Convertible Preferred Shares

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2023

Convertible Preferred Shares [Abstract]

CONVERTIBLE PREFERRED SHARES

NOTE 16—CONVERTIBLE PREFERRED SHARES

Series A Senior Convertible Preferred Shares

On September 30, 2020, the Company executed a share designation, which was amended on November 20, 2020, March 26, 2021 and September 29, 2021, to designate 4,450,460 of its shares as series A senior convertible preferred shares. The following is a description of the rights of the series A senior convertible preferred shares.

Ranking. The series A senior convertible preferred shares rank, with respect to the payment of dividends and the distribution of assets upon liquidation, (i) senior to all common shares, allocation shares, and each other class or series that is not expressly made senior to or on parity with the series A senior convertible preferred shares; (ii) on parity with the series B senior convertible preferred shares and each other class or series that is not expressly subordinated or made senior to the series A senior convertible preferred shares; and (iii) junior to all indebtedness and other liabilities with respect to assets available to satisfy claims against the Company and each other class or series that is expressly made senior to the series A senior convertible preferred shares.

Dividend Rights. Holders of series A senior convertible preferred shares are entitled to dividends at a rate per annum of 24.0% of the stated value ($2.20 per share, subject to adjustment). Dividends shall accrue from day to day, whether or not declared, and shall be cumulative. Dividends shall be payable quarterly in arrears on each dividend payment date in cash or common shares at the Company’s discretion. Dividends payable in common shares shall be calculated based on a price equal to eighty percent (80%) of the VWAP during the five (5) trading days immediately prior to the applicable dividend payment date; provided, however, that if the common shares are not registered, and Rule 144 rulemaking referred to below is effective on the payment date, the dividends payable in common shares shall be calculated based upon the fixed price of $1.57 per share; provided further, that the Company may only elect to pay dividends in common shares based upon such fixed price if the VWAP for the five (5) trading days immediately prior to the applicable dividend payment date is $1.57 or higher.

Liquidation Rights. Subject to the rights of creditors and the holders of any senior securities or parity securities (in each case, as defined in the share designation), upon any liquidation of the Company or its subsidiaries, before any payment or distribution of the assets of the Company (whether capital or surplus) shall be made to or set apart for the holders of securities that are junior to the series A senior convertible preferred shares as to the distribution of assets on any liquidation of the Company, including the common shares and allocation shares, each holder of outstanding series A senior convertible preferred shares shall be entitled to receive an amount of cash equal to 115% of the stated value plus an amount of cash equal to all accumulated accrued and unpaid dividends thereon (whether or not declared) to, but not including the date of final distribution to such holders. If, upon any liquidation, the assets, or proceeds thereof, distributable among the holders of the series A senior convertible preferred shares shall be insufficient to pay in full the preferential amount payable to the holders of the series A senior convertible preferred shares and liquidating payments on any other shares of any class or series of parity securities as to the distribution of assets on any liquidation, then such assets, or the proceeds thereof, shall be distributed among the holders of series A senior convertible preferred shares and any such other parity securities ratably in accordance with the respective amounts that would be payable on such series A senior convertible preferred shares and any such other parity securities if all amounts payable thereon were paid in full.

Voting Rights. The series A senior convertible preferred shares do not have any voting rights; provided that, so long as any series A senior convertible preferred shares are outstanding, the affirmative vote of holders of a majority of series A senior convertible preferred shares, which majority must include Leonite Capital LLC so long as it holds any series A senior convertible preferred shares (the “Requisite Holders”), voting as a separate class, shall be necessary for approving, effecting or validating any amendment, alteration or repeal of any of the provisions of the share designation. In addition, so long as any series A senior convertible preferred shares are outstanding, the affirmative vote of the Requisite Holders shall be required prior to the creation or issuance by the Company or by its subsidiaries Kyle’s and Wolo of (i) any parity securities; (ii) any senior securities; and (iii) any new indebtedness other than (A) intercompany indebtedness by Kyle’s or Wolo in favor of the Company, (B) indebtedness incurred in favor of the sellers of Kyle’s or Wolo in connection with the acquisition of Kyle’s or Wolo, or (C) indebtedness (or the refinancing of such indebtedness) the proceeds of which are used to complete the acquisition of Kyle’s or Wolo related expenses or working capital to operate the business of Kyle’s or Wolo. Notwithstanding the foregoing, this shall not apply to any financing transaction the use of proceeds of which will be used to redeem the series A senior convertible preferred shares and the warrants issued in connection therewith.

