified maximum redemption threshold, except that in no event will we redeem our public shares in an amount that would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001 upon consummation of our initial business combination (such that we are not subject to the SEC’s “penny stock” rules) or any greater net tangible asset or cash requirement which may be contained in the agreement relating to our initial business combination. As a result, we may be able to complete our business combination even though a substantial majority of our public stockholders do not agree with the transaction and have redeemed their shares or, if we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination and do not conduct redemptions in connection with our business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, have entered into privately negotiated agreements to sell their shares to our sponsor, officers, directors, advisors or their affiliates. In the event the aggregate cash consideration we would be required to pay for all shares of Class A common stock that are validly submitted for redemption plus any amount required to satisfy cash conditions pursuant to the terms of the proposed business combination exceed the aggregate amount of cash available to us, we will not complete the business combination or redeem any shares, all shares of Class A common stock submitted for redemption will be returned to the holders thereof, and we instead may search for an alternate business combination.
In order to effectuate our initial business combination, we may seek to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation or governing instruments in a manner that will make it easier for us to complete our initial business combination but that our stockholders may not support.
In order to effectuate a business combination, blank check companies have, in the recent past, amended various provisions of their charters and modified governing instruments. For example, blank check companies have amended the definition of business combination, increased redemption thresholds and changed industry focus. We cannot assure you that we will not seek to amend our charter or governing instruments or change our industry focus in order to effectuate our initial business combination.
29
The provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation that relate to our pre-business combination activity (and corresponding provisions of the agreement governing the release of funds from our trust account) may be amended with the approval of holders of 50% of our common stock, which is a lower amendment threshold than that of some other blank check companies. It may be easier for us, therefore, to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and the trust agreement to facilitate the completion of an initial business combination that some of our stockholders may not support.
Some other blank check companies have a provision in their charter which prohibits the amendment of certain of its provisions, including those which relate to a company’s pre-business combination activity, without approval by a certain percentage of the company’s stockholders. In those companies, amendment of these provisions sometimes requires approval by between 90% and 100% of the company’s public stockholders. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that any of its provisions related to pre-business combination activity (including the requirement to deposit proceeds of our initial public offering and the private placement of warrants into the trust account and not release such amounts except in specified circumstances, and to provide redemption rights to public stockholders as described herein) may be amended if approved by holders of 50% of our common stock entitled to vote thereon, and corresponding provisions of the trust agreement governing the release of funds from our trust account may be amended if approved by holders of 50% of our common stock entitled to vote thereon. In all other instances, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation may be amended by holders of a majority of our outstanding common stock entitled to vote thereon, subject to applicable provisions of the DGCL or applicable stock exchange rules. Our initial stockholders, who collectively beneficially own 20% of our common stock, will participate in any vote to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and/or trust agreement and will have the discretion to vote in any manner they choose. As a result, we may be able to amend the provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation which govern our pre-business combination behavior more easily than some other blank check companies, and this may increase our ability to complete a business combination with which you do not agree. Our stockholders may pursue remedies against us for any breach of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation.
Our sponsor, officers and directors have agreed, pursuant to a written agreement with us, that they will not propose any amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation that would affect the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 18 months (or 24 months, if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination) from the closing of our initial public offering or with respect to any other provisions relating to the rights of holders of our Class A common stock, unless we provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their shares of Class A common stock upon approval of any such amendment at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, divided by the number of then outstanding public shares. These agreements are contained in a letter agreement that we have entered into with our sponsor, officers and directors. Our stockholders are not parties to, or third-party beneficiaries of, these agreements and, as a result, will not have the ability to pursue remedies against our sponsor, officers or directors for any breach of these agreements. As a result, in the event of a breach, our stockholders would need to pursue a stockholder derivative action, subject to applicable law.
A provision in our warrant agreement may make it more difficult for us to consummate an initial business combination.
Unlike most blank check companies, if (i) we issue additional shares of Class A common stock 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 share of our Class A common stock (with such issue price or effective issue price to be determined in good faith by our board of directors and, in the case of any such issuance to our sponsor or its affiliates, without taking into account any founder shares held by our sponsor or such affiliates, as applicable, prior to such issuance) (the “Newly Issued Price”), (ii) the 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 consummation of our initial business combination (net of redemptions), and (iii) the volume weighted average trading price of Class A common stock during the 20 trading day period starting on the trading day prior to the day on which we consummate our initial business combination (such price, the “Market Value”) is below $9.20 per share, then the exercise price of the warrants will be adjusted to be equal to 115% of the higher of the Market Value and the Newly Issued Price, and the $18.00 per share redemption trigger price will be adjusted (to the nearest cent) to be equal to 180% of the higher of the Market Value and the Newly Issued Price. This may make it more difficult for us to consummate an initial business combination with a target business.
30
Changes in laws or regulations, or a failure to comply with any laws and regulations, may adversely affect our business, investments and results of operations.
We are subject to laws and regulations enacted by national, regional and local governments. In particular, we are required to comply with certain SEC and other legal requirements. Compliance with, and monitoring of, applicable laws and regulations may be difficult, time consuming and costly.
Those laws and regulations and their interpretation and application may also change from time to time and those changes could have a material adverse effect on our business, investments and results of operations. In addition, a failure to comply with applicable laws or regulations, as interpreted and applied, could have a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations.
The securities in which we invest the funds held in the trust account could bear a negative rate of interest, which could reduce the value of the assets held in trust such that the per-share redemption amount received by public stockholders may be less than $10.20 per share.
The proceeds held in the trust account are invested only in U.S. government treasury obligations with a maturity of 185 days or less or in money market funds meeting certain conditions under Rule 2a-7 under the Investment Company Act, which invest only in direct U.S. government treasury obligations. While short-term U.S. government treasury obligations currently yield a positive rate of interest, they have briefly yielded negative interest rates in recent years. Central banks in Europe and Japan pursued interest rates below zero in recent years, and the Open Market Committee of the Federal Reserve has not ruled out the possibility that it may in the future adopt similar policies in the United States. In the event that we are unable to complete our initial business combination or make certain amendments to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, our public stockholders are entitled to receive their pro-rata share of the proceeds held in the trust account, plus any interest income, net of taxes paid or payable (less, in the case we are unable to complete our initial business combination, $100,000 of interest). Negative interest rates could reduce the value of the assets held in trust such that the per-share redemption amount received by public stockholders may be less than $10.20 per share.
If, after we distribute the proceeds in the trust account to our public stockholders, we file a bankruptcy petition or an involuntary bankruptcy petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, a bankruptcy court may seek to recover such proceeds, and we and our board may be exposed to claims of punitive damages.
If, after we distribute the proceeds in the trust account to our public stockholders, we file a bankruptcy petition or an involuntary bankruptcy petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, any distributions received by stockholders could be viewed under applicable debtor/creditor and/or bankruptcy laws as either a “preferential transfer” or a “fraudulent conveyance.” As a result, a bankruptcy court could seek to recover all amounts received by our stockholders. In addition, our board of directors may be viewed as having breached its fiduciary duty to our creditors and/or having acted in bad faith, thereby exposing itself and us to claims of punitive damages, by paying public stockholders from the trust account prior to addressing the claims of creditors.
If, before distributing the proceeds in the trust account to our public stockholders, we file a bankruptcy petition or an involuntary bankruptcy petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, the claims of creditors in such proceeding may have priority over the claims of our stockholders and the per-share amount that would otherwise be received by our stockholders in connection with our liquidation may be reduced.
If, before distributing the proceeds in the trust account to our public stockholders, we file a bankruptcy petition or an involuntary bankruptcy petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, the proceeds held in the trust account could be subject to applicable bankruptcy law, and may be included in our bankruptcy estate and subject to the claims of third parties with priority over the claims of our stockholders. To the extent any bankruptcy claims deplete the trust account, the per-share amount that would otherwise be received by our stockholders in connection with our liquidation may be reduced.
31
If we are deemed to be an investment company under the Investment Company Act, we may be required to institute burdensome compliance requirements and our activities may be restricted, which may make it difficult for us to complete our business combination.
If we are deemed to be an investment company under the Investment Company Act, our activities may be restricted, including:
| • | restrictions on the nature of our investments; and |
| • | restrictions on the issuance of securities, each of which may make it difficult for us to complete our business combination. |
In addition, we may have imposed upon us burdensome requirements, including:
| • | registration as an investment company; |
| • | adoption of a specific form of corporate structure; and |
| • | reporting, record keeping, voting, proxy and disclosure requirements and other rules and regulations. |
In order not to be regulated as an investment company under the Investment Company Act, unless we can qualify for an exclusion, we must ensure that we are engaged primarily in a business other than investing, reinvesting or trading in securities and that our activities do not include investing, reinvesting, owning, holding or trading “investment securities” constituting more than 40% of our total assets (exclusive of U.S. government securities and cash items) on an unconsolidated basis. Our business is to identify and complete a business combination and thereafter to operate the post-transaction business or assets for the long term. We do not plan to buy businesses or assets with a view to resale or profit from their resale. We do not plan to buy unrelated businesses or assets or to be a passive investor.
We do not believe that our current principal activities subject us, or that our anticipated principal activities in the future will subject us, to the Investment Company Act. To this end, the proceeds held in the trust account may only be invested in United States “government securities” within the meaning of Section 2(a)(16) of the Investment Company Act having a maturity of 185 days or less or in money market funds meeting certain conditions under Rule 2a-7 promulgated under the Investment Company Act which invest only in direct U.S. government treasury obligations. Pursuant to the trust agreement, the trustee is not permitted to invest in other securities or assets. By restricting the investment of the proceeds to these instruments, and by having a business plan targeted at acquiring and growing businesses for the long term (rather than on buying and selling businesses in the manner of a merchant bank or private equity fund), we intend to avoid being deemed an “investment company” within the meaning of the Investment Company Act. Our initial public offering is not intended for persons who are seeking a return on investments in government securities or investment securities. The trust account is intended as a holding place for funds pending the earliest to occur of: (i) the completion of our primary business objective, which is a business combination; (ii) the redemption of any public shares properly tendered in connection with a stockholder vote to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation (a) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 18 months (or 24 months, if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination) from the closing of our initial public offering, or (b) with respect to any other provisions relating to the rights of holders of our Class A common stock; or (iii) absent a business combination, our return of the funds held in the trust account to our public stockholders as part of our redemption of the public shares. If we do not invest the proceeds as discussed above, we may be deemed to be subject to the Investment Company Act. If we were deemed to be subject to the Investment Company Act, compliance with these additional regulatory burdens would require additional expenses for which we have not allotted funds and may hinder our ability to complete a business combination. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.20 per share on the liquidation of our trust account and our warrants will expire worthless.
We may not hold an annual meeting of stockholders until after the consummation of our initial business combination, which could delay the opportunity for our stockholders to elect directors.
In accordance with the NYSE corporate governance requirements, we are not required to hold an annual meeting until one year after our first fiscal year end following our listing on the NYSE. Under Section 211(b) of the DGCL, we are, however, required to hold an annual meeting of stockholders for the purposes of electing directors in accordance with our amended and restated bylaws unless such election is made by written consent in lieu of such a meeting. We may not hold an annual meeting of stockholders to elect new directors prior to the consummation of our initial business combination, and thus we may not be in compliance with Section 211(b) of the DGCL, which requires an annual meeting. Therefore, if our stockholders want us to hold an annual meeting prior to the consummation of our initial business combination, they may attempt to force us to hold one by submitting an application to the Delaware Court of Chancery in accordance with Section 211(c) of the DGCL.
32
Holders of Class A common stock will not be entitled to vote on any election of directors we hold prior to our initial business combination.
Prior to our initial business combination, only holders of our founder shares will have the right to vote on the election of directors. Holders of our public shares will not be entitled to vote on the election of directors during such time. In addition, prior to the completion of an initial business combination, holders of a majority of our founder shares may remove a member of the board of directors for any reason. Accordingly, you may not have any say in the management of our company prior to the consummation of an initial business combination.
The grant of registration rights to our initial stockholders may make it more difficult to complete our initial business combination, and the future exercise of such rights may adversely affect the market price of our Class A common stock.
Pursuant to an agreement entered into concurrently with the issuance and sale of the securities in our initial public offering, our initial stockholders and their permitted transferees can demand that we register the private placement warrants and the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the founder shares and the private placement warrants held by them and holders of warrants that may be issued upon conversion of working capital loans may demand that we register such warrants or the Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of such warrants. We will bear the cost of registering these securities. The registration and availability of such a significant number of securities for trading in the public market may have an adverse effect on the market price of our Class A common stock. In addition, the existence of the registration rights may make our initial business combination more costly or difficult to conclude. This is because the stockholders of the target business may increase the equity stake they seek in the combined entity or ask for more cash consideration to offset the negative impact on the market price of our Class A common stock that is expected when the securities owned by our initial stockholders or holders of working capital loans or their respective permitted transferees are registered.
Because we are not limited to a particular industry, sector or any specific target businesses with which to pursue our initial business combination, you will be unable to ascertain the merits or risks of any particular target business’ operations.
Although we are focusing our search for a target business in the industrial sector, we may seek to complete a business combination with an operating company in any industry or sector. However, we are not, under our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, be permitted to effectuate our business combination with another blank check company or similar company with nominal operations. Because we have not yet selected any specific target business with respect to a business combination, there is no basis to evaluate the possible merits or risks of any particular target business’ operations, results of operations, cash flows, liquidity, financial condition or prospects. To the extent we complete our business combination, we may be affected by numerous risks inherent in the business operations with which we combine. For example, if we combine with a financially unstable business or an entity lacking an established record of revenues or earnings, we may be affected by the risks inherent in the business and operations of a financially unstable or a development stage entity. Although our officers and directors will endeavor to evaluate the risks inherent in a particular target business, we cannot assure you that we will properly ascertain or assess all of the significant risk factors or that we will have adequate time to complete due diligence. Furthermore, some of these risks may be outside of our control and leave us with no ability to control or reduce the chances that those risks will adversely impact a target business. We also cannot assure you that an investment in our units, Class A common stock or warrants will ultimately prove to be more favorable to investors than a direct investment, if such opportunity were available, in a business combination target. Accordingly, any stockholders who choose to remain stockholders following the business combination could suffer a reduction in the value of their shares. Such stockholders are unlikely to have a remedy for such reduction in value.
We may seek acquisition opportunities in industries or sectors which may or may not be outside of our management’s area of expertise.
Although we intend to focus on identifying business combination candidates in the industrials sector, we may consider a business combination outside of our management’s area of expertise if a business combination candidate is presented to us and we determine that such candidate offers an attractive acquisition opportunity for our company. Although
33
our management will endeavor to evaluate the risks inherent in any particular business combination candidate, we cannot assure you that we will adequately ascertain or assess all of the significant risk factors. We also cannot assure you that an investment in our units, Class A common stock or warrants will not ultimately prove to be less favorable to investors in our initial public offering than a direct investment, if an opportunity were available, in a business combination candidate. In the event we elect to pursue an acquisition outside of the areas of our management’s expertise, our management’s expertise may not be directly applicable to its evaluation or operation, and the information contained in this Report regarding the areas of our management’s expertise would not be relevant to an understanding of the business that we elect to acquire. As a result, our management may not be able to adequately ascertain or assess all of the significant risk factors. Accordingly, any stockholders who choose to remain stockholders following our business combination could suffer a reduction in the value of their shares. Such stockholders are unlikely to have a remedy for such reduction in value.
If we effect our initial business combination with a company with operations or opportunities outside of the United States, we would be subject to a variety of additional risks that may negatively impact our operations.
If we effect our initial business combination with a company with operations or opportunities outside of the United States, we would be subject to any special considerations or risks associated with companies operating in an international setting, including any of the following:
| • | higher costs and difficulties inherent in managing cross-border business operations and complying with different commercial and legal requirements of overseas markets; |
| • | rules and regulations regarding currency redemption; |
| • | complex corporate withholding taxes on individuals; |
| • | laws governing the manner in which future business combinations may be effected; |
| • | tariffs and trade barriers; |
| • | regulations related to customs and import/export matters; |
| • | longer payment cycles and challenges in collecting accounts receivable; |
| • | tax issues, such as tax law changes and variations in tax laws as compared to the United States; |
| • | currency fluctuations and exchange controls; |
| • | rates of inflation; |
| • | cultural and language differences; |
| • | employment regulations; |
| • | crime, strikes, riots, civil disturbances, terrorist attacks, natural disasters and wars; |
| • | deterioration of political relations with the United States; and |
| • | government appropriations of assets. |
We may not be able to adequately address these additional risks. If we were unable to do so, our operations might suffer, which may adversely impact our results of operations and financial condition.
34
Although we have identified general criteria and guidelines that we believe are important in evaluating prospective target businesses, we may enter into our initial business combination with a target that does not meet such criteria and guidelines, and as a result, the target business with which we enter into our initial business combination may not have attributes entirely consistent with our general criteria and guidelines.
Although we have identified general criteria and guidelines for evaluating prospective target businesses, it is possible that a target business with which we enter into our initial business combination will not have all of these positive attributes. If we complete our initial business combination with a target that does not meet some or all of these guidelines, such combination may not be as successful as a combination with a business that does meet all of our general criteria and guidelines. In addition, if we announce a prospective business combination with a target that does not meet our general criteria and guidelines, a greater number of stockholders may exercise their redemption rights, which may make it difficult for us to meet any closing condition with a target business that requires us to have a minimum net worth or a certain amount of cash. In addition, if stockholder approval of the transaction is required by law, or we decide to obtain stockholder approval for business or other legal reasons, it may be more difficult for us to attain stockholder approval of our initial business combination if the target business does not meet our general criteria and guidelines. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.20 per share on the liquidation of our trust account and our warrants will expire worthless.
We may seek acquisition opportunities with a financially unstable business or an entity lacking an established record of revenue or earnings, which could subject us to volatile revenues or earnings or difficulty in retaining key personnel.
To the extent we complete our initial business combination with a financially unstable business or an entity lacking an established record of revenues or earnings, we may be affected by numerous risks inherent in the operations of the business with which we combine. These risks include volatile revenues or earnings and difficulties in obtaining and retaining key personnel. Although our officers and directors will endeavor to evaluate the risks inherent in a particular target business, we may not be able to properly ascertain or assess all of the significant risk factors and we may not have adequate time to complete due diligence. Furthermore, some of these risks may be outside of our control and leave us with no ability to control or reduce the chances that those risks will adversely impact a target business.
We are not required to obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm or from an independent accounting firm, and consequently, you may have no assurance from an independent source that the price we are paying for the business is fair to our company from a financial point of view.
Unless we complete our business combination with an affiliated entity or our board cannot independently determine the fair market value of the target business or businesses, we are not required to obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm that is a member of FINRA or from an independent accounting firm that the price we are paying is fair to our company from a financial point of view. If no opinion is obtained, our stockholders will be relying on the judgment of our board of directors, who will determine fair market value based on standards generally accepted by the financial community. Such standards used will be disclosed in our tender offer documents or proxy solicitation materials, as applicable, related to our initial business combination.
Our stockholders may be held liable for claims by third parties against us to the extent of distributions received by them upon redemption of their shares.
Under the DGCL, stockholders may be held liable for claims by third parties against a corporation to the extent of distributions received by them in a dissolution. The pro rata portion of our trust account distributed to our public stockholders upon the redemption of our public shares in the event we do not complete our initial business combination within 18 months (or 24 months, if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination) from the closing of our initial public offering may be considered a liquidating distribution under Delaware law. If a corporation complies with certain procedures set forth in Section 280 of the DGCL intended to ensure that it makes reasonable provision for all claims against it, including a 60-day notice period during which any third-party claims can be brought against the corporation, a 90-day period during which the corporation may reject any claims brought, and an additional 150-day waiting period before any liquidating distributions are made to stockholders, any liability of stockholders with respect to a liquidating distribution is limited to the lesser of such stockholder’s pro rata share of the claim or the amount distributed to the stockholder, and any liability of the stockholder would be barred after the third anniversary of the dissolution. However, it is our intention to redeem our public shares as soon as reasonably possible following the 18th month (or 24th month, if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination) from the closing of our initial public offering in the event we do not complete our business combination and, therefore, we do not intend to comply with the foregoing procedures.
35
Because we will not be complying with Section 280, Section 281(b) of the DGCL requires us to adopt a plan, based on facts known to us at such time that will provide for our payment of all existing and pending claims or claims that may be potentially brought against us within the 10 years following our dissolution. However, because we are a blank check company, rather than an operating company, and our operations will be limited to searching for prospective target businesses to acquire, the only likely claims to arise would be from our vendors (such as lawyers, investment bankers, etc.) or prospective target businesses. If our plan of distribution complies with Section 281(b) of the DGCL, any liability of stockholders with respect to a liquidating distribution is limited to the lesser of such stockholder’s pro rata share of the claim or the amount distributed to the stockholder, and any liability of the stockholder would likely be barred after the third anniversary of the dissolution. We cannot assure you that we will properly assess all claims that may be potentially brought against us. As such, our stockholders could potentially be liable for any claims to the extent of distributions received by them (but no more) and any liability of our stockholders may extend beyond the third anniversary of such date. Furthermore, if the pro rata portion of our trust account distributed to our public stockholders upon the redemption of our public shares in the event we do not complete our initial business combination within 18 months (or 24 months, if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination) from the closing of our initial public offering is not considered a liquidating distribution under Delaware law and such redemption distribution is deemed to be unlawful, then pursuant to Section 174 of the DGCL, the statute of limitations for claims of creditors could then be six years after the unlawful redemption distribution, instead of three years, as in the case of a liquidating distribution.
Compliance obligations under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act may make it more difficult for us to effectuate our initial business combination, require substantial financial and management resources, and increase the time and costs of completing an acquisition.
Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires that we evaluate and report on our system of internal controls over financial reporting beginning with our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ending December 31, 2022. Only in the event we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer or an accelerated filer and no longer qualify as an emerging growth company, will we be required to comply with the independent registered public accounting firm attestation requirement on our internal control over financial reporting. The fact that we are a blank check company makes compliance with the requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act particularly burdensome on us as compared to other public companies because a target company with which we seek to complete our business combination may not be in compliance with the provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act regarding adequacy of its internal controls. The development of the internal control over financial reporting of any such entity to achieve compliance with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act may increase the time and costs necessary to complete any such acquisition.
Resources could be wasted in researching acquisitions that are not completed, which could materially adversely affect subsequent attempts to locate and acquire or merge with another business. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.20 per share, or less than such amount in certain circumstances, on the liquidation of our trust account and our warrants will expire worthless.
We anticipate that the investigation of each specific target business and the negotiation, drafting and execution of relevant agreements, disclosure documents and other instruments will require substantial management time and attention and substantial costs for accountants, attorneys and others. If we decide not to complete a specific initial business combination, the costs incurred up to that point for the proposed transaction likely would not be recoverable. Furthermore, if we reach an agreement relating to a specific target business, we may fail to complete our initial business combination for any number of reasons including those beyond our control. Any such event will result in a loss to us of the related costs incurred which could materially adversely affect subsequent attempts to locate and acquire or merge with another business. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.20 per share on the liquidation of our trust account and our warrants will expire worthless.
36
We may only be able to complete one business combination with the proceeds of our initial public offering and the sale of the private placement warrants, which will cause us to be solely dependent on a single business which may have a limited number of products or services. This lack of diversification may negatively impact our operations and profitability.
Of the net proceeds from our initial public offering and the sale of the private placement warrants (including the full exercise by the underwriters of their over-allotment option), as of December 31, 2021, approximately $305 million is available to complete our business combination and pay related fees and expenses (which includes $10,465,000 for the payment of deferred underwriting commissions).
We may effectuate our business combination with a single target business or multiple target businesses simultaneously or within a short period of time. However, we may not be able to effectuate our business combination with more than one target business because of various factors, including the existence of complex accounting issues and the requirement that we prepare and file pro forma financial statements with the SEC that present operating results and the financial condition of several target businesses as if they had been operated on a combined basis. By completing our initial business combination with only a single business, our lack of diversification may subject us to numerous economic, competitive and regulatory developments. Further, we would not be able to diversify our operations or benefit from the possible spreading of risks or offsetting of losses, unlike other entities which may have the resources to complete several business combinations in different industries or different areas of a single industry. In addition, we are focusing our search for an initial business combination in a single industry. Accordingly, the prospects for our success may be:
| • | solely dependent upon the performance of a single business, property or asset; or |
| • | dependent upon the development or market acceptance of a single or limited number of products, processes or services. |
This lack of diversification may subject us to numerous economic, competitive and regulatory developments, any or all of which may have a substantial adverse impact upon the particular industry in which we may operate subsequent to our business combination.
