NASDAQ: FSHPR
Flag Ship Acquisition CorpCIK 0001850059 · Blank Checks
Flag Ship Acquisition Corporation is a blank check company incorporated on May 14, 2018 as a Cayman Islands exempted company and incorporated for the purpose of effecting a merger, share exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more… About this business →
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About Flag Ship Acquisition Corp
Source: Item 1 (Business) from the 10-K filed May 29, 2026. Description as filed by the company with the SEC.
Item 1. BUSINESS
General
Flag Ship Acquisition Corporation is a blank check company incorporated on May 14, 2018 as a Cayman Islands exempted company and incorporated for the purpose of effecting a merger, share exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses.
The registration statement for our initial public offering was declared effective by the Securities and Exchange Commission on June 17, 2024. We completed our initial public offering on June 20, 2024. In our initial public offering, we sold units at an offering price of $10.00 and consisting of one ordinary share, one right to receive one-tenth (1/10) of an ordinary share upon the consummation of an initial business combination.
In connection with our initial public offering, we sold 6,900,000 units, generating gross proceeds of $69,000,000. Simultaneously with the closing of the IPO, pursuant to the Private Placement Units Purchase Agreement by and between the Company and our sponsor, Whale Management Corporation, a British Virgin Islands company, the Company completed the private sale of an aggregate of 238,000 units (the “Private Placement Units”) to the Sponsor at a purchase price of $10.00 per Private Placement Unit, generating gross proceeds to the Company of $2,380,000. The Private Placement Units are identical to the Units in the IPO, except that the Sponsor has agreed not to transfer, assign or sell any of the Private Placement Units (except to certain permitted transferees) until (1) with respect to 50% of the founder shares, the earlier of six months after the completion of a business combination and the date on which the closing price of the ordinary shares equals or exceeds $12.50 per share for any 20 trading days within any 30-trading day period commencing after a business combination and (2) with respect to the remaining 50% of the founder shares, six months after the completion of a business combination, or earlier, in either case, if, subsequent to a business combination, the Company completes a liquidation, merger, share exchange or other similar transaction which results in all of the Company’s shareholders having the right to exchange their ordinary shares for cash, securities or other property. No underwriting discounts or commissions were paid with respect to such sale. The issuance of the Private Placement Units was made pursuant to the exemption from registration contained in Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended.
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Transaction costs amounted
to $3,448,233, consisting of $1,380,000 of underwriting commissions, $1,725,000 of deferred underwriting commissions and $343,233 of other
offering costs. A total of $69,000,000, comprised of $67,545,000 of the proceeds from the IPO (which amount includes
up to $1,725,000 of the underwriter’s deferred discount) and $1,455,000 of the proceeds of the sale of the Private Placement Units,
was placed in a U.S.-based trust account, established by VStock Transfer LLC, our transfer agent and maintained at Wilmington Trust, National
Association, acting as trustee. Except with respect to interest earned on the funds in the trust account that may be released to the Company
to pay its taxes, the funds held in the trust account will not be released from the trust account until the earliest of (i) the completion
of the Company’s initial business combination, (ii) the redemption of any of the Company’s public shares properly tendered
in connection with a shareholder vote to amend the Company’s amended and restated memorandum and articles of association to (A)
modify the substance or timing of its obligation to redeem 100% of the Company’s public shares if it does not complete its initial
business combination within 12 months (or 15 months if we enter into a business combination agreement within 12 months from the closing
of this offering (the “Event”)) from the closing of the IPO (or up to 21 months, or 24 months if the Event occurs, from the
closing of the IPO if we extend the period of time to consummate a business combination, after amended and restated memo and articles),
or (B) with respect to any other provision relating to shareholders’ rights or pre-business combination activity, and (iii) the
redemption of the Company’s public shares if it is unable to complete its initial business combination within 12 months (or 15 months
if the Event occurs) from the closing of the IPO (or up to 21 months or 24 months from the closing of the IPO if we extend the period
of time to consummate a business combination, after amended and restated memo and articles).
At December 31,
2025, the Company had a working capital deficit of $1,438,801, which excludes the amount of $33,080,038 of cash and investments held
in the trust account within non-current assets, and the amount of $1,725,000 for
deferred underwriting commissions within non-current liabilities.
1
The Company’s units are listed on The Nasdaq Global Market (“Nasdaq”) and commenced trading under the ticker symbol “FSHPU” on June 18, 2024. Each unit consists of one ordinary share, one right to receive one-tenth (1/10) of an ordinary share upon the consummation of an initial business combination. The units began separate trading on August 15, 2024 and the ordinary shares and rights commenced trading on Nasdaq under the symbols “FSHP,” and “FSHPR,” respectively.
Proposed Business Combination
Great
Rich Technologies Limited
On October 21, 2024,
Flag Ship Acquisition Corporation entered into an Agreement and Plan of Merger (the “Merger Agreement”) with Great Rich Technologies
Limited, a public limited company incorporated under the laws of Hong Kong, and GRT Merger Star Limited, a Cayman Islands company limited
by shares and a wholly-owned subsidiary of GRT (“Merger Sub”).
The
Merger Agreement and related agreements are further described in our Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on October 23,
2024. Other than as specifically discussed, this Annual Report does not assume the closing of the transactions contemplated by the Merger
Agreement. On February 28, 2025, Flag Ship, GRT and Merger Sub entered into the first amendment to the Merger Agreement (the “First
Amendment”) solely to amend Section 10.01 of the Merger Agreement to extend the Outside Date defined thereunder from February 28,
2025 to August 28, 2025.
On
April 18, 2025, pursuant to the GRT Merger Agreement, the parties to the GRT Merger Agreement entered into a Mutual Termination Agreement
(the “Termination Agreement”) to terminate the GRT Merger Agreement. The Termination Agreement also provides that each other
agreement among the parties relating to the GRT Merger Agreement is automatically terminated concurrently with the termination of the
GRT Merger Agreement. The Termination Agreement also provides for a mutual release of claims among the parties and their affiliates,
except for liabilities arising from or relating to any knowing or intentional breach of a representation, a warranty or a covenant of
the GRT Merger Agreement. No party will be required to pay a termination fee as a result of the mutual decision to enter into the Termination
Agreement.
Great Future Technology Inc.
On April 18, 2025, Flag Ship
entered into an Agreement and Plan of Merger (the “Merger Agreement”) with Great Future Technology Inc., a Cayman Islands
exempted company limited by shares (“PubCo” or “Parent”) and GFT Merger Sub Limited, a Cayman Islands exempted
company limited by shares and a wholly-owned subsidiary of GFT (“Merger Sub”).
The Merger Agreement replaces and supersedes the GRT Merger Agreement described above. The Merger Agreement and related agreements are
further described in our Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the SEC on April 22, 2025. On December 11, 2025, Flag Ship, GFT and Merger
Sub entered into the first amendment to the Merger Agreement (the “First Amendment”) solely to amend Section 10.01 of the
Merger Agreement to extend the Outside Date defined thereunder from December 31, 2025 to June 20, 2026.
On May 3, 2026, pursuant to the GFT Merger Agreement, the parties to
the Merger Agreement entered into a Mutual Termination of Agreement (the “GFT Termination Agreement”), pursuant to which,
among other things, the parties agreed to mutually terminate the GFT Merger Agreement. The GFT Termination Agreement also provides for
a mutual release of claims among the parties and their affiliates, except for liabilities arising from or relating to any knowing or intentional
breach of a representation, a warranty or a covenant of the GFT Merger Agreement. No party will be required to pay a termination fee as
a result of the mutual decision to enter into the GFT Termination Agreement.