Conversion Rights. Each series A senior convertible preferred share, plus all accrued and unpaid dividends thereon, shall be convertible, at the option of the holder thereof, at any time and from time to time, into such number of fully paid and nonassessable common shares determined by dividing the stated value ($2.20 per share), plus the value of the accrued, but unpaid, dividends thereon, by a conversion price of $700 per share (subject to adjustment); provided that in no event shall the holder of any series A senior convertible preferred shares be entitled to convert any number of series A senior convertible preferred shares that upon conversion the sum of (i) the number of common shares beneficially owned by the holder and its affiliates and (ii) the number of common shares issuable upon the conversion of the series A senior convertible preferred shares with respect to which the determination of this proviso is being made, would result in beneficial ownership by the holder and its affiliates of more than 4.99% of the then outstanding common shares. This limitation may be waived (up to a maximum of 9.99%) by the holder and in its sole discretion, upon not less than sixty-one (61) days’ prior notice to the Company.

Redemption Rights. The Company may redeem in whole, or upon the written consent of the Requisite Holders and in the manner provided for in such written consent, in part, the series A senior convertible preferred shares by paying in cash therefore a sum equal to 115% of the stated value plus the amount of accrued and unpaid plus any other amounts due pursuant to the terms of the series A senior convertible preferred shares.

Adjustments. The share designation contains standard adjustments to the conversion price in the event of any share splits, share combinations, share reclassifications, dividends paid in common shares, sales of substantially all of the Company’s assets, mergers, consolidations or similar transactions. In addition, the share designation provides that if, but only if, the Requisite Holders provide the Company with at least ten (10) business day’s prior written notice, then, from and after the date of such notice, the stated dividend rate, the stated value and the conversion price shall automatically adjust as follows:

● On the first day of the 12th month following the issuance date of any series A senior convertible preferred shares, the stated dividend rate shall automatically increase by five percent (5.0%) per annum and the conversion price shall automatically adjust to the lower of the (i) initial conversion price and (ii) the price equal to the lowest VWAP of the ten (10) trading days immediately preceding such date.

● On the first day of the 24th month following the issuance date of any series A senior convertible preferred shares, the stated dividend rate shall automatically increase by an additional five percent (5.0%) per annum, the stated value shall automatically increase by ten percent (10%) and the conversion price shall automatically adjust to the lower of the (i) initial conversion price and (ii) the price equal to the lowest VWAP of the ten (10) trading days immediately preceding such date. On June 15, 2023, the Requisite Holders provided notice that the stated dividend rate increased from 14% to 24% of the stated value and the stated value increased from $2.00 to $2.20.

● On the first day of the 36th month following the issuance date of any series A senior convertible preferred shares, the stated dividend rate shall automatically increase by an additional five percent (5.0%) per annum, the stated value shall automatically increase by ten percent (10%) and the conversion price shall automatically adjust to the lower of the (i) initial conversion price and (ii) the price equal to the lowest VWAP of the ten (10) trading days immediately preceding the third adjustment date. On March 31, 2024, the stated dividend rate increased from 24% to 29% of the stated value and the stated value increased from $2.20 to $2.42.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, the conversion price for purposes of the adjustments above shall not be adjusted to a number that is below $3.00 per share. In addition, if any legislation or rules are adopted whereby the holding period of securities for purposes of Rule 144 of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, for convertible securities that convert at market-adjusted rates is increased resulting in a longer holding period for convertible securities like the series A senior convertible preferred shares and the unavailability at the time of conversion of Rule 144, the pricing provisions that are based upon the lowest VWAP of the previous ten (10) trading days immediately preceding the relevant adjustment date shall be removed unless the common shares issuable upon conversion are then registered under an effective registration statement.

