Pingtan Marine Enterprise Ltd. - Annual Report: 2018 (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, 2018

Or

☐ TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934

For the transition period from: _____________ to _____________

PINGTAN MARINE ENTERPRISE LTD.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

18-19/F, Zhongshan Building A,

No. 154 Hudong Road

Fuzhou, P.R.C. 350001

(Address of Principal Executive Office) (Zip Code)

(86) 591-8727-1266

(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: 

None

(Title of Class)

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 and posted on its corporate Web site, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted 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 and post such files). ☒ Yes ☐ No

Indicate by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to Item 405 of Regulation S-K (§229.405 of this chapter) is not contained herein, and will not be contained, to the best of registrant’s knowledge, in definitive proxy or information statements incorporated by reference in Part III of this Form 10-K or any amendment to this Form 10-K. ☒

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 the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.

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 is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Act). ☐ Yes ☒ No 

The aggregate market value of the voting and non-voting stock held by non-affiliates of the registrant was approximately $108.7 million on June 30, 2018, the last business day of the registrant’s most recently completed second fiscal quarter.

The number of shares of the registrant’s ordinary shares outstanding as of March 15, 2019 was 79,055,053.

2018 ANNUAL REPORT ON FORM 10-K

TABLE OF CONTENTS

CAUTIONARY STATEMENT FOR PURPOSES OF THE “SAFE HARBOR” STATEMENT UNDER THE PRIVATE SECURITIES LITIGATION REFORM ACT OF 1995

Statements in this report that are not historical facts or information are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words such as “estimate,” “project,” “forecast,” “plan,” “believe,” “may,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “intend,” “planned,” “potential,” “can,” “expectation” and similar expressions, or the negative of those expressions, may identify forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are based on management’s reasonable current assumptions and expectations. Such forward-looking statements involve risks, uncertainties and other factors, which may cause our actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievement to be materially different from any future results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, and there can be no assurance that actual results will not differ materially from management’s expectations. Such factors include, among others, the following:

We undertake no obligation to update any such forward looking statement, except as required by law.

PART I

ITEM 1. BUSINESS

Reference herein to the “Company,” “PME,” “we,” “our” or “us,” means Pingtan Marine Enterprise Ltd and includes its subsidiaries, unless the contest requires otherwise.

Our Business

We are a marine enterprise group primarily engaging in ocean fishing through our operating subsidiary, Fujian Provincial Pingtan County Ocean Fishing Group Co., Ltd., or Pingtan Fishing, which is organized in the People’s Republic of China (“PRC”). We harvest a variety of fish species with many of our owned vessels or licensed vessels for which we have exclusive operating license rights. These vessels are located within the Indian Exclusive Economic Zone (“EEZ”), the Arafura Sea of Indonesia, the international waters of Atlantic and Pacific Oceans and the international waters of Indian Ocean. We provide high quality seafood to a diverse group of customers including distributors, restaurant owners and exporters in the PRC. 

In June 2013, we expanded our fleet from 40 to 86 vessels through a purchase of 46 fishing trawlers. We began operating these vessels in the third quarter of 2013 and have been entitled to net profits from their operation. Each vessel carries a crew of 10 to 15 persons. These vessels have resulted in additional carrying capacity of approximately 45,000 to 50,000 tons of fish.

In September 2013, we further increased our fleet to 106 vessels with the acquisition of 20 newly-built fishing trawlers. These vessels have a run-in period of 3 - 6 months, during which each is placed into the sea for testing prior to full operation. At full operation, each vessel is capable of harvesting 900 to 1,000 tons of fish. 

Subsequent to our fleet expansions, in September 2013, the Bureau of Fisheries of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of the People’s Republic of China (“MOA”) issued a notification that it would suspend accepting shipbuilding applications for tuna harvesting vessels, squid harvesting vessels, Pacific saury harvesting vessels, trawlers operating on international waters, seine on international waters, and trawlers operating on the Arafura Sea, Indonesia. We believe the announcement is a positive indicator for long-term stability and balance in China’s fishing industry. 

On December 4, 2013, in connection with the sale of China Dredging Group Co., Ltd (“CDGC” or “China Dredging”) to Fuzhou Honglong Ocean Fishery Co., Ltd (“Hong Long”), an affiliate company majority owned by a close family member of the Company’s CEO, we acquired 20-year operating license rights in connection with the lease of 20 fishing drifters for the appraised fair market value of approximately $216.1 million, whereby we are entitled to 100% of the operations and net profits (losses) from the vessels for the term of the lease. 

In September 2014, we further expanded our fleet to 129 vessels with the addition of 3 newly-built light luring seine vessels. At full operation, each vessel is capable of harvesting 2,000 tons of fish.

In June 2015, we purchased 4 longline fishing vessels and 2 squid jigging vessels for the appraised fair market value of approximately $56.2 million from Hong Long and Fuzhou Yishun Deep-Sea Fishing Co., Ltd. (“Yishun”), which is an affiliate company majority owned by an immediate family member of the Company’s CEO. These vessels are primarily focused on catching tuna and squid.

In March 2017, we purchased from Hong Long 1 refrigerated transport vessel and 4 squid jigging vessels for the appraised fair market value of approximately $38.5 million. Of those vessels, 2 finished renovation in October 2017, the Company obtained the ownership certificates of those 2 vessels and deployed them to international waters. At present, the Company has not obtained the ownership of the remaining 3 vessels but is entitled to 100% of the operations and net profits (losses) from the vessels.

In October 2016, we deployed 13 vessels, which were granted fishing licenses by the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste (“MAF”), to operate in the Indo-Pacific waters of the country. These fishing licenses were valid for one year. The vessels were purchased from Hong Long in June 2013. In September 2017, we were informed that the fishing licenses of the 13 vessels were suspended and the vessels were docked in the port by the MAF. The MAF alleged and investigated whether false statements were made during the licensing process and the vessels were simultaneously registered in Indonesia. We disputed these allegations and the government of Timor-Leste eventually agreed to release these vessels as no evidence was presented to support such allegations. The 13 vessels have returned to China for regular maintenance. 

In December 2017, we deployed 2 squid jigging vessels to the international waters of the South-West Atlantic Ocean.

On April 2, 2018, 27 vessels received approval from the MOA to operate in the international waters of the Indian Ocean. After the modification and rebuilding project, 19 of the 27 new fishing vessels have been deployed to sea in November and December 2018, and the remaining 8 new fishing vessels will be gradually placed into the international waters of the Indian Ocean.

In October 2018, we purchased 1 refrigerated transport vessel, which started the modification and rebuilding project. We expect the modification and rebuilding project to be completed in June 2019, and the transport vessel will be deployed to international waters of the Indian Ocean in support of the 27 new fishing vessels.

As of December 31, 2018, we own 66 trawlers, 18 squid jigging vessels, 13 drifters, 10 light luring seine vessels and 4 longline fishing vessels, have exclusive operating license rights to 20 drifters, and we also have 8 squid jigging vessels and 2 transport vessels which are in the modification and rebuilding project. The 8 squid vessels completed the modification and rebuilding project and are deployed to the international waters of the Indian Ocean in March 2019. We are the second largest China-based fishery company operating its vessels outside of China waters and our fleet has an average remaining useful life of approximately 14.6 years. All of our vessels are approved by the MOA and, to the extent required, licensed by foreign fishing territories where they operate, subject to any foreign government’s moratorium or any suspensions or revocations that apply to the vessels or local entities, as described below. 

Among the 141 vessels, 12 are located in the Bay of Bengal in India; 29 are located in international waters; and 13 have returned to China from the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste due to the reason described above; and 10 vessels are in the modification and rebuilding project. The remaining 77 vessels were licensed by the MOA to operate in the Arafura Sea in Indonesia. The vessels in Indonesian waters, however, are not in operation because the licenses are currently inactive due to either the moratorium discussed below, the revocation of the fishery business license of the local entity through which the vessels operate, or, with respect to 4 vessels, the revocation of the local fishing licenses.

We catch nearly 50 different species of fish including ribbon fish, croaker fish, Peru squid, Argentina squid, sailfish and chub mackerel. All of our catch is shipped back to China. We arrange chartered transportation ships to deliver frozen stocks to cold storage warehouses located in one of China’s largest seafood trading centers, Mawei Seafood Market in Fujian Province. 

We derive our revenue primarily from the sale of frozen seafood products. We sell our products directly to customers including distributors, restaurant owners and exporters. Most of our customers have long-term, cooperative relationships with us. Our existing customers also introduce new customers to us from time to time. In July 2017, we entered into an exclusive strategic cooperation agreement to sell our fish products directly to consumers online. Our operating results are subject to seasonal variations. Harvest volume is the highest in the fourth quarter of the year while harvest volumes in the second and third quarters are relatively low due to the spawn season of certain fish species, including ribbon fish, cuttlefish, pomfret, and squid. Based on past experiences, demand for seafood products is the highest from December to January, during Chinese New Year. We believe that our profitability and growth are dependent on the termination of the Indonesian moratorium discussed below or the redeployment of our vessels from Indonesian waters to other locations, our ability, and those with which we conduct business, to maintain effective licenses with local departments of fisheries, such as Indonesia and Timor-Leste, and our ability to expand our customer base. 

Government Permits and Approvals

We are required to go through a series of procedures to obtain all approvals necessary to fish in the designated fishing areas.

Step one: Obtaining Vessel Building Permits

First, we have to file a vessel building application to the relevant governmental authorities in Fujian to obtain the Fishing Vessel and Net Tools Building Permits. Governmental authorities in Fujian verify Pingtan Fishing’s qualifications for pelagic fishing and pass on the verified and approved application documents to affiliates of the Ministry of Agriculture for further confirmation. Once confirmed, the certificates are issued to Pingtan Fishing.

Step two: Vessels Building and Inspection

After obtaining the Fishing Vessel and Net Tools Building Permits, we start building the new vessels through contracting with third party vessel manufacturers. During the period of construction, inspection of the vessels is performed several times by the relevant governmental authorities. Once the construction is completed, a Vessel Inspection Certificate is issued, after which we can apply for certificates of ownership and certificates of nationality for new vessels.

Step three: Fishing Project Application

Each vessel is required to be licensed by the MOA and, to the extent required, the vessel may also be required to obtain a license from the local government where the vessel conducts fishing operations. For example, in order to conduct fishing operations in the Exclusive Economic Zone of other countries, foreign fishing vessels need to obtain the approval from each of the local Departments of Fisheries of those other countries. After obtaining all certificates in step two, we file applications to the relevant governmental authorities to obtain approvals for pelagic fishing projects in the specified fishing areas. Meanwhile, we start the application process for obtaining fishing permits from the relevant governmental authorities in the applicable fishing destination countries. In some countries, the Company may be required to obtain licenses through local entities, which are required to also possess a fishery business license. For example, in Indonesia, the Company conducts its fishing operations through PT. Avona Mina Lestari (“PT Avona”) and PT. Dwikarya Reksa Abadi (“PT Dwikarya”), which are locally-owned entities. Immediate family of Xinrong Zhuo, our Chairman and CEO, manage or have an ownership interest in PT. Avona and PT Dwikarya.

Step four: Preparations Before Departure

Once the approval for pelagic fishing projects is issued, we can complete all relevant departure procedures within six months from the time the notification of approval is issued. Departure procedures include obtaining visas for fishing vessels and crew members, submitting required certificates to the PRC customs in Fujian, and obtaining other relevant documents from governmental authorities, such as Vessel Departure Certificates.

Step five: Fishing Project Approval and Departure to Fishing Areas

After we have submitted all required documents to the relevant governmental authorities and completed all procedures required for departure, we receive confirmation of pelagic fishing project approval from affiliates of the Ministry of Agriculture. Once we obtain such confirmation, our vessels can departure to the applicable fishing destination country. Fish caught at the destination may then be shipped back and be declared at the PRC customs.

In early December 2014, the Indonesian government introduced a six-month moratorium on issuing new fishing licenses and renewals so that the country’s Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries (“MMAF”) could combat illegal fishing and rectify ocean fishing order. In February 2015, we ceased all fishing operations in Indonesia. During the moratorium, we were informed that fishing licenses of four vessels operated through PT Avona, one of the local companies through which we conduct business in Indonesia, and the fishery business license of PT Dwikarya, the other local company through which we conduct business in Indonesia, were revoked. As a result and because license renewal was prohibited due to the general moratorium, all local fishing licenses of the Company’s vessels in Indonesia are presently inactive. The MMAF has not yet restored license issuing or renewal process for vessels built abroad. As the MMAF has not implemented new fishing policies and resumed the license renewal process, we do not know when exactly licensing and renewal will start. We have been paying close attention to any new trends in fishing policy and have been actively exploring new locations to deploy our vessels, such as EEZ of Southeast Asian countries. Since we derived a majority of our revenue from this area, this ban has caused a significant drop in our production.

In September 2017, we were informed that the fishing licenses of the 13 vessels were suspended and the vessels were docked in the port by the MAF Timor-Leste. The MAF alleged and investigated whether false statements were made during the licensing process and the vessels were simultaneously registered in Indonesia. We disputed these allegations and the government of Timor-Leste eventually agreed to release these vessels as no evidence was presented to support such allegations. The 13 vessels have returned to China for regular maintenance. 

Operations

Harvesting Operations

The fishing vessels can carry up to one-month of supplies. The captains of the vessels utilize sophisticated technology to identify, among other things, fishing areas, time to cast and draw in the nets, vessel speed and sailing direction allowing the vessels to optimize the catch and resource value. Nearby fishing groups share real-time fishing information through wireless radio equipment. The catch is separated based on species and sizes, and is frozen immediately.

Once the storage of a fishing vessel is at capacity, the catch would be shipped to our cold storage located in Mawei. The vessels return to the fishing base and transfer the catch to transportation vessels docked at the fishing base port. We have entered into a contract with PT. Avona, which operates a fishing base owned or managed by immediate family of Mr. Xinrong Zhuo, our founder and chairman, to obtain access to the base and secure certain services including custom declaration and fishing permits registrations. We also use the fishing base to repair our vessels, if necessary.

