Peak Bio, Inc. - Annual Report: 2020 (Form 10-K)
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, 2020
☐ 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: 001-39951
Ignyte Acquisition Corp.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
| Delaware | 85-2448157 | |
| (State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization) |
(I.R.S. Employer Identification No.) | |
| 640 Fifth Avenue, 4th Floor New York, NY |
10019 | |
| (Address of principal executive offices) | (Zip Code) |
Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (212) 409-2000
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 common stock and one-half of one redeemable warrant | IGNYU | The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC | ||
| Common Stock, par value $0.0001 per share | IGNY | The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC | ||
| Redeemable warrants, each whole warrant exercisable for one share of common stock at an exercise price of $11.50 per share | IGNYW | The Nasdaq Stock Market LLC |
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes ☐ No ☒
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the 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, smaller reporting company or an emerging growth company. See 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, 2020, the last business day of the registrant’s most recently completed second fiscal quarter, the registrant’s securities were not publicly traded. The registrant’s units began trading on the Nasdaq Capital Market on January 28, 2021 and the registrant’s shares of common stock and warrants began trading on the Nasdaq Capital Market on March 12, 2021.
As of March 31, 2021, there were 7,287,500 shares of common stock of the registrant issued and outstanding.
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 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Our forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding our or our management’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 “anticipates,” “believe,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intends,” “may,” “might,” “plan,” “possible,” “potential,” “predicts,” “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 complete our initial business combination; |
| · | our success in retaining or recruiting, or changes required in, our officers, key employees or directors following our initial business combination; |
| · | our officers and directors allocating their time to other businesses and potentially having conflicts of interest with our business or in approving our initial business combination, as a result of which they would then receive expense reimbursements and other benefits; |
| · | our potential ability to obtain additional financing to complete a business combination; |
| · | our pool of prospective target businesses; |
| · | the ability of our officers and directors to generate a number of potential investment opportunities; |
| · | potential changes in control of us if we acquire one or more target businesses for stock; |
| · | our public securities’ potential liquidity and trading; |
| · | the lack of a market for our securities; |
| · | our expectations regarding the time during which we will be an “emerging growth company” under the JOBS Act; |
| · | our use of proceeds not held in the trust account; or |
| · | our financial performance following our initial public offering or following our initial business combination. |
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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 heading “Risk Factors.” Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should any of our assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary in material respects from those projected in these forward-looking statements. We undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required under applicable securities laws.
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RISK FACTORS SUMMARY
The following is a summary of risks, uncertainties and other factors related to our Company. You should carefully consider all of the risk factors presented in “Item 1A. Risk Factors” and all other information contained in this Report including the financial statements.
| · | If we are unable to consummate a business combination, our public stockholders may be forced to wait more than 21 months before receiving distributions from the trust account. |
| · | The requirement that we complete an initial business combination by November 1, 2022 may give potential target businesses leverage over us in negotiating a business combination. |
| · | Our public stockholders may not be afforded an opportunity to vote on our proposed business combination. |
| · | Our initial stockholders will control a substantial interest in us and thus may influence certain actions requiring a stockholder vote. |
| · | The ability of our stockholders to exercise their conversion rights or sell their shares to us in a tender offer may not allow us to effectuate the most desirable business combination or optimize our capital structure. |
| · | In connection with any vote to approve a business combination, we will offer each public stockholder the option to vote in favor of a proposed business combination and still seek conversion of his, her or its shares. |
| · | In connection with any stockholder meeting called to approve a proposed initial business combination, we may require stockholders who wish to convert their shares in connection with a proposed business combination to comply with specific requirements for conversion that may make it more difficult for them to exercise their conversion rights prior to the deadline for exercising their rights. |
| · | Because of our structure, other companies may have a competitive advantage and we may not be able to consummate an attractive business combination. |
| · | We may not obtain a fairness opinion with respect to the target business that we seek to acquire and therefore you may be relying solely on the judgment of our board of directors in approving a proposed business combination. |
| · | Our outstanding warrants may have an adverse effect on the market price of our common stock and make it more difficult to effect a business combination. |
| · | We may issue shares of our capital stock or debt securities to complete a business combination, which would reduce the equity interest of our stockholders and likely cause a change in control of our ownership. |
| · | We may only be able to complete one business combination with the proceeds of our initial public offering, which will cause us to be solely dependent on a single business which may have a limited number of products or services. |
| · | Resources could be spent researching acquisitions that are not consummated, which could materially adversely affect subsequent attempts to locate and acquire or merge with another business. |
| · | The COVID-19 pandemic and the impact on business and debt and equity markets could have a material adverse effect on our search for a business combination, and any target business with which we ultimately complete a business combination. |
| · | 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. |
| · | Our ability to successfully effect a 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 a business combination. While we intend to closely scrutinize any individuals we engage after a business combination, we cannot assure you that our assessment of these individuals will prove to be correct. |
| · | If we acquire a company in the life sciences, biotechnology and healthcare sectors, our future operations may be subject to risks associated with this sector. |
| · | There may be tax consequences to our business combinations that may adversely affect us. |
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| · | Our officers and directors may have a conflict of interest in determining whether a particular target business is appropriate for a business combination. |
| · | Our officers and directors or their affiliates have pre-existing fiduciary and contractual obligations and may in the future become affiliated with other entities engaged in business activities similar to those intended to be conducted by us. Accordingly, they may have conflicts of interest in determining to which entity a particular business opportunity should be presented. |
| · | If we do not file and maintain a current and effective prospectus relating to the common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants, holders will only be able to exercise such warrants on a “cashless basis.” |
| · | An investor will only be able to exercise a warrant if the issuance of shares of common stock upon such exercise has been registered or qualified or is deemed exempt under the securities laws of the state of residence of the holder of the warrants. |
| · | The private warrants may be exercised at a time when the public warrants may not be exercised. |
| · | We may redeem your unexpired warrants prior to their exercise at a time that is disadvantageous to you, thereby making your warrants worthless. |
| · | If our security holders exercise their registration rights, it may have an adverse effect on the market price of our shares of common stock and the existence of these rights may make it more difficult to effect a business combination. |
| · | If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in trust could be reduced and the per-share redemption price received by stockholders may be less than $10.00. |
| · | 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 $10.00 per share. |
| · | Provisions in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and bylaws and Delaware law may inhibit a takeover of us, which could limit the price investors might be willing to pay in the future for our common stock and could entrench management. |
| · | Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will provide, subject to limited exceptions, that the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware will be the sole and exclusive forum for certain stockholder litigation matters, which could limit our stockholders’ ability to obtain a favorable judicial forum for disputes with us or our directors, officers, employees or stockholders. |
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We are a Delaware blank check company incorporated on August 6, 2020 formed for the purpose of entering into a merger, share exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, recapitalization, reorganization or other similar business combination with one or more target businesses. Our efforts to identify a prospective target business will not be limited to a particular industry or geographic region although we currently intend to focus on target businesses in the life sciences, biotechnology and healthcare sectors.
Our Management Team
We are led by our Chairman and Co-Chief Executive Officer, David Rosenberg, who is the Co-Chief Executive Officer and Co-President of Ladenburg Thalmann & Co. Inc., or Ladenburg, our Co-Chief Executive Officer, David J. Strupp, Jr., who is the Head of Healthcare Investment Banking at Ladenburg, and our Chief Financial Officer, Steven Kaplan, who is Head of Capital Markets at Ladenburg. Our management team collectively has over 80 years of experience in the financial services industries, with a substantial portion of that time focused on the healthcare industry. The team has worked together at Ladenburg since 2012.
Ladenburg is a growth focused, boutique investment bank with experience providing capital markets and advisory services to public and private life sciences companies, blank check companies (working with management teams during the initial public offering process, and later in the course of their initial business combinations) and other emerging growth enterprises. Over the last five years, Ladenburg has completed over 300 capital market transactions, raising over $34.5 billion in capital for its clients. Over this same period, Ladenburg developed a market-leading practice in advising life sciences companies in reverse merger transactions and acted as an advisor on 13 such transactions – six of which closed in 2020.
Since May 2012, when Mr. Strupp joined the Healthcare Investment Banking Group at Ladenburg, his team has emerged as an industry leader in the reverse merger space, successfully advising on more life science reverse mergers than any other investment bank. Under Mr. Strupp’s leadership, his team has executed 17 reverse merger transactions for both private and public companies, including five of the last nine life science reverse mergers that have been consummated. Furthermore, Ladenburg’s reverse merger transactions have been supported by significant concurrent private financings from top-tier healthcare investors to help generate enough cash runway to provide the company with support through respective value inflection points. Out of the 17 reverse merger transactions advised by Ladenburg, all but one had a concurrent capital raise. In total, investors provided $766 million, or an average of $45 million, in concurrent financing to support the Ladenburg-advised reverse merger transactions.
In addition to our reverse merger experience, our management team members have extensive capital markets experience, assisting our healthcare clients in a broad range of equity, equity-linked and debt capital markets transactions. In the past 5 years, our management team has overseen in excess of 150 capital markets transactions for biotechnology, pharmaceutical and medical device companies, helping raise over $9.5 billion in capital. They have also advised on a wide range of matters including corporate finance, restructuring and capital structuring.
Furthermore, Steve Kaplan has led Ladenburg’s efforts to become one of the leading, most experienced underwriters of SPACs in the United States. Ladenburg has participated in over 55 blank check offerings raising over $9.0 billion since December 2005, leading Ladenburg to being ranked among the top underwriters in terms of offering proceeds and issuances. In addition to their experience with SPAC IPOs, Ladenburg has been active in evaluating and structuring numerous SPAC merger processes.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, past performance of our management team is not a guarantee either (i) that we will be able to identify a suitable candidate for our initial business combination or (ii) of success with respect to any business combination we may consummate. You should not rely on the historical performance record of our management team as indicative of our future performance. Additionally, in the course of their respective careers, members of our management team have been involved in businesses and deals that were unsuccessful. In addition,
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our officers and directors 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 officers and directors and entities for which a conflict of interest may or does exist between such persons and the company, as well as the priority and preference that such entity has with respect to performance of obligations and presentation of business opportunities to us, please refer to the table and subsequent explanatory paragraph under “Item 10 — Conflicts of Interest”.
Our Competitive Advantages
We believe that our management team is well-positioned to locate and consummate an attractive business combination for the following reasons:
| ● | Track Record of Success and Deep Knowledge of Reverse Merger Processes |
Our management team members have earned reputations as leading advisors in healthcare capital raising and merger transactions. For instance, Mr. Strupp, through his experience as the Head of the Healthcare Investment Banking Group at Ladenburg, has established a reputation as one of the leading advisors for life science reverse merger transactions. Since joining Ladenburg in May 2012, Mr. Strupp has advised 13 public companies and four private companies in their reverse merger transactions, more than any competitor in the life-science space. Mr. Strupp’s tailor-made approach towards each reverse merger helps navigate through a client’s complexities and includes, but is not limited to, the initial outreach criteria, communication between prospective counterparties, handling of legacy assets and concurrent financing advisory.
| ● | Process-Oriented Approach |
Our management team has developed and refined a unique process through their broad experience in reverse mergers. Over the past decade, they have developed effective methods for successful reverse mergers allowing for a broad outreach to interested merger partners, all while staying focused on a formalized and rigid timeline. This approach drives multiple parties simultaneously through a competitive and rigorously scheduled bid process, allowing for greater transparency into transaction certainty, timing certainty, and competitive pricing tensions – all of which our management team believes are the markings of a successful reverse merger. We believe that our management team will distinguish itself amongst other life sciences-focused blank check companies by employing this process-oriented approach that has been refined through their execution of 17 life sciences reverse merger transactions.
| ● | Breadth of Outreach and Extensive Transaction Sourcing |
Our management team has in-depth experience in making broad and extensive outreach to life sciences companies on a global basis. Their process begins by making outreach to individuals or organizations that they believe will have either first or second-hand knowledge of companies that would have interest in a going-public transaction in the form of a reverse merger. These individuals or organizations may include venture capitalists, healthcare-focused investment groups, private equity funds, lawyers, accountants, investor relations groups or any other groups or individuals who our management team believes will have access to target-identification ideas. Our management team has amassed a wide network of contacts and relationships through the transactions they have been involved with over their careers. They also have access to a wide range of opinion leaders that they may contact to assist in our evaluation of target businesses. As a result, we believe our management team will be able to generate a significant number of potential target businesses to that can be considered for a potential business combination.
| ● | Speed of Execution |
One of the key advantages of our management team’s approach to reverse mergers is the speed in which a successful transaction is completed. By taking this process-oriented approach to the execution of a transaction, our management team members have successfully executed their transactions in a timeframe that is significantly shorter than comparable transactions. We believe our management team may be able to apply their experience to assist us in consummating a business combination well within the timeframe we are allotted.
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| ● | Deep Relationships Across the Biotechnology Ecosystem |
Our management team maintains widespread relationships with senior business development and scientific leadership across our target sectors, which we believe not only provides important access to high quality deal flow but also to top level talent and significant insights into industry trends. We believe that these relationships will be attractive for any target business we focus on as they may provide access to direct communication with senior leadership throughout the industry, providing targets with high quality, up-to-date insight into their markets and their technology.
Industry Opportunity
We believe the life sciences, biotechnology and healthcare sectors offer significant capacity for potential target acquisition opportunities. We believe these sectors represent tremendous opportunity for investment returns as innovative breakthrough technologies, modernized payment systems and greater access to treatment have the potential to deliver tangible value to society through improved quality of care and patient outcomes.
With the discovery and development of revolutionary medical technologies, the aging population, as well as improvements in healthcare related services, these sectors are oriented for significant growth in the coming years. According to the CMS, U.S. national healthcare expenditures reached $3.6 trillion in 2018 and accounted for 17.7% of national GDP and is expected to grow at an average annual rate of 5.4% through 2028. In 2020, healthcare spending is expected to account for approximately 18% of total U.S. Gross Domestic Product. According to Evaluate Pharma, worldwide prescription drug sales accounted for approximately $871 billion in revenue in 2019, 3.7% more than in 2018. According to IQVIA, U.S. branded drug sales totaled $271 billion in 2018. Worldwide prescription drug sales are expected to reach over $1.4 trillion in 2026 driven by an aging population, increased prevalence of chronic diseases and greater access to healthcare.
Largely driven by the advancement of innovative medicines and growing access to affordable healthcare, physicians and hospitals, the global life expectancy has steadily increased over the past few decades. As a significant portion of aggregate healthcare expenditure corresponds to diseases associated with age, the continued aging of the population will generate increased healthcare consumption in the future. Additionally, in developing nations the expansion of healthcare utilization through improved services, accessibility, insurance and infrastructure has led to an increasing contribution to global healthcare expenditures. The biotechnology sector is also entering a new phase of creation and approval of novel technologies, benefitting from advances of underlying technologies such as DNA sequencing, genome editing tools, and computational power, as well as a favorable FDA environment.
We believe recent IPO activity has actively demonstrated the demand for private companies in our target sectors to go public. In 2020, over 95 life science companies went public (vs. 59 in 2019 and 74 in 2018), with an average offer to current appreciation of 102.4%. Overall, the aggregate gross proceeds raised in all IPO and follow-on transactions for our target sectors in 2020 amounted to approximately $80.4 billion, compared to $38.8 billion in 2019. Despite an uncertain market due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, our management team believes 2021 is poised to be a record setting year for biotechnology company IPO pricings as the pandemic has shifted investor focus towards the importance of healthcare.
Based on our management team’s experience as active participants in private financings, IPOs and reverse mergers, we have confidence in locating an attractive target business and providing it with a fast and efficient path to going public. Our team believes that at certain stages of development, companies in our target sectors see material benefits from being publicly traded, including but not limited to greater access to capital, liquidity and exposure to a greater set of investors. Despite the current level of IPO activity, according to IBISWorld, in 2017 there were estimated to be over 9,600 biotechnology companies globally, only a fraction of which are publicly traded. Furthermore, based upon our management team’s experience as advisors for publicly traded companies looking for reverse merger partners in the life sciences sector, there has been a significant increase in the level of interest of private companies looking for non-traditional means of entering the public market.
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We believe that with our experienced management team who are well-known and respected by life sciences leaders and institutional investors, we can offer privately held target businesses a quicker, more efficient and more certain path towards reaching the capital markets than a traditional initial public offering. Furthermore, we believe the ability to consummate a concurrent private placement in connection with the consummation of our initial business combination would provide target businesses with the financing they need to operate and grow their business.
Our Acquisition Criteria
Our acquisition strategy is designed to rigorously assess prospective target businesses to ultimately select one that will deliver risk-adjusted equity returns for our stockholders. We intend to leverage our management team’s network of both private and public companies. Our management team’s approach of conducting a rigorous process, evaluating numerous potential opportunities, establishing competitive tension and ultimately negotiating a deal with a chosen merger partner has been refined over the past decade of them working as advisors to numerous companies in reverse merger transactions. Our management team has developed a unique, focused approach towards each transaction which has resulted in proprietary knowledge of the market and up-to-date information on potentially interested candidates. We intend to take a similar approach to locating a target business for our initial business combination. We expect to conduct intensive diligence of a potential target, including but not limited to deal structure, financial forecasting and scientific viability using our management team’s expertise combined with the opinions of key industry leaders in their network of relationships.
We have identified the following criteria to evaluate prospective target businesses, although we may decide to enter into our initial business combination with a target business that does not meet these criteria:
| ● | Accessibility to Committed Capital |
We believe it will be important to identify a target business that can demonstrate the ability to attract committed financing in connection with the consummation of a transaction. We believe this is the main factor in determining whether a reverse merger transaction results in stockholder appreciation or is unsuccessful. Furthermore, we will aim to focus on companies that have the ability to attract additional outside investors rather than solely focus on insiders from the existing platform, which tends to yield even greater results.
| ● | Scientifically Differentiated / Diversified Product Pipeline |
We will seek target companies that have multiple late-development stage or commercial-stage assets, or potentially earlier stage-assets which may be in certain areas of high unmet needs. We will look to avoid riskier, early-stage companies that have a higher probability of clinical failure and companies with single-asset pipelines without risk diversification.
| ● | Strong News Flow |
We believe a key component of stockholder appreciation is the generation of value-driving milestones and inflection points in the 12-24 months following completion of a transaction. We will seek to avoid companies that may have a “news-vacuum”, and will also avoid companies that will have make-or-break data readouts shortly before and after the closing of a transaction.
| ● | Attractive Equity Returns for Shareholders |
As we conduct diligence on prospective parties, we will aim to evaluate a company based on its ability to reach product commercialization following regulatory approval. We will look to identify candidates with favorable risk-adjusted revenue potentials and strong pipeline growth potential.
| ● | Experienced Management Team |
We intend to seek target businesses that have a public-ready management team with the experience and leadership skillset necessary to bring a product candidate to commercialization. We will also look for a management team that can benefit from our industry knowledge and advice from key opinion leaders.
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Alternative Path to Becoming Public
We believe our structure will make us an attractive business combination partner to prospective target businesses that desires to become a publicly listed company. A merger with us will offer a target business an alternative process to a public listing rather than the traditional initial public offering process. We believe that target businesses may favor this alternative, which we believe is less expensive and takes less time, while offering greater certainty of execution than the traditional initial public offering. Furthermore, once a proposed business combination is approved by our shareholders and the transaction is consummated, 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 that could prevent the offering from occurring. Once public, we believe the target business would have greater access to capital and additional means of creating management incentives that are better aligned with shareholders’ interests than it would as a private company. A public company can offer further benefits by augmenting a company’s profile among potential new customers and vendors and aid in attracting talented management. With public company corporate governance standards, a target business may become attractive to the public investors.