Bluechip & Co. Holdings
On May 8, 2026, Flag Ship
Acquisition Corporation entered into a letter of intent (the “Letter of Intent”) with Bluechip & Co. Holdings (“Bluechip”),
a Cayman Islands exempt company, in connection with a proposed business combination transaction (the “Proposed Transaction”).
The Letter of Intent provides for an exclusive negotiation period, during which the Company is conducting due diligence on Bluechip and
the parties are negotiating the terms of a definitive agreement. The parties have agreed to a ninety (90) day period of mutual exclusivity,
which may be extended under certain conditions specified in the Letter of Intent. The Letter of Intent includes binding provisions regarding
exclusivity and other related transaction provisions governing the parties’ negotiations. The Proposed Transaction remains subject
to the completion of due diligence, the negotiation and execution of definitive agreements, satisfaction of customary closing conditions,
and approval by the boards and shareholders of the parties. There can be no assurance that the parties will enter into a definitive agreement
or that the Proposed Transaction will be consummated.
2
Business Strategy
Our efforts in identifying prospective target businesses will not be limited to a particular geographic region. However, we will not consider or undertake an initial business combination with any target company the financial statements of which are audited by an accounting firm that the United States Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (the “PCAOB”) is unable to inspect for two consecutive years. We believe that we will add value to these businesses primarily by providing them with access to the U.S. capital markets.
We will seek to capitalize on the strength of our management team. Our team consists of experienced professionals and senior operating executives. Collectively, our officers and directors have decades of experience in mergers and acquisitions, and operating companies. We believe we will benefit from their accomplishments, and specifically their current and recent activities with companies, in identifying attractive acquisition opportunities. However, there is no assurance that we will complete a business combination.
Investment Criteria
Our management team intends to focus on creating shareholder value by leveraging its experience in the management, operation and financing of businesses to improve the efficiency of operations while implementing strategies to scale revenue organically and/or through acquisitions. We have identified the following general criteria and guidelines, which we believe are important in evaluating prospective target businesses. While we intend to use these criteria and guidelines in evaluating prospective businesses, we may deviate from these criteria and guidelines should we see justification to do so.
●
Middle-Market Growth Business. We will primarily seek to acquire one or more growth businesses with a total enterprise value of between $200,000,000 and $400,000,000. We believe that there are a substantial number of potential target businesses within this valuation range that can benefit from new capital for scalable operations to yield significant revenue and earnings growth. We currently do not intend to acquire either a start-up company (a company that has not yet established commercial operations) or a company with negative cash flow.
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Strong Management Teams with a Proven Track Record: We intend to seek candidates who have strong management teams with a proven track record of driving revenue growth, enhancing profitability and generating strong free cash flow. We will seek to partner with potential target’s management team and expect that the operating and financial abilities of our management and board will help potential target company to unlock opportunities for future growth and enhanced profitability.
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Business with Revenue and Earnings Growth Potential. We will seek to acquire one or more businesses that have the potential for significant revenue and earnings growth through a combination of both existing and new product development, increased production capacity, expense reduction and synergistic follow-on acquisitions resulting in increased operating leverage.
●
Companies with Potential for Strong Free Cash Flow Generation. We will seek to acquire one or more businesses that have the potential to generate strong, stable and increasing free cash flow. We intend to focus on one or more businesses that have predictable revenue streams and definable low working capital and capital expenditure requirements. We may also seek to prudently leverage this cash flow in order to enhance shareholder value.
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Benefit from Being a Public Company. We intend to only acquire a business or businesses that will benefit from being publicly traded and which can effectively utilize access to broader sources of capital and a public profile that are associated with being a publicly traded company.
These criteria are not intended to be exhaustive or exclusive. Any evaluation relating to the merits of a particular business combination may be based, to the extent relevant, on these general guidelines as well as other considerations, factors and criteria that our sponsor and management team may deem relevant. In the event that we decide to enter into an business combination with a target business that does not meet the above criteria and guidelines, we will disclose that the target business does not meet the above criteria in our shareholder communications related to our business combination, which, as discussed in this prospectus, would be in the form of proxy solicitation or tender offer materials, as applicable, that we would file with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission, or the SEC. In evaluating a prospective target business, we expect to conduct a due diligence review which may encompass, among other things, meetings with incumbent ownership, management and employees, document reviews, interviews of customers and suppliers, inspections of facilities, as well as reviewing financial and other information which will be made available to us.
Our management team continues to actively source target candidates where they believe will be attractive candidates for acquisition, utilizing their deal-making track record, professional relationships, and capital markets expertise to enhance the growth potential and value of a target business and provide opportunities for an attractive return to our shareholders.
3
Sourcing of Potential Business Combination Targets
Our management team has developed a broad network of contacts and corporate relationships. We believe that the network of contacts and relationships of our management team and our sponsor will provide us with an important source of business combination opportunities. In addition, we anticipate that target business candidates will be brought to our attention from various unaffiliated sources, including investment banking firms, private equity firms, consultants, accounting firms and business enterprises. We are not prohibited from pursuing an initial business combination with a company that is affiliated with our sponsor, officers or directors, or completing the business combination through a joint venture or other form of shared ownership with our sponsor, officers or directors.
If any of our officers or directors becomes aware of a business combination opportunity that falls within the line of business of any entity to which he or she has then-existing fiduciary or contractual obligations, he or she may be required to present such business combination opportunity to such entity prior to presenting such business combination opportunity to us.
Unless we complete our initial business combination with an affiliated entity, or our Board of Directors cannot independently determine the fair market value of the target business or businesses, we are not required to obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm, another independent firm that commonly renders valuation opinions for the type of company we are seeking to acquire or from an independent accounting firm that the price we are paying for a target is fair to our company from a financial point of view. If no opinion is obtained, our shareholders will be relying on the business judgment of our Board of Directors, which will have significant discretion in choosing the standard used to establish the fair market value of the target or targets, and different methods of valuation may vary greatly in outcome from one another. Such standards used will be disclosed in our tender offer documents or proxy solicitation materials, as applicable, related to our initial business combination.
Members of our management team may directly or indirectly own our ordinary shares and/or private placement units following our initial public offering, and, accordingly, may have a conflict of interest in determining whether a particular target business is an appropriate business with which to effectuate our initial business combination. Further, each of our officers and directors may have a conflict of interest with respect to evaluating a particular business combination if the retention or resignation of any such officers and directors was included by a target business as a condition to any agreement with respect to our initial business combination.
Each of our directors and officers presently has, and in the future any of our directors and our officers may have additional, fiduciary or contractual obligations to other entities pursuant to which such officer or director is or will be required to present acquisition opportunities to such entity. Accordingly, subject to his or her fiduciary duties under Cayman Islands law, if any of our officers or directors becomes aware of an acquisition opportunity which is suitable for an entity to which he or she has then current fiduciary or contractual obligations, he or she will need to honor his or her fiduciary or contractual obligations to present such acquisition opportunity to such entity, and only present it to us if such entity rejects the opportunity. Our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association will provide that, subject to his or her fiduciary duties under Cayman Islands law, we renounce our interest in any corporate opportunity offered to any officer or director unless such opportunity is expressly offered to such person solely in his or her capacity as a director or officer of our company and such opportunity is one we are legally and contractually permitted to undertake and would otherwise be reasonable for us to pursue. We do not believe, however, that any fiduciary duties or contractual obligations of our directors or officers would materially undermine our ability to complete our business combination.
Our officers and directors are not prohibited from becoming an officer or director of another special purpose acquisition company with a class of securities registered under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.