Transportation

Transportation vessels are responsible for the shipment of fishing supplies and fish between the fishing areas and China. Pingtan Fishing ships its goods by contracting with two affiliate marine transportation firms, four third party transportation firms and one transportation vessel owned by the Company. The transportation cycle typically takes no more than 30 days, depending mainly on the fishing seasons.

Seasonality

In most waters where our vessels operate, autumn and winter are the seasons when harvest is most productive and summer is relatively a low season. In addition, our annual catches are affected by a number of unpredictable factors, such as weather patterns and fish migration, which are likely to vary from year to year.

Cold Storage

Fish are stored separately according to different species and sizes for best practices of cold storage management, goods selectivity and delivery. When Pingtan Fishing unloads the fish, it places the fish on a wood pallet according to fishing vessel number, species and size. The cold storage administrator counts the number of bags on each pallet and weighs each pallet to record the weight. Pallets with bags of fish are then placed in specified positions within the cold storage facilities.

We have secured several cold storages located in one of China’s largest seafood trading center, MaWei seafood market. The monthly rent for Fuxin cold storage is RMB70 (US$10) per square meter and the leases are renewable annually. The following table sets forth information regarding the cold storages we currently rent as of December 31, 2018:

Sales, Marketing and Distribution

We market, sell and distribute products all over China, including the Fujian, Guangdong and Shandong provinces. Ribbon fish, croaker fish and squid were the main types of seafood sold for the year ended December 31, 2018, representing 62.5% of the sales.

We have established long-term relationships with a number of customers, who send purchasing representatives to our cold storage facilities to select goods to purchase. The customer indicates the type, size and quantity as well as price and delivery schedules before the fish is moved into our cold storage facilities. Handling and transportation fees are borne by the customer when the goods are delivered. The proportion of these sales depends on the season and the nature of the catch including species, size and quality. During 2018, we entered into an arrangement to sell our fish products directly to consumers online. Remaining products are sold out of cold storage within three months of landing.

As of December 31, 2018, we sold our fish to over 80 distributors and retailers by acting as a wholesaler. We serve a wide customer base and three customers accounted for more than 10% of our sales for the year ended December 31, 2018.

Vessels

As of December 31, 2018, we own 66 trawlers, 18 squid jigging vessels, 13 drifters, 10 light luring seine vessels and 4 longline fishing vessels, have exclusive operating license rights to 20 drifters, and we also have 8 squid jigging vessels and 2 transport vessels which are in the modification and rebuilding project. The 8 squid vessels completed the modification and rebuilding project and are deployed to the international waters of the Indian Ocean in March 2019. We are the second largest China-based fishery company operating its vessels outside of China waters and our fleet has an average remaining useful life of approximately 14.6 years.

Among the 141 vessels, 12 are located in the Bay of Bengal in India; 29 are located in international waters; and 13 have returned to China from the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste due to the reason described above; and 10 vessels are in the modification and rebuilding project. The remaining 77 vessels were licensed by the MOA to operate in the Arafura Sea in Indonesia. The vessels in Indonesian waters, however, are not in operation because the licenses are currently inactive due to either the moratorium discussed below, the revocation of the fishery business license of the local entity through which the vessels operate, or, with respect to 4 vessels, the revocation of the local fishing licenses.

Single trawling vessels drag pocket-shaped nets and therefore force the fish into the nets. The trawl net on a trawling vessel is drawn by a winch on the deck of the vessel. Fish are sorted and stored in the cold storage on board the vessel. Single trawling vessels can catch species living in the upper layer of water. It has the advantage of catching multiple species of fish, which leads to a varied catch. Single trawling vessels are the majority of fishing vessels we currently use. As of December 31, 2018, we own 66 trawling vessels. 12 of the trawling vessels are currently operating in Indian waters.

Drifter vessels, as known as drifter netter vessels, have a gill net that is tied to the drift netter floats with weights attached to the net to keep it vertical, so that fish crossing the path of a drift net gets caught in it. Operations are generally carried out at night and the position of gill nets can be adjusted according to the water depth in which the fish move at any time. Drifter netter vessels are mainly used to catch dispersed fish or fish swimming in the upper layer of water. We own 13 drifters and had operating license rights to 20 drifters as of December 31, 2018.

Squid jigging vessels have overhead lights which illuminate the water and attract squid, which then gather in the shaded area under the boat. The squid are caught using barbless lures on monofilament fishing lines which are jigged up and down in the water by machines. We own 18 squid jigging vessels in operation and 8 squid jigging vessels in the modification and rebuilding project as of December 31, 2018.

Longline fishing vessel is the type of vessel which uses a long line, called the main line, with baited hooks attached at intervals by means of branch lines called snoods (or ganglions). Hundreds or even thousands of baited hooks can hang from a single line to catch fish species. We own 4 longline fishing vessels as of December 31, 2018.

Light luring seine is a method of fishing that employs lights to lure fish into a fishing net called “seine” that hangs vertically in the water with its bottom edge held down by weights and its top edge buoyed by floats. We own 10 light luring seine vessels as of December 31, 2018.

Business Strategy

We are committed to developing our business to become a global, integrated seafood company. We plan to enlarge our fishing fleet in the next few years through organic growth and acquisition opportunities of potential targets, domestically and abroad.

We are actively seeking opportunities to expand to other fishing grounds worldwide including North America, South America and the High Sea, which will further diversify the fish types we harvest as well as decrease our dependence on Indonesia. We are also planning to extend to fish processing business. If we operate fish processing plants, our goal is to market processed food products throughout China and in international markets while achieving forward integration of the industrial chain.

Based on the continuing moratorium in Indonesia, we have been seeking opportunities to deploy the vessels located in Indonesian waters to new fishing locations. In November 2018, we submitted to the MOA an application for the deployment of 24 fishing vessels to international waters to conduct fishing operations. As of December 31, 2018, the final documented approval was not received.

Competition

We engage in the fishing business in the Indian Exclusive Economic Zone, the international waters of Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, the international waters of Indian Ocean and the Arafura Sea of Indonesia. We believe that competition within our designated fishing areas is not significant, as we believe the region is not currently overfished.

Competition in the consumer market in China is high as fish compete with other sources of protein. We compete with other fishing companies which offer similar and varied products. There is significant demand for fish in the Chinese market. Our catch appeals to a wide segment of consumers because of the low-price points of our products. We have generally been able to sell our catch at market prices.

Employees

As of December 31, 2018, we had 876 employees. The following table sets forth the number of employees by function as of December 31, 2018:

In 2018, we engaged with three third party labor companies to provide crew members service, we pay the hiring costs based on the actual fees incurred on monthly basis. Welfare and benefit payments for such personnel are covered by the company supplying the crew members.

Company History

China Equity Growth Investment Ltd. (“CGEI”) was incorporated in the Cayman Islands as an exempted limited liability company, was incorporated as a blank check company on January 18, 2010 with the purpose of directly or indirectly acquiring, through a merger, share exchange, asset acquisition, plan of arrangement, recapitalization, reorganization or similar business combination, an operating business, or control of such operating business through contractual arrangements, that has its principal business and/or material operations located in the PRC. In connection with its initial business combination, CGEI changed its name to Pingtan Marine Enterprise Ltd. in February 2013.

China Dredging Group Co., Ltd (“CDGC” or “China Dredging”) and Merchant Supreme Co., Ltd (“Merchant Supreme”) are limited liability companies incorporated on April 14, 2010 and June 25, 2012, respectively, in the British Virgin Islands (“BVI”).

China Dredging, through its PRC Variable Interest Entity (“VIE”), Fujian Xinggang Port Service Co., Ltd (“Fujian Service”), provided specialized dredging services exclusively to the PRC marine infrastructure market and is, based on the number and capacity of the dredging vessels it operates, one of the leading independent (not state-owned) providers of such services in the PRC. Since its inception, China Dredging has functioned exclusively as a specialist subcontractor, performing dredging services for other companies licensed to function as general contractors. China Dredging engages in capital dredging (dredging carried out to create a new harbor, berth or waterway or to deepen existing facilities in order to allow larger ships access), maintenance dredging and reclamation dredging projects and primarily sources its projects by subcontracting projects from general contractors.

Merchant Supreme, through its PRC VIE, Fujian Provincial Pingtan County Ocean Fishing Group Co., Ltd. (“Pingtan Fishing”) engages in ocean fishery with its fleet of self- owned vessels and vessels with exclusive operating license rights within Indian EEZ and Arafura Sea of Indonesia. Pingtan Fishing is ranked highly as one of the leading private (not state-owned) supplier and trader of oceanic aquatic products in PRC.

CGEI and CDGC entered into the Merger Agreement dated October 24, 2012, providing for the combination of CGEI and CDGC. Pursuant to the Merger Agreement, CDGC would continue as the surviving company and a wholly-owned subsidiary of CGEI. CGEI also acquired all of the outstanding capital shares and other equity interests of Merchant Supreme as per Share Purchase Agreement dated October 24, 2012. Following the completion of the business combination on February 25, 2013, CDGC and Merchant Supreme became the wholly-owned subsidiaries of the Company (the “Business Combination”). The ordinary shares, par value $0.001 per share were listed on The NASDAQ Capital Market under the symbol “PME”. The merger among CGEI, CDGC and Merchant Supreme has been accounted for as a “reverse merger”. CDGC and Merchant Supreme jointly are deemed the accounting acquirer and consequently, the transaction is treated as recapitalization of CDGC and Merchant Supreme.

On June 19, 2013, the Company entered into a master agreement (“Master Agreement”) with a related party, Hong Long, to acquire 46 fishing vessels with total consideration of $410.1 million. The major shareholder of Hong Long is Fujian Yihai Investment Co., Ltd., which is controlled by Longjie Zhuo, Xinrong Zhuo’s brother. Xinrong Zhuo currently holds about 57.4% of PME. On September 1, 2013, the Company further entered into a Memorandum with Hong Long to clarify the procedure of delivery of such 46 vessels to Pingtan Fishing. Due to additional time required to prepare the vessels for operations, the parties agreed under the Memorandum to deliver the vessels for operation on September 1, 2013. Since June 2013, the Company has had the full right to operate the vessels and is in the process of registering the vessels under the name of the Company’s PRC operating company. Currently, 33 of the 46 vessels are formally registered to the Company. The vessels are in the process of being registered under the name of the Company’s PRC operating company and it will obtain the entire title registration document for the vessels, as required by Chinese laws and regulations according to the terms of the Master Agreement.

In order to place increased focus on fishing business and pursue more effective growth opportunities, we decided to exit and sell the specialized dredging services operated by China Dredging, and we completed the sale of CDGC and its subsidiaries on December 4, 2013.

On February 9, 2015, we terminated our existing VIE agreements, pursuant to an Agreement of Termination dated February 9, 2015, entered into by and among Ms. Honghong Zhuo, Mr. Zhiyan Lin (each a shareholder of Fujian Provincial Pingtan County Ocean Fishing Group Co., Ltd (“Pingtan Fishing”), together the “Pingtan Fishing’s Shareholders”), Pingtan Fishing and Pingtan Guansheng Ocean Fishing Co., Ltd. (“Pingtan Guansheng”). On February 9, 2015, the Pingtan Fishing’s Shareholders transferred 100% of their equity interest in Pingtan Fishing to Fujian Heyue Marine Fishing Development Co., Ltd. (“Fujian Heyue”), pursuant to an Equity Transfer Agreement dated February 9, 2015, entered into by and among the Pingtan Fishing’s Shareholders, Pingtan Fishing and Fujian Heyue. On February 15, 2015, China Agriculture Industry Development Fund Co., Ltd. (“China Agriculture”) invested RMB 400 million (approximately $65 million) into Pingtan Fishing for an 8% equity interest in Pingtan Fishing. After the restructuring transactions described above, Pingtan Fishing and its entities became the 92% equity-owned subsidiaries of our company and our VIE structure was terminated.

The following diagram illustrates our corporate structure as of December 31, 2018:

Available Information

Our website address is www.ptmarine.com. Our Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, Current Reports on Form 8-K, and amendments to reports filed pursuant to Sections 13(a) and 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (“Exchange Act”), are filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). We are subject to the informational requirements of the Exchange Act and file or furnish reports, proxy statements, and other information with the SEC. Such reports and other information filed by the Company with the SEC are available free of charge on our website at ir.ptmarine.com when such reports are available on the SEC’s website. We use our ir.ptmarine.com website as a means of disclosing material non-public information and for complying with our disclosure obligations under Regulation FD. Accordingly, investors should monitor such portions of ir.ptmarine.com, in addition to following SEC filings and public conference calls and webcasts.

The public may read and copy any materials filed by Pingtan Marine with the SEC at the SEC’s Public Reference Room at 100 F Street, NE, Room 1580, Washington, DC 20549. The public may obtain information on the operation of the Public Reference Room by calling the SEC at 1-800-SEC-0330. The SEC maintains an Internet site that contains reports, proxy and information statements and other information regarding issuers that file electronically with the SEC at www.sec.gov.

The contents of the websites referred to above are not incorporated into this filing. Further, our references to the URLs for these websites are intended to be inactive textual references only.

ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS

You should carefully consider each of the following risks associated with an investment in our publicly traded securities and all of the other information in our 2018 Annual Report. Our business may also be adversely affected by risks and uncertainties not presently known to us or that we currently believe to be immaterial. If any of the events contemplated by the following discussion of risks should occur, our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations may suffer.

Risks Relating to Our Business

The Indonesian government’s moratorium on fishing license renewals in 2014 has had and will continue to have a significant negative impact on our results of operations and financial condition.

In early December 2014, the Indonesian government introduced a six-month moratorium on issuing new fishing licenses and renewals so that the country’s MMAF could combat illegal fishing and rectify ocean fishing order. In February 2015, we ceased all fishing operations in Indonesia. During the moratorium, we were informed that fishing licenses of four vessels operated through PT. Avona, one of the local companies through which we conduct business in Indonesia, and the fishery business license of PT. Dwikarya, the other local company through which PME conducts business in Indonesia, were revoked. As a result and because license renewal was prohibited due to the general moratorium, all local fishing licenses of the Company’s vessels in Indonesia are presently inactive. The MMAF has not yet restored license issuing or renewal process for vessels built abroad. As the MMAF has not implemented new fishing policies and resumed the license renewal process, we do not know when exactly licensing and renewal will start. We have been paying close attention to any new trends in fishing policy and have been actively exploring new locations to deploy our vessels, such as EEZ of Southeast Asian countries. Since we derived a majority of our revenue from this area, this ban has caused a significant drop in our production.  