Strong and Stable Financial Position with Flexibility.
With funds in the trust account of $57.5 million as of March 31, 2021 available to use for a business combination, we offer a target business a variety of options such as providing the owners of a target business with shares in a public company and a public means to sell such shares, providing capital for the potential growth and expansion of its operations or strengthening its balance sheet by reducing its debt ratio. Because we are able to consummate our initial business combination using our cash, debt or equity securities, or a combination of the foregoing, we have the flexibility to use the most efficient combination that will allow us to tailor the consideration to be paid to the target business to fit its needs and desires. However, since we have no specific business combination under consideration, we have not taken any steps to secure third party financing and there can be no assurance that it will be available to us.
Effecting a Business Combination
General
We are not presently engaged in any substantive commercial business. We intend to utilize cash derived from the proceeds of our initial public offering and the private placement of private warrants, our capital stock, debt or a combination of these in effecting a business combination which has not yet been identified. Accordingly, investors in our initial public offering invested without first having an opportunity to evaluate the specific merits or risks of any one or more business combinations. A business combination may involve the acquisition of, or merger with, a company which does not need substantial additional capital, but which desires to establish a public trading market for its shares. These include time delays, significant expense, loss of voting control and compliance with various federal and state securities laws. In the alternative, we may seek to consummate a business combination with a company that may be financially unstable or in its early stages of development or growth. While we may seek to effect simultaneous business combinations with more than one target business, we will likely have the ability, as a result of our limited resources, to effect only a single business combination.
Sources of Target Businesses
While we have not yet selected a target business with which to consummate our initial business combination, we believe based on our management’s business knowledge and past experience that there are numerous potential candidates. We expect that our principal means of identifying potential target businesses will be through the extensive contacts and relationships of our sponsor, initial stockholders, officers and directors. While our officers and directors are not required to commit any specific amount of time in identifying or performing due diligence on
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potential target businesses, our officers and directors believe that the relationships they have developed over their careers will generate a number of potential business combination opportunities that will warrant further investigation. We also anticipate that target business candidates will be brought to our attention from various unaffiliated sources, including investment bankers, venture capital funds, private equity funds, leveraged buyout funds, management buyout funds and other members of the financial community. 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 they think we may be interested in on an unsolicited basis.
Our officers and directors must present to us all target business opportunities that have a fair market value of at least 80% of the assets held in the trust account at the time of the agreement to enter into the initial business combination, subject to any fiduciary or contractual obligations. While we do not presently anticipate engaging the services of professional firms or other individuals that specialize in business acquisitions on any formal basis (other than EarlyBirdCapital as described elsewhere in this report), we may engage these firms or other individuals in the future, 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. In no event, however, will our sponsor, initial stockholders, officers, directors or their respective affiliates be paid any compensation prior to, or for any services they render in order to effectuate, the consummation of an initial business combination (regardless of the type of transaction that it is) other than the $10,000 per month administrative fee, the payment of consulting, success or finder fees in connection with the consummation of our initial business combination, the repayment of loans and reimbursement of any out-of-pocket expenses. Our audit committee will review and approve all reimbursements and payments made to our sponsor, officers, directors or our or their respective affiliates, with any interested director abstaining from such review and approval.
We have no present intention to enter into a business combination with a target business that is affiliated with any of our officers, directors or sponsor. However, we are not restricted from entering into any such transactions and may do so if (i) such transaction is approved by a majority of our disinterested independent directors and (ii) we obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm, or another independent entity that commonly renders valuation opinions, that the business combination is fair to our unaffiliated stockholders from a financial point of view.
Selection of a Target Business and Structuring of a Business Combination
Subject to our management team’s fiduciary obligations and the limitations that a target business have a fair market value of at least 80% of the balance in the trust account at the time of the execution of a definitive agreement for our initial business combination, as described below in more detail, and that we must acquire a controlling interest in the target business, our management will have virtually unrestricted flexibility in identifying and selecting a prospective target business. We have not established any specific attributes or criteria (financial or otherwise) for prospective target businesses. In evaluating a prospective target business, our management may consider a variety of factors, including one or more of the following:
| ● | financial condition and results of operation; |
| ● | growth potential; |
| ● | brand recognition and potential; |
| ● | experience and skill of management and availability of additional personnel; |
| ● | capital requirements; |
| ● | competitive position; |
| ● | barriers to entry; |
| ● | stage of development of the products, processes or services; |
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| ● | existing distribution and potential for expansion; |
| ● | degree of current or potential market acceptance of the products, processes or services; |
| ● | proprietary aspects of products and the extent of intellectual property or other protection for products or formulas; |
| ● | impact of regulation on the business; |
| ● | regulatory environment of the industry; |
| ● | costs associated with effecting the business combination; |
| ● | industry leadership, sustainability of market share and attractiveness of market industries in which a target business participates; and |
| ● | macro competitive dynamics in the industry within which the company competes. |
These criteria are not intended to be exhaustive. Any evaluation relating to the merits of a particular business combination will be based, to the extent relevant, on the above factors as well as other considerations deemed relevant by our management in effecting a business combination consistent with our business objective. In evaluating a prospective target business, we will conduct an extensive due diligence review which will encompass, among other things, meetings with incumbent management and inspection of facilities, as well as review of financial and other information which is made available to us. This due diligence review will be conducted either by our management or by unaffiliated third parties we may engage, although we have no current intention to engage any such third parties.
The time and costs required to select and evaluate a target business and to structure and complete the business combination cannot presently be ascertained with any degree of certainty. Any costs incurred with respect to the identification and evaluation of a prospective target business with which a business combination is not ultimately completed will result in a loss to us and reduce the amount of capital available to otherwise complete a business combination.
Fair Market Value of Target Business
Nasdaq listing rules require that the target business or businesses that we acquire must collectively have a fair market value equal to at least 80% of the balance of the funds in the trust account at the time of the execution of a definitive agreement for our initial business combination. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if we are not then listed on Nasdaq for whatever reason, we would no longer be required to meet the foregoing 80% fair market value test.
We currently anticipate structuring a business combination to acquire 100% of the equity interests or assets of the target business or businesses. We may, however, structure our initial business combination where we merge directly with the target business or a newly formed subsidiary or where we acquire less than 100% of such interests or assets of the target business in order to meet certain objectives of the target management team or shareholders or for other reasons, 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 it not to be required to register as an investment company under 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 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 could 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 trust account balance test.
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The fair market value of the target will be determined by our board of directors based upon one or more standards generally accepted by the financial community (such as actual and potential sales, earnings, cash flow and/or book value). The proxy solicitation materials or tender offer documents used by us in connection with any proposed transaction will provide public stockholders with our analysis of the fair market value of the target business, as well as the basis for our determinations. If our board is not able to independently determine that the target business has a sufficient fair market value, we will obtain an opinion from an unaffiliated, independent investment banking firm, or another independent entity that commonly renders valuation opinions, with respect to the satisfaction of such criteria. We will not be required to obtain an opinion from an investment banking firm as to the fair market value if our board of directors independently determines that the target business complies with the 80% threshold.
Lack of Business Diversification
We may seek to effect a business combination with more than one target business, although we expect to complete our business combination with just one business. Therefore, at least initially, the prospects for our success may be entirely dependent upon the future performance of a single business operation. Unlike other entities which may have the resources to complete several business combinations of entities operating in multiple industries or multiple areas of a single industry, it is probable that we will not have the resources to diversify our operations or benefit from the possible spreading of risks or offsetting of losses. By consummating a business combination with only a single entity, our 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 a business combination, and |
| ● | result in our dependency upon the performance of a single operating business or the development or market acceptance of a single or limited number of products, processes or services. |
If we determine to simultaneously acquire several businesses and such businesses 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 acquisitions, which may make it more difficult for us, and delay our ability, to complete the business combination. With multiple acquisitions, 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.
Limited Ability to Evaluate the Target Business’ Management
Although we intend to scrutinize the management of a prospective target business when evaluating the desirability of effecting a business combination, we cannot assure you that our assessment of the target business’ management will prove to be correct. In addition, we cannot assure you that the future management will have the necessary skills, qualifications or abilities to manage a public company. Furthermore, the future role of our officers and directors, if any, in the target business following a business combination cannot presently be stated with any certainty. While it is possible that some of our key personnel will remain associated in senior management or advisory positions with us following a business combination, it is unlikely that they will devote their full-time efforts to our affairs subsequent to a business combination. Moreover, they would only be able to remain with the company after the consummation of a business combination 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 them to receive compensation in the form of cash payments and/or our securities for services they would render to the company after the consummation of the business combination. While the personal and financial interests of our key personnel may influence their motivation in identifying and selecting a target business, their ability to remain with the company after the consummation of a business combination will not be the determining factor in our decision as to whether or not we will proceed with any potential business combination. Additionally, we cannot assure you that our officers and directors will have significant experience or knowledge relating to the operations of the particular target business.
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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 any such additional managers we do recruit will have the requisite skills, knowledge or experience necessary to enhance the incumbent management.
Stockholders May Not Have the Ability to Approve an Initial Business Combination
In connection with any proposed business combination, we will either (1) seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination at a meeting called for such purpose at which stockholders may seek to convert their shares, regardless of whether they vote for or against the proposed business combination or don’t vote at all, into their pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account (net of taxes payable), or (2) provide our stockholders with the opportunity to sell their shares to us by means of a tender offer (and thereby avoid the need for a stockholder vote) for an amount equal to their pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account (net of taxes payable), in each case subject to the limitations described herein. 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. If we determine to engage in a tender offer, such tender offer will be structured so that each stockholder may tender all of his, her or its shares rather than some pro rata portion of his, her or its shares. In that case, we will file tender offer documents with the SEC which will contain substantially the same financial and other information about the initial business combination as is required under the SEC’s proxy rules. Whether we seek stockholder approval or engage in a tender offer, we will consummate our initial business combination only if we have net tangible assets of at least $5,000,001 either immediately prior to or upon consummation of such business combination and, if we seek stockholder approval, a majority of the outstanding shares of common stock voted are voted in favor of the business combination. We have no specified maximum percentage threshold for conversions in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and even those public stockholders who vote in favor of our initial business combination have the right to convert their public shares. As a result, this may make it easier for us to consummate our initial business combination.
We chose our net tangible asset threshold of $5,000,001 to ensure that we would avoid being subject to Rule 419 promulgated under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended. However, if we seek to consummate an initial business combination with a target business that imposes any type of working capital closing condition or requires us to have a minimum amount of funds available from the trust account upon consummation of such initial business combination, we may need to have more than $5,000,001 in net tangible assets either immediately prior to or upon consummation and this may force us to seek third party financing which may not be available on terms acceptable to us or at all. As a result, we may not be able to consummate such initial business combination and we may not be able to locate another suitable target within the applicable time period, if at all. Public stockholders may therefore have to wait 21 months from the closing of our initial public offering in order to be able to receive a pro rata share of the trust account.
Our sponsor, initial stockholders, officers and directors have agreed (1) to vote any shares of common stock owned by them in favor of any proposed business combination, (2) not to convert any shares of common stock in connection with a stockholder vote to approve a proposed initial business combination and (3) not sell any shares of common stock in any tender in connection with a proposed initial business combination.
If we hold a meeting to approve a proposed business combination and a significant number of stockholders vote, or indicate an intention to vote, against such proposed business combination or that they wish to convert their shares, our officers, directors, sponsor, initial stockholders or their affiliates could make such purchases in the open market or in private transactions in order to influence the vote and reduce the number of conversions. Notwithstanding the
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foregoing, our officers, directors, sponsor, initial stockholders and their affiliates will not make purchases of shares of common stock if the purchases would violate Section 9(a)(2) or Rule 10b-5 of the Exchange Act, which are rules designed to stop potential manipulation of a company’s stock.
Conversion Rights
At any meeting called to approve an initial business combination, public stockholders may seek to convert their shares, regardless of whether they vote for or against the proposed business combination or do not vote at all, into their pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account as of two business days prior to the consummation of the initial business combination, less any taxes then due but not yet paid. Alternatively, we may provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to sell their shares of our common stock to us through a tender offer (and thereby avoid the need for a stockholder vote) for an amount equal to their pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, less any taxes then due but not yet paid.
Our sponsor, initial stockholders and our officers and directors will not have conversion rights with respect to any shares of common stock owned by them, directly or indirectly, whether acquired prior to our initial public offering or purchased by them in our initial public offering or in the aftermarket. Additionally, the holders of the representative shares will not have conversion rights with respect to the representative shares.
We may require public stockholders, whether they are a record holder or hold their shares in “street name,” to either (i) tender their certificates to our transfer agent or (ii) deliver their shares to the transfer agent electronically using Depository Trust Company’s DWAC (Deposit/Withdrawal At Custodian) System, at the holder’s option, in each case prior to a date set forth in the proxy materials sent in connection with the proposal to approve the business combination.
There is a nominal cost associated with the above-referenced delivery process and the act of certificating the shares or delivering them through the DWAC System. The transfer agent will typically charge the tendering broker a nominal amount and it would be up to the broker whether or not to pass this cost on to the holder. However, this fee would be incurred regardless of whether or not we require holders seeking to exercise conversion rights. The need to deliver shares is a requirement of exercising conversion rights regardless of the timing of when such delivery must be effectuated. However, in the event we require stockholders seeking to exercise conversion rights prior to the consummation of the proposed business combination and the proposed business combination is not consummated this may result in an increased cost to stockholders.
Any proxy solicitation materials we furnish to stockholders in connection with a vote for any proposed business combination will indicate whether we are requiring stockholders to satisfy such certification and delivery requirements. Accordingly, a stockholder would have from the time the stockholder received our proxy statement up until the vote on the proposal to approve the business combination to deliver his shares if he wishes to seek to exercise his conversion rights. This time period varies depending on the specific facts of each transaction. However, as the delivery process can be accomplished by the stockholder, whether or not he is a record holder or his shares are held in “street name,” in a matter of hours by simply contacting the transfer agent or his broker and requesting delivery of his shares through the DWAC System, we believe this time period is sufficient for an average investor. However, we cannot assure you of this fact. Please see the risk factor titled “In connection with any stockholder meeting called to approve a proposed initial business combination, we may require stockholders who wish to convert their shares in connection with a proposed business combination to comply with specific requirements for conversion that may make it more difficult for them to exercise their conversion rights prior to the deadline for exercising their rights” for further information on the risks of failing to comply with these requirements.
Any request to convert such shares once made, may be withdrawn at any time up to the vote on the proposed business combination or the expiration of the tender offer. Furthermore, if a holder of public shares delivered his certificate in connection with an election of their conversion and subsequently decides prior to the applicable date not to elect to exercise such rights, he may simply request that the transfer agent return the certificate (physically or electronically).
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If the initial business combination is not approved or completed for any reason, then our public stockholders who elected to exercise their conversion rights would not be entitled to convert their shares for the applicable pro rata share of the trust account. In such case, we will promptly return any shares delivered by public holders.
Liquidation if No Business Combination
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that we will have only 21 months from the closing of our initial public offering to complete an initial business combination. If we have not completed an initial business combination by such date, 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 100% of the outstanding public shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, including any interest not previously released to us but net of taxes payable (and less up to $50,000 of interest to pay liquidation 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 liquidation distributions, if any), subject to applicable law, and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining stockholders and our board of directors, dissolve and liquidate, subject (in the case of (ii) and (iii) above) to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law.
Our sponsor, initial stockholders, officers and directors have agreed that they will not propose any amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation that would affect our public stockholders’ ability to convert or sell their shares to us in connection with a business combination as described herein or affect the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete a business combination within 21 months from the closing of our initial public offering unless we provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to convert their shares of common stock upon such approval at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, including interest not previously released to us but net of taxes payable, divided by the number of then outstanding public shares. This redemption right shall apply in the event of the approval of any such amendment, whether proposed by our sponsor, initial stockholders, executive officers, directors or any other person.
Under the Delaware General Corporation Law, 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 100% of our outstanding public shares in the event we do not complete our initial business combination within the required time period may be considered a liquidation distribution under Delaware law. If the corporation complies with certain procedures set forth in Section 280 of the Delaware General Corporation Law 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. It is our intention to redeem our public shares as soon as reasonably possible following our 21st month, and, therefore, we do not intend to comply with those procedures. As such, our stockholders could potentially be liable for any claims to the extent of distributions received by them (but no more) and any liability of our stockholders may extend well beyond the third anniversary of such date.
Furthermore, if the pro rata portion of our trust account distributed to our public stockholders upon the redemption of 100% of our public shares in the event we do not complete our initial business combination within the required time period is not considered a liquidation distribution under Delaware law and such redemption distribution is deemed to be unlawful, then pursuant to Section 174 of the Delaware General Corporation Law, 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 liquidation distribution.
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Because we will not be complying with Section 280 of the Delaware General Corporation Law, Section 281(b) of the Delaware General Corporation Law 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 ten years. However, because we are a blank check company, rather than an operating company, and our operations will be limited to searching for prospective target businesses to acquire, the only likely claims to arise would be from our vendors (such as lawyers, investment bankers, etc.) or prospective target businesses.
We are required to seek to have all third parties (including any vendors or other entities we engage after our initial public offering) and any prospective target businesses enter into agreements with us waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind they may have in or to any monies held in the trust account. As a result, the claims that could be made against us will be limited, thereby lessening the likelihood that any claim would result in any liability extending to the trust. We therefore believe that any necessary provision for creditors will be reduced and should not have a significant impact on our ability to distribute the funds in the trust account to our public stockholders. Nevertheless, Marcum LLP, our independent registered public accounting firm, and the underwriters of the offering, will not execute agreements with us waiving such claims to the monies held in the trust account. Furthermore, there is no guarantee that other vendors, service providers and prospective target businesses will execute such agreements. Nor is there any guarantee that, even if they execute such agreements with us, they will not seek recourse against the trust account. Our sponsor has agreed that it will be liable to ensure that the proceeds in the trust account are not reduced below $10.00 per share by the claims of target businesses or claims of vendors or other entities that are owed money by us for services rendered or contracted for or products sold to us, but we cannot assure you that it will be able to satisfy its indemnification obligations if it is required to do so. We have not asked our sponsor to reserve for such indemnification obligations, nor have we independently verified whether our sponsor has sufficient funds to satisfy its indemnity obligations and believe that our sponsor’s only assets are securities of our company. Therefore, we believe it is unlikely that our sponsor will be able to satisfy its indemnification obligations if it is required to do so. Additionally, the agreement our sponsor entered into specifically provides for two exceptions to the indemnity it has given: it will have no liability (1) as to any claimed amounts owed to a target business or vendor or other entity who has executed an agreement with us waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind they may have in or to any monies held in the trust account, or (2) as to any claims for indemnification by the underwriters of our initial public offering against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. As a result, if we liquidate, the per-share distribution from the trust account could be less than $10.00 due to claims or potential claims of creditors.
We anticipate notifying the trustee of the trust account to begin liquidating such assets promptly after November 1, 2022 and anticipate it will take no more than 10 business days to effectuate such distribution. The holders of the founders’ shares and private shares have waived their rights to participate in any liquidation distribution from the trust account with respect to such shares. There will be no distribution from the trust account with respect to our warrants, which will expire worthless. We will pay the costs of any subsequent liquidation from our remaining assets outside of the trust account. If such funds are insufficient, we will utilize the up to $50,000 of interest earned on the funds held in the trust account available to us to pay for our liquidation expenses.
If we are unable to complete an initial business combination and expend all of the net proceeds of our initial public offering, other than the proceeds deposited in the trust account, and without taking into account interest, if any, earned on the trust account, the initial per-share redemption price would be $10.00. As discussed above, the proceeds deposited in the trust account could become subject to claims of our creditors that are in preference to the claims of public stockholders.