4
Initial Business Combination Timeframe and Nasdaq Rules
We completed our initial
public offering on June 20, 2024. Pursuant to our Amended and Restated Memorandum and Articles of Association, we initially had until
12 months from June 20, 2024, or 15 months if we entered into a business combination agreement within 12 months from the closing of the
IPO, to consummate our initial business combination, with nine (9) available one-month extension periods (for a total of up to 21 or 24
months), subject to the Sponsor depositing funds into the Trust Account for each extension. On August 26, 2025, the Company’s shareholders
approved an extension fee reduction proposal to reduce the monthly extension fee payable by the Company’s Sponsor and/or its designee
from $0.033 per each outstanding public share to the lesser of (i) $60,000 for all outstanding public shares and (ii) $0.033 for each
outstanding public share. In connection with that shareholder vote, holders of 3,837,483 ordinary shares properly exercised their right
to redeem their shares for cash at a redemption price of approximately $10.47 per share. As a result, 3,062,517 public shares remained
unredeemed. Since September 20, 2025, the Sponsor has been depositing the $60,000 monthly extension fee, and the current deadline to consummate
our initial business combination is June 20, 2026.
The Company intends to hold an Extraordinary General Meeting on June
11, 2026 at which shareholders will vote on a proposal (the “Extension Proposal”) to further amend the Company’s Amended
and Restated Memorandum and Articles of Association to extend the deadline to consummate an initial business combination for up to twelve
(12) additional one-month periods, from June 20, 2026 to June 20, 2027 (the “Extended Date”). If the Extension Proposal is
approved, the Sponsor and/or its designee will deposit into the Trust Account, for each additional one-month extension, the lesser of
(i) $60,000 for all remaining public shares and (ii) $0.033 for each remaining public share, with the first deposit required by June 20,
2026 and each subsequent deposit required by the 20th day of each succeeding month. If the Extension Proposal is not approved and we do
not consummate a business combination by June 20, 2026, we will cease all operations and redeem 100% of the outstanding public shares.
Our sponsor and its affiliates
or designees are not obligated to fund the trust account to extend the time for us to complete our initial business combination. If we
are unable to consummate our initial business combination within the applicable time period, we will, as promptly as reasonably possible
but not more than ten business days thereafter, redeem the public shares for a pro rata portion of the funds held in the trust account
and as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining shareholders and our board
of directors, dissolve and liquidate, subject in each case to our obligations under Cayman Islands law to provide for claims of creditors
and the requirements of other applicable law. In such event, the rights will be worthless.
The NASDAQ rules require
that our initial business combination must be with one or more target businesses that together have an aggregate fair market value equal
to at least 80% of the balance in the trust account (less any deferred underwriting commissions and taxes payable on interest earned)
at the time of our signing a definitive agreement in connection with our initial business combination. The fair market value of the target
or targets will be determined by our board of directors based upon one or more standards generally accepted by the financial community,
such as discounted cash flow valuation or value of comparable businesses. Our shareholders will be relying on the business judgment of
our board of directors, which will have significant discretion in choosing the standard used to establish the fair market value of the
target or targets, and different methods of valuation may vary greatly in outcome from one another. Such standards used will be disclosed
in our tender offer documents or proxy solicitation materials, as applicable, related to our initial business combination. In the event
that we were delisted from the Nasdaq prior to completion of a business combination, we would not be subject to the Nasdaq rule requiring
our initial business combination must be with one or more target businesses that together have an aggregate fair market value equal to
at least 80% of the balance in the trust account.
If our Board of Directors
is not able to independently determine the fair market value of the target business or businesses, we will obtain an opinion from an independent
investment banking firm or another independent firm that commonly renders valuation opinions for the type of company we are seeking to
acquire or an independent accounting firm. We do not intend to purchase multiple businesses in unrelated industries in conjunction with
our initial business combination. Subject to this requirement, our management will have virtually unrestricted flexibility in identifying
and selecting one or more prospective target businesses, although we will not be permitted to effectuate our initial business combination
with another blank check company or a similar company with nominal operations. Additionally, pursuant to NASDAQ rules, any initial business
combination must be approved by a majority of our independent directors.
5
We anticipate structuring our initial business combination so that the post-transaction company in which our public shareholders own shares will own or acquire 100% of the equity interests or assets of the target business or businesses. We may, however, structure our initial business combination such that the post-transaction company owns or acquires less than 100% of such interests or assets of the target business in order to meet certain objectives of the target management team or shareholders or for other reasons, but we will only complete such business combination if the post-transaction company owns or acquires 50% or more of the outstanding voting securities of the target or otherwise acquires a controlling interest in the target sufficient for it not to be required to register as an investment company under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended, or the Investment Company Act. Even if the post-transaction company owns or acquires 50% or more of the voting securities of the target, our shareholders prior to the business combination may collectively own a minority interest in the post-transaction company, depending on valuations ascribed to the target and us in the business combination transaction. For example, we could pursue a transaction in which we issue a substantial number of new shares in exchange for all of the outstanding capital stock of a target. In this case, we would acquire a 100% controlling interest in the target. However, as a result of the issuance of a substantial number of new shares, our shareholders immediately prior to our initial business combination could own less than a majority of our outstanding shares subsequent to our initial business combination. If less than 100% of the equity interests or assets of a target business or businesses are owned or acquired by the post-transaction company, the portion of such business or businesses that is owned or acquired is what will be valued for purposes of the 80% of net assets test. If our initial business combination involves more than one target business, the 80% of net assets test will be based on the aggregate value of all of the target businesses.
Status as a Public Company
We believe our structure will make us an attractive business combination partner to target businesses. As an existing public company, we offer a target business an alternative to the traditional initial public offering through a merger or other business combination with us. In a business combination transaction with us, the owners of the target business may, for example, exchange their shares of stock, shares or other equity interests in the target business for our ordinary shares (or shares of a new holding company) or for a combination of our ordinary shares and cash, allowing us to tailor the consideration to the specific needs of the sellers. Although there are various costs and obligations associated with being a public company, we believe target businesses will find this method a more certain and cost-effective method to becoming a public company than the typical initial public offering. In a typical initial public offering process, there are additional expenses incurred in marketing, roadshow and public reporting efforts that may not be present to the same extent in connection with a business combination with us.
Furthermore, once a proposed business combination is completed, the target business will have effectively become public, whereas an initial public offering is always subject to the underwriter’s ability to complete the offering, as well as general market conditions, which could delay or prevent the offering from occurring. Once public, we believe the target business would then have greater access to capital and an additional means of providing management incentives consistent with shareholders’ interests. Being a public company can offer further benefits by augmenting a company’s profile among potential new customers and vendors and aid in attracting talented employees.
While we believe that our structure and our management team’s backgrounds will make us an attractive business partner, some potential target businesses may have negative view of us since we are a blank check company without an operating history and there is uncertainty relating to our ability to seek shareholder approval of any proposed initial business combination and retain sufficient funds in our trust account in connection therewith.
Financial Position
As of December 31, 2025,
we had approximately $33,080,038 in investments held in the trust account assuming no further redemptions and before payment of up to $1,725,000
of deferred underwriting fees, and before fees and expenses associated with our initial business combination. With funds available for
a business combination in trust account, we offer a target business a variety of options such as creating a liquidity event for its owners,
providing capital for the potential growth and expansion of its operations or strengthening its balance sheet by reducing its debt ratio.
Additionally, because we are a public company or because a target business may be an attractive investment opportunity for third parties
or be financially financeable through a third-party traditional lender, we may be able to obtain additional financing from third parties
in a financing to satisfy cash needs of any target and its shareholders. Because we are able to complete our initial business combination
using our cash, debt or equity securities, or additional financings or a combination of the foregoing, we have the flexibility to use
the most efficient combination that will allow us to tailor the consideration to be paid to the target business and its shareholders to
fit their needs and desires. However, we have not taken any steps to secure third party financing and there can be no assurance it will
be available to us.