There are risks associated with conducting fishing operations and locating our vessels in foreign waters. Actions taken by government regulators or reports or allegations of illegal activity by us, related parties or those with which we conduct business could have a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations.

More than half of our fishing vessels are currently in the Arafura Sea of Indonesia. In order to conduct our fishing operations in Indonesian waters, we currently depend on two local entities, which are also related party entities of the Company.  In furtherance to the moratorium implemented by the MMAF in December 2014, the MMAF has investigated local ports and foreign vessels to identify non-compliance with Indonesian fishing laws. Actions taken by the MMAF may include fines, imprisonment, confiscating and destruction of vessels and, in some cases, sinking of vessels. Regulators may also suspend or revoke fishing licenses of vessels or ports and detain non-compliant vessels.  Actions taken by the MMAF with respect to our vessels and the ports through which we conduct fishing in Indonesia may affect our operations.  During the moratorium, we were informed that the MMAF, alleging illegal activities, revoked local fishing licenses of four vessels operated through one of our local related companies, PT. Avona, and that the fishery business license of the other local related company, PT. Dwikarya, was revoked. PT Dwikarya has contested the license revocation. As a result of the moratorium and actions taken by the MMAF, the Company’s vessels located in Indonesia currently do not have active local fishing licenses as they were either revoked or have lapsed, since the moratorium prevented renewing of fishing licenses. Furthermore, due to the general fishing moratorium in Indonesia, no local port is currently permitted to obtain licenses for foreign fishing vessels. The Company has not directly contracted with any other locally-licensed entities to conduct operations in Indonesia since the commencement of the moratorium. The MMAF has also coordinated with regulators in East-Timor, which resulted in East-Timor suspending the licenses on, and detaining, 15 vessels alleging that vessels are registered in both East Timor and Indonesia. Registration in more than one country is prohibited. The detainment of the vessels will have a material adverse effect on our operations.

There have also been media reports alleging that our vessels, the ports we use to conduct our fishing operations and related parties have engaged in illegal activities. Allegations of illegal activity by and actions taken by government regulators against our vessels, related parties and companies with which we conduct business may harm our business reputation, materially and adversely affect our results of operations and cause a decrease in our stock price.  If the local ports and entities through which we conduct our fishing operations are unable to renew or obtain new business licenses, or we are unable to enter into arrangements with other ports and entities for our fishing operations or our fishing vessels are unable to renew or obtain new local licenses, our business and results of operations may be materially and adversely affected.  Relocating our vessels to other fishing territories would involve considerable cost. Furthermore, our business and results of operations may be materially adversely affected if we cannot quickly and efficiently re-locate our vessels or if our vessels are unable to catch and produce as much product prior to relocating. Regulations, actions, and activities taken by government regulators may, directly or indirectly, require us to modify our operations and business strategy, which we may be unable to do in a cost-effective manner, and may result in the suspension or even loss of our licenses or authorizations to operate, detaining of our vessels, or the assessment of penalties or fines, which could have a material adverse effect on business and our results of operations.

We depend significantly on our Chief Executive Officer.

We are dependent on the principal members of our management staff, and in particular Xinrong Zhuo, our Chief Executive Officer. While we have entered into a three-year employment agreement with Mr. Zhuo, there are circumstances under the agreement in which Mr. Zhuo may elect to terminate his employment. Even if Mr. Zhuo were to terminate employment in breach of his agreement, we would have little or no practical recourse against Mr. Zhuo under PRC law. Mr. Zhuo may not continue to be employed by us for as long as we require his services. In addition, we rely on members of our senior management team with industry experience for important aspects of our operations, and we believe that losing the services of these executive officers could be detrimental to our operations, because they would be difficult to replace. We do not have key-man life insurance for any of our executive officers or other employees.

We will need additional financing in order to execute our business plan, which may not be available to us.

We will need to obtain additional capital in order to execute our business plan to expand our operations by enlarging the fishing vessel fleet, expanding fishing ground worldwide and extending our business to fishmeal processing. Such additional capital may be raised by issuing securities through various financing transactions or arrangements, including joint ventures of projects, debt financing, equity financing or other means. Additional financing may not be available when needed on commercially reasonable terms or at all. The inability to obtain additional capital may reduce our ability to continue to conduct our business operations as currently contemplated.

Regulation of the fishing industry may have an adverse impact on our business.

For years, the international community has been aware of and concerned with the worldwide problem of depletion of natural fish stocks. In the past, these concerns have resulted in the imposition of quotas that subject individual countries to strict limitations on the amount of fish they are allowed to catch. Environmental groups have been lobbying to have additional limitations on fishing imposed and have even made suggestions that would limit the activities of fish farms. If international organizations or national governments were to impose additional limitations on fishing, this could have a negative impact on our results of operations.

The growth of our business depends on our ability to secure fishing licenses directly or through third parties.

Fishing is a highly regulated industry. Our operations require licenses, permits and in some cases renewals of licenses and permits from various governmental authorities. For example, commercial fishing operations are subject to government license requirements that permit them to make their catch. In Indonesia, the Company conducts its fishing operations through PT. Avona and PT. Dwikarya, which are locally-owned entities and which are required to possess fishery business licenses. During the Indonesian moratorium, the Company was informed that the fishery business license of PT. Dwikarya was revoked. Our ability to obtain, sustain or renew such licenses and permits on acceptable terms is subject to changes in regulations and policies and to the discretion of the applicable governments, among other factors. Our inability to obtain, or a loss or denial of extensions, to any of these licenses or permits could hamper our ability to produce revenues from fishing operations. We operate 20 of our fishing vessels under 20-year exclusive operating license rights from our related party, Hong Long. The fishing licenses for such 20 leased fishing vessels are held in the name of Hong Long and are therefore renewed by Hong Long. If Hong Long for any reason fails to renew such licenses, it may have a negative impact on our business.

We are dependent on affiliates and third parties for our operations.

A large portion of our transportation operations are conducted by our related party, Fuzhou Honglong Ocean Fishery Co., Ltd. If for any reason Hong Long became unable or unwilling to continue to provide services to us, this would likely lead to a temporary interruption in transportation at least until we found another entity that could provide these services. Failure to find a suitable replacement, even on a temporary basis, may have an adverse effect on our results of operations.

Prior to the moratorium, a large portion of our operations were conducted from bases owned by our related parties PT. Avona and PT. Dwykarya. We contract with PT. Avon and PT. Dwykarya for the right to use their respective bases. PT. Avona and PT. Dwikarya also handle certain agency services, including customs applications and fees for the Company. If for any reason PT Avona or PT. Dwykarya became unable or unwilling to continue to provide their services to us, this would likely lead to a temporary interruption in our operations, at least until we found another entity that could provide these services. Failure to find a suitable replacement for PT. Avona or PT. Dwykarya, even on a temporary basis, may have an adverse effect on our results of operations.

We may be adversely affected by fluctuations in raw material prices and selling prices of products.

The products and raw materials we use may experience price volatility caused by events such as market fluctuations, weather conditions or changes in governmental programs. Raw materials consist primarily of bait, including sardines, anchovies, mackerel and other small fish. The market price of these raw materials may also experience significant upward adjustment, if, for instance, there is a material under-supply or over-demand in the market. These prices changes may ultimately result in increases in the selling prices of products, and may, in turn, adversely affect our sales volume, revenue and operating profit.

We may not be able to effectively manage our growth, which may harm our profitability.

Our strategy is to expand our business. If we fail to effectively manage this growth, our financial results could be adversely affected. Growth may place a strain on management systems and resources, including business development capabilities, systems and processes and access to financing sources. As we grow, we must continue to hire, train, supervise and manage new employees. In connection with our fishing business, we may not be able to:

If we are unable to manage growth, our operations and financial results could be adversely affected by inefficiency, which could diminish our profitability.

Our business requires talented personnel who we may not be able to attract and retain.

We depend in large measure on the abilities, expertise, judgment, discretion, integrity and good faith of our management and other personnel in conducting the business of the company. We have a small management team, and the loss of a key individual or inability to attract suitably qualified staff could materially adversely impact the fishing business.

The key personnel of our fishing business are Mr. Dong Wang, general coordinator of the shipping department, Mr. Qing Lin, assistant of the chairman of the board of directors, Mr. Longhao Zhuo, chief supervisor of the sales department and an immediate family member of our Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, who is mainly responsible for wholesale and fresh sea food retail business. Mr. Lin assists the Chairman in dealing with daily operating matters, such as developing business plans and managing and supervising related projects.

Our success depends on the ability of our management and employees to interpret and respond to economic, market and environmental conditions in its operating areas correctly. Further, our key personnel may not continue their association or employment, which and replacement personnel with comparable skills may not be available, which may adversely affect our business.

Our insurance coverage may be inadequate to cover losses that we may incur or to fully replace a significant loss of assets.

Our involvement in the fishing industry may result in liability for pollution, property damage, personal injury or other hazards. Although we believe we have obtained insurance in accordance with PRC industry standards to address such risks, such insurance has limitations on liability and/or deductible amounts that may not be sufficient to cover the full extent of such liabilities or losses. In addition, such risks may not, in all circumstances, be insurable or, in certain circumstances, we may choose not to obtain insurance to protect against specific risks due to the high premiums associated with such insurance or for other reasons. The payment of such uninsured liabilities would reduce the funds available to us. If we suffer a significant event or occurrence that is not fully insured, or if the insurer of such event is not solvent, we could be required to divert funds from capital investment or other uses towards covering any liability or loss for such events.

Earthquakes, tsunamis, adverse weather or oceanic conditions or other calamities may disrupt our operations and could adversely affect sales.

We have cold storages located in MaWei in the Fujian province on the southeast coast of China. Due to the location of our business, it may be at risk of earthquake or other adverse weather or oceanic conditions. This may result in the breakdown of facilities, such as its cold storage facilities, which could lead to deterioration of products with the potential for spoilage. This could also adversely affect the ability to fulfill sales orders and, accordingly, adversely affect profitability. Adverse weather conditions affecting the fishing grounds where our fishing vessels operate, such as storms, cyclones and typhoons, or cataclysmic events such as tsunamis, may also decrease the volume of fish catches or hamper fishing operations. Our operations may also be adversely affected by major climatic disruptions such as El Nino which in the past has caused significant decreases in seafood catches worldwide.

We may be affected by global climate change or by legal, regulatory or market responses to such changes.

The growing political and scientific sentiment is that increased concentrations of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere are influencing global weather patterns. Fresh products, including seafood products, are vulnerable to adverse weather conditions, including windstorms, floods, drought and temperature extremes, which are quite common but difficult to predict and may be influenced by global climate change. Similarly, changing weather patterns, along with the increased frequency or duration of extreme weather conditions, could impact the availability of the fish species we catch.

Concern over climate change, including global warming, has led to legislative and regulatory initiatives directed at limiting greenhouse gas, or GHG, emissions. For example, proposals that would impose mandatory requirements on GHG emissions may be considered by policy makers in the territories in which we operate. Laws enacted that directly or indirectly affect fishing, distribution, packaging, cost of raw materials, fuel, and water could all adversely impact our business and financial results.

A dramatic reduction in fish resources may adversely affect our business.

We are in the business of catching and selling marine catch. Due to over-fishing, the stocks of certain species of fish may be dwindling and to counteract such over-fishing, governments may take action that may be detrimental to our ability to conduct operations. If the solution proffered or imposed by the governments controlling the fishing grounds were to limit the types, quantities and species of fish that we are able to catch, our operations and prospects may be adversely affected.

Changes in the policies of the PRC government impacting the fishing industry may adversely affect our business.

The fishing industry in the PRC is subject to policies implemented by the PRC government. The PRC government may impose restrictions on aspects of our business such as regulations for the management and ownership of vessels. If the raw materials used by us or our products become subject to any form of government control, then depending on the nature and extent of the control and our ability to make corresponding adjustments, we may face a material adverse effect on our business and operating results.

Separately, our business and operating results also could be adversely affected by changes in policies of the Chinese government such as: changes in laws, regulations or the interpretation thereof; confiscatory taxation; restrictions on currency conversion, imports on sources of supplies; or the expropriation or nationalization of private enterprises. Although the Chinese government has been pursuing economic reform policies for approximately two decades to liberalize the economy and introduce free market aspects, the government may not continue to pursue such policies and such policies may be significantly altered, especially in the event of a change in leadership, social or political disruption, or other circumstances affecting China’s political, economic and social life.

We have entered into certain pledge agreements pledging 48 fishing vessels as collateral to secure loans to related parties, Hong Long, Global Deep Ocean and Fuzhou Haifeng Dafu Ocean Fishing Co., Ltd. (Fuzhou Haifeng). The pledge has no beneficial purpose for us and we could lose our fishing vessels if Hong Long were to default on the loans, which could be detrimental for our operations.

In December 2015, we entered into a pledge contract with The Export Import Bank of China pursuant to which we pledged 12 fishing vessels with carrying amounts of approximately $7,600,000, as collateral to secure Hong Long’s $4,200,000 in long-term loans from the financial institution, which are due on November 21, 2021. In December 2018, we entered into another pledge contract with the Fujian Haixia Bank pursuant to which we pledged 14 fishing vessels with carrying amounts of approximately $24,500,000, as collateral to secure Hong Long’s $12,970,000 in long-term loans from the financial institution, which are due on December 13, 2019.

In March, 2018, we entered into a pledge contract with The Export Import Bank of China pursuant to which we pledged 17 fishing vessels with carrying amounts of approximately $10,500,000, as collateral to secure Global Deep Ocean’s $32,400,000 in lone-term loans from the financial institution, which are due on September 21, 2025.

In November, 2018, we entered into a pledge contract with The Rural Commercial Bank pursuant to which we pledged 7 fishing vessels with carrying amounts of approximately $9,840,000, as collateral to secure Fuzhou Haifeng’s $4,400,000 in short-term loans from the financial institution, which are due on November 21, 2019.