Our public stockholders shall be entitled to receive funds from the trust account only in the event of our failure to complete a business combination within the required time period, if the stockholders seek to have us convert or purchase their respective shares upon a business combination which is actually completed by us or upon certain amendments to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation prior to consummating an initial business combination. In no other circumstances shall a stockholder have any right or interest of any kind to or in the trust account.
If we are forced to file a bankruptcy case or an involuntary bankruptcy case is filed against us which 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 to our public stockholders at least $10.00 per share.
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If we are forced to file a bankruptcy case or an involuntary bankruptcy case is filed against us which 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. Furthermore, because we intend to distribute the proceeds held in the trust account to our public stockholders promptly after 21 months from the closing of our initial public offering, this may be viewed or interpreted as giving preference to our public stockholders over any potential creditors with respect to access to or distributions from our assets. Furthermore, our board may be viewed as having breached their fiduciary duties 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.
Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation contains certain requirements and restrictions that will apply to us until the consummation of our initial business combination. These provisions cannot be amended without the approval of a majority of our stockholders. If we seek to amend any provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation that would affect our public stockholders’ ability to convert or sell their shares to us in connection with a business combination as described herein or affect the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete a business combination within 21 months from the closing of our initial public offering, we will provide dissenting public stockholders with the opportunity to convert their public shares in connection with any such vote. This conversion right shall apply in the event of the approval of any such amendment, whether proposed by our sponsor, any executive officer, director or director nominee, or any other person. Our sponsor, officers and directors have agreed to waive any conversion rights with respect to any founders’ shares, private shares and any public shares they may hold in connection with any vote to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation. Specifically, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides, among other things, that:
| ● | we shall either (1) seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination at a meeting called for such purpose at which stockholders may seek to convert their shares, regardless of whether they vote for or against the proposed business combination or don’t vote at all, into their pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account (net of taxes payable), or (2) provide our stockholders with the opportunity to sell their shares to us by means of a tender offer (and thereby avoid the need for a stockholder vote) for an amount equal to their pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account (net of taxes payable), in each case subject to the limitations described herein; |
| ● | we will consummate our initial business combination only if we have net tangible assets of at least $5,000,001 either immediately prior to or upon consummation of such business combination and, if we seek stockholder approval, a majority of the outstanding shares of common stock voted are voted in favor of the business combination; |
| ● | if our initial business combination is not consummated within 21 months from the closing of our initial public offering, then we will redeem all of the outstanding public shares and thereafter liquidate and dissolve our company; |
| ● | we may not consummate any other business combination, merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar transaction prior to our initial business combination; and |
| ● | prior to our initial business combination, we may not issue additional stock that participates in any manner in the proceeds of the trust account, or that votes as a class with the common stock sold in our initial public offering on an initial business combination. |
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Competition
In identifying, evaluating and selecting a target business, we may encounter intense competition from other entities having a business objective similar to ours. Many of these entities are well established and have extensive experience identifying and effecting business combinations directly or through affiliates. Many of these competitors possess greater technical, human and other resources than us and our financial resources will be relatively limited when contrasted with those of many of these competitors. While we believe there may be numerous potential target businesses that we could acquire with the net proceeds of our initial public offering, our ability to compete in acquiring certain sizable target businesses may be limited by our available financial resources.
The following also may not be viewed favorably by certain target businesses:
| ● | our obligation to seek stockholder approval of a business combination or engage in a tender offer may delay the completion of a transaction; |
| ● | our obligation to convert or repurchase shares of common stock held by our public stockholders may reduce the resources available to us for a business combination; and |
| ● | our outstanding warrants, and the potential future dilution they represent. |
Any of these factors may place us at a competitive disadvantage in successfully negotiating a business combination. Our management believes, however, that our status as a public entity and potential access to the United States public equity markets may give us a competitive advantage over privately held entities having a similar business objective as ours in acquiring a target business with significant growth potential on favorable terms.
If we succeed in effecting a business combination, there will be, in all likelihood, intense competition from competitors of the target business. We cannot assure you that, subsequent to a business combination, we will have the resources or ability to compete effectively.
Employees
We have three executive officers. These individuals are not obligated to devote any specific number of hours to our matters and intend to devote only as much time as they deem necessary to our affairs. The amount of time they will devote in any time period will vary based on whether a target business has been selected for the business combination and the stage of the business combination process the company is in. Accordingly, once a suitable target business to acquire has been located, management may spend more time investigating such target business and negotiating and processing the business combination (and consequently spend more time on our affairs) than had been spent prior to locating a suitable target business. We presently expect our executive officers to devote such amount of time as they reasonably believe is necessary to our business. We do not intend to have any full-time employees prior to the consummation of a business combination.
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An investment in our securities involves a high degree of risk. You should consider carefully the risks described below together with the other information contained in this report, before making a decision to invest in our securities. This report also contains forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. Our actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in the forward-looking statements as a result of specific factors, including the risks described below.
Risks Relating to Searching for and Consummating a Business Combination
If we are unable to consummate a business combination, our public stockholders may be forced to wait more than 21 months before receiving distributions from the trust account.
We have until November 1, 2022 to complete a business combination. We have no obligation to return funds to investors prior to such date unless we consummate a business combination prior thereto and only then in cases where investors have sought to convert or sell their shares to us. Only after the expiration of this full time period will public security holders be entitled to distributions from the trust account if we are unable to complete a business combination. Accordingly, investors’ funds may be unavailable to them until after such date and to liquidate your investment, public security holders may be forced to sell their public shares or warrants, potentially at a loss.
The requirement that we complete an initial business combination by November 1, 2022 may give potential target businesses leverage over us in negotiating a business combination.
We have until November 1, 2022 to complete an initial business combination. Any potential target business with which we enter into negotiations concerning a business combination will be aware of this requirement. Consequently, such target business may obtain leverage over us in negotiating a business combination, knowing that if we do not complete a business combination with that particular target business, we may be unable to complete a business combination with any other target business. This risk will increase as we get closer to the time limit referenced above.
Our public stockholders may not be afforded an opportunity to vote on our proposed business combination.
We will either (1) seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination at a meeting called for such purpose at which public stockholders may seek to convert their shares, regardless of whether they vote for or against the proposed business combination or don’t vote at all, into their pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account (net of taxes payable), or (2) provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to sell their shares to us by means of a tender offer (and thereby avoid the need for a stockholder vote) for an amount equal to their pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account (net of taxes payable), in each case subject to the limitations described elsewhere in this Annual Report or incorporated herein by reference. Accordingly, it is possible that we will consummate our initial business combination even if holders of a majority of our public shares do not approve of the business combination we consummate. 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. For instance, Nasdaq rules currently allow us to engage in a tender offer in lieu of a stockholder meeting but would still require us to obtain stockholder approval if we were seeking to issue more than 20% of our outstanding shares to a target business as consideration in any business combination. Therefore, if we were structuring a business combination that required us to issue more than 20% of our outstanding shares, we would seek stockholder approval of such business combination instead of conducting a tender offer.
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Our initial stockholders will control a substantial interest in us and thus may influence certain actions requiring a stockholder vote.
As of March 31, 2021, our sponsor, officers, directors, initial stockholders and their respective affiliates owned approximately 19.7% of our issued and outstanding shares of common stock. In connection with any vote for a proposed business combination, our initial stockholders, as well as all of our officers and directors, have agreed to vote the shares of common stock owned by them in favor of such proposed business combination.
Our board of directors is and will be divided into three classes, each of which will generally serve for a term of three years with only one class of directors being elected in each year. It is unlikely that there will be an annual meeting of stockholders to elect new directors prior to the consummation of a business combination, in which case all of the current directors will continue in office until at least the consummation of the business combination. Accordingly, you may not be able to exercise your voting rights under corporate law for up to 21 months. 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 sponsor, because of their ownership position, will have considerable influence regarding the outcome. Accordingly, our initial stockholders will continue to exert control at least until the consummation of a business combination.
The ability of our stockholders to exercise their conversion rights or sell their shares to us in a tender offer may not allow us to effectuate the most desirable business combination or optimize our capital structure.
If our business combination requires us to use substantially all of our cash to pay the purchase price, because we will not know how many stockholders may exercise conversion rights or seek to sell their shares to us in a tender offer, we may either need to reserve part of the trust account for possible payment upon such conversion, or we may need to arrange third party financing to help fund our business combination. In the event that the acquisition involves the issuance of our stock as consideration, we may be required to issue a higher percentage of our stock to make up for a shortfall in funds. Raising additional funds to cover any shortfall may involve dilutive equity financing or incurring indebtedness at higher than desirable levels. This may limit our ability to effectuate the most attractive business combination available to us.
In connection with any vote to approve a business combination, we will offer each public stockholder the option to vote in favor of a proposed business combination and still seek conversion of his, her or its shares.
In connection with any vote to approve a business combination, we will offer each public stockholder (but not our sponsor, officers or directors) the right to have his, her or its shares of common stock converted to cash (subject to the limitations described elsewhere in this report) regardless of whether such stockholder votes for or against such proposed business combination or does not vote at all. The ability to seek conversion while voting in favor of our proposed business combination may make it more likely that we will consummate a business combination.
We do not have a specified maximum conversion threshold. The absence of such a conversion threshold may make it easier for us to consummate a business combination even where a substantial number of public stockholders seek to convert their shares to cash in connection with the vote on the business combination.
We have no specified percentage threshold for conversion in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation. As a result, we may be able to consummate a business combination even though a substantial number of our public stockholders do not agree with the transaction and have converted their shares. However, in no event will we consummate an initial business combination unless we have net tangible assets of at least $5,000,001 either immediately prior to or upon consummation of our initial business combination.
In connection with any stockholder meeting called to approve a proposed initial business combination, we may require stockholders who wish to convert their shares in connection with a proposed business combination to comply with specific requirements for conversion that may make it more difficult for them to exercise their conversion rights prior to the deadline for exercising their rights.
In connection with any stockholder meeting called to approve a proposed initial business combination, each public stockholder will have the right, regardless of whether he is voting for or against such proposed business combination or does not vote at all, to demand that we convert his shares into a pro rata share of the trust account as
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of two business days prior to the consummation of the initial business combination. We may require public stockholders who wish to convert their shares in connection with a proposed business combination to either (i) tender their certificates to our transfer agent or (ii) deliver their shares to the transfer agent electronically using the Depository Trust Company’s DWAC (Deposit/Withdrawal At Custodian) System, at the holders’ option, in each case prior to a date set forth in the tender offer documents or proxy materials sent in connection with the proposal to approve the business combination. In order to obtain a physical stock certificate, a stockholder’s broker and/or clearing broker, DTC and our transfer agent will need to act to facilitate this request. It is our understanding that stockholders should generally allot at least two weeks to obtain physical certificates from the transfer agent. However, because we do not have any control over this process or over the brokers or DTC, it may take significantly longer than two weeks to obtain a physical stock certificate. While we have been advised that it takes a short time to deliver shares through the DWAC System, we cannot assure you of this fact. Accordingly, if it takes longer than we anticipate for stockholders to deliver their shares, stockholders who wish to convert may be unable to meet the deadline for exercising their conversion rights and thus may be unable to convert their shares.
If, in connection with any stockholder meeting called to approve a proposed business combination, we require public stockholders who wish to convert their shares to comply with specific requirements for conversion, such converting stockholders may be unable to sell their securities when they wish to in the event that the proposed business combination is not approved.
If we require public stockholders who wish to convert their shares to comply with specific requirements for conversion and such proposed business combination is not consummated, we will promptly return such certificates to the tendering public stockholders. Accordingly, investors who attempted to convert their shares in such a circumstance will be unable to sell their securities after the failed acquisition until we have returned their securities to them. The market price for our shares of common stock may decline during this time and you may not be able to sell your securities when you wish to, even while other stockholders that did not seek conversion may be able to sell their securities.
Because of our structure, other companies may have a competitive advantage and we may not be able to consummate an attractive business combination.
We expect to encounter intense competition from entities other than blank check companies having a business objective similar to ours, including venture capital funds, leveraged buyout funds and operating businesses competing for acquisitions. Many of these entities are well established and have extensive experience in identifying and effecting business combinations directly or through affiliates. Many of these competitors possess greater technical, human and other resources than we do and our financial resources will be relatively limited when contrasted with those of many of these competitors. While we believe that there are numerous potential target businesses that we could acquire with the net proceeds of our initial public offering, our ability to compete in acquiring certain sizable target businesses will be limited by our available financial resources. This inherent competitive limitation gives others an advantage in pursuing the acquisition of certain target businesses. Furthermore, seeking stockholder approval or engaging in a tender offer in connection with any proposed business combination may delay the consummation of such a transaction. Additionally, our outstanding warrants, and the future dilution they potentially represent, may not be viewed favorably by certain target businesses. Any of the foregoing may place us at a competitive disadvantage in successfully negotiating a business combination.
If we determine to change our acquisition criteria or guidelines, many of the disclosures contained in this report would not be applicable and you would be investing in our company without any basis on which to evaluate the potential target business we may acquire.
We could seek to deviate from the acquisition criteria or guidelines disclosed in this report although we have no current intention to do so. Accordingly, investors may be making an investment in our company without any basis on which to evaluate the potential target business we may acquire. Regardless of whether or not we deviate from the acquisition criteria or guidelines in connection with any proposed business combination, investors will always be given the opportunity to convert their shares or sell them to us in a tender offer in connection with any proposed business combination as described in this prospectus.
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We may not obtain a fairness opinion with respect to the target business that we seek to acquire and therefore you may be relying solely on the judgment of our board of directors in approving a proposed business combination.
We will only be required to obtain a fairness opinion with respect to the target business that we seek to acquire if it is an entity that is affiliated with any of our sponsor, initial stockholders, officers, directors or their affiliates. In all other instances, we will have no obligation to obtain an opinion. Accordingly, investors will be relying solely on the judgment of our board of directors in approving a proposed business combination.
Our outstanding warrants may have an adverse effect on the market price of our common stock and make it more difficult to effect a business combination.
We issued warrants to purchase 2,500,000 shares of common stock as part of the units offered in our initial public offering and private warrants to purchase 2,350,000 shares of common stock. We may also issue other warrants to our sponsor, initial stockholders, officers, directors or their affiliates in payment of working capital loans made to us. To the extent we issue shares of common stock to effect a business combination, the potential for the issuance of a substantial number of additional shares upon exercise of these warrants could make us a less attractive acquisition vehicle in the eyes of a target business. Such securities, when exercised, will increase the number of issued and outstanding shares of common stock and reduce the value of the shares issued to complete the business combination. Accordingly, our warrants may make it more difficult to effectuate a business combination or increase the cost of acquiring the target business. Additionally, the sale, or even the possibility of sale, of the shares underlying the warrants could have an adverse effect on the market price for our securities or on our ability to obtain future financing. If and to the extent these warrants are exercised, you may experience dilution to your holdings.
A provision of our warrant agreement may make it more difficult for us to consummate an initial business combination.
If:
| ● | we issue additional shares of 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 common stock, |
| ● | 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 |
| ● | 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 price at which we issue the additional shares of common stock or equity-linked securities. This may make it more difficult for us to consummate an initial business combination with a target business.
We may issue shares of our capital stock or debt securities to complete a business combination, which would reduce the equity interest of our stockholders and likely cause a change in control of our ownership.
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation authorizes the issuance of up to 50,000,000 shares of common stock, par value $.0001 per share, and 1,000,000 shares of preferred stock, par value $.0001 per share. There are 38,800,000 authorized but unissued shares of common stock available for issuance (after appropriate reservation for the issuance of the shares underlying the public and private warrants). We may issue a substantial number of additional shares of common stock or shares of preferred stock, or a combination of common stock and preferred stock, to complete a business combination. The issuance of additional shares of common stock will not reduce the per-share conversion amount in the trust account. The issuance of additional shares of common stock or preferred stock:
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| ● | may significantly reduce the equity interest of our existing investors; |
| ● | may subordinate the rights of holders of shares of common stock if we issue shares of preferred stock with rights senior to those afforded to our shares of common stock; |
| ● | may cause a change in control if a substantial number of shares of 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 shares of common stock. |
Similarly, if we issue debt securities, it could result in:
| ● | default and foreclosure on our assets if our operating revenues after a business combination are insufficient to repay our debt obligations; |
| ● | 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; and |
| ● | 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. |
If we incur indebtedness, our lenders will not have a claim on the cash in the trust account and such indebtedness will not decrease the per-share conversion amount in the trust account.
We may be unable to obtain additional financing, if required, to complete a business combination or to fund the operations and growth of the target business, which could compel us to restructure or abandon a particular business combination.
Although we believe that the net proceeds provided by our initial public offering will be sufficient to allow us to consummate a business combination, because we have not yet identified any prospective target business, we cannot ascertain the capital requirements for any particular transaction. If the net proceeds of our initial public offering prove to be insufficient, either because of the size of the business combination, the depletion of the available net proceeds in search of a target business, or the obligation to convert into cash a significant number of shares from dissenting stockholders, we will be required to seek additional financing. Such financing may not be available on acceptable terms, if at all. To the extent that additional financing proves to be unavailable when needed to consummate a particular business combination, we would be compelled to either restructure the transaction or abandon that particular business combination and seek an alternative target business candidate. In addition, if we consummate a business combination, we may require additional 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 sponsor, officers, directors or stockholders is required to provide any financing to us in connection with or after a business combination.
If the net proceeds of our initial public offering not being held in trust are insufficient to allow us to operate for at least the next 19 months, we may be unable to complete a business combination.
Of the net proceeds of our initial public offering, only approximately $724,000 are available to us outside the trust account to fund our working capital requirements. We believe that such funds will be sufficient to allow us to operate for at least the next 19 months; however, we cannot assure you that our estimate is accurate. Accordingly, if we use all of the funds held outside of the trust account and all interest available to us, we may not have sufficient
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funds available with which to structure, negotiate or close an initial business combination. In such event, we would need to borrow funds from our sponsor, officers or directors or their affiliates to operate or may be forced to liquidate. Our sponsor, initial stockholders, officers, directors and their affiliates may, but are not obligated to, loan us funds, from time to time or at any time, in whatever amount that they deem reasonable in their sole discretion for our working capital needs. Each loan would be evidenced by a promissory note. The notes would either be paid upon consummation of our initial business combination, without interest, or, at holder’s discretion, up to $1,500,000 of the notes may be converted into warrants at a price of $1.00 per warrant.
We may only be able to complete one business combination with the proceeds of our initial public offering, which will cause us to be solely dependent on a single business which may have a limited number of products or services.
It is likely we will consummate a business combination with a single target business, although we have the ability to simultaneously acquire several target businesses. By consummating a business combination with only a single entity, 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. Accordingly, the prospects for our success may be:
| ● | solely dependent upon the performance of a single business, 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 a business combination.
Alternatively, if we determine to simultaneously acquire several businesses and such businesses 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 the 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.
Resources could be spent researching acquisitions that are not consummated, which could materially adversely affect subsequent attempts to locate and acquire or merge with another business.
It is anticipated 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 a decision is made not to complete a specific business combination, the costs incurred up to that point for the proposed transaction likely would not be recoverable. Furthermore, even if an agreement is reached relating to a specific target business, we may fail to consummate the 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.
Because we must furnish our stockholders with target business financial statements prepared in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles or international financial reporting standards, we will not be able to complete a business combination with prospective target businesses unless their financial statements are prepared in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles or international financial reporting standards.