6
Effecting Our Initial Business Combination
We are not presently engaged in, and we will not engage in, any operations for an indefinite period of time following the IPO. We intend to effectuate our initial business combination using cash from the proceeds of the IPO and the private placement of the private placement units, our shares, debt or a combination of these as the consideration to be paid in our initial business combination. We may, although we do not currently intend to, seek to complete our initial business combination with a company or business that may be financially unstable or in its early stages of development or growth, start-up companies or companies with speculative business plans or excess leverage, which would subject us to the numerous risks inherent in such companies and businesses.
If our initial business combination is paid for using equity or debt securities, or not all of the funds released from the trust account are used for payment of the consideration in connection with our initial business combination or used for redemptions of our ordinary shares, we may apply the balance of the cash released to us from the trust account for general corporate purposes, including for maintenance or expansion of operations of the post-transaction company, the payment of principal or interest due on indebtedness incurred in completing our initial business combination, to fund the purchase of other companies or for working capital.
We may seek to raise additional funds through a private offering of debt or equity securities in connection with the completion of our initial business combination, and we may effectuate our initial business combination using the proceeds of such offering rather than using the amounts held in the trust account.
In the case of an initial business combination funded with assets other than the trust account assets, our tender offer documents or proxy materials disclosing the business combination would disclose the terms of the financing and, only if required by law, we would seek shareholder approval of such financing. There are no prohibitions on our ability to raise funds privately or through loans in connection with our initial business combination. At this time, we are not a party to any arrangement or understanding with any third party with respect to raising any additional funds through the sale of securities or otherwise.
Selection of a Target Business and Structuring of Our Initial Business
Combination
Subject to the limitations
that a target business have a fair market value of at least 80% of the balance in the trust account (excluding any deferred underwriting
discounts and commissions and taxes payable on the income earned on the trust account) at the time of the execution of a definitive agreement
for our initial business combination, as described below in more detail, our management will have virtually unrestricted flexibility in
identifying and selecting a prospective target business. We believe such factors will be important in evaluating prospective target businesses,
regardless of the location or industry in which such target business operates. Furthermore, we may decide to enter into a business combination
with a target business that does not meet these criteria and guidelines.
Any evaluation relating to
the merits of a particular business combination will be based, to the extent relevant, on the above factors as well as other considerations
deemed relevant by our management in effecting a business combination consistent with our business objective. In evaluating a prospective
target business, we will conduct an extensive due diligence review which will encompass, among other things, meetings with incumbent management
and inspection of facilities, as well as review of financial and other information which is made available to us. This due diligence review
will be conducted either by our management or by unaffiliated third parties we may engage, although we have no current intention to engage
any such third parties.
To the extent we effect our
initial business combination with a company or business that may be financially unstable or in its early stages of development or growth,
we may be affected by numerous risks inherent in such company or business. Although our management will endeavor to evaluate the risks
inherent in a particular target business, we cannot assure you that we will properly ascertain or assess all significant risk factors.
In evaluating a prospective target business, we expect to conduct a thorough due diligence review which will encompass, among other things,
meetings with incumbent management and employees, document reviews, inspection of facilities, as well as a review of financial, operational,
legal and other information which will be made available to us.
The time required to select
and evaluate a target business and to structure and complete our initial business combination, and the costs associated with this process,
are not currently ascertainable with any degree of certainty. Any costs incurred with respect to the identification and evaluation of
a prospective target business with which our initial business combination is not ultimately completed will result in our incurring losses
and will reduce the funds we can use to complete another business combination.
7
Lack of Business Diversification
For an indefinite period of time after the completion of our initial business combination, the prospects for our success may depend entirely on the future performance of a single business. Unlike other entities that have the resources to complete business combinations with multiple entities in one or several industries, it is probable that we will not have the resources to diversify our operations and mitigate the risks of being in a single line of business. By completing our initial business combination with only a single entity, our lack of diversification may:
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subject us to negative economic, competitive and regulatory developments, any or all of which may have a substantial adverse impact on the particular industry in which we operate after our initial business combination; and
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cause us to depend on the marketing and sale of a single product or limited number of products or services.
Limited Ability to Evaluate the Target’s Management Team
Although we intend to closely scrutinize the management of a prospective target business when evaluating the desirability of effecting our initial business combination with that business, our assessment of the target business’s management may not prove to be correct. In addition, the future management may not have the necessary skills, qualifications or abilities to manage a public company. Furthermore, the future role of members of our management team, if any, in the target business cannot presently be stated with any certainty. While it is possible that one or more of our directors will remain associated in some capacity with us following our initial business combination, it is unlikely that any of them will devote their full efforts to our affairs subsequent to our initial business combination. Moreover, we cannot assure you that members of our management team will have significant experience or knowledge relating to the operations of the particular target business.
We cannot assure you that any of our key personnel will remain in senior management or advisory positions with the combined company. The determination as to whether any of our key personnel will remain with the combined company will be made at the time of our initial business combination.
Following a business combination, we may seek to recruit additional managers to supplement the incumbent management of the target business. We cannot assure you that we will have the ability to recruit additional managers, or that such additional managers will have the requisite skills, knowledge or experience necessary to enhance the incumbent management.
Shareholders May Not Have the Ability to Approve Our Initial Business Combination
We may conduct redemptions without a shareholder vote pursuant to the tender offer rules of the SEC subject to the provisions of our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association. However, we will seek shareholder approval if it is required by law or applicable stock exchange rule, or we may decide to seek shareholder approval for business or other legal reasons.
Under the Nasdaq’s listing rules, shareholder approval would be required for our initial business combination if, for example:
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we issue ordinary shares that will be equal to or in excess of 20% of the number of ordinary shares then issued and outstanding (other than in a public offering);
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any of our directors, officers or substantial shareholders (as defined by Nasdaq rules) has a 5% or greater interest (or such persons collectively have a 10% or greater interest), directly or indirectly, in the target business or assets to be acquired or otherwise and the present or potential issuance of ordinary shares could result in an increase in issued and outstanding ordinary shares or voting power of 5% or more; or
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the issuance or potential issuance of ordinary shares will result in our undergoing a change of control.
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Permitted Purchases of Our Securities
In the event we seek shareholder approval of our initial business combination and we do not conduct redemptions in connection with our initial business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, our sponsor, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates may purchase shares out side of the redemption offer in compliance with the conditions set forth in SEC Tender Offer Rules and Schedules Compliance and Disclosure Interpretation 166.01 in privately negotiated transactions or in the open market either prior to or following the completion of our initial business combination. There is no limit on the number of shares such persons may purchase. However, they have no current commitments, plans or intentions to engage in such transactions and have not formulated any terms or conditions for any such transactions. In the event our sponsor, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates determine to make any such purchases at the time of a shareholder vote relating to our initial business combination, such purchases could have the effect of influencing the vote necessary to approve such transaction. None of the funds in the trust account will be used to purchase shares in such transactions. They will not make any such purchases when they are in possession of any material non-public information not disclosed to the seller or if such purchases are prohibited by Regulation M under the Exchange Act. Such a purchase may include a contractual acknowledgement that such shareholder, although still the record holder of our shares is no longer the beneficial owner thereof and therefore agrees not to exercise its redemption rights. We will adopt an insider trading policy which will require insiders to: (i) refrain from purchasing shares during certain blackout periods and when they are in possession of any material non-public information and (ii) to clear all trades with our legal counsel prior to execution. We cannot currently determine whether our insiders will make such purchases pursuant to a Rule 10b5-1 plan, as it will be dependent upon several factors, including but not limited to, the timing and size of such purchases. Depending on such circumstances, our insiders may either make such purchases pursuant to a Rule 10b5-1 plan or determine that such a plan is not necessary.