Consequently, if Hong Long, Global Deep Ocean, or Fuzhou Haifeng was to default on the loans and we would lose the vessels, it could be detrimental for our operations. As of March 15, 2019, no accrual is established because we have assessed our risk of loss on the default on the loans to be remote.

Risks Relating to Doing Business in the PRC

Certain political and economic considerations relating to PRC could adversely affect us.

The PRC is passing from a planned economy to a market economy. The Chinese government has confirmed that economic development will follow a model of market economy under socialism. While the PRC government has pursued economic reforms since its adoption of the open-door policy in 1978, a large portion of the PRC economy is still operating under five-year plans and annual state plans adopted by the government that set down national economic development goals. Through these plans and other economic measures, such as control on foreign exchange, taxation and restrictions on foreign participation in the domestic market of various industries, the PRC government exerts considerable direct and indirect influence on the economy. Many of the economic reforms are unprecedented or experimental for the PRC government, and are expected to be refined and improved. Other political, economic and social factors can also lead to further readjustment of such reforms. This refining and readjustment process may not necessarily have a positive effect on our operations or our business development. Our operating results may be adversely affected by changes in the PRC’s economic and social conditions as well as by changes in the policies of the PRC government, which we may not be able to foresee, such as changes in laws and regulations (or the official interpretation thereof), measures which may be introduced to control inflation, changes in the rate or method of taxation, and imposition of additional restrictions on currency conversion.

The recent nature and uncertain application of many PRC laws applicable to us create an uncertain environment for business operations and they could have a negative effect on us.

The PRC legal system is a civil law system. Unlike the common law system, such as the legal system used in the United States, the civil law system is based on written statutes in which decided legal cases have little value as precedents. In 1979, the PRC began to promulgate a comprehensive system of laws and has since introduced many laws and regulations to provide general guidance on economic and business practices in the PRC and to regulate foreign investment. Progress has been made in the promulgation of laws and regulations dealing with economic matters such as corporate organization and governance, foreign investment, commerce, taxation and trade. The promulgation of new laws, changes of existing laws and the abrogation of local regulations by national laws could have a negative impact on our, business and prospects. In addition, as these laws, regulations and legal requirements are relatively recent, their interpretation and enforcement involve significant uncertainty.

The political and economic policies of the PRC government could affect our businesses and results of operations.

The economy of the PRC differs from the economies of most developed countries in a number of respects, including the degree of government involvement, control of capital investment, and the overall level of development. Before its adoption of reform and open up policies in 1978, China was primarily a planned economy. In recent years, the PRC government has been reforming the PRC economic system and the government structure. These reforms have resulted in significant economic growth and social progress. Economic reform measures, however, may be adjusted, modified or applied inconsistently from industry to industry or across different regions of the country. As a result, we may not continue to benefit from all, or any, of these measures. In addition, it cannot be predicted whether changes in the PRC’s political, economic and social conditions, laws, regulations and policies will have any adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

The PRC legal system is evolving and has inherent uncertainties regarding interpretation and enforcement of PRC laws and regulations that could limit the legal protections available to you.

Pingtan Fishing, our PRC operating company, is organized under the laws of the PRC. The PRC legal system is based on written statutes. Prior court decisions may be cited for reference but have limited weight as precedents. Since 1979, the PRC government has been developing a comprehensive system of commercial laws and considerable progress has been made in introducing laws and regulations dealing with economic matters such as foreign investment, corporate organization and governance, commerce, taxation and trade. However, because these laws and regulations are relatively new, and because of the limited number and non-binding nature of published cases, the interpretation and enforcement of these laws and regulations involve uncertainties.

Our operations and assets in the PRC are subject to significant political and economic uncertainties.

Changes in PRC laws and regulations, or their interpretation, or the imposition of confiscatory taxation, restrictions on currency conversion, imports and sources of supply, devaluations of currency or the nationalization or other expropriation of private enterprises could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition. The PRC government has been pursuing economic reform policies that encourage private economic activity and greater economic decentralization. The PRC government may continue to pursue these policies, and it may significantly alter these policies from time to time without notice.

The consummation of the acquisition by the Pingtan Fishing share purchase agreement and the reorganization plan carried out by Pingtan Fishing may require prior approval from MOFCOM or the CSRC, which may subject us to sanctions or adversely affect our business, results of operations, reputation and prospects.

On August 8, 2006, six PRC regulatory authorities, including the Ministry of Commerce, or MOFCOM, the State Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, the State Administration for Taxation, the State Administration for Industry and Commerce, the China Securities Regulatory Commission, or the CSRC, and the State Administration of Foreign Exchange, or SAFE, jointly issued the Regulations on Mergers and Acquisitions of Domestic Enterprises by Foreign Investors, which became effective on September 8, 2006 and was amended on June 22, 2009 by the MOFCOM, or the M&A Regulations. The M&A Regulations, among other things, require that the approval from MOFCOM be obtained for acquisitions of affiliated domestic entities by foreign entities established or controlled by domestic natural persons or enterprises, and also require that an offshore special purpose vehicle, or SPV, formed for purposes of overseas listing of equity interests in PRC companies and controlled directly or indirectly by PRC companies or individuals, obtain the approval of the CSRC prior to the listing and trading of such SPV’s securities on an overseas stock exchange. On September 21, 2006, the CSRC published on its official website procedures regarding its approval of overseas listings by SPVs. The CSRC approval procedures require the filing of a number of documents with the CSRC.

The application of the M&A Regulations remains unclear as of the date of this 10-K submission, with no consensus among leading PRC law firms regarding the scope and applicability of the CSRC approval requirement. Pingtan Fishing’s PRC legal counsel advised, based on its understanding of then-current PRC laws, regulations and rules, that the M&A Regulations were not applicable to the consummation of the acquisition pursuant to the Pingtan Fishing share purchase agreement and the reorganization plan carried out by Pingtan Fishing because Merchant Supreme’s founder and controlling shareholder, Mr. Xinrong Zhuo, is not a mainland PRC natural person. However, the relevant PRC government authorities, including MOFCOM and the CSRC, may reach a different conclusion. If it is decided that the prior approval from MOFCOM or the CSRC was required, we may face sanctions by MOFCOM, the CSRC or other PRC regulatory agencies. Consequently, it is possible that MOFCOM, the CSRC or other PRC regulatory agencies may impose fines and penalties on our operations in the PRC, limit such operations, or take other actions that could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, reputation and prospects.

The Circular of Security Review and the Regulations of Security Review provide that any foreign investor should file an application with MOFCOM for the merger and acquisition of domestic enterprises in sensitive sectors or industries. Further, MOFCOM has, for its inner review process, stipulated a range of the business operation items which are required to be reviewed. With reference to such business items, Pingtan Fishing believes that the Regulations of Security Review do not apply to the business operations of Pingtan Fishing. However, the relevant PRC regulatory authorities may have a different view or interpretation in this regard when implementing the Regulations of Security Review. If it is decided that the acquisition pursuant to the Pingtan Fishing share purchase agreement may materially affect the state security of the PRC, we may be ordered to restore the shareholding structure to the status before the consummation of the said acquisition, which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, reputation and prospects.

If SAFE determines that its foreign exchange regulations concerning “round-trip” investment apply to our shareholding structure, a failure by our shareholders or beneficial owners to comply with these regulations may restrict our ability to distribute profits, restrict our overseas and cross-border investment activities or subject us to liability under PRC laws, which may materially and adversely affect our business and prospects.

SAFE Circular No. 75 provides that those domestic individuals who hold a PRC identity card, passport or other legal identity supporting document, or who have no such legal identity in mainland PRC but are habitually residing in PRC for the sake of economic interest, whether they hold a PRC identity supporting document or not, should register with the local SAFE branch prior to their establishment or control of an offshore SPV. In addition, any PRC citizen, resident, or entity which is a direct or indirect shareholder of an SPV is required to update the previously filed registration with the local branch of SAFE, with respect to that SPV, to reflect any material change. Moreover, a PRC subsidiary of an SPV is required to urge its shareholders who are PRC citizens, residents, or entities to update their registration with the local branch of SAFE. If a PRC shareholder with a direct or indirect equity interest in an offshore parent company fails to make the required SAFE registration, the PRC subsidiaries of such offshore parent company may be prohibited from paying the offshore parent proceeds from any reduction in capital, share transfer or liquidation in respect of the PRC subsidiaries. Failure to comply with the SAFE Circular No. 75 could result in liability under PRC law for violation of the relevant rules relating to transfers of foreign exchange.

Our founder and controlling shareholder, Mr. Xinrong Zhuo, obtained his Hong Kong identity card in 2005 and surrendered his PRC identity card subsequently thereto. SAFE Circular No. 75 provides that individuals without PRC identities that habitually reside in mainland China for the sake of economic interest should be considered PRC residents, who are required to register their direct or indirect investments in offshore SPVs with the local branch of SAFE. SAFE Circular No. 75 further provides that individuals who have their permanent domicile in mainland China and have been permanently residing in mainland China after temporary departure should be considered PRC residents, no matter whether they have a PRC identity or not. Although he leaves the PRC from time to time and maintains his Hong Kong identity card, Mr. Xinrong Zhuo has been residing in mainland China for most of the time since the SAFE Circular No. 75 became effective. Accordingly, it is possible that PRC authorities may consider Mr. Zhuo to be PRC resident. As of the date of this 10-K submission, Mr. Zhuo has not made registrations or filings according to SAFE Circular No. 75. Due to uncertainty over how SAFE Circular No. 75 will be interpreted and implemented, we cannot predict how SAFE Circular No. 75 will affect our business operations or future strategies following the business combination. If SAFE Circular No. 75 is determined to apply to us or any of our PRC resident shareholders, none of whom to our knowledge has made registrations or filings according to SAFE Circular No. 75, a failure by any such shareholders or beneficial owners to comply with SAFE Circular No. 75 may subject the relevant shareholders or beneficial owners to penalties under PRC foreign exchange administrative regulations, and may subject us to fines or legal sanctions, restrict our overseas or cross-border investment activities, limit our subsidiaries’ ability to make distributions or pay dividends or affect our ownership structure and capital inflow from the offshore entity, which would have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and liquidity. In addition, we may not be informed of the identities of our beneficial owners and our Chinese resident beneficial owners, if any, may not comply with SAFE Circular No. 75. The failure or inability of our beneficial owners who are PRC citizens, residents or entities to make or amend any required registrations may subject these PRC residents or our PRC subsidiary to fines and legal sanctions, and may also limit our ability to contribute additional capital into our PRC subsidiary and limit our PRC subsidiary’s ability to make distributions or pay dividends to us, as a result of which our business operations and our ability to distribute profits to its shareholders may be materially and adversely affected.

In December 2009, the PRC State Administration for Taxation issued a notice, known as “Circular 698,” addressing PRC income tax issues in connection with transfers of equity by a non-PRC resident enterprise that directly or indirectly holds an interest in a PRC resident enterprise. Circular 698 requires certain tax filings with, and the submission of comprehensive information to, the applicable tax authorities regarding transfers of equity by a non-PRC resident enterprise that directly or indirectly holds an interest in a PRC resident enterprise. The filings and submissions are designed to assist the taxing authorities in evaluating whether the transfer has a reasonable business purpose. If the transfer does not have a reasonable business purpose, Circular 698 provides that the seller is subject to PRC income tax on the gains received from the transfer of the PRC resident enterprise. Although the tax obligations generally apply to the seller, the PRC resident enterprise that is transferred is also subject to certain requirements to assist the PRC tax authorities in collecting the taxes, potentially including withholding agent obligations. Circular 698 is relatively new with limited implementation guidance, and it is uncertain how it will be interpreted, implemented or enforced. For example, there is no clear guidance regarding what constitutes a “reasonable business purpose” or the assistance obligation applicable to the transferred PRC resident enterprise. We cannot predict how Circular 698 will apply to current or future acquisition strategies and business operations. For example, if our affiliated PRC entities are deemed to have been sold through an offshore holding company, we may face comprehensive filing obligations that could result in significant taxes, potential sanctions or other enforcement action, or other adverse considerations, which could have an adverse impact on our ability to consummate such a transaction or expand our business and market share.

We may be classified as a PRC “resident enterprise” under the PRC enterprise income tax law, which could result in unfavorable tax consequences for us and our shareholders and have a material adverse effect on our results of operations.

Under the Enterprise Income Tax Law of the PRC, or the EIT Law, dividends, interests, rent, royalties and gains on transfers of property payable by a foreign-invested enterprise in China to its foreign investor who is a non-resident enterprise will be subject to a 10% withholding tax, unless such non-resident enterprise’s jurisdiction of incorporation has a tax treaty with China that provides for a reduced rate of withholding tax. Under the arrangement for avoidance of double taxation between mainland China and Hong Kong, the effective withholding tax applicable to a Hong Kong non-resident company is 5% if it directly owns no less than a 25% stake in the Chinese foreign-invested enterprise.

Under the EIT Law, an enterprise established outside China with its “de facto management body” within China is considered a “resident enterprise” in China and is subject to the Chinese enterprise income tax at the rate of 25% on its worldwide income. We may be deemed to be a PRC resident enterprise under the EIT Law and be subject to the PRC enterprise income tax at the rate of 25% on its worldwide income. If the Chinese tax authorities determine that we should be classified as a resident enterprise, foreign securities holders will be subject to a 10% withholding tax upon dividends payable by us and subject to income tax upon gains on the sale of securities under the EIT Law.

Due to various restrictions under PRC laws on the distribution of dividends by PRC operating companies or contractual provisions in future debt instruments, we may not be able to pay dividends to our shareholders.

The Wholly-Foreign Owned Enterprise Law (1986), as amended, The Wholly-Foreign Owned Enterprise Law Implementing Rules (1990), as amended, and the Company Law of the PRC (2006) contain the principal regulations governing dividend distributions by Wholly-Foreign Owned Enterprises, or WFOEs. Under these regulations, WFOEs may pay dividends only out of their accumulated profits, if any, determined in accordance with PRC accounting standards and regulations. Additionally, they are required to set aside each year 10% of its net profits, if any, based on PRC accounting standards, to fund a statutory surplus reserve until the accumulated amount of such reserve reaches 50% of their respective registered capital. These reserves are not distributable as cash dividends except in the event of liquidation and cannot be used for working capital purposes. The PRC government also imposes controls on the conversion of RMB into foreign currencies and the remittance of currencies out of the PRC. We may experience difficulties in completing the administrative procedures necessary to obtain and remit foreign currency for the payment of dividends from the profits of our WFOE.