We may attempt to simultaneously complete business combinations with multiple prospective targets, which may hinder our ability to complete our business combination and give rise to increased costs and risks that could negatively impact our operations and profitability.
If we determine to simultaneously acquire several businesses that are owned by different sellers, we will need for each of such sellers to agree that our purchase of its business is contingent on the simultaneous closings of the other business combinations, which may make it more difficult for us, and delay our ability, to complete our initial business combination. With multiple business combinations, we could also face additional risks, including additional burdens and costs with respect to possible multiple negotiations and due diligence investigations (if there are multiple sellers) and the additional risks associated with the subsequent assimilation of the operations and services or products of the acquired companies in a single operating business. If we are unable to adequately address these risks, it could negatively impact our profitability and results of operations.
We may have a limited ability to assess the management of a prospective target business and, as a result, may affect our initial business combination with a target business whose management may not have the skills, qualifications or abilities to manage a public company, which could, in turn, negatively impact the value of our stockholders’ investment in us.
When evaluating the desirability of effecting our initial business combination with a prospective target business, our ability to assess the target business’ management may be limited due to a lack of time, resources or information. Our assessment of the capabilities of the target’s management, therefore, may prove to be incorrect and such management may lack the skills, qualifications or abilities we suspected. Should the target’s management not possess the skills, qualifications or abilities necessary to manage a public company, the operations and profitability of the post-combination business may be negatively impacted. Accordingly, any stockholders who choose to remain stockholders following the business combination could suffer a reduction in the value of their shares. Such stockholders are unlikely to have a remedy for such reduction in value.
We may attempt to complete our initial business combination with a private company about which little information is available, which may result in a business combination with a company that is not as profitable as we suspected, if at all.
In pursuing our acquisition strategy, we may seek to effectuate our initial business combination with a privately held company. By definition, very little public information exists about private companies, and we could be required to make our decision on whether to pursue a potential initial business combination on the basis of limited information, which may result in a business combination with a company that is not as profitable as we suspected, if at all.
37
If we effect a business combination with a target company organized in another jurisdiction, we may take actions in connection with the business combination that could have adverse tax consequences.
We may effect a business combination with a target company in another jurisdiction, reincorporate in the jurisdiction in which the target company or business is located or reincorporate in another jurisdiction. Such transactions may result in tax liability for a stockholder or warrantholder in the jurisdiction in which the stockholder or warrantholder is a tax resident (or in which its members are resident if it is a tax transparent entity), in which the target company is located or in which we reincorporate. In the event of a reincorporation pursuant to our initial business combination, such tax liability may attach prior to the consummation of redemptions of any of our public shares properly submitted to us for redemption in connection with such business combination. We do not intend to make any cash distributions to stockholders to pay such taxes. Stockholders or warrantholders may be subject to withholding taxes or other taxes with respect to their ownership of us after the reincorporation.
We may engage one or more of the underwriters of our initial public offering or one of their respective affiliates to provide additional services to us after our initial public offering, which may include acting as financial advisor in connection with an initial business combination or as placement agent in connection with a related financing transaction. Our underwriters are entitled to receive deferred underwriting commissions that will be released from the trust account only upon a completion of an initial business combination. These financial incentives may cause them to have potential conflicts of interest in rendering any such additional services to us after our initial public offering, including, for example, in connection with the sourcing and consummation of an initial business combination.
We may engage one or more of our underwriters of our initial public offering or one of their respective affiliates to provide additional services, including, for example, identifying potential targets, providing financial advisory services, acting as a placement agent in a private offering or arranging debt financing transactions. We may pay such underwriter or its affiliate fair and reasonable fees or other compensation that would be determined at that time in an arm’s length negotiation. The underwriters are also entitled to receive deferred underwriting commissions that are conditioned on the completion of an initial business combination. The underwriters’ or their respective affiliates’ financial interests tied to the consummation of a business combination transaction may give rise to potential conflicts of interest in providing any such additional services to us, including potential conflicts of interest in connection with the sourcing and consummation of an initial business combination.
Risks Relating to Our Sponsor and Our Management Team
Our officers and directors will allocate their time to other businesses thereby causing conflicts of interest in their determination as to how much time to devote to our affairs. This conflict of interest could have a negative impact on our ability to complete our initial business combination.
Our officers and directors are not required to, and will not, commit their full time to our affairs, which may result in a conflict of interest in allocating their time between our operations and our search for a business combination and their other businesses. We do not intend to have any full-time employees prior to the completion of our initial business combination. Each of our officers is engaged in other business endeavors for which he may be entitled to substantial compensation, and our officers are not obligated to contribute any specific number of hours per week to our affairs. Any such businesses may present additional conflicts of interest in pursuing an acquisition target. Our independent directors also serve as officers or board members for other entities. If our officers’ and directors’ other business affairs require them to devote substantial amounts of time to such affairs in excess of their current commitment levels, it could limit their ability to devote time to our affairs which may have a negative impact on our ability to complete our initial business combination.
Certain of our officers and directors may be, or in the future may become, affiliated with entities engaged in business activities similar to those intended to be conducted by us and, accordingly, may have conflicts of interest in allocating their time and determining to which entity a particular business opportunity should be presented.
Until we consummate our initial business combination, we intend to engage in the business of identifying and combining with one or more businesses. Our sponsor and officers and directors may in the future become affiliated with entities that are engaged in a similar business.
38
Our officers and directors also may become aware of business opportunities which may be appropriate for presentation to us and the other entities to which they owe certain fiduciary or contractual duties. Accordingly, they may have conflicts of interest in determining to which entity a particular business opportunity should be presented. These conflicts may not be resolved in our favor and a potential target business may be presented to another entity prior to its presentation to us. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that we renounce our interest in any corporate opportunity offered to any director or officer unless such opportunity is expressly offered to such person solely in his or her capacity as a director or officer of our company and such opportunity is one we are legally and contractually permitted to undertake and would otherwise be reasonable for us to pursue.
Our officers, directors, security holders and their respective affiliates may have competitive pecuniary interests that conflict with our interests.
We have not adopted a policy that expressly prohibits our directors, officers, security holders or affiliates from having a direct or indirect pecuniary or financial interest in any investment to be acquired or disposed of by us or in any transaction to which we are a party or have an interest. In fact, we may enter into a business combination with a target business that is affiliated with our sponsor, our directors or officers, although we do not intend to do so. We do not have a policy that expressly prohibits any such persons from engaging for their own account in business activities of the types conducted by us. Accordingly, such persons or entities may have a conflict between their interests and ours.
Since our sponsor, officers and directors will lose their entire investment in us if our business combination is not completed, a conflict of interest may arise in determining whether a particular business combination target is appropriate for our initial business combination.
On January 21, 2021, our sponsor purchased 8,625,000 founder shares for an aggregate purchase price of $25,000, or approximately $0.003 per share. The per share purchase price of the founder shares was determined by dividing the amount of cash contributed to the company by the aggregate number of founder shares issued. The number of founder shares issued was determined based on the expectation that such founder shares would represent 20% of the outstanding shares after our initial public offering. On February 4, 2021, we effected a forward stock split that increased the number of founder shares held by our sponsor from 8,625,000 to 11,500,000. In March and April 2021, our sponsor transferred 35,000 founder shares to each of our independent directors and to Darius Adamczyk, one of our advisors. On July 12, 2021, our sponsor surrendered, for no consideration, an aggregate of 5,031,250 founder shares, which we canceled, resulting in an aggregate of 6,328,750 founder shares held by our sponsor. Immediately prior to the consummation of our initial public offering, we effected a stock dividend with respect to our Class B common stock, resulting in an aggregate of 7,475,000 shares of Class B common stock outstanding (up to 975,000 of which were subject to forfeiture by our sponsor to the extent that the underwriters’ option to purchase additional units was not exercised in full or in part). The purpose of effecting such stock dividend was to maintain the number of founder shares at 20% of the issued and outstanding shares of our common stock upon the consummation of our initial public offering. The underwriters exercised their over-allotment option in full on November 8, 2021; thus, such 975,000 founder shares are no longer subject to forfeiture. The founder shares will be worthless if we do not complete an initial business combination. In addition, our sponsor purchased 14,960,000 private placement warrants, each exercisable for one share of our Class A common stock at $11.50 per share, for an aggregate purchase price of $14,960,000, or $1.00 per warrant, that will also be worthless if we do not complete a business combination. Holders of founder shares have agreed (A) to vote any shares owned by them in favor of any proposed business combination and (B) not to redeem any founder shares in connection with a stockholder vote to approve a proposed initial business combination. In addition, we may obtain loans from our sponsor, affiliates of our sponsor or an officer or director. The personal and financial interests of our officers and directors may influence their motivation in identifying and selecting a target business combination, completing an initial business combination and influencing the operation of the business following the initial business combination.
Since our officers and directors will be eligible to share in a portion of any appreciation in founder shares purchased at approximately $0.003 per share, a conflict of interest may arise in determining whether a particular business combination target is appropriate for our initial business combination.
The members of our management team have invested in our sponsor by subscribing for units issued by the sponsor. These officers and directors will not receive any cash compensation from us prior to a business combination but through their investment in the sponsor will be eligible to share in a portion of any appreciation in founder shares and private placement warrants, provided that we successfully complete a business combination. We believe that this structure aligns the incentives of these officers and directors with the interests of our stockholders. However, investors should be aware that, as these officers and directors have paid approximately $0.003 per share for the interest in the founder shares, this structure also creates an incentive whereby our officers and directors could potentially make a substantial profit even if we complete a business combination with a target that ultimately declines in value and is not profitable for public investors.
39
Murray Grainger, our Chief Executive Officer and one of our directors, is a party to non-competition agreements that could limit the companies and businesses that we may target for an initial business combination. This could negatively impact our prospects for an initial business combination.
Murray Grainger, our Chief Executive Officer and one of our directors, is a party to written restrictive covenant agreements with his former employer, Honeywell. The agreements preclude Mr. Grainger from, without the written consent of Honeywell, becoming associated with (including as an employee, officer, director, principal, agent, manager, partner, consultant or representative of) any competing business of Honeywell for a period of two years after his termination of employment, ending in March 2023. The restrictions may not apply if Mr. Grainger demonstrates that he will only become associated with a line of business in, or part of, a competing business that does not compete with Honeywell. The restrictions inure to the benefit of Honeywell and its predecessors, successors, designees and assignees, and its subsidiaries, affiliates, divisions and business units. Honeywell has not to-date provided any waiver or consent with respect to any of the agreements described above, and no assurance can be given that Honeywell would in the future provide any consent on terms satisfactory to us or at all with respect to such agreements. The process of obtaining any necessary waiver or consent may delay our initial business combination or later business activities.
As a result of the restrictive covenant agreements, we may be precluded from pursuing an initial business combination with certain businesses. In addition, if our initial business combination does not cause Mr. Grainger to violate any of the agreements described above, no assurance can be given that the combined company would not in the future engage in activities which would cause Mr. Grainger to be in breach of any such agreement. If a court were to conclude that a violation of any such agreement had occurred (and depending on the jurisdiction in which litigation is commenced), it could delay or enjoin Mr. Grainger from participating in our company, or delay or enjoin us from engaging in aspects of the business which compete with Honeywell, as applicable. The court could also award monetary damages against Mr. Grainger or us. Even if ultimately resolved in our favor, any litigation associated with the restrictive covenant agreements could be time consuming, costly and distract management’s focus from locating suitable acquisition candidates and operating our business. This could materially harm our business, reputation and the trading prices of our securities. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.20 per share, or less in certain circumstances, on the liquidation of our trust account and our warrants will expire worthless. Please see “—If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in the trust account could be reduced and the per-share redemption amount received by stockholders may be less than $10.20 per share” and other risk factors herein.
Our ability to successfully effect our initial business combination and to be successful thereafter will be totally dependent upon the efforts of our key personnel, some of whom may join us following our initial business combination. The loss of key personnel could negatively impact the operations and profitability of our post-combination business.
Our ability to successfully effect our business combination is dependent upon the efforts of our key personnel. The role of our key personnel in the target business, however, cannot presently be ascertained. Although some of our key personnel may remain with the target business in senior management or advisory positions following our business combination, it is likely that some or all of the management of the target business will remain in place. While we intend to closely scrutinize any individuals we engage after our initial business combination, we cannot assure you that our assessment of these individuals will prove to be correct. These individuals may be unfamiliar with the requirements of operating a company regulated by the SEC, which could cause us to have to expend time and resources helping them become familiar with such requirements.
In addition, the officers and directors of an acquisition candidate may resign upon completion of our initial business combination. The departure of a business combination target’s key personnel could negatively impact the operations and profitability of our post-combination business. The role of an acquisition candidate’s key personnel upon the completion of our initial business combination cannot be ascertained at this time. Although we contemplate that certain members of an acquisition candidate’s management team will remain associated with the acquisition candidate following our initial business combination, it is possible that members of the management of an acquisition candidate will not wish to remain in place. The loss of key personnel could negatively impact the operations and profitability of our post-combination business.
Our key personnel may negotiate employment or consulting agreements with a target business in connection with a
40
particular business combination. These agreements may provide for them to receive compensation following our business combination and as a result, may cause them to have conflicts of interest in determining whether a particular business combination is the most advantageous.
Our key personnel may be able to remain with the company after the completion of our business combination only if they are able to negotiate employment or consulting agreements in connection with the business combination. Such negotiations would take place simultaneously with the negotiation of the business combination and could provide for such individuals to receive compensation in the form of cash payments and/or our securities for services they would render to us after the completion of the business combination. The personal and financial interests of such individuals may influence their motivation in identifying and selecting a target business. However, we believe the ability of such individuals to remain with us after the completion of our business combination will not be the determining factor in our decision as to whether or not we will proceed with any potential business combination. There is no certainty, however, that any of our key personnel will remain with us after the completion of our business combination. We cannot assure you that any of our key personnel will remain in senior management or advisory positions with us. The determination as to whether any of our key personnel will remain with us will be made at the time of our initial business combination. In addition, pursuant to an agreement entered into concurrently with the issuance and sale of the securities in our initial public offering, our sponsor, upon consummation of an initial business combination, will be entitled to nominate three individuals for election to our board of directors.
We may engage in a business combination with one or more target businesses that have relationships with entities that may be affiliated with our sponsor, officers, directors or existing holders which may raise potential conflicts of interest.
In light of the involvement of our sponsor, officers and directors with other entities, we may decide to acquire one or more businesses affiliated with our sponsor, officers or directors. Our directors also serve as officers and board members for other entities. They may also have investments in target businesses. Such entities may compete with us for business combination opportunities. Although we are not specifically focusing on, or targeting, any transaction with any affiliated entities, we would pursue such a transaction if we determined that such affiliated entity met our criteria for a business combination and such transaction was approved by a majority of our disinterested directors. Despite our agreement to obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm that is a member of FINRA, or from an independent accounting firm, regarding the fairness to our company from a financial point of view of a business combination with one or more domestic or international businesses affiliated with our officers, directors or existing holders, potential conflicts of interest still may exist and, as a result, the terms of the business combination may not be as advantageous to our public stockholders as they would be absent any conflicts of interest.
Our management may not be able to maintain control of a target business after our initial business combination.
We may structure a business combination so that the post-transaction company in which our public stockholders own shares will own less than 100% of the equity interests or assets of a target business, but we will only complete such business combination if the post-transaction company owns or acquires 50% or more of the outstanding voting securities of the target or otherwise acquires a controlling interest in the target sufficient for us not to be required to register as an investment company under the Investment Company Act. We will not consider any transaction that does not meet such criteria. Even if the post-transaction company owns 50% or more of the voting securities of the target, our stockholders prior to the business combination may collectively own a minority interest in the post business combination company, depending on valuations ascribed to the target and us in the business combination transaction. For example, we could pursue a transaction in which we issue a substantial number of new shares of Class A common stock in exchange for all of the outstanding capital stock of a target. In this case, we would acquire a 100% interest in the target. However, as a result of the issuance of a substantial number of new shares of common stock, our stockholders immediately prior to such transaction could own less than a majority of our outstanding shares of common stock subsequent to such transaction. In addition, other minority stockholders may subsequently combine their holdings resulting in a single person or group obtaining a larger share of the company’s stock than we initially acquired. Accordingly, this may make it more likely that our management will not be able to maintain our control of the target business. We cannot provide assurance that, upon loss of control of a target business, new management will possess the skills, qualifications or abilities necessary to profitably operate such business.
41
Our initial stockholders may exert a substantial influence on actions requiring a stockholder vote, potentially in a manner that you do not support.
Our initial stockholders own shares representing 20% of our issued and outstanding shares of common stock. Accordingly, they may exert a substantial influence on actions requiring a stockholder vote, potentially in a manner that you do not support, including amendments to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and approval of major corporate transactions. If our initial stockholders purchase any additional shares of common stock in the aftermarket or in privately negotiated transactions, this would increase their control. Factors that would be considered in making such additional purchases would include consideration of the current trading price of our Class A common stock. In addition, our board of directors, whose members were elected by our initial stockholders, is divided into three classes, with only one class of directors being elected in each year, and with each class (except for those directors appointed prior to our first annual meeting of stockholders) serving a three-year term. We may not hold an annual meeting of stockholders to elect new directors prior to the completion of our business combination, in which case all of the current directors will continue in office until at least the completion of the business combination. If there is an annual meeting, as a consequence of our “staggered” board of directors, only a minority of the board of directors will be considered for election and our initial stockholders, because of their ownership position, will have considerable influence regarding the outcome. In addition, prior to the completion of an initial business combination, holders of a majority of our founder shares may remove a member of the board of directors for any reason. In addition, we have agreed not to enter into a definitive agreement regarding an initial business combination without the prior consent of our sponsor.
Risks Relating to Our Securities
The NYSE may delist our securities from trading on its exchange, which could limit investors’ ability to make transactions in our securities and subject us to additional trading restrictions.
Our units, Class A common stock and public warrants are currently listed on the NYSE. However, our securities may not continue to be listed on the NYSE in the future or prior to our initial business combination. In order to continue listing our securities on the NYSE prior to our initial business combination, we must maintain certain financial, distribution and stock price levels. Additionally, in connection with our initial business combination, we will be required to demonstrate compliance with the NYSE’s initial listing requirements, which are more rigorous than the NYSE’s continued listing requirements, in order to continue to maintain the listing of our securities on the NYSE. For instance, our stock price would generally be required to be at least $4.00 per share and we must have 400 round lot holders upon the consummation of our initial business combination. We may not be able to meet those initial listing requirements at that time.
If the NYSE delists our securities from trading on its exchange and we are not able to list our securities on another national securities exchange, we expect our securities could be quoted on an over-the-counter market. If this were to occur, we could face significant material adverse consequences, including:
| • | a limited availability of market quotations for our securities; |
| • | reduced liquidity for our securities; |
| • | a determination that our Class A common stock is a “penny stock” which will require brokers trading in our Class A common stock to adhere to more stringent rules and possibly result in a reduced level of trading activity in the secondary trading market for our securities; |
| • | a limited amount of news and analyst coverage; and |
| • | a decreased ability to issue additional securities or obtain additional financing in the future. |
The National Securities Markets Improvement Act of 1996, which is a federal statute, prevents or preempts the states from regulating the sale of certain securities, which are referred to as “covered securities.” Because our units, Class A common stock and warrants are listed on the NYSE, our units, Class A common stock and warrants are covered securities. Although the states are preempted from regulating the sale of covered securities, the federal statute does allow the states to investigate companies if there is a suspicion of fraud, and, if there is a finding of fraudulent activity, then the states can regulate or bar the sale of covered securities in a particular case. While we are not aware of a state having used these powers to prohibit or restrict the sale of securities issued by blank check companies, other than the State of Idaho, certain state securities regulators view blank check companies unfavorably and might use these powers, or threaten to use these powers, to hinder the sale of securities of blank check companies in their states. Further, if we were no longer listed on the NYSE, our securities would not be covered securities and we would be subject to regulation in each state in which we offer our securities.
42
We may amend the terms of the warrants in a manner that may be adverse to holders with the approval by the holders of at least 50% of the then outstanding public warrants, or for amendments necessary for the warrants to be classified as equity. As a result, the exercise price of your warrants could be increased, the exercise period could be shortened, the number of shares of our Class A common stock purchasable upon exercise of a warrant could be decreased or we could make other changes, all without your approval.
Our warrants were issued in registered form under a warrant agreement between Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, as warrant agent, and us (the “warrant agreement”). The warrant agreement provides that the terms of the warrants may be amended without the consent of any holder for the purpose of (i) curing any ambiguity or correct any mistake, including to conform the provisions of the warrant agreement to the description of the terms of the warrants and the warrant agreement set forth in the final prospectus associated with our initial public offering, or defective provision, (ii) amending the provisions relating to cash dividends on shares of common stock as contemplated by and in accordance with the warrant agreement, (iii) making any amendments that are necessary in the good faith determination of our board of directors (taking into account then existing market precedents for initial public offerings of special purpose acquisition companies underwritten by bulge bracket investment banks) to allow for the warrants to be classified as equity in our financial statements; provided that this clause (iii) will not allow any modification or amendment to the warrant agreement that would adversely affect the rights of the registered holders of the public warrants, including by increasing the exercise price of the warrants or shortening the exercise period, which shall require the vote or consent as described below, (iv) removing any cap on the number of shares of Class A common stock issuable upon a “cashless exercise,” deleting Section 6.2 of the warrant agreement or amending the terms of the private placement warrants, to provide that the terms of the private placement warrants will not change if transferred to persons other than permitted transferees or to conform the provisions of the private placement warrants to the terms of the public warrants or (v) adding or changing any provisions arising under the warrant agreement as the parties to the warrant agreement may deem necessary or desirable and that the parties deem to not adversely affect the rights of the registered holders of the warrants in any material respect, provided that the approval by the holders of at least 50% of the then-outstanding public warrants to make any change that adversely affects the interests of the registered holders of public warrants. Accordingly, we may amend the terms of the public warrants in a manner adverse to a holder if holders of at least 50% of the then-outstanding public warrants approve of such amendment and, with respect to any amendment to the terms of the private placement warrants, 50% of the number of the then outstanding private placement warrants. Although our ability to amend the terms of the public warrants with the consent of at least 50% of the then-outstanding public warrants is unlimited, examples of such amendments could be amendments to, among other things, increase the exercise price of the warrants, convert the warrants into cash, shorten the exercise period or decrease the number of shares of Class A common stock purchasable upon exercise of a warrant.
You will not be permitted to exercise your warrants unless we register and qualify the issuance of the underlying Class A common stock or certain exemptions are available.
If the issuance of the Class A common stock upon the exercise of the warrants is not registered, qualified or exempt from registration or qualification under the Securities Act and applicable state securities laws, warrantholders will not be entitled to exercise such warrants and such warrants may have no value and expire worthless.
While we have registered the Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants under the Securities Act as part of the registration statement associated with our initial public offering, we do not plan on keeping a prospectus current until required to pursuant to the warrant agreement. However, under the terms of the warrant agreement, we have agreed that as soon as practicable, but in no event later than 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 our initial public offering or a new registration statement for the registration, under the Securities Act, of the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants and thereafter will use our commercially reasonable efforts to cause the same to become effective within 60 business days following our initial business combination and to maintain a current prospectus relating to the Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants, until the expiration of the warrants in accordance with the provisions of the warrant agreement. We cannot assure you that we will be able to do so if, for example, any facts or events arise which represent a fundamental change in the information set forth in the registration
43
statement or prospectus, the financial statements contained or incorporated by reference therein are not current or correct or the SEC issues a stop order. If the shares issuable upon exercise of the warrants are not registered under the Securities Act, we will be required to permit holders to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis. However, no warrant will be exercisable for cash or on a cashless basis, and we will not be obligated to issue any shares to holders seeking to exercise their warrants, unless the issuance of the shares upon such exercise is registered or qualified under the securities laws of the state of the exercising holder, or an exemption from registration is available. Notwithstanding the above, if our Class A common stock is at the time of any exercise of a warrant not listed on a national securities exchange such that it satisfies the definition of a “covered security” under Section 18(b)(1) of the Securities Act, we may, at our option, require holders of 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 so elect, we will not be required to file or maintain in effect a registration statement, but we will be required to use our commercially reasonable efforts to register or qualify the shares under applicable blue sky laws to the extent an exemption is not available. In no event will we be required to net cash settle any warrant, or issue securities or other compensation in exchange for the warrants in the event that we are unable to register or qualify the shares underlying the warrants under applicable state securities laws and there is no exemption available. If the issuance of the shares upon exercise of the warrants is not so registered or qualified or exempt from registration or qualification, the holder of such warrant shall not be entitled to exercise such warrant and such warrant may have no value and expire worthless. In such event, holders who acquired their warrants as part of a purchase of units will have paid the full unit purchase price solely for the shares of Class A common stock included in the units. 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 shares of Class A common stock for sale under all applicable state securities laws.