Additional Equity Interest. On the third adjustment date set forth above, the Company is required to cause Kyle’s and Wolo to issue to the holders of series A senior convertible preferred shares, on a pro rata basis, a ten percent (10%) equity stake Kyle’s and/or Wolo. The holders of series A senior convertible preferred shares issued in connection with the financing to complete the acquisition of Kyle’s shall receive the equity stake in Kyle’s and the holders of series A senior convertible preferred shares issued in connection with the financing to complete the acquisition of Wolo shall receive the equity stake in Wolo. The Company is required to cause Kyle’s and Wolo to grant to the holders of the series A senior convertible preferred shares upon the issuance to them of such equity interest a right to receive an additional number of shares of common stock of Kyle’s or Wolo if Kyle’s or Wolo issues to any third-party equity securities at a price below the acquisition price (as defined below). Such additional number of shares of common stock of Kyle’s or Wolo to be issued in such instance shall be equal to a number of shares of common stock of Kyle’s or Wolo which, when added to the number of shares of common stock of Kyle’s or Wolo constituting the initial additional equity interest, would be equal to the total number of shares of common stock which would have been issued to a holder of series A senior convertible preferred shares if the price per share of common stock of Kyle’s or Wolo was equivalent to the price per equity security paid by such third-party in Kyle’s or Wolo. For purposes of this provision, “acquisition price” means the price per share of Kyle’s and Wolo that was paid by the Company upon the acquisition of Kyle’s and Wolo, respectively.

Most Favored Nations. The securities purchase agreement relating to the issuance of the series A senior convertible preferred shares contains a standard most favored nations provision which provides that, unless otherwise agreed to by the holders of a majority of the then outstanding series A senior convertible preferred shares, upon any issuance of (or announcement of intent to effect an issuance of) any security, or amendment to (or announcement of intent to effect an amendment to) any security, by the Company with any term that any holder of series A senior convertible preferred shares reasonably believes is more favorable to the holder of such security than to the holder of the series A senior convertible preferred shares then (i) the Company shall notify the holder of series A senior convertible preferred shares of such additional or more favorable term within five (5) business days of the new issuance and/or amendment of the respective security, which notice may include the filing of a current report on Form 8-K that discloses the issuance of such new security, and (ii) such term, the holder’s option, shall become a part of the transaction documents with the holder of the series A senior convertible preferred shares. The types of terms contained in another security that may be more favorable to the purchaser of such security include, but are not limited to, terms addressing conversion discounts, prepayment rate, conversion lookback periods, interest rates, original issue discounts, stock sale price, private placement price per share, and warrant coverage. The holders of the series A senior convertible preferred shares have used this provision to reduce the conversion price on multiple occasions.

During the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, the Company accrued series A preferred share dividends of $347,157 and $590,162, respectively. During the year ended December 31, 2023, the Company settled $434,629 of previously accrued dividends through the issuance of 23,423  common shares.

During the year ended December 31, 2023, 1,367,273 shares of series A senior convertible preferred shares were converted into 160,752 common shares. During the year ended December 31, 2022, 133,333 shares of series A senior convertible preferred shares were converted into 381 common shares and the Company redeemed 90,909 series A senior convertible preferred shares for a total redemption price of $209,091.

On May 15, 2023, the Company entered into amendments to the securities purchase agreements relating to the series A senior convertible preferred shares, pursuant to which the securities purchase agreements were amended to include a provision giving the Company to option to force the exercise of warrants issued pursuant to such securities purchase agreements for the issuance of a number of common shares equal to the quotient of (i) eighty percent (80%) of the Black Scholes Value of the warrants divided by (ii) the applicable exercise price of the warrants.

As of December 31, 2023 and 2022, the Company had 226,667 and 1,593,940 shares of series A senior convertible preferred shares issued and outstanding, respectively.

Series B Senior Convertible Preferred Shares

On February 17, 2022, the Company executed a share designation to designate 583,334 of its shares as series B senior convertible preferred shares. The following is a description of the rights of the series B senior convertible preferred shares.

Ranking. The series B senior convertible preferred shares rank, with respect to the payment of dividends and the distribution of assets upon liquidation, (i) senior to all common shares, allocation shares, and each other class or series that is not expressly made senior to or on parity with the series B senior convertible preferred shares; (ii) on parity with the series A senior convertible preferred shares and each other class or series that is not expressly subordinated or made senior to the series A senior convertible preferred shares; and (iii) junior to all indebtedness and other liabilities with respect to assets available to satisfy claims against the Company and each other class or series that is expressly made senior to the series B senior convertible preferred shares.

Dividend Rights. Holders of series B senior convertible preferred shares are entitled to dividends at a rate per annum of 19.0% of the stated value ($3.00 per share, subject to adjustment). Dividends shall accrue from day to day, whether or not declared, and shall be cumulative. Dividends shall be payable quarterly in arrears on each dividend payment date in cash or common shares at the Company’s discretion. Dividends payable in common shares shall be calculated based on a price equal to eighty percent (80%) of the VWAP during the five (5) trading days immediately prior to the applicable dividend payment date; provided, however, that if the common shares are not registered, and rulemaking regarding the Rule 144 holding period referred to below is effective on the payment date, the dividends payable in common shares shall be calculated based upon the fixed price of $2.70 per share; provided further, that the Company may only elect to pay dividends in common shares based upon such fixed price if the VWAP for the five (5) trading days immediately prior to the applicable dividend payment date is $2.70 or higher.