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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. These financial statements may be required to be prepared in accordance with, or be reconciled to, accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America, or GAAP, or international financial reporting standards, or IFRS, depending on the circumstances, and the historical financial statements may be required to be audited in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States), or PCAOB. We will include the same financial statement disclosure in connection with any tender offer documents we use, whether or not they are required under the tender offer rules. Additionally, to the extent we furnish our stockholders with financial statements prepared in accordance with IFRS, such financial statements will need to be audited in accordance with U.S. GAAP at the time of the consummation of the business combination. These financial statement requirements may limit the pool of potential target businesses we may acquire.
The COVID-19 pandemic and the impact on business and debt and equity markets could have a material adverse effect on our search for a business combination, and any target business with which we ultimately complete a business combination.
The COVID-19 pandemic has adversely affected the economies and financial markets worldwide, business operations and the conduct of commerce generally and could have a material adverse effect on the business of any potential target business with which we complete a business combination. Furthermore, we may be unable to complete a business combination if concerns relating to the COVID-19 continue to restrict travel or limit the ability to have meetings with potential investors, or the target company’s personnel, vendors and services providers are unavailable to negotiate and complete a transaction in a timely manner. The extent to which the COVID-19 pandemic 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 the pandemic and the actions to contain the pandemic or treat its impact, among others. If the disruptions posed by the pandemic or other matters of global concern continue for an extensive period of time, it could have a material adverse effect on our ability to complete a business combination, or the operations of a target business with which we ultimately complete a business combination.
In addition, our ability to complete a transaction may be dependent on the ability to raise equity and debt financing and the coronavirus pandemic and other related events could have a material adverse effect on our ability to raise adequate financing.
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 combination, as well as many such companies currently in registration. As a result, at times, fewer attractive targets may be available, and it may require more time, more effort and more resources to identify a suitable target and 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 targets 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.
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Risks Relating to the Post-Business Combination Company
Our ability to successfully effect a 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 a business combination. While we intend to closely scrutinize any individuals we engage after a business combination, we cannot assure you that our assessment of these individuals will prove to be correct.
Our ability to successfully effect a business combination is dependent upon the efforts of our key personnel. We believe that our success depends on the continued service of our key personnel, at least until we have consummated our initial business combination. We cannot assure you that any of our key personnel will remain with us for the immediate or foreseeable future. In addition, none of our officers is required to commit any specified amount of time to our affairs and, accordingly, our officers will have conflicts of interest in allocating management time among various business activities, including identifying potential business combinations and monitoring the related due diligence. We do not have employment agreements with, or key-man insurance on the life of, any of our officers. The unexpected loss of the services of our key personnel could have a detrimental effect on us.
The role of our key personnel after a business combination, however, cannot presently be ascertained. Although some of our key personnel serve in senior management or advisory positions following a business combination, it is likely that most, if not all, of the management of the target business will remain in place. While we intend to closely scrutinize any individuals we engage after a 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 public company which could cause us to have to expend time and resources helping them become familiar with such requirements. This could be expensive and time-consuming and could lead to various regulatory issues which may adversely affect our operations.
Our officers and directors may not have significant experience or knowledge regarding the jurisdiction or industry of the target business we may seek to acquire.
We may consummate a business combination with a target business in any geographic location or industry we choose. We cannot assure you that our officers and directors will have enough experience or have sufficient knowledge relating to the jurisdiction of the target or its industry to make an informed decision regarding a business combination.
Since we have not yet selected a particular industry or target business with which to complete a business combination, we are unable to currently ascertain the merits or risks of the industry or business in which we may ultimately operate.
We may pursue an acquisition opportunity in any business industry or sector we choose. Accordingly, there is no current basis for you to evaluate the possible merits or risks of the particular industry in which we may ultimately operate or the target business which we may ultimately acquire. To the extent we complete a business combination with a financially unstable company or an entity in its development stage, we may be affected by numerous risks inherent in the business operations of those entities. If we complete a business combination with an entity in an industry characterized by a high level of risk, we may be affected by the currently unascertainable risks of that industry. Although our management will endeavor to evaluate the risks inherent in a particular industry or target business, we cannot assure you that we will properly ascertain or assess all of the significant risk factors.
If we acquire a company in the life sciences, biotechnology and healthcare sectors, our future operations may be subject to risks associated with this sector.
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While we may pursue an initial business combination target in any stage of its corporate evolution or in any industry or sector, we currently intend to concentrate our efforts in identifying businesses in the life sciences, biotechnology and healthcare sectors. Because we have not yet identified or approached any specific target business, we cannot provide specific risks of any business combination. However, risks inherent in investments in this sector may include, but are not limited to, the following:
| ● | adverse changes in international, national, regional or local economic, demographic and market conditions; |
| ● | competition from other companies and businesses in the life sciences, biotechnology and healthcare sectors; |
| ● | the ability to develop successful new products or improve existing ones; |
| ● | the disruption or failure of our networks, systems, platform or technology that frustrate or thwart our users’ ability to access our products and services, which may cause our users, advertisers, and partners to cut back on or stop using our products and services altogether, which could harm our business; |
| ● | mobile malware, viruses, hacking and phishing attacks, spamming, and improper or illegal use of our products, which could harm our business and reputation; |
| ● | litigation and other legal proceedings; |
| ● | the ability to attract and retain highly skilled employees; |
| ● | environmental risks; and |
| ● | civil unrest, labor strikes, acts of God, including earthquakes, floods and other natural disasters and acts of war or terrorism, which may result in uninsured losses. |
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 companies in the life sciences, biotechnology and healthcare sectors. 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.
If we do not conduct an adequate due diligence investigation of a target business, we may be required to subsequently 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.
We must conduct a due diligence investigation of the target businesses we intend to acquire. Intensive due diligence is time consuming and expensive due to the operations, accounting, finance and legal professionals who must be involved in the due diligence process. Even if we conduct extensive due diligence on a target business, this diligence may not reveal all material issues that may affect a particular target business, and factors outside the control of the target business and outside of our control may later arise. If our diligence fails to identify issues specific to a target business, industry or the environment in which the target business operates, 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 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 common stock. 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.
If we effect a business combination with a company located in a foreign jurisdiction, we would be subject to a variety of additional risks that may negatively impact our operations.
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If we consummate a business combination with a target business in a foreign country, we would be subject to any special considerations or risks associated with companies operating in the target business’ home jurisdiction, including any of the following:
| ● | rules and regulations or currency conversion or corporate withholding taxes on individuals; |
| ● | tariffs and trade barriers; |
| ● | regulations related to customs and import/export matters; |
| ● | longer payment cycles; |
| ● | tax issues, such as tax law changes and variations in tax laws as compared to the United States; |
| ● | currency fluctuations and exchange controls; |
| ● | challenges in collecting accounts receivable; |
| ● | cultural and language differences; |
| ● | employment regulations; |
| ● | crime, strikes, riots, civil disturbances, terrorist attacks and wars; and |
| ● | deterioration of political relations with the United States. |
We cannot assure you that we would be able to adequately address these additional risks. If we were unable to do so, our operations might suffer.
If we effect a business combination with a company located outside of the United States, the laws applicable to such company will likely govern all of our material agreements and we may not be able to enforce our legal rights.
If we effect a business combination with a company located outside of the United States, the laws of the country in which such company operates will govern almost all of the material agreements relating to its operations. We cannot assure you that the target business will be able to enforce any of its material agreements or that remedies will be available in this new jurisdiction. The system of laws and the enforcement of existing laws in such jurisdiction may not be as certain in implementation and interpretation as in the United States. The inability to enforce or obtain a remedy under any of our future agreements could result in a significant loss of business, business opportunities or capital. Additionally, if we acquire a company located outside of the United States, it is likely that substantially all of our assets would be located outside of the United States and some of our officers and directors might reside outside of the United States. As a result, it may not be possible for investors in the United States to enforce their legal rights, to effect service of process upon our directors or officers or to enforce judgments of United States courts predicated upon civil liabilities and criminal penalties of our directors and officers under federal securities laws.
There may be tax consequences to our business combinations that may adversely affect us.
While we expect to undertake any merger or acquisition so as to minimize taxes both to the acquired business and/or asset and us, such business combination might not meet the statutory requirements of a tax-free reorganization, or the parties might not obtain the intended tax-free treatment upon a transfer of shares or assets. A non-qualifying reorganization could result in the imposition of substantial taxes.
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Risks Relating to Conflicts of Interest of our Officers, Directors, and Others
Our key personnel may negotiate employment or consulting agreements with a target business in connection with a particular business combination. These agreements may provide for them to receive compensation following a 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 will be able to remain with the company after the consummation of a business combination only if they are able to negotiate employment or consulting agreements or other appropriate arrangements 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 the company after the consummation of the business combination. The personal and financial interests of such individuals may influence their motivation in identifying and selecting a target business.
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 could have a negative impact on our ability to consummate a business combination.
Our officers and directors will not commit their full time to our affairs. We presently expect each of our officers and directors to devote such amount of time as they reasonably believe is necessary to our business. We do not intend to have any full-time employees prior to the consummation of our initial business combination. The foregoing could have a negative impact on our ability to consummate our initial business combination.
Our officers and directors may have a conflict of interest in determining whether a particular target business is appropriate for a business combination.
Our sponsor has waived its right to convert its founders’ shares or any other shares purchased in our initial public offering or thereafter, or to receive distributions from the trust account with respect to its founders’ shares upon our liquidation if we are unable to consummate a business combination. Accordingly, the shares acquired prior to our initial public offering, as well as the private warrants and any warrants purchased by our officers or directors in the aftermarket, will be worthless if we do not consummate a business combination. The personal and financial interests of our directors and officers may influence their motivation in timely identifying and selecting a target business and completing a business combination and in determining whether the terms, conditions and timing of a particular business combination are appropriate and in our stockholders’ best interest.
Our officers and directors or their affiliates have pre-existing fiduciary and contractual obligations and may in the future become affiliated with other entities engaged in business activities similar to those intended to be conducted by us. Accordingly, they may have conflicts of interest in determining to which entity a particular business opportunity should be presented.
Our officers and directors or their affiliates have pre-existing fiduciary and contractual obligations to other companies. Accordingly, they may participate in transactions and have obligations that may be in conflict or competition with our consummation of our initial business combination. As a result, a potential target business may be presented by our management team to another entity prior to its presentation to us and we may not be afforded the opportunity to engage in a transaction with such target business. Additionally, our officers and directors may in the future become affiliated with entities that are engaged in a similar business, including another blank check company that may have acquisition objectives that are similar to ours. 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 other entities prior to its presentation to us, subject to our officers’ and directors’ fiduciary duties under Delaware law. For a more detailed description of our officers’ and directors’ business affiliations and the potential conflicts of interest that you should be aware of, see the sections titled “Management — Directors and Executive Officers” and “Management — Conflicts of Interest.”
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EarlyBirdCapital may have a conflict of interest in rendering services to us in connection with our initial business combination.
We have engaged EarlyBirdCapital to assist us in connection with our initial business combination. We will pay EarlyBirdCapital a cash fee for such services in an aggregate amount equal to up to 3.5% of the total gross proceeds raised in the offering only if we consummate our initial business combination. The representative shares purchased by EarlyBirdCapital and its designees will also be worthless if we do not consummate an initial business combination. These financial interests may result in EarlyBirdCapital having a conflict of interest when providing the services to us in connection with an initial business combination.
Risks Relating to our Securities
A market for our securities may not develop, which would adversely affect the liquidity and price of our securities.
The price of our securities may vary significantly due to one or more potential business combinations and general market or economic conditions. Furthermore, an active trading market for our securities may never develop or, if developed, it may not be sustained. You may be unable to sell your securities unless a market can be established and sustained.
Nasdaq may delist our securities from quotation on its exchange which could limit investors’ ability to make transactions in our securities and subject us to additional trading restrictions.
Our securities are currently listed on Nasdaq. Nasdaq generally requires that we meet certain requirements relating to stockholders’ equity, market capitalization, aggregate market value of publicly held shares and distribution requirements, we cannot assure you that our securities will continue to be listed on Nasdaq in the future prior to an initial business combination. Additionally, in connection with our initial business combination, it is likely that Nasdaq will require us to file a new initial listing application and meet its initial listing requirements as opposed to its more lenient continued listing requirements. We cannot assure you that we will be able to meet those initial listing requirements at that time. Nasdaq will also have discretionary authority to not approve our listing if Nasdaq determines that the listing of the company to be acquired is against public policy at that time.
If Nasdaq delists our securities from trading on its exchange, or we are not listed in connection with our initial business combination, we could face significant material adverse consequences, including:
| ● | a limited availability of market quotations for our securities; |
| ● | reduced liquidity with respect to our securities; |
| ● | a determination that our shares of common stock are “penny stock” which will require brokers trading in our shares of common stock to adhere to more stringent rules, possibly resulting in a reduced level of trading activity in the secondary trading market for our shares of common stock; |
| ● | a limited amount of news and analyst coverage for our company; 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 we expect that our units and eventually our common stock and warrants will be listed on Nasdaq, our units, common stock and warrants will be covered securities. Although the states are preempted from regulating the sale of our 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. Further, if we were no longer listed on Nasdaq, our securities would not be covered securities and we would be subject to regulation in each state in which we offer our securities.
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If we do not file and maintain a current and effective prospectus relating to the common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants, holders will only be able to exercise such warrants on a “cashless basis.”
If we do not file and maintain a current and effective prospectus relating to the common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants at the time that holders wish to exercise such warrants, they will only be able to exercise them on a “cashless basis” provided that an exemption from registration is available. As a result, the number of shares of common stock that holders will receive upon exercise of the warrants will be fewer than it would have been had such holder exercised his warrant for cash. Further, if an exemption from registration is not available, holders would not be able to exercise on a cashless basis and would only be able to exercise their warrants for cash if a current and effective prospectus relating to the common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants is available. Under the terms of the warrant agreement, we have agreed to use our best efforts to meet these conditions and to file and maintain a current and effective prospectus relating to the common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants until the expiration of the warrants. However, we cannot assure you that we will be able to do so. If we are unable to do so, the potential “upside” of the holder’s investment in our company may be reduced or the warrants may expire worthless.
An investor will only be able to exercise a warrant if the issuance of shares of common stock upon such exercise has been registered or qualified or is deemed exempt under the securities laws of the state of residence of the holder of the warrants.
No warrants will be exercisable and we will not be obligated to issue shares of common stock unless the shares of common stock issuable upon such exercise has been registered or qualified or deemed to be exempt under the securities laws of the state of residence of the holder of the warrants. If the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants are not qualified or exempt from qualification in the jurisdictions in which the holders of the warrants reside, the warrants may be deprived of any value, the market for the warrants may be limited and they may expire worthless if they cannot be sold.
The private warrants may be exercised at a time when the public warrants may not be exercised.
Once the private warrants become exercisable, such warrants may immediately be exercised on a cashless basis, at the holder’s option, so long as they are held by the initial purchasers or their permitted transferees. The public warrants, however, will only be exercisable on a cashless basis at the option of the holders if we fail to register the shares issuable upon exercise of the warrants under the Securities Act within 90 days following the closing of our initial business combination. Accordingly, it is possible that the holders of the private warrants could exercise such warrants at a time when the holders of public warrants could not.
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 a majority of the then outstanding public warrants.
Our warrants will be issued in registered form under a warrant agreement between Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, as warrant agent, and us. The warrant agreement provides that the terms of the warrants may be amended without the consent of any holder to cure any ambiguity or correct any defective provision. The warrant agreement requires the approval by the holders of at least a majority of the then outstanding public warrants in order to make any change that adversely affects the interests of the registered holders.
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 (excluding the private warrants and any warrants underlying additional units issued to our sponsor, officers or directors in payment of working capital loans made to us) at any time after they become exercisable and prior to their expiration, at a price of $0.01 per warrant, provided that the last
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reported sales price of the common stock equals or exceeds $18.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations and recapitalizations) for any 20 trading days within a 30 trading-day period commencing at any time after the warrants become exercisable and ending on the third business day prior to proper notice of such redemption provided that on the date we give notice of redemption and during the entire period thereafter until the time we redeem the warrants, we have an effective registration statement under the Securities Act covering the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants and a current prospectus relating to them is available. 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 warrants will be redeemable by us so long as they are held by the initial purchasers or their permitted transferees.
Our management’s ability to require holders of our warrants to exercise such warrants on a cashless basis will cause holders to receive fewer shares of common stock upon their exercise of the warrants than they would have received had they been able to exercise their warrants for cash.
If we call our public warrants for redemption after the redemption criteria described elsewhere in this report have been satisfied, our management will have the option to require any holder that wishes to exercise his warrant (including any private warrants) to do so on a “cashless basis.” If our management chooses to require holders to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis, the number of shares of common stock received by a holder upon exercise will be fewer than it would have been had such holder exercised his warrant for cash. This will have the effect of reducing the potential “upside” of the holder’s investment in our company.
If our security holders exercise their registration rights, it may have an adverse effect on the market price of our shares of common stock and the existence of these rights may make it more difficult to effect a business combination.
Our initial stockholders are entitled to make a demand that we register the resale of the founders’ shares at any time commencing three months prior to the date on which their shares may be released from escrow. Additionally, the holders of the representative shares, private warrants and any warrants our sponsor, initial stockholders, officers, directors, or their affiliates may be issued in payment of working capital loans made to us, are entitled to demand that we register the resale of their securities commencing at any time after we consummate an initial business combination. The presence of these additional securities trading in the public market may have an adverse effect on the market price of our securities. In addition, the existence of these rights may make it more difficult to effectuate a business combination or increase the cost of acquiring the target business, as the stockholders of the target business may be discouraged from entering into a business combination with us or will request a higher price for their securities because of the potential effect the exercise of such rights may have on the trading market for our shares of common stock.
Because each unit contains one-half of one redeemable warrant and only a whole warrant may be exercised, the units may be worth less than units of other blank check companies.
Each unit contains one-half of one redeemable warrant. No fractional warrants will be issued upon separation of the units and only whole warrants will trade. Accordingly, unless you purchase a multiple of two units, the number of warrants issuable to you upon separation of the units will be rounded down to the nearest whole number of warrants. This is different from other offerings similar to ours whose units include one share of common stock and one warrant to purchase one whole share. We have established the components of the units in this way in order to reduce the dilutive effect of the warrants upon completion of an initial business combination since the warrants will be exercisable in the aggregate for one-half of the number of shares compared to units that each contain a warrant to purchase one whole share, thus making us, we believe, a more attractive merger partner for target businesses. Nevertheless, this unit structure may cause our units to be worth less than if they included a warrant to purchase one whole share.
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If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in trust could be reduced and the per-share redemption price received by stockholders may be less than $10.00.
Our placing of funds in trust may not protect those funds from third party claims against us. Although we will seek to have all vendors and service providers we engage and prospective target businesses we negotiate with 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, they may not execute such agreements. Furthermore, even if such entities execute such agreements with us, they may seek recourse against the trust account. A court may not uphold the validity of such agreements. Accordingly, the proceeds held in trust could be subject to claims which could take priority over those of our public stockholders. If we are unable to complete a business combination and distribute the proceeds held in trust to our public stockholders, our sponsor has agreed (subject to certain exceptions described elsewhere in this report) that it will be liable to ensure that the proceeds in the trust account are not reduced below $10.00 per share by the claims of target businesses or claims of vendors or other entities that are owed money by us for services rendered or contracted for or products sold to us. However, we have not asked our sponsor to reserve for such indemnification obligations, nor have we independently verified whether our sponsor has sufficient funds to satisfy its indemnity obligations and believe that our sponsor’s only assets are securities of our company. Therefore, we believe it is unlikely that our sponsor will be able to satisfy its indemnification obligations if it is required to do so. As a result, the per-share distribution from the trust account may be less than $10.00, plus interest, due to such claims.