If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination and we do not conduct redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules, and if you or a “group” of stockholders are deemed to hold in excess of 15% of our Class A common stock, you will lose the ability to redeem all such shares in excess of 15% of our Class A common stock.
If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination and we do not conduct redemptions in connection with our initial business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that a public stockholder, together with any affiliate of such stockholder or any other person with whom such stockholder is acting in concert or as a “group” (as defined under Section 13 of the Exchange Act), will be restricted from seeking redemption rights with respect to more than an aggregate of 15% of the shares sold in our initial public offering, which we refer to as the “Excess Shares.” However, we would not be restricting our stockholders’ ability to vote all of their shares (including Excess Shares) for or against our business combination. Your inability to redeem the Excess Shares will reduce your influence over our ability to complete our business combination and you could suffer a material loss on your investment in us if you sell Excess Shares in open market transactions. Additionally, you will not receive redemption distributions with respect to the Excess Shares if we complete our business combination. And as a result, you will continue to hold that number of shares exceeding 15% and, in order to dispose of such shares, would be required to sell your stock in open market transactions, potentially at a loss.
Our warrants are accounted for as a warrant liability and are recorded at fair value upon issuance with changes in fair value each period reported in earnings, which may have an adverse effect on the market price of our Class A common stock or may make it more difficult for us to consummate an initial business combination.
We account for our warrants as a warrant liability and such warrants are recorded at fair value upon issuance with any changes in fair value each period reported in earnings as determined by us based upon a valuation report obtained from an independent third party valuation firm. The impact of changes in fair value on earnings may have an adverse effect on the market price of our Class A common stock. In addition, potential targets may seek a special purpose acquisition company that does not have warrants that are accounted for as a warrant liability, which may make it more difficult for us to consummate an initial business combination with a target business.
We may issue additional common stock or preferred stock to complete our initial business combination or under an employee incentive plan after completion of our initial business combination. We may also issue shares of Class A common stock upon the conversion of the Class B common stock at a ratio greater than one-to-one at the time of our initial business combination as a result of the anti-dilution provisions contained in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation. Any such issuances would dilute the interest of our stockholders and likely present other risks.
44
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation authorizes the issuance of up to 500,000,000 shares of Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 per share, 50,000,000 shares of Class B common stock, par value $0.0001 per share, and 1,000,000 shares of preferred stock, par value $0.0001 per share. There are 470,100,000 and 42,525,000 authorized but unissued shares of Class A common stock and Class B common stock, respectively, available for issuance, excluding shares of Class A common stock reserved for issuance upon exercise of outstanding warrants and currently issuable upon conversion of Class B common stock. There are no shares of preferred stock issued and outstanding. Shares of Class B common stock are convertible into shares of our Class A common stock at a one-for-one ratio but subject to adjustment as set forth herein, including in certain circumstances in which we issue Class A common stock or equity-linked securities related to our initial business combination. Shares of Class B common stock are also convertible at the option of the holder at any time.
We may issue a substantial number of additional shares of common or preferred stock to complete our initial business combination or under an employee incentive plan after completion of our initial business combination. We may also issue shares of Class A common stock to redeem the warrants or upon conversion of the Class B common stock at a ratio greater than one-to-one at the time of our initial business combination as a result of the anti-dilution provisions contained in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation. However, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides, among other things, that prior to our initial business combination, we may not issue additional shares of capital stock that would entitle the holders thereof to (i) receive funds from the trust account or (ii) vote on any initial business combination. The issuance of additional shares of common or preferred stock:
| • | may significantly dilute the equity interest of investors in our initial public offering; |
| • | may subordinate the rights of holders of common stock if preferred stock is issued with rights senior to those afforded our common stock; |
| • | could cause a change of control if a substantial number of shares of our common stock are issued, which may affect, among other things, our ability to use our net operating loss carry forwards, if any, and could result in the resignation or removal of our present officers and directors; and |
| • | may adversely affect prevailing market prices for our units, Class A common stock and/or warrants. |
We may redeem your unexpired warrants prior to their exercise at a time that is disadvantageous to you, thereby making your warrants worthless.
We have the ability to redeem outstanding warrants at any time after they become exercisable and prior to their expiration, at a price of $0.01 per warrant, provided that the last reported sales price of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $18.00 per share for any 20 trading days within a 30 trading-day period ending on the third trading day prior to the date on which we give proper notice of such redemption and provided certain other conditions are met. 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. Redemption of the outstanding warrants could force you (i) to exercise your warrants and pay the exercise price therefor at a time when it may be disadvantageous for you to do so, (ii) to sell your warrants at the then-current market price when you might otherwise wish to hold your warrants or (iii) to accept the nominal redemption price which, at the time the outstanding warrants are called for redemption, is likely to be substantially less than the market value of your warrants. None of the private placement warrants will be redeemable by us so long as they are held by our sponsor or its permitted transferees.
In addition, we may redeem your warrants after they become exercisable for $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 prior to redemption for a number of Class A common stock determined based on the redemption date and the fair market value of our Class A common stock. Any such redemption may have similar consequences to a cash redemption described above. In addition, such redemption may occur at a time when the warrants are “out-of-the-money,” in which case you would lose any potential embedded value from a subsequent increase in the value of the Class A common stock had your warrants remained outstanding.
45
Our warrants and founder shares may have an adverse effect on the market price of our Class A common stock and make it more difficult to effectuate our business combination.
We issued warrants to purchase 14,950,000 shares of our Class A common stock as part of the units offered in our initial public offering (including pursuant to the full exercise by the underwriters of their over-allotment option) and, simultaneous with the closing of our initial public offering and the full exercise by the underwriters of their over-allotment option, we issued to our sponsor in a private placement an aggregate of 14,960,000 private placement warrants, each exercisable to purchase one share of Class A common stock at $11.50 per share, subject to adjustment. Prior to our initial public offering, our sponsor purchased 8,625,000 founder shares in a private placement. On February 4, 2021, we effected a forward stock split that increased the number of founder shares held by our sponsor from 8,625,000 to 11,500,000. In March and April 2021, our sponsor transferred 35,000 founder shares to each of our independent directors and to Darius Adamczyk, one of our advisors. On July 12, 2021, our sponsor surrendered, for no consideration, an aggregate of 5,031,250 founder shares, which we canceled, resulting in an aggregate of 6,328,750 founder shares held by our sponsor and an aggregate of 6,468,750 founder shares outstanding. Immediately prior to the consummation of our initial public offering, we effected a stock dividend with respect to our Class B common stock, resulting in an aggregate of 7,475,000 shares of Class B common stock outstanding. Up to 975,000 founder shares were subject to forfeiture by our sponsor to the extent that the underwriters’ option to purchase additional units was not exercised in full or in part. The underwriters exercised their over-allotment option in full on November 8, 2021; thus, such 975,000 founder shares are no longer subject to forfeiture. The founder shares are convertible into shares of Class A common stock on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment as set forth herein. In addition, if our sponsor makes any working capital loans, up to $1,500,000 of such loans may be converted into warrants, at the price of $1.00 per warrant at the option of the lender. Such warrants would be identical to the private placement warrants, including as to exercise price, exercisability and exercise period. Our public warrants are also redeemable by us for Class A common stock.
To the extent we issue shares of Class A common stock to effectuate a business combination, the potential for the issuance of a substantial number of additional shares of Class A common stock upon exercise of these warrants and conversion rights could make us a less attractive acquisition vehicle to a target business. Any such issuance will increase the number of issued and outstanding shares of our Class A common stock and reduce the value of the shares of Class A common stock issued to complete the business combination. Therefore, our warrants and founder shares may make it more difficult to effectuate a business combination or increase the cost of acquiring the target business.
The private placement warrants are identical to the warrants sold as part of the units in our initial public offering except that, so long as they are held by our sponsor or its permitted transferees, (i) they will not be redeemable by us, (ii) they (including the Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of these warrants) may not, subject to certain limited exceptions, be transferred, assigned or sold by our sponsor until 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination and (iii) they may be exercised by the holders on a cashless basis.
Our warrant agreement designates 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.
Our warrant agreement provides that, subject to applicable law, (i) any action, proceeding or claim against us arising out of or relating in any way to the warrant agreement, including under the Securities Act, will be brought and enforced in the courts of the State of New York or the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, and (ii) that we irrevocably submit to such jurisdiction, which jurisdiction shall be the exclusive forum for any such action, proceeding or claim. We will waive any objection to such exclusive jurisdiction and that such courts represent an inconvenient forum.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, these provisions of the warrant agreement will not apply to suits brought to enforce any liability or duty created by the Exchange Act or any other claim for which the federal district courts of the United States of America are the sole and exclusive forum. Any person or entity purchasing or otherwise acquiring any interest in any of our warrants shall be deemed to have notice of and to have consented to the forum provisions in our warrant agreement. If any action, the subject matter of which is within the scope the forum provisions of the warrant agreement, is filed in a court other than a court of the State of New York or the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (a “foreign action”) in the name of any holder of our warrants, such holder shall be deemed to have consented to: (x) the personal jurisdiction of the state and federal courts located in the State of New York in connection with any action brought in any such court to enforce the forum provisions (an “enforcement action”), and (y) having service of process made upon such warrant holder in any such enforcement action by service upon such warrant holder’s counsel in the foreign action as agent for such warrant holder.
46
This choice-of-forum provision may limit a warrant holder’s ability to bring a claim in a judicial forum that it finds favorable for disputes with our company, which may discourage such lawsuits. Alternatively, if a court were to find this provision of our warrant agreement inapplicable or unenforceable with respect to one or more of the specified types of actions or proceedings, we may incur additional costs associated with resolving such matters in other jurisdictions, which could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations and result in a diversion of the time and resources of our management and board of directors.
We are an emerging growth company and a smaller reporting company within the meaning of the Securities Act, and if we take advantage of certain exemptions from disclosure requirements available to emerging growth companies or smaller reporting companies, this could make our securities less attractive to investors and may make it more difficult to compare our performance with other public companies.
We are an “emerging growth company” within the meaning of the Securities Act, as modified by the JOBS Act, and we may take advantage of certain exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other public companies that are not emerging growth companies including, but not limited to, not being required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports and proxy statements, and exemptions from the requirements of holding a nonbinding advisory vote on executive compensation and stockholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved. As a result, our stockholders may not have access to certain information they may deem important. We could be an emerging growth company for up to five years, although circumstances could cause us to lose that status earlier, including if the market value of our Class A common stock held by non-affiliates exceeds $700 million as of the end of a prior fiscal year’s second fiscal quarter before that time, in which case we would no longer be an emerging growth company as of the following December 31. We cannot predict whether investors will find our securities less attractive because we will rely on these exemptions. If some investors find our securities less attractive as a result of our reliance on these exemptions, the trading prices of our securities may be lower than they otherwise would be, there may be a less active trading market for our securities and the trading prices of our securities may be more volatile.
Further, Section 102(b)(1) of the JOBS Act exempts emerging growth companies from being required to comply with new or revised financial accounting standards until private companies (that is, those that have not had a Securities Act registration statement declared effective or do not have a class of securities registered under the Exchange Act) are required to comply with the new or revised financial accounting standards. The JOBS Act provides that a company can elect to opt out of the extended transition period and comply with the requirements that apply to non-emerging growth companies but any such an election to opt out is irrevocable. We have elected not to opt out of such extended transition period, which means that when a standard is issued or revised and it has different application dates for public or private companies, we, as an emerging growth company, can adopt the new or revised standard at the time private companies adopt the new or revised standard. This may make comparison of our financial statements with another public company which is neither an emerging growth company nor an emerging growth company which has opted out of using the extended transition period difficult or impossible because of the potential differences in accountant standards used.
Additionally, we are a “smaller reporting company” as defined in Rule 10(f)(1) of Regulation S-K. Smaller reporting companies may take advantage of certain reduced disclosure obligations, including, among other things, providing only two years of audited financial statements. We will remain a smaller reporting company until the last day of the fiscal year in which (1) the market value of our common stock held by non-affiliates exceeds $250 million as of the end of the prior fiscal year’s second fiscal quarter, or (2) our annual revenues exceeded $100 million during such completed fiscal year and the market value of our common stock held by non-affiliates exceeds $700 million as of the end of the prior fiscal year’s second fiscal quarter. To the extent we take advantage of such reduced disclosure obligations, it may also make comparison of our financial statements with other public companies difficult or impossible.
Provisions in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and Delaware law may inhibit a takeover of us, which could limit the price investors might be willing to pay in the future for our Class A common stock and could entrench management.
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation contains provisions that may discourage unsolicited takeover proposals that stockholders may consider to be in their best interests. These provisions include a staggered board of directors and the ability of the board of directors to designate the terms of and issue new series of preferred shares, which may make the removal of management more difficult and may discourage transactions that otherwise could involve payment of a premium over prevailing market prices for our securities.
47
We are also subject to anti-takeover provisions under Delaware law, which could delay or prevent a change of control. Together these provisions may make the removal of management more difficult and may discourage transactions that otherwise could involve payment of a premium over prevailing market prices for our securities.
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation designates the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware as the sole and exclusive forum for certain types of actions and proceedings that may be initiated by our stockholders, which could limit our stockholders’ ability to obtain a favorable judicial forum for disputes with our company or our company’s directors, officers or other employees.
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that, unless we consent in writing to the selection of an alternative forum, the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware shall, to the fullest extent permitted by law, be the sole and exclusive forum for any (1) derivative action or proceeding brought on behalf of our company, (2) action asserting a claim of breach of a fiduciary duty owed by any director, officer, employee or agent of our company to our company or our stockholders, or any claim for aiding and abetting any such alleged breach, (3) action asserting a claim against our company or any director, or officer or employee of our company arising pursuant to any provision of the DGCL or our amended and restated certificate of incorporation or our amended and restated bylaws, or (4) action asserting a claim against us or any director, or officer or employee of our company governed by the internal affairs doctrine except for, as to each of (1) through (4) above, any claim as to which the Court of Chancery determines that there is an indispensable party not subject to the jurisdiction of the Court of Chancery (and the indispensable party does not consent to the personal jurisdiction of the Court of Chancery within ten days following such determination), which is vested in the exclusive jurisdiction of a court or forum other than the Court of Chancery, or for which the Court of Chancery does not have subject matter jurisdiction. Any person or entity purchasing or otherwise acquiring any interest in shares of our capital stock shall be deemed to have notice of and consented to the forum provisions in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation.
This choice of forum provision may limit a stockholder’s ability to bring a claim in a judicial forum that it finds favorable for disputes with us or any of our directors, officers, other employees or stockholders, which may discourage lawsuits with respect to such claims. Alternatively, if a court were to find the choice of forum provision contained in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation to be inapplicable or unenforceable in an action, we may incur additional costs associated with resolving such action in other jurisdictions, which could harm our business, operating results and financial condition.
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that the exclusive forum provision will be applicable to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, subject to certain exceptions. Section 27 of the Exchange Act creates exclusive federal jurisdiction over all suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Exchange Act or the rules and regulations thereunder. As a result, the exclusive forum provision will not apply to suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Exchange Act or any other claim for which the federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction. In addition, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that, unless we consent in writing to the selection of an alternative forum, the federal district courts of the United States of America shall, to the fullest extent permitted by law, be the exclusive forum for the resolution of any complaint asserting a cause of action arising under the Securities Act, or the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder. We note, however, that there is uncertainty as to whether a court would enforce this provision and that investors cannot waive compliance with the federal securities laws and the rules and regulations thereunder.
General Risks
We may face risks related to businesses in the industrial sector.
Business combinations with businesses in the industrial sector entail special considerations and risks. If we are successful in completing a business combination with such a target business, we may be subject to, and possibly adversely affected by, the following risks:
48
| • | the markets we may serve may be subject to general economic conditions and cyclical demand, which could lead to significant shifts in our results of operations from quarter to quarter that make it difficult to project long-term performance; |
| • | fluctuations in customer demand; |
| • | competition and consolidation of the specific sector of the industry within which the target business operates; |
| • | volatility in costs for strategic raw material and energy commodities or disruption in the supply of these commodities could adversely affect our financial results; |
| • | supplier stability, factory transitions and capacity constraints; |
| • | inability to obtain necessary insurance coverage for the target business’ operations; |
| • | additional expenses and delays due to technical problems, labor problems (including union disruptions) or other interruptions at our manufacturing facilities after our initial business combination; |
| • | work-related accidents that may expose us to liability claims; |
| • | our manufacturing processes and products not complying with applicable statutory and regulatory requirements, or if we manufacture products containing design or manufacturing defects, the demand for our products declining and potential liability claims; |
| • | litigation and other proceedings, including that we may be liable for damages based on product liability claims, and we may also be exposed to potential indemnity claims from customers for losses due to our work or if our employees are injured performing services; |
| • | warranty claims related to our products, and resulting reputational damage and incurrence of significant costs; |
| • | changes in industry standards; |
| • | changes in tariffs and other trade practices; |
| • | inability to protect our intellectual property rights; |
| • | our products and manufacturing processes being subject to technological change; |
| • | being subject to applicable laws and regulations of federal, state and provincial governments, including environmental and health and safety laws and regulations, and the costs of compliance with such regulations; |
| • | disruption or failure of networks, systems or technology as a result of computer viruses, “cyber-attacks,” misappropriation of data or other malfeasance, as well as outages, natural disasters, terrorist attacks, accidental releases of information or similar events; |
| • | fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates; and |
| • | the failure of our customers to pay the amounts owed to us in a timely manner. |
Any of the foregoing could have an adverse impact on our operations following a business combination. However, our efforts in identifying prospective target businesses will not be limited to the industrial sector. Accordingly, if we acquire a target business in another industry, these risks we will be subject to risks attendant with the specific industry in which we operate or target business which we acquire, which may or may not be different than those risks listed above.
49
Cyber incidents or attacks directed at us could result in information theft, data corruption, operational disruption and/or financial loss.
We depend on digital technologies, including information systems, infrastructure and cloud applications and services, including those of third parties with which we may deal. Sophisticated and deliberate attacks on, or security breaches in, our systems or infrastructure, or the systems or infrastructure of third parties or the cloud, could lead to corruption or misappropriation of our assets, proprietary information and sensitive or confidential data. As an early stage company without significant investments in data security protection, we may not be sufficiently protected against such occurrences. We may not have sufficient resources to adequately protect against, or to investigate and remediate any vulnerability to, cyber incidents. It is possible that any of these occurrences, or a combination of them, could have adverse consequences on our business and lead to financial loss.
| Item 1B. | Unresolved Staff Comments |
None.
| Item 2. | Properties |
Our executive offices are located at 3790 El Camino Real #818, Palo Alto, California 94306, and our telephone number is (650) 292-9660. Our executive offices are provided to us by an affiliate of our sponsor. Commencing on November 3, 2021, we have agreed to pay an affiliate of our sponsor a total of $10,000 per month for office space, utilities and secretarial and administrative support. We consider our current office space adequate for our current operations.
| Item 3. | Legal Proceedings |
To the knowledge of our management, there is no material litigation, arbitration or governmental proceeding currently pending against us or any members of our management team in their capacity as such.
| Item 4. | Mine Safety Disclosures |
Not applicable.
50
| Item 5. | Market for Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities |
(a) Market Information
Our units, Class A common stock and public warrants are each traded on the NYSE under the symbols “JUN.U,” “JUN” and “JUN WS,” respectively. Our units commenced public trading on November 4, 2021, and our Class A common stock and public warrants commenced public trading on December 23, 2021.
(b) Holders
On March 30, 2022, there was 1 holder of record of our units, 1 holder of record of our Class A common stock, 5 holders of record of our Class B common stock and 1 holder of record of our public warrants.
(c) Dividends
We have not paid any cash dividends on our common stock to date and do not intend to pay cash dividends prior to the completion of our initial business combination. The payment of cash dividends in the future will be dependent upon our revenues and earnings, if any, capital requirements, general financial condition and overall financial goals and objectives of our management team subsequent to completion of our initial business combination. The payment of any cash dividends subsequent to our initial business combination will be within the discretion of our board of directors at such time. In addition, our board of directors is not currently contemplating and does not anticipate declaring any stock dividends in the foreseeable future. Further, if we incur any indebtedness in connection with our business combination, our ability to declare dividends may be limited by restrictive covenants we may agree to in connection therewith.
(d) Securities Authorized for Issuance Under Equity Compensation Plans.
None.
(e) Performance Graph
Not applicable.
(f) Recent Sales of Unregistered Securities; Use of Proceeds from Registered Offerings
Unregistered Sales
On January 21, 2021, our sponsor purchased 8,625,000 founder shares for an aggregate purchase price of $25,000, or approximately $0.003 per share. The number of founder shares was determined based on the expectation that the founder shares would represent 20% of the total outstanding equity after our initial public offering. Such securities were issued in connection with our organization pursuant to the exemption from registration contained in Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act. On February 4, 2021, we effected a forward stock split that increased the number of founder shares held by our sponsor from 8,625,000 to 11,500,000. In March and April 2021, our sponsor transferred 35,000 founder shares to each of our independent directors and to Darius Adamczyk, one of our advisors. On July 12, 2021, our sponsor surrendered, for no consideration, an aggregate of 5,031,250 founder shares, which we canceled, resulting in an aggregate of 6,328,750 founder shares held by our sponsor and an aggregate of 6,468,750 founder shares outstanding. Immediately prior to the consummation of our initial public offering, we effected a stock dividend with respect to our Class B common stock, resulting in 7,335,000 founder shares held by our sponsor and an aggregate of 7,475,000 founder shares outstanding. Up to 975,000 founder shares were subject to forfeiture by our sponsor to the extent that the underwriters’ option to purchase additional units was not exercised in full or in part. The underwriters exercised their over-allotment option in full on November 8, 2021; thus, these 975,000 founder shares are no longer subject to forfeiture.
51
Our sponsor is an accredited investor for purposes of Rule 501 of Regulation D under the Securities Act. The sole business of our sponsor was to act as our sponsor in connection with our initial public offering.
Simultaneous with the consummation of our initial public offering and the issuance and sale of the units, we consummated the private placement of 14,960,000 private placement warrants to our sponsor, at a price of $1.00 per private placement warrant, generating total proceeds of $14,960,000. Such issuance was made pursuant to the exemption from registration contained in Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act. Each private placement warrant entitles the holder to purchase one share of our Class A common stock at $11.50 per share. The private placement warrants (including the Class A common stock issuable upon exercise thereof) may not, subject to certain limited exceptions, be transferred, assigned or sold by the holder.
No underwriting discounts or commissions were paid with respect to such sales.
Use of Proceeds
In connection with our initial public offering we incurred approximately $17.3 million in transaction costs (including $5,980,000 of underwriting fees, $10,465,000 of deferred underwriting fees and $560,000 of offering costs allocated to derivative warrant liabilities). Other incurred offering costs consisted principally preparation fees related to the initial public offering. After deducting the underwriting discounts and commissions (excluding the deferred portion, which amount will be payable upon consummation of the initial business combination, if consummated) and the initial public offering expenses, $304,980,000 of the net proceeds from our initial public offering and certain of the proceeds from the private placement of the private placement warrants (or $10.20 per unit sold in the initial public offering) was placed in the trust account and invested as described elsewhere in this Report.
There has been no material change in the planned use of the proceeds from our initial public offering and private placement as is described in the final prospectus associated with our initial public offering and our subsequent filings with the SEC.
(g) Purchases of Equity Securities by the Issuer and Affiliated Purchasers
None.
| Item 6. | [Reserved] |
| Item 7. | Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations |
References to “we”, “us”, “our” or the “company” are to Juniper II Corp., except where the context requires otherwise. The following discussion should be read in conjunction with our financial statements and related notes thereto included elsewhere in this Report.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This Report includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act and Section 21E of the Exchange Act. We have based these forward-looking statements on our current expectations and projections about future events. These forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and assumptions about us that may cause our actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as “may,” “should,” “could,” “would,” “expect,” “plan,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate” or “continue,” or the negative of such terms or other similar expressions. Such statements include, but are not limited to, possible business combinations and the financing thereof, and related matters, as well as all other statements other than statements of historical fact included in this Report. Factors that might cause or contribute to such a discrepancy include, but are not limited to, those described in our other SEC filings.
52
Overview
We are a blank check company incorporated in Delaware on December 30, 2020 for the purpose of effecting a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses (the “business combination”) that we have not yet identified. We are an emerging growth company and, as such, we are subject to all of the risks associated with emerging growth companies. Our sponsor is Juniper II Management, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company and an affiliate of certain of our officers and directors.
