Principal Activities, Basis of Presentation and Organization

6 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2013

Principal Activities, Basis of Presentation and Organization [Text Block]

1. Principal Activities, Basis of Presentation and Organization

Principal Activities

China BAK Battery, Inc. (“China BAK”) is a corporation formed in the State of Nevada on October 4, 1999 as Medina Copy, Inc. The Company changed its name to Medina Coffee, Inc. on October 6, 1999 and subsequently changed its name to China BAK Battery, Inc. on February 14, 2005. China BAK and its subsidiaries (hereinafter, collectively referred to as the “Company”) are principally engaged in the manufacture, commercialization and distribution of a wide variety of standard and customized lithium ion (known as "Li-ion" or "Li-ion cell") rechargeable batteries for use in cellular telephones, as well as various other portable electronic applications, including high-power handset telephones, laptop computers, power tools, digital cameras, video camcorders, MP3 players, electric bicycles, hybrid/electric motors, and general industrial applications.

The shares of the Company traded in the over-the-counter market through the Over-the-Counter Bulletin Board from 2005 until May 31, 2006, when the Company obtained approval to list its common stock on The NASDAQ Global Market, and trading commenced that same date under the symbol "CBAK".

Basis of Presentation and Organization

As of March 31, 2013, the Company’s subsidiaries consisted of: i) BAK International Limited (“BAK International”), a wholly owned limited liability company incorporated in Hong Kong on December 29, 2003 as BATCO International Limited, which changed its name to BAK International Limited on November 3, 2004; ii) Shenzhen BAK Battery Co., Ltd. (“Shenzhen BAK”), a wholly owned limited liability company established on August 3, 2001 in the People’s Republic of China (“PRC”); iii) BAK Electronics (Shenzhen) Co., Ltd. (“BAK Electronics”), a wholly owned limited liability company established on August 15, 2005 in the PRC; iv) BAK International (Tianjin) Ltd. (“BAK Tianjin”), a wholly owned limited liability company established on December 12, 2006 in the PRC; v) BAK Battery Canada Ltd. (“BAK Canada”), a wholly owned limited liability company established on December 20, 2006 in Canada as BAK Canada Battery Ltd., which changed its name to BAK Battery Canada Ltd. on December 22, 2006; vi) BAK Europe GmbH (“BAK Europe”), a wholly owned limited liability company established in Germany on November 28, 2007; vii) BAK Telecom India Private Limited (“BAK India”), a wholly owned limited liability company established in India on August 14, 2008; and viii) Tianjin Meicai New Materials Technology Co., Ltd. (“Tianjin Meicai”), a wholly owned limited liability company established on February 22, 2011 in the PRC. As of March 31, 2013, BAK International beneficially owns 100% of BAK India partly through a nominee agreement with one of its employees.

BAK Tianjin was established in Tianjin Technology Industrial District on December 12, 2006 as a wholly owned subsidiary of BAK International with registered capital of $99,990,000. Pursuant to BAK Tianjin’s articles of association and relevant PRC regulations, BAK International was required to contribute $20,000,000 to BAK Tianjin as capital (representing 20% of BAK Tianjin’s registered capital) before March 11, 2007. An extension from the Business Administration Bureau of Beichen District, Tianjin, was obtained to make this contribution no later than December 11, 2007. On November 16, 2007, BAK International contributed approximately $20,000,000 capital to BAK Tianjin. The remaining $79,990,000 was originally required to be fully contributed no later than December 11, 2008 and an extension from the Business Administration Bureau of Beichen District, Tianjin, was obtained to make this contribution no later than December 11, 2009. On November 16, 2009, BAK International contributed approximately $9,000,000 capital to BAK Tianjin and as of November 16, 2009, the total contribution from BAK International was $29,000,000. The remaining $70,990,000 was originally required to be fully contributed no later than December 11, 2009 and an extension from the Business Administration Bureau of Beichen District, Tianjin, was obtained to make this contribution no later than December 2012. In August 2011, BAK International contributed approximately $21,000,000 capital to BAK Tianjin and as of September 30, 2011 and September 30, 2012, the total contribution from BAK International was $50,000,000. On September 17, 2012, BAK Tianjin issued an application with respect to the decrease of capital from $99,990,000 to $50,000,000. On November 27, 2012 the Business Administration Bureau of Beichen District, Tianjin, approved the request of BAK Tianjin’s capital reduction. According to the approval, the BAK Tianjin’s aggregate investment still remains at $99,990,000 while the registered capital was reduced to $50,000,000. BAK Tianjin is principally engaged in the manufacture of larger lithium ion batteries for use in cordless power tools and various types of vehicles.