In the event that our sponsor, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates purchase shares in privately negotiated transactions from public shareholders who have already elected to exercise their redemption rights, such selling shareholders would be required to revoke their prior elections to redeem their shares. We do not currently anticipate that such purchases, if any, would constitute a tender offer subject to the tender offer rules under the Exchange Act or a going-private transaction subject to the going-private rules under the Exchange Act; however, if the purchasers determine at the time of any such purchases that the purchases are subject to such rules, the purchasers will comply with such rules.
The purpose of such purchases would be to (i) vote such shares in favor of the business combination and thereby increase the likelihood of obtaining shareholder approval of the business combination or (ii) to satisfy a closing condition in an agreement with a target that requires us to have a minimum net worth or a certain amount of cash at the closing of our initial business combination, where it appears that such requirement would otherwise not be met. This may result in the completion of our initial business combination that may not otherwise have been possible.
In addition, if such purchases are made, the public “float” of our ordinary shares may be reduced and the number of beneficial holders of our securities may be reduced, which may make it difficult to maintain or obtain the quotation, listing or trading of our securities on a national securities exchange.
Our sponsor, officers, directors, advisors and/or their affiliates anticipate that they may identify the shareholders with whom our sponsor, officers, directors, advisors or their affiliates may pursue privately negotiated purchases by either the shareholders contacting us directly or by our receipt of redemption requests submitted by shareholders following our mailing of proxy materials in connection with our initial business combination. To the extent that our sponsor, officers, directors or their affiliates enter into a private purchase, they would identify and contact only potential selling shareholders who have expressed their election to redeem their shares for a pro rata share of the trust account or vote against the business combination. Such persons would select the shareholders from whom to acquire shares based on the number of shares available, the negotiated price per share and such other factors as any such person may deem relevant at the time of purchase. The price per share paid in any such transaction may be different than the amount per share a public shareholder would receive if it elected to redeem its shares in connection with our initial business combination. Our sponsor, officers, directors, advisors or their affiliates will only purchase shares if such purchases comply with Regulation M under the Exchange Act and the other federal securities laws.
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Any purchases by our sponsor, officers, directors, advisors and/or their affiliates who are affiliated purchasers under Rule 10b-18 under the Exchange Act will only be made to the extent such purchases are able to be made in compliance with Rule 10b-18, which is a safe harbor from liability for manipulation under Section 9(a)(2) and Rule 10b-5 of the Exchange Act. Rule 10b-18 has certain technical requirements that must be complied with in order for the safe harbor to be available to the purchaser. Our sponsor, officers, directors, advisors and/or their affiliates will not make purchases of ordinary shares if the purchases would violate Section 9(a)(2) or Rule 10b-5 of the Exchange Act.
Redemption Rights for Public Shareholders upon Completion of Our Initial Business Combination
We will provide our public shareholders with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their ordinary shares upon the completion of our initial business combination at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account as of two business days prior to the consummation of the initial business combination, including interest (which interest shall be net of taxes payable) divided by the number of then issued and outstanding public shares, subject to the limitations described herein. The amount in the trust account is initially anticipated to be approximately $10.00 per public share. The per-share amount we will distribute to investors who properly redeem their shares will not be reduced by the deferred underwriting commissions we will pay to the underwriters. Our sponsor, officers and directors have entered into a letter agreement with us, pursuant to which they have agreed to waive their redemption rights with respect to their founder shares, private placement shares and any public shares they may hold in connection with the completion of our initial business combination.
Manner of Conducting Redemptions
We will provide our public shareholders with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their ordinary shares upon the completion of our initial business combination either (i) in connection with a shareholder meeting called to approve the business combination or (ii) by means of a tender offer. Shareholders will not be granted any right to redeem their securities in connection with any decision by us to extend the time frame to complete a business combination from 12 months to up to 24 months.
The decision as to whether we will seek shareholder approval of a proposed business combination or conduct a tender offer will be made by us, solely in our discretion, and will be based on a variety of factors such as the timing of the transaction and whether the terms of the transaction would require us to seek shareholder approval under the law or stock exchange listing requirement. Under Nasdaq rules, asset acquisitions and stock purchases would not typically require shareholder approval while direct mergers with our company where we do not survive and any transactions where we issue more than 20% of our issued and outstanding ordinary shares or seek to amend our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association would require shareholder approval. We intend to conduct redemptions without a shareholder vote pursuant to the tender offer rules of the SEC unless shareholder approval is required by law or stock exchange listing requirement or we choose to seek shareholder approval for business or other legal reasons. So long as we obtain and maintain a listing for our securities on the Nasdaq, we will be required to comply with Nasdaq rules.
If a shareholder vote is not required and we do not decide to hold a shareholder vote for business or other legal reasons, we will, pursuant to our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association:
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conduct the redemptions pursuant to Rule 13e-4 and Regulation 14E of the Exchange Act, which regulate issuer tender offers; and
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file tender offer documents with the SEC prior to completing our initial business combination which contain substantially the same financial and other information about the initial business combination and the redemption rights as is required under Regulation 14A of the Exchange Act, which regulates the solicitation of proxies.
Upon the public announcement of our initial business combination, we or our sponsor will terminate any plan established in accordance with Rule 10b5-1 to purchase our ordinary shares in the open market if we elect to redeem our public shares through a tender offer, to comply with Rule 14e-5 under the Exchange Act.
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In the event we conduct redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules, our offer to redeem will remain open for at least 20 business days, in accordance with Rule 14e-1(a) under the Exchange Act, and we will not be permitted to complete our initial business combination until the expiration of the tender offer period. In addition, the tender offer will be conditioned on public shareholders not tendering more than a specified number of public shares which are not purchased by our sponsor, which number will be based on the requirement that we may not redeem public shares in an amount that would cause our net tangible assets, after payment of the deferred underwriting commissions, to be less than $5,000,001 upon consummation of our initial business combination (so that we are not subject to the SEC’s “penny stock” rules) or any greater net tangible asset or cash requirement which may be contained in the agreement relating to our initial business combination. If public shareholders tender more shares than we have offered to purchase, we will withdraw the tender offer and not complete the initial business combination.
If, however, shareholder approval of the transaction is required by law or stock exchange listing requirement, or we decide to obtain shareholder approval for business or other legal reasons, we will, pursuant to our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association:
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conduct the redemptions in conjunction with a proxy solicitation pursuant to Regulation 14A of the Exchange Act, which regulates the solicitation of proxies, and not pursuant to the tender offer rules; and
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file proxy materials with the SEC.
We expect that a final proxy statement would be mailed to public shareholders at least 10 days prior to the shareholder vote. However, we expect that a draft proxy statement would be made available to such shareholders well in advance of such time, providing additional notice of redemption if we conduct redemptions in conjunction with a proxy solicitation. Although we are not required to do so, we currently intend to comply with the substantive and procedural requirements of Regulation 14A in connection with any shareholder vote even if we are not able to maintain our Nasdaq listing or Exchange Act registration.
In the event that we seek shareholder approval of our initial business combination, we will distribute proxy materials and, in connection therewith, provide our public shareholders with the redemption rights described above upon completion of the initial business combination.
If we seek shareholder approval,
we will complete our initial business combination only if a majority of the issued and outstanding ordinary shares voted are voted in
favor of the business combination. In such case, pursuant to the terms of a letter agreement entered into with us, our sponsor, officers
and directors have agreed (and their permitted transferees will agree) to vote any founder shares and private placement shares held by
them and any public shares purchased during or after the IPO in favor of our initial business combination. We expect that at the time
of any shareholder vote relating to our initial business combination, our sponsor and its permitted transferees will own approximately
39% of our issued and outstanding ordinary shares entitled to vote thereon. Each public shareholder may elect to redeem their public shares
irrespective of whether they vote for or against the proposed transaction. In addition, our sponsor, officers and directors have entered
into a letter agreement with us, pursuant to which they have agreed to waive their redemption rights with respect to their founder shares,
private placement shares and public shares in connection with the completion of a business combination.