Our registration statement for our initial public offering was declared effective on November 3, 2021. On November 8, 2021, we consummated the initial public offering of 29,900,000 units, including 3,900,000 units to cover over-allotments, at $10.00 per unit, generating gross proceeds of $299.0 million, and incurring offering costs of approximately $17.3 million, of which approximately $10.5 million and approximately $560,000 was for deferred underwriting commissions and offering costs allocated to derivative warrant liabilities, respectively.
Simultaneously with the closing of the initial public offering, we consummated the private placement (the “private placement”) of 14,960,000 private placement warrants to our sponsor, each private placement warrant exercisable to purchase one share of Class A common stock at $11.50 per share, at a price of $1.00 per private placement warrant, generating gross proceeds of approximately $15.0 million.
Upon the closing of the initial public offering and the private placement, approximately $305.0 million ($10.20 per unit) of net proceeds, including the net proceeds of the initial public offering and certain of the proceeds of the private placement, was placed in the trust account, located in the United States and invested only in U.S. government securities, within the meaning set forth in Section 2(a)(16) of the Investment Company Act, with a maturity of 185 days or less or in any open-ended investment company that holds itself out as a money market fund selected by the company meeting the conditions of Rule 2a-7 of the Investment Company Act, as determined by the company, until the earlier of: (i) the completion of a business combination and (ii) the distribution of the trust account, as described below. Except with respect to interest earned on the funds held in the trust account that may be released to us to pay our taxes, if any, the funds held in the trust account will not be released until the earliest to occur of: (a) the completion of our initial business combination; (b) the redemption of any public shares properly tendered in connection with a stockholder vote to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation (i) 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 18 months from the closing of the initial public offering (or 24 months, if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination) or (ii) with respect to any other provisions relating to the rights of holders of our Class A common stock; and (c) the redemption of all of our public shares if we have not completed our initial business combination within 18 months (or 24 months, if extended) from the closing of the initial public offering, subject to applicable law. Based on current interest rates, we expect that interest income earned on the trust account (if any) will be sufficient to pay our income and franchise taxes.
If we are unable to complete a business combination within 18 months from the closing of the initial public offering, or May 8, 2023, (or 24 months, if extended), we will (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up, (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than 10 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 tax obligations (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidating distributions, if any), subject to applicable law, and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of the company’s remaining stockholders and the company’s board of directors, dissolve and liquidate, subject in each case to the company’s obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law.
Results of Operations
Our entire activity since inception through December 31, 2021 related to our formation, the preparation for the initial public offering, and since the closing of the initial public offering, the search for a target for our initial business combination. We have neither engaged in any operations nor generated any revenues to date. We will not generate any operating revenues until after completion of our initial business combination. We will generate non-operating income in the form of interest income on cash and cash equivalents. We expect to incur increased expenses as a result of being a public company (for legal, financial reporting, accounting and auditing compliance), as well as for due diligence expenses.
53
For the year ended December 31, 2021, we had a net loss of approximately $6.1 million which consisted of a non-operating loss of approximately $5.2 million due to the change in fair value of derivative warrant liabilities, a non-operating loss of approximately $560,000 for offering costs associated with derivative warrant liabilities and operating costs of approximately $327,000, partially offset by approximately $4,000 in income from investments held in trust account. The operating expenses were comprised of approximately $125,000 in general and administrative costs, approximately $20,000 in general and administrative expenses-related party and approximately $181,000 of franchise tax expenses.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
As of December 31, 2021, we had approximately $1.8 million in cash and working capital of approximately $1.5 million.
Our liquidity needs prior to the consummation of the initial public offering were satisfied through the payment of $25,000 from our sponsor to cover certain offering costs in exchange for issuance of the founder shares, a loan under a promissory note from our sponsor of $300,000 (the “Promissory Note”) and advances from related parties in the amount of approximately $13.1 million. We fully repaid the Promissory Note balance upon closing of the initial public offering. Subsequent from the consummation of the initial public offering, our liquidity has been satisfied through the net proceeds from the consummation of the initial public offering and the private placement held outside of the trust account.
Accordingly, our management has since re-evaluated the liquidity and financial condition and determined that sufficient capital exists to sustain operations for at least one year from the date that the financial statements were issued, and therefore substantial doubt has been alleviated. Over this time period, we will be using the funds held outside of the trust account for paying existing accounts payable, identifying and evaluating prospective initial business combination candidates, performing due diligence on prospective target businesses, paying for travel expenditures, selecting the target business to merge with or acquire and structuring, negotiating and consummating the business combination.
Related Party Transactions
Founder Shares
On January 21, 2021, our sponsor paid $25,000 on behalf of us to cover certain offering costs in exchange for issuance of 8,625,000 founder shares. On February 4, 2021, we effected a forward stock split that increased the number of founder shares held by our sponsor from 8,625,000 to 11,500,000. On July 12, 2021, our sponsor surrendered, for no consideration, an aggregate of 5,031,250 founder shares, which we canceled, resulting in an aggregate of 6,468,750 founder shares outstanding. Immediately prior to the consummation of the initial public offering, we effected a stock dividend with respect to our Class B common stock, resulting in an aggregate of 7,475,000 shares of Class B common stock outstanding. The founder shares included an aggregate of up 975,000 shares subject to forfeiture by our sponsor to the extent that the underwriters’ option to purchase additional units was not exercised in full or in part, so that our initial stockholders would own, on an as-converted basis, 20% of our issued and outstanding shares after the initial public offering. The underwriters exercised the over-allotment option in full on November 8, 2021; thus, these 975,000 founder shares were no longer subject to forfeiture.
In March and April 2021, our sponsor transferred 35,000 founder shares to each of our independent directors and to Darius Adamczyk, one of our advisors. The transfer of the founder shares is in the scope of Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) Topic 718, “Compensation-Stock Compensation” (“ASC 718”). Under ASC 718, stock-based compensation associated with equity-classified awards is measured at fair value upon the grant date. The founders shares were granted subject to a performance condition (i.e., the occurrence of a business combination). Compensation expense related to the founders shares is recognized only when the performance condition is probable of occurrence under the applicable accounting literature in this circumstance. As of December 31, 2021, we determined that a business combination was not considered probable, and, therefore, no stock-based compensation expense has been recognized. Stock-based compensation would be recognized at the date a business combination is considered probable (i.e., upon consummation of a business combination) in an amount equal to the number of founders shares that ultimately vest multiplied times the grant date fair value per share (unless subsequently modified).
Our sponsor agreed, subject to limited exceptions, not to transfer, assign or sell any of our founder shares until the earlier to occur of: (A) one year after the completion of a business combination or (B) subsequent to a business combination, (x) if the closing price of the Class A common stock equals or exceeds $12.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) for any 20 trading days within any 30-trading day period commencing at least 150 days after a business combination, or (y) the date on which we complete a liquidation, merger, capital stock exchange or other similar transaction that results in all of our stockholders having the right to exchange their shares of common stock for cash, securities or other property.
54
Private Placement Warrants
Simultaneously with the closing of the initial public offering, we consummated the private placement of 14,960,000 private placement warrants, at a price of $1.00 per private placement warrant to our sponsor, generating proceeds of approximately $15.0 million.
Each private placement warrant will be exercisable to purchase one share of Class A common stock at a price of $11.50 per share. A portion of the proceeds from the private placement warrants was added to the proceeds from the initial public offering held in the trust account. If we do not complete a business combination within 18 months from the closing of the initial public offering, or May 8, 2023, (or 24 months, if extended), the proceeds of the sale of the private placement warrants will be used to fund the redemption of the public shares (subject to the requirements of applicable law), and the private placement warrants will expire worthless. There will be no redemption rights or liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to the private placement warrants.
Related Party Loans
Our sponsor agreed to loan us an aggregate of up to $300,000 to cover expenses related to the initial public offering pursuant to a promissory note dated January 21, 2021, which was later amended on September 30, 2021. The Promissory Note was non-interest bearing and payable upon the completion of the initial public offering. We fully borrowed $300,000 under the Promissory Note. In addition, we received additional advances from related parties of approximately $13.1 million to cover for certain offering costs and pre-payment for private placement warrants. We fully repaid the Promissory Note and the advances as of the consummation of the initial public offering.
In addition, in order to finance transaction costs in connection with a business combination, our sponsor or an affiliate of our sponsor, or certain of our officers and directors may, but are not obligated to, loan us funds as may be required. If we complete a business combination, we would repay the working capital loans out of the proceeds of the trust account released to us. Otherwise, the working capital loans would be repaid only out of funds held outside the trust account. In the event that a business combination does not close, we may use a portion of proceeds held outside the trust account to repay the working capital loans but no proceeds held in the trust account would be used to repay the working capital loans. The working capital loans would either be repaid upon consummation of a business combination, without interest, or, at the lender’s discretion, up to $1.5 million of such working capital loans may be convertible into warrants of the post-business combination entity at a price of $1.00 per warrant. The warrants would be identical to the private placement warrants. Except for the foregoing, the terms of such working capital loans, if any, have not been determined and no written agreements exist with respect to such loans.
If we anticipate that we may not be able to consummate the initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of the initial public offering, we may, but are not obligated to, extend the period of time to consummate a business combination by an additional six months (for a total of 24 months to complete an initial business combination). In connection with such extension, our sponsor or affiliates or designees may loan us the required funds to deposit into the trust account an amount of $0.10 per public share, or approximately $3.0 million in the aggregate. Any such payments would be made in the form of a loan (the “extension loans”). The extension loans will be non-interest bearing and payable upon the consummation of the initial business combination. If we complete our initial business combination, we would be obligated to repay such extension loans. Except for the foregoing, the terms of such extension loans, if any, have not been determined and no written agreements exist with respect to such loans.
Commitments and Contingencies
Registration Rights
The holders of the founder shares, private placement warrants and warrants that may be issued upon conversion of working capital loans (and any shares of Class A common stock issuable upon the exercise of the private placement warrants and warrants that may be issued upon conversion of working capital loans and upon conversion of the founder shares) are entitled to registration rights pursuant to a registration rights agreement signed upon the effective date of initial public offering,
55
requiring us to register such securities for resale (in the case of the founder shares, only after conversion to Class A common stock). The holders of the majority of these securities will be entitled to make up to three demands, excluding short form demands, that we register such securities. In addition, the holders have certain “piggy-back” registration rights with respect to registration statements filed subsequent to the completion of a business combination and rights to require us to register for resale such securities pursuant to Rule 415 under the Securities Act. We will bear the expenses incurred in connection with the filing of any such registration statements.
Underwriting Agreement
We granted the underwriters of our initial public offering a 45-day option from the date of initial public offering to purchase up to 3,900,000 additional units at the initial public offering price less the underwriting discounts and commissions. The underwriters exercised such over-allotment option in full on November 8, 2021.
The underwriters were entitled to a cash underwriting discount of $0.20 per unit, approximately $6.0 million in the aggregate, paid upon the closing of the initial public offering. In addition, the underwriters are entitled to a deferred fee of $0.35 per unit, or approximately $10.5 million in the aggregate. The deferred fee will become payable to the underwriters from the amounts held in the trust account solely in the event that we complete a business combination, subject to the terms of the underwriting agreement.
Critical Accounting Policies
This management’s discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations is based on our financial statements, which have been prepared in accordance with GAAP. The preparation of our financial statements requires us to make estimates and judgments that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenues and expenses and the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities in our financial statements. On an ongoing basis, we evaluate our estimates and judgments, including those related to fair value of financial instruments and accrued expenses. We base our estimates on historical experience, known trends and events and various other factors that we believe to be reasonable under the circumstances, the results of which form the basis for making judgments about the carrying values of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. Actual results may differ from these estimates under different assumptions or conditions. We have identified the following as our critical accounting policies:
Investments Held in the Trust Account
Our portfolio of investments is comprised of U.S. government securities, within the meaning set forth in Section 2(a)(16) of the Investment Company Act, with a maturity of 185 days or less, or investments in money market funds that invest in U.S. government securities and generally have a readily determinable fair value, or a combination thereof. When our investments held in the trust account are comprised of U.S. government securities, the investments are classified as trading securities. When our investments held in the trust account are comprised of money market funds, the investments are recognized at fair value. Trading securities and investments in money market funds are presented on the balance sheet at fair value at the end of each reporting period. Gains and losses resulting from the change in fair value of these securities is included in income from investments held in the trust account in the accompanying statement of operations. The estimated fair values of investments held in the trust account are determined using available market information.
Class A Common Stock Subject to Possible Redemption
We account for our Class A common stock subject to possible redemption in accordance with the guidance in FASB ASC Topic 480 “Distinguishing Liabilities from Equity” (“ASC 480”). Shares of Class A common stock subject to mandatory redemption (if any) are classified as liability instruments and are measured at fair value. Conditionally redeemable shares of Class A common stock (including shares of Class A common stock that feature redemption rights that are either within the control of the holder or subject to redemption upon the occurrence of uncertain events not solely within our control) are classified as temporary equity. At all other times, shares of Class A common stock are classified as stockholders’ equity. Our shares of Class A common stock feature certain redemption rights that are considered to be outside of our control and subject to the occurrence of uncertain future events. Accordingly, as of December 31, 2021, 29,900,000 shares of Class A common stock subject to possible redemption were presented as temporary equity, outside of the stockholders’ equity section of the accompanying balance sheet.
56
Under ASC 480, we have elected to recognize changes in the redemption value immediately as they occur and adjust the carrying value of the security to equal the redemption value at the end of the reporting period. This method would view the end of the reporting period as if it were also the redemption date of the security. Effective with the closing of the initial public offering, the company recognized the accretion from initial book value to redemption amount, which resulted in charges against additional paid-in capital (to the extent available) and accumulated deficit.
Net Income (Loss) Per Share of Common Stock
We have two classes of shares, which are referred to as Class A common stock and Class B common stock. Income and losses are shared pro rata between the two classes of shares. Net income (loss) per common share is calculated by dividing the net income (loss) by the weighted average shares of common stock outstanding for the respective period. We have not considered the effect of the warrants sold in the initial public offering and private placement to purchase an aggregate of 29,910,000 shares of our Class A common stock in the calculation of diluted loss per share, since such warrants are not yet exercisable. Accretion associated with the redeemable Class A common stock is excluded from earnings per share as the redemption value approximates fair value.
Derivative Warrant Liabilities
We do not use derivative instruments to hedge exposures to cash flow, market or foreign currency risks. We evaluate all of our financial instruments, including issued stock purchase warrants, to determine if such instruments are derivatives or contain features that qualify as embedded derivatives, pursuant to ASC 480 and ASC 815, “Derivatives and Hedging” (“ASC 815”). The classification of derivative instruments, including whether such instruments should be recorded as liabilities or as equity, is re-assessed at the end of each reporting period.
The warrants issued to investors in our initial public offering and the private placement warrants are recognized as derivative liabilities in accordance with ASC 815. Accordingly, we recognize the warrant instruments as liabilities at fair value and adjust the instruments to fair value at each reporting period. The difference between the fair market value of the private placement warrants and the initial purchase consideration thereof is recorded as compensation expense. The liabilities are subject to re-measurement at each balance sheet date until exercised, and any change in fair value is recognized in our statement of operations. The fair value of the public warrants and private placement warrants were initially and subsequently measured at fair value using a Black Scholes model. Beginning as of December 22, 2021, the fair value of the public warrants has been measured based on the listed market price of such public warrants. The private placement warrants are measured at fair value using a Black Scholes model at December 31, 2021.
Recent Adopted Accounting Standards
In August 2020, the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) No. 2020-06, “Debt—Debt with Conversion and Other Options (Subtopic 470-20) and Derivatives and Hedging—Contracts in Entity’s Own Equity (Subtopic 815-40): Accounting for Convertible Instruments and Contracts in an Entity’s Own Equity,” which simplifies accounting for convertible instruments by removing major separation models required under current GAAP. The ASU also removes certain settlement conditions that are required for equity-linked contracts to qualify for the derivative scope exception and it also simplifies the diluted earnings per share calculation in certain areas. We early adopted the ASU on January 1, 2021 using a modified retrospective method for transition. Adoption of the ASU did not impact our financial position, results of operations or cash flows.
Recent Accounting Pronouncements
Our management does not believe that any recently issued, but not yet effective, accounting standards if currently adopted would have a material effect on the accompanying financial statements.
Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements
As of December 31, 2021, we did not have any off-balance sheet arrangements as defined in Item 303(a)(4)(ii) of Regulation S-K.
57
JOBS Act
The JOBS Act contains provisions that, among other things, relax certain reporting requirements for qualifying public companies. We qualify as an “emerging growth company” and under the JOBS Act are allowed to comply with new or revised accounting pronouncements based on the effective date for private (not publicly traded) companies. We are electing to delay the adoption of new or revised accounting standards, and as a result, we may not comply with new or revised accounting standards on the relevant dates on which adoption of such standards is required for non-emerging growth companies. As a result, the financial statements may not be comparable to companies that comply with new or revised accounting pronouncements as of public company effective dates.
Additionally, we have elected to rely on the other reduced reporting requirements provided by the JOBS Act. Subject to certain conditions set forth in the JOBS Act, as an “emerging growth company,” we may not be required to, among other things, (i) provide an auditor’s attestation report on our system of internal controls over financial reporting pursuant to Section 404, (ii) provide all of the compensation disclosure that may be required of non-emerging growth public companies under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, (iii) comply with any requirement that may be adopted by the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board regarding mandatory audit firm rotation or a supplement to the auditor’s report providing additional information about the audit and the financial statements (auditor discussion and analysis) and (iv) disclose certain executive compensation related items such as the correlation between executive compensation and performance and comparisons of the Chief Executive Officer’s compensation to median employee compensation. These exemptions will apply for a period of five years following the completion of our initial public offering or until we are no longer an “emerging growth company,” whichever is earlier.
| Item 7A. | Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk |
We are a smaller reporting company as defined by Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act and are not required to provide the information otherwise required under this item.
| Item 8. | Financial Statements and Supplementary Data. |
This information appears following Item 16 of this Report and is incorporated herein by reference.
| Item 9. | Changes in and Disagreements with Accountants on Accounting and Financial Disclosure |
None.
| Item 9A. | Controls and Procedures |
Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures
Disclosure controls and procedures are controls and other procedures that are designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed in our reports filed or submitted under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the SEC’s rules and forms. Disclosure controls and procedures include, without limitation, controls and procedures designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed in company reports filed or submitted under the Exchange Act is accumulated and communicated to management, including our principal executive officer and principal financial and accounting officer, to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure.
As of December 31, 2021, as required by Rules 13a-15 and 15d-15 under the Exchange Act, our principal executive officer and principal financial and accounting officer carried out an evaluation of the effectiveness of the design and operation of our disclosure controls and procedures. Based upon their evaluation, our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the Exchange Act) were effective.
Management’s Report on Internal Controls over Financial Reporting
This Report does not include a report of management’s assessment regarding internal control over financial reporting or an attestation report of our independent registered public accounting firm due to a transition period established by rules of the SEC for newly public companies.
58
Changes in Internal Control over Financial Reporting
There was no change in our internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the fiscal quarter ended December 31, 2021 covered by this Report that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.
| Item 9B. | Other Information |
None.
| Item 9C. | Disclosure Regarding Foreign Jurisdictions that Prevent Inspections |
Not applicable.
59
| Item 10. | Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance |
Directors and Executive Officers
As of the date of this Report, our directors and officers are as follows:
Name | Age | Position | ||||
Roger Fradin | 68 | Chairman | ||||
Murray Grainger | 49 | Chief Executive Officer and Director | ||||
Noah Kindler | 43 | Chief Financial Officer and Chief Technology Officer | ||||
Mitchell Jacobson | 71 | Director | ||||
Mark Levy | 73 | Director | ||||
Andrew Teich | 61 | Director | ||||
Roger Fradin serves as the Chairman of our board of directors. Mr. Fradin has over 40 years of experience acquiring, building, and leading a diverse set of industrial businesses. Mr. Fradin began his career at Pittway Corporation where he held a variety of roles of increasing responsibility, including President and Chief Executive Officer of the Security and Fire Solutions segment, and helped lead an entrepreneurial team which transformed Pittway into a $2 billion world leader in electronic security and fire systems. In 2000, Pittway was acquired by Honeywell International Inc. (NYSE: HON). Shortly thereafter, Mr. Fradin assumed the role of President and Chief Executive Officer of Honeywell ACS. In this role, Mr. Fradin transformed ACS from a business with $7 billion in sales in 2003 focused predominantly on the U.S. market to a $17 billion in sales (as of 2014) global business leader in the development and manufacture of environmental controls, life safety products, and building and process solutions. From 2000 to 2017, Mr. Fradin oversaw, directed, and integrated the acquisition of over 60 companies at Honeywell, aggregating billions of dollars in deal value. Mr. Fradin’s strategy and execution for ACS helped deliver more than $85 billion of value to Honeywell’s shareholders. During his tenure at Honeywell, Mr. Fradin also served as Vice Chairman of Honeywell where he was responsible for acquisition strategy for all of Honeywell. Mr Fradin also was responsible for a large advanced research & technology organization that executed many classified programs, as well as inventing many core new technologies such as Honeywell’s quantum computer offering. After retiring from Honeywell, Mr. Fradin was named Chairman of Resideo Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: REZI), a leading provider of home comfort and security solutions. At Resideo, Mr. Fradin recruited the Chief Executive Officer, senior management team, and Board of Directors as well as installed all public company board processes and procedures. Mr. Fradin also currently serves as a director of Janus International Group, Inc. (NYSE: JBI), a position he has held since consummation of in June 2021 of Janus’ business combination with Juniper Industrial, where Mr. Fradin served as the Chairman of the board of directors from August 2019 to June 2021 and as Chief Executive Officer from August 2019 to January 2020. In addition to Resideo and Janus, Mr. Fradin currently sits on the boards of L3Harris Technologies Inc. (NYSE: LHX), Vertiv Holdings Co (NYSE: VRT) and several of Carlyle’s portfolio companies in his capacity as a Carlyle Operating Executive. He also previously served as a member of the board of directors for each of MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. (NYSE: MSM) and Pitney Bowes, Inc. (NYSE: PBI). Mr. Fradin holds a B.S. and M.B.A. from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. We believe Mr. Fradin’s significant expertise in business strategy and corporate finance and management experience makes him well qualified to serve as a director.
Murray Grainger serves as our Chief Executive Officer and as a member of our board of directors. Mr. Grainger has over 25 years of global industrial experience within general management, corporate finance, mergers, acquisitions and integrations, strategic planning, and technology investing. Mr. Grainger began his career at ITT Industries, where he held engineering, product management, investor relations and corporate development roles across Sweden, Australia and the United States. Mr. Grainger joined Honeywell International Inc. (NYSE: HON) in 2004 and over the course of his 17 year career held a number of leadership roles across Honeywell’s global businesses and functions. During his tenure at Honeywell, Mr. Grainger served as Vice President of Investor Relations, where he led partnerships with external stakeholders including the buy- and sell-side analyst community and built strong relationships with internal stakeholders, including Mr. Fradin and other senior leaders, to develop expert knowledge of the company and serve as a trusted advisor to share the Wall Street perspective. Mr. Grainger also served Chief Financial Officer for Honeywell’s Specialty Products strategic business
60
unit and General Manager for the Advanced Fibers and Composites businesses. Mr. Grainger was a member of Honeywell’s Global M&A team and subsequently Vice President of Business Development and M&A for Honeywell’s ACS segment, its largest business unit. In these roles, Mr. Grainger aided or led multiple buy- and sell-side transactions including Novar plc, Universal Oil Products (UOP) and Intelligrated, among others, and partnered directly with Mr. Fradin on several of these transactions in his capacity as President and CEO of ACS and Vice Chairman of Honeywell. Most recently, Mr. Grainger was the founding Managing Director and Global Head of Honeywell Ventures, based in Silicon Valley, where he built one of the leading corporate venture capital programs in the industrials sector, making more than 30 investments across emerging technology areas including robotics and advanced manufacturing, AI/ML, cybersecurity, urban air mobility, worker productivity and quantum computing. Mr. Grainger holds a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Sydney and an M.B.A. from Columbia University. We believe Mr. Grainger’s extensive background across emerging technology areas in the industrials sector and his significant experience in a variety of corporate leadership roles make him well qualified to serve as a director.