Liquidation Rights. Subject to the rights of creditors and the holders of any senior securities or parity securities (in each case, as defined in the share designation), upon any liquidation of the Company or its subsidiaries, before any payment or distribution of the assets of the Company (whether capital or surplus) shall be made to or set apart for the holders of securities that are junior to the series B senior convertible preferred shares as to the distribution of assets on any liquidation of the Company, including the common shares and allocation shares, each holder of outstanding series B senior convertible preferred shares shall be entitled to receive an amount of cash equal to 115% of the stated value plus an amount of cash equal to all accumulated accrued and unpaid dividends thereon (whether or not declared) to, but not including the date of final distribution to such holders. If, upon any liquidation, the assets, or proceeds thereof, distributable among the holders of the series B senior convertible preferred shares shall be insufficient to pay in full the preferential amount payable to the holders of the series B senior convertible preferred shares and liquidating payments on any other shares of any class or series of parity securities as to the distribution of assets on any liquidation, then such assets, or the proceeds thereof, shall be distributed among the holders of series B senior convertible preferred shares and any such other parity securities ratably in accordance with the respective amounts that would be payable on such series B senior convertible preferred shares and any such other parity securities if all amounts payable thereon were paid in full.

Voting Rights. The series B senior convertible preferred shares do not have any voting rights; provided that, so long as any series B senior convertible preferred shares are outstanding, the affirmative vote of holders of a majority of series B senior convertible preferred shares, voting as a separate class, shall be necessary for approving, effecting or validating (i) any amendment, alteration or repeal of any of the provisions of the share designation or (ii) the Company’s creation or issuance of any parity securities or any senior securities. Notwithstanding the foregoing, such vote of the holders shall not be required in connection with the issuance of parity securities or senior securities if, and so long as, the proceeds resulting from the issuance of such securities are used to redeem in full the outstanding series B senior convertible preferred shares.

Conversion Rights. Each series B senior convertible preferred share, plus all accrued and unpaid dividends thereon, shall be convertible, at the option of the holder thereof, at any time and from time to time, into such number of fully paid and nonassessable common shares determined by dividing the stated value ($3.00 per share), plus the value of the accrued, but unpaid, dividends thereon, by the conversion price of $1,200 per share (subject to adjustments); provided that in no event shall the holder of any series B senior convertible preferred shares be entitled to convert any number of series B senior convertible preferred shares that upon conversion the sum of (i) the number of common shares beneficially owned by the holder and its affiliates and (ii) the number of common shares issuable upon the conversion of the series B senior convertible preferred shares with respect to which the determination of this proviso is being made, would result in beneficial ownership by the holder and its affiliates of more than 4.99% of the then outstanding common shares. This limitation may be waived (up to a maximum of 9.99%) by the holder and in its sole discretion, upon not less than sixty-one (61) days’ prior notice to the Company.

Redemption Rights. The Company may redeem in whole (but not in part) the series B senior convertible preferred shares by paying in cash therefore a sum equal to 115% of the stated value plus the amount of accrued and unpaid dividends and any other amounts due pursuant to the terms of the series B senior convertible preferred shares.

Adjustments. The share designation contains standard adjustments to the conversion price in the event of any share splits, share combinations, share reclassifications, dividends paid in common shares, sales of substantially all of the Company’s assets, mergers, consolidations or similar transactions. In addition, the share designation provides that the stated dividend rate, the stated value and the conversion price shall automatically adjust as follows:

● On the first day of the 12th month following the issuance of the first series B senior convertible preferred share, the stated dividend rate shall automatically increase by five percent (5.0%) per annum and the conversion price shall automatically adjust to the lower of the (i) initial conversion price and (ii) the price equal to the lowest VWAP of the ten (10) trading days immediately preceding such date. On February 25, 2023, the stated dividend rate increased from 14% to 19% of the stated value.

● On the first day of the 24th month following the issuance of the first series B senior convertible preferred share, the stated dividend rate shall automatically increase by an additional five percent (5.0%) per annum, the stated value shall automatically increase by ten percent (10%) and the conversion price shall automatically adjust to the lower of the (i) initial conversion price and (ii) the price equal to the lowest VWAP of the ten (10) trading days immediately preceding such date. On February 25, 2024, the stated dividend rate increased from 19% to 24% of the stated value and the stated value increased from $3.30 to $3.30.