Our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association provides that in no event will we redeem our public shares in an amount that would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001 upon consummation of our initial business combination (so that we are not subject to the SEC’s “penny stock” rules). Redemptions of our public shares may also be subject to a higher net tangible asset test or cash requirement pursuant to an agreement relating to our initial business combination. For example, the proposed business combination may require: (i) cash consideration to be paid to the target or its owners, (ii) cash to be transferred to the target for working capital or other general corporate purposes or (iii) the retention of cash to satisfy other conditions in accordance with the terms of the proposed business combination. In the event the aggregate cash consideration we would be required to pay for all ordinary shares that are validly submitted for redemption plus any amount required to satisfy cash conditions pursuant to the terms of the proposed business combination exceed the aggregate amount of cash available to us, we will not complete the business combination or redeem any shares, and all ordinary shares submitted for redemption will be returned to the holders thereof.
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Limitation on Redemption Upon Completion of Our Initial Business Combination If We Seek Shareholder Approval
Notwithstanding the foregoing, if we seek shareholder approval of our initial business combination and we do not conduct redemptions in connection with our initial business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association provides that a public shareholder, together with any affiliate of such shareholder or any other person with whom such shareholder is acting in concert or as a “group” (as defined under Section 13 of the Exchange Act), will be restricted from seeking redemption rights with respect to more than an aggregate of 15% of the shares sold in the IPO, which we refer to as the “Excess Shares.” We believe this restriction will discourage shareholders from accumulating large blocks of shares, and subsequent attempts by such holders to use their ability to exercise their redemption rights against a proposed business combination as a means to force us or our sponsor or its affiliates to purchase their shares at a significant premium to the then-current market price or on other undesirable terms. Absent this provision, a public shareholder holding more than an aggregate of 15% of the shares sold in the IPO could threaten to exercise its redemption rights if such holder’s shares are not purchased by us or our sponsor or its affiliates at a premium to the then-current market price or on other undesirable terms. By limiting our shareholders’ ability to redeem no more than 15% of the shares sold in the IPO, we believe we will limit the ability of a small group of shareholders to unreasonably attempt to block our ability to complete our initial business combination, particularly in connection with a business combination with a target that requires as a closing condition that we have a minimum net worth or a certain amount of cash. However, we would not be restricting our shareholders’ ability to vote all of their shares (including Excess Shares) for or against our initial business combination. Our sponsor, officers and directors have, pursuant to a letter agreement entered into with us, waived their right to have any founder shares or public shares held by them redeemed in connection with our initial business combination. Unless any of our other affiliates acquires founder shares through a permitted transfer from an initial shareholder, and thereby becomes subject to the letter agreement, no such affiliate is subject to this waiver. However, to the extent any such affiliate acquires public shares in the IPO or thereafter through open market purchases, it would be a public shareholder and restricted from seeking redemption rights with respect to any Excess Shares.
Tendering Share Certificates in Connection with a Tender Offer or Redemption Rights
We may require our public shareholders seeking to exercise their redemption rights, whether they are record holders or hold their shares in “street name,” to either tender their certificates (if any) to our transfer agent prior to the date set forth in the tender offer documents, or up to two business days prior to the vote on the proposal to approve the business combination in the event we distribute proxy materials, or to deliver their shares to the transfer agent electronically using The Depository Trust Company’s DWAC (Deposit/Withdrawal At Custodian) System, rather than simply voting against the initial business combination. The tender offer or proxy materials, as applicable, that we will furnish to holders of our public shares in connection with our initial business combination will indicate whether we are requiring public shareholders to satisfy such delivery requirements. Accordingly, a public shareholder would have from the time we send out our tender offer materials until the close of the tender offer period, or up to two days prior to the vote on the business combination if we distribute proxy materials, as applicable, to tender its shares if it wishes to seek to exercise its redemption rights. Pursuant to the tender offer rules, the tender offer period will be not less than 20 business days and, in the case of a shareholder vote, a final proxy statement would be mailed to public shareholders at least 10 days prior to the shareholder vote. However, we expect that a draft proxy statement would be made available to such shareholders well in advance of such time, providing additional notice of redemption if we conduct redemptions in conjunction with a proxy solicitation. Given the relatively short exercise period, it is advisable for shareholders to use electronic delivery of their public shares.
There is a nominal cost associated with the above-referenced tendering process and the act of certificating the shares or delivering them through the DWAC System. The transfer agent will typically charge the tendering broker $80.00 and it would be up to the broker whether or not to pass this cost on to the redeeming holder. However, this fee would be incurred regardless of whether or not we require holders seeking to exercise redemption rights to tender their shares. The need to deliver shares is a requirement of exercising redemption rights regardless of the timing of when such delivery must be effectuated.
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The foregoing is different from the procedures used by many blank check companies. In order to perfect redemption rights in connection with their business combinations, many blank check companies would distribute proxy materials for the shareholders’ vote on an initial business combination, and a holder could simply vote against a proposed business combination and check a box on the proxy card indicating such holder was seeking to exercise his or her redemption rights. After the business combination was approved, the company would contact such shareholder to arrange for him or her to deliver his or her certificate to verify ownership. As a result, the shareholder then had an “option window” after the completion of the business combination during which he or she could monitor the price of the company’s shares in the market. If the price rose above the redemption price, he or she could sell his or her shares in the open market before actually delivering his or her shares to the company for cancellation. As a result, the redemption rights, to which shareholders were aware they needed to commit before the shareholder meeting, would become “option” rights surviving past the completion of the business combination until the redeeming holder delivered its certificate. The requirement for physical or electronic delivery prior to the meeting ensures that a redeeming holder’s election to redeem is irrevocable once the business combination is approved.
Any request to redeem such shares, once made, may be withdrawn at any time up to the date set forth in the tender offer materials or the date of the shareholder meeting set forth in our proxy materials, as applicable. Furthermore, if a holder of a public share delivered its certificate in connection with an election of redemption rights and subsequently decides prior to the applicable date not to elect to exercise such rights, such holder may simply request that the transfer agent return the certificate (physically or electronically). It is anticipated that the funds to be distributed to holders of our public shares electing to redeem their shares will be distributed promptly after the completion of our initial business combination.
If our initial business combination is not approved or completed for any reason, then our public shareholders who elected to exercise their redemption rights would not be entitled to redeem their shares for the applicable pro rata share of the trust account. In such case, we will promptly return any certificates delivered by public holders who elected to redeem their shares.
Redemption of Public Shares and Liquidation if No Initial Business Combination
If we are unable to complete our initial business combination within the Prescribed Time Frame as described in this section above, we will: (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up, (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than ten business days thereafter, redeem the public shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, including interest (less up to $50,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses (which interest shall be net of taxes payable) divided by the number of then issued and outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public shareholders’ rights as shareholders (including the right to receive further liquidation distributions, if any), subject to applicable law, and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining shareholders and our board of directors, liquidate and dissolve, subject in each case to our obligations under Cayman Islands law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. There will be no redemption rights or liquidating distributions with respect to our rights, which will expire worthless if we fail to complete our initial business combination within the Prescribed Time Frame.
Our sponsor, officers and directors have entered into a letter agreement with us, pursuant to which they have waived their rights to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to their founder shares and private placement shares if we fail to complete our initial business combination within the Prescribed Time Frame. However, if our sponsor acquires public shares after the IPO, they will be entitled to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to such public shares if we fail to complete our initial business combination within the Prescribed Time Frame.