Noah Kindler serves as our Chief Financial Officer and Chief Technology Officer. Mr. Kindler has over 20 years of experience as a technology and strategy executive. He has deep experience identifying and working with early stage technology companies. Early in his career, he served as a consultant at McKinsey & Company, where he advised Fortune 500 companies globally and won awards for innovation. He then joined Avira, a multinational security company where he was the President of the Americas and the VP of Technology/Operations where he focused on growing their market share in the US, where they would eventually be acquired by Symantec. He later joined Knotel in 2015, a property-technology leader, where he served until May 2018 as a general manager and drove substantial sales growth. From May 2018 to August 2019, Mr. Kindler was a member of the senior leadership of Canoo, Inc. (NASDAQ: GOEV), joining as one of its first employees, in charge of the Silicon Valley office and responsible for the internet enabled software within the vehicle while it grew to an eventual successful merger with Hennessy Capital Acquisition Corp IV. In August 2019, Mr. Kindler joined ConcertVDC, Inc. as a founding board member and where he is currently Chief Product Officer. He also serves as a long tenured advisor at the Stanford technology accelerator, StartX. He has a BS degree in computer science from Stanford University and an MBA, with distinction, from Harvard Business School. Mr. Kindler is the son-in-law of our Chairman, Roger Fradin.
Mitchell Jacobson serves as a member of our board of directors. Mr. Jacobson began his career in 1976 at MSC, a premier distributor of MRO products and services to industrial customers throughout North America. In 1995, Mr. Jacobson was appointed President and Chief Executive Officer of MSC and served as President until 2003 and Chief Executive Officer until 2005. Mr. Jacobson became Chairman of the Board of MSC in 1998 and transitioned to Non-Executive Chairman in 2013, where he continues to serve today and remains active in ongoing growth initiatives. Mr. Jacobson is the Co-Chair of the board of directors of Ambrosia Holdings, L.P. (the holding company of TriMark USA, the country’s largest provider of equipment, supplies, and design services to the foodservices industry), and has served on such board as a Director since 2017. Mr. Jacobson is also an investor and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Priority Sign, a leading global provider of branded environments. He previously served as a Director of Juniper Industrial from November 2019 to June 2021 and as a member of the Board of Directors at HD Supply Holdings, Inc. (NASDAQ: HDS) from 2007 to 2013. Mr. Jacobson is currently a member of the Board of Trustees for New York Presbyterian Hospital, as well as the hospital’s Investment and Patient Experience committees. Mr. Jacobson also serves as a Trustee for New York University School of Law. Mr. Jacobson is a graduate of Brandeis University and the New York University School of Law. We believe Mr. Jacobson’s business strategy expertise makes him well qualified to serve as a director.
Mark Levy serves as a member of our board of directors. Mr. Levy has over 20 years of experience within the industrials sector and deep expertise in building businesses, developing customer relationships, and executing lean manufacturing. From 2000 to 2014, Mr. Levy served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Honeywell’s Life Safety division where he led the transformation of the business into a global leader in commercial fire alarm systems, gas detection, and industrial-grade personal protection equipment. Additionally, during his tenure, Mr. Levy spearheaded 26 acquisitions, growing sales from $350 million to $3.9 billion. Mr. Levy started his career at Fire-Lite Alarms, a fire alarm business in Connecticut, which he grew to $50 million before selling to Pittway Corporation, and then subsequently grew to $350 million before selling to Honeywell. Mr. Levy remained president of Fire-Lite Alarms and in 1987 was additionally named president of NOTIFIER, also acquired by Pittway. Mr. Levy previously served on the board of directors of the University of New Haven and as Chairman of the board of directors of Easter Seals/Goodwill Industries in Connecticut. Mr. Levy currently serves as a member of the Board of Directors at Quexco, Inc., Sciens Building Solutions and Laticrete International, and also currently serves as Co-Chairman of the Board of Directors at Potter Electric Signal Co. Mr. Levy also previously served as a Director of Juniper Industrial from November 2019 to June 2021. Mr. Levy holds a B.S. in Business Administration from the University of Denver and an honorary Doctor of Business from the University of New Haven. We believe Mr. Levy’s significant expertise in building businesses and corporate finance experience makes him well qualified to serve as a director.
61
Andrew Teich serves as a member of our board of directors. Mr. Teich has over 35 years of experience in the industrial technology sector. Mr. Teich served as the President and Chief Executive Officer of FLIR Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: FLIR), a public multinational imaging and sensing company, from May 2013 until his retirement from the company in June 2017. Mr. Teich joined FLIR in 1999 as Senior Vice President, Marketing, and held various positions within FLIR since that time, including President of Commercial Vision Systems and President of Commercial Systems. He also served on the board of directors of FLIR from July 2013 until his retirement in June 2017. Prior to joining FLIR, Mr. Teich held various positions at Inframetrics, Inc. (acquired by FLIR in 1999), including Vice President of Sales and Marketing. Mr. Teich has been involved in more than 25 technology company acquisitions throughout his career and is listed as an inventor on more than 50 patents. He and became known in the industry as a principal innovator of commercial and military thermal imaging and successfully expanded into visible, radar, sonar, near infrared, and CBRNE (Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, and Explosive) technologies and markets. Mr. Teich has served as a director of Sensata Technologies Holdings plc (NYSE: ST), a multinational automotive and industrial sensing company, since May 2014, and as the Chairman of the board since July 2019. In October 2018, he joined the board of directors of Resideo Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: REZI), where he is currently the lead independent director. Mr. Teich received his B.S. degree in marketing from Arizona State University and is an alumnus of the Harvard Business School Advanced Management Program. We believe Mr. Teich’s extensive background in the industrial technology sector and his experience in acquisitions and operational integration make him well qualified to serve as a director.
Number and Terms of Office of Officers and Directors
Our board of directors is divided into three classes, with only one class of directors being elected in each year, and with each class (except for those directors appointed prior to our first annual meeting of stockholders) serving a three-year term. The term of office of the first class of directors, consisting of Mitchell Jacobson, will expire at our first annual meeting of stockholders. The term of office of the second class of directors, consisting of Mark Levy and Andrew Teich, will expire at the second annual meeting of stockholders. The term of office of the third class of directors, consisting of Roger Fradin and Murray Grainger, will expire at the third annual meeting of stockholders. We may not hold an annual meeting of stockholders until after we consummate our initial business combination.
Prior to the completion of an initial business combination, any vacancy on the board of directors may be filled by a nominee chosen by holders of a majority of our founder shares. In addition, prior to the completion of an initial business combination, holders of a majority of our founder shares may remove a member of the board of directors for any reason.
Pursuant to an agreement entered into concurrently with the issuance and sale of the securities in our initial public offering, our sponsor, upon consummation of an initial business combination, will be entitled to nominate three individuals for election to our board of directors.
Our officers are appointed by the board of directors and serve at the discretion of the board of directors, rather than for specific terms of office. Our board of directors is authorized to appoint persons to the offices set forth in our amended and restated bylaws as it deems appropriate. Our amended and restated bylaws provide that our officers may consist of a Chairman of the Board, Chief Executive Officer, President, Chief Financial Officer, Vice Presidents, Secretary, Treasurer and such other offices as may be determined by the board of directors.
Committees of the Board of Directors
Our board of directors has three standing committees: an audit committee; a nominating committee; and a compensation committee. Subject to phase-in rules and a limited exception, the rules of the NYSE and Rule 10A-3 of the Exchange Act require that the audit committee of a listed company be comprised solely of independent directors, and the rules of the NYSE require that the nominating and compensation committees of a listed company be comprised solely of independent directors.
62
Audit Committee
Mitchell Jacobson, Mark Levy and Andrew Teich serve as members of our audit committee, and Mark Levy serves as chairman of the audit committee. Subject to phase-in rules and a limited exception, the rules of the NYSE and Rule 10A-3 of the Exchange Act require that the audit committee of a listed company be comprised solely of independent directors. Our board of directors has determined that each of Messrs. Jacobson, Levy and Teich are independent.
Each member of the audit committee is financially literate and our board of directors has determined that Mark Levy qualifies as an “audit committee financial expert” as defined in applicable SEC rules, and will chair the audit committee.
We have adopted an audit committee charter, which details the principal functions of the audit committee, including:
| • | the appointment, compensation, retention, replacement, and oversight of the work of the independent registered public accounting firm and any other independent registered public accounting firm engaged by us; |
| • | pre-approving all audit and permitted non-audit services to be provided by the independent registered public accounting firm or any other registered public accounting firm engaged by us, and establishing pre-approval policies and procedures; |
| • | reviewing and discussing with the independent registered public accounting firm all relationships they have with us in order to evaluate their continued independence; |
| • | setting clear hiring policies for employees or former employees of the independent registered public accounting firm; |
| • | setting clear policies for audit partner rotation in compliance with applicable laws and regulations; |
| • | obtaining and reviewing a report, at least annually, from the independent registered public accounting firm describing (i) the independent registered public accounting firm’s internal quality-control procedures and (ii) any material issues raised by the most recent internal quality-control review, or peer review, of the independent registered public accounting firm, or by any inquiry or investigation by governmental or professional authorities within the preceding five years respecting one or more independent audits carried out by the firm and any steps taken to deal with such issues; |
| • | reviewing and approving any related party transaction required to be disclosed pursuant to Item 404 of Regulation S-K promulgated by the SEC prior to us entering into such transaction; and |
| • | reviewing with management, the independent registered public accounting firm, and our legal advisors, as appropriate, any legal, regulatory or compliance matters, including any correspondence with regulators or government agencies and any employee complaints or published reports that raise material issues regarding our financial statements or accounting policies and any significant changes in accounting standards or rules promulgated by the Financial Accounting Standards Board, the SEC or other regulatory authorities. |
Compensation Committee
Mitchell Jacobson, Mark Levy and Andrew Teich serve as members of our compensation committee, and Andrew Teich serves as chairman of the compensation committee. Under the NYSE listing standards, we are required to have a compensation committee composed entirely of independent directors. Our board of directors has determined that each of Messrs. Jacobson, Levy and Teich are independent.
We have adopted a compensation committee charter, which details the principal functions of the compensation committee, including:
63
| • | reviewing and approving on an annual basis the corporate goals and objectives relevant to our Chief Executive Officer’s compensation, evaluating our Chief Executive Officer’s performance in light of such goals and objectives and determining and approving the remuneration (if any) of our Chief Executive Officer based on such evaluation; |
| • | reviewing and approving on an annual basis the compensation of all of our other officers; |
| • | reviewing on an annual basis our executive compensation policies and plans; |
| • | implementing and administering our incentive compensation equity-based remuneration plans; |
| • | assisting management in complying with our proxy statement and annual report disclosure requirements; |
| • | approving all special perquisites, special cash payments and other special compensation and benefit arrangements for our officers and employees; |
| • | if required, producing a report on executive compensation to be included in our annual proxy statement; and |
| • | reviewing, evaluating and recommending changes, if appropriate, to the remuneration for directors. |
Notwithstanding the foregoing, as indicated above, other than the $10,000 per month administrative fee payable to an affiliate of our sponsor and reimbursement of expenses, no compensation of any kind, including finders, consulting or other similar fees, will be paid to any of our existing stockholders, officers, directors or any of their respective affiliates, prior to, or for any services they render in order to effectuate the consummation of a business combination. Accordingly, it is likely that prior to the consummation of an initial business combination, the compensation committee will only be responsible for the review and recommendation of any compensation arrangements to be entered into in connection with such initial business combination.
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that the compensation committee may, in its sole discretion, retain or obtain the advice of a compensation consultant, legal counsel or other advisor and will be directly responsible for the appointment, compensation and oversight of the work of any such advisor. However, before engaging or receiving advice from a compensation consultant, external legal counsel or any other advisor, the compensation committee will consider the independence of each such advisor, including the factors required by the NYSE and the SEC.
Nominating Committee
Mitchell Jacobson, Mark Levy and Andrew Teich, serve on our nominating committee, and Mitchell Jacobson serves as chairman of the nominating committee. Under the NYSE listing standards, we are required to have a nominating committee composed entirely of independent directors. Our board of directors has determined that each of Messrs. Jacobson, Levy and Teich are independent.
The nominating committee is responsible for overseeing the selection of persons to be nominated to serve on our board of directors. The nominating committee considers persons identified by its members, management, stockholders, investment bankers and others.
Guidelines for Selecting Director Nominees
We have established the following guidelines for selecting director nominees. The guidelines for selecting nominees, which are specified a charter adopted by us, generally provide that persons to be nominated:
| • | should have demonstrated notable or significant achievements in business, education or public service; |
| • | should possess the requisite intelligence, education and experience to make a significant contribution to the board of directors and bring a range of skills, diverse perspectives and backgrounds to its deliberations; and |
| • | should have the highest ethical standards, a strong sense of professionalism and intense dedication to serving the interests of the stockholders. |
64
The nominating committee considers a number of qualifications relating to management and leadership experience, background and integrity and professionalism in evaluating a person’s candidacy for membership on the board of directors. The nominating committee may require certain skills or attributes, such as financial or accounting experience, to meet specific board needs that arise from time to time and will also consider the overall experience and makeup of its members to obtain a broad and diverse mix of board members. The nominating committee does not distinguish among nominees recommended by stockholders and other persons.
Compensation Committee Interlocks and Insider Participation
No member of our compensation committee has ever been our executive officer or employee. None of our executive officers currently serve, or have served during the last completed fiscal year, on the compensation committee or board of directors of any other entity that has one or more executive officers that serve as a member of such entity’s the board of directors or compensation committee.
Code of Ethics
We have adopted a Code of Ethics applicable to our officers, directors and employees. A copy of the Code of Ethics will be provided without charge upon written request to our principal executive offices. We intend to disclose any amendments to or waivers of certain provisions of our Code of Ethics in a Current Report on Form 8-K.
Conflicts of Interest
Certain of our officers and directors presently have, and any of them in the future may have additional, fiduciary or contractual obligations to other entities, including duties pursuant to which such officer or director may be required to present business combination opportunities to such entity. Accordingly, in the future, if any of our officers or directors becomes aware of a business combination opportunity which is suitable for an entity to which he or she has then-current fiduciary or contractual obligations, he or she will honor his or her fiduciary or contractual obligations to present such opportunity to such entity. We do not believe, however, that any fiduciary duties or contractual obligations of our officers arising in the future would materially undermine our ability to complete our business combination.
Potential investors should also be aware of the following other potential conflicts of interest:
| • | None of our officers or directors is required to commit his or her full time to our affairs and, accordingly, may have conflicts of interest in allocating his or her time among various business activities. |
| • | Certain members of our management team directly or indirectly own founders shares and/or private placement warrants (and may in the future acquire other securities of the company), and, accordingly, may have a conflict of interest in determining whether a particular target business is an appropriate business with which to effectuate our initial business combination. In particular, because the founder shares were purchased at approximately $0.003 per share, the holders of our founder shares (including members of our management team that directly or indirectly own founder shares) could make a substantial profit after our initial business combination even if our public stockholders lose money on their investment as a result of a decrease in the post-combination value of their shares of common stock (after accounting for any adjustments in connection with an exchange or other transaction contemplated by the business combination). Further, each of our officers and directors may have a conflict of interest with respect to evaluating a particular business combination if the retention or resignation of any such officers and directors were to be included by a target business as a condition to any agreement with respect to our initial business combination. |
| • | In the course of their other business activities, our officers and directors may become aware of investment and business opportunities which may be appropriate for presentation to us as well as the other entities with which they are affiliated. Our management may have conflicts of interest in determining to which entity a particular business opportunity should be presented. |
65
| • | Our initial stockholders have agreed to waive their redemption rights with respect to any founder shares and any public shares held by them in connection with the consummation of our initial business combination. Additionally, our initial stockholders have agreed to waive their redemption rights with respect to any founder shares held by them if we fail to consummate our initial business combination within 18 months (or 24 months, if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination) after the closing of our initial public offering. If we do not complete our initial business combination within such applicable time period, the proceeds of the sale of the private placement warrants held in the trust account will be used to fund the redemption of our public shares, and the private placement warrants will expire worthless. With certain limited exceptions, the founder shares will not be transferable, assignable by our sponsor until the earlier of: (A) one year after the completion of our initial business combination; or (B) subsequent to our initial business combination, (x) if the closing price of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $12.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) for any 20 trading days within any 30-trading day period commencing at least 150 days after our initial business combination, or (y) the date on which we complete a liquidation, merger, capital stock exchange, reorganization or other similar transaction that results in all of our stockholders having the right to exchange their shares of common stock for cash, securities or other property. With certain limited exceptions, the private placement warrants and the Class A common stock underlying such warrants, will not be transferable, assignable or saleable by our sponsor or its permitted transferees until 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination. Since our sponsor and officers and directors directly or indirectly own common stock and private placement warrants, our officers and directors may have a conflict of interest in determining whether a particular target business is an appropriate business with which to effectuate our initial business combination. |
| • | Our officers and directors may have a conflict of interest with respect to evaluating a particular business combination if the retention or resignation of any such officers and directors was included by a target business as a condition to any agreement with respect to our initial business combination. |
| • | Our sponsor, officers or directors may have a conflict of interest with respect to evaluating a business combination and financing arrangements as we may obtain loans from our sponsor or an affiliate of our sponsor or any of our officers or directors to finance transaction costs in connection with an intended initial business combination. Up to $1,500,000 of such loans may be convertible into warrants at a price of $1.00 per warrant at the option of the lender. Such warrants would be identical to the private placement warrants, including as to exercise price, exercisability and exercise period. |
The conflicts described above may not be resolved in our favor.
In general, officers and directors of a corporation incorporated under the laws of the State of Delaware are required to present business opportunities to a corporation if:
| • | the corporation could financially undertake the opportunity; |
| • | the opportunity is within the corporation’s line of business; and |
| • | it would not be fair to our company and its stockholders for the opportunity not to be brought to the attention of the corporation. |
Accordingly, as a result of multiple business affiliations, our officers and directors may have similar legal obligations relating to presenting business opportunities meeting the above-listed criteria to multiple entities.
Below is a table summarizing the entities to which our executive officers and directors currently have fiduciary duties or contractual obligations:
Individual | Entity | Entity’s Business | Affiliation | |||
| Roger Fradin | Resideo Technologies, Inc. | HVAC and Security Technology | Chairman of the Board | |||
| L3Harris Technologies Inc. | Technology | Board Member | ||||
| Vertiv Holdings Co | Electrical Equipment | Board Member | ||||
| Janus International Group, Inc. | Industrial Equipment | Board Member | ||||
| Noah Kindler | Concert VDC, Inc. | Software | Chief Product Officer |
66
| Mitchell Jacobson | MSC Industrial Direct Co., Inc. | Industrial Equipment | Non-Executive Chairman of the Board | |||
| Trustees for New York Presbyterian Hospital | Healthcare | Board Member | ||||
| New York University School of Law | Education | Trustee | ||||
| Ambrosia Holdings, L.P. | Food Services | Co-Chair of the Board | ||||
| Priority Sign | Brand-Implementation | Chairman of the Board | ||||
| Mark Levy | Quexco, Inc. | Smelting | Board Member | |||
| Sciens Building Solutions | Fire Protection Technology | Board Member | ||||
| Laticrete International | Chemicals | Board Member | ||||
| Potter Electric Signal Co. | Manufacturing | Co-Chairman of the Board | ||||
| Andrew Teich | Sensata Technologies Holdings plc | Industrial Technology | Chairman of the Board | |||
| Resideo Technologies, Inc. | Smart Home Technology | Board Member |
Accordingly, if any of the above executive officers, directors or director nominees becomes aware of a business combination opportunity which is suitable for any of the above entities to which he or she has current fiduciary or contractual obligations, he or she will honor his or her fiduciary or contractual obligations to present such business combination opportunity to such entity, and only present it to us if such entity rejects the opportunity. We do not believe, however, that any of the foregoing fiduciary duties or contractual obligations will materially affect our ability to complete our business combination. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that we renounce our interest in any corporate opportunity offered to any director or officer unless such opportunity is expressly offered to such person solely in his or her capacity as a director or officer of our company and such opportunity is one we are legally and contractually permitted to undertake and would otherwise be reasonable for us to pursue.
We are not prohibited from pursuing an initial business combination with a company that is affiliated with our sponsor, officers or directors. In the event we seek to complete our initial business combination with such a company, we, or a committee of independent directors, would obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm which is a member of FINRA or from an independent accounting firm, that such an initial business combination is fair to our company from a financial point of view.
We have agreed not to enter into a definitive agreement regarding an initial business combination without the prior consent of our sponsor. In the event that we submit our initial business combination to our public stockholders for a vote, our initial stockholders have agreed to vote any founder shares held by them and any public shares purchased during or after the offering in favor of our initial business combination and our officers and directors have also agreed to vote any public shares purchased during or after the offering in favor of our initial business combination.
If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, whether as a result of conflicts of interest or otherwise, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.20 per share, or less in certain circumstances, upon the liquidation of our trust account and our warrants will expire worthless. Please see “Risk Factors—If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in the trust account could be reduced and the per-share redemption amount received by stockholders may be less than $10.20 per share” and other risk factors herein.
Limitation on Liability and Indemnification of Officers and Directors
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that our officers and directors will be indemnified by us to the fullest extent authorized by Delaware law, as it now exists or may in the future be amended. In addition, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that our directors will not be personally liable for monetary damages to us or our stockholders for breaches of their fiduciary duty as directors, unless they violated their duty of loyalty to us or our stockholders, acted in bad faith, knowingly or intentionally violated the law, authorized unlawful payments of dividends, unlawful stock purchases or unlawful redemptions, or derived an improper personal benefit from their actions as directors.
67
We have entered into agreements with our officers and directors to provide contractual indemnification in addition to the indemnification provided for in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation. Our amended and restated bylaws also permit us to secure insurance on behalf of any officer, director or employee for any liability arising out of his or her actions, regardless of whether Delaware law would permit such indemnification. We have purchased a policy of directors’ and officers’ liability insurance that insures our officers and directors against the cost of defense, settlement or payment of a judgment in some circumstances and insures us against our obligations to indemnify our officers and directors.
These provisions may discourage stockholders from bringing a lawsuit against our directors for breach of their fiduciary duty. These provisions also may have the effect of reducing the likelihood of derivative litigation against officers and directors, even though such an action, if successful, might otherwise benefit us and our stockholders. Furthermore, a stockholder’s investment may be adversely affected to the extent we pay the costs of settlement and damage awards against officers and directors pursuant to these indemnification provisions.
We believe that these provisions, the insurance and the indemnity agreements are necessary to attract and retain talented and experienced officers and directors.
| Item 11. | Executive Compensation |
Officer and Director Compensation
In March and April 2021, our sponsor transferred 35,000 founder shares to each of our independent directors and to Darius Adamczyk, one of our advisors. None of our officers or directors has received any cash compensation for services rendered to us. Commencing on November 4, 2021, we have agreed to pay an affiliate of our sponsor a total of $10,000 per month for office space, utilities and secretarial and administrative support. Upon completion of our initial business combination or our liquidation, we will cease paying these monthly fees. No compensation of any kind, including finder’s and consulting fees, will be paid to our sponsor, officers and directors, or any of their respective affiliates, for services rendered prior to or in connection with the completion of our initial business combination. However, these individuals will be reimbursed for any out-of-pocket expenses incurred in connection with activities on our behalf such as identifying potential target businesses and performing due diligence on suitable business combinations. Our audit committee reviews on a quarterly basis all payments that were made by us to our sponsor, officers or directors, or our or their affiliates.
After the completion of our initial business combination, directors or members of our management team who remain with us may be paid consulting or management fees from the combined company. All of these fees will be fully disclosed to stockholders, to the extent then known, in the tender offer materials or proxy solicitation materials furnished to our stockholders in connection with a proposed business combination. We have not established any limit on the amount of such fees that may be paid by the combined company to our directors or members of management. It is unlikely the amount of such compensation will be known at the time of the proposed business combination, because the directors of the post-combination business will be responsible for determining officer and director compensation. Any compensation to be paid to our officers will be determined, or recommended to the board of directors for determination, either by a compensation committee constituted solely by independent directors or by a majority of the independent directors on our board of directors.
We do not intend to take any action to ensure that members of our management team maintain their positions with us after the consummation of our initial business combination, although it is possible that some or all of our officers and directors may negotiate employment or consulting arrangements to remain with us after our initial business combination. The existence or terms of any such employment or consulting arrangements to retain their positions with us may influence our management’s motivation in identifying or selecting a target business but we do not believe that the ability of our management to remain with us after the consummation of our initial business combination will be a determining factor in our decision to proceed with any potential business combination. We are not party to any agreements with our officers and directors that provide for benefits upon termination of employment.
| Item 12. | Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters |
The following table sets forth information regarding the beneficial ownership of our common stock as of March 30, 2022 based on information obtained from the persons named below, with respect to the beneficial ownership of shares of our common stock, by:
| • | each person known by us to be the beneficial owner of more than 5% of our outstanding shares of common stock; |
| • | each of our named executive officers and directors that beneficially owns shares of our common stock; and |
68
| • | all our executive officers and directors as a group. |
In the table below, percentage ownership is based on 29,900,000 shares of Class A common stock (which includes shares of Class A common stock that are underlying the units) and 7,475,000 shares of Class B common stock outstanding as of March 30, 2022. Unless otherwise indicated, we believe that all persons named in the table have sole voting and investment power with respect to all shares of common stock beneficially owned by them. The following table does not reflect record or beneficial ownership of the private placement warrants as these warrants are not exercisable within 60 days of the date of this Report.
