Other Relationships
The underwriters and their affiliates have in the past provided, and may in the future provide, various advisory, investment banking, commercial banking, financial advisory, brokerage or other services to us and our affiliates, for which services they have received, and may in the future receive, customary fees and expense reimbursement. We have no present arrangements with any of the underwriters for any further services.
ThinkEquity served as underwriter for the company for its initial public offering which was consummated in October 2021 and received underwriting discounts and commissions of $1,750,000, a non-accountable expense allowance of $250,000 and reimbursement of actual out-of-pocket expenses. In addition, ThinkEquity and its designees received representative’s warrants to purchase an aggregate of 312,500 shares of common stock, exercisable for a period of five years at an exercise price of $5.00 per shares (125% of the initial public offering price).
The underwriters and their affiliates may, from time to time, engage in transactions with and perform services for us in the ordinary course of its business for which they may receive customary fees and reimbursements of expenses. In the ordinary course of their various business activities, the underwriters and their affiliates may make or hold a broad array of investments and actively trade debt and equity securities (or related derivative securities) and financial instruments (including bank loans) for their own accounts and for the accounts of their customers and such investment and securities activities may involve securities and/or instruments of the Company. The underwriters and their affiliates may also make investment recommendations and/or publish or express independent research views in respect of such securities or instruments and may at any time hold, or recommend to clients that they acquire, long and/or short positions in such securities and instruments.
Selling Restrictions
No action has been taken in any jurisdiction (except in the United States) that would permit a public offering of our common stock, or the possession, circulation or distribution of this prospectus or any other material relating to us or our common stock in any jurisdiction where action for that purpose is required. Accordingly, our common stock may not be offered or sold, directly or indirectly, and this prospectus or any other offering material or advertisements in connection with our common stock may be distributed or published, in or from any country or jurisdiction, except in compliance with any applicable rules and regulations of any such country or jurisdiction.
European Economic Area
In relation to each Member State of the European Economic Area which has implemented the Prospectus Directive, each a “Relevant Member State”, with effect from and including the date on which the Prospectus Directive is implemented in that Relevant Member State, or the “Relevant Implementation Date”, our securities will not be offered to the public in that Relevant Member State prior to the publication of a prospectus in relation to our securities that has been approved by the competent authority in that Relevant Member State or, where appropriate, approved in another Relevant Member State and notified to the competent authority in that Relevant Member State, all in accordance with the Prospectus Directive, except that, with effect from and including the Relevant Implementation Date, an offer of our securities may be made to the public in that Relevant Member State at any time:
| • | | to any legal entity that is a qualified investor as defined in the Prospectus Directive; |
| • | | to fewer than 100 or, if the Relevant Member State has implemented the relevant provision of the 2010 PD Amending Directive, 150 natural or legal persons (other than qualified investors as defined in the Prospectus Directive), as permitted under the Prospectus Directive, subject to obtaining the prior consent of the manager for any such offer; or |
| • | | in any other circumstances which do not require the publication by the issuer of a prospectus pursuant to Article 3(2) of the Prospectus Directive, provided that no such offer of the securities shall require the issuer or any underwriter to publish a prospectus pursuant to Article 3 of the Prospectus Directive. |
For the purposes of this provision, the expression an “offer of securities to the public” in relation to any securities in any Relevant Member State means the communication in any form and by any means of sufficient information on the terms of the offer and securities to be offered so as to enable an investor to decide to purchase or subscribe securities, as the same may be varied in that Relevant Member State by any measure implementing the Prospectus Directive in that Relevant Member State and the expression “Prospectus Directive” means Directive 2003/71/EC (and amendments thereto, including the 2010 PD Amending Directive, to the extent implemented in the Relevant Member State), and includes any relevant implementing measure in each Relevant Member State and the expression “2010 PD Amending Directive” means Directive 2010/73/EU.
United Kingdom
In the United Kingdom, this document is being distributed only to, and is directed only at, and any offer subsequently made may only be directed at persons who are “qualified investors” (as defined in the Prospectus Directive) (i) who have professional experience in matters relating to investments falling within Article 19 (5) of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Financial Promotion) Order 2005, as amended (the Order), and/or (ii) who are high net worth companies (or persons to whom it may otherwise be lawfully communicated) falling within Article 49(2)(a) to (d) of the Order (all such persons together, the relevant persons). This document must not be acted on or relied on in the United Kingdom by persons who are not relevant persons. In the United Kingdom, any investment or investment activity to which this document relates is only available to, and will be engaged in with, relevant persons.
Canada
The offering of our common stock in Canada is being made on a private placement basis in reliance on exemptions from the prospectus requirements under the securities laws of each applicable Canadian province and territory where our common stock may be offered and sold, and therein may only be made with investors that are purchasing, or deemed to be purchasing, as principal and that qualify as both an “accredited investor” as such term is defined in National Instrument 45-106 Prospectus Exemptions or subsection 73.3(1) of the Securities Act (Ontario) and as a “permitted client” as such term is defined in National Instrument 31-103 Registration Requirements, Exemptions and Ongoing Registrant Obligations. Any offer and sale of our common stock in any province or territory of Canada may only be made through a dealer that is properly registered under the securities legislation of the applicable province or territory wherein our common stock is offered and/or sold or, alternatively, where such registration is not required.
Any resale of our common stock by an investor resident in Canada must be made in accordance with applicable Canadian securities laws, which require resales to be made in accordance with an exemption from, or in a transaction not subject to, prospectus requirements under applicable Canadian securities laws. These resale restrictions may under certain circumstances apply to resales of the common stock outside of Canada.
Securities legislation in certain provinces or territories of Canada may provide a purchaser with remedies for rescission or damages if this prospectus (including any amendment thereto) contains a misrepresentation, provided that the remedies for rescission or damages are exercised by the purchaser within the time limit prescribed by the securities legislation of the purchaser’s province or territory. The purchaser should refer to any applicable provisions of the securities legislation of the purchaser’s province or territory for particulars of these rights or consult with a legal advisor.
Pursuant to section 3A.3 (or, in the case of securities issued or guaranteed by the government of a non-Canadian jurisdiction, section 3A.4) of National Instrument 33-105 Underwriting Conflicts (“NI 33-105”), the underwriters are not required to comply with the disclosure requirements of NI 33-105 regarding underwriter conflicts of interest in connection with this offering.
Upon receipt of this prospectus, each Québec investor hereby confirms that it has expressly requested that all documents evidencing or relating in any way to the sale of the securities described herein (including for greater certainty any purchase confirmation or any notice) be drawn up in the English language only. Par la réception de ce document, chaque investisseur québecois confirme par les présentes qu’il a expressément exigé que tous les documents faisant foi ou se rapportant de quelque manière que ce soit à la vente des valeurs mobilières décrites aux présentes (incluant, pour plus de certitude, toute confirmation d’achat ou tout avis) soient rédigés en anglais seulement.
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