Furthermore, if our subsidiaries in the PRC incur debt on their own in the future, the instruments governing the debt may restrict their ability to pay dividends or make other payments. If we or our subsidiaries are unable to receive all of the economic value from the operations of our PRC subsidiary through contractual or dividend arrangements, we may be unable to pay dividends on our ordinary shares.

Because our principal assets are located outside of the United States and our directors and officers reside outside of the United States, it may be difficult for you to enforce your rights based on the United States federal securities laws against us and our officers and directors in the United States or to enforce foreign judgments or bring original actions in the PRC against us or our management.

All of our officers and directors reside outside of the United States. In addition, our operating subsidiaries are located in the PRC and all of their assets are located outside of the United States. The PRC does not have a treaty with United States providing for the reciprocal recognition and enforcement of judgments of courts. Therefore, it may be difficult for investors in the United States to enforce their legal rights based on the civil liability provisions of the United States federal securities laws against us in the courts of either the United States or the PRC and, even if civil judgments are obtained in courts of the United States, to enforce such judgments in PRC courts.

In addition, since we are incorporated under the laws of the Cayman Islands and our corporate affairs are governed by the laws of the Cayman Islands, it may not be possible for investors to originate actions against us or our directors or officers based upon PRC laws, and it may be difficult, if possible at all, to bring actions based upon Cayman Islands laws in the PRC in the event that you believe that your rights as a shareholder have been infringed.

Our employment practices may be adversely impacted under the labor contract law of the PRC.

The PRC National People’s Congress promulgated the Labor Contract Law, which became effective on January 1, 2008. Compared to previous labor laws, the Labor Contract Law provides stronger protection for employees and imposes more obligations on employers. According to the Labor Contract Law, employers have the obligation to enter into written labor contracts with employees to specify the key terms of the employment relationship. The law also stipulates, among other things, (i) that all written labor contracts shall contain certain requisite terms; (ii) that the length of trial employment periods must be in proportion to the terms of the relevant labor contracts, which in any event may not be longer than six months; (iii) that in certain circumstances, a labor contract is deemed to be without a fixed term and thus an employee can only be terminated with cause; and (iv) that there are certain restrictions on the circumstances under which employers may terminate labor contracts as well as the economic compensations to employees upon termination of the employee’s employment.

In addition, if we decide to significantly change or downsize our workforce, the Labor Contract Law could restrict our ability to terminate employee contracts and adversely affect our ability to make such changes to our work force in a manner that is most favorable to our business or in a timely and cost effective manner, which in turn may materially and adversely affect our financial condition and results of operations. If we are subject to severe penalties or incur significant legal fees in connection with labor law disputes or investigations, our business, financial condition and results of operations may be adversely affected.

Investors will have limited access to corporate records filed with the relevant PRC government authorities by the PRC operating entities.

All our PRC subsidiaries are companies registered in Fujian Province. The PRC State Administration for Industry and Commerce and its local counterparts, or collectively SAIC, is the PRC government authority governing the market supervision and administrative enforcement of various business licensing laws. According to the relevant SAIC regulations, certain corporate records of a company should be filed with SAIC, for example, the annual financial report, shareholder changes, amendments of articles of association, registered capital changes, capital verification reports and equity interest pledge registration. In Fujian Province, an individual can gain access to information filed with SAIC only with the authorization of the company for which such information is filed. Alternatively, access to information can be granted by an order of a PRC people’s court, provided that the individual requesting the information is a party to litigation involving the company in question. Due to such restrictions, investors will have limited access to corporate records filed with the SAIC by our PRC affiliates.

Currency fluctuations and restrictions on currency exchange may adversely affect our business, including limiting our ability to convert Renminbi into foreign currencies and, if Renminbi were to decline in value, reducing our revenue in U.S. dollar terms.

Our reporting currency is the U.S. dollar and our operations in the PRC use their local currency as their functional currencies. Substantially all of our revenue and expenses are in Renminbi. Accordingly, we are subject to the effects of exchange rate fluctuations with respect to any of these currencies. For example, the value of the Renminbi depends to a large extent on PRC government policies and the PRC’s domestic and international economic and political developments, as well as supply and demand in the local market. Since 1994, the official exchange rate for the conversion of Renminbi to the U.S. dollar had generally been stable and the Renminbi had appreciated slightly against the U.S. dollar. However, in July 2005, the PRC government changed its policy of pegging the value of Renminbi to the U.S. dollar. Under the new policy, Renminbi may fluctuate within a narrow and managed band against a basket of certain foreign currencies. As a result of this policy change, Renminbi appreciated more than 20% against the U.S. dollar in the following three years. Since July 2008, however, the Renminbi has traded within a narrow range against the U.S. dollar. As a consequence, the Renminbi has fluctuated significantly since July 2008 against other freely traded currencies, in tandem with the U.S. dollar. On June 19, 2010, the People’s Bank of China, or the PBOC, announced that the PRC government would further reform the Renminbi exchange rate regime and increase the flexibility of the exchange rate. It is difficult to predict how this new policy may impact the Renminbi exchange and the Renminbi may not be stable against the U.S. dollar or any other foreign currency.

The statements of our operations are translated into U.S. dollars at the average exchange rates in each applicable period. To the extent the U.S. dollar strengthens against foreign currencies, the translation of these foreign currency denominated transactions results in reduced revenue, operating expenses and net income for our operations. Similarly, to the extent the U.S. dollar weakens against foreign currencies, the translation of these foreign currency denominated transactions results in increased revenue, operating expenses and net income for our operations. We are exposed, to foreign exchange rate fluctuations in converting the financial statements of foreign subsidiaries into U.S. dollars in consolidation. If there is a change in foreign currency exchange rates, the conversion of the foreign subsidiaries’ financial statements into U.S. dollars will lead to a translation gain or loss which is recorded as a component of other comprehensive income. In addition, if we have, assets or liabilities that are denominated in currencies other than the relevant entity’s functional currency, changes in the functional currency value of these assets and liabilities would create fluctuations that lead to a transaction gain or loss. Although our major operations are conducted overseas, our sales are conducted in the PRC and in RMB, which is our functional currency. The average exchange rate used in translating the results of operations and cash flows for the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017 from RMB to U.S. dollars was 6.6174 and 6.7518, respectively, which represented a 1.99% depreciation from 2017 to 2018 in the value of the RMB against the U.S. dollar. The average exchange rate used in translating the results of operations and cash flows for the years ended December 31, 2017 and 2016 from RMB to U.S. dollars was 6.7518 and 6.6423, respectively, which represented a 1.65% appreciation from 2016 to 2017 in the value of the RMB against the U.S. dollar. We have not entered into agreements or purchased instruments to hedge exchange rate risks, although we may do so in the future. The availability and effectiveness of any hedging transaction may be limited and we may not be able to successfully hedge its exchange rate risks.

Although PRC governmental policies were introduced in 1996 to allow the convertibility of Renminbi into foreign currency for current account items, conversion of Renminbi into foreign exchange for capital items, such as foreign direct investment, loans or securities, requires the approval of SAFE, which is under the authority of the PBOC. These approvals, however, do not guarantee the availability of foreign currency conversion. We may not be able to obtain all required conversion approvals for our operations and PRC regulatory authorities may impose greater restrictions on the convertibility of Renminbi. Because we expect a significant amount of our revenue to continue to be in the form of Renminbi, our inability to obtain the requisite approvals or any future restrictions on currency exchanges could limit our ability to utilize revenue generated in Renminbi to fund our business activities outside of the PRC, or to repay foreign currency obligations, including our debt obligations, which would have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations.

Due to historical defects in its capital contributions of Pingtan Fishing, we may be subject to administrative liability.

The current PRC Companies Law provides that shareholders must make the full amount of capital contribution subscribed to by such shareholder under the articles of association of the company. The form of capital contribution may be currency or non-currency property, such as property, intellectual property rights and land-use rights that can be evaluated in the form of currency and transferred in accordance with the applicable law. Under the PRC Companies Law, the non-currency property to be contributed as capital shall undergo an asset valuation and verification, and shall not be overvalued or undervalued. The property rights of such non-currency property shall be transferred in accordance with legally prescribed procedures. If a company obtains company registration in violation of the PRC Companies Law by making false statement of registered capital, submitting false certificates or by concealing material facts through other fraudulent means, the company shall be ordered to make rectification. In the event false statements regarding registered capital were made, the company shall also be fined no less than five percent but no more than fifteen percent of the amount of registered capital falsely stated. Further, a company submitting false certificates or concealing material facts may be fined no less than RMB50,000 but no more than RMB500,000.

Pingtan Fishing was established in February 1998 with registered capital of RMB10,000,000, by three founders, Fujian Pingtan County Fishing Development Co., Fujian Pingtan County Shengfa Pingtan Fishing Co., Ltd. and Fujian Pingtan County Shunda Fishing Co., Ltd., all of whom made in-kind contributions to Pingtan Fishing. However, no information regarding any specific category of in-kind contribution was disclosed in the registration records of Pingtan Fishing in Pingtan County SAIC. Further, no assessment report or materials regarding the title transfer for such in-kind contributions were disclosed in the registration record.

In September 2002, Fujian Pingtan County State-owned Asset Operation Co., Ltd., or Pingtan State-owned Co., a PRC state-owned enterprise, injected investment of non-currency property, which was half of its land-use right in an area in Pingtan County, at the price of RMB7,000,000 and obtained 70% equity interest in Pingtan Fishing. However, the transfer procedure for such land-use right has not been conducted and the registered capital of Pingtan Fishing was never changed.

The local government authority for company registration has confirmed that since its establishment no information record has been found regarding the violation of the applicable governmental company management laws by Pingtan Fishing. However, due to the lack of certain documents in the registration record of Pingtan Fishing, if the applicable company registration authority determines that Pingtan Fishing has had one or more deficiencies in it historical capital contributions, we may be subject to the fines.

Due to the defect in the state-owned equity interest transfer in Pingtan Fishing’s past, it, and we, may be subject to a determination of invalidity of such equity interest transfer and may be liable for the applicable administrative liability.

According to the Provisional Regulations of Supervision and Administration of State-owned Assets in the Enterprise, promulgated by the State Council on May 27, 2003, and the Provisional Management Measure for the Transfer of the State-owned Equity in an Enterprise, promulgated by State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission and Ministry of Finance on December 31, 2003, or collectively the State-owned Assets Regulations, the State-owned assets supervision and administration authority shall determine the matters of the transfer of its state-owned equity in an enterprise which it has invested. Further, the sale of state-owned equity in a company by a state-owned entity shareholder must be approved by the governmental authority at the same ranking as that of the state-owned entity shareholder, provided that after the transfer the state-owned entity may not hold more than 50% equity interest in such company.

On December 10, 2004, Fujian Yihai Investment Co., Ltd and Chen Cheng obtained all the equity interest in Pingtan Fishing by an equity interest transfer from the former shareholders, or the 2004 Equity Transfer, including Pingtan State-owned Co., and the registered capital of Pingtan Fishing increased to RMB25,000,000. A state-owned asset transfer was involved in the equity interest transfer, as Pingtan State-owned Co. is a state-owned company. According to State-owned Assets Regulations, such equity interest transfer should be determined by the Fuzhou municipal state-owned asset supervising authority and approved by the Fuzhou Municipal Government. However, the applicable approval was not obtained at the time of the 2004 Equity Transfer, which was only approved by Pingtan County Government. According to 1999 PRC Contract Law, a contract shall be null and void under any of the following circumstances: (1) a contract is concluded through the use of fraud or coercion by one party to damage the interests of the state; (2) malicious collusion is conducted to damage the interests of the state, a collective or a third party; (3) an illegitimate purpose is concealed, under the guise of legitimate acts; (4) public interests are damaged; or (5) a violation the compulsory provisions of the laws and administrative regulations. Currently, none of the violations described above have been found with regard to the equity transfer contract for the 2004 Equity Transfer. Given that the 2004 Equity Transfer has been confirmed by Pingtan Government, Pingtan Fishing believes that it is unlikely that the transfer will be determined to be invalid. However, the government authority may reach the different conclusion and we may face an order of rectification, which would be time consuming and our business operations may be adversely affected.

We may be subject to certain penalties due to Pingtan Fishing lacking various PRC certificates or licenses and our business may be affected by the failure to renew some such certificates or licenses.

According to the PRC Fishing Vessels Inspection Regulation promulgated by PRC National Council in June 2003, if a fishing vessel operates without the Inspection Certificate after the applicable inspection process, such vessel may be confiscated by the relevant authority. The owner of a fishing vessel who does not apply for the required operation inspection for such vessel can be ordered to cease operations and apply for inspection within the time limit required by the relevant authority. In the event that a company fails to apply for an annual inspection, as ordered by the relevant authority, the company may be fined between RMB1,000 to RMB10,000 and the Annual Inspection Certificates held by the company may be temporarily suspended.

According to PRC Radio Management Regulations promulgated by the PRC National Council and PRC Centre Military Committee in September 1993, as well as the License of Radio Station Management Regulations promulgated by Ministry of Industry and Information Technology in February 2009, a company who sets up or uses a radio station in a vessel must obtain a Radio Station License. Failing to do so may result in a fine of up to RMB5,000 and the radio station facilities may be confiscated.

The PRC is a member of 1973 International Pollution Prevention Convention, amended in 1978. According to the provisions of such convention and relevant PRC laws and regulations, the vessels owned by Pingtan Fishing should have a Sewage Pollution Prevention Certificates. We may be subject to a fine of up to RMB200,000 once its vessels enter into PRC territorial seas due to lacking the certificate and relevant facilities for pollution prevention.