Name of Beneficial Owners(1) | Class B common stock | Class A common stock | ||||||||||||||
| Number of Shares Beneficially Owned(2) | Approximate Percentage of Class | Number of Shares Beneficially Owned | Approximate Percentage of Class | |||||||||||||
Juniper II Management, LLC (our sponsor)(3) | 7,335,000 | 98.1 | % | — | — | |||||||||||
Roger Fradin(3) | 7,335,000 | 98.1 | % | — | — | |||||||||||
Murray Grainger | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
Noah Kindler | — | — | — | — | ||||||||||||
Mitchell Jacobson | 35,000 | * | — | — | ||||||||||||
Mark Levy | 35,000 | * | — | — | ||||||||||||
Andrew Teich | 35,000 | * | — | — | ||||||||||||
All executive officers and directors as a group | 7,440,000 | 99.5 | % | — | — | |||||||||||
Adage Capital Partners, L.P.(4) | — | — | 1,750,000 | 5.9 | % | |||||||||||
Highbridge Capital Management, LLC(5) | — | — | 1,794,214 | 6.0 | % | |||||||||||
| * | Less than one percent. |
| (1) | Unless otherwise noted, the business address of each of the following entities or individuals is c/o Juniper II Corp., 3790 El Camino Real #818, Palo Alto, California 94306. |
| (2) | Interests shown consist solely of founder shares, classified as shares of Class B common stock. Such shares are convertible into shares of Class A common stock on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment |
| (3) | Roger Fradin has voting and dispositive power over the securities held by Juniper II Management, LLC and therefore may be deemed to be a beneficial owner thereof. |
| (4) | Based solely upon the Schedule 13G filed by Adage Capital Partners, L.P., Adage Capital Partners GP, L.L.C., Adage Capital Advisors, L.L.C., Robert Atchinson and Phillip Gross (collectively, the “Reporting Persons”) on December 10, 2021. Adage Capital Partners, L.P., a Delaware limited partnership (“ACP”), has the power to dispose of and the power to vote the shares of the Class A common stock beneficially owned by it, which power may be exercised by its general partner, Adage Capital Partners GP, L.L.C., a limited liability company organized under the laws of the State of Delaware (“ACPGP”). Adage Capital Advisors, L.L.C., a limited liability company organized under the laws of the State of Delaware (“ACA”), as managing member of ACPGP, directs ACPGP’s operations. Neither ACPGP nor ACA directly owns any shares of the Class A common stock. By reason of the provisions of Rule 13d-3 of the Exchange Act, ACPGP and ACA may be deemed to beneficially own the shares owned by ACP. Messrs. Atchinson and Gross, as managing members of ACA, have shared power to vote the shares of the Class A common stock beneficially owned by ACP. Neither Mr. Atchinson nor Mr. Gross directly owns any shares of the Class A common stock. By reason of the provisions of Rule 13d-3 of the Exchange Act, each of Messrs. Atchinson and Gross may be deemed to beneficially own the shares beneficially owned by ACP. The business address of each of the Reporting Persons is 200 Clarendon Street, 52nd Floor, Boston, Massachusetts 02116. |
| (5) | Based solely upon the Amendment No. 1 to Schedule 13G filed on February 3, 2022 by Highbridge Capital Management, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company and the investment adviser to certain funds and accounts (the “Highbridge Funds”), with respect to the shares of the Class A common stock directly held by the Highbridge Funds. The business address of Highbridge Capital Management, LLC is 277 Park Avenue, 23rd Floor, New York, New York 10172. |
69
Our sponsor and our executive officers and directors are deemed to be our “promoters” as such term is defined under the federal securities laws.
Changes in Control
None.
| Item 13. | Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence |
Founder Shares
On January 21, 2021, our sponsor purchased 8,625,000 founder shares for an aggregate purchase price of $25,000, or approximately $0.003 per share. On February 4, 2021, we effected a forward stock split that increased the number of founder shares held by our sponsor from 8,625,000 to 11,500,000. In March and April 2021, our sponsor transferred 35,000 founder shares to each of our independent directors and to Darius Adamczyk, one of our advisors. On July 12, 2021, our sponsor surrendered, for no consideration, an aggregate of 5,031,250 founder shares, which we canceled, resulting in an aggregate of 6,328,750 founder shares held by our sponsor and an aggregate of 6,468,750 founder shares outstanding. Immediately prior to the consummation of our initial public offering, we effected a stock dividend with respect to our Class B common stock, resulting in 7,335,000 founder shares held by our sponsor and an aggregate of 7,475,000 founder shares outstanding. Up to 975,000 founder shares were subject to forfeiture by our sponsor to the extent that the underwriters’ option to purchase additional units was not exercised in full or in part. The underwriters exercised their over-allotment option in full on November 8, 2021; thus, these 975,000 founder shares are no longer subject to forfeiture.
With certain limited exceptions, the founder shares will not be transferable or assignable until the earlier of: (A) one year after the completion of our initial business combination; or (B) subsequent to our initial business combination, (x) if the closing price of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $12.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) for any 20 trading days within any 30-trading day period commencing at least 150 days after our initial business combination, or (y) the date on which our company completes a liquidation, merger, capital stock exchange, reorganization or other similar transaction that results in all of our stockholders having the right to exchange their shares of common stock for cash, securities or other property.
Our initial stockholders have agreed (i) to waive their redemption rights with respect to any founder shares and any public shares held by them in connection with the completion of our initial business combination and (ii) to waive their rights to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to any founder shares held by them if we fail to complete our initial business combination within 18 months (or 24 months, if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination) from the closing of our initial public offering, 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 business combination within the prescribed time frame.
Private Placement Warrants
Simultaneous with the consummation of our initial public offering and the issuance and sale of the units, we consummated the private placement of 14,960,000 private placement warrants to our sponsor, at a price of $1.00 per private placement warrant, generating total proceeds of $14,960,000. Each private placement warrant entitles the holder to purchase one share of our Class A common stock at $11.50 per share. The private placement warrants (including the Class A common stock issuable upon exercise thereof) may not, subject to certain limited exceptions, be transferred, assigned or sold by the holder.
Other Transactions with Our Sponsor
If any of our officers or directors becomes aware of a business combination opportunity that falls within the line of business of any entity to which he or she has then-current fiduciary or contractual obligations, he or she will honor his or her fiduciary or contractual obligations to present such opportunity to such entity. Our officers and directors currently have certain relevant fiduciary duties or contractual obligations that may take priority over their duties to us.
70
Commencing on November 4, 2021, we have agreed to pay our sponsor a total of $10,000 per month for office space, utilities and secretarial and administrative support. Upon completion of our initial business combination or our liquidation, we will cease paying these monthly fees.
Other than these monthly fees, no compensation of any kind, including finder’s and consulting fees, will be paid to our sponsor, officers and directors, or any of their respective affiliates, for services rendered prior to or in connection with the completion of an initial business combination. However, these individuals will be reimbursed for any out-of-pocket expenses incurred in connection with activities on our behalf such as identifying potential target businesses and performing due diligence on suitable business combinations. Our audit committee reviews on a quarterly basis all payments that were made by us to our sponsor, officers, directors or our or their affiliates and will determine which expenses and the amount of expenses that will be reimbursed. There is no cap or ceiling on the reimbursement of out-of-pocket expenses incurred by such persons in connection with activities on our behalf.
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that we may extend the period of time to consummate a business combination by an additional six months (for a total of 24 months to complete a business combination). In order to effectuate such extension, our sponsor or its affiliates or designees must deposit into the trust account $2,990,000 ($0.10 per unit), on or prior to 18-month anniversary of the closing of our initial public offering. Any such payments would be made in the form of a loan that will be non-interest bearing and payable upon the consummation of our initial business combination. If we complete our initial business combination, we would repay such loaned amounts out of the proceeds of the trust account released to us. If we do not complete a business combination, we will not repay such loans. We will only be able to effectuate one such extension and only for an additional six months. Our sponsor and its affiliates or designees are not obligated to fund the trust account to extend the time for us to complete our initial business combination.
Our sponsor agreed to loan us up to an aggregate of up to $300,000 to cover a portion of the expenses related of our initial public offering pursuant to a promissory note dated January 21, 2021, which was later amended on September 30, 2021 (the “Promissory Note”). The loan was non-interest bearing, unsecured and due at the earlier of December 31, 2021 or the closing of our initial public offering. We fully borrowed $300,000 under the Promissory Note. In addition, we received additional advances from related parties of approximately $13.1 million to cover for certain offering costs and pre-payment for private placement warrants (the “Advances”). We had fully repaid the Promissory Note and the Advances as of the consummation of our initial public offering.
In addition, in order to finance transaction costs in connection with an intended initial business combination, our sponsor or an affiliate of our sponsor or certain of our officers and directors may, but are not obligated to, loan us funds as may be required. If we complete an initial business combination, we would repay such loaned amounts. In the event that the initial business combination does not close, we may use a portion of the working capital held outside the trust account to repay such loaned amounts but no proceeds from our trust account would be used for such repayment. Up to $1,500,000 of such loans may be convertible into warrants at a price of $1.00 per warrant at the option of the lender. The warrants would be identical to the private placement warrants, including as to exercise price, exercisability and exercise period. The terms of such loans by our officers and directors, if any, have not been determined and no written agreements exist with respect to such loans. We do not expect to seek loans from parties other than our sponsor or an affiliate of our sponsor as we do not believe third parties will be willing to loan such funds and provide a waiver against any and all rights to seek access to funds in our trust account.
After our initial business combination, members of our management team who remain with us may be paid consulting, management or other fees from the combined company with any and all amounts being fully disclosed to our stockholders, to the extent then known, in the tender offer or proxy solicitation materials, as applicable, furnished to our stockholders. It is unlikely the amount of such compensation will be known at the time of distribution of such tender offer materials or at the time of a stockholder meeting held to consider our initial business combination, as applicable, as it will be up to the directors of the post-combination business to determine executive and director compensation.
We have entered into a registration rights and stockholder rights agreement pursuant to which our sponsor is entitled to certain registration rights with respect to the private placement warrants, the warrants issuable upon conversion of working capital loans (if any) and the Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the foregoing and upon conversion of the founder shares, and, upon consummation of our initial business combination, to nominate three individuals for election to our board of directors.
71
Related Party Policy
We have adopted a Code of Ethics requiring us to avoid, wherever possible, all conflicts of interests, except under guidelines or resolutions approved by our board of directors (or the appropriate committee of our board) or as disclosed in our public filings with the SEC. Under our code of ethics, conflict of interest situations will include any financial transaction, arrangement or relationship (including any indebtedness or guarantee of indebtedness) involving the company.
In addition, our audit committee, pursuant to the audit committee charter, is responsible for reviewing and approving related party transactions to the extent that we enter into such transactions. An affirmative vote of a majority of the members of the audit committee present at a meeting at which a quorum is present will be required in order to approve a related party transaction. A majority of the members of the entire audit committee will constitute a quorum. Without a meeting, the unanimous written consent of all of the members of the audit committee will be required to approve a related party transaction. We also require each of our directors and executive officers to complete a directors’ and officers’ questionnaire that elicits information about related party transactions.
These procedures are intended to determine whether any such related party transaction impairs the independence of a director or presents a conflict of interest on the part of a director, employee or officer.
To further minimize conflicts of interest, we have agreed not to consummate an initial business combination with an entity that is affiliated with any of our sponsor, officers or directors unless we, or a committee of independent directors, have obtained an opinion from an independent investment banking firm which is a member of FINRA or an independent accounting firm that our initial business combination is fair to our company from a financial point of view. Furthermore, no finder’s fees, reimbursements or cash payments will be made to our sponsor, officers or directors, or our or their affiliates, by us for services rendered to us prior to or in connection with the completion of our initial business combination. However, the following payments will be made to our sponsor, officers or directors, or our or their affiliates, none of which will be made from the proceeds of our initial public offering held in the trust account prior to the completion of our initial business combination:
| • | repayment of up to an aggregate of $300,000 in loans made to us by our sponsor to cover offering-related and organizational expenses; |
| • | payment to an affiliate of our sponsor of $10,000 per month, for up to 24 months, for office space, utilities and secretarial and administrative support; |
| • | reimbursement for any out-of-pocket expenses related to identifying, investigating and completing an initial business combination; and |
| • | repayment of loans which may be made by our sponsor or an affiliate of our sponsor or certain of our officers and directors to finance transaction costs in connection with an intended initial business combination, the terms of which have not been determined nor have any written agreements been executed with respect thereto. Up to $1,500,000 of such loans may be convertible into warrants, at a price of $1.00 per warrant at the option of the lender. |
Our audit committee reviews on a quarterly basis all payments that were made by us to our sponsor, officers or directors, or our or their affiliates.
Director Independence
The NYSE listing standards require that a majority of our board of directors be independent. An “independent director” is defined generally as a person that, in the opinion of the company’s board of directors, has no material relationship with the listed company (either directly or as a partner, shareholder or officer of an organization that has a relationship with the company). Our board of directors has determined that Mitchell Jacobson, Mark Levy and Andrew Teich are “independent directors” as defined in the NYSE listing standards and applicable SEC rules. Our independent directors have regularly scheduled meetings at which only independent directors are present.
72
| Item 14. | Principal Accountant Fees and Services |
The following is a summary of fees paid to Marcum LLP, for services rendered.
Audit Fees. Audit fees consist of fees billed for professional services rendered for the audit of our year-end financial statements, reviews of our quarterly financial statements and services that are normally provided by our independent registered public accounting firm in connection with statutory and regulatory filings. The aggregate fees by Marcum LLP for audit fees, inclusive of required filings with the SEC for the year ended December 31, 2021, and of services rendered in connection with our initial public offering, totaled approximately $103,000.
Audit-Related Fees. Audit-related fees consist of fees for assurance and related services that are reasonably related to performance of the audit or review of our year-end financial statements and are not reported under “Audit Fees.” These services include attest services that are not required by statute or regulation and consultation concerning financial accounting and reporting standards. We did not pay Marcum LLP any audit-related fees during the year ended December 31, 2021.
Tax Fees. Tax fees consist of fees billed for professional services relating to tax compliance, tax planning and tax advice. We did not pay Marcum LLP any tax-related fees during the year ended December 31, 2021.
All Other Fees. All other fees consist of fees billed for all other services. We did not pay Marcum LLP any other fees during the year ended December 31, 2021.
Pre-Approval Policy
Our audit committee was formed upon the pricing of our initial public offering. As a result, the audit committee did not pre-approve all of the foregoing services, although any services rendered prior to the formation of our audit committee were approved by our board of directors. Since the formation of our audit committee, and on a going-forward basis, the audit committee has and will pre-approve all auditing services and permitted non-audit services to be performed for us by our auditors, including the fees and terms thereof (subject to the de minimis exceptions for non-audit services described in the Exchange Act which are approved by the audit committee prior to the completion of the audit).
73
| Item 15. | Exhibits, Financial Statement Schedules |
(a) The following documents are filed as part of this Form 10-K:
(1) Financial Statements: Our consolidated financial statements are listed in the “Index to Audited Financial Statements” on page F-1.
(2) Financial Statement Schedules: None.
(3) Exhibits
We hereby file as part of this Report the exhibits listed in the attached Exhibit Index. Copies of such material can also be obtained on the SEC website at www.sec.gov.
EXHIBIT INDEX
Exhibit | Description | |
| 3.1 | Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation.(1) | |
| 3.2 | Amended and Restated Bylaws.(1) | |
| 4.1 | Warrant Agreement between Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company and the Company.(1) | |
| 4.2 | Specimen Unit Certificate.(2) | |
| 4.3 | Specimen Class A Common Stock Certificate.(3) | |
| 4.4 | Specimen Warrant Certificate.(3) | |
| 4.5* | Description of Registrant’s securities. | |
| 10.1 | Administrative Support Agreement between the Company and Juniper II Management, LLC.(1) | |
| 10.2 | Private Placement Warrants Purchase Agreement between the Company and Juniper II Management, LLC.(1) | |
| 10.3 | Investment Management Trust Agreement between Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company and the Company.(1) | |
| 10.4 | Registration and Stockholder Rights Agreement among the Company and certain security holders.(1) | |
| 10.5 | Letter Agreement among the Company and its officers and directors and Juniper II Management, LLC.(1) | |
| 10.6 | Letter Agreement among the Company, an advisor of the Company and Juniper II Management, LLC.(1) | |
| 10.7 | Form of Indemnity Agreement.(3) | |
| 10.8 | Second Amended and Restated Promissory Note, dated September 30, 2021, issued to Juniper II Management, LLC.(2) | |
| 10.9 | Securities Subscription Agreement, dated January 21, 2021, between the Registrant and Juniper II Management, LLC.(4) | |
| 31.1* | Certification of the Chief Executive Officer required by Rule 13a-14(a) or Rule 15d-14(a). | |
| 31.2* | Certification of the Chief Financial Officer required by Rule 13a-14(a) or Rule 15d-14(a). | |
| 32.1** | Certification of the Chief Executive Officer required by Rule 13a-14(b) or Rule 15d-14(b) and 18 U.S.C. 1350. | |
| 32.2** | Certification of the Chief Financial Officer required by Rule 13a-14(b) or Rule 15d-14(b) and 18 U.S.C. 1350. | |
| 101.INS* | XBRL Instance Document - the instance document does not appear in the Interactive Data File because its XBRL tags are embedded within the Inline XBRL document. | |
| 101.SCH* | Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Schema Document. | |
| 101.CAL* | Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Calculation Linkbase Document. | |
| 101.DEF* | Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Definition Linkbase Document. | |
| 101.LAB* | Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Label Linkbase Document. | |
| 101.PRE* | Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Presentation Linkbase Document. | |
| 104* | Cover Page Interactive Data File (formatted as Inline XBRL and contained in Exhibit 101). | |
| * | Filed herewith |
| ** | Furnished herewith |
74
| (1) | Incorporated by reference to Juniper II Corp.’s Current Report on Form 8-K, filed with the SEC on November 9, 2021. |
| (2) | Incorporated by reference to Juniper II Corp.’s Registration Statement on Form S-1/A, filed with the SEC on October 25, 2021. |
| (3) | Incorporated by reference to Juniper II Corp.’s Registration Statement on Form S-1/A, filed with the SEC on June 2, 2021. |
| (4) | Incorporated by reference to Juniper II Corp.’s Registration Statement on Form S-1, filed with the SEC on April 2, 2021. |
| Item 16. | Form 10-K Summary |
Not applicable.
75
Index to Audited Financial Statements
| Page | ||||
Audited Financial Statements | ||||
Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm (PCAOB ID Number 688) | F-2 | |||
| F-3 | ||||
| F-4 | ||||
| F-5 | ||||
| F-6 | ||||
| F-7 | ||||
F-1
REPORT OF INDEPENDENT PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM
To the Stockholders and the Board of Directors of
Juniper II Corp.
Opinion on the Financial Statements
We have audited the accompanying balance sheet of Juniper II Corp. (the “Company”) as of December 31, 2021, the related statements of operations, changes in stockholders’ deficit and cash flows for the year then ended, and the related notes (collectively referred to as the “financial statements”). In our opinion, the financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Company as of December 31, 2021, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for the year then ended, in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.
Basis for Opinion
These financial statements are the responsibility of the Company’s management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Company’s financial statements based on our audit. We are a public accounting firm registered with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (“PCAOB”) and are required to be independent with respect to the Company in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.
We conducted our audit in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud. The Company is not required to have, nor were we engaged to perform, an audit of its internal control over financial reporting. As part of our audit, we are required to obtain an understanding of internal control over financial reporting but not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the Company’s internal control over financial reporting. Accordingly, we express no such opinion.
Our audit included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to error or fraud, and performing procedures that respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. Our audit also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial statements. We believe that our audit provides a reasonable basis for our opinion.
Marcum LLP
We have served as the Company’s auditor since 2021.
New York, NY
March 31, 2022
F-2
BALANCE SHEET
December 31, 2021
Assets: | ||||
Current assets: | ||||
Cash | $ | 1,804,832 | ||
Prepaid expenses | 446,283 | |||
|
| |||
Total current assets | 2,251,115 | |||
Prepaid expenses - long-term | 354,748 | |||
Investments held in Trust Account | 304,983,967 | |||
Total Assets | $ | 307,589,830 | ||
|
| |||
Liabilities, Class A Common Stock Subject to Possible Redemption and Stockholders’ Deficit: | ||||
Current liabilities: | ||||
Accounts payable | $ | 437,222 | ||
Accrued expenses | 133,213 | |||
Franchise tax payable | 181,457 | |||
|
| |||
Total current liabilities | 751,892 | |||
Derivative warrant liabilities | 23,778,500 | |||
Deferred underwriting commissions | 10,465,000 | |||
|
| |||
Total Liabilities | 34,995,392 | |||
Commitments and Contingencies | ||||
Class A common stock subject to possible redemption, $0.0001 par value; 29,900,000 shares at $10.20 per share redemption value | 304,980,000 | |||
Stockholders’ Deficit: | ||||
Preferred stock, $0.0001 par value; 1,000,000 shares authorized; none issued or outstanding | — | |||
Class A common stock, $0.0001 par value; 500,000,000 shares authorized; no non-redeemable shares issued or outstanding | — | |||
Class B common stock, $0.0001 par value; 50,000,000 shares authorized; 7,475,000 shares issued and outstanding | 748 | |||
Additional paid-in capital | — | |||
Accumulated deficit | (32,386,310 | ) | ||
Total stockholders’ deficit | (32,385,562 | ) | ||
Total Liabilities, Class A Common Stock Subject to Possible Redemption and Stockholders’ Deficit | $ | 307,589,830 | ||
|
|
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements
F-3
STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS
For the Year Ended December 31, 2021
General and administrative expenses | $ | 125,187 | ||
General and administrative expenses - related party | 20,000 | |||
Franchise tax expenses | 181,457 | |||
|
| |||
Loss from operations | (326,644 | ) | ||
Other income (expenses): | ||||
Change in fair value of derivative warrant liabilities | (5,234,300 | ) | ||
Income from investments held in Trust Account | 3,967 | |||
Offering costs associated with derivative warrant liabilities | (559,555 | ) | ||
Total other income (expenses) | (5,789,888 | ) | ||
|
| |||
Net loss | $ | (6,116,532 | ) | |
|
| |||
Weighted average shares outstanding of Class A common stock, basic and diluted | 4,423,562 | |||
|
| |||
Basic and diluted net loss per share, Class A common stock | $ | (0.57 | ) | |
|
| |||
Weighted average shares outstanding of Class B common stock, basic and diluted | 6,288,082 | |||
Basic and diluted net loss per share, Class B common stock | $ | (0.57 | ) | |
|
|
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements
F-4
STATEMENTS OF CHANGES IN STOCKHOLDERS’ DEFICIT
For the Year Ended December 31, 2021
| Common Stock | Additional Paid-In Capital | Accumulated Deficit | Total Stockholder’s Deficit | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Class A | Class B |
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Shares | Amount | Shares | Amount | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Balance - January 1, 2021 | — | $ | — | — | $ | — | $ | — | $ | — | $ | — | ||||||||||||||||
Issuance of Class B common stock to Sponsor | — | $ | — | 7,475,000 | 748 | 24,252 | — | 25,000 | ||||||||||||||||||||
Excess of cash received over fair value of private placement warrants | — | $ | — | — | — | 5,684,800 | — | 5,684,800 | ||||||||||||||||||||
Accretion of Class A common stock to redemption amount | — | $ | — | — | — | (5,709,052 | ) | (26,269,778 | ) | (31,978,830 | ) | |||||||||||||||||
Net loss | — | $ | — | — | — | — | (6,116,532 | ) | (6,116,532 | ) | ||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |||||||||||||||
Balance - December 31, 2021 | — | $ | — | 7,475,000 | $ | 748 | $ | — | $ | (32,386,310 | ) | $ | (32,385,562 | ) | ||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| |||||||||||||||
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements
F-5
STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS
For the Year Ended December 31, 2021
Cash Flows from Operating Activities: | ||||
Net loss | $ | (6,116,532 | ) | |
Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash used in operating activities: | ||||
General and administrative expenses advanced by related parties | 906,167 | |||
Change in fair value of derivative warrant liabilities | 5,234,300 | |||
Income from investments held in Trust Account | (3,967 | ) | ||
Offering costs associated with derivative warrant liabilities | 559,555 | |||
Changes in operating assets and liabilities: | ||||
Prepaid expenses | (446,283 | ) | ||
Prepaid expenses - long-term | (354,748 | ) | ||
Accounts payable | 797 | |||
Accrued expenses | 33,213 | |||
Franchise tax payable | 181,457 | |||
|
| |||
Net cash used in operating activities | (6,041 | ) | ||
|
| |||
Cash Flows from Investing Activities | ||||
Cash deposited in Trust Account | (304,980,000 | ) | ||
|
| |||
Net cash used in investing activities | (304,980,000 | ) | ||
|
| |||
Cash Flows from Financing Activities: | ||||
Proceeds from advances from related parties | 12,351,103 | |||
Repayment of advances from related parties | (13,392,365 | ) | ||
Proceeds received from initial public offering, gross | 299,000,000 | |||
Proceeds received from private placement | 14,960,000 | |||
Offering costs paid | (6,127,865 | ) | ||
|
| |||
Net cash provided by financing activities | 306,790,873 | |||
|
| |||
Net change in cash | 1,804,832 | |||
Cash - beginning of the period | — | |||
|
| |||
Cash - end of the period | $ | 1,804,832 | ||
|
| |||
Supplemental disclosure of noncash investing and financing activities: | ||||
Offering costs paid by Sponsor in exchange for issuance of Class B common stock | $ | 25,000 | ||
Offering costs included in accounts payable | $ | 436,425 | ||
Offering costs included in accrued expenses | $ | 100,000 | ||
Offering costs advanced by related parties | $ | 135,095 | ||
Deferred underwriting commissions | $ | 10,465,000 |
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements
F-6
NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
Note 1—Description of Organization and Business Operations
Juniper II Corp. (the “Company”) was incorporated in Delaware on December 30, 2020. The Company was formed for the purpose of effecting a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses (the “Business Combination”). The Company is not limited to a particular industry or sector for purposes of consummating a Business Combination. The Company is an early stage and emerging growth company and, as such, the Company is subject to all of the risks associated with early stage and emerging growth companies.