● On the first day of the 36th month following the issuance of the first series B senior convertible preferred share, the stated dividend rate shall automatically increase by an additional five percent (5.0%) per annum, the stated value shall automatically increase by ten percent (10%) and the conversion price shall automatically adjust to the lower of the (i) initial conversion price and (ii) the price equal to the lowest VWAP of the ten (10) trading days immediately preceding such date.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, the conversion price for purposes of the adjustments above shall not be adjusted to a number that is below $3.00 per share. In addition, if any legislation or rules are adopted whereby the holding period of securities for purposes of Rule 144 of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, for convertible securities that convert at market-adjusted rates is increased resulting in a longer holding period for convertible securities like the series B senior convertible preferred shares and the unavailability at the time of conversion of Rule 144, the pricing provisions that are based upon the lowest VWAP of the previous ten (10) trading days immediately preceding the relevant adjustment date shall be removed unless the common shares issuable upon conversion are then registered under an effective registration statement.

Most Favored Nations. The securities purchase agreement relating to the issuance of the series B senior convertible preferred shares contains a standard most favored nations provision which provides that, unless otherwise agreed to by the holders of a majority of the then outstanding series B senior convertible preferred shares, upon any issuance of (or announcement of intent to effect an issuance of) any security, or amendment to (or announcement of intent to effect an amendment to) any security, by the Company with any term that any holder of series B senior convertible preferred shares reasonably believes is more favorable to the holder of such security than to the holder of the series B senior convertible preferred shares then (i) the Company shall notify the holder of series B senior convertible preferred shares of such additional or more favorable term within five (5) business days of the new issuance and/or amendment of the respective security, which notice may include the filing of a current report on Form 8-K that discloses the issuance of such new security, and (ii) such term, the holder’s option, shall become a part of the transaction documents with the holder of the series B senior convertible preferred shares. The types of terms contained in another security that may be more favorable to the purchaser of such security include, but are not limited to, terms addressing conversion discounts, prepayment rate, conversion lookback periods, interest rates, original issue discounts, stock sale price, private placement price per share, and warrant coverage. The holders of the series B senior convertible preferred shares have used this provision to reduce the conversion price on multiple occasions.

During the year ended December 31, 2022, the Company sold an aggregate of 481,566 units, at a price of $3.00 per unit, for aggregate gross proceeds of $1,281,000. Of this amount 58,234 units were sold to the Company’s Chief Executive Officer, Ellery W. Roberts, for aggregate gross proceeds of $174,700. The Company had total issuance costs relating to these offerings of approximately $15,000, resulting in net proceeds of $1,429,700.

Each unit consists of one (1) series B senior convertible preferred share and a three-year warrant to purchase one (1) common share at an exercise price of $1,200 per common share (subject to adjustments), which such exercise price was adjusted to $3.00 following the adjustments, and may be exercised on a cashless basis under certain circumstances. The embedded conversion options of the series B senior convertible preferred shares and warrants were clearly and closely related to the equity host and did not require bifurcation. The $1,429,700 of net proceeds were allocated on a relative fair value basis of $1,257,650 to the series B preferred shares and $172,050 to the warrants. The series B preferred shares fair value was derived using an Option Pricing Method and the warrants fair value was derived using a Monte Carlo Simulation Model.

During the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, the Company accrued series B preferred share dividends of $165,810 and $162,268, respectively. During the year ended December 31, 2023, the Company settled $75,722 of previously accrued dividends through the issuance of 10,942  common shares.

During the year ended December 31, 2023, 373,332 shares of series B senior convertible preferred shares were converted into 88,495 common shares. During the year ended December 31, 2022, the Company redeemed 16,667 series B senior convertible preferred shares for a total redemption price of $57,501.

On May 15, 2023, the Company entered into amendments to the securities purchase agreements relating to the series B senior convertible preferred shares, pursuant to which the securities purchase agreements were amended to include a provision giving the Company to option to force the exercise of warrants issued pursuant to such securities purchase agreements for the issuance of a number of common shares equal to the quotient of (i) eighty percent (80%) of the Black Scholes Value of the warrants divided by (ii) the applicable exercise price of the warrants.

As of December 31, 2023 and 2022, the Company had 91,567 and 464,899 shares of series B senior convertible preferred shares issued and outstanding, respectively.