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Our sponsor, officers and directors have agreed, pursuant to a written letter agreement with us, that they will not propose any amendment to our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association that would (i) modify the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within the Prescribed Time Frame, or (ii) with respect to the other provisions relating to shareholders’ rights or pre-business combination activity, unless we provide our public shareholders with the opportunity to redeem their ordinary shares upon approval of any such amendment at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, including interest (which interest shall be net of taxes payable) divided by the number of then issued and outstanding public shares. However, we may not redeem our public shares in an amount that would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001 upon consummation of our initial business combination (so that we are not subject to the SEC’s “penny stock” rules). If this optional redemption right is exercised with respect to an excessive number of public shares such that we cannot satisfy the net tangible asset requirement (described above), we would not proceed with the amendment or the related redemption of our public shares.
We expect that all costs
and expenses associated with implementing our plan of dissolution, as well as payments to any creditors, will be funded from any amounts
held outside the trust account, although we cannot assure you that there will be sufficient funds for such purpose.
If we were to expend all
of the net proceeds of the IPO and the sale of the private placement units, other than the proceeds deposited in the trust account, and
without taking into account interest, if any, earned on the trust account, the per-share redemption amount received by shareholders upon
our dissolution would be approximately $10.00 (subject to increases from the deposit of additional extension fees in the event that our
sponsor elects to extend the period of time to consummate a business combination, as described in more detail in this Annual Report).
The proceeds deposited in the trust account could, however, become subject to the claims of our creditors which would have higher priority
than the claims of our public shareholders. We cannot assure you that the actual per-share redemption amount received by shareholders
will not be substantially less than $10.00. While we intend to pay such amounts, if any, we cannot assure you that we will have funds
sufficient to pay or provide for all creditors’ claims.
Although we will seek to have all vendors, service providers, prospective target businesses or other entities with which we do business execute agreements with us waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to any monies held in the trust account for the benefit of our public shareholders, there is no guarantee that they will execute such agreements or even if they execute such agreements that they would be prevented from bringing claims against the trust account including but not limited to fraudulent inducement, breach of fiduciary responsibility or other similar claims, as well as claims challenging the enforceability of the waiver, in each case in order to gain an advantage with respect to a claim against our assets, including the funds held in the trust account. If any third party refuses to execute an agreement waiving such claims to the monies held in the trust account, our management will perform an analysis of the alternatives available to it and will only enter into an agreement with a third party that has not executed a waiver if management believes that such third party’s engagement would be significantly more beneficial to us than any alternative. Examples of possible instances where we may engage a third party that refuses to execute a waiver include the engagement of a third-party consultant whose particular expertise or skills are believed by management to be significantly superior to those of other consultants that would agree to execute a waiver or in cases where management is unable to find a service provider willing to execute a waiver. In addition, there is no guarantee that such entities will agree to waive any claims they may have in the future as a result of, or arising out of, any negotiations, contracts or agreements with us and will not seek recourse against the trust account for any reason. Upon redemption of our public shares, if we are unable to complete our initial business combination within the Prescribed Time Frame, or upon the exercise of a redemption right in connection with our initial business combination, we will be required to provide for payment of claims of creditors that were not waived that may be brought against us within the 10 years following redemption. Our sponsor has agreed that it will be liable to us if and to the extent any claims by a vendor for services rendered or products sold to us, or a prospective target business with which we have discussed entering into a transaction agreement, reduce the amount of funds in the trust account to below (i) $10.00 per public share or (ii) such lesser amount per public share held in the trust account as of the date of the liquidation of the trust account, due to reductions in value of the trust assets, in each case net of the amount of interest which may be withdrawn to pay taxes, except as to any claims by a third party who executed a waiver of any and all rights to seek access to the trust account and except as to any claims under our indemnity of the underwriters of the IPO against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. In the event that an executed waiver is deemed to be unenforceable against a third party, then our sponsor will not be responsible to the extent of any liability for such third-party claims. We have not independently verified whether our sponsor has sufficient funds to satisfy their indemnity obligations and believe that our sponsor’s only assets are securities of our company. None of our other officers will indemnify us for claims by third parties including, without limitation, claims by vendors and prospective target businesses.
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In the event that the proceeds in the trust account are reduced below (i) $10.00 per public share or (ii) such lesser amount per public share held in the trust account as of the date of the liquidation of the trust account, due to reductions in value of the trust assets, in each case net of the amount of interest which may be withdrawn to pay taxes, and our sponsor asserts that it is unable to satisfy its indemnification obligations or that it has no indemnification obligations related to a particular claim, our independent directors would determine whether to take legal action against our sponsor to enforce its indemnification obligations. While we currently expect that our independent directors would take legal action on our behalf against our sponsor to enforce its indemnification obligations to us, it is possible that our independent directors in exercising their business judgment may choose not to do so in any particular instance. Accordingly, we cannot assure you that due to claims of creditors the actual value of the per-share redemption price will not be substantially less than $10.00 per share.
We will seek to reduce the possibility that our sponsor will have to indemnify the trust account due to claims of creditors by endeavoring to have all vendors, service providers, prospective target businesses or other entities with which we do business execute agreements with us waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to monies held in the trust account. Our sponsor will also not be liable as to any claims under our indemnity of the underwriters of the IPO against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. In the event that we liquidate and it is subsequently determined that the reserve for claims and liabilities is insufficient, shareholders who received funds from our trust account could be liable for claims made by creditors. In the event that our offering expenses exceed our estimate of costs and expenses incurred in connection with our liquidation, we may fund such excess with funds from the funds not to be held in the trust account. In such case, the amount of funds we intend to be held outside the trust account would decrease by a corresponding amount. Conversely, in the event that the offering expenses are less than our estimate of costs and expenses incurred in connection with our liquidation, the amount of funds we intend to be held outside the trust account would increase by a corresponding amount.
If we file a bankruptcy petition
or an involuntary bankruptcy petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, the proceeds held in the trust account could be subject
to applicable bankruptcy law, and may be included in our bankruptcy estate and subject to the claims of third parties with priority over
the claims of our shareholders. To the extent any bankruptcy claims deplete the trust account, we cannot assure you we will be able to
return $10.00 per share to our public shareholders. Additionally, if we file a bankruptcy petition or an involuntary bankruptcy
petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, any distributions received by shareholders could be viewed under applicable debtor/creditor
and/or bankruptcy laws as either a “preferential transfer” or a “fraudulent conveyance.” As a result, a bankruptcy
court could seek to recover all amounts received by our shareholders. Furthermore, our board may be viewed as having breached its fiduciary
duty to our creditors and/or may have acted in bad faith, and thereby exposing itself and our company to claims of punitive damages, by
paying public shareholders from the trust account prior to addressing the claims of creditors. We cannot assure you that claims will not
be brought against us for these reasons.
Our public shareholders will be entitled to receive funds from the trust account only upon the earlier of (i) the completion of our initial business combination, (ii) the redemption of any public shares properly tendered in connection with a shareholder vote to amend our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association to (A) modify the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within the Prescribed Time Frame or (B) with respect to any other provision relating to shareholders’ rights or pre-business combination activity and (iii) the redemption of all of our public shares if we are unable to complete our initial business combination within the Prescribed Time Frame, subject to applicable law. In no other circumstances will a shareholder have any right or interest of any kind to or in the trust account. In the event we seek shareholder approval in connection with our initial business combination, a shareholder’s voting in connection with the business combination alone will not result in a shareholder’s redeeming its shares to us for an applicable pro rata share of the trust account. Such shareholder must have also exercised its redemption rights described above.