As of December 31, 2021, the Company had not commenced any operations. All activities from December 30, 2020 (inception) through December 31, 2021 relates to the Company’s formation and the initial public offering (“Initial Public Offering”), which is described below. The Company will not generate any operating revenues until after the completion of its initial Business Combination, at the earliest. The Company will generate non-operating income in the form of interest income from the proceeds derived from the Initial Public Offering. The Company has selected December 31 as its fiscal year end.
The Company’s sponsor is Juniper II Management, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company (the “Sponsor”). The registration statements for the Company’s Initial Public Offering were declared effective on November 3, 2021. On November 8, 2021, the Company consummated its Initial Public Offering of 29,900,000 units (the “Units” and, with respect to the Class A common stock included in the Units being offered, the “Public Shares”), including 3,900,000 additional Units to cover over-allotments (the “Over-Allotment Units”), at $10.00 per Unit, generating gross proceeds of $299.0 million, and incurring offering costs of approximately $17.3 million, of which approximately $10.5 million and approximately $560,000 was for deferred underwriting commissions (see Note 5) and offering costs allocated to derivative warrant liabilities, respectively.
Simultaneously with the closing of the Initial Public Offering, the Company consummated the private placement (“Private Placement”) of 14,960,000 warrants (each, a “Private Placement Warrant” and collectively, the “Private Placement Warrants”), at a price of $1.00 per Private Placement Warrant to the Sponsor, generating proceeds of approximately $15.0 million (Note 4).
Upon the closing of the Initial Public Offering and the Private Placement, approximately $305.0 million ($10.20 per Unit) of net proceeds, including the net proceeds of the Initial Public Offering and certain of the proceeds of the Private Placement, was placed in a trust account (“Trust Account”), located in the United States and invested only in U.S. government securities, within the meaning set forth in Section 2(a)(16) of the Investment Company Act, with a maturity of 185 days or less or in any open-ended investment company that holds itself out as a money market fund selected by the Company meeting the conditions of Rule 2a-7 of the Investment Company Act 1940, as amended (the “Investment Company Act”), as determined by the Company, until the earlier of: (i) the completion of a Business Combination and (ii) the distribution of the Trust Account, as described below.
The Company’s management has broad discretion with respect to the specific application of the net proceeds of the Initial Public Offering and the sale of Private Placement Warrants, although substantially all of the net proceeds are intended to be applied generally toward consummating a Business Combination. There is no assurance that the Company will be able to complete a Business Combination successfully. The Company must complete a Business Combination 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 deferred underwriting commissions and taxes payable on interest earned on the Trust Account) at the time of the agreement to enter into a Business Combination. The Company will only complete a Business Combination if the post-transaction company owns or acquires 50% or more of the outstanding voting securities of the target or otherwise acquires a controlling interest in the target sufficient for it not to be required to register as an investment company under the Investment Company Act.
The Company’s management has broad discretion with respect to the specific application of the net proceeds of the Initial Public Offering and the sale of Private Placement Warrants, although substantially all of the net proceeds are intended to be applied generally toward consummating a Business Combination. There is no assurance that the Company will be able to complete a Business Combination successfully. The Company must complete a Business Combination 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 deferred underwriting commissions and taxes payable on interest earned on the Trust Account) at the time of the agreement to enter into a Business Combination. The Company will only complete a Business Combination if the post-transaction company owns or acquires 50% or more of the outstanding voting securities of the target or otherwise acquires a controlling interest in the target sufficient for it not to be required to register as an investment company under the Investment Company Act.
F-7
The Company will provide its holders of the outstanding Public Shares (the “Public Stockholders”) with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their Public Shares upon the completion of a Business Combination either (i) in connection with a stockholder meeting called to approve the Business Combination or (ii) by means of a tender offer. The decision as to whether the Company will seek stockholder approval of a Business Combination or conduct a tender offer will be made by the Company, solely in its discretion. The Public Stockholders will be entitled to redeem their Public Shares for a pro rata portion of the amount then in the Trust Account (initially at $10.20 per Public Share, plus any pro rata interest earned on the funds held in the Trust Account and not previously released to the Company to pay its tax obligations). The per-share amount to be distributed to Public Stockholders who redeem their Public Shares will not be reduced by the deferred underwriting commissions the Company will pay to the underwriter (as discussed in Note 5). There will be no redemption rights upon the completion of a Business Combination with respect to the Company’s warrants. All of the Public Shares contain a redemption feature which allows for the redemption of such Public Shares in connection with the liquidation, if there is a stockholder vote or tender offer in connection with the initial Business Combination and in connection with certain amendments to the Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation (the “Certificate of Incorporation”). The Public Shares were recorded at a redemption value and classified as temporary equity, in accordance with the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) Topic 480 “Distinguishing Liabilities from Equity” (“ASC 480”). In such case, the Company will proceed with a Business Combination if the Company has net tangible assets of at least $5,000,001 upon such consummation of a Business Combination and a majority of the shares voted are voted in favor of the Business Combination. If a shareholder vote is not required by applicable law or stock exchange requirements and the Company does not decide to hold a shareholder vote for business or other reasons, the Company will, pursuant to the amended and restated certificate of incorporation adopted by the Company upon the consummation of the Initial Public Offering (the “Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation”), conduct the redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), and file tender offer documents with the SEC prior to completing a Business Combination. If, however, a shareholder approval of the transactions is required by law, or the Company decides to obtain shareholder approval for business or other reasons, the Company will offer to redeem shares in conjunction with a proxy solicitation pursuant to the proxy rules and not pursuant to the tender offer rules. Additionally, each Public Shareholder may elect to redeem their Public Shares irrespective of whether they vote for or against the proposed transaction. If the Company seeks shareholder approval in connection with a Business Combination, the holders of the Company’s Class B common stock (“Founder Shares”) prior to this Initial Public Offering (the “Initial Shareholders”) agreed to vote their Founder Shares (as defined in Note 4) and any Public Shares purchased during or after the Initial Public Offering in favor of a Business Combination. In addition, the Initial Shareholders agreed to waive their redemption rights with respect to their Founder Shares and Public Shares in connection with the completion of a Business Combination. In addition, the Company agreed not to enter into a definitive agreement regarding an initial Business Combination without the prior consent of the Sponsor.
If the Company seeks stockholder approval of a Business Combination and it does not conduct redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules, the Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation provides that a Public Stockholder, together with any affiliate of such stockholder or any other person with whom such stockholder is acting in concert or as a “group” (as defined under Section 13 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”)), will be restricted from redeeming its shares with respect to more than an aggregate of 15% or more of the Public Shares, without the prior consent of the Company.
The Sponsor agreed (a) to waive its redemption rights with respect to any Founder Shares and Public Shares held by it in connection with the completion of a Business Combination and (b) not to propose an amendment to the Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation that would affect the substance or timing of the Company’s obligation to redeem 100% of its Public Shares if the Company does not complete a Business Combination, unless the Company provides the Public Stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their Public Shares in conjunction with any such amendment.
The Company will have 18 months from the closing of the Initial Public Offering to consummate an initial Business Combination. However, if the Company anticipates that it may not be able to consummate the initial Business Combination within 18 months, the Company may extend the period of time to consummate a Business Combination for six months (for a total of 24 months to complete a Business Combination) without submitting such proposed extension to the stockholders for approval or offering the Public Stockholders redemption rights in connection therewith. In order to extend the time available for the Company to consummate the initial Business Combination for an additional six months, the Sponsor or its affiliates or designees must deposit into the Trust Account an amount of $0.10 per Public Share, or approximately $2.6 million in the aggregate (or up to approximately $3.0 million in the aggregate if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) on or prior to 18-month anniversary of the closing of the Initial Public Offering. Any such payments would be made in the form of a loan.
F-8
If the Company is unable to complete a Business Combination within 18 months from the closing of the Initial Public Offering, or May 8, 2023, (or 24 months, if extended) to complete a Business Combination (the “Combination Period”), the Company will (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up, (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than ten business days thereafter, redeem the Public Shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the Trust Account including interest earned on the funds held in the Trust Account and not previously released to the Company to pay its tax obligations (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of then outstanding Public Shares, which redemption will completely extinguish Public Stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidating distributions, if any), subject to applicable law, and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of the Company’s remaining stockholders and the Company’s board of directors, dissolve and liquidate, subject in each case to the Company’s obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. There will be no redemption rights or liquidating distributions with respect to the Company’s warrants, which will expire worthless if the Company fails to complete a Business Combination within the Combination Period.
The Sponsor agreed to waive its liquidation rights with respect to the Founder Shares if the Company fails to complete a Business Combination within the Combination Period. However, if the Sponsor or any of its affiliates acquire Public Shares after the Initial Public Offering, such Public Shares will be entitled to liquidating distributions from the Trust Account if the Company fails to complete a Business Combination within the Combination Period. The underwriter agreed to waive its right to its deferred underwriting commission (see Note 5) held in the Trust Account in the event the Company does not complete a Business Combination within the Combination Period and, in such event, such amounts will be included with the other funds held in the Trust Account that will be available to fund the redemption of the Public Shares. In the event of such distribution, it is possible that the per share value of the assets remaining available for distribution will be less than the Initial Public Offering price per Unit ($10.00).
In order to protect the amounts held in the Trust Account, the Sponsor agreed to be liable to the Company if and to the extent any claims by a third party for services rendered or products sold to the Company, or a prospective target business with which the Company has discussed entering into a transaction agreement, reduce the amount of funds in the Trust Account to below (i) $10.20 per Public Share or (ii) such lesser amount per Public Share held in the Trust Account as of the date of the liquidation of the Trust Account due to reductions in the value of the trust assets. This liability will not apply with respect to any claims by a third party who executed a waiver of any and all rights to seek access to the Trust Account and except as to any claims under the Company’s indemnity of the underwriter of the Initial Public Offering against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”). Moreover, in the event that an executed waiver is deemed to be unenforceable against a third party, the Sponsor will not be responsible to the extent of any liability for such third party claims. The Company will seek to reduce the possibility that the Sponsor will have to indemnify the Trust Account due to claims of creditors by endeavoring to have all vendors, service providers, prospective target businesses or other entities with which the Company does business, execute agreements with the Company waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to monies held in the Trust Account.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
As of December 31, 2021, the Company had approximately $1.8 million in cash, and working capital of approximately $1.5 million.
The Company’s liquidity needs prior to the consummation of the Initial Public Offering were satisfied through the payment of $25,000 from the Sponsor to cover certain offering costs in exchange for issuance of Founder Shares (as defined in Note 4), loan under a promissory note from the Sponsor of $300,000 and advances from related parties in the amount of approximately $13.1 million. The Company fully repaid the Note balance upon closing of the Initial Public Offering. Subsequent from the consummation of the Initial Public Offering, the Company’s liquidity has been satisfied through the net proceeds from the consummation of the Initial Public Offering and the Private Placement held outside of the Trust Account.
Accordingly, management has since re-evaluated the Company’s liquidity and financial condition and determined that sufficient capital exists to sustain operations for at least one year from the date that the financial statements were issued, and therefore substantial doubt has been alleviated. Over this time period, the Company will be using the funds held outside of the Trust Account for paying existing accounts payable, identifying and evaluating prospective initial Business Combination candidates, performing due diligence on prospective target businesses, paying for travel expenditures, selecting the target business to merge with or acquire, and structuring, negotiating and consummating the Business Combination.
F-9
Risks and Uncertainties
Management continues to evaluate the impact of the COVID-19 global pandemic and has concluded that while it is reasonably possible that the virus could have a negative effect on the Company’s financial position, results of its operations, close of the Proposed Public Offering and/or search for a target company, the specific impact is not readily determinable as of the date of these financial statements. The financial statements do not include any adjustments that might result from the outcome of this uncertainty.
Note 2—Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
Basis of Presentation
The accompanying financial statements are presented in in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”) and pursuant to the rules and regulations of the SEC.
Emerging Growth Company
The Company is an “emerging growth company”, as defined in Section 2(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), as modified by the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act of 2012 (the “JOBS Act”), and it may take advantage of certain exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other public companies that are not emerging growth companies including, but not limited to, not being required to comply with the independent registered public accounting firm attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in its periodic reports and proxy statements, and exemptions from the requirements of holding a nonbinding advisory vote on executive compensation and stockholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved.
Further, Section 102(b)(1) of the JOBS Act exempts emerging growth companies from being required to comply with new or revised financial accounting standards until private companies (that is, those that have not had a Securities Act registration statement declared effective or do not have a class of securities registered under the Exchange Act) are required to comply with the new or revised financial accounting standards. The JOBS Act provides that a company can elect to opt out of the extended transition period and comply with the requirements that apply to non-emerging growth companies but any such election to opt out is irrevocable. The Company has elected not to opt out of such extended transition period which means that when a standard is issued or revised and it has different application dates for public or private companies, the Company, as an emerging growth company, can adopt the new or revised standard at the time private companies adopt the new or revised standard. This may make comparison of the Company’s financial statements with another public company which is neither an emerging growth company nor an emerging growth company which has opted out of using the extended transition period difficult or impossible because of the potential differences in accounting standards used.
Use of Estimates
The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires the Company’s management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting periods.
Making estimates requires management to exercise significant judgment. It is at least reasonably possible that the estimate of the effect of a condition, situation or set of circumstances that existed at the date of the financial statements, which management considered in formulating its estimate, could change in the near term due to one or more future confirming events. One of the more significant accounting estimates included in these financial statements is the determination of the fair value of the warrant liabilities. Accordingly, the actual results could differ significantly from those estimates.
Cash and Cash Equivalents
The Company considers all short-term investments with an original maturity of three months or less when purchased to be cash equivalents. As of December 31, 2021, there were no cash equivalents present.
F-10
Investments Held in Trust Account
The Company’s portfolio of investments is comprised of U.S. government securities, within the meaning set forth in Section 2(a)(16) of the Investment Company Act, with a maturity of 185 days or less, or investments in money market funds that invest in U.S. government securities and generally have a readily determinable fair value, or a combination thereof. When the Company’s investments held in the Trust Account are comprised of U.S. government securities, the investments are classified as trading securities. When the Company’s investments held in the Trust Account are comprised of money market funds, the investments are recognized at fair value. Trading securities and investments in money market funds are presented on the balance sheet at fair value at the end of each reporting period. Gains and losses resulting from the change in fair value of these securities is included in income from investments held in the Trust Account in the accompanying statement of operations. The estimated fair values of investments held in the Trust Account are determined using available market information.
Concentration of Credit Risk
Financial instruments that potentially subject the Company to concentrations of credit risk consist of cash accounts in a financial institution, which, at times, may exceed the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Coverage limit of $250,000, and any cash held in Trust Account. As of December 31, 2021, the Company had not experienced losses on these accounts and management believes the Company is not exposed to significant risks on such accounts.
Fair Value of Financial Instruments
Fair value is defined as the price that would be received for sale of an asset or paid for transfer of a liability, in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. GAAP establishes a three-tier fair value hierarchy, which prioritizes the inputs used in measuring fair value.
The hierarchy gives the highest priority to unadjusted quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities (Level 1 measurements) and the lowest priority to unobservable inputs (Level 3 measurements). These tiers include:
| • | Level 1, defined as observable inputs such as quoted prices for identical instruments in active markets; |
| • | Level 2, defined as inputs other than quoted prices in active markets that are either directly or indirectly observable such as quoted prices for similar instruments in active markets or quoted prices for identical or similar instruments in markets that are not active; and |
| • | Level 3, defined as unobservable inputs in which little or no market data exists, therefore requiring an entity to develop its own assumptions, such as valuations derived from valuation techniques in which one or more significant inputs or significant value drivers are unobservable. |
In some circumstances, the inputs used to measure fair value might be categorized within different levels of the fair value hierarchy. In those instances, the fair value measurement is categorized in its entirety in the fair value hierarchy based on the lowest level input that is significant to the fair value measurement.
Offering Costs associated with the Initial Public Offering
Offering costs consisted of legal, accounting, underwriting fees and other costs incurred that were directly related to the Initial Public Offering. Offering costs are allocated to the separable financial instruments issued in the Initial Public Offering based on a relative fair value basis, compared to total proceeds received. Offering costs are allocated to the separable financial instruments issued in the Initial Public Offering based on a relative fair value basis, compared to total proceeds received. Offering costs associated with warrant liabilities are expensed as incurred, presented as non-operating expenses in the statement of operations. Offering costs associated with the Public Shares were charged against the carrying value of the shares of Class A common stock upon the completion of the Initial Public Offering. The Company classifies deferred underwriting commissions as non-current liabilities as their liquidation is not reasonably expected to require the use of current assets or require the creation of current liabilities.
F-11
Class A Common Stock Subject to Possible Redemption
The Company accounts for its Class A common stock subject to possible redemption in accordance with the guidance in ASC 480. Shares of Class A common stock subject to mandatory redemption (if any) are classified as liability instruments and are measured at fair value. Conditionally redeemable shares of Class A common stock (including shares of Class A common stock that feature redemption rights that are either within the control of the holder or subject to redemption upon the occurrence of uncertain events not solely within the Company’s control) are classified as temporary equity. At all other times, shares of Class A common stock are classified as stockholders’ equity. Shares of Class A common stock of the Company feature certain redemption rights that are considered to be outside of the Company’s control and subject to the occurrence of uncertain future events. Accordingly, as of December 31, 2021, 29,900,000 shares of Class A common stock subject to possible redemption were presented as temporary equity, outside of the stockholders’ equity section of the Company’s balance sheet.
Under ASC 480, the Company has elected to recognize changes in the redemption value immediately as they occur and adjust the carrying value of the security to equal the redemption value at the end of the reporting period. This method would view the end of the reporting period as if it were also the redemption date of the security. Effective with the closing of the Initial Public Offering, the Company recognized the accretion from initial book value to redemption amount, which resulted in charges against additional paid-in capital (to the extent available) and accumulated deficit.
Derivative Warrant Liabilities
The Company does not use derivative instruments to hedge exposures to cash flow, market, or foreign currency risks. The Company evaluates all of its financial instruments, including issued stock purchase warrants, to determine if such instruments are derivatives or contain features that qualify as embedded derivatives, pursuant to ASC 480 and FASB ASC Topic 815, “Derivatives and Hedging” (“ASC 815”). The classification of derivative instruments, including whether such instruments should be recorded as liabilities or as equity, is re-assessed at the end of each reporting period.
The warrants issued to investors in connection with the Initial Public Offering (the “Public Warrants”) and the Private Placement Warrants are recognized as derivative liabilities in accordance with ASC 815. Accordingly, the Company recognizes the warrant instruments as liabilities at fair value and adjusts the instruments to fair value at each reporting period. The difference between the fair market value of the private placement warrants and the initial purchase consideration thereof is recorded as compensation expense. The liabilities are subject to re-measurement at each balance sheet date until exercised, and any change in fair value is recognized in the Company’s statement of operations. The fair value of warrants issued in connection with the Initial Public Offering and Private Placement were initially and subsequently measured at fair value using a Black Scholes model. Beginning as of December 22, 2021, the fair value of Public Warrants has been measured based on the listed market price of such Public Warrants. The Private Placement Warrants were measured at fair value using a Black Scholes model at December 31, 2021.
Income Taxes
The Company complies with the accounting and reporting requirements of FASB ASC Topic 740, “Income Taxes” (“ASC 740”), which requires an asset and liability approach to financial accounting and reporting for income taxes. Deferred income tax assets and liabilities are computed for differences between the financial statement and tax bases of assets and liabilities that will result in future taxable or deductible amounts, based on enacted tax laws and rates applicable to the periods in which the differences are expected to affect taxable income. Valuation allowances are established, when necessary, to reduce deferred tax assets to the amount expected to be realized.
ASC 740 prescribes a recognition threshold and a measurement attribute for the financial statement recognition and measurement of tax positions taken or expected to be taken in a tax return. For those benefits to be recognized, a tax position must be more-likely-than-not to be sustained upon examination by taxing authorities. The Company recognizes accrued interest and penalties related to unrecognized tax benefits as income tax expense.
There were no unrecognized tax benefits as of December 31, 2021. No amounts were accrued for the payment of interest and penalties as of December 31, 2021. The Company is currently not aware of any issues under review that could result in significant payments, accruals or material deviation from its position. The Company is subject to income tax examinations by major taxing authorities since inception. The Company’s management does not expect that the total amount of unrecognized tax benefits will materially change over the next twelve months.
Net Income (loss) Per Common Share
The Company complies with accounting and disclosure requirements of FASB ASC Topic 260, “Earnings Per Share.” The Company has two classes of shares, which are referred to as Class A common stock and Class B common stock. Income and losses are shared pro rata between the two classes of shares. Net income (loss) per share of common stock is calculated by dividing the net income (loss) by the weighted average number of common stock outstanding for the respective period. The Company has not considered the effect of the warrants sold in the Initial Public Offering and private placement to purchase an aggregate of 29,910,000 shares in the calculation of diluted loss per share, since the exercise of the warrants are contingent upon the occurrence of future events and the inclusion of such warrants would be anti-dilutive. Accretion associated with the redeemable Class A common stock is excluded from earnings per share as the redemption value approximates fair value.
F-12
The table below presents a reconciliation of the numerator and denominator used to compute basic and diluted net loss per share of common stock for each class of common stock:
| For the Year ended December 31, 2021 | ||||||||
| Class A | Class B | |||||||
Basic and diluted net loss per common share: | ||||||||
Numerator: | ||||||||
Allocation of net loss | (2,525,929 | ) | (3,590,603 | ) | ||||
Denominator: | ||||||||
Basic and diluted weighted average common shares outstanding | 4,423,562 | 6,288,082 | ||||||
|
|
|
| |||||
Basic and diluted net loss per common share | $ | (0.57 | ) | $ | (0.57 | ) | ||
|
|
|
| |||||
Recent Adopted Accounting Standards
In August 2020, the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) No. 2020-06, “Debt—Debt with Conversion and Other Options (Subtopic 470-20) and Derivatives and Hedging—Contracts in Entity’s Own Equity (Subtopic 815-40): Accounting for Convertible Instruments and Contracts in an Entity’s Own Equity,” which simplifies accounting for convertible instruments by removing major separation models required under current GAAP. The ASU also removes certain settlement conditions that are required for equity-linked contracts to qualify for the derivative scope exception and it also simplifies the diluted earnings per share calculation in certain areas. The Company early adopted the ASU on January 1, 2021 using a modified retrospective method for transition. Adoption of the ASU did not impact the Company’s financial position, results of operations or cash flows.
Recent Accounting Pronouncements
Management does not believe that any recently issued, but not yet effective, accounting pronouncements, if currently adopted, would have a material effect on the Company’s financial statements.
Note 3—Initial Public Offering
On November 8, 2021, the Company consummated its Initial Public Offering of 29,900,000 Units, including 3,900,000 Over-Allotment Units, at $10.00 per Unit, generating gross proceeds of $299.0 million, and incurring offering costs of approximately $17.3 million, of which approximately $10.5 million and approximately $560,000 was for deferred underwriting commissions and offering costs allocated to derivative warrant liabilities, respectively.