According to the PRC Fishery Management Regulation promulgated by PRC Ministry of Agriculture in April 2003, in the event that an enterprise has not obtained a valid inspection certificate or any other applicable certificates, such company may be subject to penalties imposed by applicable governmental authorities. Further, an enterprise carrying out its ocean fishery business without the approval of the Ministry of Agriculture may be subject to penalties imposed by applicable governmental authority pursuant to applicable laws and regulations. The most serious penalty is permanent suspension of its fishing business operation.

In addition, under PRC laws and regulations, Pingtan Fishing is required to hold certain certificates or licenses in order to use its vessels to conduct fishing outside PRC territorial seas. Some of the certificates or licenses are subject to renewal on a regular basis. We may not be able to renew such certificates or licenses. Failure to renew such certificates or licenses may cause temporary or even permanent suspension of Pingtan Fishing’s operations, which would have adverse effects on our business and financial condition. In addition, we may face fines pursuant to the above-mentioned laws and regulations.

Pingtan Fishing has neither entered into employment contracts with some of its employees nor bought the required social insurance for some of its employees and we may be imposed fines by the relevant authority. 

Compared to previous labor laws, the Labor Contract Law provides stronger protection for employees and imposes more obligations on employers. The Labor Contract Law stipulates, among other things, that (i) that all written labor contracts shall contain certain requisite terms; (ii) that the length of trial employment periods must be in proportion to the terms of the relevant labor contracts, which in any event may not be longer than six months; (iii) that in certain circumstances, a labor contract is deemed to be without a fixed term and thus an employee can only be terminated with cause; and (iv) that there are certain restrictions on the circumstances under which employers may terminate labor contracts as well as the economic compensations to employees upon termination of the employee’s employment.

The PRC Social Insurance Law provides that the employers should apply for the social insurance registration to the social insurance authority for their employees within thirty days from the employment date. The employees should have the basic endowment insurance, basic medical insurance, work-related injury insurance, unemployment insurance and applicable maternity insurance for its employees. The premium of work-related injury insurance and maternity insurance should be paid by the employers and the premium of the other three kind of insurance should be paid by the employees and employers jointly. Employers who have not managed the application of social insurance registration in time may be ordered by the social insurance authority to make the rectification and may be fined for the twice or triple of the unpaid premium for any delay in such rectification. Employers who have not paid the premium of applicable social insurance for their employees should be ordered to make the payment in time and be charged an overdue fine in the amount of 5/10,000 per day of the unpaid premium from the due date, and, if they have not paid in time as required by such order, may be fined for an amount of twice to triple the unpaid premium. Further, employers have the obligations to withhold the premium of endowment insurance, medical insurance and unemployment insurance and for their employees, and should be charged 5/10,000 per day of the overdue withholding premium by the social insurance authority.

Pingtan Fishing has not entered into employment agreements with some of its employees, basically the root-level employees, none of whom has endowment insurance, basic medical insurance, insurance against injury at work, maternity insurance and unemployment insurance. Due to this lack of insurance, we may be subject to overdue payment and fines and in turn our financial condition and results of operations may be adversely affected. We are actively endeavoring to enter into the employment contracts with these employees, purchase the social insurance for these employees and taking other remedial action. However, such actions may not be completed on a timely basis, or at all, and may not avoid fines or other penalties. As of December 31, 2018, there had been no fines nor penalties requested by the social insurance authority. Per our estimation, $3,962,789 social insurance has been accrued as of December 31, 2018.

We may be subject to fines for the violation of Fishing Management Regulations.

PRC laws set forth rigorous standards to the amount and qualification of the seamen serving on vessels. The applicable laws include, among other things, the 1983 PRC Navigation Safety Act, Provisions for Administration of Pelagic Fishery which was promulgated by Ministry of Agriculture on April 14, 2003, the PRC Seamen Regulations which was promulgated by State Council on March 28, 2007, Fishing Port Navigation Safety Management Regulations which was promulgated by State Council on May 5, 1989, and Provisions of the People’s Republic of China on Marine and Maritime Administrative Penalty which was promulgated by Ministry of Communications on July 10, 2003. All these laws and regulations, collectively referred to as the Fishing Management Regulations, provide that the vessels should be equipped with qualified seamen, in a number required by the standard criteria to ensure the safety of such vessels and the seamen in Pingtan Fishing’s vessels should be trained by the professional training institution permitted by Ministry of Agriculture and hold a Professional Sailor Certificate and the Professional Training Qualification. Further, the owners of the Pingtan Fishing’s enterprises must apply for a Seafarer’s Passport for the seamen on their vessels and the seamen in the voyage or assisting with marine engine work must have a Certificate of Competence. The owner or operator of the vessel may be ordered to rectify the failure to equip vessels with qualified seaman according to the standard quota to ensure the vessels’ safety. Should there be any related gains, the owner or operator of the vessel are subject to a fine of less than three times of the related gains and up to RMB30,000 for such violation or for the seamen on such vessels lacking valid Certificates of Competence.

Pingtan Fishing has not historically had procedures in place to ensure its vessels are equipped with sufficient qualified crews, who have the Seafarer’s Passport and Certificate of Job Qualification or other certificates required by applicable Fishing Management Regulations, to ensure the safety of such vessels. Accordingly, we may be subject to fines for such violations.

Pingtan Fishing has not made past housing fund payments for and on behalf of its employees and we may be required to make such payments and be subject to fines or penalties.

Under the Administrative Regulation on Housing Provident Fund, an employer must make a housing fund payment, deposit registration upon its establishment and pay the housing fund for and on behalf of its employees at a percentage between 5% and 12% of the respective employee’s monthly average wage of the preceding year. If an employer fails to make the housing fund payment and deposit registration, the housing fund administration authority may order it to complete the registration within a time limit or be assessed a fine of RMB10,000 to RMB50,000. Where an employer is overdue in the payment and deposit of, or underpays, the housing provident fund for and on behalf of its employees, it may be ordered by the housing fund administration authority to deposit the fund within a prescribed time limit, as well as to pay a late payment fee of 0.3% per day of such amount from the due date. Due to inconsistent implementation and interpretation by local authorities in the PRC and different levels of acceptance of the social security system by employees, Pingtan Fishing has not made sufficient housing fund payment and deposit registration or paid the housing fund for and on behalf of its employees. In the future, we may be required to make housing fund payments, for both late fees and fines for non-compliance. For 2018, the amount of housing fund payment is estimated to be $24,000.

PRC regulation of loans to and direct investments in PRC entities by offshore holding companies may delay or prevent us from financing Pingtan Guansheng.

Any funds we transfer to Pingtan Guansheng, either as a shareholder loan or as an increase in registered capital, are subject to approval by or registration with relevant governmental authorities in China. According to the relevant PRC regulations on foreign invested enterprises in China, capital contributions to Pingtan Guansheng are subject to the approval of the MOFCOM or its local branches and registration with other governmental authorities in China. In addition, (a) any foreign loan procured by Pingtan Guansheng is required to be registered with SAFE or its local branches, and (b) Pingtan Guansheng may not procure loans which exceed the difference between its registered capital and its total investment amount as approved by the MOFCOM or its local branches. Any medium or long term loan to be provided by us to Pingtan Guansheng must be approved by the National Development and Reform Commission and the SAFE or its local branches. We may be unable to obtain these government approvals or complete such registration on a timely basis, if at all, with respect to capital contributions or foreign loans by it to its PRC subsidiaries. If we fail to receive such approvals or complete such registration, the ability to fund our PRC operations may be negatively affected, which could adversely affect our liquidity and ability to fund and expand our business.

On August 29, 2008, SAFE promulgated the Circular on Relevant Operating Issues Concerning the Improvement of the Administration of the Payment and Settlement of Foreign Currency Capital of Foreign Invested Enterprises, or SAFE Circular 142. SAFE Circular 142 provides that any Renminbi capital converted from registered capital in foreign currency of a foreign invested enterprise may only be used for purposes within the business scope approved by PRC governmental authority and such Renminbi capital may not be used for equity investments within the PRC unless otherwise permitted by the PRC law. In addition, SAFE strengthened its oversight of the flow and use of the Renminbi capital converted from registered capital in foreign currency of a foreign invested enterprise. The use of such Renminbi capital may not be changed without SAFE approval, and such Renminbi capital may not in any case be used to repay Renminbi loans if the proceeds of such loans have not been utilized. Any violation of SAFE Circular 142 could result in severe monetary or other penalties. As a result, after the consummation of the business combination, we will be required to apply Renminbi funds converted within the business scope of Pingtan Guansheng. SAFE Circular 142 significantly limits our ability to transfer the net proceeds from us prior or any future offering of additional equity securities to Pingtan Guansheng or invest in or acquire any other companies in the PRC. On November 19, 2010 SAFE promulgated the Circular on the Policy of further Improvement and Adjustment of the Administration of the Direct Investment by Foreign Currency, or SAFE Circular 59, requiring SAFE to closely examine the authenticity of settlement of net proceeds from offshore offerings. In particular, it is specifically required that any net proceed settled from offshore offerings shall be applied in the manner described in the offering documents. On November 9, 2011, SAFE promulgated the Notice on Relevant Issues Concerning further Defining and Managing Part of the Foreign Currency Business in Capital Projects, or SAFE Circular 45. SAFE Circular 45 further provides that a foreign-investment enterprise should not use the Renminbi capital converted from registered capital in foreign currency in the equity investment. Due to the fact that the business scope of Pingtan Guansheng does not include equity investment, according to the aforementioned regulations, Pingtan Guansheng may not use Renminbi converted from foreign currency-denominated capital for purposes equity investment, and it must use such capital within its business scope, such as the sales of aquatic products or import and export of various commodities and technologies. Therefore, SAFE Circulars 142, 59 and 45 may significantly limit our ability to convert, transfer and use the net proceeds from our prior or any future offering of equity securities in China, which may adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Risks Relating to Our Securities

Our corporate actions are substantially controlled by our officers, directors and principal shareholders and their affiliated entities.

Our controlling shareholder and Chairman and CEO, Mr. Xinrong Zhuo, owns approximately 57.4% of our issued and outstanding shares. He would control matters requiring approval by our shareholders, including the election of directors and the approval of mergers or other business combination transactions, and he may not act in the best interests of minority shareholders. This concentration of ownership may also discourage, delay or prevent a change in control of us, which could deprive our shareholders of an opportunity to receive a premium for their shares as part of a sale of our Company. These actions may be taken even if they are opposed by our other shareholders.

Our auditor, like other independent registered public accounting firms operating in China, is registered with the U.S. Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, or the PCAOB, but has not yet been inspected, and as such, investors currently do not have the benefit of PCAOB oversight.

Auditors of companies that are registered with the SEC and traded publicly in the United States, including our independent registered public accounting firm, must be registered with the PCAOB and are required by U.S. law to undergo regular inspections by the PCAOB to assess their compliance with U.S. law and professional standards in connection with their audits of public company financial statements filed with the SEC. Because our auditor, BDO China Shu Lun Pan Certified Public Accountants LLP, is located in China, a jurisdiction where the PCAOB is currently unable to conduct inspections without the approval of the Chinese authorities, the audit work and practices of its auditor, like other registered audit firms operating in China, is currently not inspected by the PCAOB. The inability of the PCAOB to conduct inspections of auditors in China also makes it more difficult to evaluate the effectiveness of our auditor’s audit procedures or quality control procedures as compared to auditors outside of China that are subject to PCAOB inspections. As a result, investors may lose confidence in our reported financial information and procedures and the quality of our financial statements. 

If we do not appropriately maintain effective internal control over financial reporting in accordance with Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, we may be unable to accurately report our financial results and the market price of our stock may be adversely affected. 

We are subject to reporting obligations under the U.S. securities laws. The SEC, as required under Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, adopted rules requiring every public company to include a management report on such company’s internal control over financial reporting in its annual report, which contains management’s assessment of the effectiveness of the company’s internal control over financial reporting. In addition, an independent registered public accounting firm must attest to and report on the effectiveness of the company’s internal control over financial reporting. Our management has concluded that our internal control over financial reporting was effective as of December 31, 2018. See “Item 9A. Controls and Procedures.” 

However, if we fail to maintain effective internal control over financial reporting in the future, our management and our independent registered public accounting firm may not be able to conclude that we have effective internal control over financial reporting at a reasonable assurance level. This could in turn result in the loss of investor confidence in the reliability of our financial statements and negatively impact the trading price of our stock. Furthermore, we have incurred and may need to incur additional costs and use additional management and other resources in an effort to comply with Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and other requirements going forward.

Shareholders may face difficulties in protecting their interests, and their ability to protect their rights through the United States federal courts may be limited because we are incorporated under Cayman Islands law, we conduct substantially all of our operations in China and all of our directors and officers reside outside the United States.

We are incorporated in the Cayman Islands and conduct substantially all of our operations in China through our PRC subsidiaries. All of our directors and officers reside outside the United States and a substantial portion of their assets are located outside of the United States. As a result, it may be difficult or impossible for our shareholders to bring an action against us or these individuals in the Cayman Islands or in China in the event that you believe that your rights have been infringed under the securities laws or otherwise. Even if shareholders are successful in bringing an action of this kind, the laws of the Cayman Islands and of China may render you unable to enforce a judgment against our assets or the assets of our directors and officers.

Compliance with rules and requirements applicable to public companies will cause us to incur additional costs, and any failure by us to comply with such rules and requirements could negatively affect investor confidence in us and cause the value of our securities to decline.

As a relatively new public company, we are incurring significant legal, accounting and other expenses that we did not incur as a private company, many of which are not reflected in our historical financial statements. In addition, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, as well as rules adopted by the SEC, has required changes in the corporate governance practices of public companies. We expect these rules and regulations to increase our legal, accounting and financial compliance costs and to make certain corporate activities more time-consuming and costly. Complying with these rules and requirements may be especially difficult and costly for us because it may have difficulty locating sufficient personnel in China with experience and expertise relating to U.S. GAAP and United States public company reporting requirements, and such personnel may command high salaries. If we cannot employ sufficient personnel to ensure compliance with these rules and regulations, we may need to rely more on outside legal, accounting and financial experts, which may be very costly.

The prices at which shares of our ordinary shares are traded will likely be volatile.