Additionally, if we are forced to file a bankruptcy case or an involuntary bankruptcy case is filed against us which 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 may not be able to return to our public stockholders at least $10.00.
Our stockholders may be held liable for claims by third parties against us to the extent of distributions received by them.
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that we will continue in existence only until 21 months from the closing of our initial public offering. If we have not completed a business combination by such date, 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 100% of the outstanding public shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, including any interest not previously released to us but net of taxes payable (and less up to $50,000 of interest to pay liquidation 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 liquidation distributions, if any), subject to applicable law, and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining stockholders and our board of directors, dissolve and liquidate, subject (in the case of (ii) and (iii) above) to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. 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 well beyond the third anniversary of the date of distribution. Accordingly, we cannot assure you that third parties will not seek to recover from our stockholders amounts owed to them by us.
If we are forced to file a bankruptcy case or an involuntary bankruptcy case is filed against us which 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. Furthermore, because we intend to distribute the proceeds held in the trust account to our public stockholders promptly after expiration of the time we have to complete an initial business combination, this may be viewed or interpreted as giving preference to our public stockholders over any potential creditors with respect to access to or distributions from our assets. Furthermore, our board may be viewed as having breached their fiduciary duties 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.
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Our directors may decide not to enforce our sponsor’s indemnification obligations, 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 $10.00 per public share 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 such indemnification obligations. It is possible that our independent directors in exercising their business judgment may choose not to do so in any particular instance. Additionally, each of our independent directors is a member of our sponsor. As a result, they may have a conflict of interest in determining whether to enforce our sponsor’s indemnification obligations. 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 $10.00 per share.
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 $10.00 per share.
The proceeds held in the trust account will be 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 not previously released to us, net of taxes payable. 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 $10.00 per share.
Provisions in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and bylaws and Delaware law may inhibit a takeover of us, which could limit the price investors might be willing to pay in the future for our common stock and could entrench management.
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and bylaws contain provisions that may discourage unsolicited takeover proposals that stockholders may consider to be in their best interests. Our board of directors is divided into three classes, each of which will generally serve for a term of three years with only one class of directors being elected in each year. As a result, at a given annual meeting only a minority of the board of directors may be considered for election. Since our “staggered board” may prevent our stockholders from replacing a majority of our board of directors at any given annual meeting, it may entrench management and discourage unsolicited stockholder proposals that may be in the best interests of stockholders. Moreover, our board of directors has the ability to designate the terms of and issue new series of preferred stock.
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 more difficult the removal of management 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 will provide, subject to limited exceptions, that the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware will be the sole and exclusive forum for certain stockholder litigation matters, which could limit our stockholders’ ability to obtain a favorable judicial forum for disputes with us or our directors, officers, employees or stockholders.
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Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation requires, to the fullest extent permitted by law, that derivative actions brought in our name, actions against directors, officers and employees for breach of fiduciary duty and other similar actions may be brought only in the Court of Chancery in the State of Delaware, except any action (A) as to which the Court of Chancery in the State of Delaware determines that there is an indispensable party not subject to the jurisdiction of the Court of Chancery (and the indispensable party does not consent to the personal jurisdiction of the Court of Chancery within ten days following such determination), (B) which is vested in the exclusive jurisdiction of a court or forum other than the Court of Chancery, (C) for which the Court of Chancery does not have subject matter jurisdiction, or (D) arising under the Securities Act. 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 or employees, which may discourage lawsuits with respect to such claims, although our stockholders will not be deemed to have waived our compliance with federal securities laws and the rules and regulations thereunder and may therefore bring a claim in another appropriate forum. We cannot be certain that a court will decide that this provision is either applicable or enforceable, and 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 will provide that the exclusive forum provision will be applicable to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law. Section 27 of the Exchange Act creates exclusive federal jurisdiction over all suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Exchange Act or the rules and regulations thereunder. As a result, the exclusive forum provision will not apply to suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Exchange Act or any other claim for which the federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction.
General Risks
We are a newly formed company with no operating history and, accordingly, you will not have any basis on which to evaluate our ability to achieve our business objective.
We are a newly formed company with no operating results to date. Therefore, our ability to commence operations is dependent upon obtaining financing through this public offering of our securities. Since we do not have an operating history, you will have no basis upon which to evaluate our ability to achieve our business objective, which is to acquire an operating business. We have not conducted any substantive discussions and we have no plans, arrangements or understandings with any prospective acquisition candidates. We will not generate any revenues until, at the earliest, after the consummation of a business combination.
You will not be entitled to protections normally afforded to investors of blank check companies.
Since the net proceeds of our initial public offering are intended to be used to complete a business combination with a target business that has not been identified, we may be deemed to be a “blank check” company under the United States securities laws. However, since we will have net tangible assets in excess of $5,000,000, we are exempt from rules promulgated by the SEC to protect investors of blank check companies such as Rule 419. Accordingly, investors will not be afforded the benefits or protections of those rules which would, for example, completely restrict the transferability of our securities, require us to complete a business combination within 18 months of the effective date of the initial registration statement and restrict the use of interest earned on the funds held in the trust account. Because we are not subject to Rule 419, our units will be immediately tradable, we will have a longer period of time to consummate an initial business combination and we will be entitled to withdraw amounts from the funds held in the trust account prior to the completion of a business combination.
We are an “emerging growth company” and “smaller reporting company” and we cannot be certain if the reduced disclosure requirements applicable to emerging growth companies and smaller reporting companies will make our shares of common stock less attractive to investors.
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We are an “emerging growth company,” as defined in the JOBS Act. We will remain an “emerging growth company” for up to five years. However, if our non-convertible debt issued within a three year period or revenues exceeds $1.07 billion, or the market value of our shares of common stock that are held by non-affiliates exceeds $700 million on the last day of the second fiscal quarter of any given fiscal year, we would cease to be an emerging growth company as of the following fiscal year. As an emerging growth company, we are not required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, we have reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports and proxy statements and we are exempt from the requirements of holding a nonbinding advisory vote on executive compensation and stockholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved. Additionally, as an emerging growth company, we have elected to delay the adoption of new or revised accounting standards that have different effective dates for public and private companies until those standards apply to private companies. As such, our financial statements may not be comparable to companies that comply with public company effective dates. We cannot predict if investors will find our shares of common stock less attractive because we may rely on these provisions. If some investors find our shares of common stock less attractive as a result, there may be a less active trading market for our shares and our share price may be more volatile.
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 common stock held by non-affiliates exceeds $250 million as of the end of that 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 that 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.
If we are deemed to be an investment company, we may be required to institute burdensome compliance requirements and our activities may be restricted, which may make it difficult for us to complete a business combination.
A company that, among other things, is or holds itself out as being engaged primarily, or proposes to engage primarily, in the business of investing, reinvesting, owning, trading or holding certain types of securities would be deemed an investment company under the Investment Company Act, as amended, or the Investment Company Act. Since we will invest the proceeds held in the trust account, it is possible that we could be deemed an investment company. Notwithstanding the foregoing, we do not believe that our anticipated principal activities will subject us to the Investment Company Act. To this end, the proceeds held in trust may be invested by the trustee only 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. By restricting the investment of the proceeds to these instruments, we intend to meet the requirements for the exemption provided in Rule 3a-1 promulgated under the Investment Company Act.
If we are nevertheless deemed to be an investment company under the Investment Company Act, we may be subject to certain restrictions that may make it more difficult for us to complete a business combination, including:
| ● | restrictions on the nature of our investments; and |
| ● | restrictions on the issuance of securities. |
In addition, we may have imposed upon us certain burdensome requirements, including:
| ● | registration as an investment company; |
| ● | adoption of a specific form of corporate structure; and |
| ● | reporting, record keeping, voting, proxy, compliance policies and procedures and disclosure requirements and other rules and regulations. |
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Compliance with these additional regulatory burdens would require additional expense for which we have not allotted.
Compliance with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 will require substantial financial and management resources and may increase the time and costs of completing an acquisition.
Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 requires that we evaluate and report on our system of internal controls and may require that we have such system of internal controls audited beginning with our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ending December 31, 2022. If we fail to maintain the adequacy of our internal controls, we could be subject to regulatory scrutiny, civil or criminal penalties and/or stockholder litigation. Any inability to provide reliable financial reports could harm our business. Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act also requires that our independent registered public accounting firm report on management’s evaluation of our system of internal controls. A target company may not be in compliance with the provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act regarding adequacy of their internal controls. The development of the internal controls of any such entity to achieve compliance with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act may increase the time and costs necessary to complete any such acquisition. Furthermore, any failure to implement required new or improved controls, or difficulties encountered in the implementation of adequate controls over our financial processes and reporting in the future, could harm our operating results or cause us to fail to meet our reporting obligations. Inferior internal controls could also cause investors to lose confidence in our reported financial information, which could have a negative effect on the trading price of our stock.
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 will be 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.
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.
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Item 1B. Unresolved Staff Comments.
None.
We do not own any real estate or other physical properties materially important to our operation. We currently maintain our principal executive offices at 640 5th Avenue, 4th Floor, New York, New York 10019. The cost for this space is included in the $10,000 per-month aggregate fee our sponsor charges us for general and administrative services pursuant to a letter agreement between us and our sponsor. We believe, based on rents and fees for similar services, that the fee charged by our sponsor is at least as favorable as we could have obtained from an unaffiliated person. We consider our current office space, combined with the other office space otherwise available to our executive officers, adequate for our current operations.
To the knowledge of our management, there is no litigation currently pending against us, any of our officers or directors in their capacity as such or against any of our property.
Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures.
Not applicable.
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Item 5. Market for Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters, and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities.
Market Information
Our units, common stock and warrants are each traded on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbols “IGNYU,” “IGNY” and “IGNYW,” respectively. Our units commenced public trading on January 28, 2021, and our common stock and warrants commenced separate public trading on March 12, 2021.
Holders
On March 31, 2021, there was one holder of record of our units, one holder of record of our common stock and two holders of record of our warrants.
Securities Authorized for Issuance Under Equity Compensation Plans
None.
Recent Sales of Unregistered Securities
Use of Proceeds
On January 27, 2021, our Registration Statement on Form S-1 (SEC File No. 333-252011) (the “Registration Statement”) relating to our initial public offering of units was declared effective by the SEC. On February 1, 2021, we consummated our initial public offering, generating gross proceeds of $50,000,000. On February 2, 2021, we consummated the closing of the sale of an additional 750,000 units, pursuant to the underwriters’ exercise in full of their over-allotment option, generating gross proceeds of $7,500,000. We also consummated the closing of the sale of an additional 150,000 private warrants, generating gross proceeds of $150,000. No proceeds were used during the reporting period ended December 31, 2020.
Purchases of Equity Securities by the Issuer and Affiliated Purchasers
None.
Item 6. Selected Financial Data.
Not required for smaller reporting companies.
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Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.
Results of Operations
We have neither engaged in any operations nor generated any revenues to date. Our only activities from August 6, 2020 (inception) to December 31, 2020 were organizational activities and those necessary to consummate the IPO, described below. Following our initial public offering, we do not expect to generate any operating revenues until after the completion of our business combination. We expect to generate non-operating income in the form of interest income on cash and marketable securities held after the IPO. 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.
For the year ended December 31, 2020, we had a net loss of $310 which consists of operating and formation costs.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
As of December 31, 2020, we had no cash. Until the consummation of our initial public offering, our liquidity needs were satisfied through the receipt of $25,000 from our sale of the Founder Shares, and unsecured loans of $80,000 from our sponsor.
On February 1, 2021, we consummated our initial public offering of 5,000,000 units (the “Units” and, with respect to the shares of common stock included in the Units being offered, the “Public Shares”), at $10.00 per Unit, generating gross proceeds of $50,000,000.
Simultaneously with the closing of our initial public offering, we consummated the sale of 2,350,000 Private Placement Warrants (the “Private Placement Warrants”) at a price of $1.00 per Private Placement Warrant in a private placement to the Sponsor, generating total gross proceeds of $2,350,000.
On February 2, 2021, the underwriters in our initial public offering purchased an additional 750,000 Units to exercise its over-allotment option in full at a purchase price of $10.00 per Unit, generating gross proceeds of $7,500,000.
Simultaneously with the closing of the fully exercise of the over-allotment option, we completed the private sale of an aggregate of 150,000 Private Placement Warrants to the Sponsor, at a purchase price of $1.00 per Private Placement Warrant, generating gross proceeds of $150,000.
Transaction costs amounted to $1,547,486 consisting of $1,150,000 of underwriting discount and $397,486 of other offering costs.
Following the closing of our initial public offering and the sale of over-allotment units, an aggregate of $57,500,000 ($10.00 per Unit) from the net proceeds and the sale of the Private Placement Warrants was held in a Trust Account (“Trust Account”),
We intend to use substantially all of the funds held in the trust account, including any amounts representing interest earned on the trust account (less taxes payable) to complete our initial Business Combination. We may withdraw interest from the trust account to pay franchise and income taxes. To the extent that our equity or debt is used, in whole or in part, as consideration to complete our initial business combination, the remaining proceeds held in the trust account will be used as working capital to finance the operations of the target business or businesses, make other acquisitions and pursue our growth strategies.
We have engaged underwriters as advisors in connection with our business combination to assist us in holding meetings with our stockholders to discuss the potential business combination and the target business’s attributes, introduce us to potential investors that are interested in purchasing our securities in connection with the potential business combination, assist us in obtaining stockholder approval for the business combination and assist us with our press releases
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and public filings in connection with the business combination. We will pay the Marketing Fee for such services upon the consummation of our initial business combination in an amount equal to, in the aggregate, 3.5% of the gross proceeds of the IPO, including any proceeds from the full or partial exercise of the over-allotment option.
We intend to use the funds held outside the Trust Account primarily to identify and evaluate target businesses, perform business due diligence on prospective target businesses, travel to and from the offices, plants or similar locations of prospective target businesses or their representatives or owners, review corporate documents and material agreements of prospective target businesses, and structure, negotiate and complete a business combination.
We do not believe we will need to raise additional funds in order to meet the expenditures required for operating our business prior to our initial business combination. However, if our estimates of the costs of identifying a target business, undertaking in-depth due diligence and negotiating an initial business combination are less than the actual amount necessary to do so, we may have insufficient funds available to operate our business prior to our business combination. Moreover, we may need to obtain additional financing either to complete our business combination or because we become obligated to redeem a significant number of our public shares upon completion of our business combination, in which case we may issue additional securities or incur debt in connection with such 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.
Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements; Commitments and Contractual Obligations
We have no obligations, assets or liabilities which would be considered off-balance sheet arrangements as of December 31, 2020. We do not participate in transactions that create relationships with unconsolidated entities or financial partnerships, often referred to as variable interest entities, which would have been established for the purpose of facilitating off-balance sheet arrangements. We have not entered into any off-balance sheet financing arrangements, established any special purpose entities, guaranteed any debt or commitments of other entities, or purchased any non-financial assets.
Contractual obligations
We do not have any long-term debt, capital lease obligations, operating lease obligations or long-term.
Critical Accounting Policies
The preparation of financial statements and related disclosures in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements, and income and expenses during the periods reported. Actual results could materially differ from those estimates. We have not identified any critical accounting policies.
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Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk.
As of December 31, 2020, we were not subject to any market or interest rate risk. Following the consummation of our initial public offering, the net proceeds of our initial public offering, including amounts in the trust account, have been 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. Due to the short-term nature of these investments, we believe there will be no associated material exposure to interest rate risk.
Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data.
This information appears following Item 15 of this report and is included herein by reference.
Item 9. Changes in and Disagreements with Accountants on Accounting and Financial Disclosure.
None.
Item 9A. Controls and Procedures.
Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures
Disclosure controls are procedures that are designed with the objective of ensuring that information required to be disclosed in our reports filed under the Exchange Act, such as this report, is recorded, processed, summarized, and reported within the time period specified in the SEC’s rules and forms. Disclosure controls are also designed with the objective of ensuring that such information is accumulated and communicated to our management, including the chief executive officer and chief financial officer, as appropriate to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure. Our management evaluated, with the participation of our current chief executive officer and chief financial officer (our “Certifying Officer”), the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures as of December 31, 2020, pursuant to Rule 13a-15(b) under the Exchange Act. Based upon that evaluation, our Certifying Officer concluded that, as of December 31, 2020, our disclosure controls and procedures were effective.
We do not expect that our disclosure controls and procedures will prevent all errors and all instances of fraud. Disclosure controls and procedures, no matter how well conceived and operated, can provide only reasonable, not absolute, assurance that the objectives of the disclosure controls and procedures are met. Further, the design of disclosure controls and procedures must reflect the fact that there are resource constraints, and the benefits must be considered relative to their costs. Because of the inherent limitations in all disclosure controls and procedures, no evaluation of disclosure controls and procedures can provide absolute assurance that we have detected all our control deficiencies and instances of fraud, if any. The design of disclosure controls and procedures also is based partly on certain assumptions about the likelihood of future events, and there can be no assurance that any design will succeed in achieving its stated goals under all potential future conditions.
Management’s Report on Internal Controls Over Financial Reporting
This 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 the rules of the Commission for newly public companies.
Changes in Internal Control over Financial Reporting
There were no changes in our internal control over financial reporting (as such term is defined in Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f) of the Exchange Act) during the most recent fiscal quarter that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.
None.
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Item 10. Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance.
Directors and Executive Officers
As of the date of this report, our directors and officers are as follows:
| Name | Age | Title | ||
| David I. Rosenberg | 47 | Chairman of the Board and Co-Chief Executive Officer | ||
| David J. Strupp, Jr. | 52 | Co-Chief Executive Officer and Director | ||
| Steven Kaplan | 57 | Chief Financial Officer and Director | ||
| Cheryl Cohen | 55 | Director | ||
| Charles Wilson, Ph.D. | 56 | Director | ||
| John Andrew Boockvar, M.D. | 49 | Director | ||
| Richard J. Rosenstock | 69 | Director |
David I. Rosenberg has been our Chairman of the Board and co-Chief Executive Officer since our formation. Mr. Rosenberg brings over 20 years of investment banking experience focused on growth companies. Since December 2011, Mr. Rosenberg has been Co-President and Co-Chief Executive Officer of Ladenburg Thalmann & Co. Inc., a leading underwriter of blank check companies or SPACs. Mr. Rosenberg is also a member of Board of Directors of Ladenburg Thalmann & Co. Inc. From 2006 to 2011, Mr. Rosenberg was a Managing Director and Co-Chief Operating Officer of Ladenburg Thalmann & Co. Inc. Since joining Ladenburg Thalmann in 2006, Mr. Rosenberg has managed more than 1,000 public offerings including but not limited to initial public offerings and follow on offerings raising in excess of $75 billion for small and mid-cap companies, as well as advising on numerous merger and acquisition transactions. Mr. Rosenberg also serves as member of the Board of Directors of Dianomi Therapeutics. Prior to joining Ladenburg Thalmann, from 2004 to 2006, Mr. Rosenberg was co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of BroadWall Capital, LLC, an investment banking firm. Mr. Rosenberg received a B.A. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. We believe Mr. Rosenberg is well qualified to serve on our board of directors because of his significant investment banking, equity capital markets and executive management experience. Mr. Rosenberg is the nephew of Richard Rosenstock, one of our directors.
David J. Strupp, Jr. has been our Co-Chief Executive Officer and a member of our board of directors since our formation. Mr. Strupp has worked as a dedicated healthcare investment banker for over 27 years at various investment banks. Mr. Strupp has served as a Managing Director and Head of Healthcare Investment Banking at Ladenburg Thalmann & Co. Inc. since May 2012. In his role leading the firm’s healthcare investment banking practice at Ladenburg Thalmann, Mr. Strupp has overseen the execution of numerous transactions across a range of products, including M&A advisory, equity and equity-linked offerings, private placements and fixed income transactions. During his tenure at Ladenburg Thalmann, Mr. Strupp has helped the firm establish a market-leading practice advising biotechnology companies in reverse merger transactions. Prior to joining Ladenburg Thalmann, Mr. Strupp worked as a senior member of the healthcare groups at boutique investment banks, including ThinkEquity Partners from 2002 to 2007, Canaccord Adams (now Canaccord Genuity) from 2007 to 2008, the Maxim Group from 2008 to 2009, and Rodman & Renshaw from 2009 to 2012. He began his career on Wall Street working in the healthcare groups at UBS Securities from 1993 to 1998, NationsBanc Montgomery Securities from 1998 to 1999, and Citigroup from 1999 to 2002. Mr. Strupp received a B.A. in Economics from Bates College and an M.Sc. in Economics from the London School of Economics. We believe Mr. Strupp is well-qualified to serve on our board of directors due to his experience as a dedicated healthcare investment banker and expertise in reverse merger transactions.
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Steven N. Kaplan has been our Chief Financial Officer and director since October 2020. Mr. Kaplan joined Ladenburg Thalmann & Co. Inc. as a Managing Director in September 2004 and was promoted to Head of Capital Markets in December 2011. Mr. Kaplan co-heads the investment banking group at Ladenburg Thalmann which focuses on blank check companies or SPACs. Prior to joining Ladenburg Thalmann, Mr. Kaplan had substantial experience advising companies in the healthcare services industry. From 1999 to 2004, Mr. Kaplan was a Co-Founder and a Partner of River Capital Partners, a healthcare services focused M&A advisory firm. From 1996 to 1999, he was a Vice President in the Healthcare Investment Banking Group of Prudential Securities. From 1993 to 1996 he was an associate at Jefferies & Company, primarily focused on Healthcare M&A. He previously worked at auditing firms Pricewaterhouse and Deloitte & Touche. Over the course of his career, Mr. Kaplan has managed over 500 public offerings including but not limited to IPOs and follow-on offerings as well as advising on numerous merger and acquisition transactions. Mr. Kaplan received a BSBA from Babson College and an MBA from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill.
Cheryl L. Cohen has served as a member of our board of directors since November 2020. Ms. Cohen has more than 25 years of leadership experience within the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries. Ms. Cohen currently serves as President of CLC Consulting, a pharmaceutical and biotechnology consulting firm which she founded in July 2008. From September 2011 to July 2014, Ms. Cohen served as Chief Commercial Officer of Medivation, Inc., a publicly traded bio-pharmaceutical company. Prior to joining Medivation, Ms. Cohen spent over 10 years at Johnson & Johnson. From November 2007 to September 2008, she served as the Vice President, strategic commercial group, of Health Care Systems, Inc., a Johnson & Johnson company, and from October 1998 to November 2007, she worked at Janssen Biotech, Inc. (formerly Centocor Biotech, Inc.), a Johnson & Johnson company, in a variety of senior executive roles including Vice President, rheumatology franchise. Ms. Cohen began her career at Solvay Pharmaceuticals in a variety of management and sales positions. In addition, Ms. Cohen currently serves on the board of directors of Aerpio Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: ARPO), a public pharmaceutical company, since 2018 and NantKwest (NASDAQ: NK), a public pharmaceutical company, since June 2019 and MEI Pharma, Inc. (NASDAQ: MEIP), a public pharmaceutical company since June 2020. She previously served on the boards of directors of Novus Therapeutics, Inc. (reverse merger of Tokai Pharmaceuticals, Inc) from April 2015 to June 2020, Vital Therapies, Inc., a therapeutics company, from 2015 until 2019, Cytrx Corporation, a publicly traded biopharmaceutical company from June 2015 through October 2016, and Protein Sciences Corporation, a privately held bio-pharmaceutical company from October 2014 to August 2017. Ms. Cohen received a B.A. from Saint Joseph College. We believe Ms. Cohen is well-qualified to serve on our board of directors due to her public and private company experience and relationships and contacts.
Charles (“Chuck”) Wilson, Ph.D. has served as a member of our board of directors since November 2020. From 2014 to 2020, Dr. Wilson served as President and Chief Executive Officer of Unum Therapeutics Inc. (now named Cogent Biosciences, Inc.), a company developing novel therapies for the treatment of cancer. From 2008 to 2014, Dr. Wilson served as Vice President, Global Head of Strategic Alliances for the Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research (NIBR), the research and early development division of Novartis. In this role he was responsible for leading partnering efforts across all disease areas up through clinical proof-of-concept. His efforts included academic and biotech collaborations, equity investing in early stage companies, in-licensing of compounds, and spin-out of assets/technologies to start ups. In 2001, Dr. Wilson co-founded Archemix, a Cambridge, MA biotech company focused on the development of aptamers as therapeutics, and served as its Chief Technology Officer where he was responsible for both developing the company’s technology platform and managing its drug discovery efforts. As part of the senior management team, Dr. Wilson helped the company raise over $100 million in equity financing and advance multiple programs into clinical development. Before moving into industry, Dr. Wilson was a professor in the Markey Center for the Molecular Biology of RNA at the University of California, Santa Cruz from 1994 to 2001. Trained in structural biology and molecular biology, Dr. Wilson received a PhD with David Agard (UCSF, HHMI) and received his postdoctoral training with Nobelist Jack Szostak (Havard University / Massachusetts General Hospital). He received a B.A. and M.A. from Boston University. He currently serves as Board Chair for the Massachusetts Biotechnology Council and as a member of the Board for GigaGen, Inc. We believe Dr. Wilson is well-qualified to serve on our board of directors due to his experience and relationships and contacts.
John Andrew Boockvar, M.D. has served as a member of our board of directors since November 2020. Since 2015, Dr. Boockvar has served as the Vice Chair of the Department of Neurosurgery at Lenox Hill Hospital and Director of the Brain Tumor Center, and the Pituitary/Neuroendocrine Center of the Department of Neurosurgery and the New York Head and Neck Institute at Lenox Hill and Manhattan Eye, Ear and Throat Hospitals. Dr.
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Boockvar has also been a Professor of Neurological Surgery and Otolaryngology/Head and Neck Surgery at the Zucker School of Medicine since 2014. He has also been an investigator at the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research since 2014 where he directs the Laboratory for Brain Tumor Biology and Therapy. Dr. Boockvar is internationally known for his surgical expertise and for providing patients with safe, effective, and minimally invasive treatment for brain tumors, skull base disorders, and disorders of the spine. Dr. Boockvar’s surgical expertise is in benign and malignant brain tumors, skull base and endoscopic pituitary surgery, spinal and peripheral nerve tumors, minimally invasive spinal surgery, and complex spinal disorders. Dr. Boockvar has been recognized for his novel research in brain tumors and stem cell biology. Dr. Boockvar has been repeatedly named to the lists of New York Magazine’s Top Docs, Best Doctors in New York-Castle Connolly, New York Super Doctors (2020), America’s Top Surgeons, America’s Best Doctors, and America’s Best Doctors for Cancer. His research has been widely published and he has received numerous national awards including the Eric Lichtenstein Humanitarian Award from Voices Against Brain Cancer for his compassionate work in treating patients with brain cancer. In 2016, Dr. Boockvar was elected to the Academy of Neurological Surgeons. In 2017, he was elected to the Senior Society of the American Board of Neurological Surgery. Dr. Boockvar is the star in Netflix’s nine-part docuseries, Lenox Hill, and has been featured on special episodes of the Dr. Oz Show on brain tumors. Medical Mysteries, Good Morning America and the Today Show with Megyn Kelly. He also founded and hosts his own interactive webinar, “ByTheBoock” featuring special guests ranging from CEOs of major companies, authors, biotech experts and more. Dr. Boockvar is also an honorary surgeon of the NYPD and the New York State Troopers. He received a B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania. We believe Mr. Boockvar is well-qualified to serve on our board of directors due to his experience and relationships and contacts.
Richard J. Rosenstock has served as a member of our board of directors since November 2020. Since 2006, Mr. Rosenstock has served as managing member of Encore Atlantic Fund, LLC, a hedge fund he founded that invests primarily in SPACs. From May 2001 until December 2002, he served as Vice Chairman and Chief Operating Officer of Ladenburg Thalmann Financial Services Inc., a formerly publicly traded financial services company, and served as its President from August 1999 until May 2001. He also served on its board of directors from 1999 to March 2015. Mr. Rosenstock received a B.S. from Northeastern University. We believe Mr. Rosenstock is well-qualified to serve on our board of directors due to his investment banking experience and relationships and contacts. Mr. Rosenstock is the uncle of Mr. Rosenberg.
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 each class serving a three-year term. The term of office of the first class of directors, consisting of Cheryl Cohen and Charles Wilson, will expire at our first annual meeting of stockholders. The term of office of the second class of directors, consisting of Richard J. Rosenstock and John Andrew Boockvar, will expire at the second annual meeting. The term of office of the third class of directors, consisting of David Rosenberg, David J. Strupp, Jr. and Steven Kaplan, will expire at the third annual meeting.
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 bylaws as it deems appropriate. Our bylaws provide that our officers may consist of a Chairman of the Board, one or more Chief Executive Officers, Chief Financial Officer, President, Vice Presidents, Secretary, Treasurer, Assistant Secretaries and such other offices as may be determined by the board of directors.
Director Independence
Currently Ms. Cohen, Dr. Wilson, Dr. Boockvar and Mr. Rosenstock would each be considered an “independent director” under the Nasdaq listing rules, which is defined generally as a person other than an officer or employee of the company or its subsidiaries or any other individual having a relationship, which, in the opinion of the company’s board of directors would interfere with the director’s exercise of independent judgment in carrying out the responsibilities of a director.
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Our independent directors will have regularly scheduled meetings at which only independent directors are present.
Any affiliated transactions will be on terms no less favorable to us than could be obtained from independent parties. Our board of directors will review and approve all affiliated transactions with any interested director abstaining from such review and approval.
Availability of Documents
We have filed a copy of our form of Code of Ethics, our audit committee charter, our nominating committee charter and compensation committee charter as exhibits to the registration statement filed in connection with our initial public offering. You will be able to review these documents by accessing our public filings at the SEC’s web site at www.sec.gov. In addition, a copy of the Code of Ethics will be provided without charge upon request from us. 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.
Audit Committee
Effective as of January 27, 2021, we established an audit committee of the board of directors, which consists of Mr. Rosenstock, Ms. Cohen and Dr. Wilson, each of whom is an independent director under Nasdaq’s listing standards. The audit committee’s duties, which are specified in our Audit Committee Charter, include, but are not limited to:
| ● | reviewing and discussing with management and the independent auditor the annual audited financial statements, and recommending to the board whether the audited financial statements should be included in our Form 10-K; |
| ● | discussing with management and the independent auditor significant financial reporting issues and judgments made in connection with the preparation of our financial statements; |
| ● | discussing with management major risk assessment and risk management policies; |
| ● | monitoring the independence of the independent auditor; |
| ● | verifying the rotation of the lead (or coordinating) audit partner having primary responsibility for the audit and the audit partner responsible for reviewing the audit as required by law; |
| ● | reviewing and approving all related-party transactions; |
| ● | inquiring and discussing with management our compliance with applicable laws and regulations; |
| ● | pre-approving all audit services and permitted non-audit services to be performed by our independent auditor, including the fees and terms of the services to be performed; |
| ● | appointing or replacing the independent auditor; |
| ● | determining the compensation and oversight of the work of the independent auditor (including resolution of disagreements between management and the independent auditor regarding financial reporting) for the purpose of preparing or issuing an audit report or related work; |
| ● | establishing procedures for the receipt, retention and treatment of complaints received by us regarding accounting, internal accounting controls or reports which raise material issues regarding our financial statements or accounting policies; and |
| ● | approving reimbursement of expenses incurred by our management team in identifying potential target businesses. |
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Financial Experts on Audit Committee
The audit committee will at all times be composed exclusively of “independent directors” who are “financially literate” as defined under Nasdaq’s listing standards. Nasdaq’s standards define “financially literate” as being able to read and understand fundamental financial statements, including a company’s balance sheet, income statement and cash flow statement.
In addition, we must certify to Nasdaq that the committee has, and will continue to have, at least one member who has past employment experience in finance or accounting, requisite professional certification in accounting, or other comparable experience or background that results in the individual’s financial sophistication. The board of directors has determined that Mr. Rosenstock qualifies as an “audit committee financial expert,” as defined under rules and regulations of the SEC.
Nominating Committee
Effective as of January 27, 2021, we established a nominating committee of the board of directors, which consists of Ms. Cohen, Dr. Wilson, Dr. Boockvar and Mr. Rosenstock, each of whom is an independent director under Nasdaq’s listing standards. 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
The guidelines for selecting nominees, which are specified in the Nominating Committee Charter, 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. |
The Nominating Committee will consider 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
Effective as of January 27, 2021, we established a compensation committee of the board of directors, which consists of Ms. Cohen, Dr. Wilson, Dr. Boockvar and Mr. Rosenstock, each of whom is an independent director under Nasdaq’s listing standards. The compensation committee’s duties, which are specified in our Compensation Committee Charter, include, but are not limited to:
| ● | 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; |
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| ● | reviewing and approving the compensation of all of our other executive officers; |
| ● | reviewing our executive compensation policies and plans; |
| ● | implementing and administering our incentive compensation equity-based remuneration plans; |
| ● | assisting management in complying with our proxy statement and annual report disclosure requirements; |
| ● | approving all special perquisites, special cash payments and other special compensation and benefit arrangements for our executive officers and employees; |
| ● | 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. |
Code of Ethics
We have adopted a code of ethics that applies to all of our executive officers, directors and employees. The code of ethics codifies the business and ethical principles that govern all aspects of our business.
Conflicts of Interest
In general, officers and directors of a corporation incorporated under the laws of the State of Delaware are required to present business opportunities to a corporation if:
| ● | the corporation could financially undertake the opportunity; |
| ● | the opportunity is within the corporation’s line of business; and |
| ● | it would not be fair to the corporation and its stockholders for the opportunity not to be brought to the attention of the corporation. |
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that:
| ● | except as may be prescribed by any written agreement with us, we renounce our interest in any corporate opportunity offered to any director or officer unless such opportunity is expressly offered to such person solely in his or her capacity as a director or officer of our company and such opportunity is one we are legally and contractually permitted to undertake and would otherwise be reasonable for us to pursue; and |
| ● | our officers and directors will not be liable to our company or our stockholders for monetary damages for breach of any fiduciary duty by reason of any of our activities or any of our sponsor or its affiliates to the fullest extent permitted by Delaware law. |
Our officers and directors are, and may in the future become, affiliated with other companies. In order to minimize potential conflicts of interest which may arise from such other corporate affiliations, each of our officers and directors has contractually agreed, pursuant to a written agreement with us, until the earliest of our execution of a definitive agreement for a business combination, our liquidation or such time as he ceases to be an officer or director, to present to our company for our consideration, prior to presentation to any other entity, any suitable business opportunity which may reasonably be required to be presented to us, subject to any fiduciary or contractual obligations he might have. The foregoing agreement does not restrict our officers and directors from becoming affiliated with other companies in the future which could take priority over our company. Specifically, members of our management team are employed by Ladenburg or its affiliates. As a result, affiliates of members of our management team may compete with us for acquisition opportunities in the same industries and sectors as we may target for our initial business combination. If any of them decide to pursue any such opportunity, we may be
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precluded from procuring such opportunities. In addition, investment ideas generated within Ladenburg, including by any member of our management team, may be suitable both for us and for affiliates of our management team or any of their respective clients, and may be directed initially to such persons rather than to us.
The following table summarizes the pre-existing fiduciary or contractual obligations of our officers and directors besides our sponsor:
| Name of Individual | Name of Affiliated Entity | |
| David Rosenberg | Ladenburg Thalmann & Co. Inc. | |
| Dianomi Therapeutics | ||
| David J. Strupp, Jr. | Ladenburg Thalmann & Co. Inc. | |
| Steven Kaplan | Ladenburg Thalmann & Co. Inc. | |
| Cheryl Cohen | CLC Consulting | |
| Aerpio Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | ||
| Novus Theapeutics, Inc. | ||
| Richard Rosenstock | Encore Atlantic Fund, LLC |
While the foregoing may limit the pool of potential business combination candidates, we do not believe that this limitation will be material.
Investors should also be aware of the following additional potential conflicts of interest:
| ● | None of our officers and directors is required to commit their full time to our affairs and, accordingly, they may have conflicts of interest in allocating their time among various business activities. |
| ● | Unless we consummate our initial business combination, our officers, directors and sponsor will not receive reimbursement or repayment for any out-of-pocket expenses incurred by them, or loans made to us, to the extent that such expenses exceed the amount of available proceeds not deposited in the trust account. |
| ● | The founders’ shares beneficially owned by our initial stockholders and the private warrants purchased by our sponsor, and any warrants which our officers or directors may purchase in the aftermarket will expire worthless if a business combination is not consummated. This is because our officers and directors and affiliates will not receive liquidation distributions from the trust account with respect to any of the founders’ shares, private shares or warrants. |
For the foregoing reasons, our board may have a conflict of interest in determining whether a particular target business is appropriate to effect a business combination with.
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 officers, directors, sponsor or initial stockholders unless we have obtained an opinion from an independent investment banking firm, or another independent entity that commonly renders valuation opinions, that the business combination is fair to our unaffiliated stockholders from a financial point of view. We will also need to obtain the approval of a majority of our disinterested independent directors. Furthermore, in no event will any of our sponsor, members of our management team or their respective affiliates be paid any compensation prior to, or for any services they render in order to effectuate, the consummation of an initial business combination (regardless of the type of transaction that it is) other than the $10,000 per month administrative fee, the payment of consulting, success or finder fees to our sponsor, officers, directors, initial stockholders or their affiliates in connection with the consummation of our initial business combination, repayment of loans made as of the date of this report and reimbursement of any out-of-pocket expenses.
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Compensation Committee Interlocks and Insider Participation
None of our officers currently serves, or in the past year has served, as a member of the compensation committee of any entity that has one or more officers serving on our board of directors.
Compliance with Section 16(a) of the Exchange Act
Section 16(a) of the Exchange Act requires our executive officers, directors and persons who beneficially own more than 10% of a registered class of our equity securities to file with the Securities and Exchange Commission initial reports of ownership and reports of changes in ownership of our common stock and other equity securities. These executive officers, directors, and greater than 10% beneficial owners are required by SEC regulation to furnish us with copies of all Section 16(a) forms filed by such reporting persons. Based solely on our review of such forms furnished to us and written representations from certain reporting persons, we believe that all reports applicable to our executive officers, directors and greater than 10% beneficial owners were filed in a timely manner in accordance with Section 16(a) of the Exchange Act.
Item 11. Executive Compensation.
Executive Officer and Director Compensation
No executive officer has received any cash compensation for services rendered to us. We pay our sponsor $10,000 per month for providing us with office space and certain office and secretarial services. However, this arrangement is solely for our benefit and is not intended to provide our officers or directors compensation in lieu of a salary.
Other than the $10,000 per month administrative fee, the payment of consulting, success or finder fees to our sponsor, officers, directors, initial stockholders or their affiliates in connection with the consummation of our initial business combination and the repayment of loans made by our executive officers to us, no compensation or fees of any kind will be paid to our sponsor, initial stockholders, members of our management team or their respective affiliates, for services rendered prior to or in connection with the consummation of our initial business combination (regardless of the type of transaction that it is). However, they will receive reimbursement for any out-of-pocket expenses incurred by them in connection with activities on our behalf, such as identifying potential target businesses, performing business due diligence on suitable target businesses and business combinations as well as traveling to and from the offices, plants or similar locations of prospective target businesses to examine their operations. There is no limit on the amount of consulting, success or finder fees payable by us upon consummation of an initial business combination. Additionally, there is no limit on the amount of out-of-pocket expenses reimbursable by us; provided, however, that to the extent such expenses exceed the available proceeds not deposited in the trust account, such expenses would not be reimbursed by us unless we consummate an initial business combination.
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 stockholders, to the extent then known, in the proxy solicitation materials furnished to our stockholders. However, the amount of such compensation may not be known at the time of the stockholder meeting held to consider an initial business combination, as it will be up to the directors of the post-combination business to determine executive and director compensation. In this event, such compensation will be publicly disclosed at the time of its determination in a Current Report on Form 8-K or a periodic report, as required by the SEC. 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.
| 50 |
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 31, 2021 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 executive officers and directors; and |
| ● | all our executive officers and directors as a group. |
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 of beneficial ownership of the warrants included in the units offered in our initial public offering or the private warrants as these warrants are not exercisable within 60 days of March 31, 2021.
| Name and Address of Beneficial Owner(1) | Amount and Nature of Beneficial Ownership |
Approximate Percentage of Outstanding Shares of Common Stock | |||||||
| David Rosenberg(2) | 1,437,500 | 19.7 | % | ||||||
| David J. Strupp, Jr.(2) (3) | 1,447,500 | 19.9 | % | ||||||
| Steven Kaplan(4) | 5,000 | * | |||||||
| Cheryl Cohen(4) | — | — | |||||||
| Charles Wilson(4) | — | — | |||||||
| John Andrew Boockvar(4) | — | — | |||||||
| Richard J. Rosenstock(4) | — | — | |||||||
| Ignyte Sponsor LLC | 1,437,500 | 19.7 | % | ||||||
| All directors and executive officers as a group (seven individuals) | 1,452,500 | 19.9 | % | ||||||
| * | Less than 1%. |
| (1) | Unless otherwise indicated, the business address of each of the individuals is c/o Ignyte Acquisition Corp., 640 5th Avenue, 4th Floor, New York, New York 10019. |
| (2) | Includes 1,437,500 shares of common stock held by Ignyte Sponsor LLC, our sponsor, of which David Rosenberg and David J. Strupp, Jr. are managing members. Accordingly, all securities held by our sponsor may ultimately be deemed to be beneficially held by Messrs. Rosenberg and Strupp. |
| (3) | Includes 10,000 shares of common stock held by held by David J. Strupp, Jr. which form part of 10,000 of our units. |
| (4) | Does not include any securities held by Ignyte Sponsor LLC, of which each person is a member. Each such person disclaims beneficial ownership of the reported shares other than to the extent of his ultimate pecuniary interest therein. |
Our executive officers and Sponsor are our “promoters,” as that term is defined under the federal securities laws.
| 51 |
Equity Compensation Plans
As of December 31, 2020, we had no compensation plans (including individual compensation arrangements) under which equity securities of the registrant were authorized for issuance.
Item 13. Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence.
Item 14. Principal Accountant Fees and Services.
The following is a summary of fees paid or to be paid to Marcum LLP, or Marcum, for services rendered.
Audit Fees. Audit fees consist of fees billed for professional services rendered for the audit of our year-end financial statements and services that are normally provided by Marcum in connection with regulatory filings. The aggregate fees billed by Marcum for professional services rendered for the audit of our annual financial statements and other required filings with the SEC for the period from August 6, 2020 (inception) through December 31, 2020 totaled $15,450. The above amounts include interim procedures and audit fees, as well as attendance at audit committee meetings.
Audit-Related Fees. Audit-related services consist of fees billed for assurance and related services that are reasonably related to performance of the audit or review of our financial statements and are not reported under “Audit Fees.” These services include attest services that are not required by statute or regulation and consultations concerning financial accounting and reporting standards. We did not pay Marcum for consultations concerning financial accounting and reporting standards during the period from August 6, 2020 (inception) through December 31, 2020.
Tax Fees. We did not pay Marcum for tax planning and tax advice for the period from August 6, 2020 (inception) through December 31, 2020.
All Other Fees. We did not pay Marcum for other services for the period from August 6, 2020 (inception) through December 31, 2020.
Pre-Approval Policy
Our audit committee was formed upon the consummation of our initial public offering. As a result, the audit committee did not pre-approve all of the foregoing services, although any services rendered prior to the formation of our audit committee were approved by our board of directors. Since the formation of our audit committee, and on a going-forward basis, the audit committee has and will pre-approve all auditing services and permitted non-audit services to be performed for us by our auditors, including the fees and terms thereof (subject to the de minimis exceptions for non-audit services described in the Exchange Act which are approved by the audit committee prior to the completion of the audit).
| 52 |
Item 15. Exhibits, Financial Statement Schedules.
| (a) | The following documents are filed as part of this report: |
| (1) | Financial Statements |
| (2) | Financial Statements Schedule |
All financial statement schedules are omitted because they are not applicable or the amounts are immaterial and not required, or the required information is presented in the financial statements and notes thereto in is Item 15 of Part IV below.
| (3) | Exhibits |
We hereby file as part of this report the exhibits listed in the attached Exhibit Index. Copies of such material can be obtained on the SEC website at www.sec.gov.
Not applicable.
| 53 |
EXHIBIT INDEX
| * | Filed herewith |
| ** | Furnished herewith |
| (1) | Incorporated by reference to the Company’s Form 8-K, filed with the Commission on February 1, 2021. |
| (2) | Incorporated by reference to the Company’s Form S-1, filed with the Commission on January 11, 2021. |
| 54 |
IGNYTE ACQUISITION CORP.
INDEX TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
REPORT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM
To the Shareholders and Board of Directors of
Ignyte Acquisition Corp.
Opinion on the Financial Statements
We have audited the accompanying balance sheet of Ignyte Acquisition Corp. (the “Company”) as of December 31, 2020, the related statements of operations, changes in stockholder’s equity and cash flows for the period from August 6, 2020 (inception) through December 31, 2020, and the related notes (collectively referred to as the “financial statements”). In our opinion, the financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Company as of December 31, 2020, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for the period August 6, 2020 (inception) through December 31, 2020, in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.
Basis for Opinion
These financial statements are the responsibility of the Company’s management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Company’s financial statements based on our audit. We are a public accounting firm registered with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (“PCAOB”) and are required to be independent with respect to the Company in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.
We conducted our audit in accordance with the standards of the. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud. The Company is not required to have, nor were we engaged to perform, an audit of its internal control over financial reporting. As part of our audit we are required to obtain an understanding of internal control over financial reporting but not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the Company’s internal control over financial reporting. Accordingly, we express no such opinion.
Our audit included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to error or fraud, and performing procedures that respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. Our audit also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial statements. We believe that our audit provides a reasonable basis for our opinion.
/s/ Marcum llp
Marcum llp
We have served as the Company’s auditor since 2020.
New York, NY
April 15, 2021
| F-2 |
IGNYTE ACQUISITION CORP.
BALANCE SHEET
DECEMBER 31, 2020
| Assets | ||||
| Current asset - cash | $ | 25,425 | ||
| Deferred offering costs | 81,575 | |||
| Total Assets | $ | 107,000 | ||
| Liabilities and Stockholder’s Equity | ||||
| Current liabilities: | ||||
| Due to related party | $ | 310 | ||
| Promissory note - related party | 80,000 | |||
| Total current liabilities | 80,310 | |||
| Commitments and Contingencies | ||||
| Stockholder’s Equity: | ||||
| Preferred stock, $0.0001 par value; 1,000,000 shares authorized; none issued and outstanding | - | |||
| Common stock, $0.0001 par value; 50,000,000 shares authorized; 1,537,500 shares issued and outstanding(1) | 154 | |||
| Additional paid-in capital | 26,846 | |||
| Accumulated deficit | (310 | ) | ||
| Total Stockholder’s equity | 26,690 | |||
| Total Liabilities and Stockholder’s Equity | $ | 107,000 |
| (1) | Includes up to 187,500 shares subject to forfeiture if the over-allotment option is not exercised in full or in part by the underwriters (see Note 5). On February 2, 2021, the underwriter exercised its over-allotment option in full, hence, the 187,500 Founder Shares are no longer subject to forfeiture since then. |
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.
| F-3 |
IGNYTE ACQUISITION CORP.
FOR THE PERIOD FROM AUGUST 6, 2020 (INCEPTION) THROUGH DECEMBER 31, 2020
| Formation and operating costs | $ | 310 | ||
| Net loss | $ | (310 | ) | |
| Basic and diluted weighted average shares outstanding(1) | 1,350,000 | |||
| Basic and diluted net loss per share | $ | (0.00 | ) |
| (1) | Excludes an aggregate of up to 187,500 shares subject to forfeiture if the over-allotment option is not exercised in full or in part by the underwriters (see Note 5). On February 2, 2021, the underwriter exercised its over-allotment option in full, hence, the 187,500 Founder Shares are no longer subject to forfeiture since then. |
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.
| F-4 |
IGNYTE ACQUISITION CORP.
STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN STOCKHOLDER’S EQUITY
FOR THE PERIOD FROM AUGUST 6, 2020 (INCEPTION) THROUGH DECEMBER 31, 2020
| Additional | Total | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Common Stocks | Paid-in | Accumulated | Stockholder’s | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Shares(1) | Amount | Capital | Deficit | Equity | |||||||||||||||||||
| Balance as of August 6, 2020 (inception) | - | $ | - | $ | - | $ | - | $ | - | ||||||||||||||
| Common Stocks issued to Sponsor | 1,437,500 | 144 | 24,856 | - | 25,000 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Issuance of representative shares | 100,000 | 10 | 1,990 | 2,000 | (2) | ||||||||||||||||||
| Net loss | - | - | - | (310 | ) | (310 | ) | ||||||||||||||||
| Balance as of December 31, 2020 | 1,537,500 | $ | 154 | $ | 26,846 | $ | (310 | ) | $ | 26,690 | |||||||||||||
| (1) | Includes 187,500 shares subject to forfeiture if the over-allotment option is not exercised in full or in part by the underwriters (see Note 5). On February 2, 2021, the underwriter exercised its over-allotment option in full, hence, the 187,500 Founder Shares are no longer subject to forfeiture since then. |
| (2) | In August, 2020 the Company issued 100,000 representative shares to designees of EarlyBirdCapital for nominal consideration (see Note 7). |
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.
| F-5 |
IGNYTE ACQUISITION CORP.
FOR THE PERIOD FROM AUGUST 6, 2020 (INCEPTION) THROUGH DECEMBER 31, 2020
| Cash Flows from Operating Activities: | ||||
| Net loss | $ | (310 | ) | |
| Formation costs paid by related party | 310 | |||
| Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash used in operating activities: | ||||
| Net cash used in operating activities | - | |||
| Cash Flows from Financing Activities: | ||||
| Proceeds from issuance of promissory note to related party | 80,000 | |||
| Payment of deferred offering costs | (54,575 | ) | ||
| Net cash provided by financing activities | 25,425 | |||
| Net change in cash | 25,425 | |||
| Cash, August 6, 2020 (inception) | - | |||
| Cash, end of the period | $ | 25,425 | ||
| Supplemental disclosure of cash flow information: | ||||
| Deferred offering costs paid by Sponsors in exchange for issuance of Common Stocks | $ | 25,000 | ||
|
Fair value of representative shares included in deferred offering costs |
$ | 2,000 |
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.
| F-6 |
IGNYTE ACQUISITION CORP.
Note 1 - Organization, Business Operation and Going Concern
Ignyte Acquisition Corp. (the “Company”) is a newly organized blank check company incorporated as a Delaware corporation on August 6, 2020. The Company was incorporated for the purpose of effecting a merger, stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or other similar business combination with one or more businesses (the “Business Combination”).
The Company is an early stage and emerging growth company and, as such, the Company is subject to all of the risks associated with early stage and emerging growth companies.
As of February 1, 2021, the Company had not commenced any operations. All activity for the period from August 6, 2020 (inception) through February 1, 2021 relates to the Company’s formation and the initial public offering (“IPO”), 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 on cash and cash equivalents from the proceeds derived from the IPO. The Company has selected December 31 as its fiscal year end.
The Company’s sponsor is Ignyte Sponsor LLC (the “Sponsor”), a Delaware limited liability company (the “Sponsor”).
The registration statement for the Company’s IPO was declared effective on January 27, 2021 (the “Effective Date”). On February 1, 2021, the Company consummated the IPO of 5,000,000 units (the “Units” and, with respect to the shares of common stock included in the Units being offered, the “Public Shares”), at $10.00 per Unit, generating gross proceeds of $50,000,000, which is discussed in Note 3.
Simultaneously with the closing of the IPO, the Company consummated the sale of 2,350,000 Private Placement Warrants (the “Private Placement Warrants”) at a price of $1.00 per Private Placement Warrant in a private placement to the Sponsor, generating total gross proceeds of $2,350,000.
On February 2, 2021, the underwriters purchased an additional 750,000 Units to exercise its over-allotment option in full at a purchase price of $10.00 per Unit, generating gross proceeds of $7,500,000. Simultaneously with the closing of the fully exercise of the over-allotment option, the Company completed the private sale of an aggregate of 150,000 Private Placement Warrants to the Sponsor, at a purchase price of $1.00 per Private Placement Warrant, generating gross proceeds of $150,000. A total of $7,500,000 was placed in the Trust Account after the payment of $150,000 underwriting discount.
Transaction costs amounted to $1,547,486 consisting of $1,150,000 of underwriting discount and $397,486 of other offering costs.
Following the closing of the IPO and the sale of over-allotment units, an aggregate of $57,500,000 ($10.00 per Unit) from the net proceeds and the sale of the Private Placement Warrants was held in a Trust Account (“Trust Account”), and will invest only in U.S. government securities, within the meaning set forth in 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. Except with respect to interest earned on the funds held in the Trust Account that may be released to the Company to pay income tax obligations, the proceeds from the IPO will not be released from the Trust Account until the earlier of the completion of a Business Combination or the Company’s redemption of 100% of the outstanding Public Shares if it has not completed a Business Combination in the required time period The proceeds held in the Trust Account may be used as consideration to pay the sellers of a target business with which the Company completes a Business Combination. Any amounts not paid as consideration to the sellers of the target business may be used to finance operations of the target business.
| F-7 |
In connection with any proposed Business Combination, the Company will either (1) seek stockholders approval of the initial Business Combination at a meeting called for such purpose at which stockholders may seek to convert their shares, regardless of whether they vote for or against the proposed Business Combination or don’t vote at all, into their pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the Trust Account (net of taxes payable), or (2) provide its stockholders with the opportunity to sell their shares to the Company by means of a tender offer (and thereby avoid the need for a stockholder vote) for an amount equal to their pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the Trust Account (net of taxes payable), in each case subject to the limitations described herein. The decision as to whether the Company will seek stockholder approval of a proposed Business Combination or will allow stockholders to sell their shares to the Company in a tender offer will be made by the Company, solely in its discretion.
The shares of Common Stock subject to redemption will be recorded at a redemption value and classified as temporary equity upon the completion of the IPO, in accordance with Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) Topic 480 “Distinguishing Liabilities from Equity.” 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, if the Company seeks stockholder approval, a majority of the issued and outstanding shares voted are voted in favor of the Business Combination.
The Company will have 21 months from the closing of the IPO to complete the initial Business Combination (the “Combination Period”). However, if the Company is unable to complete the initial Business Combination within the Combination Period, the Company will (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up, (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than ten business days thereafter, redeem 100% of the outstanding 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 but net of taxes payable ( and less up to $50,000 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 liquidation 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, liquidate and dissolve, subject (in the case of (ii) and (iii) above) to the Company’s obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law.
The Sponsor, officers and directors have agreed (i) to vote any shares owned by them in favor of any proposed Business Combination, (ii) not to convert any shares in connection with a stockholder vote to approve a proposed initial Business Combination or sell any shares to the Company in a tender offer in connection with a proposed initial Business Combination, (iii) that the founders’ shares will not participate in any liquidating distributions from the Company’s Trust Account upon winding up if a Business Combination is not consummated.
The Sponsor has agreed that it will be liable to ensure that the proceeds in the Trust Account are not reduced below $10.00 per share by the claims of target businesses or claims of vendors or other entities that are owed money by the Company for services rendered or contracted for or products sold to the Company. The agreement entered into by the Sponsor specifically provides for two exceptions to the indemnity it has given: it will have no liability (1) as to any claimed amounts owed to a target business or vendor or other entity who has executed an agreement with the Company waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind they may have in or to any monies held in the Trust Account, or (2) as to any claims for indemnification by the underwriters of the IPO against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. However, the Company has not asked its Sponsor to reserve for such indemnification obligations, nor has it independently verified whether the Sponsor has sufficient funds to satisfy its indemnity obligations and believe that the Sponsor’s only assets are securities of the Company. Therefore, the Company believes it is unlikely that the Sponsor will be able to satisfy its indemnification obligations if it is required to do so.
| F-8 |
Liquidity
As of December 31, 2020, the Company had cash of $25,425 and a working capital deficit of $54,885 (excluding deferred offering costs). The Company has incurred and expects to continue to incur significant costs in pursuit of its financing and acquisition plans. On February 1, 2021, the Company consummated its IPO and private placement and on February 2, 2021 the underwriters exercised their over-allotment option which generated gross proceeds of $59,850,000. Following the closing of the IPO, including the over-allotment, and the private placement, after deducting IPO transaction cost of $1,547,486, the Company placed $57,500,000 into a trust and had approximately $802,000 held in the Company’s bank account available for working capital needs. As of March 31, 2021, the Company had approximately $582,000 in cash held outside the Trust Account.
Based on the foregoing, management believes that the Company will have sufficient working capital and borrowing capacity to meet its needs through the earlier of the consummation of a business combination or one year from this filing. Over this time period, the Company will be using the funds held outside of the Trust Account for paying existing accounts payable and accrued liabilities, identifying and evaluating prospective initial business combination candidates, performing due diligence on prospective target businesses, paying for travel expenditures, selecting the target business to merge with or acquire, and structuring, negotiating and consummating the business combination.
Risks and Uncertainties
Management is currently evaluating the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the industry and has concluded that while it is reasonably possible that the virus could have a negative effect on the Company’s financial position, results of its operations and/or search for a target company, the specific impact is not readily determinable as of the date of these financial statements. The financial statements do not include any adjustments that might result from the outcome of this uncertainty.
Note 2 - Significant Accounting Policies
Basis of Presentation
The accompanying financial statements are presented in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“US GAAP”) and pursuant to the rules and regulations of the SEC.
Emerging Growth Company Status
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 the 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 auditor 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 US GAAP requires 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 expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates.
Cash and Cash Equivalents
The Company considers all short-term investments with an original maturity of three months or less when purchased to be cash equivalents. The Company did not have any cash equivalents as of December 31, 2020.
| F-9 |
Concentration of Credit Risk
Financial instruments that potentially subject the Company to concentration of credit risk consist of a cash account in a financial institution which, at times may exceed the Federal depository insurance coverage of $250,000. At December 31, 2020, the Company had not experienced losses on this account and management believes the Company is not exposed to significant risks on such account.
Deferred Offering Costs
Deferred offering costs consist of underwriting, legal, accounting and other expenses incurred through the balance sheet date that are directly related to the IPO and that will be charged to stockholders’ equity upon the completion of the IPO. As of February 2, 2021, offering costs in the aggregate of $1,547,486 have been charged to stockholders’ equity (consisting of $1,150,000 of underwriting discount and $397,486 of other offering costs).
Net Loss Per Share
Net loss per share is computed by dividing net loss by the weighted average number of Common Stocks outstanding during the period, excluding Common Stocks subject to forfeiture by the Sponsor. Weighted average shares were reduced for the effect of an aggregate of 187,500 shares of Common Stock that are subject to forfeiture if the over-allotment option is not exercised by the underwriters (see Note 5). At December 31, 2020, the Company did not have any dilutive securities and other contracts that could, potentially, be exercised or converted into Common Stocks and then share in the earnings of the Company. As a result, diluted loss per share is the same as basic loss per share for the period presented.
Fair Value of Financial Instruments
The fair value of the Company’s assets and liabilities approximates the carrying amounts represented in the accompanying balance sheet, primarily due to their short-term nature.
Derivative Financial Instruments
The Company evaluates its financial instruments to determine if such instruments are derivatives or contain features that qualify as embedded derivatives in accordance with ASC Topic 815, “Derivatives and Hedging”. For derivative financial instruments that are accounted for as liabilities, the derivative instrument is initially recorded at its fair value on the grant date and is then re-valued at each reporting date, with changes in the fair value reported in the statements of operations. The classification of derivative instruments, including whether such instruments should be recorded as liabilities or as equity, is evaluated at the end of each reporting period. Derivative liabilities are classified in the balance sheet as current or non-current based on whether or not net-cash settlement or conversion of the instrument could be required within 12 months of the balance sheet date.
FASB ASC 470-20, Debt with Conversion and Other Options addresses the allocation of proceeds from the issuance of convertible debt into its equity and debt components. The Company applies this guidance to allocate IPO proceeds from the Units between common stock and warrants, using the residual method by allocating IPO proceeds first to fair value of the warrants and then common stock.
Income Taxes
The Company accounts for income taxes under ASC 740 Income Taxes (“ASC 740”). ASC 740 requires the recognition of deferred tax assets and liabilities for both the expected impact of differences between the financial statement and tax basis of assets and liabilities and for the expected future tax benefit to be derived from tax loss and tax credit carry forwards. ASC 740 additionally requires a valuation allowance to be established when it is more likely than not that all or a portion of deferred tax assets will not be realized.
ASC 740 also clarifies the accounting for uncertainty in income taxes recognized in an enterprise’s financial statements and prescribes a recognition threshold and measurement process for financial statement recognition and measurement of a tax position 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. ASC 740 also provides guidance on derecognition, classification, interest and penalties, accounting in interim period, disclosure and transition.
The Company recognizes accrued interest and penalties related to unrecognized tax benefits as income tax expense. There were no unrecognized tax benefits and no amounts accrued for interest and penalties as of December 31, 2020. The Company is currently not aware of any issues under review that could result in significant payments, accruals or material deviation from its position.
The Company has identified the United States as its only “major” tax jurisdiction.
The Company may be subject to potential examination by federal and state taxing authorities in the areas of income taxes since inception. These potential examinations may include questioning the timing and amount of deductions, the nexus of income among various tax jurisdictions and compliance with federal and state tax laws. The Company’s management does not expect that the total amount of unrecognized tax benefits will materially change over the next twelve months.
The provision for income taxes was deemed to be immaterial for the period from August 6, 2020 (inception) through December 31, 2020.
Recent Accounting Pronouncements
Management does not believe that any recently issued, but not effective, accounting standards, if currently adopted, would have a material effect on the Company’s financial statements.
| F-10 |
Note 3 – Initial Public Offering
On February 1, 2021, the Company sold 5,000,000 Units, at a purchase price of $10.00 per Unit. Each Unit consists of one share of common stock and one-half of one warrant to purchase one share of common stock (“Public Warrant”). Each whole Public Warrant entitles the holder to purchase one share of common stock at a price of $11.50 per share, subject to adjustment. Only whole warrants are exercisable. No fractional warrants will be issued upon separation of the units and only whole warrants will trade.
The warrants will become exercisable 30 days after the completion of the initial Business Combination, and will expire five years after the completion of the initial Business Combination or earlier upon redemption or liquidation. (see Note 7)
Following the closing of the IPO on February 2, 2021, $287,500,000 ($10.00 per Unit) from the net proceeds of the sale of the Units in the IPO and the sale of the Private Placement Warrants was placed in a Trust Account, which may only be invested in U.S. “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 of Rule 2a-7 promulgated under the Investment Company Act, which invest only in direct U.S. government treasury obligations.
Note 4 - Private Placement
Simultaneously with the closing of the IPO, the Sponsor purchased an aggregate of 2,350,000 Private Placement Warrants at a price of $1.00 per Private Placement Warrant, for an aggregate purchase price of $2,350,000, in a private placement (the “Private Placement”). Each Private Placement Warrant will entitle the holder to purchase one share of common stock at a price of $11.50 per share, subject to adjustment (see Note 7). The proceeds from the Private Placement Warrants was added to the proceeds from the IPO held in the Trust Account. If the Company does not complete a Business Combination within the Combination Period, the proceeds from the sale of the Private Placement Warrants held in the Trust Account 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.
The Private Placement Warrants are identical to the Warrants underlying the Units sold in the IPO, except that the Private Placement Warrants are non-redeemable and may be exercised on a cashless basis, in each case so long as they continue to be held by the initial purchasers or their permitted transferees. Further, the Sponsor has agreed not to transfer, assign, or sell the Private Placement Warrants (including the shares of Common Stock issuable upon the exercise of the Private Placement Warrants), except to certain permitted transferees, until after the consummation of the Company’s initial business combination.
Note 5 - Related Party Transactions
Founder Shares
On August 12, 2020, the Sponsor paid $25,000, or approximately $0.02 per share, to cover certain offering costs in consideration for 1,437,500 shares of Common Stock, par value $0.0001 (the “Founder Shares”). Up to 187,500 Founder Shares are subject to forfeiture by the Sponsor depending on the extent to which the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised. On February 2, 2021, the underwriter exercised its over-allotment option in full, hence, the 187,500 Founder Shares are no longer subject to forfeiture since then.
The founders’ shares were placed into an escrow account maintained in New York, New York by Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, acting as escrow agent. Subject to certain limited exceptions, these shares will not be transferred, assigned, sold or released from escrow (subject to certain limited exceptions set forth below) (i) with respect to 50% of such shares, for a period ending on the earlier of the one-year anniversary of the date of the consummation of the initial Business Combination and the date on which the closing price of the Company’s common stock equals or exceeds $12.50 per share (as adjusted for share splits, share dividends, reorganizations and recapitalizations) for any 20 trading days within a 30-trading day period following the consummation of the initial Business Combination and (ii) with respect to the remaining 50% of such shares, for a period ending on the one-year anniversary of the date of the consummation of the initial Business Combination, or earlier, in either case, if, subsequent to the initial Business Combination, the Company consummates a liquidation, merger, stock exchange or other similar transaction which results in all of the Company’s stockholders having the right to exchange their shares of common stock for cash, securities or other property.
Promissory Note-Related Party
On November 20, 2020, the Company’s executive officers loaned the Company $80,000 to be used for a portion of the expenses of the IPO. These loans are non-interest bearing, unsecured and are due at the earlier of June 30, 2021 or the closing of the IPO. On February 1, 2021, the Company repaid the notes in full.
| F-11 |
Related Party Loans
In order to meet the Company’s working capital needs following the consummation of the IPO the Sponsor, officers, directors, initial stockholders or their affiliates may, but are not obligated to, loan the Company funds (“Working Capital Loans”), from time to time or at any time, in whatever amount they deem reasonable in their sole discretion. Each loan would be evidenced by a promissory note. The notes would either be paid upon consummation of the initial Business Combination, without interest, or, at holder’s discretion, up to $1,500,000 of the notes may be converted into warrants at a price of $1.00 per warrant. The warrants would be identical to the Private Placement Warrants. In the event that the initial Business Combination does not close, the Company may use a portion of the working capital held outside the Trust Account to repay such loaned amounts, but no proceeds from the Trust Account would be used for such repayment. At December 31, 2020, no such Working Capital Loans were outstanding.
Administrative Service Fee
The Company agreed, commencing on the date of the securities of the Company are first listed on The Nasdaq Capital Market (the “Listing Date”), to pay the Sponsor $10,000 per month for office space, utilities and secretarial support. Upon completion of the initial Business Combination or the Company’s liquidation, the Company will cease paying these monthly fees.
Note 6 - Commitments & Contingencies
Registration Rights
The holders of the founders’ shares issued and outstanding on the date of the IPO, as well as the holders of the representative shares, Private Placement Warrants and any warrants the Company’s Sponsor, officers, directors or their affiliates may be issued in payment of Working Capital Loans made to the Company (and all underlying securities), will be entitled to registration rights pursuant to an agreement signed on January 27, 2021. The holders of a majority of these securities are entitled to make up to two demands that the Company registers such securities. The holders of the majority of the founders’ shares can elect to exercise these registration rights at any time commencing three months prior to the date on which these shares of common stock are to be released from escrow. The holders of a majority of the representative shares, Private Placement Warrants and warrants issued to the Company’s Sponsor, officers, directors or their affiliates in payment of Working Capital Loans made to the Company (or underlying securities) can elect to exercise these registration rights at any time after the Company consummates a Business Combination. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary, EarlyBirdCapital may only make a demand on one occasion and only during the five-year period beginning on the Effective Date of the registration statement of which the IPO forms a part. In addition, the holders have certain “piggy-back” registration rights with respect to registration statements filed subsequent to the Company’s consummation of a Business Combination; provided, however, that EarlyBirdCapital may participate in a “piggyback” registration only during the seven-year period beginning on the Effective Date of the registration statement of which the IPO forms a part. The Company will bear the expenses incurred in connection with the filing of any such registration statements.
Underwriters Agreement
The underwriters have a 45-day option beginning February 1, 2021 to purchase up to an additional 750,000 units to cover over-allotments, if any, at the IPO price less the underwriting discounts.
On February 1, 2021, the Company paid a fixed underwriting discount of $1,000,000.
On February 2, 2021, the underwriters purchased an additional 750,000 units to exercise its over-allotment option in full. The proceeds of $7,500,000 from the over-allotment was deposited in the Trust Account after deducting the underwriting discounts.
| F-12 |
Business Combination Marketing Agreement
The Company has engaged underwriters as advisors in connection with business combination to assist in holding meetings with its stockholders to discuss the potential business combination and the target business’s attributes, introduce the Company to potential investors that are interested in purchasing our securities in connection with the potential business combination, assist the Company in obtaining stockholder approval for the business combination and assist with its press releases and public filings in connection with the business combination. The Company will pay the Marketing Fee for such services upon the consummation of our initial business combination in an amount equal to, in the aggregate, 3.5% of the gross proceeds of the IPO, including any proceeds from the full or partial exercise of the over-allotment option.
Right of First Refusal
If the Company determines to pursue any equity, equity-linked, debt or mezzanine financing relating to or in connection with a Business Combination or after a Business Combination, then EarlyBirdCapital shall have the right, but not the obligation, to act as book running manager, placement agent and/or arranger, as the case may be, in any and all such financing or financings and to receive at least 25% of the aggregate gross spread or fees from any and all such financings. This right of first refusal extends from the date of the IPO until the earlier of twelve (12) months after the consummation of an initial Business Combination or the liquidation of the Trust Account if the Company fails to consummate a Business Combination during the required time period.
Note 7 - Stockholder’s Equity
Preferred stock-The Company is authorized to issue 1,000,000 shares of preferred stock with a par value of $0.0001 and 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, 2020, there were no shares of preferred stock issued or outstanding.
Common stock-The Company is authorized to issue 50,000,000 shares of common stock with a par value of $0.0001 per share. At December 31, 2020, there were 1,437,500 shares of common stock issued and outstanding. Of the 1,437,500 shares of common stock, an aggregate of up to 187,500 shares are subject to forfeiture to the Company for no consideration to the extent that the underwriters’ over-allotment option is not exercised in full or in part, so that the initial stockholders will collectively own 20% of the Company’s issued and outstanding common stock after the IPO. On February 2, 2021, the underwriter exercised its over-allotment option in full, hence, the 187,500 Founder Shares are no longer subject to forfeiture since then.
Common stockholders of record are entitled to one vote for each share held on all matters to be voted on by stockholders. In connection with any vote held to approve the initial Business Combination, the initial stockholders, as well as all of the Company’s officers and directors, have agreed to vote their respective shares of common stock owned by them immediately prior to the IPO and any shares purchased in the IPO or following the IPO in the open market in favor of the proposed Business Combination.
Representative’s Common Stock
In August 2020, the Company issued to designees of EarlyBirdCapital the 100,000 representative shares for nominal consideration. The Company estimated the fair value of the stock to be $2,000 based upon the price of the founder shares issued to the Sponsor. The stock was treated as underwriters’ compensation and charged directly to shareholder’s equity. The underwriter (and/or its designees) agreed (i) to waive their conversion rights (or right to participate in any tender offer) with respect to such shares in connection with the completion of our initial business combination and (ii) to waive their rights to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to such shares if we fail to complete our initial business combination within 21 months from the closing of this offering.
Warrants-At December 31, 2020 no warrants were outstanding. Each whole warrant entitles the holder to purchase one share of Common Stock at a price of $11.50 per share, subject to adjustment as discussed herein. The warrants will become exercisable 30 days after the completion of the Company’s initial Business Combination. However, no warrants will be exercisable for cash unless the Company has an effective and current registration statement covering the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants and a current prospectus relating to such shares of common stock. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if a registration statement covering the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of the public warrants is not effective within a specified period following the consummation of the initial Business Combination, warrant holders may, until such time as there is an effective registration statement and during any period when
| F-13 |
the Company shall have failed to maintain an effective registration statement, exercise warrants on a cashless basis pursuant to the exemption provided by Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act, provided that such exemption is available. If that exemption, or another exemption, is not available, holders will not be able to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis. In the event of such cashless exercise, each holder would pay the exercise price by surrendering the warrants for that number of shares of common stock equal to the quotient obtained by dividing (x) the product of the number of shares of common stock underlying the warrants, multiplied by the difference between the exercise price of the warrants and the “fair market value” (defined below) by (y) the fair market value. The “fair market value” for this purpose will mean the average reported last sale price of the shares of common stock for the 5 trading days ending on the trading day prior to the date of exercise. The warrants will expire on the fifth anniversary of the completion of an initial Business Combination, at 5:00 p.m., New York City time, or earlier upon redemption or liquidation.
Redemption of Warrants:
| ● | The Company may call the warrants for redemption (excluding the private warrants and any warrants underlying additional units issued to the Sponsor, initial stockholders, officers, directors or their affiliates in payment of Working Capital Loans made to the Company), in whole and not in part, at a price of $0.01 per warrant, in whole and not in part; |
| ● | at any time after the warrants become exercisable, |
| ● | upon not less than 30 days’ prior written notice of redemption to each warrant holder |
| ● | if, and only if, the reported last sale price of the Common Stock equals or exceeds $18.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations ) for any 20 trading days within a 30-trading day period commencing at any time after the warrants become exercisable and ending on the third business day prior to the notice of redemption to warrant holders: and |
| ● | if, and only if, there is a current registration statement in effect with respect to the shares of common stock underlying such warrants. |
If the Company calls the warrants for redemption as described above, the Company’s management will have the option to require all holders that wish to exercise warrants to do so on a “cashless basis.” In such event, each holder would pay the exercise price by surrendering the warrants for that number of shares of common stock equal to the quotient obtained by dividing (x) the product of the number of shares of common stock underlying the warrants, multiplied by the difference between the exercise price of the warrants and the “fair market value” (defined below) by (y) the fair market value. The “fair market value” for this purpose shall mean the average reported last sale price of the shares of common stock for the 5 trading days ending on the third trading day prior to the date on which the notice of redemption is sent to the holders of warrants.
In addition, if (x) the Company issue additional shares of 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 common stock (with such issue price or effective issue price to be determined in good faith by the Company’s board of directors, and in the case of any such issuance to the Sponsor, initial stockholders or their affiliates, without taking into account any founders’ shares held by them prior to such issuance), (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 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 greater of (i) the Market Value or (ii) the price at which the Company issues the additional shares of common stock or equity-linked securities.
Note 8 - Subsequent Events
On April 12, 2021, the SEC issued a statement with respect to the accounting for warrants issued by special purchase acquisition companies. The Company’s private and public warrants were issued on February 1, 2021. In view of the SEC Staff’s Statement, the Company is currently evaluating whether the fair value of the warrants should be reclassified from “Class A common stock subject to possible redemption” to a warrant liability in the balance sheet as of February 1, 2021, as filed with the SEC on Form 8-K on February 8, 2021. In addition, the Company is evaluating the Registration Statements filed on Form S-1 and the Final Prospectus, filed before the closing of the IPO on February 1, 2021, to determine if the capitalization table and certain other disclosures should have accounted for the effect of the warrants as liabilities. The Company is currently evaluating the materiality of the error and is assessing the possible impact of any error on its balance sheet, included in Form 8-K, in accordance with SEC Staff Accounting Bulletin (SAB) 99 and SAB 108, which is expected to be completed before the filing of the Form 10-Q for the period ended March 31, 2021.
The Company evaluated subsequent events and transactions that occurred after the balance sheet date up to April 15, 2021, the date that the financial statements were issued. Based on this review, other than those described within the notes, the Company did not identify any subsequent events that would have required adjustment or disclosure in the financial statements.
| F-14 |
On April 12, 2021, the SEC issued a statement with respect to the accounting for warrants issued by special purchase acquisition companies. The Company’s private and public warrants were issued on February 1, 2021. In view of the SEC Staff’s Statement, the Company is currently evaluating whether the fair value of the warrants should be reclassified from common stock to a warrant liability in the balance sheet as of February 1, 2021, as filed with the SEC on Form 8-K on February 08, 2021. In addition, the Company is evaluating the Registration Statements filed on Form S-1 and the Final Prospectus, filed before the closing of the IPO on February 1, 2021, to determine if the capitalization table and certain other disclosures should have accounted for the effect of the warrants as liabilities. The Company will evaluate the materiality of any such reclassification and will assess the possible impact on its balance sheet, included in Form 8-K, in accordance with SEC Staff Accounting Bulletin (SAB) 99 and SAB 108, which is expected to be completed before the filing of the Form 10-Q for the period ended March 31, 2021.
| F-15 |
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Act of 1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
| April 15, 2021 | IGNYTE ACQUISITION CORP. | |
| By: | /s/ David Rosenberg | |
| Name: David Rosenberg | ||
| Title: Co-Chief Executive Officer | ||
| (Principal Executive Officer) | ||
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, this report 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/ David Rosenberg | Co-Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board | April 15, 2021 | ||
| David Rosenberg | (Principal Executive Officer) | |||
| /s/ David J. Strupp, Jr. | Co-Chief Executive Officer and Director | April 15, 2021 | ||
| David J. Strupp, Jr. | ||||
| /s/ Steven Kaplan | Chief Financial Officer and Director | April 15, 2021 | ||
| Steven Kaplan | (Principal Financial and Accounting Officer) | |||
| /s/ Richard Rosenstock | Director | April 15, 2021 | ||
| Richard Rosenstock | ||||
| /s/ Cheryl Cohen | Director | April 15, 2021 | ||
| Cheryl Cohen | ||||
| /s/ Charles Wilson | Director | April 15, 2021 | ||
| Charles Wilson, Ph.D. | ||||
| /s/ John Andrew Boockvar | Director | April 15, 2021 | ||
| John Andrew Boockvar, Ph.D. |