Each Unit consists of one share of Class A common stock and one-half of one redeemable warrant (“Public Warrant”). Each whole Public Warrant will entitle the holder to purchase one share of Class A common stock at a price of $11.50 per share, subject to adjustment (see Note 6).
Note 4—Related Party Transactions
Founder Shares
On January 21, 2021, the Sponsor paid $25,000 on behalf of the Company to cover certain offering costs in exchange for issuance of 8,625,000 Founder Shares. On February 4, 2021, the Company effected a forward stock split that increased the number of Founder Shares held by the Sponsor from 8,625,000 to 11,500,000. On July 12, 2021, the Sponsor surrendered, for no consideration, an aggregate of 5,031,250 Founder Shares, which the Company canceled, resulting in an aggregate of 6,468,750 Founder Shares outstanding. Immediately prior to the consummation of the Initial Public Offering, the Company effected a stock dividend with respect to the Company’s Class B common stock, resulting in an aggregate of 7,475,000 shares of Class B common stock outstanding. The Founder Shares included an aggregate of up 975,000 shares subject to forfeiture to the extent that the underwriter’s option to purchase additional Units was not exercised in full or in part, so that the Company’s initial Stockholders would own, on an as-converted basis, 20% of the Company’s issued and outstanding shares after the Initial Public Offering. The underwriter exercised its over-allotment option in full on November 8, 2021; thus, these 975,000 Founder Shares were no longer subject to forfeiture.
F-13
In March and April 2021, the Sponsor transferred 35,000 Founder Shares to each of the Company’s independent directors and to Darius Adamczyk, one of the advisors. The transfer of the Founder Shares is in the scope of FASB ASC Topic 718, “Compensation-Stock Compensation” (“ASC 718”). Under ASC 718, stock-based compensation associated with equity-classified awards is measured at fair value upon the grant date. The Founders Shares were granted subject to a performance condition (i.e., the occurrence of a Business Combination). Compensation expense related to the Founders Shares is recognized only when the performance condition is probable of occurrence under the applicable accounting literature in this circumstance. As of November 8, 2021, the Company determined that a Business Combination is not considered probable, and, therefore, no stock-based compensation expense has been recognized. Stock-based compensation would be recognized at the date a Business Combination is considered probable (i.e., upon consummation of a Business Combination) in an amount equal to the number of Founders Shares that ultimately vest multiplied times the grant date fair value per share (unless subsequently modified).
The Sponsor agreed, subject to limited exceptions, not to transfer, assign or sell any of its Founder Shares until the earlier to occur of: (A) one year after the completion of a Business Combination or (B) subsequent to a Business Combination, (x) if the closing price of the Class A common stock equals or exceeds $12.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) for any 20 trading days within any 30-trading day period commencing at least 150 days after a Business Combination, or (y) the date on which the Company completes a liquidation, merger, capital stock exchange or other similar transaction that results in all of the Company’s stockholders having the right to exchange their shares of common stock for cash, securities or other property.
Private Placement Warrants
Simultaneously with the closing of the Initial Public Offering, the Company consummated the Private Placement of 14,960,000 Private Placement Warrants, at a price of $1.00 per Private Placement Warrant to the Sponsor, generating proceeds of approximately $15.0 million.
Each Private Placement Warrant will be exercisable to purchase one share of Class A common stock at a price of $11.50 per share. A portion of the proceeds from the Private Placement Warrants was added to the proceeds from the Initial Public Offering held in the Trust Account. If the Company does not complete a Business Combination within the Combination Period, the proceeds of the sale of the Private Placement Warrants will be used to fund the redemption of the Public Shares (subject to the requirements of applicable law), and the Private Placement Warrants will expire worthless. There will be no redemption rights or liquidating distributions from the Trust Account with respect to the Placement Warrants.
Related Party Loans
Promissory Note and Advances
The Sponsor agreed to loan the Company an aggregate of up to $300,000 to cover expenses related to the Initial Public Offering pursuant to a promissory note dated January 21, 2021, which was later amended on September 30, 2021 (the “Promissory Note”). The Promissory Note was non-interest bearing and payable upon the completion of the Initial Public Offering. The Company fully borrowed $300,000 under the Promissory Note. In addition, the Company received additional advances from related parties of approximately $13.1 million to cover for certain offering costs and pre-payment for Private Placement Warrants. The Company fully repaid the Note and the advances as of the consummation of the Initial Public Offering.
Working Capital Loans
In addition, in order to finance transaction costs in connection with a Business Combination, the Sponsor or an affiliate of the Sponsor, or certain of the Company’s officers and directors may, but are not obligated to, loan the Company funds as may be required (“Working Capital Loans”). If the Company completes a Business Combination, the Company would repay the Working Capital Loans out of the proceeds of the Trust Account released to the Company. Otherwise, the Working Capital Loans would be repaid only out of funds held outside the Trust Account. In the event that a Business Combination does not close, the Company may use a portion of proceeds held outside the Trust Account to repay the Working Capital Loans but no proceeds held in the Trust Account would be used to repay the Working Capital Loans. The Working Capital Loans would either be repaid upon consummation of a Business Combination, without interest, or, at the lender’s discretion, up to $1.5 million of such Working Capital Loans may be convertible into warrants of the post Business Combination entity at a price of $1.00 per warrant. The warrants would be identical to the Private Placement Warrants.
F-14
Except for the foregoing, the terms of such Working Capital Loans, if any, have not been determined and no written agreements exist with respect to such loans.
Extension Loans
If the Company anticipates that it may not be able to consummate the initial Business Combination within 18 months from the closing of the Proposed Public Offering, the Company may, but are not obligated to, extend the period of time to consummate a Business Combination by an additional six months (for a total of 24 months to complete an initial Business Combination), as described in Note 1. In connection with such extension, the Sponsor or its affiliates or designees may loan the Company the required funds to deposit into the Trust Account an amount of $0.10 per Public Share, or approximately $2.6 million in the aggregate (or up to approximately $3.0 million in the aggregate if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full). Any such payments would be made in the form of a loan (the “Extension Loans”). The loans will be non-interest bearing and payable upon the consummation of the initial Business Combination. If the Company completes its initial Business Combination, the Company would be obligated to repay such loaned amounts.
Administrative Support Agreement
On November 3, 2021, the Company entered into an agreement with the Sponsor, pursuant to which the Company agreed to pay the Sponsor a total of $10,000 per month for office space, utilities, secretarial and administrative support through the earlier of the Company’s consummation of a Business Combination and its liquidation. For the year ended December 31, 2021, the Company incurred $20,000 in expenses for these services, which is included in general and administrative expenses – related party on the accompanying statement of operations. The Company accrued $20,000 for these services on the accompanying balance sheet.
Note 5—Commitments and Contingencies
Registration Rights
The holders of the Founder Shares, Private Placement Warrants and warrants that may be issued upon conversion of Working Capital Loans (and any shares of Class A common stock issuable upon the exercise of the Private Placement Warrants and warrants that may be issued upon conversion of Working Capital Loans and upon conversion of the Founder Shares) were entitled to registration rights pursuant to a registration rights agreement signed upon the effective date of Initial Public Offering, requiring the Company to register such securities for resale (in the case of the Founder Shares, only after conversion to Class A common stock). The holders of the majority of these securities will be entitled to make up to three demands, excluding short form demands, that the Company register such securities. In addition, the holders have certain “piggy-back” registration rights with respect to registration statements filed subsequent to the completion of a Business Combination and rights to require the Company to register for resale such securities pursuant to Rule 415 under the Securities Act. The Company will bear the expenses incurred in connection with the filing of any such registration statements.
Underwriting Agreement
The Company granted the underwriter a 45-day option from the date of Initial Public Offering to purchase up to 3,900,000 additional Units at the Initial Public Offering price less the underwriting discounts and commissions. The underwriter exercised its over-allotment option in full on November 8, 2021.
The underwriter was entitled to a cash underwriting discount of $0.20 per Unit, approximately $6.0 million in the aggregate, paid upon the closing of the Initial Public Offering. In addition, the underwriter were entitled to a deferred fee of $0.35 per Unit, or approximately $10.5 million in the aggregate. The deferred fee will become payable to the underwriter from the amounts held in the Trust Account solely in the event that the Company completes a Business Combination, subject to the terms of the underwriting agreement.
Note 6—Derivative Warrant Liabilities
As of December 31, 2021, the Company has 14,950,000 and 14,960,000 Public Warrants and Private Placement Warrants outstanding, respectively.
F-15
Public Warrants may only be exercised for a whole number of shares. No fractional warrants will be issued upon separation of the Units and only whole warrants will trade. The Public Warrants will become exercisable 30 days after the completion of a Business Combination. The Public Warrants will expire five years after the completion of a Business Combination or earlier upon redemption or liquidation. The Company will not be obligated to deliver any shares of Class A common stock 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 shares of Class A common underlying the warrants is then effective and a prospectus relating thereto is current, subject to the Company satisfying its obligations with respect to registration. No warrant will be exercisable and the Company will not be obligated to issue any shares of Class A common stock upon exercise of a warrant unless Class A common stock 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. The Company agreed that as soon as practicable, but in no event later than 20 business days, after the closing of a Business Combination, the Company will use its commercially reasonable efforts to file, and within 60 business days following a Business Combination to have declared effective, a post-effective amendment to the registration statement for this offering or a new registration statement for the registration, under the Securities Act, of the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants. The Company will use its commercially reasonable efforts to maintain the effectiveness of such registration statement, and a current prospectus relating thereto, until the expiration of the warrants in accordance with the provisions of the warrant agreement. Notwithstanding the above, if the Class A common stock is at the time of any exercise of a warrant not listed on a national securities exchange such that it satisfies the definition of a “covered security” under Section 18(b)(1) of the Securities Act, the Company may, at its option, require holders of 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 the Company so elects, the Company will not be required to file or maintain in effect a registration statement, but will be required to use its commercially reasonable efforts to register or qualify the shares under applicable blue sky laws to the extent an exemption is not available.
The exercise price and number of shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants may be adjusted in certain circumstances including in the event of a share capitalization, or recapitalization, reorganization, merger or consolidation. In addition, if (x) the Company issues additional shares of Class A common stock or equity-linked securities for capital raising purposes in connection with the closing of the initial Business Combination at an issue price or effective issue price of less than $9.20 per share of Class A common stock (with such issue price or effective issue price to be determined in good faith by the board of directors and, in the case of any such issuance to the Sponsor or its affiliates, without taking into account any Founder Shares held by the Sponsor or such affiliates, as applicable, prior to such issuance) (the “Newly Issued Price”), (y) the aggregate gross proceeds from such issuances represent more than 60% of the total equity proceeds, and interest thereon, available for the funding of the initial Business Combination on the date of the consummation of the initial Business Combination (net of redemptions), and (z) the volume weighted average trading price of Class A common stock during the 20 trading day period starting on the trading day prior to the day on which the Company consummates its 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 per share redemption trigger price described under “—Redemption of Warrants When the Price per Share of Class A Common Stock Equals or Exceeds $18.00” and “—Redemption of Warrants When the Price per Share of Class A Common Stock Equals or Exceeds $10.00” will be adjusted (to the nearest cent) to be equal to 180% of the higher of the Market Value and the Newly Issued Price, and the $10.00 per share redemption trigger price described under “—Redemption of Warrants When the Price per Share of Class A Common Stock Equals or Exceeds $10.00” will be adjusted (to the nearest cent) to be equal to the higher of the Market Value and the Newly Issued Price.
The Private Placement Warrants are identical to the Public Warrants, except that the Private Placement Warrants and the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the Private Placement Warrants will not be transferable, assignable or salable until 30 days after the completion of a Business Combination, subject to certain limited exceptions. Additionally, the Private Placement Warrants will be non-redeemable so long as they are held by the Sponsor or its permitted transferees. If the Private Placement Warrants are held by someone other than the Sponsor or its permitted transferees, the Private Placement Warrants will be redeemable by the Company and exercisable by such holders on the same basis as the Public Warrants.
Redemptions of Warrants When the Price Per Share of Class A Common Stock Equals or Exceeds $18.00—Once the warrants become exercisable, the Company 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; |
F-16
| • | upon not less than 30 days’ prior written notice of redemption to each warrant holder (the “30-day redemption period”); and |
| • | if, and only if, the last reported sales price (the “closing price”) of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $18.00 per share (as adjusted) for any 20 trading days within a 30-trading day period ending on the third trading day prior to the date on which the Company sends the notice of redemption to the warrant holders. |
The Company will not redeem the warrants as described above unless an effective registration statement under the Securities Act covering the Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants is effective and a current prospectus relating to those shares of Class A common stock is available throughout the 30-day redemption period. If and when the warrants become redeemable by the Company, it may exercise its redemption right even if the Company is unable to register or qualify the underlying securities for sale under all applicable state securities laws.
Redemption of Warrants When the Price per Share of Class A Common Stock Equals or Exceeds $10.00—Once the warrants become exercisable, the Company may redeem the outstanding warrants (except as described herein with respect to the Private Placement Warrants):
| • | in whole and not in part; |
| • | at $0.10 per warrant; |
| • | upon a minimum of 30 days’ prior written notice of redemption; and |
| • | if, and only if, the closing price of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00 per Public Share (as adjusted) for any 20 trading days within the 30-trading day period ending three trading days before the Company sends the notice of redemption to the warrant holders; |
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 an agreed table based on the redemption date and the “fair market value” of Class A common stock.
The “fair market value” of the Class A common stock shall mean the volume weighted average price of Class A common stock during the 10 trading days immediately following the date on which the notice of redemption is sent to the holders of warrants. In no event will the warrants be exercisable in connection with this redemption feature for more than 0.361 shares of Class A common stock per warrant (subject to adjustment).
In no event will the Company be required to net cash settle any warrant. If the Company is unable to complete a Business Combination within the Combination Period and the Company liquidates the funds held in the Trust Account, holders of warrants will not receive any of such funds with respect to their warrants, nor will they receive any distribution from the Company’s assets held outside of the Trust Account with the respect to such warrants. Accordingly, the warrants may expire worthless.
Note 7—Class A Common Stock Subject to Possible Redemption
The Company’s Class A common stock feature certain redemption rights that are considered to be outside of the Company’s control and subject to the occurrence of future events. The Company is authorized to issue 500,000,000 shares of Class A common stock with a par value of $0.0001 per share. Holders of the Company’s Class A common stock are entitled to one vote for each share. As of December 31, 2021, there were 29,900,000 shares of Class A common stock outstanding, which were all subject to possible redemption and classified outside of permanent equity in the accompanying balance sheet.
The Class A common stock subject to possible redemption reflected on the balance sheet is reconciled on the following table:
Gross proceeds | $ | 299,000,000 | ||
Less: | ||||
Proceeds allocated to Public Warrants | (9,269,000 | ) | ||
Class A shares issuance costs | (16,729,831 | ) | ||
Plus: | ||||
Accretion of carrying value to redemption value | 31,978,831 | |||
|
| |||
Class A common stock subject to possible redemption | $ | 304,980,000 | ||
|
|
F-17
Note 8—Stockholder’s Deficit
Preferred Stock— The Company is authorized to issue 1,000,000 shares of preferred stock with a par value of $0.0001 per share with such designations, voting and other rights and preferences as may be determined from time to time by the Company’s board of directors. As of December 31, 2021, there were no shares of preferred stock issued or outstanding.
Class A Common Stock— The Company is authorized to issue 500,000,000 shares of Class A common stock with a par value of $0.0001 per share. Holders of Class A common stock are entitled to one vote for each share. As of December 31, 2021, there were 29,900,000 shares of Class A common stock issued and outstanding, all of which were subject to possible redemption and were classified outside of permanent equity in the accompanying balance sheet (see Note 7).
Class B Common Stock— The Company is authorized to issue 50,000,000 shares of Class B common stock with a par value of $0.0001 per share. Holders of Class B common stock are entitled to one vote for each share. As of November 8, 2021, there were 7,475,000 shares of Class B common stock issued and outstanding. Of the 7,475,000 shares of Class B common stock outstanding, up to 975,000 shares were subject to forfeiture to the extent that the underwriter’s option to purchase additional Units was not exercised in full or in part, so that the Company’s initial stockholders would own 20% of the Company’s issued and outstanding common stock after the Initial Public Offering. The underwriter exercised its over-allotment option in full on November 8, 2021; thus, these 975,000 shares of Class B common stock were no longer subject to forfeiture.
Holders of Class A common stock and Class B common stock will vote together as a single class on all matters submitted to a vote of stockholders, except as required by law or stock exchange rules; provided that only holders of the Class B common stock have the right to vote on the appointment of the Company’s directors prior to the initial Business Combination.
The shares of Class B common stock will automatically convert into shares of Class A common stock at the time of a Business Combination on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like, and subject to further adjustment as provided herein. In the case that additional shares of Class A common stock, or equity-linked securities, are issued or deemed issued in excess of the amounts offered in the Initial Public Offering and related to the closing of the initial Business Combination, the ratio at which shares of Class B common stock shall convert into shares of Class A common stock will be adjusted (unless the holders of a majority of the outstanding shares of Class B common stock agree to waive such adjustment with respect to any such issuance or deemed issuance) so that the number of shares of Class A common stock issuable upon conversion of all shares of Class B common stock will equal, in the aggregate, on an as-converted basis, 20% of the sum of the total number of all shares of common stock outstanding upon the completion of the Initial Public Offering plus all shares of Class A common stock and equity-linked securities issued or deemed issued in connection with the initial Business Combination (excluding any shares or equity-linked securities issued, or to be issued, to any seller in the Business Combination). Holders of Founder Shares may also elect to convert their shares of Class B common stock into an equal number of shares of Class A common stock, subject to adjustment as provided above, at any time.
Note 9—Fair Value Measurements
The following table presents information about the Company’s assets and liabilities that are measured at fair value on a recurring basis as of December 31, 2021 and indicates the fair value hierarchy of the valuation techniques that the Company utilized to determine such fair value.
Description | Quoted Prices in Active Markets (Level 1) | Significant Other Observable Inputs (Level 2) | Significant Other Unobservable Inputs (Level 3) | |||||||||
Assets: | ||||||||||||
Investments held in Trust Accounts | $ | 304,983,967 | $ | — | $ | — | ||||||
Liabilities: | ||||||||||||
Derivative warrant liabilities - Public Warrants | $ | 11,810,500 | $ | — | $ | — | ||||||
Derivative warrant liabilities - Private Warrants | $ | — | $ | — | $ | 11,968,000 | ||||||
F-18
Transfers to/from Levels 1, 2, and 3 are recognized at the beginning of the reporting period. The estimated fair value of the Public Warrants transferred from a Level 3 measurement to a Level 1 fair value measurement in December 2021, when the Public Warrants were separately listed and traded.
Level 1 assets include investments in mutual funds invested in government securities and Public Warrants. The Company uses inputs such as actual trade data, benchmark yields, quoted market prices from dealers or brokers, and other similar sources to determine the fair value of its investments.
The fair value of the Public Warrants issued in connection with the Public Offering and Private Placement Warrants were initially measured at fair value using a Black Scholes simulation model. The fair value of Public Warrants issued in connection with the Initial Public Offering have been measured based on the listed market price of such warrants, a Level 1 measurement, since December 22, 2021. The Private Placement Warrants were measured at fair value using a Black Scholes simulation model at December 31, 2021. For the year ended December 31, 2021, the Company recognized a charge to the statement of operations resulting from an increase in the fair value of liabilities of approximately $5.2 million presented as change in fair value of derivative warrant liabilities on the accompanying statement of operations.
The fair value of the Public Warrants, the Private Placement Warrants were measured using Black-Scholes option pricing model and binomial-lattice based approach. The estimated fair value of the Public Warrants, the Private Placement Warrants was determined using Level 3 inputs. Inherent in a Black-Scholes option pricing model and a binomial-lattice based method are assumptions related to expected stock-price volatility, expected life, risk-free interest rate and dividend yield. The Company estimates the volatility of its warrants based on implied volatility from the historical volatility of select peer company’s common stock that matches the expected remaining life of the warrants. The risk-free interest rate is based on the U.S. Treasury zero-coupon yield curve on the grant date for a maturity similar to the expected remaining life of the warrants. The expected life of the warrants is assumed to be equivalent to their remaining contractual term. The dividend rate is based on the historical rate, which the Company anticipates remaining at zero.
The following table provides quantitative information regarding Level 3 fair value measurements inputs at their measurement dates:
| As of December 31, 2021 | ||||
Exercise price | $ | 11.50 | ||
Stock price | $ | 10.05 | ||
Volatility | 12.5 | % | ||
Risk-free rate | 1.24 | % | ||
Dividend yield | 0.0 | % | ||
The change in the fair value of the derivative warrant liabilities utilizing Level 3 measurements for the year ended December 31, 2021 is summarized as follows:
Derivative warrant liabilities at January 1, 2011 | $ | — | ||
Issuance of Public and Private Warrants | 18,544,200 | |||
Transfer of Public Warrants to Level 1 | (9,269,000 | ) | ||
Change in fair value of derivative warrant liabilities | 2,692,800 | |||
|
| |||
Derivative warrant liabilities at December 31, 2021 | $ | 11,968,000 | ||
|
|
Note 10—Income Taxes
The income tax provision (benefit) consists of the following:
| December 31, 2021 | ||||
Current | ||||
Federal | $ | — | ||
State | — | |||
Deferred | ||||
Federal | (67,762 | ) | ||
State | — | |||
Valuation allowance | 67,762 | |||
|
| |||
Income tax provisions | $ | — | ||
|
| |||
F-19
The Company’s net deferred tax assets are as follows:
| December 31, 2021 | ||||
Deferred tax assets: | ||||
Start-up/Organization costs | $ | 30,489 | ||
Net operating loss carryforward | 37,273 | |||
Total deferred tax asset | 67,762 | |||
|
| |||
Valuation allowance | (67,762 | ) | ||
|
| |||
Deferred tax asset, net of allowance | $ | — | ||
|
| |||
In assessing the realization of deferred tax assets, management considers whether it is more likely than not that some portion or all of the deferred tax assets will not be realized. The ultimate realization of deferred tax assets is dependent upon the generation of future taxable income during the periods in which temporary differences representing net future deductible amounts become deductible. Management considers the scheduled reversal of deferred tax assets, projected future taxable income and tax planning strategies in making this assessment. After consideration of all of the information available, management believes that significant uncertainty exists with respect to future realization of the deferred tax assets and has therefore established a full valuation allowance. For the year ended December 31, 2021, the change in the valuation allowance was $67,762. As of December 31, 2021, the Company has approximately $177,000 of U.S. federal net operating loss carryovers, which do not expire, and no state net operating loss carryovers available to offset future taxable income.
A reconciliation of the statutory federal income tax rate (benefit) to the Company’s effective tax rate (benefit) is as follows:
| December 31, 2021 | ||||
Statutory Federal income tax rate | 21.0 | % | ||
Change in fair value of derivative warrant liabilities | (18.0 | )% | ||
Financing costs - derivative warrant liabilities | (1.9 | )% | ||
Change in Valuation Allowance | (1.1 | )% | ||
|
| |||
Income Taxes Benefit | 0.0 | % | ||
|
| |||
Note 11—Subsequent Events
The Company has evaluated subsequent events that occurred after the balance sheet date up to March 31, 2022, the date the financial statements were available to be issued. Based upon this review, the Company did not identify any subsequent events that would have required adjustment or disclosure in the financial statements.
F-20
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this Annual Report on Form 10-K to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
| March 31, 2022 | JUNIPER II CORP. | |||||
| By: | /s/ Murray Grainger | |||||
| Name: | Murray Grainger | |||||
| Title: | Chief Executive Officer | |||||
| (Principal Executive Officer) | ||||||
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, this Annual Report on Form 10-K has been signed below by the following persons on behalf of the registrant and in the capacities and on the dates indicated.
Name | Position | Date | ||
/s/ Murray Grainger | Chief Executive Officer and Director | March 31, 2022 | ||
| Murray Grainger | (Principal Executive Officer) | |||
/s/ Noah Kindler | Chief Financial Officer and Chief Technology Officer | March 31, 2022 | ||
| Noah Kindler | (Principal Accounting and Financial Officer) | |||
/s/ Roger Fradin | Director (Chairman) | March 31, 2022 | ||
| Roger Fradin | ||||
/s/ Mitchell Jacobson | Director | March 31, 2022 | ||
| Mitchell Jacobson | ||||
/s/ Mark Levy | Director | March 31, 2022 | ||
| Mark Levy | ||||
/s/ Andrew Teich | Director | March 31, 2022 | ||
| Andrew Teich | ||||