You should expect the prices at which our ordinary shares are traded to be highly volatile. Our progress in developing and commercializing our products, the impact of government regulations on our products and industry, the potential sale of a large volume of our ordinary shares by shareholders, our quarterly operating results, changes in general conditions in the economy or the financial markets and other developments affecting us or our competitors could cause the market price of our ordinary shares to fluctuate substantially with significant market losses. As a result, this may make it difficult or impossible for holders of our ordinary shares to sell shares when they want and at prices they find attractive.

We may sell equity securities in the future, which would cause dilution.

We may sell equity securities in the future to obtain funds for general corporate or other purposes. We may sell these securities at a discount to the market price. Any future sales of equity securities will dilute the holdings of existing holders of our ordinary shares, possibly reducing the value of their investment.

Although our ordinary shares are currently listed on The NASDAQ Capital Market, there can be no assurance that we will be able to comply with the continued listing standards.

The NASDAQ Capital Market may delist our ordinary shares from trading on its exchange for failure to meet the continued listing standards. If our ordinary shares were delisted from The NASDAQ Capital Market, we and our shareholders could face significant material adverse consequences including:

Our ordinary shares are currently listed for trading on The NASDAQ Capital Market under the symbol “PME”.

If securities or industry analysts do not publish or cease publishing research or reports about us, our business, or our market, or if they change their recommendations regarding our ordinary shares adversely, the price and trading volume of our securities could decline.

Securities and industry analysts do not currently, and may never, publish research on us. If securities or industry analysts do not publish or cease publishing research or reports about us, our business, or our market, or if they change their recommendations regarding our ordinary shares adversely, the price and trading volume of our securities could decline. The trading markets for our securities will be influenced by the research and reports that industry or securities analysts may publish about us, our business, our market, or our competitors. If no securities or industry analysts commence coverage of us, the market price and trading volume of our securities would likely be negatively impacted. If any of the analysts who may cover us change their recommendation regarding our securities adversely, or provide more favorable relative recommendations about our competitors, the price of our securities would likely decline. If any analyst who may cover us were to cease coverage of us or fail to regularly publish reports on us, we could lose visibility in the financial markets, which in turn could cause the market price or trading volume of our securities to decline.

ITEM 1B. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS

None.

ITEM 2. PROPERTIES

Our principal executive offices are located at 18-19/F, Zhongshan Building A, No. 154 Hudong Road, Fuzhou, PRC. On July 31, 2012, we entered into an office lease agreement with Ping Lin, the wife of Xinrong Zhuo, the Company’s Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, for approximately 100 square meters of space. Annual lease payments were approximately US$12,700 in 2018.

On January 1, 2015, we entered into a service agreement with Hai Yi Shipping Limited, an affiliate company domiciled in Hong Kong, that provided the Company the use of premises of approximately 194 square meters located at Suites 5201-3, 52/F, The Center, 99 Queen’s Road Central, Central, Hong Kong as office, and clerical and administrative support and consultation services. On January 1, 2018, the Services Agreement was renewed to February 28, 2018 under the same conditions. On March 1, 2018, the Company entered into a lease agreement with the landlord directly under the same conditions. We incurred and paid approximately US$489,000 in 2018.

We have secured several cold storages located in one of China’s largest seafood trading center, MaWei seafood market. The monthly rent for the cold storage is RMB70 (US$10) per square meter and the leases are renewable annually. The following table sets forth information regarding the cold storages we currently rent as of December 31, 2018:

We believe that our current offices and facilities are adequate to meet our needs, and that additional facilities will be available for lease, if necessary, to meet our future needs.

ITEM 3. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

From time to time, we may be subject to legal proceedings and claims in the ordinary course of business. Currently, except as described below, we are not a party to any other litigation the outcome of which, if determined adversely to us, would individually or in the aggregate be reasonably expected to have a material adverse effect on our business, operating results, cash flows or financial condition.

A purported securities class action complaint, Zheng v. Pingtan Marine Enterprise Ltd., Xinrong Zhuo and Roy Yu

On June 23, 2017, a purported securities class action complaint, Zheng v. Pingtan Marine Enterprise Ltd., Xinrong Zhuo and Roy Yu, was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York alleging violations of Section 10(b), and Rule 10b-5 thereunder, and Section 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the “Complaint”). The Complaint alleged that the Company and the executive officers made materially false and misleading statements in filings with the SEC regarding the Company’s business operations. The Complaint was brought on behalf of a putative class of persons who purchased or otherwise acquired Pingtan securities between August 8, 2016 and May 10, 2017 and seeks an unspecified amount of compensatory damages. An amended complaint, which expands the putative class period to March 9, 2016 through May 10, 2017, was filed on May 29, 2018 (the “Amended Complaint”). The Company has moved to dismiss the Amended Complaint, and is currently waiting for the court to issue a decision on the motion. As of December 31, 2018, the management evaluates there is no impact on its consolidated financial statements.

ITEM 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES

Not applicable.

PART II

ITEM 5. MARKET FOR REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES

Market Information

Our ordinary shares are listed on the NASDAQ Capital Market under the symbol “PME.”

The following table sets forth, for the periods indicated, the range of quarterly high and low sales prices for ordinary shares as reported by the NASDAQ Capital Market in US dollars.

Holders of Record

On March 14, 2019, the closing sale price of our shares of ordinary shares was US$2.38 per share and there were 79,055,053 ordinary shares. On that date, our ordinary shares were held by approximately 200 holders of record. The number of record holders was determined from the records of our transfer agent and does not include beneficial owners of our ordinary shares whose shares are held in the names of various security brokers, dealers, and registered clearing agencies.

Dividend Policy

For the first three quarters during 2018 and each quarter during 2017, we declared and paid cash dividends of US$0.01 per common share outstanding. Future cash dividends, if any, will be at the discretion of our board of directors and will depend upon our future operations and earnings, capital requirements and surplus, general financial condition, contractual restrictions and other factors as our board of directors may deem relevant. We can pay dividends only out of our profits or other distributable reserves and dividends or distribution will only be paid or made if we are able to pay our debts as they fall due in the ordinary course of business. Payment of future dividends, if any, will be at the discretion of the board of directors after taking into account various factors, including current financial condition, operating results, current and anticipated cash needs and regulations governing dividend distributions by wholly foreign owned enterprises in China.

Securities Authorized for Issuance Under Equity Compensation Plans

As of the date of this annual report, we have no equity compensations plans for any of our employees, directors and consultants.

Purchases of Equity Securities

During the year ended December 31, 2018, except for purchases by Xinrong Zhuo, the Chairman and CEO, of an aggregate of 1,003,487 shares of our ordinary shares as described below, no purchases of our ordinary shares were by us, on our behalf or any “affiliated purchaser” (as defined in Rule 10b-18(a)(3) under the Exchange Act). On May 30, 2017, the Company announced that Xinrong Zhuo advised that he intends to purchase at least one million ordinary shares within the next year, subject to market conditions. During June 2017, Mr. Zhuo purchased a total of 103,487 shares at an average price per share of $3.7990 and during September 2017, Mr. Zhuo purchased a total of 20,000 shares at a price per share of $3.3768. During May 2018, Mr. Zhuo purchased a total of 400,000 shares at an average price per share of $3.5019 and during June 2018, Mr. Zhuo purchased a total of 480,000 shares at an average price per share of $3.1180.

Recent Sales of Unregistered Securities and Use of Proceeds

None.

Stock Performance Graph

This performance graph shall not be deemed “soliciting material” or to be “filed” with the SEC for purposes of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (Exchange Act), or otherwise subject to the liabilities under that Section, and shall not be deemed to be incorporated by reference into any filing of Pingtan Marine Enterprise Ltd. under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Exchange Act.

The following graph shows a comparison from February 25, 2013 (the date our ordinary shares commenced trading on the NASDAQ Capital Market under its current ticker “PME” after our initial business combination) through December 31, 2018 of the cumulative total return for our common stock, the Nasdaq Composite Index (NASDAQ Composite), and the Russell MicroCap Index. We use the Russell MicroCap Index because of the relatively limited number of peer companies in the SIC Code 900. These comparisons assume the investment of US$100 on February 25, 2013 and the reinvestment of dividends. The stock price performance of the following graph is not necessarily indicative of future stock price performance.

ITEM 6. SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA

The following two tables set forth selected consolidated statement of financial data as of and for the years ended December 31, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015 and 2014, which are derived from our audited consolidated financial statements. Our consolidated financial statements are prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP. Our historical results for any period are not necessarily indicative of results to be expected for any future period. You should read the following selected financial information in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and related notes and the information under “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” included elsewhere in this annual report.

ITEM 7. MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

The following discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and the notes thereto contained elsewhere in this report. Certain information contained in the discussion and analysis set forth below includes forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties.

Unless otherwise indicated, references to the “Company,” “us” or “we” refer to Pingtan Marine Enterprise Ltd. and its subsidiaries.

Special note regarding forward-looking statements

All statements other than statements of historical fact included in this Form 10-K including, without limitation, statements under “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” regarding our financial position, business strategy and the plans and objectives of management for future operations, are forward-looking statements. When used in this Form 10-K, words such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intend” and similar expressions, as they relate to us or our management, identify forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs of management, as well as assumptions made by, and information currently available to, our management. Actual results could differ materially from those contemplated by the forward-looking statements as a result of a number of factors, including those set forth under the risk factors and business sections in this Form 10-K.

Overview

We are a marine enterprise group primarily engaging in ocean fishing through our operating subsidiary, Fujian Provincial Pingtan County Ocean Fishing Group Co., Ltd., or Pingtan Fishing, which is organized in the People’s Republic of China (“PRC”). We harvest a variety of fish species with many of our owned vessels or licensed vessels for which we have exclusive operating license rights. These vessels are located within the Indian Exclusive Economic Zone (“EEZ”), the Arafura Sea of Indonesia, the international waters of Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, and the international waters of the Indian Ocean. We provide high quality seafood to a diverse group of customers including distributors, restaurant owners and exporters in the PRC. 

In June 2013, we expanded our fleet from 40 to 86 vessels through a purchase of 46 fishing trawlers. We began operating these vessels in the third quarter of 2013 and have been entitled to net profits from their operation. Each vessel carries a crew of 10 to 15 persons. These vessels have resulted in additional carrying capacity of approximately 45,000 to 50,000 tons of fish. 

In September 2013, we further increased our fleet to 106 vessels with the acquisition of 20 newly-built fishing trawlers. These vessels have a run-in period of 3 - 6 months, during which each is placed into the sea for testing prior to full operation. At full operation, each vessel is capable of harvesting 900 to 1,000 tons of fish. 

Subsequent to our fleet expansions, in September 2013, the Bureau of Fisheries of the Ministry of Agriculture  and Rural Affairs of the People’s Republic of China (“MOA”) issued a notification that it would suspend accepting shipbuilding applications for tuna harvesting vessels, squid harvesting vessels, Pacific saury harvesting vessels, trawlers operating on international waters, seine on international waters, and trawlers operating on the Arafura Sea, Indonesia. We believe the announcement is a positive indicator for long-term stability and balance in China’s fishing industry. 

On December 4, 2013, in connection with the sale of China Dredging Group Co., Ltd (“CDGC” or “China Dredging”) to Fuzhou Honglong Ocean Fishery Co., Ltd (“Hong Long”), an affiliate company majority owned by an immediate family member of the Company’s CEO, we acquired 20-year operating license rights in connection with the lease of 20 fishing drifters for the appraised fair market value of approximately $216.1 million, whereby we are entitled to 100% of the operations and net profits (losses) from the vessels for the term of the lease. 

In September 2014, we further expanded our fleet to 129 vessels with the addition of 3 newly-built light luring seine vessels. At full operation, each vessel is capable of harvesting 2,000 tons of fish. 

In June 2015, we purchased 4 longline fishing vessels and 2 squid jigging vessels for the appraised fair market value of approximately $56.2 million from Hong Long and Fuzhou Yishun Deep-Sea Fishing Co., Ltd. (“Yishun”), which is an affiliate company majority owned by an immediate family member of the Company’s CEO. These vessels are primarily focused on catching tuna and squid. 

In October 2016, we deployed 13 vessels, which were granted fishing licenses by the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries of the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste (“MAF”), to operate in the Indo-Pacific waters of the country. These fishing licenses were valid for one year. The vessels were purchased from Hong Long in June 2013. In September 2017, we were informed that the fishing licenses of the 13 vessels were suspended and the vessels were docked in the port by the MAF. The MAF alleged and investigated whether false statements were made during the licensing process and the vessels were simultaneously registered in Indonesia. We disputed these allegations and the government of Timor-Leste eventually agreed to release these vessels as no evidence was presented to support such allegations. The 13 vessels have returned to China for regular maintenance. 

In March 2017, we purchased from Hong Long 1 refrigerated transport vessel and 4 squid jigging vessels for the appraised fair market value of approximately $38.5 million. Of those vessels, 2 finished renovation in October 2017, the Company obtained the ownership certificates of those 2 vessels and deployed them to international waters. At present, the Company has not obtained the ownership of the remaining 3 vessels but is entitled to 100% of the operations and net profits (losses) from the vessels.

In December 2017, we deployed 2 squid jigging vessels to the international waters of the South-West Atlantic Ocean.

On April 2, 2018, 27 vessels received approval from the MOA to operate in the international waters of the Indian Ocean. After the modification and rebuilding project, 19 of the 27 new fishing vessels have been deployed to sea in November and December 2018, and the remaining 8 new fishing vessels will be gradually placed into the international waters of the Indian Ocean.

In October 2018, we purchased 1 refrigerated transport vessel, which started the modification and rebuilding project. We expect the modification and rebuilding project to be completed in June 2019, and the transport vessel will be deployed to international waters of the Indian Ocean in support of the 27 new fishing vessels.

As of December 31, 2018, we own 66 trawlers, 18 squid jigging vessels, 13 drifters, 10 light luring seine vessels and 4 longline fishing vessels, have exclusive operating license rights to 20 drifters, and we also have 8 squid jigging vessels and 2 transport vessels which are in the modification and rebuilding project. The 8 squid vessels completed the modification and rebuilding project and are deployed to the international waters of the Indian Ocean in March 2019. We are the second largest China-based fishery company operating its vessels outside of China waters and our fleet has an average remaining useful life of approximately 14.6 years. All of our vessels are approved by the MOA and, to the extent required, licensed by foreign fishing territories where they operate, subject to any foreign government’s moratorium or any suspensions or revocations that apply to the vessels or local entities, as described below.