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Amended and Restated Memorandum and Articles of Association
Our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association contains certain requirements and restrictions relating to the IPO that applies to us until the consummation of our initial business combination. If we seek to amend any provisions of our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association relating to shareholders’ rights or pre-business combination activity, we will provide dissenting public shareholders with the opportunity to redeem their public shares in connection with any such vote. Our sponsor, officers and directors have agreed to waive any redemption rights with respect to their founder shares, private placement shares and public shares in connection with the completion of our initial business combination. Specifically, our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association provide, among other things, that:
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prior to the consummation of our initial business combination, we shall either (1) seek shareholder approval of our initial business combination at a meeting called for such purpose at which shareholders may seek to redeem their shares, regardless of whether they vote for or against the proposed business combination, into their pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, including interest (which interest shall be net of taxes payable) or (2) provide our public shareholders with the opportunity to tender their shares to us by means of a tender offer (and thereby avoid the need for a shareholder vote) for an amount equal to their pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, including interest (which interest shall be net of taxes payable) in each case subject to the limitations described herein;
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we will consummate our initial business combination only if we have net tangible assets of at least $5,000,001 upon such consummation and, solely if we seek shareholder approval, a majority of the issued and outstanding ordinary shares voted are voted in favor of the business combination;
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if our initial business combination is not consummated within the Prescribed Time Frame, as described in more detail in this Annual Report), then our existence will terminate and we will distribute all amounts in the trust account; and
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prior to our initial business combination, we may not issue additional ordinary shares that would entitle the holders thereof to (i) receive funds from the trust account or (ii) vote on any initial business combination.
These provisions cannot be amended without the approval of holders of at least two-thirds of our ordinary shares. In the event we seek shareholder approval in connection with our initial business combination, our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association provides that we may consummate our initial business combination only if approved by a majority of the ordinary shares voted by our shareholders at a duly held shareholders meeting.
Competition
In identifying, evaluating and selecting a target business for our initial business combination, we may encounter intense competition from other entities having a business objective similar to ours, including other blank check companies, private equity groups and leveraged buyout funds, and operating businesses seeking strategic acquisitions. Many of these entities are well established and have extensive experience identifying and effecting business combinations directly or through affiliates. Moreover, many of these competitors possess greater financial, technical, human and other resources than us. Our ability to acquire larger target businesses will be limited by our available financial resources. This inherent limitation gives others an advantage in pursuing the acquisition of a target business. Furthermore, our obligation to pay cash in connection with our public shareholders who exercise their redemption rights may reduce the resources available to us for our initial business combination and our outstanding rights, and the future dilution they potentially represent, may not be viewed favorably by certain target businesses. Either of these factors may place us at a competitive disadvantage in successfully negotiating an initial business combination.
Facilities
We currently maintain our executive offices at 26 Broadway, Suite 934, New York, New York 10004. The cost for this space of $99 per month is included in the $10,000 per month fee that we will pay an affiliate of our sponsor for office space, administrative and support services. Our sponsor also will make available to us additional office facilities in China which costs would be included in the administrative services agreement entered into with our sponsor. We consider our current office space adequate for our current operations.
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Employees
We currently have two executive officers. Members of our management team are not obligated to devote any specific number of hours to our matters, but they intend to devote as much of their time as they deem necessary to our affairs until we have completed our initial business combination. The amount of time that our officers or any other members of our management team will devote in any time period will vary based on whether a target business has been selected for our initial business combination and the current stage of the business combination process.
Corporate Information
We are a Cayman Islands exempted company incorporated on May 14, 2018. Our executive offices are located at 26 Broadway, Suite 934, New York, New York 10004, and our telephone number is (212) 884-2667.
We are required to file Annual Reports on Form 10-K and Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q with the SEC on a regular basis, and are required to disclose certain material events in Current Reports on Form 8-K. The SEC maintains an Internet website that contains reports, proxy and information statements and other information regarding issuers that file electronically with the SEC. The SEC’s Internet Website is located at http://www.sec.gov. In addition, we will provide copies of these documents by contacting us at the address, telephone number or facsimile number as described above.
Periodic Reporting and Financial Information
We have registered our units, ordinary shares and rights under the Exchange Act and have reporting obligations, including the requirement that we file annual, quarterly and current reports with the SEC. In accordance with the requirements of the Exchange Act, our annual reports will contain financial statements audited and reported on by our independent registered public accountants.
We will provide shareholders with audited financial statements of the prospective target business as part of the tender offer materials or proxy solicitation materials sent to shareholders to assist them in assessing the target business. These financial statements may be required to be prepared in accordance with, or be reconciled to, U.S. GAAP, or IFRS, depending on the circumstances and the historical financial statements may be required to be audited in accordance with the PCAOB. These financial statement requirements may limit the pool of potential target businesses we may acquire because some targets may be unable to provide such statements in time for us to disclose such statements in accordance with federal proxy rules and complete our initial business combination within the Prescribed Time Frame. While this may limit the pool of potential acquisition candidates, we do not believe that this limitation will be material.
We are not required to comply
with the independent registered public accounting firm attestation requirement on our internal control over financial reporting. A target
company may not be in compliance with the provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act regarding adequacy of their internal controls. The development
of the internal controls of any such entity to achieve compliance with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act may increase the time and costs necessary
to complete any such acquisition.
We have filed a Registration Statement on Form 8-A with the SEC to voluntarily register our securities under Section 12 of the Exchange Act. As a result, we are subject to the rules and regulations promulgated under the Exchange Act. We have no current intention of filing a Form 15 to suspend our reporting or other obligations under the Exchange Act prior or subsequent to the consummation of our initial business combination.
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We are an “emerging growth company,” as defined in Section 2(a) of the Securities Act, as modified by the JOBS Act. As such, we are eligible to take advantage of certain exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other public companies that are not “emerging growth companies” including, but not limited to, not being required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports and proxy statements, and exemptions from the requirements of holding a non-binding advisory vote on executive compensation and shareholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved. If some investors find our securities less attractive as a result, there may be a less active trading market for our securities and the prices of our securities may be more volatile.
In addition, Section 107 of the JOBS Act also provides that an “emerging growth company” can take advantage of the extended transition period provided in Section 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act for complying with new or revised accounting standards. In other words, an “emerging growth company” can delay the adoption of certain accounting standards until those standards would otherwise apply to private companies. We intend to take advantage of the benefits of this extended transition period.
We will remain an emerging growth company until the earlier of (1) the last day of the fiscal year (a) following the fifth anniversary of the completion of the IPO, (b) in which we have total annual gross revenue of at least $1.235 billion, or (c) in which we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer, which means we have been a public company for at least 12 months and the market value of our ordinary shares that is held by non-affiliates exceeds $700 million as of the prior June 30th, and (2) the date on which we have issued more than $1.0 billion in non-convertible debt securities during the prior three-year period. References herein to “emerging growth company” shall have the meaning associated with it in the JOBS Act.
Additionally, we are a “smaller reporting company” as defined in Item 10(f)(1) of Regulation S-K. Smaller reporting companies may take advantage of certain reduced disclosure obligations, including, among other things, providing only two years of audited financial statements. We will remain a smaller reporting company until the last day of any fiscal year for so long as either (1) the market value of our ordinary shares held by non-affiliates is less than $250 million as of the end of that year’s second fiscal quarter or (2) our annual revenues are less than $100 million during such completed fiscal year and the market value of our ordinary shares held by non-affiliates is less than $700 million as of the end of that year’s second fiscal quarter.
Legal Proceedings
There is no material litigation, arbitration or governmental proceeding currently pending against us or any members of our management team in their capacity as such.
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Summary
of Risk Factors
An
investment in our securities involves a high degree of risk. You should consider carefully all of the risks described below, together
with the other information contained in this Annual Report, before making a decision to invest in our securities. If any of the following
events occur, our business, financial condition and operating results may be materially adversely affected. In that event, the trading
price of our securities could decline, and you could lose all or part of your investment. Such risks include, but are not limited to
the factors set forth below, which is neither complete nor exhaustive. For detailed information please see the rest of