On November 6, 2004, BAK International, a non-operating holding company that had substantially the same shareholders as Shenzhen BAK, entered into a share swap transaction with the shareholders of Shenzhen BAK for the purpose of the subsequent reverse acquisition of the Company as described below. Pursuant to the terms of the share swap transaction, BAK International acquired all of the outstanding shares of Shenzhen BAK for $11.5 million in cash, while the shareholders of Shenzhen BAK acquired substantially all of the outstanding shares of BAK International for $11.5 million in cash. As a result, Shenzhen BAK became a wholly-owned subsidiary of BAK International. After the share swap transaction was completed, there were 31,225,642 shares of BAK International stock outstanding, exactly the same as the number of shares of capital stock of Shenzhen BAK that had been outstanding immediately prior to the share swap, and the shareholders of BAK International were substantially the same as the shareholders of Shenzhen BAK prior to the share swap. Consequently, the share swap transaction between BAK International and the shareholders of Shenzhen BAK was accounted for as a reverse acquisition of Shenzhen BAK with no adjustment to the historical basis of the assets and liabilities of Shenzhen BAK.

On January 20, 2005, the Company completed a share swap transaction with the shareholders of BAK International. The share swap transaction, also referred to as the “reverse acquisition” of the Company, was consummated under Nevada law pursuant to the terms of a Securities Exchange Agreement entered by and among China BAK, BAK International and the shareholders of BAK International on January 20, 2005. Pursuant to the Securities Exchange Agreement, the Company issued 7,965,215 shares of common stock, par value $0.001 per share, to the shareholders of BAK International (including 6,245,128 shares to the original shareholders and 1,720,087 shares to new investors who had purchased shares in the private placement described below), representing approximately 97.2% of the Company’s post-exchange issued and outstanding common stock, in exchange for 100% of the outstanding capital stock of BAK International.

The share swap transaction has been accounted for as a capital-raising transaction of the Company whereby the historical financial statements and operations of Shenzhen BAK are consolidated using historical carrying amounts. The 1,152,458 shares of China BAK outstanding prior to the stock exchange transaction were accounted for at the net book value at the time of the transaction, which was a deficit of $1,672.

Also on January 20, 2005, immediately prior to consummating the share swap transaction, BAK International executed a private placement of its common stock with unrelated investors whereby it issued an aggregate of 1,720,087 shares of common stock for gross proceeds of $17,000,000. In conjunction with this financing, Mr. Xiangqian Li, the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Company, agreed to place 435,910 shares of the Company's common stock owned by him into an escrow account pursuant to an Escrow Agreement dated January 20, 2005 (the “Escrow Agreement”). Pursuant to the Escrow Agreement, 50% of the escrowed shares were to be released to the investors in the private placement if audited net income of the Company for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2005 was not at least $12,000,000, and the remaining 50% was to be released to investors in the private placement if audited net income of the Company for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2006 was not at least $27,000,000. If the audited net income of the Company for the fiscal years ended September 30, 2005 and 2006 reached the above-mentioned targets, the 435,910 shares would be released to Mr. Xiangqian Li in the amount of 50% upon reaching the 2005 target and the remaining 50% upon reaching the 2006 target.

Under accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“US GAAP”), escrow agreements such as the one established by Mr. Xiangqian Li generally constitute compensation if, following attainment of a performance threshold, shares are returned to a company officer. The Company determined that without consideration of the compensation charge, the performance thresholds for the year ended September 30, 2005 would be achieved. However, after consideration of a related compensation charge, the Company determined that such thresholds would not have been achieved. The Company also determined that, even without consideration of a compensation charge, the performance thresholds for the year ended September 30, 2006 would not be achieved. No compensation charge was recorded by the Company for the years ended September 30, 2005 and 2006.

While the 217,955 escrow shares relating to the 2005 performance threshold were previously released to Mr. Xiangqian Li, Mr. Xiangqian Li executed a further undertaking on August 21, 2006 to return those shares to the escrow agent for the distribution to the relevant investors. However, such shares were not returned to the escrow agent, but, pursuant to a Delivery of Make Good Shares, Settlement and Release Agreement between the Company, BAK International and Mr. Li entered into on October 22, 2007 (the “Li Settlement Agreement”), such shares were ultimately delivered to the Company as described below. Because the Company failed to satisfy the performance threshold for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2006, the remaining 217,955 escrow shares relating to the fiscal year 2006 performance threshold were released to the relevant investors. As Mr. Li has not retained any of the shares placed into escrow, and as the investors party to the Escrow Agreement are only shareholders of the Company and do not have and are not expected to have any other relationship to the Company, the Company has not recorded a compensation charge for the years ended September 30, 2005 and 2006.

At the time the escrow shares relating to the 2006 performance threshold were transferred to the investors in fiscal year 2007, the Company should have recognized a credit to donated shares and a debit to additional paid-in capital, both of which are elements of shareholders’ equity. This entry is not material because total ordinary shares issued and outstanding, total shareholders’ equity and total assets do not change; nor is there any impact on income or earnings per share. Therefore, previously filed consolidated financial statements for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2007 will not be restated. This share transfer has been reflected in these financial statements by reclassifying the balances of certain items as of October 1, 2007. The balances of donated shares and additional paid-in capital as of October 1, 2007 were credited and debited by $7,955,358 respectively, as set out in the consolidated statements of shareholders’ equity.

In November 2007, Mr. Xiangqian Li delivered the 217,955 shares related to the 2005 performance threshold to BAK International pursuant to the Li Settlement Agreement; BAK International in turn delivered the shares to the Company. Such shares (other than those issued to investors pursuant to the 2008 Settlement Agreements, as described below) are now held by the Company. Upon receipt of these shares, the Company and BAK International released all claims and causes of action against Mr. Xiangqian Li regarding the shares, and Mr. Xiangqian Li released all claims and causes of action against the Company and BAK International regarding the shares. Under the terms of the Li Settlement Agreement, the Company commenced negotiations with the investors who participated in the Company’s January 2005 private placement in order to achieve a complete settlement of BAK International’s obligations (and the Company’s obligations to the extent it has any) under the applicable agreements with such investors.

Beginning on March 13, 2008, the Company has entered into settlement agreements (the “2008 Settlement Agreements”) with certain investors in the January 2005 private placement. Since the other investors have never submitted any claims regarding this matter, the Company did not reach any settlement with them.

Pursuant to the 2008 Settlement Agreements, the Company and the settling investors have agreed, without any admission of liability, to a settlement and mutual release from all claims relating to the January 2005 private placement, including all claims relating to the escrow shares related to the 2005 performance threshold that had been placed into escrow by Mr. Xiangqian Li, as well as all claims, including claims for liquidated damages relating to registration rights granted in connection with the January 2005 private placement. Under the 2008 Settlement Agreement, the Company has made settlement payments to each of the settling investors of the number of shares of the Company’s common stock equivalent to 50% of the number of the escrow shares related to the 2005 performance threshold these investors had claimed; aggregate settlement payments as of March 31, 2013 amounted to 73,749 shares. Share payments to date have been made in reliance upon the exemptions from registration provided by Section 4(2) and/or other applicable provisions of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended. In accordance with the 2008 Settlement Agreements, the Company filed a registration statement covering the resale of such shares which was declared effective by the SEC on June 26, 2008. As of March 31, 2013, we have not received any claim from the other investors who have not been covered by the “2008 Settlement Agreements” in the January 2005 private placement.

Pursuant to the Li Settlement Agreement, the 2008 Settlement Agreements and upon the release of the 217,955 escrow shares relating to the fiscal year 2006 performance threshold to the relevant investors, neither Mr. Li or the Company have any obligations to the investors who participated in the Company’s January 2005 private placement relating to the escrow shares.  As of March 31, 2013, we have not received any claim from the other investors who have not been covered by the “2008 Settlement Agreements” in the January 2005 private placement.

As we have transferred the 217,955 shares related to the 2006 performance threshold to the relevant investors in fiscal year 2007 and we also have transferred 73,749 shares relating to the 2005 performance threshold to the investors who had entered the “2008 Settlement Agreements” with us in fiscal year 2008, pursuant to “Li Settlement Agreement” and “2008 Settlement Agreements”, neither Mr. Li nor the Company has not had any remaining obligations to those related investors who participated in the Company’s January 2005 private placement relating to the escrow shares.

On October 26, 2012, the Company effected a 1 -for-5 reverse stock split of its issued and outstanding shares of common stock and a proportional reduction of its authorized shares of common stock. All common share and per share amounts, and exercise prices of common stock options disclosed herein and in the accompanying consolidated unaudited financial statements have been retroactively restated to reflect the reverse stock split.

The Company’s condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared under accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“US GAAP”).

These condensed consolidated financial statements are unaudited. In the opinion of management, all adjustments and disclosures necessary for a fair presentation of these condensed consolidated financial statements, which are of a normal and recurring nature, have been included. The results reported in the condensed consolidated financial statements for any interim periods are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be reported for the entire year. The following (a) condensed consolidated balance sheet as of September 30, 2012, which was derived from the Company’s audited financial statements, and (b) the unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared pursuant to the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Certain information and note disclosures normally included in annual financial statements prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States have been condensed or omitted pursuant to those rules and regulations, though the Company believes that the disclosures made are adequate to make the information not misleading. These unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the audited consolidated financial statements and accompanying footnotes of the Company for the year ended September 30, 2012.

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with US GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosures of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting periods. Actual results could differ from those estimates. This basis of accounting differs in certain material respects from that used for the preparation of the books of account of the Company’s principal subsidiaries, which are prepared in accordance with the accounting principles and the relevant financial regulations applicable to enterprises with limited liabilities established in the PRC, Hong Kong, India, Canada or Germany, the accounting standards used in the places of their domicile. The accompanying condensed consolidated financial statements reflect necessary adjustments not recorded in the books of account of the Company's subsidiaries to present them in conformity with US GAAP.

The Company has a working capital deficiency, accumulated deficit from recurring net losses incurred for the current period and prior years and significant short-term debt obligations maturing in less than one year as of September 30, 2012 and March 31, 2013. These factors raise substantial doubts about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern.

The Company accordingly has continued to develop a strategic plan (the “Turnaround Plan”). Under the Turnaround Plan, the Company will expand OEM market with new marketing strategies to increase revenue. At the same time, the Company will continue implementing cost reductions on both manufacturing costs and operating expenses to improve profit margins as well as reducing receivables outstanding through stronger credit controls. Due to adverse market conditions, the Company’s gross profit decreased from 9.7% in the six months ended March 31, 2012 to a gross loss of 7.2% in the same period of 2013. The Company intends to improve gross margin through the following measures:-

• Give production priority to orders for higher margin products
• Expand our customer base in the electric vehicle and polymer market who often procure higher margin cylindrical and polymer products from the Company
• Improve productivity to mitigate the negative impact of increasing production costs

Under the Turnaround Plan, the Company expects to obtain government grant income with respect to the R&D project “key materials, Battery and Battery Pack for use in Electric Vehicles” which was selected into the National Support List for the New-Energy Vehicle Industry Innovation Program. Also, the Company expects to complete the construction of the new corporate campus (Note 6) in the third quarter of 2013 and receive rental income from leasing of premises of the new corporate campus not occupied by the Company for its own use, from quarter 3 of FY2013, which will generate further positive cash flows to the Company’s operating activities.

The accompanying condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared assuming the Company will continue to operate as a going concern, which contemplates the realization of assets and the settlement of liabilities in the normal course of business. The condensed consolidated financial statements do not include any adjustments to reflect the possible future effects on the recoverability and classification of assets or the amounts and classification of liabilities that may result from the outcome of this uncertainty related to the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern.

Reclassifications

Certain amounts included in the prior period financial statements have been reclassified to conform to the current period financial statement presentation as follows:

(1)	The current portion of long-term bank borrowings with maturity within one year of $4,772,738 was erroneously classified in long-term bank loans in the Company’s consolidated balance sheet as of September 30, 2012, which was included in the 2012 annual report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC on December 31, 2012. The Company has reclassified these current maturities as a component of short-term bank loans. As a result of such reclassification, the current liabilities as of September 30, 2012 has changed from $321,087,227 to $325,859,965.
(2)	The change in pledged deposits was classified into cash flows from financing activities in the Company’s condensed unaudited consolidated statement of cash flows for the six months ended March 31, 2012, which was included in the quarterly report on Form 10-Q filed with the SEC on May 10, 2012. The Company has reclassified these amounts as components of cash flows from investing activities. As a result of such reclassification, net cash used in investing activities for the six months ended March 31, 2012 has changed from $10,516,032 to $7,060,069, and net cash used in financing activities has changed from $12,602,387 to $16,058,350.
(3)	In presenting the Company’s condensed interim consolidated statement of operations and comprehensive loss for the three months ended and six months ended March 31, 2012, government grant income was presented separately after operating loss. For those grants which are directly related to the Company’s operations, the Company has reclassified and included them in the computation of operating income. Subsidies related for research and development activities and lease prepayments were credited against the related expenses when received. After such reclassification, research and development expenses, general and administrative expenses, total operating expenses and government grant income decreased to $709,956, $6,672,047, $9,556,345 and $28,607, respectively for the three months ended March 31, 2012. Research and development expenses, general and administrative expenses, total operating expenses and government grant income decreased to $1,196,230, $9,183,585, $20,478,747 and $76,912, respectively for the six months ended March 31, 2012.

Recently Issued Accounting Standards

In February 2013, the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update No. 2013-02 Comprehensive Income (Topic 220): The objective of this update is to improve the reporting of reclassifications out of accumulated other comprehensive income. The amendments in this update seek to attain that objective by requiring an entity to report the effect of significant reclassifications out of accumulated other comprehensive income on the respective line items in net income if the amount being reclassified is required under U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) to be reclassified in its entirety to net income. For other amounts that are not required under U.S. GAAP to be reclassified in their entirety to net income in the same reporting period, an entity is required to cross-reference other disclosures required under U.S. GAAP that provide additional detail about those amounts. This would be the case when a portion of the amount reclassified out of accumulated other comprehensive income is reclassified to a balance sheet account (for example, inventory) instead of directly to income or expense in the same reporting period. For public entities, the amendments are effective prospectively for reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2012. The adoption of the provisions in this update did not have a significant impact on its consolidated financial statements.

Other accounting standards that have been issued or proposed by the FASB or other standards-setting bodies that do not require adoption until a future date are not expected to have a material impact on the Company’s consolidated financial statements upon adoption.