Among the 141 vessels, 12 are located in the Bay of Bengal in India; 29 are located in international waters; and 13 have returned to China from the Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste due to the reason described above; and 10 vessels are in the modification and rebuilding project. The remaining 77 vessels were licensed by the MOA to operate in the Arafura Sea in Indonesia. The vessels in Indonesian waters, however, are not in operation because the licenses are currently inactive due to either the moratorium discussed below, the revocation of the fishery business license of the local entity through which the vessels operate, or, with respect to 4 vessels, the revocation of the local fishing licenses.

We catch nearly 50 different species of fish including ribbon fish, croaker fish, Peru squid, Argentina squid, sailfish and chub mackerel. All of our catch is shipped back to China. We then arrange chartered transportation ships to deliver frozen stocks to cold storage warehouses located in one of China’s largest seafood trading centers, Mawei Seafood Market in Fujian Province.

We derive our revenue primarily from the sale of frozen seafood products. We sell our products directly to customers including distributors, restaurant owners and exporters. Most of our customers have long-term, cooperative relationships with us. Our existing customers also introduce new customers to us from time to time. In July 2017, we entered into an exclusive strategic cooperation agreement to sell our fish products directly to consumers online. Our operating results are subject to seasonal variations. Harvest volume is the highest in the fourth quarter of the year while harvest volumes in the second and third quarters are relatively low due to the spawn season of certain fish species, including ribbon fish, cuttlefish, pomfret, and squid. Based on past experiences, demand for seafood products is the highest from December to January, during Chinese New Year. We believe that our profitability and growth are dependent on the termination of the Indonesian moratorium discussed below or the redeployment of our vessels from Indonesian waters to other locations, our ability, and those with which we conduct business, to maintain effective licenses with local departments of fisheries, such as Indonesia and Timor-Leste, and our ability to expand our customer base. 

Revenue by territory

Our customers are from the following PRC territories:

Significant factors affecting our results of operations

RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

Comparison of results of operations for the year ended December 31, 2018 and 2017

Revenue

We recognize revenue from sales of frozen fish and other marine catches when persuasive evidence of an arrangement exists, delivery has occurred, the price to the customer is fixed or determinable, and collection of the resulting receivable is reasonably assured. 

With respect to the sales to third party customers, the majority of whom are sole proprietor regional wholesalers in the PRC, we recognize revenue when customers receive purchased goods at our cold storage warehouse, after payment is received or credit sale is approved for recurring customers with excellent payment histories. 

We do not offer promotional payments, customer coupons, rebates or other cash redemption offers to customers. We do not accept returns from customers. Deposits or advance payments from customers prior to delivery of goods are recorded as advances from customers. 

For the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017, our revenue by species of fish was as follows (dollars in thousands, except for average price):

For the year ended December 31, 2018, we had revenue of $64,256,088, as compared to revenue of $63,209,687 for the year ended December 31, 2017, a slight increase of $1,046,401, or 1.7%. Sales volumes in the year ended December 31, 2018 increased 46.2% to 26,290,393 kg from 17,985,528 kg in the year ended December 31, 2017. The increase was mainly attributable to more landings of catch delivered to warehouse. However, average unit sale price decreased by 30.5% in the year ended December 31, 2018 as compared to the year ended December 31, 2017. The decrease was mainly due to catching more smaller fish, which have lower unit selling prices during the year ended December 31, 2018.

Cost of revenue

Our cost of revenue primarily consists of fuel cost, labor cost, depreciation, fishing vessels maintenance fee, and other overhead costs. Fuel cost, labor cost and depreciation generally accounted for the majority of our cost of revenue. The following table sets forth our cost of revenue information, both in amounts and as a percentage of revenue for the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017 (dollars in thousands):

Cost of revenue for the year ended December 31, 2018 was $33,239,582, representing a decrease of $7,887,316 or 19.2% as compared to $41,126,898 for the year ended December 31, 2017. The decrease was primarily attributable to the decrease in our unit production cost.

Gross profit

Our gross profit is affected primarily by changes in production costs. Fuel cost, labor cost and depreciation together account for about 88.1% and 91.4% of cost of revenue for the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017, respectively. The fluctuation of fuel price and change in depreciation may significantly affect our cost level and gross profit.

The following table sets forth information as to our revenue, cost of revenue, gross profit and gross margin for the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017.

Gross profit for the year ended December 31, 2018 was $31,016,506, representing an increase of $8,933,717 or 40.5% as compared to gross profit of $22,082,789 for the year ended December 31, 2017. The increase was primarily attributable to an increased number of deliveries into warehouse that averaged down unit production cost of fish. 

Gross margin increased to 48.3% for the year ended December 31, 2018 from 34.9% for the year ended December 31, 2017. The increase was primarily due to the same reasons described above.

Selling expense

Our selling expense mainly includes shipping and handling fees, insurance, customs clearance charge, storage fees and advertising expenses. Our sales activities are conducted through direct selling by our internal sales staff. Because of the strong demand for our products and services, we typically do not aggressively market and distribute our products. As a result, our selling expense has been relatively small as a percentage of our revenue.

Selling expense totaled $1,622,451 for the year ended December 31, 2018, as compared to $1,231,031 for the year ended December 31, 2017, an increase of $391,420 or 31.8%. Selling expense as a percentage of revenue for the year ended December 31, 2018 increased slight to 2.5% from 1.9% for the year ended December 31, 2017. Selling expense for the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017 consisted of the following:

General and administrative expense

General and administrative expense totaled $10,304,750 for the year ended December 31, 2018, as compared to $9,579,404 for the year ended December 31, 2017, a slight increase of $725,346 or 7.6%. General and administrative expense for the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017 consisted of the following:

Grant Income

The grant income mainly consists of an incentive granted by the Chinese government to encourage the development of ocean fishing industry in order to satisfy the demand of natural seafood in China and other small miscellaneous grant income from the Chinese government. For the year ended December 31, 2018, grant income decreased by $13,592,496, or 61.3% as compared to the year ended December 31, 2017. The decrease was mainly due to we received the reimbursement of fuel expenditure for 2017 during the year ended December 31, 2018, and we received the reimbursement of fuel expenditure for 2016 and 2015 during the year ended December 31, 2017 as a result of the delay in the government approval process.

Impairment loss

Impairment loss represents the impairment loss on the vessels whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of the assets might not be recovered. In the fourth quarter of 2018, we deregistered 24 fishing vessels and applied to the MOA for building 24 new fishing vessels. As a result of the deregistration, we assessed the recoverability of the 24 fishing vessels based on the undiscounted future cash flow that the fishing vessels are expected to generate as less than the carrying amount, and recognized an impairment loss. The Impairment loss on vessels was $9,715,058 and nil for the year ended 2018 and 2017, respectively.

Loss on fixed assets disposal

Loss on fixed assets disposal represents the loss on the replacement of vessels and disposal of vehicles we recorded as it incurred. The loss on fixed assets disposal was $2,105,960 and $195,375 for the year ended 2018 and 2017, respectively.

Income from operations 

As a result of the factors described above, for the year ended December 31, 2018, income from operations amounted to $15,853,018, as compared to income from operations of $33,254,206 for the year ended December 31, 2017, a change of $17,401,188, or 52.3%.

Other income/expense 

Other income/expense mainly include interest income from bank deposits, interest expense generated from short-term and long-term bank borrowings, foreign currency transaction gain, and loss on equity method investment.

For the year ended December 31, 2018, other expense, net, amounted to $1,040,320 as compared to other expense, net, of $734,075 for the year ended December 31, 2017, an increase of $306,245, or 41.7%, which was primarily attributable to an increase in foreign currency transaction loss of approximately $1,354,000, an increase in loss on equity method investment of approximately $160,000, and a decrease in interest income of approximately $145,000, offset by a decrease in interest expense of approximately $1,192,000 as a result of decrease in bank loans, an increase in gain from cost method investment of approximately $62,000, and an increase in other income of approximately $97,000.

Income taxes

We are exempted from income taxes for income generated from our ocean fishing operations in China for the years ended December 31, 2018 and 2017. 

Net income

As a result of the factors described above, our net income was $14,812,698 for the year ended December 31, 2018, compared to net income of $32,520,131 for the year ended December 31, 2017, a change of $17,707,433 or 54.5%. Excluding the impact of the non-recurring, non-cash impairment loss of $9,715,058 regarding the deregistration of 24 fishing vessels, the net income would be $24,527,756.

Net income attributable to owners of the Company 

The net income attributable to owners of the Company was $13,397,301, or $0.17 per ordinary share (basic and diluted), for the year ended December 31, 2018, compared to net income attributable to owners of the Company of $29,659,693, or $0.38 per ordinary share (basic and diluted), for the year ended December 31, 2017, a change of $16,262,392 or 54.8%.

Foreign currency translation adjustment

Our reporting currency is the U.S. dollar. The functional currency of our parent company and subsidiaries of Merchant Supreme and Prime Cheer is the U.S. dollar and the functional currency of the Company’s subsidiaries incorporated in China is the Chinese Renminbi (“RMB”). The financial statements of our subsidiaries incorporated in China are translated to U.S. dollars using period end rates of exchange for assets and liabilities, and average rates of exchange (for the period) for revenue, costs, and expenses. Net gains and losses resulting from foreign exchange transactions are included in the consolidated statements of operations and comprehensive income (loss). As a result of foreign currency translations, which are a non-cash adjustment, we reported a foreign currency translation loss of $8,387,092 for the year ended December 31, 2018, as compared to a foreign currency translation gain of $7,760,460 for the year ended December 31, 2017. This non-cash loss had the effect of increasing/decreasing our reported comprehensive loss/gain and this non-cash gain had the effect of decreasing/increasing our reported comprehensive loss/gain.

Comprehensive income

As a result of our foreign currency translation adjustment, we had comprehensive income for the year ended December 31, 2018 of $6,425,606, compared to comprehensive income of $40,280,591 for the year ended December 31, 2017.

Comparison of results of operations for the year ended December 31, 2017 and 2016

Revenue

We recognize revenue from sales of frozen fish and other marine catches when persuasive evidence of an arrangement exists, delivery has occurred, the price to the customer is fixed or determinable, and collection of the resulting receivable is reasonably assured.

With respect to the sales to third party customers the majority of whom are sole proprietor regional wholesalers in the PRC, we recognize revenue when customers receive purchased goods at our cold storage warehouse, after payment is received or credit sale is approved for recurring customers with excellent payment histories.

We do not offer promotional payments, customer coupons, rebates or other cash redemption offers to customers. We do not accept returns from customers. Deposits or advance payments from customers prior to delivery of goods are recorded as advances from customers.

For the years ended December 31, 2017 and 2016, our revenue by species of fish was as follows (dollars in thousands, except for average price):

For the year ended December 31, 2017, we had revenue of $63,209,687, as compared to revenue of $20,540,769 for the year ended December 31, 2016, an increase of $42,668,918, or 207.7%. Sales volumes in the year ended December 31, 2017 increased 129.5% to 17,985,528 kg from 7,836,723 kg in the year ended December 31, 2016. Average unit sale price increased 34.0% in the year ended December 31, 2017 as compared to the year ended December 31, 2016, which was primarily due to the increase in our fishing activities, even though the Indonesian government’s moratorium described above has continued to affect our fishing operations in Indonesian waters. During the year ended December 31, 2017, we purchased 4 squid jigging vessels to reinforce our fishing capacity and we placed 10 fishing vessels in operation in international waters during the year ended December 31, 2017 in comparison to 2 fishing vessels operating in international waters during the year ended December 31, 2016.

Cost of revenue

Our cost of revenue primarily consists of fuel cost, depreciation, labor cost, fishing vessels maintenance fee, other overhead costs, and reserve for inventories. Fuel cost, depreciation, and labor cost generally accounted for the majority of our cost of revenue. The following table sets forth our cost of revenue information, both in amounts and as a percentage of revenue for the years ended December 31, 2017 and 2016 (dollars in thousands):

Cost of revenue for the year ended December 31, 2017 was $41,126,898, representing an increase of $11,798,122 or 40.2% as compared to $29,328,776 for the year ended December 31, 2016. The increase was primarily attributable to the increase in our revenue.

Gross profit (loss)

Our gross profit (loss) is affected primarily by changes in production costs. Fuel cost, depreciation, and labor cost together account for about 91.9% and 94.1% of cost of revenue for the years ended December 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively. The fluctuation of fuel price and change in labor cost may significantly affect our cost level and gross profit (loss).

The following table sets forth information as to our revenue, cost of revenue, gross loss and gross margin for the years ended December 31, 2017 and 2016.

Gross profit for the year ended December 31, 2017 was $22,082,789, representing an increase of $30,870,796 or 351.3% as compared to gross loss of $8,788,007 for the year ended December 31, 2016 due to the increase in our sales revenue and the decrease in our unit production cost of fish.

Gross margin increased to 34.9% for the year ended December 31, 2017 from (42.8)% for the year ended December 31, 2016.

The significant increase in gross margin for the year ended December 31, 2017 as compared to the year ended December 31, 2016 was primarily attributable to the decrease in our unit production cost of fish resulting from the increase in our harvest volume by deploying more fishing vessels into operations.

Selling expense

Our selling expense mainly includes shipping and handling fees, insurance, customs clearance charge, storage fees and advertising expenses. Our sales activities are conducted through direct selling by our internal sales staff. Because of the strong demand for our products and services, we typically do not aggressively market and distribute our products. As a result, our selling expense has been relatively small as a percentage of our revenue.

Selling expense totaled $1,231,031 for the year ended December 31, 2017, as compared to $1,235,497 for the year ended December 31, 2016, a slight decrease of $4,466 or 0.4%. Selling expense as a percentage of revenue for the year ended December 31, 2017 decreased slight to 1.9% from 6.0% for the year ended December 31, 2016. Selling expense for the years ended December 31, 2017 and 2016 consisted of the following: