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Filed Pursuant to Rule 424(b)(4)
Registration No. 333-259324

 

PROSPECTUS

$200,000,000

Home Plate Acquisition Corporation

20,000,000 Units

 

 

Home Plate Acquisition Corporation is a newly incorporated blank check company formed for the purpose of effecting a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses, which we refer to throughout this prospectus as our “initial business combination.” We have not selected any business combination target and we have not, nor has anyone on our behalf, initiated any substantive discussions, directly or indirectly, with any business combination target. Although we may pursue targets in any industry or sector, we intend to focus our efforts on identifying high growth, U.S. and international acquisition targets in the Fintech (as defined in this prospectus) and Embedded Finance (as defined in this prospectus) sectors.

This is an initial public offering of our securities. Each unit has an offering price of $10.00 and consists of one share of our Class A common stock and one-half of one redeemable warrant. Each whole warrant entitles the holder thereof to purchase one share of our Class A common stock at a price of $11.50 per share, subject to adjustment, terms and limitations as described in this prospectus. The underwriters have a 45-day option from the date of this prospectus to purchase up to 3,000,000 additional units to cover over-allotments, if any.

We will provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their shares of our Class A common stock upon the completion of our initial business combination, subject to the limitations described in this prospectus. If we have not completed an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering, we will redeem 100% of the public shares for cash, subject to applicable law and certain conditions as described in this prospectus.

Our sponsor, Home Plate Sponsor LLC has agreed to purchase an aggregate of 6,600,000 warrants (or 7,050,000 warrants if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full), at a price of $1.00 per whole warrant in a private placement that will close simultaneously with this offering. Additionally, Jefferies LLC has agreed to purchase 1,000,000 warrants (or up to 1,150,000 warrants if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) from us at a price of $1.00 per whole warrant in a private placement that will close simultaneously with this offering. We collectively refer to the warrants to be purchased by our sponsor and Jefferies LLC throughout this prospectus as the “private placement warrants.” Each whole private placement warrant entitles the holder thereof to purchase one share of our Class A common stock at a price of $11.50 per share, subject to adjustments as described in this prospectus.

Our initial stockholders currently hold 5,750,000 shares of our Class B common stock (up to 750,000 shares of which are subject to forfeiture by our sponsor depending on the extent to which the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised). The shares of Class B common stock will automatically convert into shares of our Class A common stock on the first business day following the completion of our initial business combination as described in this prospectus. Prior to our initial business combination, only holders of shares of our Class B common stock will be entitled to vote on the election of directors.

Certain qualified institutional buyers or institutional accredited investors (including certain funds managed by UBS O’Connor, LLC) which are not affiliated with us, our sponsor, our directors or any member of our management, and which we refer to collectively as the anchor investors throughout this prospectus, have expressed to us an interest in purchasing up to an aggregate of approximately 19,980,000 units in this offering (which amount will not change if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised) at the public offering price of $10.00. No anchor investor is expected to purchase more than 9.9% of the units in this offering (without giving effect to the over-allotment option). We have agreed to direct the underwriters to sell to the anchor investors up to such number of units and such allocations will be determined by the underwriters, subject to our satisfying the Nasdaq initial listing requirements, and such allocations will be determined by the underwriters. There can be no assurance that the anchor investors will acquire any units in this offering, or as to the amount of such units the anchor investors will retain, if any, prior to or upon the consummation of our initial business combination. Assuming that each anchor investor purchases the number of units for which it has provided an indication of interest, the anchor investors will own, in the aggregate, up to approximately 84.6% of the outstanding shares of our common stock (or up to 73.6% if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) upon the completion of this offering (in each case, including the founder shares sold by our sponsor as described below). In consideration of these purchases, our sponsor has entered into an investment agreement with each of the anchor investors (other than those funds managed by UBS O’Connor) pursuant to which our sponsor has sold up to an aggregate of 1,350,000 founder shares, at their original purchase price of approximately $0.004 per share. Since our sponsor has sold founder shares held by it to the anchor investors (other than those funds managed by UBS O’Connor) and we are not issuing any new shares of Class B common stock, there will be no dilutive impact on the other investors in this offering. For a discussion of certain additional arrangements with the anchor investors, see “Summary—The Offering—Expressions of Interest.”

Currently, there is no public market for our units, shares of our Class A common stock or warrants. Our units have been approved for listing on The Nasdaq Global Market (“Nasdaq”) under the symbol “HPLTU” on or promptly after the date of this prospectus. We expect the shares of our Class A common stock and warrants comprising the units will begin separate trading on Nasdaq under the symbols “HPLT” and “HPLTW.” respectively, on the 52nd day following the date of this prospectus (or, if such date is not a business day, the following business day) unless Jefferies LLC informs us of its decision to allow earlier separate trading, subject to our filing a Current Report on Form 8-K with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”), containing an audited balance sheet reflecting our receipt of the gross proceeds of this offering and issuing a press release announcing when such separate trading will begin.

We are an “emerging growth company” and a “smaller reporting company” under applicable federal securities laws and will be subject to reduced public company reporting requirements. Investing in our securities involves a high degree of risk. See “Risk Factors” beginning on page 41 for a discussion of information that should be considered in connection with an investment in our securities. Investors will not be entitled to protections normally afforded to investors in Rule 419 blank check offerings.

Neither the SEC nor any state or non-U.S. securities commission has approved or disapproved of these securities or determined if this prospectus is truthful or complete. Any representation to the contrary is a criminal offense.

 

 

 

     PER UNIT      TOTAL  

Public offering price

   $ 10.00    $ 200,000,000

Underwriting discounts and commissions (1)

   $ 0.55    $ 11,000,000

Proceeds, before expenses, to us

   $ 9.45    $ 189,000,000

 

 

(1) Includes $0.35 per unit, or $7,000,000 in the aggregate (or $8,050,000 in the aggregate if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full), payable to the underwriters for deferred underwriting fees to be placed in a trust account located in the United States as described in this prospectus. The deferred fees will be released to the underwriters only upon the completion of an initial business combination. The underwriters will receive compensation in addition to the underwriting fees. See “Underwriting” beginning on page 168 for a description of underwriting compensation payable to the underwriters.

Of the proceeds we receive from this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants described in this prospectus, $200,000,000 or $230,000,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full ($10.00 per unit in either case), will be deposited into a segregated trust account located in the United States with Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, acting as trustee, and approximately $3,600,000 will be available to pay fees and expenses in connection with the closing of this offering and for working capital following the closing of this offering.

The underwriters are offering the units for sale on a firm commitment basis. The underwriters expect to deliver the units to the purchasers on or about October 4, 2021.

Jefferies

The date of this prospectus is September 29, 2021


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TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

 

 

     PAGE  

SUMMARY

     1  

THE OFFERING

     13  

RISK FACTORS

     41  

CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

     79  

USE OF PROCEEDS

     80  

DIVIDEND POLICY

     84  

DILUTION

     85  

CAPITALIZATION

     87  

MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS  OF OPERATIONS

     88  

PROPOSED BUSINESS

     95  

MANAGEMENT

     125  

PRINCIPAL STOCKHOLDERS

     134  

CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS

     138  

DESCRIPTION OF SECURITIES

     142  

MATERIAL U.S. FEDERAL INCOME TAX CONSIDERATIONS

     159  

UNDERWRITING

     168  

LEGAL MATTERS

     177  

EXPERTS

     178  

WHERE YOU CAN FIND ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

     179  

INDEX TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

     F-1  

 

 

We are responsible for the information contained in this prospectus. We have not authorized anyone (including any dealer or salesperson) to provide you with different or additional information, and neither we nor the underwriters take any responsibility for, and can provide no assurances to the reliability of, any other information others may give to you. This prospectus does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any security other than the securities offered by this prospectus. We are not, and the underwriters are not, making an offer to sell or a solicitation of any offer to buy securities in any jurisdiction where the offer or sale is not permitted. You should not assume that the information contained in this prospectus is accurate as of any date other than the date on the front of this prospectus.


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SUMMARY

This summary only highlights the more detailed information appearing elsewhere in this prospectus. As this is a summary, it does not contain all of the information that you should consider in making an investment decision. You should read this entire prospectus carefully, including the information under “Risk Factors” and our financial statements and the related notes included elsewhere in this prospectus, before making an investment decision.

Unless otherwise stated in this prospectus or the context otherwise requires, references to:

 

   

“amended and restated certificate of incorporation” are to the amended and restated certificate of incorporation of the company, to be in effect upon completion of this offering;

 

   

“anchor investors” are to the certain qualified institutional buyers or institutional accredited investors, as defined in Rule 144A and Regulation D, respectively, under the Securities Act, which are not affiliated with us, our sponsor, our directors or any member of our management and that have expressed to us an interest in purchasing up to an aggregate of approximately 19,980,000 units in this offering (which amount will not change if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised) at the offering price as further described herein;

   

“common stock” are to our Class A common stock and our Class B common stock, collectively;

 

   

“DGCL” are to the Delaware General Corporation Law as the same may be amended from time to time;

 

   

“equity-linked securities” are to any debt or equity securities that are convertible into, or exercisable or exchangeable for, shares of our Class A common stock issued in connection with our initial business combination including but not limited to a private placement of equity or debt;

 

   

“founders” are to Daniel Ciporin and Jonathan Rosenzweig;

 

   

“founder shares” are to the shares of our Class B common stock initially purchased by our initial stockholders in a private placement prior to this offering (and a portion of which have been or may be sold to the public anchor investors on or about the date of this offering), and the shares of our Class A common stock that will be issued upon the automatic conversion of the shares of our Class B common stock at the time of our initial business combination (for the avoidance of doubt, such shares of our Class A common stock will not be “public shares”);

 

   

“initial stockholders” are to our sponsor and our independent directors (the holders of our founder shares prior to this offering), and where the context so requires, includes the public anchor investors to the extent that they purchase founder shares from our sponsor on or about the date of this offering);

 

   

“Jefferies” are to Jefferies LLC, the representative of the underwriters;

 

   

“private placement warrants” are to the warrants to be purchased by our sponsor and Jefferies in a private placement simultaneously with the closing of this offering and upon conversion of working capital loans, if any;

 

   

“public anchor investors” are to the anchor investors other than the UBS O’Connor anchor investors;

 

   

“public shares” are to shares of our Class A common stock sold as part of the units in this offering (whether they are purchased in this offering or thereafter in the open market);

 

   

“public stockholders” are to the holders of our public shares, including our initial stockholders and our directors to the extent our initial stockholders and/or directors purchase public shares, provided that each of our initial stockholder’s and directors status as a “public stockholders” will only exist with respect to such public shares;

 

   

“public warrants” are to our redeemable warrants included in the units offered in this offering (whether they are purchased in this offering or thereafter in the open market) and to the private placement warrants if held by third parties other than our sponsor or its permitted transferees;

 

   

“sponsor” are to Home Plate Sponsor LLC, a Delaware limited liability company;


 

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“sponsor team” are to our founders and the members of our sponsor (which includes each of our founders, independent directors and additional advisors);

 

   

“UBS O’Connor anchor investors” are to certain funds managed by UBS O’Connor LLC that have invested in our Sponsor LLC (and accordingly have an indirect interest in founder shares and private placement warrants held by our sponsor) and have indicated an interest in purchasing units in this offering, all as described in this prospectus

 

   

“warrants” are to the public warrants and the private placement warrants; and

 

   

“we,” “us,” “our,” “company” or “our company” are to Home Plate Acquisition Corporation, a Delaware corporation.

Each unit consists of one share of our Class A common stock and one-half of one warrant for each unit purchased. Each whole warrant entitles the holder thereof to purchase one share of our Class A common stock at a price of $11.50 per share, subject to adjustment as described in this prospectus, and only whole warrants are exercisable. No fractional warrants will be issued upon separation of the units and only whole warrants will trade. If, upon separation of the units, a holder of warrants would be entitled to receive a fractional warrant, we will round down to the nearest whole number the number of warrants to be issued to such holder. Accordingly, unless you purchase at least two units, you will not be able to receive or trade a whole warrant.

Registered trademarks referred to in this prospectus are the property of their respective owners.

Unless we tell you otherwise, the information in this prospectus assumes that the underwriters will not exercise their over-allotment option.

General

We are a blank check company newly incorporated as a Delaware corporation for the purpose of effecting a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses or entities, which we refer to throughout this prospectus as our initial business combination. We have not selected any potential business combination target and we have not, nor has anyone on our behalf, initiated any substantive discussions, directly or indirectly, with any potential business combination target.

Although we may pursue targets in any industry, we intend to focus our efforts on identifying high growth, U.S. and international acquisition targets in the financial technology (“Fintech”) and Embedded Finance (as defined in this prospectus) sectors. We intend to capitalize on the ability of our sponsor team to identify and acquire and advise a business that can benefit from our founders’ management expertise and disciplined approach to capital allocation and investment oversight.

Our Company

Our sponsor team is comprised of our founders complemented by a group of industry veterans that either hold independent board of director positions or will serve as advisors to the Company, who may assist in the sourcing and evaluation of potential targets. We believe that our sponsor team’s experience in driving operational improvements and organic growth as well as optimizing capital allocation will benefit us following the initial business combination and create value for stockholders. Several members of our sponsor team, including Daniel Ciporin, our Chief Executive Officer, have a track record of building growth-oriented businesses on the foundation of strategic planning, organic growth and opportunistic acquisitions coupled with strong cash flow generation. In addition, Jonathan Rosenzweig, our Chief Financial Officer has 27 years of experience related to equity securities analysis and interacting with asset managers, which we believe enable him to provide value added insight into both the success factors for publicly traded stocks and the demands of institutional investors. In order to take advantage of the depth and breadth of our sponsor team’s industry experience, we intend to consult with the various sponsor team members who have specific expertise and experience with potential targets or their specific industry sectors or markets.


 

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Our Founders

Our founders consist of the following individuals:

Daniel Ciporin will serve as a director of our company and our Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Ciporin served as a General Partner at Canaan Partners, a leading institutional venture capital firm that was founded over 30 years ago, from early 2007 until his retirement at the end of 2020. At Canaan Partners, Mr. Ciporin specialized in financial technology, marketplaces, and e-commerce investments. While at Canaan Partners, he led investments in 19 different companies with a multiple on invested capital (MOIC) of approximately 4.3x. He was a member of the boards of publicly held Lending Club (NYSE: LC), as well as numerous private companies including ShopKeep, Bellhop, Bumped, Bond, CircleUp, Ollie, Ephemeral Solutions, Inc., Homeis and JOOR among others. Mr. Ciporin has also served on the boards of several other publicly held companies, including Borderfree (where he was also chairman) (formerly NASDAQ: BRDR prior to its acquisition by Pitney Bowes International in 2015), Primedia (formerly NYSE: PRM), VistaPrint (formerly NASDAQ: VPRT), and Corel (NASDAQ: CREL). He is the former Chairman and CEO of Shopping.com (formerly NASDAQ: SHOP), where he oversaw growth from approximately zero to approximately $100 million in revenue in six years, culminating in the company’s IPO in October 2004 and later acquisition by eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY) in 2005. Prior to Shopping.com, Mr. Ciporin served as senior vice president of MasterCard International, where he managed global debit services. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree from Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs and a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from Yale University’s School of Management (SOM), where he also sits on the SOM Board of Advisors.

Jonathan Rosenzweig will serve as a director of our company and our Chief Financial Officer and Secretary. Before joining Home Plate, Mr. Rosenzweig served as a Managing Director and Head of Americas Equity Research at Citigroup (NYSE: C) from 2007 until 2020. In this role, Mr. Rosenzweig was responsible for all equity research product in North America and Latin America for more than 13 years. Prior to that position, Mr. Rosenzweig served as a Deputy Director and Associate Director of U.S. Research at Citigroup for five years. From 1993–2002, Mr. Rosenzweig was a Senior Analyst covering the Imaging sector within Citi Research, including an array of Technology, Commercial and Consumer stocks. He provided detailed analysis, financial forecasts and investment recommendations for institutional investors at top asset management firms and hedge funds. During his career, he covered companies such as Adobe (NASDAQ: ADBE), Macromedia (formerly NASDAQ: MACR), Electronics for Imaging (formerly NASDAQ: EFII), 3M (NYSE: MMM), Xerox (NYSE: XRX), Ikon Office Solutions (formerly NYSE: IKN), and Eastman Kodak (NYSE: KODK), among others. Mr. Rosenzweig earned a top 2 ranking from Institutional Investor Magazine for the sector each year from 1997–2002. Prior to Citigroup, Mr. Rosenzweig worked as a Financial Analyst at Duke University Management Company. Since June 2021, Mr. Rosenzweig has served as a member of the board of directors of eThematics. Mr. Rosenzweig holds a Bachelor’s Degree from Duke University and a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from The Fuqua School of Business at Duke University.

Our Directors

In addition to our founders, our board of directors will be comprised of:

Michael A. DeSimone, an independent director, is currently a general manager at Lightspeed USA Commerce Inc., a company that provides a smart commerce platform to more than 100,000 independent retailers, restaurants, and golf course operators around the world. Prior to its sale to Lightspeed, Mr. DeSimone was the President and CEO of ShopKeep, a cloud-based technology solution that transforms an iPad into a smart, connected cash register that is used by more than 24,000 small businesses, from 2015 through the acquisition of the company by Lightspeed in November 2020. Mr. DeSimone is a global chief executive, with more than 30 years of experience working within the financial services and technology industry. As President and CEO at ShopKeep, Mr. DeSimone led the strategy to sustainably grow and scale the business, which processed approximately $8 billion in transactions in 2019. Prior to joining ShopKeep, Mr. DeSimone was President and CEO of Borderfree (formerly NASDAQ: BRDR prior to its acquisition by Pitney Bowes International in 2015), where he was responsible for the overall strategic direction including the company’s transformation from an online currency conversion service to a provider of global ecommerce solutions. He led the company through their successful IPO


 

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in 2014 and its sale to Pitney Bowes (NYSE: PBI) in 2015. He was also a member of the board of Rewards Web Inc. from 2015 until 2021. Mr. DeSimone has also earned recognition on the Smart CEO’s Future 50 list in 2015 and was named a finalist for the Ernst & Young 2013 Entrepreneur of the Year award.

Michele Docharty, an independent director, is a seasoned financial services executive with over 30 years of experience at Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS), including 10 years as a Partner. Ms. Docharty most recently served as the Americas Head of Execution Services, responsible for the firm’s equity sales trading activities, and the Global Co-head of Synthetics Distribution within the Global Markets Division. Ms. Docharty’s extensive knowledge of the asset managers and hedge funds, along with her track record of leading large sales and distribution teams in complex transactional businesses, provide her with a unique perspective on markets and what matters most to equity investors. Among her many roles at Goldman Sachs, Ms. Docharty contributed to the launch and development of the firm’s externalization of data for investing clients, and she led the governance group overseeing that transition. Ms. Docharty has experience with both the uses and the role of data as a product in the financial services sector. Ms. Docharty has built a reputation for leadership, innovation and client driven solutions for equity markets. At Goldman Sachs, Ms. Docharty drove collaboration with engineers to transition risk tools for clients onto the firm’s digital storefront, restructured the firm’s corporate access business globally, and directed the firm’s New Product Marketing team. Ms. Docharty served as Founder and Chair of the Data Services Operating Group, as well as Chair of the Equities Best Execution Sub-committee. At different points in her career, Ms. Docharty managed the Latin American Equity business, participated as a member of the Global Markets Operating Committee, the Americas Inclusion and Diversity Committee, and the Marquee Advisory Committee, and served as a Senior Member of the Firmwide Hispanic/Latinx Network. In September 2021, Ms. Docharty began serving as a member of the board of directors of Neuberger Berman. Ms. Docharty holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from the McDonough School of Business at Georgetown University and currently serves on the Board of Advisors. In addition, Ms. Docharty was named to ALPFAs 50 most Powerful Latinas in 2018, 2019, 2020 and to Latino Leaders Magazine’s top 100 most influential Latinas in 2020.

Ross Fubini, an independent director, is an early stage technology investor. Mr. Fubini founded and has served as Managing Director of XYZ Ventures, a venture capital investment firm since 2017. He also co-founded Village Global, a global investment firm, in 2017. Mr. Fubini is a board member of BeyondHQ, Piazza Technologies, Legion, Beneficial State Bank, LifeRaft Risk Technologies, Inc., Saltbox, Inc., Oro Labs, Inc., Auxilius Inc., Pebble Health Inc., Bureau Inc., Sardine, Inc. and Smash. Mr. Fubini’s investments include Lendup, Optimizely, and Metromile (NASDAQ: MILE). Prior to XYZ, Mr. Fubini was a partner at Canaan Partners from 2012 to 2015, and Kapor Capital from 2011 to 2012, where he focused on defensible businesses across enterprise applications, FinTech and healthcare IT spaces. Mr. Fubini co-founded and grew CubeTree, a Gartner Visionary enterprise social collaboration company. After CubeTree was acquired by SuccessFactors (formerly NYSE: SFSF, now an SAP company) in 2010, Mr. Fubini served as a vice president of Success Factors. Mr. Fubini also held engineering leadership roles at Symantec (formerly NASDAQ: SYMC), BEA/Plumtree (formerly NASDAQ: PLUM), TellMe Networks, and Netscape (formerly NASDAQ: NSCP). He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Engineering and Art from Carnegie Mellon University.

Rhonda Ramparas, an independent director, has over 20 years of private equity, capital markets, general management, and finance experience. Most recently, Ms. Ramparas was the CFO of Boxed, an ecommerce technology company, from 2019 to April 2021. She currently consults for ecommerce and private equity investment companies. Prior to Boxed, Ms. Ramparas was a Managing Director in the Private Equity Group at Fortress Investment Group for 17 years, where she invested in, built and managed companies across a broad array of industries including consumer finance, insurance, and transportation. While at Fortress, her track record of managing investments in complex financial services businesses included serving as interim CEO of Alea Insurance Group and leading the exit strategy of many portfolio companies. Prior to joining Fortress in 2001, Ms. Ramparas held various investment banking roles at Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette and Credit Suisse (NYSE: CS). Ms. Ramparas holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from McGill University.


 

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Other Members of Our Sponsor Team

In addition to our founders and independent directors, our sponsor team will include:

Shyam Sankar has served in various positions at Palantir Technologies Inc. (NYSE: PLTR) since 2006, most recently as its Chief Operating Officer and Executive Vice President. Mr. Sankar also serves on the board of Ginkgo Bioworks. Mr. Sankar holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Cornell University and a Master’s Degree in Management Science and Engineering from Stanford University.

Ken Denman is an entrepreneur, experienced, serial technology CEO, board member, and early-stage investor. Mr. Denman is currently a general partner with Sway Ventures. Previously, he was President and CEO of Emotient, Inc., an innovative venture-backed software start-up that built an artificial intelligence-based platform for measuring facial expressions, which was acquired by Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) in January of 2016. He has also been CEO of two Silicon Valley public software companies. He directed Openwave (formerly NASDAQ: OPWV), a Nasdaq listed mobile middleware company, through a major strategy transition. As Chairman and CEO of iPass (formerly NASDAQ: IPAS), he led a successful IPO in 2003. Mr. Denman also has served as Senior Vice President for MediaOne, leading a significant portion of this top 4 cable operator’s U.S. operations, as well as Chief Operating Officer for MediaOne International, based in London. In the latter role, he was the operating partner and shareowner representative to many multi-national consortiums of wireless operators in Europe. In addition to numerous private technology company boards, Mr. Denman is a member of the board of directors of Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ: COST), Motorola Solutions (NYSE: MSI), and VMware (NYSE: VMW). He is the Lead Independent Director at Motorola Solutions (NYSE: MSI), where he also chairs the Nominating and Governance committees. In February 2021, he left the board of directors of LendingClub (NYSE: LC), when the company acquired a bank charter. In September 2012, Mr. Denman was appointed to the Edward V. Fritzky Endowed Chair in Leadership at the University of Washington’s Foster School of Business, as a Visiting Professor. He is also a board member of the UW Foster School of Business and a member of the board of directors of the UW Foundation. He is a board of trustee member of Seattle Children’s Hospital. Mr. Denman holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting from Central Washington University and a Master’s Degree in Finance and International Business from the University of Washington.

Craig Farlie is a founder of Harbor Beach Capital. Mr. Farlie is an experienced entrepreneur, having previously started a number of successful businesses, including Farlie Turner & Co., a Fort Lauderdale-based investment bank at which he is still an active Partner and Managing Director. Mr. Farlie’s career includes time spent working for large corporations, as well as smaller, more entrepreneurial efforts. The companies that he has worked for include NYSE-listed Republic Services (NYSE: RSG), Blockbuster Entertainment (formerly NYSE: BBI), and PaineWebber Incorporated (formerly NYSE: PWJ). He also co-founded and served as Chief Executive Officer of PrintSource USA, eventually building the company into a multi-state operation. He has extensive experience buying and selling companies, both for his own entities, as well as for others, including time spent at Huizenga Holdings, a private investment company based in South Florida. Mr. Farlie received a Bachelor’s Degree magna cum laude from Princeton University and a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business. Neither Mr. Farlie, Farlie Turner & Co. nor Bayshore Partners, LLC where Mr. Farlie is an associated person will participate or be participating members in the offering (as such terms are defined in FINRA Rule 5110).

Damian Gilbert has 25 years of combined experience in investment banking and asset management. He is the founder of Lochearn Capital, a boutique advisory firm. Prior to founding Lochearn, Mr. Gilbert was a Managing Director with Fortress Investments, an asset management firm based in New York, where he worked primarily with growth equity investments in the Fortress Partners Fund. Prior to Fortress, he was a Managing Director with Allen & Company, a New York based merchant bank, where he provided M&A, financing, and strategic advice to family offices, private and public companies globally. Prior to being a member of Allen & Co’s advisory practice, he was a Managing Director with Allen Global Partners, an event driven hedge fund, where he oversaw the international portfolio and invested in a variety of merger arbitrage, special situations, and distressed debt opportunities. His earlier career included roles with event driven hedge fund Chesapeake Partners, and private equity firm Advanta Partners. Mr. Gilbert began his career in the investment banking


 

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division of Smith Barney in 1996, working in both the M&A and Technology, Media, and Telecommunications (TMT) groups. Mr. Gilbert holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics from Duke University. Mr. Gilbert will not participate or be a participating member in the offering (as such terms are defined in FINRA Rule 5110).

Ed Neumann is a client centric business leader focused on delivering operational scale and financial results to high-growth business models and organizations. He has more than 30 years of financial and operations experience, serving for the last 15 years in the fintech, e-commerce and cloud-based industries. He is currently the Senior Vice President, Financial Services Operations for Lightspeed. Previously, he was the Chief Financial Officer of ShopKeep, a leading U.S. provider of cloud-based, omnichannel commerce platforms for small and medium-sized businesses, through the acquisition of the company by Lightspeed in November 2020. Prior to ShopKeep, Mr. Neumann was the Chief Financial Officer of PeopleDoc, a cloud-based SaaS business offering HR Service Delivery platform solutions to enterprise organizations. PeopleDoc was acquired by Ultimate Software (formerly NASDAQ: ULTI) in July 2018. Previous to his role at PeopleDoc, Mr. Neumann was the Chief Financial Officer at Borderfree (formerly NASDAQ: BRDR prior to its acquisition by Pitney Bowes International in 2015), an international ecommerce technology and services company, overseeing the growth and expansion of the business through its initial public offering in March 2014 and subsequent acquisition by Pitney Bowes (NYSE: PBI) in June 2015. Prior to Borderfree, he spent almost a decade at Charming Shoppes (formerly NASDAQ: CHRS), a women’s multi-channel apparel retailer, and held several key executive roles, including Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer at Charming Direct, the company’s e-commerce division. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting from West Chester University in Pennsylvania.

Diede van Lamoen is a serial founder, startup executive and angel investor. He founded Groupon China, MyLuxBox, and Commure. He was an early executive at Stripe, serving as its Head of International, and today is an active angel investor and startup advisor. Mr. van Lamoen holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science and Economics from Dartmouth College.

With respect to the above, past experience or performance of our sponsor team is not a guarantee of either (i) our ability to successfully identify and execute a transaction or (ii) success with respect to any business combination that we may consummate. You should not rely on the historical record of our sponsor team as indicative of future performance. Our sponsor team has been involved with other public and private companies in addition to those identified above, not all of which have achieved similar performance levels. See “Risk Factors—Past performance by our sponsor team or their respective affiliates (including our founders) may not be indicative of future performance of an investment in us or in the future performance of any business that we may acquire.” For a complete list of entities for which a conflict of interest may or does exist between our directors and officers and the company, please refer to “Management—Conflicts of Interest.”

Business Strategy & Competitive Strengths

We intend to focus on high growth, U.S. and international acquisition targets in the Fintech and Embedded Finance sectors.

We believe that the Financial Services industry remains well behind others in terms of penetration by disruptive technologies. Examples of traditional sectors within Fintech include digital finance and lending, payment processing and gateways, mobile wallet technologies, electronic remittance, peer-to-peer solutions, authentication and security products, blockchain and digital assets, banking as a service and mobile banking, pre-paid cards, and digital wealth management. This represents only a portion of the vast array of Fintech opportunities from which to select a successful business combination.

“Embedded Finance” refers to the combination of a non-financial service provider with a financial technology. Embedded Finance offers transformational opportunities among consumer or enterprise businesses that can rapidly monetize and scale through the integration of financial technology. There are a vast range of opportunities. As described by Finextra Research and other sources, examples include: an e-commerce site offering a “buy now, pay later” option that serves as a digital loan; a ride-hailing site allowing users to pay directly on the app, rather than handing the driver cash or a credit card; an auto manufacturer or retailer


 

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electronically incorporating the application for insurance into the process of buying the vehicle; a consumer service provider allowing employees to receive payment almost instantly through a digital wallet or special debit cards; a health care provider leveraging data sets to match patients with the optimal coverage; and, a real estate service closing a transaction online without an agent as an intermediary.

The potential market for Fintech is large and rapidly expanding, particularly as payments and other embedded finance capabilities have a highly accretive impact on a myriad of consumer and enterprise applications. According to Pitchbook, during 2020, Fintech companies raised over $44 billion from venture capital in over 2,000 deals, with strong momentum in the fourth quarter, and the value of venture capital exits for Fintech companies reached almost $31 billion.

Our strategy and process are the culmination of over 100 years of combined experience of our sponsor team members in venture, private equity investing, mergers and acquisitions advisory services, asset management, equity research, investment banking, and operations/senior management. Collectively, our founders and board members have been members of numerous public and private company boards, while sourcing and providing diligence for a variety of transactions. Two have led successful public offerings as Chief Executive Officers. Our Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Ciporin, is the former Chairman and CEO of Shopping.com, where he oversaw growth from approximately zero to approximately $100 million in revenue in six years, culminating in its initial public offering in October 2004 and later an acquisition by eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY). Mr. Ciporin also has been a member of boards of other companies, including Lending Club (NYSE: LC) and Borderfree (formerly NASDAQ: BRDR prior to its acquisition by Pitney Bowes International in 2015) which have completed initial public offerings. Mike DeSimone, one of our independent directors, led Borderfree in his capacity as Chief Executive Officer and President through its initial public offering in 2014, after which it was acquired by Pitney Bowes (NYSE: PBI).

We believe that our strategic focus, experience, and tested principles will enable us to generate compelling returns for investors through an impactful business combination. In addition, we believe that our sponsor team’s extensive experience differentiates us from other similar special purpose acquisition companies and will enable us to contribute meaningfully across the core skills needed for a successful business combination, including:

 

   

Deal Flow and Screening. Our sponsor team possesses proprietary deal sourcing channels across the Fintech and Embedded Finance landscape, giving them access to a plethora of corporate leaders and highly experienced investors. These relationships derive from decades spent operating businesses, investing in private and public firms, advising managements on transactions, sitting on boards of companies, and researching investment ideas. We intend to source opportunities from these broad networks and historical partnerships, as well as from proactive diligence on investment themes and ideas.

 

   

Process. Our sponsor team has significant experience analyzing fundamentals, valuation and risk adjusted returns to ensure that we target investments with appropriately priced operational and execution risk. In addition to our founders and independent directors, we also intend to seek specialized support from respected industry experts and consultants in target sectors.

 

   

Execution. We believe that our sponsor team brings extensive transaction and deal structuring expertise within Fintech and Embedded Finance.


 

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Value Add. We believe that our sponsor team’s diverse backgrounds as investors, analysts, advisors and operators will enable us to add value for target company management, including future needs related to capital, mergers and acquisitions and strategy.

 

LOGO

Additionally, we expect that relationships cultivated from years of transaction experience with management teams of public and private companies, investment bankers, restructuring advisers, attorneys and accountants will provide potential acquisition opportunities for us.

Acquisition Criteria

Consistent with our strategy, we have identified the following criteria and guidelines that we believe are important in evaluating potential acquisition opportunities. We will generally use these criteria and guidelines in evaluating acquisition opportunities, but we may decide to complete an initial business combination with a target business that does not meet these criteria and guidelines. While we intend to acquire a controlling interest in a single company or business, we may acquire more than one company or business if the right opportunities are presented.

We intend to target venture capital-backed growth equity opportunities where we believe that our sponsor team’s collective expertise, relationships, and access to capital can significantly enhance the chances of success for an acquired target company. Though no single criterion will determine whether or not we pursue a business combination, we have identified the guidelines below for evaluating prospective targets. We intend to focus on companies that:

 

   

tie to our broad industry thesis related to Fintech and Embedded Finance, including transformational opportunities as described above;

 

   

provide products or services which we believe offer discernible and material value to customers;

 

   

demonstrate a consistent ability to monetize their product or service;

 

   

participate in large addressable end-markets;

 

   

harbor robust secular and scalable growth potential, that we believe have a clear path to profitability;

 

   

benefit from near-term fundamental catalysts, which we believe can propel earnings and/or equity value;

 

   

offer a diverse customer base;

 

   

operate a solid economic model, which we believe will generate stable and predictable cash flows and profits;

 

   

maintain protective competitive barriers with defensible intellectual property or unambiguous differentiation;

 

   

face easily identifiable and manageable product or execution risks;


 

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have a strong and experienced management team with a successful track-record for driving growth and value for investors;

 

   

maintain the systems, analytics, and processes to effectively manage risk;

 

   

stand to benefit meaningfully from the infusion of capital and the partnership with our sponsor team in order to drive future growth and to optimize operations; and

 

   

exhibit readiness to be a public company.

These criteria and guidelines are not intended to be exhaustive. We intend to remain disciplined in thoroughly evaluating the merits of any initial business combination. Any evaluation relating to the merits of a particular initial business combination may be based, to the extent relevant, on these general criteria and guidelines as well as other considerations, factors, criteria and guidelines that our management may deem relevant. In the event that we decide to enter into our initial business combination with a target business that does not meet the majority of the above criteria and guidelines, we will disclose that the target business does not meet the majority of the above criteria and guidelines in our stockholder communications related to our initial business combination, which, as discussed in this prospectus, would be in the form of tender offer documents or proxy solicitation materials that we would file with the SEC.

In addition to any potential business candidates we may identify on our own, we anticipate that other target business candidates will be brought to our attention from various unaffiliated sources, including investment market participants, private equity funds and large business enterprises seeking to divest non-core assets or divisions.

Our Acquisition Process

In evaluating a prospective target business, we expect to conduct an extensive due diligence review which may encompass, as applicable and among other things, meetings with incumbent management and employees, document reviews, interviews of customers and suppliers, inspection of facilities and a review of financial, operational, legal and other information about the target and its industry. We will also utilize our sponsor team’s operational and capital planning experience.

Each of our directors and the members of our sponsor team will, directly and/or indirectly through their membership interests in our sponsor, own founder shares and/or private placement warrants following this 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, our directors may have a conflict of interest with respect to evaluating a particular business combination if the retention or resignation of any such directors and officers is included by a target business as a condition to any agreement with respect to our initial business combination.

Certain of our officers and directors presently have, and any of them in the future may have additional, fiduciary or contractual obligations to other entities, pursuant to which such officer or director is or will be required to present a business combination opportunity to such entity subject to his or her fiduciary duties. For a list of our officers and directors and entities for which a conflict of interest may or does exist between such persons and the company, please refer to the table and subsequent explanatory paragraph in the section titled “Management—Conflicts of Interest” as well as the disclosure in each of our directors and officers respective biographies. As a result, if any of our officers or directors becomes aware of a business combination opportunity which is suitable for an entity to which he or she has then-current fiduciary or contractual obligations, then, subject to such officer’s and director’s fiduciary duties, he or she will need to honor such fiduciary or contractual obligations to present such business combination opportunity to such entity, before we can pursue such opportunity. If these other entities decide to pursue any such opportunity, we may be precluded from pursuing the same. However, we do not expect these duties or obligations to materially affect our ability to identify and pursue business combination opportunities or complete our initial business combination. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will provide that we renounce our interest in any business combination opportunity offered to any director or officer unless such opportunity is expressly


 

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offered to such person solely in his or her capacity as a director or officer of the company and it is an opportunity that we are able to complete on a reasonable basis.

In addition, our officers and directors, are not required to commit any specified amount of time to our affairs, and, accordingly, will have conflicts of interest in allocating management time among various business activities, including identifying potential business combinations and monitoring the related due diligence. See “Risk Factors—Our officers and directors will allocate their time to other businesses thereby causing conflicts of interest in their determination as to how much time to devote to our affairs. This conflict of interest could have a negative impact on our ability to complete our initial business combination.”

Initial Business Combination

In accordance with the rules of Nasdaq, our initial business combination must occur with one or more target businesses that together have an aggregate fair market value of at least 80% of the net assets held in the trust account (excluding the deferred underwriting discounts held in trust and taxes payable on the income earned on the trust account) at the time of signing a definitive agreement in connection with our initial business combination. We refer to this as the 80% of net assets test. 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 actual and potential sales, earnings, cash flow and/or book value). Even though our board of directors will rely on generally accepted standards, our board of directors will have discretion to select the standards employed. In addition, the application of the standards generally involves a substantial degree of judgment. Accordingly, investors will be relying on the business judgment of the board of directors in evaluating the fair market value of the target or targets. The proxy solicitation materials or tender offer documents used by us in connection with any proposed transaction will provide public stockholders with our analysis of our satisfaction of the 80% of net assets test, as well as the basis for our determinations. If our board of directors is not able independently to determine the fair market value of the target business or businesses, we will obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm that is a member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc., or FINRA, or an independent valuation or appraisal firm with respect to the satisfaction of such criteria. While we consider it unlikely that our board will not be able to make an independent determination of the fair market value of a target business or businesses, it may be unable to do so if the board is less familiar or experienced with the target company’s business, there is a significant amount of uncertainty as to the value of the target company’s assets or prospects, including if such company is at an early stage of development, operations or growth, or if the anticipated transaction involves a complex financial analysis or other specialized skills and the board determines that outside expertise would be helpful or necessary in conducting such analysis. Since any opinion, if obtained, would merely state that the fair market value of the target business meets the 80% of net assets test, unless such opinion includes material information regarding the valuation of a target business or the consideration to be provided, it is not anticipated that copies of such opinion would be distributed to our stockholders. However, if required under applicable law, any proxy statement that we deliver to stockholders and file with the SEC in connection with a proposed transaction will include such opinion.

We anticipate structuring our initial business combination so that the post-business combination company in which our public stockholders 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-business combination 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 stockholders or for other reasons, but we will only complete such business combination if the post-business combination 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-business combination company owns or acquires 50% or more of the voting securities of the target, our stockholders prior to the business combination may collectively own a minority interest in the post-business combination company, depending on valuations ascribed to the target and us in the business combination. For example, we


 

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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 stockholders immediately prior to our initial business combination could own less than a majority of our outstanding shares subsequent to our initial business combination. If less than 100% of the equity interests or assets of a target business or businesses are owned or acquired by the post-business combination 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 the 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 and we will treat the target businesses together as the initial business combination for purposes of a tender offer or for seeking stockholder approval, as applicable. We do not currently intend to purchase multiple businesses in unrelated industries in conjunction with our initial business combination. Subject to the foregoing, 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.

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.

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.

Other Considerations

We are not prohibited from pursuing an initial business combination with a company that is affiliated with our sponsor, officers or directors. In the event we seek to complete our initial business combination with a company that is affiliated with our sponsor or any of our founders, officers or directors, we, or a committee of independent directors, will obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm that is a member of FINRA or an independent accounting firm that such initial business combination is fair to our company from a financial point of view. We are not required to obtain such an opinion in any other context.

We currently do not have any specific business combination under consideration. Our officers and directors have neither individually selected nor considered a target business nor have they had any substantive discussions regarding possible target businesses among themselves or with our underwriters. Our sponsor team is regularly made aware of potential business opportunities, one or more of which we may desire to pursue for a business combination, but we have not (nor has anyone on our behalf) contacted any prospective target business or had any substantive discussions, formal or otherwise, with respect to a business combination transaction with our company. Additionally, we have not, nor has anyone on our behalf, taken any substantive measure, directly or indirectly, to identify or locate any suitable acquisition candidate for us, nor have we engaged or retained any agent or other representative to identify or locate any such acquisition candidate.

The members of our sponsor team may sponsor, form or participate in other blank check companies similar to ours during the period in which we are seeking an initial business combination. Any such companies may present additional conflicts of interest in pursuing an acquisition target, particularly in the event there is overlap among investment mandates. However, we do not believe that any potential conflicts with such other companies would materially affect our ability to complete our initial business combination, because we believe there are multiple potential opportunities in the industries and geographies of our primary focus.


 

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Corporate Information

Our executive offices address is P.O. Box 1314, New York, NY 10028 and our telephone number is (917) 703-2312. The information contained on or accessible through our corporate website (if any) or any other website that we may maintain is not part of this prospectus or the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part.

We are an “emerging growth company,” as defined in Section 2(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Securities Act, as modified by the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act of 2012, or 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 of 2002, or 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 stockholder 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 this offering, (b) in which we have total annual gross revenue of at least $1.07 billion, or (c) in which we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer, which means the market value of our shares of Class A common stock that are held by non-affiliates equals or exceeds $700 million as of the prior June 30, and (2) the date on which we have issued more than $1.0 billion in non-convertible debt during the prior three-year period. References in this prospectus to “emerging growth company” 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 the fiscal year in which (1) the market value of our shares of common stock held by non-affiliates equaled or exceeded $250 million as of the prior June 30, and (2) our annual revenues equaled or exceeded $100 million during such completed fiscal year or the market value of our shares of common stock held by non-affiliates equaled or exceeded $700 million as of the prior June 30.


 

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THE OFFERING

In deciding whether to invest in our securities, you should take into account not only the backgrounds of the members of our sponsor team, but also the special risks we face as a blank check company and the fact that this offering is not being conducted in compliance with Rule 419 promulgated under the Securities Act. You will not be entitled to protections normally afforded to investors in Rule 419 blank check offerings. You should carefully consider these and the other risks set forth in the section below entitled “Risk Factors” of this prospectus.

 

Securities offered

20,000,000 units (or 23,000,000 units if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full), at $10.00 per unit, each unit consisting of:

 

   

one share of Class A common stock; and

 

   

one-half of one redeemable warrant.

 

Nasdaq symbols

Class A common stock: “HPLT”

 

  Warrants: “HPLTW”

 

  Units: “HPLTU”

 

Trading commencement and separation of shares of our Class A common stock and warrants

The units are expected to begin trading on or promptly after the date of this prospectus. The shares of our Class A common stock and warrants comprising the units will begin separate trading on the 52nd day following the date of this prospectus (or, if such date is not a business day, the following business day) unless Jefferies informs us of its decision to allow earlier separate trading, subject to our having filed the Current Report on Form 8-K described below and having issued a press release announcing when such separate trading will begin. Once the shares of our Class A common stock and warrants commence separate trading, holders will have the option to continue to hold units or separate their units into the component securities. Holders will need to have their brokers contact our transfer agent in order to separate the units into shares of our Class A common stock and warrants. No fractional warrants will be issued upon separation of the units and only whole warrants will trade. If, upon separation of the units, a holder of warrants would be entitled to receive a fractional warrant, we will round down to the nearest whole number the number of warrants to be issued to such holder. Accordingly, unless you purchase at least two units, you will not be able to receive or trade a whole warrant.

 

  Additionally, the units will automatically separate into their component parts and will not be traded after completion of our initial business combination.

 

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Separate trading of the Class A common stock and warrants is prohibited until we have filed a Current Report on Form 8-K

In no event will the Class A common stock and warrants be traded separately until we have filed with the SEC a Current Report on Form 8-K which includes an audited balance sheet reflecting our receipt of the gross proceeds at the closing of this offering. We will file the Current Report on Form 8-K promptly after the closing of this offering. If the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised following the initial filing of such Current Report on Form 8-K, a second or amended Current Report on Form 8-K will be filed to provide updated financial information to reflect the exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option.

Units:

 

Number outstanding before this offering

0

 

Number outstanding after this offering

20,000,000(1)

Common stock:

 

Number outstanding before this offering

5,750,000 shares of Class B common stock (2)(3)

 

Number outstanding after this offering

25,000,000 shares of Class A common stock and Class B common stock(1)(2)(4)

Warrants:

 

Number of private placement warrants to be sold in a private placement simultaneously with this offering

7,600,000(1)

 

Number of warrants to be outstanding after this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants

17,600,000(1)

 

Exercisability

Each whole warrant that is part of the units sold in this offering is exercisable to purchase one share of our Class A common stock, subject to adjustment as provide in this prospectus, and only whole warrants are exercisable. No fractional warrants will be issued upon separation of the units and only whole warrants will trade. If, upon separation of the units, a holder of warrants would be entitled to

 

1    Assumes no exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option and the forfeiture by our sponsor of 750,000 founder shares.

 

2    Founder shares are Class B shares of our common stock, which shares will automatically convert into Class A common stock on the first business day following the completion of our initial business combination as described below adjacent to the caption “Founder shares conversion and anti-dilution rights” and in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation.

 

3    Consists solely of founder shares outstanding as of the date of this prospectus and includes up to 750,000 shares that are subject to forfeiture depending on the extent to which the underwriters’ over-allotment option is not exercised.

 

4    Includes 20,000,000 public shares and 5,000,000 founder shares, assuming 750,000 founder shares have been forfeited following expiration of the underwriters’ over-allotment option.

 

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receive a fractional warrant, we will round down to the nearest whole number the number of warrants to be issued to such holder.

 

Exercise price

$11.50 per whole share, subject to adjustments as described in this prospectus. In addition, if (x) we issue additional shares of our Class A common stock or equity-linked securities for capital raising purposes in connection with the closing of our initial business combination at an issue price or effective issue price of less than $9.20 per share of our Class A common stock (with such issue price or effective issue price to be determined in good faith by our board of directors and, in the case of any such issuance to our sponsor or its affiliates, without taking into account any founder shares held by our initial stockholders or such affiliates, as applicable, prior to such issuance) (the “Newly Issued Price”), (y) the aggregate gross proceeds from such issuances represent more than 60% of the total equity proceeds, and interest thereon, available for the funding of our initial business combination on the date of the completion of our initial business combination (net of redemptions), and (z) the volume-weighted average trading price of our Class A common stock during the 20 trading day period starting on the trading day prior to the day on which we complete our initial business combination (such price, the “Market Value”) is below $9.20 per share, then the exercise price of the warrants will be adjusted (to the nearest cent) to be equal to 115% of the higher of the Market Value and the Newly Issued Price, and the $10.00 and $18.00 per share redemption trigger prices described adjacent to “Redemption of warrants when the price per share of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00” and “Redemption of warrants when the price per share of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $18.00” will be adjusted (to the nearest cent) to be equal to 100% and 180% of the higher of the Market Value and the Newly Issued Price, respectively.

 

Exercise period

The warrants will become exercisable 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination; provided that we have an effective registration statement under the Securities Act covering the sale of the shares of our Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants, and a current prospectus relating thereto is available, and such shares are registered, qualified or exempt from registration under the securities, or blue sky, laws of the state of residence of the holder (or we permit holders to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis under the circumstances specified in the warrant agreement as a result of (i) our failure to have an effective registration statement by the 60th business day after the closing of the initial business combination as described in the immediately following paragraph or (ii) a notice of redemption described below under “Redemption of warrants when the price per share of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00”). If and when the warrants become redeemable by us, we may exercise our redemption right even if we are unable to register or qualify the underlying securities for sale under all applicable state securities laws.

 

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  We have agreed that as soon as practicable, but in no event later than 20 business days after the closing of our initial business combination, we will use our commercially reasonable efforts to file with the SEC a post-effective amendment to the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part or a new registration statement covering the shares of our Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants, and we will use our commercially reasonable efforts to cause the same to become effective within 60 business days after the closing of our initial business combination, and to maintain the effectiveness of such registration statement and a current prospectus relating to those shares of our Class A common stock until the warrants expire or are redeemed, as specified in the warrant agreement; provided that if our shares of Class A common stock are at the time of any exercise of a warrant not listed on a national securities exchange such that it satisfies the definition of a “covered security” under Section 18(b)(1) of the Securities Act, we may, at our option, require holders of public warrants who exercise their warrants to do so on a “cashless basis” in accordance with Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act and, in the event we so elect, we will not be required to file or maintain in effect a registration statement, but we will use our best efforts to register or qualify the shares under applicable blue sky laws to the extent an exemption is not available. Because the warrants are not exercisable until 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination, we do not currently intend to update the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part or file a new registration statement covering the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants until after the initial business combination has been consummated. If a registration statement covering the shares of our Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants is not effective by the 60th business day after the closing of the initial business combination, warrant holders may, until such time as there is an effective registration statement and during any period when we will have failed to maintain an effective registration statement, exercise warrants on a “cashless basis” in accordance with Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act or another exemption.

 

  The warrants will expire at 5:00 p.m., New York City time, five years after the completion of our initial business combination or earlier upon redemption or liquidation; provided, however, that the warrants included in the private placement units issued to Jefferies will not be exercisable more than five years after the commencement of sales in this offering in accordance with FINRA Rule 5110(g)(8). On the exercise of any warrant, the warrant exercise price will be paid directly to us and not placed in the trust account.

 

Redemption of warrants when the price per share of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $18.00

Once the warrants become exercisable, we may redeem the outstanding warrants (except as described in this prospectus with respect to the private placement warrants):

 

   

in whole and not in part;


 

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at a price of $0.01 per warrant;

 

   

upon a minimum of 30 days’ prior written notice of redemption, which we refer to as the “30-day redemption period”; and

 

   

if, and only if, the last reported sale price of our Class A common stock for any 20 trading days within a 30-trading day period ending on the third trading day prior to the date on which we send the notice of redemption to the warrant holders (the “Reference Value”) equals or exceeds $18.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock capitalizations, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like and certain issuances of Class A common stock and equity-linked securities).

 

  We will not redeem the warrants as described above unless an effective registration statement under the Securities Act covering the sale of the shares of our Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants is effective, and a current prospectus relating thereto is available, throughout the 30-day redemption period. Any such exercise would not be on a “cashless basis” and would require the exercising warrant holder to pay the exercise price for each warrant being exercised.

 

  Except as set forth below, none of the private placement warrants will be redeemable by us so long as they are held by our sponsor, Jefferies or their permitted transferees.

 

Redemption of warrants when the price per share of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00

Once the warrants become exercisable, we may redeem the outstanding warrants (except as described in this prospectus with respect to the private placement warrants):

 

   

in whole and not in part;

 

   

at $0.10 per warrant upon a minimum of 30 days’ prior written notice of redemption, provided that holders will be able to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis prior to redemption and receive that number of shares determined by reference to the table set forth under “Description of Securities—Warrants—Public Stockholders’ Warrants” based on the redemption date and the “fair market value” of our Class A common stock (as defined below);

 

   

if, and only if, the Reference Value (as defined above under “Redemption of warrants when the price per share of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $18.00”) equals or exceeds $10.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, rights issuances, subdivisions, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like and certain issuances of Class A common stock and equity-linked securities); and

 

   

if the Reference Value is less than $18.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, rights issuances, subdivisions, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like and certain issuances of Class A common stock and equity-linked securities), the private placement warrants must also


 

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concurrently be called for redemption on the same terms as the outstanding public warrants, as described above.

 

  The “fair market value” of our Class A common stock shall mean the volume-weighted average price of our Class A common stock for the ten trading days immediately following the date on which the notice of redemption is sent to the holders of warrants. This redemption feature differs from the typical warrant redemption features used in other blank check offerings. We will provide our warrant holders with the final fair market value no later than one business day after the 10-day trading period described above ends. In no event will the warrants be exercisable in connection with this redemption feature for more than 0.361 shares of our Class A common stock per warrant (subject to adjustment).

 

  No fractional shares of our Class A common stock will be issued upon exercise of a warrant in connection with a redemption. If, upon such exercise, a holder would be entitled to receive a fractional interest in a share, we will round down to the nearest whole number of the number of shares of our Class A common stock to be issued to the holder. Please see the section entitled “Description of Securities—Warrants—Public Stockholders’ Warrants” for additional information.

 

  Pursuant to the warrant agreement, references above to Class A common stock shall include a security other than Class A common stock into which the Class A common stock has been converted or exchanged for in the event we are not the surviving company in our initial business combination.

 

  Except as set forth below, none of the private placement warrants will be redeemable by us so long as they are held by our sponsor, Jefferies or their permitted transferees.

 

Accounting for the public warrants and the private placement warrants

The public warrants that are to be issued in this offering and the private placement warrants that are to be issued concurrently with this offering will be accounted for outside of stockholders’ equity and included in our financial statements as a current liability measured at the estimated fair value of the total outstanding public warrants and private placement warrants. In addition, at each reporting period (1) the accounting treatment of the warrants will be re-evaluated for proper accounting treatment as a liability or equity and (2) the fair value of the liability of the public warrants and the private placement warrants will be remeasured and the change in the fair value of the liability will be recognized in our statement of operations. If the classification changes as a result of events during the period, the warrants will be reclassified as of the date of the event that causes the reclassification.

 

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Founder shares

Prior to this offering, our initial stockholders purchased an aggregate of 5,750,000 founder shares for an aggregate purchase price of $25,000, or approximately $0.004 per share. Prior to the initial investment in the company of $25,000 by our initial stockholders, the company had no assets, tangible or intangible. The per share purchase price of the founder shares was determined by dividing the amount of cash contributed to the company by the aggregate number of founder shares issued. Our initial stockholders will collectively own 20% of the outstanding shares after this offering (assuming our initial stockholders do not purchase any units in this offering). If we increase or decrease the size of this offering, we will effect a stock capitalization or share surrender or other appropriate mechanism, as applicable, with respect to the shares of our Class B common stock immediately prior to the completion of this offering in such amount as to maintain the ownership of our initial stockholders, on an as-converted basis, at 20% of our issued and outstanding shares of our common stock upon the completion of this offering. Up to 750,000 founder shares will be subject to forfeiture by our sponsor depending on the extent to which the underwriters’ over-allotment option is not exercised so that our initial stockholders will maintain on an as-converted basis ownership of 20% of the issued and outstanding shares of our common stock upon the completion of this offering. Assuming that each anchor investor purchases the number of units for which it has provided an indication of interest, the anchor investors will own, in the aggregate, up to approximately 84.6% of the outstanding shares of our common stock (or up to 73.6% if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) upon the completion of this offering (in each case, including the founder shares sold by our sponsor as described herein). In consideration of these purchases, our sponsor has entered into an investment agreement with each of the public anchor investors pursuant to which our sponsor has sold up to 150,000 founder shares (1,350,000 founder shares in the aggregate), at their original purchase price of approximately $0.004 per share.

 

  The founder shares are identical to the shares of our Class A common stock included in the units being sold in this offering, except that:

 

   

prior to our initial business combination, only holders of the founder shares have the right to vote on the election of directors and holders of a majority of the founder shares may remove a member of the board of directors for any reason;

 

   

the founder shares are subject to certain transfer restrictions, as described in more detail below;

 

   

each of our sponsor, officers and directors have entered into a letter agreement with us, pursuant to which they have agreed to waive (i) their redemption rights with respect to their founder shares and any public shares held by them in connection with the completion of our initial business combination; (ii) their redemption rights with respect to their founder shares and any public shares held by them in connection with a stockholder


 

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vote to approve an amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation (A) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we have not completed an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering or (B) with respect to any other provisions relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity; and (iii) their rights to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to any founder shares held by them if we do not complete our initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering, although they will be entitled to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to any public shares they hold if we do not complete our initial business combination within the prescribed time frame. If we submit our initial business combination to our public stockholders for a vote, pursuant to the terms of a letter agreement entered into with us, our sponsor, officers and directors have agreed to vote their founder shares and any public shares they may acquire during or after this offering, in favor of our initial business combination. If all issued and outstanding shares are voted and the over-allotment option is not exercised, in addition to our founder shares, we would need 7,500,001 (or 37.5%) of the 20,000,000 public shares sold in this offering to be voted in favor of an initial business combination in order to have our initial business combination approved. If only the minimum number of shares representing a quorum are voted and the over-allotment option is not exercised, in addition to our founder shares, we would need 1,250,001 (or 6.25%) of the 20,000,000 public shares sold in this offering to be voted in favor of an initial business combination in order to have our initial business combination approved;

 

   

the founder shares are shares of Class B common stock that will automatically convert into shares of our Class A common stock on the first business day following the completion of our initial business combination as described below adjacent to the caption “Founder shares conversion and anti-dilution rights” and elsewhere in this prospectus and in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation;

 

   

the anchor investors will not be entitled to (i) redemption rights with respect to any founder shares held by them in connection with the completion of our initial business combination, (ii) redemption rights with respect to any founder shares held by them in connection with a stockholder vote to amend our amended and restated certification of incorporation in a manner that would affect the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we have not consummated an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering or (iii) rights to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to any founder shares held by them if we fail to complete our initial business combination


 

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within 18 months from the closing of this offering (although they will be entitled to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to any public shares they hold if we fail to complete our business combination within the prescribed time frame); and

 

   

the founder shares are entitled to registration rights.

 

Transfer restrictions on founder shares

Our initial stockholders have agreed not to transfer, assign or sell any of their founder shares and any shares of our Class A common stock issuable upon conversion thereof until the earlier to occur of: (i) one year after the completion of our initial business combination; and (ii) subsequent to our initial business combination, (x) if the last reported sale price of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $12.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock capitalizations, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) for any 20 trading days within any 30-trading day period commencing at least 150 days after our initial business combination, or (y) the date on which we complete a liquidation, merger, capital stock exchange or other similar transaction that results in all of our public stockholders having the right to exchange their shares of common stock for cash, securities or other property (except to certain permitted transferees and under certain circumstances as described in this prospectus under “Principal Stockholders—Restrictions on Transfers of Founder Shares and Private Placement Warrants”). Any permitted transferees will be subject to the same restrictions and other agreements of our initial stockholders with respect to any founder shares (except that our public anchor investors will be permitted to abstain from voting founder shares). We refer to such transfer restrictions throughout this prospectus as the lock-up.

 

Founder shares conversion and anti-dilution rights

The founder shares are designated as shares of our Class B common stock and will automatically convert into shares of our Class A common stock on the first business day following the completion of our initial business combination at a ratio such that the number of shares of our Class A common stock issuable upon conversion of all founder shares will equal, in the aggregate, on an as-converted basis, 20% of the sum of (i) the total number of shares of our Class A common stock and Class B common stock issued and outstanding upon completion of this offering, plus (ii) the sum of (a) the total number of shares of our Class A common stock issued or deemed issued or issuable upon conversion or exercise of any equity-linked securities or rights issued or deemed issued by the Company in connection with or in relation to the completion of the initial business combination, excluding (1) any shares of our Class A common stock or equity-linked securities exercisable or exchangeable for or convertible into shares of our Class A common stock issued, or to be issued, to any seller in the initial business combination, and (2) any private placement warrants issued to our sponsor or any of its affiliates upon conversion of working capital loans, minus (b) the number of public shares redeemed by public


 

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stockholders in connection with our initial business combination. In no event will the shares of our Class B common stock convert into shares of our Class A common stock at a rate of less than one-to-one.

 

Election of directors; Voting rights

Prior to our initial business combination, only holders of our founder shares will have the right to vote on the election of directors. Holders of our public shares will not be entitled to vote on the election of directors during such time. In addition, prior to the completion of an initial business combination, holders of a majority of our founder shares may remove a member of the board of directors for any reason. These provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation may only be amended by approval of a majority of at least 90% of the shares of our Class B common stock voting in an annual meeting. With respect to any other matter submitted to a vote of our stockholders, including any vote in connection with our initial business combination, except as required by law, holders of our founder shares and holders of our public shares will vote together as a single class, with each share entitling the holder to one vote.

 

Private placement warrants

Our sponsor and Jefferies have committed, pursuant to a written agreement, to purchase an aggregate of 7,600,000 private placement warrants (or an aggregate of 8,200,000 private placement warrants if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) at a price of $1.00 per whole warrant (approximately $7,600,000 or $8,200,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full), in a private placement that will close simultaneously with the closing of this offering. Among the private placement warrants, 6,600,000 warrants (or 7,050,000 warrants if the over-allotment option is exercised in full) will be purchased by our sponsor and/or its designees and 1,000,000 warrants (or 1,150,000 warrants if the over-allotment option is exercised in full) will be purchased by Jefferies and/or its designees. Each whole private placement warrant is exercisable to purchase one share of our Class A common stock at a price of $11.50 per share.

 

  A portion of the purchase price of the private placement warrants will be added to the proceeds from this offering to be held in the trust account such that, at the time of closing, $200,000,000 (or $230,000,000 if the underwriters exercise their over-allotment option in full) will be held in the trust account. If we do not complete an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering, the proceeds held in the trust account, including the portion of the purchase price of the private placement warrants deposited in the trust account, will be used to fund the redemption of our public shares (subject to the requirements of applicable law) and the private placement warrants will expire worthless.

 

 

The private placement warrants will be (i) non-redeemable (except as set forth under “Description of Securities — Warrants — Redemption of Warrants When the Price per Share of Our Class A Common Stock Equals or Exceeds $10.00”), (ii) exercisable on a cashless basis so long as they are held by our sponsor, Jefferies or their permitted transferees and (iii) with respect to private placement warrants held by Jefferies, will not be exercisable more than five years from the commencement of sales in this offering in accordance with FINRA


 

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Rule 5110(g)(8) (see “Description of Securities—Warrants—Private Placement Warrants”). If the private placement warrants are held by holders other than our sponsor, Jefferies or their permitted transferees, the private placement warrants will be redeemable by us and exercisable by the holders on the same basis as the warrants included in the units being sold in this offering. Our sponsor and Jefferies, as well as their permitted transferees, have the option to exercise the private placement warrants on a cashless basis.

 

  The private placement warrants purchased by Jefferies or its affiliates are deemed underwriters’ compensation by FINRA pursuant to Rule 5110 of the FINRA Manual.

 

Transfer restrictions on private placement warrants

The private placement warrants (including the shares of our Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the private placement warrants) will not be transferable, assignable or salable until 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination (except as described in this prospectus under the section of this prospectus entitled “Principal Stockholders—Restrictions on Transfers of Founder Shares and Private Placement Warrants”).

 

Expressions of Interest

Certain anchor investors (none of whom are affiliated with our sponsor, officers or directors) have expressed to us an interest in purchasing up to an aggregate of approximately 1,980,000 units in this offering (which amount will not change if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised) at the public offering price of $10.00 per unit, and such allocations will be determined by the underwriters. No anchor investor is expected to purchase more than 9.9% of the units in this offering (without giving effect to the underwriters’ over-allotment option). We have agreed to direct the underwriters to sell to the anchor investors such number of units and such allocations will be determined by the underwriters, subject to our satisfying the Nasdaq listing requirements.

 

  Assuming that each anchor investor purchases the number of units for which it provided an indication of interest, the anchor investors will own, in the aggregate, up to approximately 84.6% of the outstanding shares of our common stock (or up to approximately 73.6% if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) upon the completion of this offering (in each case, including the founder shares sold by our sponsor as described herein). In consideration of these purchases, our sponsor has entered into an investment agreement with each of the public anchor investors pursuant to which such anchor investors have purchased in the aggregate up to approximately 1,350,000 founder shares from our sponsor at approximately $0.004 per share (at cost). In the event an anchor investor does not purchase the full amount of units for which it provided an indication of interest, it will forfeit back to our sponsor any and all rights to all of the founder shares such anchor investors purchased. The founder shares owned by the public anchor investors are subject to additional restrictions as described under the section of this prospectus entitled “Description of Securities—Founder Shares.”

 

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  There is no minimum or maximum number of units that may be purchased by the anchor investors in this offering or any limitation on the number of our units, Class A common stock or warrants that the anchor investors may purchase after this offering, but the anchor investors have not indicated that they would purchase any additional units in this offering or any of our securities after the closing of this offering.

 

  Pursuant to such units, the anchor investors have not been granted any stockholder or other rights in addition to those afforded to our other public stockholders. Further, unlike some anchor investment arrangements of other blank check companies, the anchor investors are not required to (i) hold any units, shares of Class A common stock or warrants they may purchase in this offering or thereafter for any amount of time, (ii) vote any shares of Class A common stock they may own at the applicable time in favor of our initial business combination or (iii) refrain from exercising their right to redeem their public shares at the time of our initial business combination. The anchor investors will have the same rights to the funds held in the trust account with respect to the shares of Class A common stock underlying the units they may purchase in this offering as the rights afforded to our other public stockholders.

 

  There can be no assurance that the anchor investors will acquire any units in this offering, or as to the amount of such units the anchor investors will retain, if any, prior to or upon the consummation of our initial business combination. There is also no guarantee that all anchor investors will participate in the offering. In the event that the anchor investors purchase all of the units that they have expressed an interest in purchasing in this offering, hold all such units until prior to consummation of our initial business combination and vote their public shares in favor of our initial business combination, in addition to the founder shares, no affirmative votes from other public stockholders would be required to approve our initial business combination. The anchor investors are not required to vote any of their public shares in favor of our initial business combination or for or against any other matter presented for a stockholder vote.

 

 

If the anchor investors purchase the number of units they have expressed an interest in purchasing in this offering, the anchor investors as a group could have substantial control over us and be able to exercise significant influence over all matters requiring stockholder approval, and the extent of their influence will be even more significant if they purchase more of our securities in or after this offering. In addition, in the event that our anchor investors purchase such units (either in this offering or after) and vote them in favor of our initial business combination, a smaller portion of affirmative votes from other public stockholders would be required to approve our initial business combination and, in certain circumstances (e.g., assuming only the minimum number of shares representing a quorum are voted and the over-allotment is not exercised), no affirmative votes from other public stockholders would be required to approve a business combination. As a result of the


 

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indirect interest in our founder shares and private placement warrants that our UBS O’Connor anchor investors may hold and the founder shares that our public anchor investors may hold, the anchor investors may have different interests with respect to a vote on an initial business combination than other public stockholders. For example, the anchor investors may have an incentive to vote their public shares in favor of any business combination regardless of the fact that the anchor investors have not entered into any agreement with us to do so. In addition, any units purchased in this offering by our anchor investors would not be subject to any lock-up provisions.

 

  With respect to the common stock underlying the units they may purchase in this offering, the anchor investors will have the same rights to the funds held in the trust account as the rights afforded to our public stockholders. In addition, the units (including the underlying securities) the anchor investors may purchase in this offering will not be subject to any agreements restricting their transfer.

 

  Pursuant to the investment agreements with us and our sponsor, the public anchor investors have agreed (or will agree) to (a) vote any founder shares held by them in favor of our initial business combination and (b) subject any founder shares held by them to the same lock-up restrictions as the founder shares held by our sponsor and independent directors. Since our sponsor has sold founder shares held by it to the anchor investors and we are not issuing any new shares of Class B common stock, there will be no dilutive impact on the other investors in this offering.

 

  Each of the UBS O’Connor anchor investors have agreed that if they, together with their affiliates, (i) purchase less than 9.9% of the units sold in this offering or (ii) purchase, but do not hold, 9.9% of the shares sold in this offering through the date that is thirty (30) days following the consummation of our initial business combination, they will forfeit, for no additional consideration or refund, a pro rata portion (up to 75%) of their interest in the founder shares held by our sponsor.

 

  Although we and the underwriters are not required to sell the anchor investors units in this offering, we expect the underwriters to sell to each of the anchor investors units up to their expressions of interest, subject to our satisfying the Nasdaq listing requirements. We are not aware of any circumstances (other than the Nasdaq listing requirement) under which we or the underwriters would prohibit any of the anchor investors from purchasing the applicable number of units they have expressed an interest in purchasing in this offering.

 

Proceeds to be held in trust account

Of the proceeds we will receive from this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants described in this prospectus, $200,000,000, or $230,000,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full ($10.00 per unit in either case), will be deposited into a segregated trust account located in the United States with Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, acting as


 

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trustee, and approximately $3,600,000 will be used to pay expenses in connection with the closing of this offering and for working capital following this offering. The proceeds to be placed into the trust account include $7,000,000 (or $8,050,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) in deferred underwriting commissions.

 

  Except with respect to interest earned on the funds held in the trust account that may be released to us to pay our taxes, if any, the funds held in the trust account will not be released until the earliest to occur of: (a) the completion of our initial business combination; (b) the redemption of any public shares properly tendered in connection with a stockholder vote to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation (i) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering or (ii) with respect to any other provisions relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity; and (c) the redemption of all of our public shares if we have not completed our business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering, subject to applicable law. Public stockholders who redeem their shares of our Class A common stock in connection with a stockholder vote described in clause (b) in the preceding sentence shall not be entitled to funds from the trust account upon the subsequent completion of an initial business combination or liquidation if we are unable to complete an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering, with respect to such shares of our Class A common stock so redeemed. The proceeds deposited in the trust account could become subject to the claims of our creditors, if any, which could have priority over the claims of our public stockholders.

 

Anticipated expenses and funding sources

Except as described above with respect to the payment of taxes, unless and until we complete our initial business combination, no proceeds held in the trust account will be available for our use. The proceeds held in the trust account, if invested, will be invested only in U.S. government treasury obligations with a maturity of 185 days or less or in money market funds meeting certain conditions under Rule 2a-7 under the Investment Company Act which invest only in direct U.S. government treasury obligations. Assuming an interest rate of 0.04% per year, we estimate the interest earned on the trust account to generate approximately $60,000 per year; however, we can provide no assurances regarding this amount. Except as described above, unless and until we complete our initial business combination, we may pay our expenses only from:

 

   

the net proceeds of this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants not held in the trust account, which we expect will be approximately $2,900,000 in working capital


 

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after the payment of approximately $700,000 in expenses relating to this offering;

 

   

with respect to our taxes, any interest earned from the trust account; and

 

   

any loans or additional investments from our sponsor or an affiliate of our sponsor or certain of our officers and directors, although they are under no obligation to advance funds or invest in us, and provided that any such loans will not have any claim on the proceeds held in the trust account unless such proceeds are released to us upon completion of our initial business combination.

 

Conditions to completing our initial business combination

There is no limitation on our ability to raise funds privately or through loans in connection with our initial business combination. Nasdaq rules require that our initial business combination must occur with one or more target businesses that together have an aggregate fair market value of at least 80% of our net assets held in the trust account (excluding the amount of deferred underwriting discounts held in trust and taxes payable on the income earned on the trust account) at the time of our signing a definitive agreement in connection with our initial business combination. We do not currently intend to purchase multiple businesses in unrelated industries in conjunction with our initial business combination, although there is no assurance that will be the case. Notwithstanding the foregoing, if we are not then listed on Nasdaq for whatever reason, we would no longer be required to meet the foregoing 80% of net assets test.

 

 

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 actual and potential sales, earnings, cash flow and/or book value). Even though our board of directors will rely on generally accepted standards, our board of directors will have discretion to select the standards employed. In addition, the application of the standards generally involves a substantial degree of judgment. Accordingly, investors will be relying on the business judgment of the board of directors in evaluating the fair market value of the target or targets. The proxy solicitation materials or tender offer documents used by us in connection with any proposed transaction will provide public stockholders with our analysis of our satisfaction of the 80% of net assets test, as well as the basis for our determinations. If our board of directors is not able independently to determine the fair market value of the target business or businesses, we will obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm which is a member of FINRA or an independent valuation or appraisal firm with respect to the satisfaction of such criteria. In the event we seek to complete our initial business combination with a company that is affiliated with our sponsor or any of our founders, officers or directors, we, or a committee of independent directors, will obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm that is a member of FINRA or an independent accounting firm that such initial business


 

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combination is fair to our company from a financial point of view. We are not required to obtain such an opinion in any other context. Our stockholders may not be provided with a copy of such opinion(s) nor will they be able to rely on such opinion(s).

 

  We will complete our initial business combination only if the post-business combination company in which our public stockholders own shares will own or acquire 50% or more of the outstanding voting securities of the target or otherwise acquires a controlling interest in the target sufficient for it not to be required to register as an investment company under the Investment Company Act. Even if the post-business combination company owns or acquires 50% or more of the voting securities of the target, our stockholders prior to our initial business combination may collectively own a minority interest in the post-business combination company, depending on valuations ascribed to the target and us in the business combination transaction. If less than 100% of the equity interests or assets of a target business or businesses are owned or acquired by the post-business combination 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, provided that in the event that the 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 and we will treat the target businesses together as the initial business combination for purposes of a tender offer or for seeking stockholder approval, as applicable.

 

Permitted purchases of public shares and public warrants by our affiliates

If we seek stockholder 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 and/or their affiliates may purchase shares or public warrants in privately negotiated transactions or in the open market either prior to or following the completion of our initial business combination where otherwise permissible under applicable laws, rule and regulations. 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. None of the funds held in the trust account will be used to purchase shares or public warrants in such transactions. If they engage 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 Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”). Further, our sponsor, directors, officers and/or their affiliates will be restricted from making any purchases if such purchases would violate Section 9(a)(2) or Rule 10b-5 of the Exchange Act. 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


 

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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. Any such purchases will be reported pursuant to Section 13 and Section 16 of the Exchange Act to the extent such purchasers are subject to such reporting requirements. See “Proposed Business—Permitted Purchases of Our Securities” for a description of how our sponsor, directors, officers or any of their affiliates will select which stockholders to purchase securities from in any private transaction.

 

  The purpose of any such purchases of shares could be to vote such shares in favor of the business combination and thereby increase the likelihood of obtaining stockholder approval of the business combination or 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. The purpose of any such purchases of public warrants could be to reduce the number of public warrants outstanding or to vote such warrants on any matters submitted to the warrant holders for approval in connection with our initial business combination. Any such purchases of our securities 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 shares of Class A common stock or warrants 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.

 

Redemption rights for public stockholders upon completion of our initial business combination

We will provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their public shares of Class A common stock 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 calculated as of two business days prior to the completion of our initial business combination, including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes, if any (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses) divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, subject to the limitations described in this prospectus. 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. The redemption rights will include the requirement that a beneficial holder must identify itself in order to validly redeem its shares. There will be no redemption rights upon the completion of our initial business combination with respect to our warrants. Our sponsor, officers and directors have entered into a letter agreement with us, pursuant to


 

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which they have agreed to waive their redemption rights with respect to any founder shares held by them and any public shares they may acquire during or after this offering in connection with the completion of our initial business combination or otherwise. The public anchor investors have agreed to waive their redemption rights with respect to any founder shares held by them in connection with the completion of our initial business combination or otherwise.

 

Limitation on redemptions

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will provide 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 (so that we are not subject to the SEC’s “penny stock” rules). However, a greater net tangible asset or cash requirement may be contained in the 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. Furthermore, although we will not redeem shares in an amount that would cause our net tangible assets to fall below $5,000,001, we do not have a maximum redemption threshold based on the percentage of shares sold in this offering, as many blank check companies do. In the event the aggregate cash consideration we would be required to pay for all Class A common stock 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 Class A common stock submitted for redemption will be returned to the holders thereof.

 

Manner of conducting redemptions

We will provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their public shares upon the completion of our initial business combination either (i) in connection with a stockholder meeting called to approve the business combination or (ii) by means of a tender offer. The decision as to whether we will seek stockholder 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 stockholder approval under applicable law or stock exchange listing requirements. Asset acquisitions and stock purchases would not typically require stockholder approval, while direct mergers with our company where we do not survive and any transactions where we issue more than 20% of our outstanding shares of our Class A common stock or seek to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation would require stockholder approval. We currently intend to conduct redemptions in connection with a stockholder vote unless stockholder approval is not required by applicable law or stock exchange listing requirement and we


 

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choose to conduct redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules of the SEC for business or other reasons.

 

  If we hold a stockholder vote to approve our initial business combination, we will:

 

   

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

 

   

file proxy materials with the SEC

 

  If we seek stockholder approval, we will complete our initial business combination only if a majority of the outstanding shares of common stock voted are voted in favor of the initial business combination. A quorum for such meeting will consist of the holders present in person or by proxy of shares of outstanding capital stock of the company representing a majority of the voting power of all outstanding shares of capital stock of the company entitled to vote at such meeting. Our initial stockholders will count towards this quorum and, pursuant to the terms of a letter agreement entered into with us, our initial stockholders, officers and directors have agreed (and their permitted transferees will agree) to vote their founder shares held by them and any public shares they may acquire during or after this offering (including in open market and privately-negotiated transactions), and each of the public anchor investors has agreed to vote their founder shares (subject to the right to abstain from voting), in favor of our initial business combination. If all issued and outstanding shares are voted and the over-allotment option is not exercised, in addition to our founder shares, we would need 7,500,001 (or 37.5%) of the 20,000,000 public shares sold in this offering to be voted in favor of an initial business combination in order to have our initial business combination approved. If only the minimum number of shares representing a quorum are voted and the over-allotment option is not exercised, in addition to our founder shares, we would need 1,250,001 (or 6.25%) of the 20,000,000 public shares sold in this offering to be voted in favor of an initial business combination in order to have our initial business combination approved. In addition, as a result of the private placement warrants that our UBS O’Connor anchor investors indirectly have an interest in through their interest in our sponsor, they may have different interests with respect to a vote on an initial business combination than other public stockholders.

 

  Each of our officers and directors have entered into agreements similar to the one entered into by our sponsor with respect to any public shares acquired by them in or after this offering. Each public stockholder may elect to redeem its public shares irrespective of whether they vote for or against the proposed transaction or whether they were a stockholder on the record date for the stockholder meeting held to approve the proposed transaction.

 

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  If a stockholder vote is not required and we do not decide to hold a stockholder vote for business or other reasons, we will:

 

   

conduct the redemptions pursuant to Rule 13e-4 and Regulation 14E of the Exchange Act, which regulate issuer tender offers, and

 

   

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, if we elect to conduct redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules, we or our sponsor will terminate any plan established in accordance with Rule 10b5-1 to purchase shares of our Class A common stock in the open market, in order to comply with Rule 14e-5 under the Exchange Act.

 

  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 stockholders not tendering more than the number of public shares we are permitted to redeem. If public stockholders tender more shares than we have offered to purchase, we will withdraw the tender offer and not complete such initial business combination.

 

Limitation on redemption rights of stockholders holding in excess of 15% of the shares included in the units sold in this offering if we hold stockholder vote

Notwithstanding the foregoing redemption rights, if we seek stockholder 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 certificate of incorporation will provide that a public stockholder, together with any affiliate of such stockholder or any other person with whom such stockholder is acting in concert or as a “group” (as defined under Section 13 of the Exchange Act), will be restricted from redeeming its shares with respect to more than an aggregate of 15% of the public shares included in the units sold in this offering, without our prior consent. We believe the restriction described above will discourage stockholders from accumulating large blocks of shares, and subsequent attempts by such holders to use their ability to redeem their shares as a means to force us or our management to purchase their shares at a significant premium to the then-current market price or on other undesirable terms. Absent this provision, a public stockholder holding more than an aggregate of


 

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15% of the public shares included in the units sold in this offering could threaten to exercise its redemption rights against a business combination if such holder’s shares are not purchased by us, our sponsor or our management at a premium to the then-current market price or on other undesirable terms. By limiting a public stockholders’ ability to redeem to no more than 15% of the public shares included in the units sold in this offering, we believe we will limit the ability of a small group of stockholders 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 stockholders’ ability to vote all of their shares (including all shares held by those public stockholders that hold more than 15% of the public shares included in the units sold in this offering) 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 redeemed in connection with our initial business combination. Unless any of our other affiliates acquires founder shares through a permitted transfer from our sponsor, 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 this offering or thereafter through open market purchases, it would be a public stockholder and subject to the 15% limitation in connection with any such redemption right.

 

Release of funds in trust account on closing of our initial business combination

On the completion of our initial business combination, the funds held in the trust account will be disbursed directly by the trustee to pay amounts due to any public stockholders who exercise their redemption rights as described above under “Proposed Business—Redemption Rights for Public Stockholders upon Completion of our Initial Business Combination,” to pay the underwriters their deferred underwriting commissions, to pay all or a portion of the consideration payable to the target or owners of the target of our initial business combination and to pay other expenses associated with our initial business combination. 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, 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 post-business combination businesses, 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.

 

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Redemption of public shares and distribution and liquidation if no initial business combination

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will provide that we will have only 18 months from the closing of this offering to complete our initial business combination. If we have not completed an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering, 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 earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes, if any (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of the then outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidation distributions, if any), subject to applicable law; and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining stockholders and our board of directors, liquidate and dissolve, subject in each case, to our obligations under Delaware 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 warrants, which will expire worthless if we do not complete an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering.

 

  Our sponsor, officers and directors have entered into letter agreements with us, pursuant to which they have waived their rights to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to their founder shares if we do not complete an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering. However, if our sponsor, officers or directors acquire public shares in or after this offering, they will be entitled to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to such public shares if we do not complete an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering.

 

  The underwriters have agreed to waive their rights to their deferred underwriting commission held in the trust account in the event we do not complete an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering and, in such event, such amounts will be included with the funds held in the trust account that will be available to fund the redemption of our public shares.

 

 

Our sponsor, officers and directors have agreed, pursuant to letter agreements with us, that they will not propose any amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation that would affect the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering, or


 

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with respect to any other provisions relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity, unless we provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their shares of Class A common stock 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 earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes, if any (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses) divided by the number of the then outstanding public shares, subject to the limitations described above under “Proposed Business—Limitations on Redemptions.” For example, our board of directors may propose such an amendment if it determines that additional time is necessary to complete our initial business combination. In such event, we will conduct a proxy solicitation and distribute proxy materials pursuant to Regulation 14A of the Exchange Act seeking stockholder approval of such proposal and, in connection therewith, provide our public stockholders with the redemption rights described above upon stockholder approval of such amendment. This redemption right shall apply in the event of the approval of any such amendment, whether proposed by our sponsor, any officer, directors, or any other person.

 

Limited payments to insiders

There will be no finder’s fees, reimbursements or cash payments made by the company to our sponsor, officers or directors, or their affiliates, for services rendered to us prior to or in connection with the completion of our initial business combination, other than the following payments, none of which will be made from the proceeds of this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants held in the trust account prior to the completion of our initial business combination:

 

   

Reimbursement of funds advanced to us by our sponsor to cover offering-related and organizational expenses;

 

   

Reimbursement of legal fees and expenses incurred by our sponsor, officers or directors in connection with our formation, the initial business combination and their services to us;

 

   

Payment of up to $15,000 per month to our sponsor for administrative, financial and support services;

 

   

Payment of fees and reimbursement for any out-of-pocket expenses related to identifying, investigating, negotiating and completing an initial business combination; and

 

   

Repayment of loans which may be made by our sponsor or an affiliate of our sponsor or certain of our officers and directors to finance transaction costs in connection with an intended initial business combination. Up to $1,500,000 of such loans may be convertible into warrants of the post-business combination entity, at a price of $1.00 per warrant at the option of the lender. The warrants would be identical to the private placement warrants, including as to exercise price, exercisability and exercise period. Except for the foregoing, the terms of such loans, if any, have not been determined and no written agreements exist with respect to such loans.


 

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  Any such payments will be made either (i) prior to our initial business combination using proceeds of this offering held outside the trust account or from loans made to us by our sponsor or (ii) in connection with or after the completion of our initial business combination.

 

Audit Committee

We established and maintain an audit committee, which is composed entirely of independent directors. Among its responsibilities, the audit committee will review on a quarterly basis all payments that were made to our sponsor, officers or directors, or their affiliates and monitor compliance with the other terms relating to this offering. If any noncompliance is identified, then the audit committee will be charged with the responsibility to promptly take all action necessary to rectify such noncompliance or otherwise to cause compliance with the terms of this offering. For more information, see the section entitled “Management—Committees of the Board of Directors—Audit Committee.”

 

Conflicts of interest

Each of our officers and directors presently has, and any of them in the future may have additional, fiduciary or contractual obligations to other entities pursuant to which such officer or director is or will be required to present a business combination opportunity. Accordingly, if any of our officers or directors becomes aware of a business combination opportunity which is suitable for an entity to which he or she has then-current fiduciary or contractual obligations, he or she will honor his or her fiduciary or contractual obligations to present such opportunity to such entity. We do not believe, however, that the fiduciary or contractual obligations of our officers or directors will materially affect our ability to identify and pursue business combination opportunities or complete our initial business combination. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will provide that we renounce our interest in any corporate opportunity offered to any director or officer unless such opportunity is expressly offered to such person solely in his or her capacity as a director or officer of our company and such opportunity is one we are legally and contractually permitted to undertake and would otherwise be reasonable for us to pursue.

 

  In addition, our founders and our directors and officers may sponsor, form or participate in other blank check companies similar to ours during the period in which we are seeking an initial business combination. Any such companies may present additional conflicts of interest in pursuing an acquisition target, particularly in the event there is overlap among investment mandates. However, we do not believe that any potential conflicts would materially affect our ability to complete our initial business combination, because we believe there are multiple potential opportunities in the industries of our primary focus.

 

  For more information, see the section entitled “Management—Conflicts of Interest.”

 

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Indemnity

Our sponsor has agreed that it will be liable to us if and to the extent any claims by a third party (other than our independent registered public accounting firm) for services rendered or products sold to us, or by a prospective target business with which we have discussed entering into a business combination transaction agreement, reduce the amount of funds in the trust account to below (i) $10.00 per public share or (ii) the actual amount per public share held in the trust account as of the date of the liquidation of the trust account if less than $10.00 per share due to reductions in the value of the trust assets, in each case net of the interest which may be withdrawn to pay our taxes. This liability will not apply with respect 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 this offering against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. Moreover, 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 its indemnity obligations and believe that our sponsor’s only assets are securities of our company. Therefore, we cannot assure you that our sponsor would be able to satisfy those obligations. We have not asked our sponsor to reserve for such obligations. None of our officers or directors will indemnify us for claims by third parties including, without limitation, claims by vendors and prospective target businesses.

 

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SUMMARY OF RISK FACTORS

An investment in our securities involves a high degree of risk. The occurrence of one or more of the events or circumstances described in the section titled “Risk Factors,” alone or in combination with other events or circumstances, may materially adversely affect our business, financial condition, liquidity and operating results. 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:

 

   

Our independent registered public accounting firm’s report contains an explanatory paragraph that expresses substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a “going concern.”

 

   

We may not be able to complete our initial business combination within 18 months after the closing of this offering, in which case we would cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up, and we would redeem our public shares for a pro rata portion of the funds in the trust account, and we would liquidate. In such event, our warrants would expire worthless.

 

   

Your only opportunity to affect the investment decision regarding a potential business combination will be limited to the exercise of your right to redeem your shares from us for cash, unless we seek stockholder approval of such business combination.

 

   

Potential participation in this offering by the anchor investors could reduce the public float for our securities, and could result in our inability to satisfy the NASDAQ continued listing requirements.

 

   

Our initial stockholders will control a substantial interest in us and thus may influence certain actions requiring a stockholder vote.

 

   

We may not obtain a fairness opinion with respect to the target business that we seek to acquire and therefore you may be relying solely on the judgment of our board of directors in approving a proposed business combination.

 

   

Our outstanding warrants may have an adverse effect on the market price of our common stock and make it more difficult to effectuate our initial business combination.

 

   

We may issue additional shares of capital stock or debt securities to complete a business combination, which would reduce the equity interest of our stockholders and likely cause a change in control of our ownership.

 

   

We may be unable to obtain additional financing, if required, to complete a business combination or to fund the operations and growth of the target business.

 

   

Resources could be wasted in researching acquisitions that are not consummated, which could materially adversely affect subsequent attempts to locate and acquire or merge with another business.

 

   

Our search for a business combination, and any target business with which we ultimately consummate a business combination, may be materially adversely affected by the recent coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and other events, and the status of debt and equity markets.

 

   

We may have a limited ability to assess the management of a prospective target business and, as a result, may consummate our initial business combination with a target business whose management may not have the skills, qualifications or abilities to manage a public company.

 

   

There may be tax consequences to our initial business combination that may adversely affect us.

 

   

Our officers and directors presently have fiduciary or contractual obligations to other entities and, accordingly, may have conflicts of interest in determining to which entity a particular business opportunity should be presented.

 

   

Our officers and directors may have interests in a potential business combination that are different than yours, which may create conflicts of interest.

 

   

There is currently no market for our securities and a market for our securities may not develop, which would adversely affect the liquidity and price of our securities.

 

   

Nasdaq may delist our securities from trading on its exchange, which could limit investors’ ability to make transactions in our securities and subject us to additional trading restrictions.


 

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The determination of the offering price of our units and the size of this offering is more arbitrary than the pricing of securities and size of an offering of an operating company in a particular industry.

 

   

As a result of the issuance of Class B shares of our common stock to our sponsor at a nominal price, you will experience immediate and substantial dilution from the purchase of Class A shares of our common stock.

 

   

We may amend the terms of the warrants in a manner that may be adverse to holders of public warrants with the approval by the holders of at least a majority of the then outstanding public warrants.

 

   

We may amend the terms of our warrant agreement to allow for our warrants to be classified as equity in our financial statements with the approval by the holders of at least a majority of the public warrants and the private placement warrants, voting together as a single class.

 

   

We may redeem your unexpired warrants prior to their exercise at a time that is disadvantageous to you, thereby making your warrants effectively worthless.

 

   

If third parties bring claims against us, and if our directors decide not to enforce the indemnification obligations of our sponsor, or if our sponsor does not have the funds to indemnify us, the proceeds held in the trust account could be reduced and the per share redemption amount received by stockholders may be less than $10.00 per share.

 

   

Provisions in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and bylaws and Delaware law may inhibit a takeover of us, which could limit the price investors might be willing to pay in the future for our common stock and could entrench management.

 

   

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will provide, subject to limited exceptions, that the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware will be the sole and exclusive forum for certain stockholder litigation matters, which could limit our stockholders’ ability to obtain a favorable judicial forum for disputes with us or our directors, officers, employees or stockholders.

 

   

Our stockholders may be held liable for claims by third parties against us to the extent of distributions received by them upon redemption of their shares.

 

   

We may not hold an annual meeting of stockholders until after the consummation of our initial business combination.

 

   

We are a newly formed company with no operating history, and, accordingly, you have no basis on which to evaluate our ability to achieve our business objective.

 

   

If we are deemed to be an investment company under the Investment Company Act, we may be required to institute burdensome compliance requirements and our activities may be restricted, which may make it difficult for us to complete our initial business combination.

 

   

We are an emerging growth company and a smaller reporting company within the meaning of the Securities Act, and if we take advantage of certain exemptions from disclosure requirements available to emerging growth companies, this could make our securities less attractive to investors and may make it more difficult to compare our performance with other public companies.

 

   

Cyber incidents or attacks directed at us could result in information theft, data corruption, operational disruption and/or financial loss.

 

   

This offering is not being conducted in compliance with Rule 419 promulgated under the Securities Act. Accordingly, you will not be entitled to protections normally afforded to investors in Rule 419 blank check offerings. For additional information concerning how Rule 419 blank check offerings differ from this offering, please see “Proposed Business—Comparison of This Offering to Those of Blank Check Companies Subject to Rule 419.


 

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SUMMARY FINANCIAL DATA

The following table summarizes the relevant financial data for our business and should be read with our financial statements, which are included in this prospectus. We have not had any significant operations to date, so only balance sheet data is presented.

 

 

 

     JUNE 30, 2021  
     ACTUAL     AS ADJUSTED  

Balance Sheet Data:

    

Working capital (deficiency) (1)

   $ (279,918   $ 195,919,830  

Total assets (2)

   $ 322,259     $ 202,919,830  

Total liabilities (3)

   $ 302,429     $ 27,121,000  

Value of Class A common stock subject to possible redemption (4)

   $     $ 200,000,000  

Stockholder’s equity (5)

   $ 19,830     $ (24,201,170

 

 

(1)    The “as adjusted” calculation includes $200,000,000 cash held in trust from the proceeds of this offering, plus $2,900,000 in cash held outside the trust account, plus $19,830 of actual stockholder’s equity as of June 30, 2021, less $7,000,000 of underwriting commissions.

 

(2)    The “as adjusted” calculation equals $200,000,000 cash held in trust from the proceeds of this offering, plus $2,900,000 in cash held outside the trust account plus $19,830 of actual stockholder’s equity as of June 30, 2021.

 

(3)    The “as adjusted” calculation includes $7,000,000 of underwriting commissions, plus $20,121,000 of warrant liabilities, assuming the underwriters’ over-allotment option is not exercised.

 

(4)    The “as adjusted” calculation equals the maximum redemption value of all of the 20,000,000 shares of Class A common stock that are subject to redemption.

 

(5)    Excludes public shares which are subject to redemption in connection with our initial business combination. The “as adjusted” calculation equals the “as adjusted” total assets, less the “as adjusted” total liabilities, less the maximum redemption value of shares of Class A common stock that may be redeemed in connection with our initial business combination (initially $10.00 per share).

The “as adjusted” information gives effect to the sale of the units in this offering, the sale of the private placement warrants, repayment of up to an aggregate of $300,000 in loans made to us by our sponsor and the payment of the estimated expenses of this offering and assumes no exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option. The “as adjusted” total assets amount includes the $200,000,000 held in the trust account for the benefit of our public stockholders, which amount, less underwriting commissions, will be available to us only upon the completion of our initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering. The “as adjusted” working capital and “as adjusted” total assets include $7,000,000 being held in the trust account representing underwriting commissions. The underwriters will not be entitled to any interest accrued on the underwriting discounts and commissions.

If no business combination is completed within 18 months from the closing of this offering, the proceeds then on deposit in the trust account including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes, if any (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses), will be used to fund the redemption of our public shares. Our sponsor and each of our directors and anchor investors have entered into agreements with us, pursuant to which they have agreed to waive their rights to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to any founder shares held by them if we do not complete our initial business combination within such 18-month time period.


 

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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 prospectus, before making a decision to invest in our units. If any of the following events occur, our business, financial condition, liquidity 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.

Risks Related to Searching for and Consummating a Business Combination

Our independent registered public accounting firm’s report contains an explanatory paragraph that expresses substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a “going concern.”

As of June 30, 2021, we had $22,511 in cash and cash equivalents and deferred offering costs of $299,748. Further, we expect to incur significant costs in pursuit of our acquisition plans. Management’s plans to address this need for capital through this offering are discussed in the section of this prospectus titled “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.” Our plans to raise capital and to consummate our initial business combination may not be successful. In addition, management is currently evaluating the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the industry and its effect on our financial position, results its operations and/or search for a target company. These factors, among others, raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern. The financial statements contained elsewhere in this prospectus do not include any adjustments that might result from our inability to consummate this offering or our inability to continue as a going concern.

Past performance by our sponsor team or their respective affiliates (including our founders) may not be indicative of future performance of an investment in us or in the future performance of any business that we may acquire.

Information regarding past performance is presented for informational purposes only. Any past experience or performance of our founders, our sponsor team and their respective affiliates is not a guarantee of either (i) our ability to successfully identify and execute a transaction or (ii) success with respect to any business combination that we may consummate. You should not rely on the historical record of our founders, our sponsor team or their respective affiliates as indicative of the future performance of an investment in us or the returns we will, or are likely to, generate going forward. An investment with us is not an investment in our sponsor, and does not in any way create an advisory relationship between our sponsor and any of our stockholders.

Our public stockholders may not be afforded an opportunity to vote on our proposed initial business combination, and even if we have a vote, holders of our founder shares will participate in such vote, which means we may complete our initial business combination even though a majority of our public stockholders do not support such a combination.

We may not hold a stockholder vote to approve our initial business combination unless the business combination would require stockholder approval under applicable law or stock exchange listing requirement. For instance, if we were seeking to acquire a target business where the consideration we were paying in the transaction was all cash, we would not be required to seek stockholder approval to complete such a transaction. Except as required by law or stock exchange, the decision as to whether we will seek stockholder approval of a proposed business combination or will allow stockholders to sell their shares to us in a tender offer will be made by us, solely in our discretion, and will be based on a variety of factors, such as the timing of the transaction and whether the terms of the transaction would otherwise require us to seek stockholder approval. Even if we seek stockholder approval, the holders of our founder shares will participate in the vote on such approval. Accordingly, we may complete our initial business combination even if holders of a majority of our outstanding public shares do not approve of the business combination we complete.

Please see the section of this prospectus entitled “Proposed Business—Stockholders May Not Have the Ability to Approve our Initial Business Combination” for additional information.

 

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Your only opportunity to affect the investment decision regarding a potential business combination will be limited to the exercise of your right to redeem your shares from us for cash, unless we seek stockholder approval of such business combination.

At the time of your investment in us, you will not be provided with an opportunity to evaluate the specific merits or risks of one or more target businesses. Additionally, since our board of directors may complete a business combination without seeking stockholder approval, public stockholders may not have the right or opportunity to vote on the business combination. Accordingly, if we do not seek stockholder approval, your only opportunity to affect the investment decision regarding a potential business combination may be limited to exercising your redemption rights within the period of time (which will be at least 20 business days) set forth in our tender offer documents mailed to our public stockholders in which we describe our initial business combination.

Potential participation in this offering by the anchor investors could reduce the public float for our shares, and could result in our inability to satisfy the Nasdaq continued listing requirements.

The anchor investors have expressed to us an interest to purchase an aggregate of 19,800,000 of the units in this offering (which amount will not change if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) and we expect the underwriters to sell to the anchor investors such amount of units, subject to our satisfying the Nasdaq listing requirement that we have a minimum of 400 round lot holders of our units. If the anchor investors purchase all or a substantial portion of the units for which they have expressed an interest, such purchases would reduce the available public float for our securities. Any such reduction in our available public float may consequently reduce the trading volume and liquidity of our securities and increase the volatility of our securities relative to what they would have been had such securities been purchased by public investors. In addition, in order to continue to satisfy Nasdaq’s continued listing requirements after this offering, among other requirements, we must have a minimum of 400 round lot holders of our securities. To the extent our public float is limited due to purchases made by the anchor investors, we may be more likely than other companies to fall below the required public holder threshold in the future.

If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination, our sponsor and directors have agreed to vote shares held by them, and our public anchor investors have agreed to vote founder shares held by them, in favor of such initial business combination, regardless of how our public stockholders vote.

Holders of our founder shares will collectively own, on an as-converted basis, 20% of the issued and outstanding shares of our common stock upon the completion of this offering. Our initial stockholders, members of our sponsor team and our anchor investors also may from time to time purchase Class A common stock prior to our initial business combination. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will provide that, if we seek stockholder approval of an initial business combination, such initial business combination will be approved if we receive the affirmative vote of a majority of the shares voted at such meeting, including the founder shares. If we submit our initial business combination to our public stockholders for a vote, pursuant to the terms of a letter agreement entered into with us, our sponsor, officers and directors have agreed to vote their founder shares and any shares purchased during or after the offering, in favor of our initial business combination. As a result, if all issued and outstanding shares are voted and the over-allotment option is not exercised, in addition to our founder shares, we would need 7,500,001 (or 37.5%) of the 20,000,000 public shares sold in this offering to be voted in favor of an initial business combination in order to have our initial business combination approved. If only the minimum number of shares representing a quorum are voted and the over-allotment option is not exercised, in addition to our founder shares (assuming all public anchor investors vote their founder shares in favor of the business combination), we would need 1,250,001 (or 6.25%) of the 20,000,000 public shares sold in this offering to be voted in favor of an initial business combination in order to have our initial business combination approved. Accordingly, if we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination, the agreement by our sponsor and directors to vote shares held by them, and our public anchor investors to vote founder shares held by them (subject to the right to abstain from voting), in favor of our initial business combination will increase the likelihood that we will receive the requisite stockholder approval for such initial business combination. In the event that the anchor investors purchase all of the units that they have expressed an interest in purchasing in this offering, hold all such units until prior to consummation of our initial business combination and vote their public shares in favor of our initial business combination, in addition to the founder shares, no affirmative votes from other public stockholders would be required to approve our initial business combination. The anchor investors are not required to vote any of their public shares in favor of our initial business combination or for or against any other matter presented for a stockholder vote. In addition, as a result of the private placement warrants that the UBS O’Connor anchor investors indirectly have an interest in through their interest in our

 

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sponsor, they may have different interests with respect to a vote on an initial business combination than other public stockholders.

Although none of our initial stockholders, directors or officers have any current intention to purchase our public shares in or after this offering, they are not restricted from doing so and there is no minimum or maximum number of our public shares they may purchase. If they purchase any of our public shares and retain such public shares until any stockholder vote on our initial business combination, the approval of our initial business combination by our stockholders will be even more likely. In addition, in the event that the anchor investors purchase the number of units they have expressed an interest in purchasing in this offering and they retain the public shares comprising those units until the time of any stockholder vote on our initial business combination and vote those public shares in favor of our initial business combination, no affirmative votes from other public stockholders would be required to approve our initial business combination. However, because our anchor investors are not obligated to continue owning any public shares following the closing of this offering and are not obligated to vote any public shares in favor of our initial business combination, we cannot assure you that any of the anchor investors will be stockholders at the time of any stockholder vote on our initial business combination, and, if they are public stockholders, we cannot assure you as to how such anchor investors will vote on our initial business combination if any such stockholder vote occurs. Although no assurance can be given as to the manner in which any of the anchor investors will vote any public shares they hold in the event of such stockholder vote, because of their ownership in the founder shares, the public anchor investors may have interests that differ from those of other public stockholders with respect to a vote on an initial business combination, and such ownership may provide an incentive for them to vote their public shares in favor of our initial business combination.

The ability of our public stockholders to redeem their shares for cash may make our financial condition unattractive to potential business combination targets, which may make it difficult for us to enter into a business combination with a target.

We may seek to enter into a business combination transaction agreement with a prospective target that requires as a closing condition that we have a minimum net worth or a certain amount of cash. If too many public stockholders exercise their redemption rights, we would not be able to meet such closing condition and, as a result, would not be able to proceed with the business combination. Furthermore, 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 (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. Consequently, if accepting all properly submitted redemption requests would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001 or such greater amount necessary to satisfy a closing condition as described above, we would not proceed with such redemption and the related business combination and may instead search for an alternate business combination. Prospective targets will be aware of these risks and, thus, may be reluctant to enter into a business combination transaction with us. If we are able to consummate an initial business combination, the per share value of shares held by non-redeeming stockholders will reflect our obligation to pay the deferred underwriting fees.

The ability of our public stockholders to exercise redemption rights with respect to a large number of our shares may not allow us to complete the most desirable business combination or optimize our capital structure.

At the time we enter into an agreement for our initial business combination, we will not know how many stockholders may exercise their redemption rights and, therefore, we will need to structure the transaction based on our expectations as to the number of shares that will be submitted for redemption. If our business combination agreement requires us to use a portion of the cash in the trust account to pay the purchase price, or requires us to have a minimum amount of cash at closing, we will need to reserve a portion of the cash in the trust account to meet such requirements, or arrange for third party financing. In addition, if a larger number of shares are submitted for redemption than we initially expected, we may need to restructure the transaction to reserve a greater portion of the cash in the trust account or arrange for additional third party financing. Raising additional third party financing may involve dilutive equity issuances or the incurrence of indebtedness at higher than desirable levels. The above considerations may limit our ability to complete the most desirable business combination available to us or optimize our capital structure. The amount of the deferred underwriting commissions payable to the underwriters will not be adjusted for any shares that are redeemed in connection with an initial business combination. The per share amount we will distribute to stockholders who properly exercise their redemption rights will not be reduced by the deferred underwriting commission and after such redemptions, the amount held in trust will continue to reflect our obligation to pay the entire deferred underwriting commissions.

 

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The ability of our public stockholders to exercise redemption rights with respect to a large number of our shares could increase the probability that our initial business combination would be unsuccessful and that you would have to wait for liquidation in order to redeem your shares.

If our initial business combination agreement requires us to use a portion of the cash in the trust account to pay the purchase price, or requires us to have a minimum amount of cash at closing, the probability that our initial business combination would be unsuccessful increases. If our initial business combination is unsuccessful, you would not receive your pro rata portion of the trust account until we liquidate the trust account. If you are in need of immediate liquidity, you could attempt to sell your shares in the open market; however, at such time our shares may trade at a discount to the pro rata amount per share in the trust account. In either situation, you may suffer a material loss on your investment or lose the benefit of funds expected in connection with our redemption until we liquidate or you are able to sell your shares in the open market.

The requirement that we complete an initial business combination within 18 months after the closing of this offering may give potential target businesses leverage over us in negotiating a business combination and may limit the time we have in which to conduct due diligence on potential business combination targets, in particular as we approach our dissolution deadline, which could undermine our ability to complete our initial business combination on terms that would produce value for our stockholders.

Any potential target business with which we enter into negotiations concerning a business combination will be aware that we must complete an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering. Consequently, such target business may obtain leverage over us in negotiating a business combination, knowing that if we do not complete our initial business combination with that particular target business, we may be unable to complete our initial business combination with any target business. This risk will increase as we get closer to the timeframe described above. In addition, we may have limited time to conduct due diligence and may enter into our initial business combination on terms that we would have rejected upon a more comprehensive investigation.

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and the impact on business and debt and equity markets could have a material adverse effect on our search for a business combination, and any target business with which we ultimately complete a business combination.

The outbreak of the coronavirus has resulted in a widespread health crisis that is adversely affecting the economies and financial markets worldwide, business operations and the conduct of commerce generally and could have a material adverse effect on the business of any potential target business with which we complete a business combination. Furthermore, we may be unable to complete a business combination if continued concerns relating to the coronavirus restrict travel, limit the ability to have meetings with potential investors or the target company’s personnel, vendors and services providers are unavailable to negotiate and complete a transaction in a timely manner. The extent to which the coronavirus impacts our search for a business combination will depend on future developments, which are highly uncertain and cannot be predicted, including new information which may emerge concerning the severity of the coronavirus pandemic and the actions to contain the coronavirus or treat its impact, among others. If the disruptions posed by the coronavirus or other matters of global concern continue for an extended period of time, it could have a material adverse effect on our ability to complete a business combination, or the operations of a target business with which we ultimately complete a business combination. Although the long-term economic fallout of COVID-19 is difficult to predict, it has and is expected to continue to have ongoing material adverse effects across many, if not all, aspects of the regional, national and global economy.

In addition, our ability to complete a transaction may be dependent on the ability to raise equity and debt financing and the coronavirus pandemic and other related events could have a material adverse effect on our ability to raise adequate financing.

The COVID-19 pandemic may also have the effect of heightening many of the other risks described in this “Risk Factors” section, such as those related to the market for our securities and any cross-border transactions, and may make it more difficult to assess the future performance of any target business.

As the number of special purpose acquisition companies evaluating targets increases, attractive targets may become scarcer and there may be more competition for attractive targets. This could increase the cost of our initial business combination and could even result in our inability to find a target or to consummate an initial business combination.

In recent years, the number of special purpose acquisition companies that have been formed has increased substantially. Many potential targets for special purpose acquisition companies have already entered into an initial

 

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business combination, and there are still many special purpose acquisition companies seeking targets for their initial business combination, as well as many such companies currently in registration. As a result, at times, fewer attractive targets may be available, and it may require more time, more effort and more resources to identify a suitable target and to consummate an initial business combination.

In addition, because there are more special purpose acquisition companies seeking to enter into an initial business combination with available targets, the competition for available targets with attractive fundamentals or business models may increase, which could cause targets companies to demand improved financial terms. Attractive deals could also become scarcer for other reasons, such as economic or industry sector downturns, geopolitical tensions, or increases in the cost of additional capital needed to close business combinations or operate targets post-business combination. This could increase the cost of, delay or otherwise complicate or frustrate our ability to find and consummate an initial business combination, and may result in our inability to consummate an initial business combination on terms favorable to our investors altogether.

Changes in the market for directors and officers liability insurance could make it more difficult and more expensive for us to negotiate and complete an initial business combination.

In recent months, the market for directors and officers liability insurance for special purpose acquisition companies has changed. Fewer insurance companies are offering quotes for directors and officers liability coverage, the premiums charged for such policies have generally increased and the terms of such policies have generally become less favorable. There can be no assurance that these trends will not continue.

The increased cost and decreased availability of directors and officers liability insurance could make it more difficult and more expensive for us to negotiate an initial business combination. In order to obtain directors and officers liability insurance or modify its coverage as a result of becoming a public company, the post-business combination entity might need to incur greater expense, accept less favorable terms or both. However, any failure to obtain adequate directors and officers liability insurance could have an adverse impact on the post-business combination’s ability to attract and retain qualified officers and directors.

In addition, even after we were to complete an initial business combination, our directors and officers could still be subject to potential liability from claims arising from conduct alleged to have occurred prior to the initial business combination. As a result, in order to protect our directors and officers, the post-business combination entity may need to purchase additional insurance with respect to any such claims (“run-off insurance”). The need for run-off insurance would be an added expense for the post-business combination entity, and could interfere with or frustrate our ability to consummate an initial business combination on terms favorable to our investors.

Because we must furnish our stockholders with target business financial statements, we may lose the ability to complete an otherwise advantageous initial business combination with some prospective target businesses.

The federal proxy rules require that a proxy statement with respect to a vote on a business combination meeting certain financial significance tests include historical and/or pro forma financial statement disclosure in periodic reports. We will include the same financial statement disclosure in connection with our tender offer documents, whether or not they are required under the tender offer rules. These financial statements may be required to be prepared in accordance with, or be reconciled to, accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”), or international financial reporting standards as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board (“IFRS”), depending on the circumstances and the historical financial statements may be required to be audited in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (“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.

Because we are neither limited to evaluating a target business in a particular industry sector nor have we identified any specific target businesses with which to pursue our initial business combination, you will be unable to ascertain the merits or risks of any particular target business’s operations.

We may pursue business combination opportunities in any sector, except that we will not, under our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, be permitted to effectuate our initial business combination with another blank check company or similar company with nominal operations. Because we have not yet identified or approached any specific target business with respect to a business combination, there is no basis to evaluate the possible merits or

 

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risks of any particular target business’s operations, results of operations, cash flows, liquidity, financial condition or prospects. To the extent we complete our initial business combination, we may be affected by numerous risks inherent in the business operations with which we combine. For example, if we combine with a financially unstable business or an entity lacking an established record of sales or earnings, we may be affected by the risks inherent in the business and operations of a financially unstable or a development stage entity. Although our officers and directors will endeavor to evaluate the risks inherent in a particular target business, we cannot assure you that we will properly ascertain or assess all of the significant risk factors or that we will have adequate time to complete due diligence. Furthermore, some of these risks may be outside of our control and leave us with no ability to control or reduce the chances that those risks will adversely impact a target business. We also cannot assure you that an investment in our units will ultimately prove to be more favorable to investors than a direct investment, if such opportunity were available, in a business combination target. Accordingly, any stockholders who choose to remain stockholders following our initial business combination could suffer a reduction in the value of their securities. Such stockholders are unlikely to have a remedy for such reduction in value unless they are able to successfully claim that the reduction was due to the breach by our officers or directors of a duty of care or other fiduciary duty owed to them, or if they are able to successfully bring a private claim under securities laws that the proxy solicitation or tender offer materials, as applicable, relating to the business combination contained an actionable material misstatement or material omission.

We may seek acquisition opportunities in industries or sectors which may or may not be outside of our management’s area of expertise.

We will consider a business combination outside of our management’s area of expertise if a business combination candidate is presented to us and we determine that such candidate offers an attractive acquisition opportunity for our company. Although our management will endeavor to evaluate the risks inherent in any particular business combination candidate, we cannot assure you that we will adequately ascertain or assess all of the significant risk factors. We also cannot assure you that an investment in our units will not ultimately prove to be less favorable to investors in this offering than a direct investment, if an opportunity were available, in a business combination candidate. In the event we elect to pursue an acquisition outside of the areas of our management’s expertise, our management’s expertise may not be directly applicable to its evaluation or operation, and the information contained in this prospectus regarding the areas of our management’s expertise would not be relevant to an understanding of the business that we elect to acquire. As a result, our management may not be able to adequately ascertain or assess all of the significant risk factors. Accordingly, any stockholder who choose to remain stockholders following our business combination could suffer a reduction in the value of their shares. Such stockholders are unlikely to have a remedy for such reduction in value.

Although we have identified general criteria and guidelines that we believe are important in evaluating prospective target businesses and our strategy will be to identify, acquire and build a company in our target investment area, we may enter into our initial business combination with a target that does not meet such criteria and guidelines, and as a result, the target business with which we enter into our initial business combination may not have attributes entirely consistent with our general criteria and guidelines.

Although we have identified general criteria and guidelines for evaluating prospective target businesses and our strategy will be to identify, acquire and build a company in our target investment area, it is possible that a target business with which we enter into our initial business combination will not have attributes consistent with our general criteria and guidelines. If we complete our initial business combination with a target that does not meet some or all of these guidelines, such combination may not be as successful as a combination with a business that does meet all of our general criteria and guidelines. In addition, if we announce a prospective business combination with a target that does not meet our general criteria and guidelines, a greater number of stockholders may exercise their redemption rights, which may make it difficult for us to meet any closing condition with a target business that requires us to have a minimum net worth or a certain amount of cash. In addition, if stockholder approval of the transaction is required by law, or we decide to obtain stockholder approval for business or other reasons, it may be more difficult for us to attain stockholder approval of our initial business combination if the target business does not meet our general criteria and guidelines. If we do not complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may only receive their pro rata portion of the funds in the trust account that are available for distribution to public stockholders, and our warrants will expire worthless.

 

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A slowdown in economic growth in the markets in which our target business operates may materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, liquidity and results of operations, the value of our securities and the trading price of our shares following our business combination.

Following the business combination, our results of operations, liquidity and financial condition may be dependent on, and may be adversely affected by, conditions in financial markets in the global economy, and, particularly in the markets where the business operates. The specific economy could be adversely affected by various factors, such as political or regulatory action, including business corruption, social disturbances, terrorist attacks and other acts of violence or war, natural calamities, interest rates, inflation, commodity and energy prices and various other factors which may materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, liquidity and results of operations, the value of our securities and the trading price of our shares following the business combination.

We are not required to obtain an opinion from an independent accounting or investment banking firm, and consequently, you may have no assurance from an independent source that the price we are paying for the business is fair to our stockholders from a financial point of view.

Unless we complete our initial business combination with an affiliated entity, we are not required to obtain an opinion from an independent accounting firm or independent investment banking firm which is a member of FINRA that the price we are paying is fair to our stockholders from a financial point of view. If no opinion is obtained, our stockholders will be relying on the judgment of our board of directors, who will determine fair market value based on standards generally accepted by the financial community. Such standards used will be disclosed in our proxy solicitation or tender offer materials, as applicable, related to our initial business combination.

A provision of our warrant agreement may make it more difficult for us to complete an initial business combination.

If (i) we issue additional common stock or equity-linked securities for capital raising purposes in connection with the closing of our initial business combination at a Newly Issued Price of less than $9.20 per common stock, (ii) the aggregate gross proceeds from such issuances represent more than 60% of the total equity proceeds, and interest thereon, available for the funding of our initial business combination on the date of the completion of our initial business combination (net of redemptions), and (iii) the Market Value is below $9.20 per share, then the exercise price of the warrants will be adjusted to be equal to 115% of the higher of the Market Value and the Newly Issued Price, and the $10.00 and $18.00 per share redemption trigger prices will be adjusted (to the nearest cent) to be equal to 100% and 180% of the higher of the Market Value and the Newly Issued Price, respectively. This may make it more difficult for us to complete an initial business combination with a target business as such adjustment would preserve the dilutive effect of the warrants.

If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination, our initial stockholders, directors, officers, and their affiliates may elect to purchase shares or public warrants from public stockholders, which may influence a vote on a proposed business combination and reduce the public “float” of our Class A common stock.

If we seek stockholder 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 initial stockholders, directors, officers or their affiliates may purchase shares or public warrants in privately negotiated transactions or in the open market either prior to or following the completion of our initial business combination, where otherwise permissible under applicable laws, rules and regulations, although they are under no obligation to do so. However, other than as expressly stated in this prospectus, 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. None of the funds in the trust account will be used to purchase shares or public warrants in such transactions.

Such a purchase may include a contractual acknowledgment that such stockholder, although still the record holder of our shares is no longer the beneficial owner thereof and therefore agrees not to exercise its redemption rights. In the event that our initial stockholders, directors, officers or their affiliates purchase shares in privately negotiated transactions from public stockholders who have already elected to exercise their redemption rights, such selling stockholders would be required to revoke their prior elections to redeem their shares. The purpose of any such purchases of shares could be to vote such shares in favor of the business combination and thereby increase the likelihood of obtaining stockholder approval of the business combination or 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. The purpose of any such purchases of public warrants could be to reduce the number of public warrants outstanding or to vote

 

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such warrants on any matters submitted to the warrant holders for approval in connection with our initial business combination. Any such purchases of our securities may result in the completion of our initial business combination that may not otherwise have been possible. Any such purchases will be reported pursuant to Section 13 and Section 16 of the Exchange Act to the extent such purchasers are subject to such reporting requirements. See “Proposed Business—Permitted Purchases of Our Securities” for a description of how our initial stockholders, directors, officers or any of their affiliates will select which stockholders to purchase securities from in any private transaction.

In addition, if such purchases are made, the public “float” of our Class A common stock or public warrants and the number of beneficial holders of our securities may be reduced, possibly making it difficult to maintain or obtain the quotation, listing or trading of our securities on a national securities exchange.

If the net proceeds of this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants not being held in the trust account are insufficient to allow us to operate for at least the next 18 months, it could limit the amount available to fund our search for a target business or businesses and complete our initial business combination, and we will depend on loans from our sponsor or sponsor team to fund our search and to complete our initial business combination.

The funds available to us outside of the trust account to fund our working capital requirements may not be sufficient to allow us to operate for at least the next 18 months, assuming that our initial business combination is not completed during that time. We believe that, upon closing of this offering, the funds available to us outside of the trust account, together with funds available from loans from our sponsor will be sufficient to allow us to operate for at least the next 18 months; however, we cannot assure you that our estimate is accurate. Of the funds available to us, we expect to use a portion of the funds available to us to pay fees to consultants to assist us with our search for a target business. We could also use a portion of the funds as a down payment or to fund a “no-shop” provision (a provision in letters of intent designed to keep target businesses from “shopping” around for transactions with other companies or investors on terms more favorable to such target businesses) with respect to a particular proposed business combination, although we do not have any current intention to do so. If we entered into a letter of intent where we paid for the right to receive exclusivity from a target business and were subsequently required to forfeit such funds (whether as a result of our breach or otherwise), we might not have sufficient funds to continue searching for, or conduct due diligence with respect to, a target business. If we do not complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.00 per share on the liquidation of our trust account and our warrants will expire worthless. In certain circumstances, our public stockholders may receive less than $10.00 per share upon our liquidation. See “—If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in the trust account could be reduced and the per share redemption amount received by stockholders may be less than $10.00 per share” and other risk factors below.

In the event that our offering expenses exceed our estimate of $700,000, we may fund such excess with funds not to be held in the trust account. In such case, unless funded by the proceeds of loans available from our sponsor or affiliates, 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 $700,000, the amount of funds we intend to be held outside the trust account would increase by a corresponding amount. The amount held in the trust account will not be impacted as a result of such increase or decrease. If we are required to seek additional capital, we would need to borrow funds from our sponsor, sponsor team or other third parties to operate or may be forced to liquidate. Neither our sponsor, members of our sponsor team nor any of their affiliates is under any obligation to advance funds to us in such circumstances. Any such advances would be repaid only from funds held outside the trust account or from funds released to us upon completion of our initial business combination. Up to $1,500,000 of such loans may be convertible into warrants of the post-business combination entity at a price of $1.00 per warrant at the option of the lender. The warrants would be identical to the private placement warrants. Prior to the completion of our initial business combination, we do not expect to seek loans from parties other than our sponsor or an affiliate of our sponsor as we do not believe third parties will be willing to loan such funds and provide a waiver against any and all rights to seek access to funds in our trust account. If we are unable to obtain these loans, we may be unable to complete our initial business combination. If we do not complete our initial business combination because we do not have sufficient funds available to us, we will be forced to cease operations and liquidate the trust account. Consequently, our public stockholders may only receive an estimated $10.00 per share, or possibly less, on our redemption of our public shares, and our warrants will expire worthless. In certain circumstances, our public stockholders may receive less than $10.00 per share on the redemption of their shares.

 

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See “—If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in the trust account could be reduced and the per share redemption amount received by stockholders may be less than $10.00 per share” and other risk factors below.

Resources could be wasted in researching acquisitions that are not completed, which could materially adversely affect subsequent attempts to locate and acquire or merge with another business. If we do not complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may only receive their pro rata portion of the funds in the trust account that are available for distribution to public stockholders, and our warrants will expire worthless.

We anticipate that the investigation of each specific target business and the negotiation, drafting and execution of relevant agreements, disclosure documents and other instruments will require substantial management time and attention and substantial costs for accountants, attorneys and others. If we decide not to complete a specific initial business combination, the costs incurred up to that point for the proposed transaction likely would not be recoverable. Furthermore, if we reach an agreement relating to a specific target business, we may fail to complete our initial business combination for any number of reasons including those beyond our control. Any such event will result in a loss to us of the related costs incurred which could materially adversely affect subsequent attempts to locate and acquire or merge with another business. If we do not complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may only receive their pro rata portion of the funds in the trust account that are available for distribution to public stockholders, and our warrants will expire worthless.

We are dependent upon our officers and directors and their loss could adversely affect our ability to operate.

Our operations are dependent upon a relatively small group of individuals and, in particular, our officers and directors. We believe that our success depends on the continued service of our officers and directors, at least until we have completed our initial business combination. In addition, our officers and directors are not required to commit any specified amount of time to our affairs and, accordingly, will have conflicts of interest in allocating their time among various business activities, including identifying potential business combinations and monitoring the related due diligence. We do not have an employment agreement with, or key-man insurance on the life of, any of our directors or officers. The unexpected loss of the services of one or more of our directors or officers could have a detrimental effect on us.

If we are deemed to be an investment company under the Investment Company Act, we may be required to institute burdensome compliance requirements and our activities may be restricted, which may make it difficult for us to complete our initial business combination.

If we are deemed to be an investment company under the Investment Company Act, our activities may be restricted, including:

 

   

restrictions on the nature of our investments; and

 

   

restrictions on the issuance of securities, each of which may make it difficult for us to complete our initial business combination.

In addition, we may have imposed upon us burdensome requirements, including:

 

   

registration as an investment company;

 

   

adoption of a specific form of corporate structure; and

 

   

reporting, record keeping, voting, proxy and disclosure requirements and other rules and regulations.

In order not to be regulated as an investment company under the Investment Company Act, unless we can qualify for an exclusion, we must ensure that we are engaged primarily in a business other than investing, reinvesting or trading of securities and that our activities do not include investing, reinvesting, owning, holding or trading “investment securities” constituting more than 40% of our assets (exclusive of U.S. government securities and cash items) on an unconsolidated basis. Our business will be to identify and complete a business combination and thereafter to operate the post-transaction business or assets for the long term. We do not plan to buy businesses or assets with a view to resale or profit from their resale. We do not plan to buy unrelated businesses or assets or to be a passive investor.

We do not believe that our anticipated principal activities will subject us to the Investment Company Act. To this end, the proceeds held in the trust account may only be invested in United States “government securities” within the meaning of Section 2(a)(16) of the Investment Company Act having a maturity of 185 days or less or in money

 

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market funds meeting certain conditions under Rule 2a-7 promulgated under the Investment Company Act which invest only in direct U.S. government treasury obligations. Pursuant to the trust agreement, the trustee is not permitted to invest in other securities or assets. By restricting the investment of the proceeds to these instruments, and by having a business plan targeted at acquiring and growing businesses for the long term (rather than on buying and selling businesses in the manner of a merchant bank or private equity fund), we intend to avoid being deemed an “investment company” within the meaning of the Investment Company Act. This offering is not intended for persons who are seeking a return on investments in government securities or investment securities. The trust account is intended as a holding place for funds pending the earliest to occur of either: (a) the completion of our initial business combination; (b) the redemption of any public shares properly tendered in connection with a stockholder vote to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation (i) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering or (ii) with respect to any other provisions relating to the rights of holders of our Class A common stock; or (c) absent our completing an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering, our return of the funds held in the trust account to our public stockholders as part of our redemption of the public shares. If we do not invest the proceeds as discussed above, we may be deemed to be subject to the Investment Company Act. If we were deemed to be subject to the Investment Company Act, compliance with these additional regulatory burdens would require additional expenses for which we have not allotted funds and may hinder our ability to complete a business combination. If we do not complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may only receive their pro rata portion of the funds in the trust account that are available for distribution to public stockholders, and our warrants will expire worthless.

Recently, a purported shareholder of certain special purpose acquisition companies initiated derivative lawsuits asserting that such special purpose acquisition companies are investment companies under Investment Company Act, because proceeds from their initial public offerings are invested in short-term United States government securities and qualifying money market funds. Under the provision of the Investment Company Act relied upon in the lawsuits, an investment company is defined as a company that is, or holds itself out as being, engaged primarily, or proposes to engage primarily, in the business of investing, reinvesting or trading in securities. Consistent with longstanding interpretations of the Investment Company Act, and its plain statutory text, any company that temporarily holds short-term United States government securities and qualifying money market funds, while engaging in its primary business of seeking a business combination with one or more operating companies, is not an investment company under the Investment Company Act. The Company believes that a special purpose acquisition company is not an investment company under the Investment Company Act if it (i) engages in its stated business purpose of identifying and attempting to complete, or completing, a business combination with one or more operating companies within a specified period of time and (ii) holds short-term United States government securities and qualifying money market funds in its trust account pending completion of its initial business combination. However, there can be no assurance that an adverse result in one or more such proceedings would not have a potentially material adverse effect on the Company or its business purpose.

We may issue notes or other debt securities, or otherwise incur substantial debt, to complete a business combination, which may adversely affect our leverage and financial condition and thus negatively impact the value of our stockholders’ investment in us.

Although we have no commitments as of the date of this prospectus to issue any notes or other debt securities, or to otherwise incur outstanding debt following this offering, we may choose to incur substantial debt to complete our initial business combination. We and our officers have agreed that we will not incur any indebtedness unless we have obtained from the lender a waiver of any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to the monies held in the trust account. As such, no issuance of debt will affect the per share amount available for redemption from the trust account. Nevertheless, the incurrence of debt could have a variety of negative effects, including:

 

   

default and foreclosure on our assets if our operating revenues after an initial business combination are insufficient to repay our debt obligations;

 

   

acceleration of our obligations to repay the indebtedness even if we make all principal and interest payments when due if we breach certain covenants that require the maintenance of certain financial ratios or reserves without a waiver or renegotiation of that covenant;

 

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our immediate payment of all principal and accrued interest, if any, if the debt security is payable on demand;

 

   

our inability to obtain necessary additional financing if the debt security contains covenants restricting our ability to obtain such financing while the debt security is outstanding;

 

   

our inability to pay dividends on our Class A common stock;

 

   

using a substantial portion of our cash flow to pay principal and interest on our debt, which will reduce the funds available for dividends on our Class A common stock if declared, our ability to pay expenses, make capital expenditures and acquisitions and fund other general corporate purposes;

 

   

limitations on our flexibility in planning for and reacting to changes in our business and in the industry in which we operate;

 

   

increased vulnerability to adverse changes in general economic, industry and competitive conditions and adverse changes in government regulation; and

 

   

limitations on our ability to borrow additional amounts for expenses, capital expenditures, acquisitions, debt service requirements and execution of our strategy and other purposes and other disadvantages compared to our competitors who have less debt.

There may be tax consequences to our initial business combination that may adversely affect us.

While we expect to undertake any initial business combination so as to minimize taxes both to the acquired business and/or asset and us, such initial business combination might not meet the statutory requirements of a tax-free reorganization, or the parties might not obtain the intended tax-free treatment upon a transfer of shares or assets. A non-qualifying reorganization could result in the imposition of substantial taxes.

Risks Related to the Post-Business Combination Company

Our ability to successfully effect our initial business combination and to be successful thereafter will be totally dependent upon the efforts of our key personnel, some of whom may join us following our initial business combination. The loss of key personnel could negatively impact the operations and profitability of our post-combination business.

Our ability to successfully effect our initial business combination is dependent upon the efforts of our key personnel. The role of our key personnel in the target business, however, cannot presently be ascertained. Although some of our key personnel may remain with the target business in senior management, director or advisory positions following our initial business combination, it is likely that some or all of the management of the target business will remain in place. While we intend to closely scrutinize any individuals we engage after our initial business combination, we cannot assure you that our assessment of these individuals will prove to be correct. These individuals may be unfamiliar with the requirements of operating a company regulated by the SEC, which could cause us to have to expend time and resources helping them become familiar with such requirements.

We may have a limited ability to assess the management of a prospective target business and, as a result, may consummate our initial business combination with a target business whose management may not have the skills, qualifications or abilities to manage a public company.

When evaluating the desirability of effecting our initial business combination with a prospective target business, our ability to assess the target business’s management may be limited due to a lack of time, resources or information. Our assessment of the capabilities of the target business’s management, therefore, may prove to be incorrect and such management may lack the skills, qualifications or abilities we suspected. Should the target business’s management not possess the skills, qualifications or abilities necessary to manage a public company, the operations and profitability of the post-combination business may be negatively impacted. Accordingly, any stockholders who choose to remain stockholders following the business combination could suffer a reduction in the value of their shares. Such stockholders are unlikely to have a remedy for such reduction in value unless they are able to successfully claim that the reduction was due to the breach by our officers or directors of a duty of care or other fiduciary duty owed to them, or if they are able to successfully bring a private claim under securities laws that the proxy solicitation or tender offer materials, as applicable, relating to the business combination contained an actionable material misstatement or material omission.

 

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The officers and directors of an acquisition candidate may resign upon completion of our initial business combination. The loss of a business combination target’s key personnel could negatively impact the operations and profitability of our post-combination business.

The role of an acquisition candidate’s key personnel upon the completion of our initial business combination cannot be ascertained at this time. Although we contemplate that certain members of an acquisition candidate’s management team will remain associated with the acquisition candidate following our initial business combination, it is possible that members of the management of an acquisition candidate will not wish to remain in place.

We may attempt to complete our initial business combination with a private company about which little information is available, which may result in a business combination with a company that is not as profitable as we suspected, if at all.

In pursuing our acquisition strategy, we may seek to effectuate our initial business combination with a privately held company. By definition, very little public information generally exists about private companies, and we could be required to make our decision on whether to pursue a potential initial business combination on the basis of limited information, which may result in a business combination with a company that is not as profitable as we suspected, if at all.

Our management may not be able to maintain control of a target business after our initial business combination. Upon the loss of control of a target business, new management may not possess the skills, qualifications or abilities necessary to profitably operate such business.

We may structure our initial business combination so that the post-business combination company in which our public stockholders own shares will own less than 100% of the equity interests or assets of a target business, but we will only complete such business combination if the post-business combination 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 us not to be required to register as an investment company under the Investment Company Act. We will not consider any transaction that does not meet such criteria. Even if the post-business combination company owns 50% or more of the voting securities of the target, our stockholders prior to our initial business combination may collectively own a minority interest in the post business combination company, depending on valuations ascribed to the target and us in the business combination. For example, we could pursue a transaction in which we issue a substantial number of new shares of our Class A common stock in exchange for all of the outstanding capital stock, shares or other equity interests of a target. In this case, we would acquire a 100% interest in the target. However, as a result of the issuance of a substantial number of new shares of our Class A common stock, our stockholders immediately prior to such transaction could own less than a majority of our issued and outstanding Class A common stock subsequent to such transaction. In addition, other minority stockholders may subsequently combine their holdings resulting in a single person or group obtaining a larger share of the company’s shares than we initially acquired. Accordingly, this may make it more likely that our management will not be able to maintain control of the target business.

We may seek business combination opportunities with a high degree of complexity that require significant operational improvements, which could delay or prevent us from achieving our desired results.

We may seek business combination opportunities with large, highly complex companies that we believe would benefit from operational improvements. While we intend to implement such improvements, to the extent that our efforts are delayed or we are unable to achieve the desired improvements, the business combination may not be as successful as we anticipate.

To the extent we complete our initial business combination with a large complex business or entity with a complex operating structure, we may also be affected by numerous risks inherent in the operations of the business with which we combine, which could delay or prevent us from implementing our strategy. Although our sponsor team will endeavor to evaluate the risks inherent in a particular target business and its operations, we may not be able to properly ascertain or assess all of the significant risk factors until we complete our business combination. If we are not able to achieve our desired operational improvements, or the improvements take longer to implement than anticipated, we may not achieve the gains that we anticipate. Furthermore, some of these risks and complexities may be outside of our control and leave us with no ability to control or reduce the chances that those risks and complexities will adversely impact a target business. Such combination may not be as successful as a combination with a smaller, less complex organization.

 

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We may only be able to complete one business combination with the proceeds of this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants, which will cause us to be solely dependent on a single business which may have a limited number of products or services. This lack of diversification may negatively impact our operations and profitability.

Of the net proceeds from this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants, $193,000,000 (or approximately $221,950,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) will be available to complete our business combination and pay related fees and expenses (after taking into account $7,000,000 (or approximately $8,050,000 if the over-allotment option is exercised in full) of deferred underwriting commissions being held in the trust account and payment of estimated offering expenses and assuming no redemptions of our public shares).

We may effectuate our initial business combination with a single target business or multiple target businesses simultaneously or within a short period of time. However, we may not be able to effectuate our initial business combination with more than one target business because of various factors, including the existence of complex accounting issues and the requirement that we prepare and file pro forma financial statements with the SEC that present operating results and the financial condition of several target businesses as if they had been operated on a combined basis. By completing our initial business combination with only a single entity, our lack of diversification may subject us to numerous economic, competitive and regulatory developments. Further, we would not be able to diversify our operations or benefit from the possible spreading of risks or offsetting of losses, unlike other entities which may have the resources to complete several business combinations in different industries or different areas of a single industry. Accordingly, the prospects for our success may be:

 

   

solely dependent upon the performance of a single business, property or asset; or

 

   

dependent upon the development or market acceptance of a single or limited number of products, processes or services.

This lack of diversification may subject us to numerous economic, competitive and regulatory risks, any or all of which may have a substantial adverse impact upon the particular industry in which we may operate subsequent to our initial business combination.

We may attempt to simultaneously complete business combinations with multiple prospective targets, which may hinder our ability to complete our initial business combination and give rise to increased costs and risks that could negatively impact our operations and profitability.

If we determine to simultaneously acquire several businesses that are owned by different sellers, we will need for each of such sellers to agree that our purchase of its business is contingent on the simultaneous closings of the other business combinations, which may make it more difficult for us, and delay our ability, to complete our initial business combination. With multiple business combinations, we could also face additional risks, including additional burdens and costs with respect to possible multiple negotiations and due diligence (if there are multiple sellers) and the additional risks associated with the subsequent assimilation of the operations and services or products of the acquired companies in a single operating business. If we are unable to adequately address these risks, it could negatively impact our profitability and results of operations.

If we pursue a target company with operations or opportunities outside of the United States for our initial business combination, we may face additional burdens in connection with investigating, agreeing to and completing such initial business combination, and if we effect such initial business combination, we would be subject to a variety of additional risks that may negatively impact our operations.

If we pursue a target a company with operations or opportunities outside of the United States for our initial business combination, we would be subject to risks associated with cross-border business combinations, including in connection with investigating, agreeing to and completing our initial business combination, conducting due diligence in a foreign jurisdiction, having such transaction approved by any local governments, regulators or agencies and changes in the purchase price based on fluctuations in foreign exchange rates.

If we effect our initial business combination with such a company, we would be subject to any special considerations or risks associated with companies operating in an international setting, including any of the following:

 

   

costs and difficulties inherent in managing cross-border business operations and complying with different commercial and legal requirements of overseas markets;

 

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rules and regulations regarding currency redemption;

 

   

complex corporate withholding taxes on individuals;

 

   

laws governing the manner in which future business combinations may be effected;

 

   

exchange listing and/or delisting requirements;

 

   

tariffs and trade barriers;

 

   

regulations related to customs and import/export matters;

 

   

local or regional economic policies and market conditions;

 

   

unexpected changes in regulatory requirements;

 

   

longer payment cycles;

 

   

tax issues, such as tax law changes and variations in tax laws as compared to the United States;

 

   

currency fluctuations and exchange controls;

 

   

rates of inflation;

 

   

challenges in collecting accounts receivable;

 

   

cultural and language differences;

 

   

employment regulations;

 

   

underdeveloped or unpredictable legal or regulatory systems;

 

   

corruption;

 

   

protection of intellectual property;

 

   

social unrest, crime, strikes, riots and civil disturbances;

 

   

regime changes and political upheaval;

 

   

terrorist attacks, natural disasters and wars;

 

   

deterioration of political relations with the United States; and

 

   

government appropriation of assets.

We may not be able to adequately address these additional risks. If we were unable to do so, we may be unable to complete such initial business combination, or, if we complete such combination, our operations might suffer, either of which may adversely impact our business, financial condition and results of operations.

Subsequent to our completion of our initial business combination, we may be required to take write-downs or write-offs, restructuring and impairment or other charges that could have a significant negative effect on our financial condition, results of operations and our share price, which could cause you to lose some or all of your investment.

Even if we conduct due diligence on a target business with which we combine, we cannot assure you that this diligence will surface all material issues with a particular target business, that it would be possible to uncover all material issues through a customary amount of due diligence, or that factors outside of the target business and outside of our control will not later arise. As a result of these factors, we may be forced to later write-down or write-off assets, restructure our operations, or incur impairment or other charges that could result in our reporting losses. Even if our due diligence successfully identifies certain risks, unexpected risks may arise and previously known risks may materialize in a manner not consistent with our preliminary risk analysis. Even though these charges may be non-cash items and not have an immediate impact on our liquidity, the fact that we report charges of this nature could contribute to negative market perceptions about us or our securities. In addition, charges of this nature may cause us to violate net worth or other covenants to which we may be subject as a result of assuming pre-existing debt held by a target business or by virtue of our obtaining post-combination debt financing. Accordingly, any stockholders who choose to remain stockholders following the business combination could suffer a reduction in the value of their securities. Such stockholders are unlikely to have a remedy for such reduction in value unless they are able to successfully claim that the reduction was due to the breach by our officers or directors of a duty of care or other fiduciary duty owed to them, or if they are able to successfully bring a private claim under securities laws that the proxy solicitation or tender offer materials, as applicable, relating to the business combination contained an actionable material misstatement or material omission.

 

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Risks Related to Conflicts of Interest of our Officers, Directors and Others

Our key personnel may negotiate employment or consulting agreements with a target business in connection with a particular business combination, and a particular business combination may be conditioned on the retention or resignation of such key personnel. These agreements may provide for them to receive compensation following our initial business combination and as a result, may cause them to have conflicts of interest in determining whether a particular business combination is the most advantageous.

Our key personnel may be able to remain with our company after the completion of our initial business combination only if they are able to negotiate employment or consulting agreements in connection with the business combination. Such negotiations would take place simultaneously with the negotiation of the business combination and could provide for such individuals to receive compensation in the form of cash payments and/or our securities for services they would render to us after the completion of the business combination. Such negotiations also could make such key personnel’s retention or resignation a condition to any such agreement. In addition, directors or members of our sponsor team who remain with us, or their affiliates, may be paid consulting or management fees from the combined company following the closing of our initial business combination. The personal and financial interests of such individuals may influence their motivation in identifying and selecting a target business, subject to his or her fiduciary duties. However, we believe the ability of such individuals to remain with us after the completion of our business combination will not be the determining factor in our decision as to whether or not we will proceed with any potential business combination. There is no certainty, however, that any of our key personnel will remain with us after the completion of our business combination. We cannot assure you that any of our key personnel will remain in senior management or advisory positions with us. The determination as to whether any of our key personnel will remain with us will be made at the time of our initial business combination. In addition, pursuant to an agreement to be entered into concurrently with the issuance and sale of the securities in this offering, our sponsor, upon completion of an initial business combination, will be entitled to nominate up to three individuals for election to our board of directors, as long as the sponsor holds any securities covered by the registration rights agreement.

Our officers and directors will allocate their time to other businesses thereby causing conflicts of interest in their determination as to how much time to devote to our affairs. This conflict of interest could have a negative impact on our ability to complete our initial business combination.

Our officers and directors are not required to, and will not, commit their full time to our affairs, which may result in a conflict of interest in allocating their time between our operations and our search for a business combination and their other businesses. We do not intend to have any full-time employees prior to the completion of our initial business combination. Each of our officers and directors is engaged in several other business endeavors for which he may be entitled to substantial compensation, and our officers and directors are not obligated to contribute any specific number of hours per week to our affairs. Our independent directors also serve as officers and board members for other entities. If our officers’ and directors’ other business affairs require them to devote substantial amounts of time to such affairs in excess of their current commitment levels, it could limit their ability to devote time to our affairs which may have a negative impact on our ability to complete our initial business combination. For a complete discussion of our officers’ and directors’ other business affairs, please see the section of this prospectus entitled “Management—Officers and Directors.”

Our officers and directors presently have, and any of them in the future may have additional fiduciary or contractual obligations to other entities, including to a blank check company, and accordingly, may have conflicts of interest in allocating their time and determining to which entity a particular business opportunity should be presented.

Following the completion of this offering and until we complete our initial business combination, we intend to engage in the business of identifying and combining with one or more businesses. Each of our officers and directors presently has, and any of them in the future may have, additional fiduciary or contractual obligations to other entities pursuant to which such officer or director is or will be required to present a business combination opportunity to such entity, subject to his or her fiduciary duties. Accordingly, they may have conflicts of interest in determining to which entity a particular business opportunity should be presented. These conflicts may not be resolved in our favor and a potential target business may be presented to another entity prior to its presentation to us, subject to their fiduciary duties. Furthermore, we expect that, to minimize potential conflicts, our target investments will have characteristics appropriate for public companies and, accordingly, or due to other characteristics, will not be suitable for private equity-style investments, which may limit the pool of suitable

 

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acquisition targets. However, we do not believe that any potential conflicts would materially affect our ability to identify and pursue business combination opportunities or complete our initial business combination.

In addition, our founders and our directors and officers may in the future become affiliated with other blank check companies that may have acquisition objectives that are similar to ours. Accordingly, they may have conflicts of interest in determining to which entity a particular business opportunity should be presented. These conflicts may not be resolved in our favor and a potential target business may be presented to such other blank check companies prior to its presentation to us, subject to our officers’ and directors’ fiduciary duties. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will provide that we renounce our interest in any business combination opportunity offered to any director or officer unless such opportunity is expressly offered to such person solely in his or her capacity as a director or officer of the Company and it is an opportunity that we are able to complete on a reasonable basis.

For a complete discussion of our officers’ and directors’ business affiliations and the potential conflicts of interest that you should be aware of, please see the sections of this prospectus entitled “Management—Officers and Directors,” “Management—Conflicts of Interest” and “Certain Relationships and Related Party Transactions.”

Our officers, directors, security holders and their respective affiliates may have competitive pecuniary interests that conflict with our interests.

We have not adopted a policy that expressly prohibits our directors, officers, security holders or affiliates from having a direct or indirect pecuniary or financial interest in any investment to be acquired or disposed of by us or in any transaction to which we are a party or have an interest. In fact, we may enter into a business combination with a target business that is affiliated with our sponsor, our directors or officers, although we do not intend to do so. Nor do we have a policy that expressly prohibits any such persons from engaging for their own account in business activities of the types conducted by us, including the formation or participation in one or more other blank check companies. Accordingly, such persons or entities may have a conflict between their interests and ours.

The personal and financial interests of our directors and officers may influence their motivation in timely identifying and selecting a target business and completing a business combination. Consequently, our directors’ and officers’ discretion in identifying and selecting a suitable target business may result in a conflict of interest when determining whether the terms, conditions and timing of a particular business combination are appropriate and in our stockholders’ best interest. If this were the case, it would be a breach of their fiduciary duties to us as a matter of Delaware law and we or our stockholders might have a claim against such individuals for infringing on our stockholders’ rights. See the section titled “Description of Securities—Certain Differences in Corporate Law—Stockholders’ Suits” for further information on the ability to bring such claims. However, we might not ultimately be successful in any claim we may make against them for such reason.

We may engage in a business combination with one or more target businesses that have relationships with entities that may be affiliated with our sponsor, officers, directors or existing holders which may raise potential conflicts of interest.

In light of the involvement of our sponsor, officers and directors with other entities, we may decide to acquire one or more businesses affiliated with our sponsor, officers, directors or existing holders. Our directors also serve as officers and board members for other entities, including, without limitation, those described under the section of this prospectus entitled “Management—Conflicts of Interest.” Our founders and our directors and officers may sponsor, form or participate in other blank check companies similar to ours during the period in which we are seeking an initial business combination. Such entities may compete with us for business combination opportunities. Our sponsor, officers and directors are not currently aware of any specific opportunities for us to complete our initial business combination with any entities with which they are affiliated, and there have been no substantive discussions concerning a business combination with any such entity or entities. Although we will not be specifically focusing on, or targeting, any transaction with any affiliated entities, we would pursue such a transaction if we determined that such affiliated entity met our criteria for a business combination as set forth in the section of this prospectus entitled “Proposed Business—Evaluation of a Target Business and Structuring of our Initial Business Combination” and such transaction was approved by a majority of our independent and disinterested directors. Despite our agreement to obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm which is a member of FINRA, or from an independent accounting firm, regarding the fairness to our company from a financial point of view of a business combination with one or more domestic or international businesses affiliated with our sponsor, officers,

 

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directors or existing holders, potential conflicts of interest still may exist and, as a result, the terms of the business combination may not be as advantageous to our public stockholders as they would be absent any conflicts of interest.

Since our sponsor, officers and directors will lose their entire investment in us if our initial business combination is not completed (other than with respect to public shares they may acquire during or after this offering), a conflict of interest may arise in determining whether a particular business combination target is appropriate for our initial business combination.

Prior to this offering, our initial stockholders purchased an aggregate of 5,750,000 founder shares for an aggregate purchase price of $25,000, or approximately $0.004 per share. Prior to the initial investment in the company of $25,000 by our initial stockholders, the company had no assets, tangible or intangible. The number of founder shares issued was determined based on the expectation that such founder shares would represent 20% of the outstanding shares after this offering. The founder shares will be worthless if we do not complete an initial business combination. In addition, our sponsor and Jefferies have committed, pursuant to a written agreement, to purchase an aggregate of 7,600,000 private placement warrants (or an aggregate of 8,200,000 private placement warrants if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full), each whole warrant exercisable to purchase one share of our Class A common stock at a price of $11.50 per share, for a purchase price of $7,600,000 (or $8,200,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full), or $1.00 per whole warrant, that will also be worthless if we do not complete a business combination. Holders of founder shares have agreed (A) to vote any shares owned by them in favor of any proposed business combination and (B) not to redeem any founder shares in connection with a stockholder vote to approve a proposed initial business combination. In addition, we may obtain loans from our sponsor, affiliates of our sponsor or an officer or director, and we may reimburse our sponsor, officers, directors and any of their respective affiliates expenses in connection with identifying, investigating and completing an initial business combination.

The personal and financial interests of our officers and directors may influence their motivation in identifying and selecting a target business combination, completing an initial business combination and influencing the operation of the business following the initial business combination. This risk may become more acute as the 24-month anniversary of the closing of this offering nears, which is the deadline for our completion of an initial business combination.

We may engage our underwriters or one of their affiliates to provide additional services to us after this offering, which may include acting as financial advisor in connection with an initial business combination or as placement agent in connection with a related financing transaction. The underwriters are entitled to receive deferred underwriting commissions that will be released from the trust only on a completion of an initial business combination. These financial incentives may cause the underwriters to have potential conflicts of interest in rendering any such additional services to us after this offering, including, for example, in connection with the sourcing and consummation of an initial business combination.

We may engage our underwriters or one of their affiliates to provide additional services to us after this offering, including, for example, identifying potential targets, providing financial advisory services, acting as a placement agent in a private offering or arranging debt financing. We may pay such underwriters or their affiliates fair and reasonable fees or other compensation that would be determined at that time in an arm’s length negotiation; provided that no agreement will be entered into with any underwriters or their respective affiliates and no fees or other compensation for such services will be paid to the underwriters or their affiliates prior to the date that is 60 days from the date of this prospectus, unless such payment would not be deemed underwriters’ compensation in connection with this offering. The underwriters are also entitled to receive deferred underwriting commissions that are conditioned on the completion of an initial business combination. In addition, the underwriters have committed to purchase 1,000,000 private placement warrants (or up to 1,150,000 private placement warrants if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full), at a price of $1.00 per whole warrant, that will also be worthless if we do not complete a business combination. The fact that the underwriters or their affiliates’ financial interests are tied to the consummation of a business combination transaction may give rise to potential conflicts of interest in providing any such additional services to us, including potential conflicts of interest in connection with the sourcing and consummation of an initial business combination.

 

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Members of our sponsor team and board of directors have significant experience as founders, board members, officers or executives of other companies. As a result, certain of those persons have been, may be, or may become, involved in proceedings, investigations and litigation relating to the business affairs of the companies with which they were, are, or may in the future be, affiliated. This may have an adverse effect on us, which may impede our ability to consummate an initial business combination.

During the course of their careers, members of our sponsor team and board of directors have had significant experience as founders, board members, officers or executives of other companies. As a result of their involvement and positions in these companies, certain persons were, are now, or may in the future become, involved in litigation, investigations or other proceedings arising out of or relating to the business affairs of such companies or transactions entered into by such companies. Any such litigation, investigations or other proceedings may divert our sponsor team’s and board’s attention and resources away from identifying and selecting a target business or businesses for our initial business combination and may negatively affect our reputation, which may impede our ability to complete an initial business combination.

Risks Related to Our Securities

We may not be able to complete an initial business combination within 18 months after the closing of the offering, in which case we would cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up and we would redeem our public shares and liquidate, in which case our public stockholders may only receive $10.00 per share, or less than such amount in certain circumstances, and our warrants will expire worthless.

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will provide that we must complete our initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering. We may not be able to find a suitable target business and complete an initial business combination within 18 months after the closing of this offering. Our ability to complete our initial business combination may be negatively impacted by general market conditions, volatility in the capital and debt markets and the other risks described in this prospectus. If we have not completed an initial business combination within such applicable time period, 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 earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes, if any (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidating distributions, if any), subject to applicable law; and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining stockholders and our board of directors, liquidate and dissolve, subject in each case to our obligations under Delaware Islands law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law.

If a stockholder fails to receive notice of our offer to redeem our public shares in connection with our initial business combination, despite our compliance with the tender offer rules or proxy rules, or fails to comply with the procedures for tendering its shares, such shares may not be redeemed.

We will comply with the proxy rules or tender offer rules, as applicable, when conducting redemptions in connection with our initial business combination. Despite our compliance with these rules, if a stockholder fails to receive our proxy solicitation or tender offer materials, as applicable, such stockholder may not become aware of the opportunity to redeem its shares. In addition, the proxy solicitation or tender offer materials, as applicable, that we will furnish to holders of our public shares in connection with our initial business combination will describe the various procedures that must be complied with in order to validly redeem or tender public shares. For example, we may require our public stockholders seeking to exercise their redemption rights, whether they are record holders or hold their shares in “street name,” to either tender their certificates to our transfer agent prior to the date set forth in the tender offer documents or proxy materials mailed to such holders, 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. In the event that a stockholder fails to comply with these or any other procedures, its shares may not be redeemed. See the section of this prospectus entitled “Proposed Business—Tendering Share Certificates in Connection with a Tender Offer or Redemption Rights.”

 

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You will not have any rights or interests in funds from the trust account, except under certain limited circumstances. Therefore, to liquidate your investment, you may be forced to sell your public shares or warrants, potentially at a loss.

Our public stockholders will be entitled to receive funds from the trust account only upon the earlier to occur of: (i) our completion of an initial business combination, and then only in connection with those shares of our Class A common stock that such stockholder properly elected to redeem, subject to the limitations described in this prospectus, (ii) the redemption of any public shares properly tendered in connection with a stockholder vote to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation (A) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering or (B) with respect to any other provisions relating to the rights of our Class A common stock, and (iii) the redemption of our public shares if we have not completed an initial business within 18 months from the closing of this offering, subject to applicable law and as further described in this prospectus. Public stockholders who redeem their shares of Class A common stock in connection with a stockholder vote described in clause (ii) in the preceding sentence shall not be entitled to funds from the trust account upon the subsequent completion of an initial business combination or liquidation if have not completed an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering, with respect to such Class A common stock so redeemed. In addition, if we do not complete an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering is not completed for any reason, compliance with Delaware law may require that we submit a plan of dissolution to our then-existing stockholders for approval prior to the distribution of the proceeds held in our trust account. In that case, public stockholders may be forced to wait beyond 18 months from the closing of this offering before they receive funds from our trust account. In no other circumstances will a public stockholder have any right or interest of any kind in the trust account. Holders of warrants will not have any right to the proceeds held in the trust account with respect to such warrants. Accordingly, to liquidate your investment, you may be forced to sell your public shares or warrants, potentially at a loss.

Nasdaq may delist our securities from trading on its exchange, which could limit investors’ ability to make transactions in our securities and subject us to additional trading restrictions.

We have applied to have our units listed on Nasdaq on or promptly after the date of this prospectus and our Class A common stock and warrants listed on or promptly after their date of separation. Although after giving effect to this offering we expect to meet, on a pro forma basis, the minimum initial listing standards set forth in Nasdaq listing standards, we cannot assure you that our securities will be, or will continue to be, listed on Nasdaq in the future or prior to our initial business combination. In order to continue listing our securities on Nasdaq prior to our initial business combination, we must maintain certain financial, distribution and share price levels. Generally, we must maintain a minimum bid price of $1.00 per share, a minimum market value of our listed securities of $50 million and a minimum number of holders of our securities (generally 400 public holders).

Additionally, our units will not be traded after completion of our initial business combination and, in connection with our initial business combination, we will be required to demonstrate compliance with Nasdaq’s initial listing requirements, which are more rigorous than Nasdaq’s continued listing requirements, in order to continue to maintain the listing of our securities on Nasdaq. For instance, our minimum bid price would generally be required to be at least $4.00 per share, the minimum market value of our listed securities must be at least $75 million and we would be required to have a minimum of 400 round lot holders of our securities. We cannot assure you that we will be able to meet those initial listing requirements at that time.

If Nasdaq delists any of our securities from trading on its exchange and we are not able to list such securities on another national securities exchange, we expect our securities could be quoted on an over-the-counter market. If this were to occur, we could face significant material adverse consequences, including:

 

   

a limited availability of market quotations for our securities;

 

   

reduced liquidity for our securities;

 

   

a determination that our Class A common stock is a “penny stock” which will require brokers trading in our Class A common stock to adhere to more stringent rules and possibly result in a reduced level of trading activity in the secondary trading market for our securities;

 

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a limited amount of news and analyst coverage; and

 

   

a decreased ability to issue additional securities or obtain additional financing in the future.

The National Securities Markets Improvement Act of 1996, which is a federal statute, prevents or preempts the states from regulating the sale of certain securities, which are referred to as “covered securities.” Because we expect that our units and eventually our Class A common stock and warrants will be listed on Nasdaq, our units, Class A common stock and warrants will qualify as covered securities under such statute. Although the states are preempted from regulating the sale of our securities, the federal statute does allow the states to investigate companies if there is a suspicion of fraud, and, if there is a finding of fraudulent activity, then the states can regulate or bar the sale of covered securities in a particular case. While we are not aware of a state having used these powers to prohibit or restrict the sale of securities issued by blank check companies, other than the State of Idaho, certain state securities regulators view blank check companies unfavorably and might use these powers, or threaten to use these powers, to hinder the sale of securities of blank check companies in their states. Further, if we were no longer listed on Nasdaq, our securities would not qualify as covered securities under the statute, and we would be subject to regulation in each state in which we offer our securities.

You will not be entitled to protections normally afforded to investors of many other blank check companies.

Since the net proceeds of this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants are intended to be used to complete an initial business combination with a target business that has not been identified, we may be deemed to be a “blank check” company under the United States securities laws. However, because we will have net tangible assets in excess of $5,000,000 upon the successful completion of this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants and will file a Current Report on Form 8-K, including an audited balance sheet demonstrating this fact, we are exempt from rules promulgated by the SEC to protect investors in blank check companies, such as Rule 419. Accordingly, investors will not be afforded the benefits or protections of those rules. Among other things, this means our units will be immediately tradable and we will have a longer period of time to complete our initial business combination than do companies subject to Rule 419. Moreover, if this offering were subject to Rule 419, that rule would prohibit the release of any interest earned on funds held in the trust account to us unless and until the funds in the trust account were released to us in connection with our completion of an initial business combination. For a more detailed comparison of our offering to offerings that comply with Rule 419, please see the section of this prospectus entitled “Proposed Business—Comparison of This Offering to Those of Blank Check Companies Subject to Rule 419.”

If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination and we do not conduct redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules, and if you or a “group” of stockholders are deemed to hold in excess of 15% of the shares of our Class A common stock included in the units sold in this offering, you will lose the ability to redeem all such shares in excess of 15% of the shares of our Class A common stock included in the units sold in this offering.

If we seek stockholder 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 certificate of incorporation will provide that a public stockholder, together with any affiliate of such stockholder or any other person with whom such stockholder 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 public shares included in the units sold in this offering without our prior consent, which we refer to as the “Excess Shares.” However, we would not be restricting our stockholders’ ability to vote all of their shares (including Excess Shares) for or against our initial business combination. Your inability to redeem the Excess Shares will reduce your influence over our ability to complete our initial business combination and you could suffer a material loss on your investment in us if you sell Excess Shares in open market transactions. Additionally, you will not receive redemption distributions with respect to the Excess Shares if we complete our initial business combination. And as a result, you will continue to hold that number of shares exceeding 15% and, in order to dispose of such shares, would be required to sell your shares in open market transactions, potentially at a loss.

 

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Because of our limited resources and the significant competition for business combination opportunities, it may be more difficult for us to complete our initial business combination. If we do not complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only their pro rata portion of the funds in the trust account that are available for distribution to public stockholders, and our warrants will expire worthless.

We expect to encounter intense competition from other entities having a business objective similar to ours, including private investors (which may be individuals or investment partnerships), other blank check companies and other entities, domestic and international, competing for the types of businesses we intend to acquire. Many of these individuals and entities are well-established and have extensive experience in identifying and effecting, directly or indirectly, acquisitions of companies operating in or providing services to various industries. Many of these competitors possess greater technical, human and other resources or more local industry knowledge than we do and our financial resources will be relatively limited when contrasted with those of many of these competitors. While we believe there are numerous target businesses we could potentially acquire with the net proceeds of this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants, our ability to compete with respect to the acquisition of certain target businesses that are sizable will be limited by our available financial resources. This inherent competitive limitation gives others an advantage in pursuing the acquisition of certain target businesses. Furthermore, we are obligated to offer holders of our public shares the right to redeem their shares for cash at the time of our initial business combination in conjunction with a stockholder vote or via a tender offer. Target companies will be aware that this may reduce the resources available to us for our initial business combination. Any of these obligations may place us at a competitive disadvantage in successfully negotiating a business combination. If we do not complete our initial business combination our public stockholders may receive only their pro rata portion of the funds in the trust account that are available for distribution to public stockholders, and our warrants will expire worthless.

If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in the trust account could be reduced and the per share redemption amount received by stockholders may be less than $10.00 per share.

Our placing of funds in the trust account may not protect those funds from third-party claims against us. Although we will seek to have all vendors, service providers (other than our independent registered public accounting firm), prospective target businesses and 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 stockholders, such parties may not execute such agreements, or even if they execute such agreements, they may not 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 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. Making such a request of potential target businesses may make our acquisition proposal less attractive to them and, to the extent prospective target businesses refuse to execute such a waiver, it may limit the field of potential target businesses that we might pursue.

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 have not completed an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering, 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 ten years following redemption. Accordingly, the per share redemption amount received by public stockholders could be less than the $10.00 per public share initially held in the trust account, due to claims of such creditors. Pursuant to the letter agreement the form of which is filed as an exhibit to the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part, our sponsor has agreed that it will be liable to us if and to the extent any claims by a third party (other than our independent registered public accounting firm) for services

 

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rendered or products sold to us, or a prospective target business with which we have discussed entering into a business combination transaction agreement, reduce the amounts in the trust account to below the lesser of (i) $10.00 per public share and (ii) the actual amount per share held in the trust account as of the date of the liquidation of the trust account if less than $10.00 per share due to reductions in the value of the trust assets, in each case net of the interest that may be withdrawn to pay our taxes, if any, provided that such liability will not apply to any claims by a third party or prospective target business that executed a waiver of any and all rights to seek access to the trust account nor will it apply to any claims under our indemnity of the underwriters of this offering against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. Moreover, in the event that an executed waiver is deemed to be unenforceable against a third party, our sponsor will not be responsible to the extent of any liability for such third party claims. However, we have not asked our sponsor to reserve for such indemnification obligations, nor have we independently verified whether our sponsor has sufficient funds to satisfy its indemnity obligations and believe that our sponsor’s only assets are securities of our company. Therefore, we cannot assure you that our sponsor would be able to satisfy those obligations. As a result, if any such claims were successfully made against the trust account, the funds available for our initial business combination and redemptions could be reduced to less than $10.00 per public share. In such event, we may not be able to complete our initial business combination, and you would receive such lesser amount per share in connection with any redemption of your public shares. None of our officers or directors will indemnify us for claims by third parties including, without limitation, claims by vendors and prospective target businesses.

Our directors may decide not to enforce the indemnification obligations of our sponsor, resulting in a reduction in the amount of funds in the trust account available for distribution to our public stockholders.

In the event that the proceeds in the trust account are reduced below the lesser of (i) $10.00 per share and (ii) the actual amount per share held in the trust account as of the date of the liquidation of the trust account if less than $10.00 per share due to reductions in the value of the trust assets, in each case net of the interest that may be withdrawn to pay our taxes, if any, and our sponsor asserts that it is unable to satisfy its obligations or that it has no indemnification obligations related to a particular claim, our independent directors would determine whether to take legal action against our sponsor to enforce 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 and subject to their fiduciary duties may choose not to do so in any particular instance. If our independent directors choose not to enforce these indemnification obligations, the amount of funds in the trust account available for distribution to our public stockholders may be reduced below $10.00 per share.

We may not have sufficient funds to satisfy indemnification claims of our directors and officers, and our obligation to indemnify our officers and directors may have certain adverse consequences.

We have agreed to indemnify our officers and directors to the fullest extent permitted by law. However, our officers and directors have agreed to waive any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to any monies in the trust account and to not seek recourse against the trust account for any reason whatsoever (except to the extent they are entitled to funds from the trust account due to their ownership of public shares). Accordingly, any indemnification provided will be able to be satisfied by us only if (i) we have sufficient funds outside of the trust account or (ii) we complete an initial business combination. Our obligation to indemnify our officers and directors may discourage stockholders from bringing a lawsuit against our officers or directors for breach of their fiduciary duty. These provisions also may have the effect of reducing the likelihood of derivative litigation against our officers and directors, even though such an action, if successful, might otherwise benefit us and our stockholders. Furthermore, a stockholder’s investment may be adversely affected to the extent we pay the costs of settlement and damage awards against our officers and directors pursuant to these indemnification provisions.

If, after we distribute the proceeds in the trust account to our public stockholders, we file a bankruptcy or winding-up petition or an involuntary bankruptcy or winding-up petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, a bankruptcy or insolvency court may seek to recover such proceeds, and the members of our board of directors may be viewed as having breached their fiduciary duties to our creditors, thereby exposing the members of our board of directors and us to claims of punitive damages.

If, after we distribute the proceeds in the trust account to our public stockholders, we file a bankruptcy or winding-up petition or an involuntary bankruptcy or winding-up petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, any distributions received by stockholders could be viewed under applicable debtor/creditor and/or bankruptcy or

 

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insolvency laws as either a “preferential transfer” or a “fraudulent conveyance.” As a result, a bankruptcy or insolvency court could seek to recover some or all amounts received by our stockholders. In addition, our board of directors may be viewed as having breached its fiduciary duty to our creditors and/or having acted in bad faith, thereby exposing itself and us to claims of punitive damages, by paying public stockholders from the trust account prior to addressing the claims of creditors.

If, before distributing the proceeds in the trust account to our public stockholders, we file a bankruptcy or winding-up petition or an involuntary bankruptcy or winding-up petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, the claims of creditors in such proceeding may have priority over the claims of our stockholders and the per share amount that would otherwise be received by our stockholders in connection with our liquidation may be reduced.

If, before distributing the proceeds in the trust account to our public stockholders, we file a bankruptcy or winding-up petition or an involuntary bankruptcy or winding-up petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, the proceeds held in the trust account could be subject to applicable bankruptcy or insolvency law, and may be included in our bankruptcy estate and subject to the claims of third parties with priority over the claims of our stockholders. To the extent any bankruptcy claims deplete the trust account, the per share amount that would otherwise be received by our stockholders in connection with our liquidation may be reduced.

The securities in which we invest the funds held in the trust account could bear a negative rate of interest, which could reduce the value of the assets held in trust such that the per share redemption amount received by public stockholders may be less than $10.00 per share.

The proceeds held in the trust account will be invested only in U.S. government treasury obligations with a maturity of 185 days or less or in money market funds meeting certain conditions under Rule 2a-7 under the Investment Company Act, which invest only in direct U.S. government treasury obligations. While short-term U.S. government treasury obligations currently yield a positive rate of interest, they have briefly yielded negative interest rates in recent years. Central banks in Europe and Japan pursued interest rates below zero in recent years, and the Open Market Committee of the Federal Reserve has not ruled out the possibility that it may in the future adopt similar policies in the United States. In the event that we are unable to complete our initial business combination or make certain amendments to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, our public stockholders are entitled to receive their pro-rata share of the proceeds held in the trust account, plus any interest income, net of taxes payable. Negative interest rates could reduce the value of the assets held in trust such that the per share redemption amount received by public stockholders may be less than $10.00 per share.

If we have not completed an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering, our public stockholders may be forced to wait beyond such 18 months before redemption from our trust account.

If we have not completed an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering, the proceeds then on deposit in the trust account, including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes, if any (less up to $100,000 of the interest to pay dissolution expenses), will be used to fund the redemption of our public shares, as further described in this prospectus. Any redemption of public stockholders from the trust account will be effected automatically by function of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation prior to any voluntary winding up. If we are required to wind-up, liquidate the trust account and distribute such amount, pro rata, to our public stockholders, as part of any liquidation process, such winding up, liquidation and distribution must comply with the applicable provisions of the DGCL. In that case, investors may be forced to wait beyond 18 months from the closing of this offering before the redemption proceeds of our trust account become available to them, and they receive the return of their pro rata portion of the proceeds from our trust account. We have no obligation to return funds to investors prior to the date of our redemption or liquidation unless we complete our initial business combination prior thereto and only then in cases where investors have sought to redeem their shares of Class A common stock. Only upon our redemption or any liquidation will public stockholders be entitled to distributions if we do not complete our initial business combination.

Our stockholders may be held liable for claims by third parties against us to the extent of distributions received by them upon redemption of their shares.

Under the DGCL, stockholders may be held liable for claims by third parties against a corporation to the extent of distributions received by them in a dissolution. The pro rata portion of our trust account distributed to our public stockholders upon the redemption of our public shares in the event we do not complete our initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering may be considered a liquidating distribution under

 

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Delaware law. If a corporation complies with certain procedures set forth in Section 280 of the DGCL intended to ensure that it makes reasonable provision for all claims against it, including a 60-day notice period during which any third-party claims can be brought against the corporation, a 90-day period during which the corporation may reject any claims brought, and an additional 150-day waiting period before any liquidating distributions are made to stockholders, any liability of stockholders with respect to a liquidating distribution is limited to the lesser of such stockholder’s pro rata share of the claim or the amount distributed to the stockholder, and any liability of the stockholder would be barred after the third anniversary of the dissolution. However, it is our intention to redeem our public shares as soon as reasonably possible following the 18th month from the closing of this offering in the event we do not complete our initial business combination and, therefore, we do not intend to comply with the foregoing procedures.

Because we will not be complying with Section 280, Section 281(b) of the DGCL requires us to adopt a plan, based on facts known to us at such time that will provide for our payment of all existing and pending claims or claims that may be potentially brought against us within the ten years following our dissolution. However, because we are a blank check company, rather than an operating company, and our operations will be limited to searching for prospective target businesses to acquire, the only likely claims to arise would be from our vendors (such as lawyers, investment bankers, etc.) or prospective target businesses. If our plan of distribution complies with Section 281(b) of the DGCL, any liability of stockholders with respect to a liquidating distribution is limited to the lesser of such stockholder’s pro rata share of the claim or the amount distributed to the stockholder, and any liability of the stockholder would likely be barred after the third anniversary of the dissolution. We cannot assure you that we will properly assess all claims that may be potentially brought against us. As such, our stockholders could potentially be liable for any claims to the extent of distributions received by them (but no more) and any liability of our stockholders may extend beyond the third anniversary of such date. Furthermore, if the pro rata portion of our trust account distributed to our public stockholders upon the redemption of our public shares in the event we do not complete our initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering is not considered a liquidating distribution under Delaware law and such redemption distribution is deemed to be unlawful (potentially due to the imposition of legal proceedings that a party may bring or due to other circumstances that are currently unknown), then pursuant to Section 174 of the DGCL, the statute of limitations for claims of creditors could then be six years after the unlawful redemption distribution, instead of three years, as in the case of a liquidating distribution.

We may not hold an annual meeting of stockholders until after the completion of our initial business combination and you will not be entitled to any of the corporate protections provided by such a meeting.

In accordance with Nasdaq corporate governance requirements, we are not required to hold an annual meeting until no later than one year after our first fiscal year end following our listing on Nasdaq. Under Section 211(b) of the DGCL, we are, however, required to hold an annual meeting of stockholders for the purposes of electing directors in accordance with our bylaws unless such election is made by written consent in lieu of such a meeting. We may not hold an annual meeting of stockholders to elect new directors prior to the consummation of our initial business combination, and thus we may not be in compliance with Section 211(b) of the DGCL, which requires an annual meeting. Therefore, if our stockholders want us to hold an annual meeting prior to the consummation of our initial business combination, they may attempt to force us to hold one by submitting an application to the Delaware Court of Chancery in accordance with Section 211(c) of the DGCL.

Holders of our Class A common stock will not be entitled to vote on any election of directors we hold prior to our initial business combination.

Prior to our initial business combination, only holders of our founder shares will have the right to vote on the election of directors. Holders of our public shares will not be entitled to vote on the election of directors during such time. In addition, prior to the completion of an initial business combination, holders of a majority of our founder shares may remove a member of the board of directors for any reason. Accordingly, you may not have any say in the management of our company prior to the completion of an initial business combination.

 

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Registration of the shares of our Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants under the Securities Act or any state securities laws may not be in place when an investor desires to exercise warrants, thus precluding such investor from being able to exercise its warrants except on a cashless basis and potentially causing such warrants to expire worthless.

We have agreed, under the terms of the warrant agreement, that as soon as practicable, but in no event later than 20 business days after the closing of our initial business combination, we will use our commercially reasonable efforts to file with the SEC, and within 60 days following our initial business combination to have declared effective, a post-effective amendment to the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part or a new registration statement covering the shares of our Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants and maintain a current prospectus relating to the shares of our Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants until the expiration of the warrants in accordance with the provisions of the warrant agreement. Because the warrants are not exercisable until 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination, we do not currently intend to update the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part or file a new registration statement covering the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants until after the initial business combination has been consummated. We cannot assure you that we will be able to do so if, for example, any facts or events arise which represent a fundamental change in the information set forth in the registration statement or prospectus, the financial statements contained or incorporated by reference therein are not current or correct or the SEC issues a stop order.

If the shares of our Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants are not registered under the Securities Act, we will be required to permit holders to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis, in which case the number of shares of our Class A common stock that you will receive upon cashless exercise will be based on a formula subject to a maximum number of shares equal to 0.361 shares of our Class A common stock per warrant (subject to adjustment).

However, no such warrant will be exercisable for cash or on a cashless basis, and we will not be obligated to issue any shares to holders seeking to exercise their warrants, unless the issuance of the shares upon such exercise is registered or qualified under the securities laws of the state of the exercising holder, unless an exemption from state registration is available.

Notwithstanding the above, if the shares of our Class A common stock are at the time of any exercise of a warrant not listed on a national securities exchange such that it satisfies the definition of a “covered security” under Section 18(b)(1) of the Securities Act, we may, at our option, require holders of public warrants who exercise their warrants to do so on a “cashless basis” in accordance with Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act and, in the event we so elect, we will not be required to file or maintain in effect a registration statement, but we will be required to use our commercially reasonable efforts to register or qualify the shares under applicable blue sky laws to the extent an exemption is not available.

In no event will we be required to net cash settle any warrant, or issue securities or other compensation in exchange for the warrants in the event that we are unable to register or qualify the shares underlying the warrants under the Securities Act or applicable state securities laws and there is no exemption available. If the issuance of the shares upon exercise of the warrants is not so registered or qualified or exempt from registration or qualification, the holder of such warrant will not be entitled to exercise such warrant and such warrant may have no value and expire worthless. In such event, holders who acquired their warrants as part of a purchase of units will have paid the full unit purchase price solely for the shares of our Class A common stock included in the units. There may be a circumstance where an exemption from registration exists for holders of our private placement warrants to exercise their warrants while a corresponding exemption does not exist for holders of the warrants included as part of units sold in this offering. In such an instance, our sponsor and its transferees (which may include our directors and officers) would be able to sell the common stock underlying their warrants while holders of our public warrants would not be able to exercise their warrants and sell the underlying common stock. There may be a circumstance where an exemption from registration exists for holders of our private placement warrants to exercise their warrants while a corresponding exemption does not exist for holders of the warrants included as part of units sold in this offering. In such an instance, our sponsor and its transferees (which may include our directors and officers) would be able to sell the shares of common stock underlying their warrants while holders of our public warrants would not be able to

 

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exercise their warrants and sell the underlying shares of common stock. If and when the warrants become redeemable by us, we may exercise our redemption right even if we are unable to register or qualify the underlying securities for sale under all applicable state securities laws.

Our ability to require holders of our warrants to exercise such warrants on a cashless basis after we call the warrants for redemption or if there is no effective registration statement covering the sale of the shares of our Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of these warrants will cause holders to receive fewer shares of our Class A common stock upon their exercise of the warrants than they would have received had they been able to pay the exercise price of their warrants in cash.

If we call the warrants for redemption, we will have the option, in our sole discretion, to require all holders that wish to exercise warrants to do so on a cashless basis in the circumstances described in “Description of Securities—Warrants—Redemption of Warrants When the Price per Share of Our Class A Common Stock Equals or Exceeds $10.00.” If we choose to require holders to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis or if holders elect to do so when there is no effective registration statement, the number of shares of our Class A common stock received by a holder upon exercise will be fewer than it would have been had such holder exercised his or her warrant for cash. For example, if the holder is exercising 875 public warrants at $11.50 per share through a cashless exercise when the shares of our Class A common stock have a fair market value of $17.50 per share when there is no effective registration statement, then upon the cashless exercise, the holder will receive 300 shares of our Class A common stock. The holder would have received 875 shares of our Class A common stock if the exercise price was paid in cash. This will have the effect of reducing the potential “upside” of the holder’s investment in our company because the warrant holder will hold a smaller number of shares of our Class A common stock upon a cashless exercise of the warrants they hold.

The warrants may become exercisable and redeemable for a security other than the shares of our Class A common stock, and you will not have any information regarding such other security at this time.

In certain situations, including if we are not the surviving entity in our initial business combination, the warrants may become exercisable for a security other than the shares of our Class A common stock. As a result, if the surviving company redeems your warrants for securities pursuant to the warrant agreement, you may receive a security in a company of which you do not have information at this time. Pursuant to the warrant agreement, the surviving company will be required to use commercially reasonable efforts to register the issuance of the security underlying the warrants within twenty business days of the closing of an initial business combination.

The grant of registration rights to our initial stockholders and public anchor investors may make it more difficult to complete our initial business combination, and the future exercise of such rights may adversely affect the market price of the shares of our Class A common stock.

Pursuant to an agreement entered into in connection with the issuance and sale of the securities in this offering, our initial stockholders, the public anchor investors and their permitted transferees can demand that we register the shares of our Class A common stock into which founder shares are convertible, the private placement warrants and the shares of our Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the private placement warrants, and warrants that may be issued upon conversion of working capital loans and the shares of our Class A common stock issuable upon conversion of such warrants. The registration rights will be exercisable with respect to the founder shares and the private placement warrants and the shares of our Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of such private placement warrants. The registration and availability of such a significant number of securities for trading in the public market may have an adverse effect on the market price of our Class A common stock. In addition, the existence of the registration rights may make our initial business combination more costly or difficult to conclude. This is because the stockholders of the target business may increase the equity stake they seek in the combined entity or ask for more cash consideration to offset the negative impact on the market price of our Class A common stock that is expected when the securities owned by our initial stockholders or their permitted transferees are registered.

 

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We may issue additional shares of our Class A common stock or preferred stock to complete our initial business combination or under an employee incentive plan after completion of our initial business combination. We may also issue shares of our Class A common stock upon the conversion of the founder shares at a ratio greater than one-to-one at the time of our initial business combination as a result of the anti-dilution provisions contained in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation. Any such issuances would dilute the interest of our stockholders and likely present other risks.

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will authorize the issuance of up to 200,000,000 shares of our Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 per share, 20,000,000 shares of our Class B common stock, par value $0.0001 per share, and 1,000,000 shares of preferred stock, par value $0.0001 per share. Immediately after this offering, there will be 180,000,000 and 15,000,000 (assuming in each case that the underwriters have not exercised their over-allotment option) authorized but unissued shares of our Class A common stock and Class B common stock, respectively, available for issuance which amount does not take into account shares reserved for issuance upon exercise of outstanding warrants, or shares issuable upon conversion of the shares of the Class B common stock. The Class B common stock is automatically convertible into Class A common stock at the time of our initial business combination as described in this prospectus and in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation. Immediately after this offering, there will be no shares of preferred stock issued and outstanding.

We may issue a substantial number of additional shares of our Class A common stock or shares of preferred stock to complete our initial business combination or under an employee incentive plan after completion of our initial business combination. We may also issue Class A common stock to redeem the warrants as described in “Description of Securities—Warrants—Redemption of Warrants When the Price per Share of Our Class A Common Stock Equals or Exceeds $10.00” or upon conversion of the Class B common stock at a ratio greater than one-to-one at the time of our initial business combination as a result of the anti-dilution provisions contained in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation. However, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will provide, among other things, that prior to or in connection with our initial business combination, we may not issue additional shares that would entitle the holders thereof to (i) receive funds from the trust account or (ii) vote on any initial business combination or on any other proposal presented to stockholders prior to or in connection with the completion of an initial business combination. These provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, like all provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, may be amended with a stockholder vote. The issuance of additional shares of common stock or shares of preferred stock:

 

   

may significantly dilute the equity interest of investors in this offering;

 

   

may subordinate the rights of holders of our Class A common stock if share of preferred stock are issued with rights senior to those afforded our Class A common stock;

 

   

could cause a change in control if a substantial number of shares of our Class A common stock is issued, which may affect, among other things, our ability to use our net operating loss carry forwards, if any, and could result in the resignation or removal of our present officers and directors;

 

   

may adversely affect prevailing market prices for our units, Class A common stock and/or warrants; and

 

   

will not result in adjustment to the exercise price of our warrants.

Unlike some other similarly structured blank check companies, our initial stockholders will receive additional shares of our Class A common stock if we issue shares to complete an initial business combination.

The founder shares are shares of Class B common stock that will automatically convert into shares of our Class A common stock on the first business day following the completion of our initial business combination at a ratio such that the number of shares of our Class A common stock issuable upon conversion of all founder shares will equal, in the aggregate, on an as-converted basis, 20% of the sum of (i) the total number of shares of our Class A common stock issued and outstanding upon completion of this offering, plus (ii) the sum of (a) all shares of our Class A common stock issued or deemed issued or issuable upon conversion or exercise of any equity-linked securities or rights issued or deemed issued by the company in connection with or in relation to the completion of the initial business combination, excluding (1) any shares of our Class A common stock or equity-linked securities exercisable or exchangeable for or convertible into shares of our Class A common stock issued, or to be issued, to any seller in the initial business combination and (2) any private placement warrants issued to our sponsor or any of its affiliates upon conversion of working capital loans, minus (b) the number of public shares redeemed by public stockholders in connection with our initial business combination. In no event will the shares of our Class B common stock convert

 

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into shares of our Class A common stock at a rate of less than one-to-one. This is different than most other similarly structured blank check companies in which the initial stockholders will only be issued an aggregate of 20% of the total number of shares to be outstanding prior to the initial business combination.

We do not have a specified maximum redemption threshold. The absence of such a redemption threshold may make it possible for us to complete our initial business combination with which a substantial majority of our stockholders do not agree.

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will not provide a specified maximum redemption threshold, except 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 (such 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. As a result, we may be able to complete our initial business combination even though a substantial majority of our public stockholders do not agree with the transaction and have redeemed their shares or, if we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination and do not conduct redemptions in connection with our business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, have entered into privately negotiated agreements to sell their shares to our sponsor, officers, directors or any of their affiliates. In the event the aggregate cash consideration we would be required to pay for all shares of our Class A common stock 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, all shares of our Class A common stock submitted for redemption will be returned to the holders thereof, and we instead may search for an alternate business combination.

In order to effectuate an initial business combination, blank check companies have, in the recent past, amended various provisions of their charters and other governing instruments, including their warrant agreements. We cannot assure you that we will not seek to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation or governing instruments in a manner that will make it easier for us to complete our initial business combination that our stockholders may not support.

In order to effectuate a business combination, blank check companies have, in the recent past, amended various provisions of their charters and governing instruments, including their warrant agreements. For example, blank check companies have amended the definition of business combination, increased redemption thresholds, changed industry focus and, with respect to their warrants, amended their warrant agreements to require the warrants to be exchanged for cash and/or other securities. Amending our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will require the approval of holders of a majority of our common stock, and amending our warrant agreement will require a vote of holders of at least a majority of the then outstanding public warrants; provided that, solely in the case of an amendment to the terms of the private placement warrants or any provision of the warrant agreement with respect to the private placement warrants that does not adversely affect any of the terms of the public warrants, such amendment will require only the written consent or vote of the registered holders of at least a majority of the then outstanding private placement warrants. In addition, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will require us to provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their public shares for cash if we propose an amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation that would affect the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering or with respect to any other provisions relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity. To the extent any of such amendments would be deemed to fundamentally change the nature of any of the securities offered through this registration statement, we would register, or seek an exemption from registration for, the affected securities. We cannot assure you that we will not seek to amend our charter or governing instruments or extend the time to consummate an initial business combination in order to effectuate our initial business combination.

 

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The provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation that relate to our pre-business combination activity (and corresponding provisions of the agreement governing the release of funds from our trust account) may be amended with the approval of holders of at least a majority of our common stock, which is a lower amendment threshold than that of some other blank check companies. It may be easier for us, therefore, to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation to facilitate the completion of an initial business combination that some of our stockholders may not support.

Some other blank check companies have a provision in their charter which prohibits the amendment of certain of its provisions, including those which relate to a company’s pre-business combination activity, without approval by a certain percentage of the company’s stockholders. In those companies, amendment of these provisions typically requires approval by 90% of the company’s stockholders attending and voting at an annual meeting. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will provide that any of its provisions related to pre-business combination activity (including the requirement to deposit proceeds of this offering and the private placement of warrants into the trust account and not release such amounts except in specified circumstances, and to provide redemption rights to public stockholders as described in this prospectus) may be amended if approved by holders of a majority of our common stock entitled to vote thereon and corresponding provisions of the trust agreement governing the release of funds from our trust account may be amended if approved by holders of at least a majority of our common stock entitled to vote thereon. In all other instances, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation may be amended by holders of a majority of our outstanding shares of common stock entitled to vote thereon, subject to applicable provisions of the DGCL or applicable stock exchange rules. Our initial stockholders and their permitted transferees (including our public anchor investors), if any, who will collectively beneficially own, on an as converted basis, 20% of our common stock upon the closing of this offering (assuming they do not purchase any units in this offering), will participate in any vote to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and/or trust agreement and will have the discretion to vote in any manner they choose. As a result, we may be able to amend the provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation which govern our pre-business combination behavior more easily than some other blank check companies, and this may increase our ability to complete a business combination with which you do not agree. Our stockholders may pursue remedies against us for any breach of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation.

Our sponsor, officers and directors have agreed, pursuant to a written agreement with us, that they will not propose any amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation that would affect the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering, unless we provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their shares of Class A common stock 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 earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes, if any (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses) divided by the number of then outstanding public shares. These agreements are contained in letter agreements that we have entered into with our sponsor, officers and directors. Our stockholders are not parties to, or third-party beneficiaries of, these agreements and, as a result, will not have the ability to pursue remedies against our sponsor, officers or directors for any breach of these agreements. As a result, in the event of a breach, our stockholders would need to pursue a stockholder derivative action, subject to applicable law.

Certain agreements related to this offering may be amended without stockholder approval.

Certain agreements, including the underwriting agreement relating to this offering, the letter agreement among us, our sponsor, officers and directors, and the registration rights agreement among us and our initial stockholders, may be amended without stockholder approval. These agreements contain various provisions that our public stockholders might deem to be material. While we do not expect our board to approve any amendment to any of these agreements prior to our initial business combination, it may be possible that our board, in exercising its business judgment and subject to its fiduciary duties, chooses to approve one or more amendments to any such agreement in connection with the consummation of our initial business combination. Any such amendments would not require approval from our stockholders, may result in the completion of an initial business combination that may not otherwise have been possible, and may have an adverse effect on the value of an investment in our securities.

 

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We may be unable to obtain additional financing to complete our initial business combination or to fund the operations and growth of a target business, which could compel us to restructure or abandon a particular business combination. If we do not complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may only receive their pro rata portion of the funds in the trust account that are available for distribution to public stockholders, and our warrants will expire worthless.

Although we believe that the net proceeds of this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants will be sufficient to allow us to complete our initial business combination, because we have not yet identified any prospective target business we cannot ascertain the capital requirements for any particular transaction. If the net proceeds of this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants prove to be insufficient, either because of the size of our initial business combination, the depletion of the available net proceeds in search of a target business, the obligation to redeem for cash a significant number of shares from stockholders who elect redemption in connection with our initial business combination or the terms of negotiated transactions to purchase shares in connection with our initial business combination, we may be required to seek additional financing or to abandon the proposed business combination. We cannot assure you that such financing will be available on acceptable terms, if at all. The current economic environment may make it difficult for companies to obtain acquisition financing. To the extent that additional financing proves to be unavailable when needed to complete our initial business combination, we would be compelled to either restructure the transaction or abandon that particular business combination and seek an alternative target business candidate. If we do not complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may only receive their pro rata portion of the funds in the trust account that are available for distribution to public stockholders and not previously released to us to pay our taxes on the liquidation of our trust account, and our warrants will expire worthless. In addition, even if we do not need additional financing to complete our initial business combination, we may require such financing to fund the operations or growth of the target business. The failure to secure additional financing could have a material adverse effect on the continued development or growth of the target business. None of our officers, directors or stockholders is required to provide any financing to us in connection with or after our initial business combination. If we do not complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may only receive approximately $10.00 per share on the liquidation of our trust account, and our warrants will expire worthless.

Holders of our founder shares control a substantial interest in us and thus may exert a substantial influence on actions requiring a stockholder vote, potentially in a manner that you do not support.

Upon closing of this offering, holders of our founder shares will own, on an as-converted basis, 20% of the issued and outstanding shares of common stock (assuming they do not purchase any units in this offering). Accordingly, they may exert a substantial influence on actions requiring a stockholder vote, potentially in a manner that you do not support, including amendments to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation. If our initial stockholders purchases any units in this offering or if our initial stockholders or anchor investors purchase any additional shares of our Class A common stock in the aftermarket or in privately negotiated transactions, this would increase their control. Neither our initial stockholders nor, to our knowledge, any of our officers or directors, have any current intention to purchase additional securities, other than as disclosed in this prospectus. Factors that would be considered in making such additional purchases would include consideration of the current trading price of our Class A common stock. In addition, our board of directors, whose members were elected by our sponsor, is and will be divided into three classes, each of which will generally serve for a terms for three years with only one class of directors being elected in each year. We may not hold an annual meeting of stockholders to elect new directors prior to the completion of our initial business combination, in which case all of the current directors will continue in office until at least the completion of the business combination. If there is an annual meeting, as a consequence of our “staggered” board of directors, only a minority of the board of directors will be considered for election and our initial stockholders, because of their ownership position, will have considerable influence regarding the outcome. In addition, prior to the completion of an initial business combination, holders of a majority of our founder shares may remove a member of the board of directors for any reason. Accordingly, our initial stockholders will continue to exert control at least until the completion of our initial business combination.

Concentration of ownership among our sponsor and the anchor investors may prevent other investors from influencing significant corporate decisions or adversely affect the trading price of our public shares.

There can be no assurance that any of the anchor investors will acquire any units in this offering, or as to the number of units the anchor investors will actually purchase in this offering, if any, or will retain, if any, prior to or

 

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upon the consummation of our initial business combination. If the anchor investors purchase the full amounts of units described in this prospectus,” the anchor investors, in the aggregate, will own 84.6% of the outstanding shares of our common stock) upon the completion of this offering, and the anchor investors together with our sponsor will own collectively 98.8% of the outstanding shares of common stock (or 88.5% if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) upon the completion of this offering. As a result, the anchor investors as a group could have substantial control over us and be able to exercise significant influence over all matters requiring stockholder approval. For example, in the event that the anchor investors purchase the full amount of units described in their respective expressions of interest and vote such public shares in favor of our initial business combination (although they are not contractually obligated to, the public anchor investors’ interest in our founder shares may provide an incentive for them to do so), we would not need any additional public shares sold in this offering to be voted in favor of our initial business combination to have our initial business combination approved. This potential concentration of influence could be disadvantageous to other stockholders with interests different from those of our sponsor or the anchor investors. In addition, this potential significant concentration of share ownership may adversely affect the trading price of our public shares because investors often perceive disadvantages in owning shares in companies with principal stockholders.

The anchor investors are not restricted from selling any units (including the underlying securities) that they purchase in this offering, and any such sales may adversely affect the trading price of our securities.

The anchor investors have expressed to us an interest to purchase up to an aggregate of 19,800,000 of the units in this offering and we expect the underwriters to sell to the anchor investors such amount of units, subject to our satisfying the Nasdaq initial listing requirement that we have a minimum of 400 round lot holders of our units. The anchor investors will not be subject to any agreements restricting them from transferring the units (including the underlying securities) that they purchase in this offering. As such, if the anchor investors purchase the units they have expressed an interest in purchasing in this offering, they will be free to sell the units and, once separately tradable, the shares and warrants in the quantities and at the times they so desire. Any such sales may adversely affect the trading price of our securities.

Our initial stockholders paid $25,000, or approximately $0.004 per founder share, and, accordingly, you will experience immediate and substantial dilution from the purchase of the shares of our Class A common stock.

The difference between the public offering price per share (allocating all of the unit purchase price to the share of our Class A common stock and none to the one-half of a warrant included in the unit) and the pro forma net tangible book value per share of our Class A common stock after this offering constitutes the dilution to you and the other investors in this offering. Our initial stockholders acquired the founder shares at a nominal price, significantly contributing to this dilution. Upon closing of this offering, and assuming no value is ascribed to the warrants included in the units, you and the other public stockholders will incur an immediate and substantial dilution of approximately 148.4% (or $14.84 per share, assuming no exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option), the difference between the pro forma net tangible book value per share of ($4.84) and the initial offering price of $10.00 per unit. This dilution would increase to the extent that the anti-dilution provisions of the founder shares result in the issuance of shares of our Class A common stock on a greater than one-to-one basis upon conversion of the founder shares at the time of our initial business combination and would become exacerbated to the extent that public stockholders seek redemptions from the trust for their public shares. In addition, because of the anti-dilution protection in the founder shares, any equity or equity-linked securities issued in connection with our initial business combination would be disproportionately dilutive to our Class A common stock.

We may amend the terms of the warrants in a manner that may be adverse to holders of public warrants with the approval by the holders of at least a majority of the then outstanding public warrants. In addition, we may amend the terms of our warrant agreement to allow for our warrants to be classified as equity in our financial statements with the approval by the holders of at least a majority of the public warrants and the private placement warrants, voting together as a single class. As a result, the exercise price of your warrants could be increased, the exercise period could be shortened and the number of shares of our Class A common stock purchasable upon exercise of a warrant could be decreased, all without your approval.

Our warrants will be issued in registered form under a warrant agreement between Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, as warrant agent, and us. The warrant agreement will provide that the terms of the warrants may be amended without the consent of any holder to cure any ambiguity or correct any defective provision. Amending our warrant agreement to allow for our warrants to be classified as equity in our financial statements will require a vote

 

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of holders of at least a majority of the public warrants and the private placement warrants, voting together as a single class. Otherwise, amending our warrant agreement requires the approval by the holders of at least a majority of the then outstanding public warrants to make any change that adversely affects the interests of the registered holders of public warrants; provided that, solely in the case of an amendment to the terms of the private placement warrants or any provision of the warrant agreement with respect to the private placement warrants that does not adversely affect any of the terms of the public warrants, such amendment will require only the written consent or vote of the registered holders of at least a majority of the then outstanding private placement warrants. Accordingly, we may amend the terms of the public warrants in a manner adverse to a holder if holders of at least a majority of the then outstanding public warrants approve of such amendment. Although our ability to amend the terms of the public warrants with the consent of at least a majority of the then outstanding public warrants is unlimited, examples of such amendments could be amendments to, among other things, increase the exercise price of the warrants, convert the warrants into cash, shorten the exercise period or decrease the number of shares of our Class A common stock purchasable upon exercise of a warrant.

Our warrants are expected to be accounted for as derivative liabilities and will be recorded at fair value upon issuance with changes in fair value each period reported in earnings, which may have an adverse effect on the market price of our Class A common stock or may make it more difficult for us to consummate an initial business combination.

We will be issuing 10,000,000 warrants (or up to 11,500,000 warrants if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) as part of the units offered by this prospectus and, simultaneously with the closing of this offering, we will be issuing 7,600,000 private placement warrants (or up to 8,200,000 private placement warrants if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full). We expect to account for both the warrants underlying the units offered by this prospectus and the private placement warrants as a warrant liability. At each reporting period (1) the accounting treatment of the warrants will be re-evaluated for proper accounting treatment as a liability or equity and (2) the fair value of the liability of the public warrants and the private placement warrants will be remeasured and the change in the fair value of the liability will be recognized in our statement of operations. If the classification changes as a result of events during the period, the warrants will be reclassified as of the date of the event that causes the reclassification. The impact of changes in fair value on earnings may have an adverse effect on the market price of our Class A common stock. In addition, potential targets may seek a special purpose acquisition company, or SPAC, that does not have warrants that are accounted for as a liability, which may make it more difficult for us to consummate an initial business combination with a target business.

Our warrant agreement will designate the courts of the State of New York or the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York as the sole and exclusive forum for certain types of actions and proceedings that may be initiated by holders of our warrants, which could limit the ability of warrant holders to obtain a favorable judicial forum for disputes with our company.

Our warrant agreement will provide that, subject to applicable law, (i) any action, proceeding or claim against us arising out of or relating in any way to the warrant agreement, including under the Securities Act, will be brought and enforced in the courts of the State of New York or the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, and (ii) that we irrevocably submit to such jurisdiction, which jurisdiction shall be the exclusive forum for any such action, proceeding or claim. We will waive any objection to such exclusive jurisdiction and that such courts represent an inconvenient forum.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, these provisions of the warrant agreement will not apply to suits brought to enforce any liability or duty created by the Exchange Act or any other claim for which the federal courts of the United States of America have exclusive jurisdiction. Any person or entity purchasing or otherwise acquiring any interest in any of our warrants shall be deemed to have notice of and to have consented to the forum provisions in our warrant agreement. If any action, the subject matter of which is within the scope of the forum provisions of the warrant agreement, is filed in a court other than a court of the State of New York or the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (a “foreign action”) in the name of any holder of our warrants, such holder shall be deemed to have consented to: (x) the personal jurisdiction of the state and federal courts located in the State of New York in connection with any action brought in any such court to enforce the forum provisions (an “enforcement action”), and (y) having service of process made upon such warrant holder in any such enforcement action by service upon such warrant holder’s counsel in the foreign action as agent for such warrant holder.

 

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This choice-of-forum provision may limit a warrant holder’s ability to bring a claim in a judicial forum that it finds favorable for disputes with us, which may discourage such lawsuits. Alternatively, if a court were to find this provision of our warrant agreement inapplicable or unenforceable with respect to one or more of the specified types of actions or proceedings, we may incur additional costs associated with resolving such matters in other jurisdictions, which could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, liquidity and results of operations and result in a diversion of the time and resources of our management and board of directors.

We may redeem your unexpired warrants prior to their exercise at a time that is disadvantageous to you, thereby making your warrants effectively worthless.

We have the ability to redeem the outstanding warrants at any time after they become exercisable and prior to their expiration, at a price of $0.01 per warrant, if, among other things, the Reference Value equals or exceeds $18.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock capitalizations, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like). Please see “Description of Securities—Warrants—Redemption of Warrants When the Price per Share of Our Class A Common Stock Equals or Exceeds $18.00.” If and when the warrants become redeemable by us, we may exercise our redemption right even if we are unable to register or qualify the underlying securities for sale under all applicable state securities laws. Redemption of the outstanding warrants as described above could force you to (i) exercise your warrants and pay the exercise price therefor at a time when it may be disadvantageous for you to do so, (ii) sell your warrants at the then-current market price when you might otherwise wish to hold your warrants or (iii) accept the nominal redemption price which, at the time the outstanding warrants are called for redemption, we expect would be substantially less than the Market Value of your warrants.

In addition, we have the ability to redeem the outstanding warrants at any time after they become exercisable and prior to their expiration, at a price of $0.10 per warrant if, among other things, the Reference Value equals or exceeds $10.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, rights issuances, subdivisions, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like). In such a case, the holders will be able to exercise their warrants prior to redemption for a number of shares of our Class A common stock determined based on the redemption date and the fair market value of our Class A common stock. Please see “Description of Securities—Warrants—Redemption of Warrants When the Price per Share of Our Class A Common Stock Equals or Exceeds $10.00.” The value received upon exercise of the warrants (1) may be less than the value the holders would have received if they had exercised their warrants at a later time where the underlying share price is higher and (2) may not compensate the holders for the value of the warrants, including because the number of common stock received is capped at 0.361 shares of our Class A common stock per warrant (subject to adjustment) irrespective of the remaining life of the warrants.

None of the private placement warrants will be redeemable by us so long as they are held by our sponsor or its permitted transferees (except as set forth under “Description of Securities — Warrants — Redemption of Warrants When the Price per Share of Our Class A Common Stock Equals or Exceeds $10.00”).

Our warrants and founder shares may have an adverse effect on the market price of the shares of our Class A common stock and make it more difficult to effectuate our initial business combination.

We will be issuing warrants to purchase 10,000,000 of our Class A common stock (or up to 11,500,000 shares of our Class A common stock if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) as part of the units offered by this prospectus and, simultaneously with the closing of this offering, we will be issuing in a private placement 7,600,000 private placement warrants (or up to 8,200,000 private placement warrants if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full), each whole warrant exercisable to purchase one share of our Class A common stock at a price of $11.50 per share. Our initial stockholders currently own 5,750,000 founder shares. The founder shares are convertible into Class A common stock on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment as set forth in this prospectus. In addition, if our sponsor or any of its affiliates makes any working capital loans, up to $1,500,000 of such loans may be converted into warrants, at the price of $1.00 per warrant at the option of the lender. Such warrants would be identical to the private placement warrants, including as to exercise price, exercisability and exercise period. Our public warrants are also redeemable by us for shares of our Class A common stock as described in “Description of Securities—Warrants—Redemption of Warrants When the Price per Share of Our Class A Common Stock Equals or Exceeds $10.00.”

To the extent we issue Class A common stock for any reason, including to effectuate a business combination, the potential for the issuance of a substantial number of additional shares of our Class A common stock upon exercise of

 

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these warrants and conversion rights could make us a less attractive acquisition vehicle to a target business. Such warrants when exercised will increase the number of issued and outstanding shares of our Class A common stock and reduce the value of the shares of our Class A common stock issued to complete the business transaction. Therefore, our warrants and founder shares may make it more difficult to effectuate a business transaction or increase the cost of acquiring the target business.

The private placement warrants are identical to the warrants sold as part of the units in this offering except that, so long as they are held by our sponsor, Jefferies or their permitted transferees, (i) they will not be redeemable by us (except as set forth under “Description of Securities — Warrants — Redemption of Warrants When the Price per Share of Our Class A Common Stock Equals or Exceeds $10.00”), (ii) they (including the shares of our Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of these warrants) may not, subject to certain limited exceptions, be transferred, assigned or sold by our sponsor or Jefferies until 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination, (iii) they may be exercised by the holders on a cashless basis, (iv) are subject to registration rights and (vi) with respect to private placement warrants held by Jefferies, will not be exercisable more than five years from the commencement of sales in this offering in accordance with FINRA Rule 5110(g)(8).

Because each unit contains one-half of one warrant and only a whole warrant may be exercised, the units may be worth less than units of other blank check companies.

Each unit contains one-half of one warrant. Pursuant to the warrant agreement, no fractional warrants will be issued upon separation of the units, and only whole units will trade. If, upon separation of the units, a holder of warrants would be entitled to receive a fractional warrant, we will round down to the nearest whole number the number of warrants to be issued to such holder. If, upon exercise of the warrants, a holder would be entitled to receive a fractional interest in a share, we will, upon exercise, round down to the nearest whole number the number of shares of our Class A common stock to be issued to the warrant holder. This is different from other offerings similar to ours whose units include one common share and one warrant to purchase one whole share. We have established the components of the units in this way in order to reduce the dilutive effect of the warrants upon completion of a business combination since the warrants will be exercisable in the aggregate for one half of the number of shares compared to units that each contain a whole warrant to purchase one share, thus making us, we believe, a more attractive merger partner for target businesses. Nevertheless, this unit structure may cause our units to be worth less than if it included a warrant to purchase one whole share.

The determination of the offering price of our units and the size of this offering is more arbitrary than the pricing of securities and size of an offering of an operating company in a particular industry. You may have less assurance, therefore, that the offering price of our units properly reflects the value of such units than you would have in a typical offering of an operating company.

Prior to this offering there has been no public market for any of our securities. The public offering price of the units and the terms of the warrants were negotiated between us and the underwriters. In determining the size of this offering, management held customary organizational meetings with the underwriters, both prior to our inception and thereafter, with respect to the state of capital markets, generally, and the amount the underwriters believed it reasonably could raise on our behalf. Factors considered in determining the size of this offering, prices and terms of the units, including the shares of our Class A common stock and warrants underlying the units, include:

 

   

the history and prospects of companies whose principal business is the acquisition of other companies;

 

   

prior offerings of those companies;

 

   

our prospects for acquiring an operating business at attractive values;

 

   

a review of debt to equity ratios in leveraged transactions;

 

   

our capital structure;

 

   

an assessment of our management and their experience in identifying operating companies;

 

   

general conditions of the securities markets at the time of this offering; and

 

   

other factors as were deemed relevant.

Although these factors were considered, the determination of our offering price is more arbitrary than the pricing of securities of an operating company in a particular industry since we have no historical operations or financial results.

 

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There is currently no market for our securities and a market for our securities may not develop, which would adversely affect the liquidity and price of our securities.

There is currently no market for our securities. Stockholders therefore have no access to information about prior market history on which to base their investment decision. Following this offering, the price of our securities may vary significantly due to one or more potential business combinations and general market or economic conditions. Furthermore, an active trading market for our securities may never develop or, if developed, it may not be sustained. You may be unable to sell your securities unless a market can be established and sustained.

Provisions in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and Delaware law may inhibit a takeover of us, which could limit the price investors might be willing to pay in the future for shares of our Class A common stock and could entrench management.

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will contain provisions that may discourage unsolicited takeover proposals that stockholders may consider to be in their best interests. These provisions will include a staggered board of directors and the ability of the board of directors to designate the terms of and issue new series of preferred stock, and the fact that prior to the completion of our initial business combination only holders of shares of our Class B common stock, which have been issued to our sponsor, are entitled to vote on the election of directors, which may make more difficult the removal of management and may discourage transactions that otherwise could involve payment of a premium over prevailing market prices for our securities.

We are also subject to anti-takeover provisions under Delaware law, which could delay or prevent a change of control. Together these provisions may make the removal of management more difficult and may discourage transactions that otherwise could involve payment of a premium over prevailing market prices for our securities.

Provisions in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and Delaware law may have the effect of discouraging lawsuits against our directors and officers.

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will require, unless we consent in writing to the selection of an alternative forum, that (i) any derivative action or proceeding brought on our behalf, (ii) any action asserting a claim of breach of a fiduciary duty owed by any director, officer or other employee to us or our stockholders, (iii) any action asserting a claim against us, our directors, officers or employees arising pursuant to any provision of the DGCL or our amended and restated certificate of incorporation or bylaws, or (iv) any action asserting a claim against us, our directors, officers or employees governed by the internal affairs doctrine may be brought only in the Court of Chancery in the State of Delaware, except any claim (A) as to which the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware determines that there is an indispensable party not subject to the jurisdiction of the Court of Chancery (and the indispensable party does not consent to the personal jurisdiction of the Court of Chancery within ten days following such determination), (B) which is vested in the exclusive jurisdiction of a court or forum other than the Court of Chancery, or (C) for which the Court of Chancery does not have subject matter jurisdiction. If an action is brought outside of Delaware, the stockholder bringing the suit will be deemed to have consented to service of process on such stockholder’s counsel. Although we believe this provision benefits us by providing increased consistency in the application of Delaware law in the types of lawsuits to which it applies, a court may determine that this provision is unenforceable, and to the extent it is enforceable, the provision may have the effect of discouraging lawsuits against our directors and officers, although our stockholders will not be deemed to have waived our compliance with federal securities laws and the rules and regulations thereunder.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will provide that the exclusive forum provision will not apply to suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Exchange Act, Securities Act or any other claim for which the federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction. Section 27 of the Exchange Act creates exclusive federal jurisdiction over all suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Exchange Act or the rules and regulations thereunder and Section 22 of the Securities Act creates concurrent jurisdiction for federal and state courts over all suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Securities Act or the rules and the regulations thereunder. Although we believe this provision benefits us by providing increased consistency in the application of Delaware law in the types of lawsuits to which it applies, the provision may have the effect of discouraging lawsuits against our directors and officers.

 

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Since only holders of our founder shares will have the right to vote on the election of directors, upon the listing of our shares on Nasdaq, Nasdaq may consider us to be a ‘controlled company’ within the meaning of Nasdaq rules and, as a result, we may qualify for exemptions from certain corporate governance requirements.

After completion of this offering, only holders of our founder shares will have the right to vote on the election of directors. As a result, Nasdaq may consider us to be a ‘controlled company’ within the meaning of Nasdaq corporate governance standards. Under Nasdaq corporate governance standards, a company of which more than 50% of the voting power is held by an individual, group or another company is a ‘controlled company’ and may elect not to comply with certain corporate governance requirements, including the requirements that:

 

   

we have a board that includes a majority of ‘independent directors,’ as defined under the rules of Nasdaq;

 

   

we have a compensation committee of our board that is comprised entirely of independent directors with a written charter addressing the committee’s purpose and responsibilities; and

 

   

we have independent director oversight of our director nominations.

We do not intend to utilize these exemptions and intend to comply with the corporate governance requirements of Nasdaq, subject to applicable phase-in rules. However, if we determine in the future to utilize some or all of these exemptions, you will not have the same protections afforded to stockholders of companies that are subject to all of Nasdaq corporate governance requirements.

An investment in this offering may involve uncertain or adverse U.S. federal income tax consequences.

An investment in this offering may involve uncertain or adverse U.S. federal income tax consequences. For instance:

 

   

because there are no authorities that directly address instruments similar to the units we are issuing in this offering, the allocation an investor makes with respect to the purchase price of the unit between the share of common stock and one-half of one warrant included in the unit could be challenged by the Internal Revenue Service of the United States (“IRS”) or the courts.

 

   

if we make distributions on our common stock, such distributions generally will be treated as dividends for U.S. federal income tax purposes to the extent of our current or accumulated earnings and profits. The ability of a holder to seek redemption of their shares may be viewed as a position with respect to substantially similar or related property which diminishes your risk of loss and thereby affects your ability to satisfy the holding period requirements for the dividends received deduction or the preferential tax rate on qualified dividend income with respect to the time period prior to the approval of an initial business combination.

 

   

our warrants may be exercised on a cashless basis in certain situations as described in this prospectus. Although there is no direct legal authority as to the U.S. federal income tax treatment of an exercise of a warrant on a cashless basis, we intend to take the position that such exercise will not be taxable, either because the exercise is not a gain realization event or because it qualifies as a tax-free recapitalization. In the former case, it is unclear whether a holder’s holding period for the shares of our Class A common stock will commence on the date of exercise of the warrant or the day following the date of exercise of the warrant. In the latter case, the holding period of the common stock would include the holding period of the exercised warrants. However, our position is not binding on the IRS and the IRS may treat a cashless exercise of a warrant as a taxable exchange.

 

   

any capital gain or loss you realize on a sale or other disposition of our common stock will generally be long-term capital gain or loss if your holding period for the common stock is more than one year. However, the redemption feature of the common stock could affect your ability to satisfy the holding period requirements for the long-term capital gain tax rate with respect to the time period prior to the approval of an initial business combination.

See the section titled “Material U.S. Federal Income Tax Considerations” for a summary of the material United States Federal income tax considerations of an investment in our securities. Each prospective investor is urged to consult a tax advisor with respect to the specific tax consequences of the acquisition, ownership and disposition of our securities, including the applicability and effect of state, local, or foreign tax laws, as well as U.S. federal tax laws.

 

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General Risks

We would be subject to a second level of U.S. federal income tax on a portion of our income if we are determined to be a personal holding company (a “PHC”), for U.S. federal income tax purposes.

A U.S. corporation generally will be classified as a PHC for U.S. federal income tax purposes in a given taxable year if (i) at any time during the last half of such taxable year, five or fewer individuals (without regard to their citizenship or residency and including as individuals for this purpose certain entities such as certain tax-exempt organizations, pension funds and charitable trusts) own or are deemed to own (pursuant to certain constructive ownership rules) more than 50% of the stock of the corporation by value and (ii) at least 60% of the corporation’s adjusted ordinary gross income, as determined for U.S. federal income tax purposes, for such taxable year consists of PHC income (which includes, among other things, dividends, interest, certain royalties, annuities and, under certain circumstances, rents).

Depending on the date and size of our initial business combination, it is possible that at least 60% of our adjusted ordinary gross income may consist of PHC income as discussed above. In addition, depending on the concentration of our stock in the hands of individuals, including the members of our sponsor and certain tax-exempt organizations, pension funds and charitable trusts, it is possible that more than 50% of our stock may be owned or deemed owned (pursuant to the constructive ownership rules) by five or fewer individuals during the last half of a taxable year. Thus, no assurance can be given that we will not become a PHC following this offering or in the future. If we are or were to become a PHC in a given taxable year, we would be subject to an additional PHC tax, currently 20%, on our undistributed PHC income, which generally includes our taxable income, subject to certain adjustments.

Cyber incidents or attacks directed at us could result in information theft, data corruption, operational disruption and/or financial loss.

We depend on digital technologies, including information systems, infrastructure and cloud applications and services, including those of third parties with which we may deal. Sophisticated and deliberate attacks on, or security breaches in, our systems or infrastructure, or the systems or infrastructure of third parties or the cloud, could lead to corruption or misappropriation of our assets, proprietary information and sensitive or confidential data. As an early stage company without significant investments in data security protection, we may not be sufficiently protected against such occurrences. We may not have sufficient resources to adequately protect against, or to investigate and remediate any vulnerability to, cyber incidents. It is possible that any of these occurrences, or a combination of them, could have adverse consequences on our business and lead to financial loss.

We are a recently incorporated company with no operating history and no revenues, and you have no basis on which to evaluate our ability to achieve our business objective.

We are a recently incorporated company incorporated under the laws of the State of Delaware with no operating results, and we will not commence operations until obtaining funding through this offering. Because we lack an operating history, you have no basis upon which to evaluate our ability to achieve our business objective of completing our initial business combination with one or more target businesses. We have no plans, arrangements or understandings with any prospective target business concerning a business combination and may be unable to complete our initial business combination. If we do not complete our initial business combination, we will never generate any operating revenues.

Changes in laws or regulations, or a failure to comply with any laws and regulations, may adversely affect our business, including our ability to negotiate and complete our initial business combination and results of operations.

We are subject to laws and regulations enacted by national, regional and local governments. In particular, we will be required to comply with certain SEC and other legal requirements. Compliance with, and monitoring of, applicable laws and regulations may be difficult, time consuming and costly. Those laws and regulations and their interpretation and application may also change from time to time and those changes could have a material adverse effect on our business, investments and results of operations. In addition, a failure to comply with applicable laws or regulations, as interpreted and applied, could have a material adverse effect on our business, including our ability to negotiate and complete our initial business combination, and results of operations.

Compliance obligations under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act may make it more difficult for us to effectuate a business combination, require substantial financial and management resources, and increase the time and costs of completing an acquisition.

Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires that we evaluate and report on our system of internal controls beginning with our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ending December 31, 2022. Only in the event we are

 

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deemed to be a large accelerated filer or an accelerated filer, and no longer qualify as an emerging growth company, will we be required to comply with the independent registered public accounting firm attestation requirement on our internal control over financial reporting. Further, for as long as we remain an emerging growth company, we will not be required to comply with the independent registered public accounting firm attestation requirement on our internal control over financial reporting. The fact that we are a blank check company makes compliance with the requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act particularly burdensome on us as compared to other public companies because a target business with which we seek to complete our initial business combination may not be in compliance with the provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act regarding adequacy of its internal controls. The development of the internal control 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 are an emerging growth company and a smaller reporting company within the meaning of the Securities Act, and if we take advantage of certain exemptions from disclosure requirements available to emerging growth companies, this could make our securities less attractive to investors and may make it more difficult to compare our performance with other public companies.

We are an “emerging growth company” within the meaning of the Securities Act, as modified by the JOBS Act, and we may take advantage of certain exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other public companies that are not emerging growth companies including, but not limited to, not being required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports and proxy statements, and exemptions from the requirements of holding a nonbinding advisory vote on executive compensation and stockholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved. As a result, our stockholders may not have access to certain information they may deem important. We could be an emerging growth company for up to five years, although circumstances could cause us to lose that status earlier, including if the Market Value of our Class A common stock held by non-affiliates equals or exceeds $700.0 million as of any June 30th before that time, in which case we would no longer be an emerging growth company as of the following December 31. We cannot predict whether investors will find our securities less attractive because we intend to rely on these exemptions. If some investors find our securities less attractive as a result of our reliance on these exemptions, the trading prices of our securities may be lower than they otherwise would be, there may be a less active trading market for our securities and the trading prices of our securities may be more volatile.

Further, Section 102(b)(1) of the JOBS Act exempts emerging growth companies from being required to comply with new or revised financial accounting standards until private companies (that is, those that have not had a Securities Act registration statement declared effective or do not have a class of securities registered under the Exchange Act) are required to comply with the new or revised financial accounting standards. The JOBS Act provides that a company can elect to opt out of the extended transition period and comply with the requirements that apply to non-emerging growth companies but any such an election to opt out is irrevocable. We have elected not to opt out of such extended transition period which means that when a standard is issued or revised and it has different application dates for public or private companies, we, as an emerging growth company, can adopt the new or revised standard at the time private companies adopt the new or revised standard. This may make comparison of our financial statements with another public company which is neither an emerging growth company nor an emerging growth company which has opted out of using the extended transition period difficult or impossible because of the potential differences in accountant standards used.

Additionally, we are a “smaller reporting company” as defined in Item 10(f)(1) of Regulation S-K. Smaller reporting companies may take advantage of certain reduced disclosure obligations, including, among other things, providing only two years of audited financial statements. We will remain a smaller reporting company until the last day of the fiscal year in which (1) the market value of our shares of common stock held by non-affiliates equaled or exceeded $250 million as of the prior June 30, and (2) our annual revenues equaled or exceeded $100 million during such completed fiscal year or the market value of our shares of common stock held by non-affiliates equaled or exceeded $700 million as of the prior June 30. To the extent we take advantage of such reduced disclosure obligations, it may also make comparison of our financial statements with other public companies difficult or impossible.

 

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CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

Some of the statements contained in this prospectus may constitute “forward-looking statements” for purposes of the federal securities laws. Our forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding our or our sponsor team’s expectations, hopes, beliefs, intentions or strategies regarding the future. In addition, any statements that refer to projections, forecasts or other characterizations of future events or circumstances, including any underlying assumptions, are forward-looking statements. The words “anticipate,” “believe,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intends,” “may,” “might,” “plan,” “possible,” “potential,” “predict,” “project,” “should,” “would” and similar expressions may identify forward-looking statements, but the absence of these words does not mean that a statement is not forward-looking. Forward-looking statements in this prospectus may include, for example, statements about:

 

   

our ability to complete our initial business combination;

 

   

our success in retaining or recruiting, or changes required in, our officers, key employees or directors following our initial business combination;

 

   

our officers and directors allocating their time to other businesses and potentially having conflicts of interest with our business or in approving our initial business combination;

 

   

our potential ability to obtain additional financing to complete our initial business combination;

 

   

our pool of prospective target businesses;

 

   

our ability to consummate an initial business combination due to the uncertainty resulting from the recent COVID-19 pandemic and other events (such as terrorist attacks, natural disasters or a significant outbreak of other infectious diseases);

 

   

the ability of our officers and directors to generate a number of potential investment opportunities;

 

   

our public securities’ potential liquidity and trading;

 

   

the lack of a market for our securities;

 

   

the use of proceeds not held in the trust account or available to us from interest income on the trust account balance;

 

   

the trust account not being subject to claims of third parties; or

 

   

our financial performance following this offering.

The forward-looking statements contained in this prospectus are based on our current expectations and beliefs concerning future developments and their potential effects on us. There can be no assurance that future developments affecting us will be those that we have anticipated. These forward-looking statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties (some of which are beyond our control) or other assumptions that may cause actual results or performance to be materially different from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, those factors described under the section of this prospectus entitled “Risk Factors.” Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should any of our assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary in material respects from those projected in these forward-looking statements. We undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required under applicable securities laws.

 

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USE OF PROCEEDS

We are offering 20,000,000 units at an offering price of $10.00 per unit. We estimate that the net proceeds of this offering together with the funds we will receive from the sale of the private placement warrants will be used as set forth in the following table:

 

 

 

     WITHOUT
OVER-
ALLOTMENT
OPTION
    OVER-
ALLOTMENT
OPTION FULLY
EXERCISED
 

Gross Proceeds

    

Gross proceeds from units offered to public (1)

   $ 200,000,000     $ 230,000,000  

Gross proceeds from private placement warrants offered in the private placements

   $ 7,600,000     $ 8,200,000  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Total gross proceeds

   $ 207,600,000     $ 238,200,000  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Offering Expenses (2)

    

Underwriting commissions (2% of gross proceeds from units offered to public, excluding deferred portion) (3)

   $ 4,000,000     $ 4,600,000  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Legal fees and expenses

   $ 300,000     $ 300,000  

Printing and engraving expenses

     25,000       25,000  

Accounting fees and expenses

     110,000       110,000  

SEC/FINRA filing fees

     95,000       95,000  

Travel and road show

     15,000       15,000  

Nasdaq listing and filing fees

     75,000       75,000  

Stock Transfer Agent

     50,000       50,000  

Other

     30,000       30,000  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Total offering expenses (excluding underwriting commissions)

   $ 700,000     $ 700,000  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Proceeds after offering expenses

   $ 202,900,000     $ 232,900,000  

Held in trust account (3)

   $ 200,000,000     $ 230,000,000  

% of public offering size

     100     100

Not held in trust account after offering expenses

   $ 2,900,000     $ 2,900,000  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

 

 

The following table shows the use of the approximately $2,900,000 of net proceeds not held in the trust account.(4)(5)

 

 

 

     AMOUNT      % OF TOTAL  

Director & Officer liability insurance premiums

   $ 800,000        27.6

Legal and accounting fees related to regulatory reporting obligations

   $ 250,000        8.6

Administrative services

   $ 360,000        12.4

Legal, accounting and consulting costs related to the business combination

   $ 850,000        29.3

Working capital and support costs

   $ 270,000        9.3

Nasdaq and other regulatory fees

   $ 90,000        3.1

Liquidation reserve

   $ 100,000        3.5

Other, including franchise taxes

   $ 180,000        6.2
  

 

 

    

 

 

 

Total

   $ 2,900,000        100.0
  

 

 

    

 

 

 

 

 

(1)    Includes amounts payable to public stockholders who properly redeem their shares in connection with our successful completion of our initial business combination.

 

(2)   

A portion of the offering expenses will be paid from the proceeds of a loan from our sponsor. These funds will be reimbursed up to $300,000 as described in this prospectus. As of June 30, 2021, we had borrowed $160,361 under the promissory note with our sponsor.

 

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  The loan will be repaid upon completion of this offering out of the approximately $3,600,000 of offering proceeds that has been allocated for the payment of offering expenses (other than underwriting commissions) and amounts not to be held in the trust account. In the event that offering expenses are less than set forth in this table, any such amounts will be used for post-closing working capital expenses. In the event that the offering expenses are more than as set forth in this table, we may fund such excess with funds not held in the trust account.

 

(3)    The underwriters have agreed to defer underwriting commissions of 3.5% of the gross proceeds of this offering. Upon and concurrently with the completion of our initial business combination, $7,000,000, which constitutes the underwriters’ deferred commissions (or $8,050,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) will be paid to the underwriters from the funds held in the trust account, see “Underwriting.” The remaining funds, less amounts released to the trustee to pay redeeming stockholders will be released to us and can be used to pay all or a portion of the purchase price of the business or businesses with which our initial business combination occurs or for general corporate purposes, including payment of principal or interest on indebtedness incurred in connection with our initial business combination, to fund the purchases of other companies or for working capital. The underwriters will not be entitled to any interest accrued on the deferred underwriting discounts and commissions.

 

(4)    These expenses are estimates only. Our actual expenditures for some or all of these items may differ from the estimates set forth in this prospectus. For example, we may incur greater legal and accounting expenses than our current estimates in connection with negotiating and structuring our initial business combination based upon the level of complexity of such business combination. In the event we identify a business combination target in a specific industry subject to specific regulations, we may incur additional expenses associated with legal due diligence and the engagement of special legal counsel. In addition, our staffing needs may vary and as a result, we may engage a number of consultants to assist with legal and financial due diligence. We do not anticipate any change in our intended use of proceeds, other than fluctuations among the current categories of allocated expenses, which fluctuations, to the extent they exceed current estimates for any specific category of expenses, would not be available for our expenses. The amount in the table above does not include interest available to us from the trust account. The proceeds held in the trust account will be invested only in U.S. government treasury obligations with a maturity of 185 days or less or in money market funds meeting certain conditions under Rule 2a-7 under the Investment Company Act which invest only in direct U.S. government treasury obligations. Assuming an interest rate of 0.04% per year, we estimate the interest earned on the trust account will be approximately $60,000 per year; however, we can provide no assurances regarding this amount.

 

(5)    Assumes no exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option.

Nasdaq rules provide that at least 90% of the gross proceeds from this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants be deposited in a trust account. Of the $207,600,000 in proceeds we receive from this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants described in this prospectus, or $238,200,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full, $200,000,000 ($10.00 per unit), or $230,000,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full ($10.00 per unit), will be deposited into a segregated trust account located in the United States with Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, acting as trustee, after deducting $4,000,000 in underwriting discounts and commissions payable upon the closing of this offering (or $4,600,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) and an aggregate of $3,600,000 to pay fees and expenses in connection with the closing of this offering and for working capital following this offering. Except with respect to interest earned on the funds held in the trust account that may be released to us to pay our taxes, if any, the funds held in the trust account will not be released until the earliest to occur of: (a) the completion of our initial business combination; (b) the redemption of any public shares properly tendered in connection with a stockholder vote to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation (i) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering or (ii) with respect to any other provisions relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity; and (c) the redemption of all of our public shares if we have not completed our business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering, subject to applicable law. Based on current interest rates, we expect that interest income earned on the trust account (if any) will be sufficient to pay our income and franchise taxes.

The net proceeds held in the trust account may be used as consideration to pay the sellers of a target business with which we ultimately complete our initial business combination. 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, we may apply the balance of the cash released 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. There is no limitation on our ability to raise funds privately or through loans in connection with our initial business combination.

We believe that amounts not held in trust, together with funds available to us from loans from our sponsor, will be sufficient to pay the costs and expenses to which such proceeds are allocated. This belief is based on the fact that

 

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while we may begin preliminary due diligence of a target business in connection with an indication of interest, we intend to undertake in-depth due diligence, depending on the circumstances of the relevant prospective acquisition, only after we have negotiated and signed a letter of intent or other preliminary agreement that addresses the terms of a business combination. However, if our estimate of the costs of undertaking in-depth due diligence and negotiating a business combination is less than the actual amount necessary to do so, we may be required to raise additional capital, the amount, availability and cost of which is currently unascertainable. If we are required to seek additional capital, we could seek such additional capital through loans or additional investments from our sponsor, members of our sponsor team or their affiliates, but such persons are not under any obligation to advance funds to, or invest in, us.

Subsequent to the closing of this offering, we will pay up to $15,000 per month to our sponsor for administrative, financial and support services. Upon completion of our initial business combination or our liquidation, we will cease paying these monthly fees.

Prior to the closing of this offering, our sponsor has agreed to loan us up to $300,000 to be used for a portion of the expenses of this offering. As of June 30, 2021, we had borrowed $160,361 under the promissory note with our sponsor. This loan is non-interest bearing, unsecured and is due at the earlier of December 31, 2021 or the closing of this offering. The loan will be repaid upon the closing of this offering out of the approximately $3,600,000 of offering proceeds that has been allocated for the payment of offering expenses (other than underwriting commissions) and amounts not to be held in the trust account.

In addition, in order to finance transaction costs in connection with an intended initial business combination, our sponsor or an affiliate of our sponsor or certain of our officers and directors may, but are not obligated to, loan us funds as may be required. If we complete our initial business combination, we would repay such loaned amounts out of the proceeds of the trust account released to us. Otherwise, such loans would be repaid only out of funds held outside the trust account. In the event that our initial business combination does not close, we may use a portion of the working capital held outside the trust account to repay such loaned amounts but no proceeds from our trust account would be used to repay such loaned amounts. Up to $1,500,000 of such loans may be convertible into warrants of the post business combination entity, at a price of $1.00 per warrant at the option of the lender. The warrants would be identical to the private placement warrants. Except as set forth above, the terms of such loans, if any, have not been determined and no written agreements exist with respect to such loans. Prior to the completion of our initial business combination, we do not expect to seek loans from parties other than our sponsor or an affiliate of our sponsor as we do not believe third parties will be willing to loan such funds and provide a waiver against any and all rights to seek access to funds in our trust account.

If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination, and we do not conduct redemptions in connection with our business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, our initial stockholders, directors, officers or their affiliates may purchase shares in privately negotiated transactions either prior to or following the completion of our initial business combination. 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. If they engage in such transactions, they will not make any such purchases when they are in possession of any material non-public information not disclosed or if such purchases are prohibited by Regulation M under the Exchange Act. 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.

We may not redeem our public shares in an amount that would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001 (so that we are not subject to the SEC’s “penny stock” rules) and the agreement for our business combination may require as a closing condition that we have a minimum net worth or a certain amount of cash. If too many public stockholders exercise their redemption rights so that we cannot satisfy the net tangible asset requirement or any net worth or cash requirements, we would not proceed with the redemption of our public shares or the business combination, and instead may search for an alternate business combination.

Certain unaffiliated qualified institutional buyers or institutional accredited investors (none of whom are affiliated with our sponsor, officers or directors) have expressed to us an interest in purchasing up to an aggregate of

 

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approximately 1,980,000 units in this offering (which amount will not change if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised) at the offering price of $10.00 per unit. No anchor investor is expected to purchase more than 9.9% of the units in this offering (without giving effect to the under writer’s over-allotment option). We have agreed to direct the underwriters to sell to the anchor investors up to such number of units and such allocations will be determined by the underwriters, subject to our satisfying the Nasdaq initial listing requirements, and such allocations will be determined by the underwriters.

Pursuant to such units, the anchor investors have not been granted any shareholder or other rights in addition to those afforded to our other public stockholders. Further, unlike some anchor investment arrangements of other blank check companies, the anchor investors are not required to (i) hold any units, shares of Class A common stock or warrants they may purchase in this offering or thereafter for any amount of time, (ii) vote any shares of Class A common stock they may own at the applicable time in favor of our initial business combination or (iii) refrain from exercising their right to redeem their public shares at the time of our initial business combination. The anchor investors will have the same rights to the funds held in the trust account with respect to the shares of Class A common stock underlying the units they may purchase in this offering as the rights afforded to our other public stockholders.

There can be no assurance that the anchor investors will acquire any units in this offering, or what amount of equity the anchor investors will retain, if any, upon the consummation of our initial business combination. There is also no guarantee that all of the anchor investors will participate in the offering. In the event that the anchor investors purchase all of the units that they have expressed an interest in purchasing in this offering, hold all such units until prior to consummation of our initial business combination and vote their public shares in favor of our initial business combination, in addition to the founder shares, no affirmative votes from other public stockholders would be required to approve our initial business combination. The anchor investors are not required to vote any of their public shares in favor of our initial business combination or for or against any other matter presented for a stockholder vote and the anchor investors as a group could have substantial control over us and be able to exercise significant influence over all matters requiring stockholder approval, and the extent of their influence will be even more significant if they purchase more of our securities in or after this offering.

A public stockholder will be entitled to receive funds from the trust account only upon the earliest to occur of: (a) our completion of an initial business combination, (b) the redemption of any public shares properly tendered in connection with a stockholder vote to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation (i) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering or (ii) with respect to any other provisions relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity and (c) the redemption of our public shares if we have not completed our business combination within 18 months following the closing of this offering, subject to applicable law and as further described in this prospectus and any limitations (including but not limited to cash requirements) created by the terms of the proposed business combination. In no other circumstances will a public stockholder have any right or interest of any kind to or in the trust account.

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 any founder shares held by them and any public shares they may acquire during or after this offering in connection with (i) the completion of our initial business combination and (ii) a stockholder vote to approve an amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation that would affect the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we have not completed an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering. The public anchor investors have agreed to waive their redemption rights with respect to any founder shares held by them in connection with the completion of our initial business combination or otherwise. In addition, each of our initial stockholders has agreed to waive his, her or its rights to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to any founder shares held by them if we do not complete our business combination within the prescribed time frame. However, if our sponsor or any of our officers, directors or affiliates acquires public shares in or after this offering, they will be entitled to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to such public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within the prescribed time frame.

 

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DIVIDEND POLICY

We have not paid any cash dividends on our common stock to date and do not intend to pay cash dividends prior to the completion of our initial business combination. The payment of cash dividends in the future will be dependent upon our revenues and earnings, if any, capital requirements and general financial condition subsequent to completion of our initial business combination. The payment of any cash dividends subsequent to our initial business combination will be within the discretion of our board of directors at such time. If we increase the size of this offering, we will effect a stock capitalization or share surrender or other appropriate mechanism immediately prior to the completion of this offering in such amount as to maintain the number of founder shares, on an as-converted basis, at 20% of the issued and outstanding shares of common stock upon the completion of this offering. Further, if we incur any indebtedness in connection with our business combination, our ability to declare dividends may be limited by restrictive covenants we may agree to in connection therewith.

 

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DILUTION

At June 30, 2021, our net tangible book deficit was ($279,918), or approximately ($0.05) per ordinary share. After giving effect to the sale of 20,000,000 Class A common stock included in the units we are offering by this prospectus, the sale of the private placement warrants and the deduction of underwriting discounts and commissions and estimated expenses of this offering, our pro forma net tangible book value at June 30, 2021 would have been ($24,201,170) or ($4.84) per share, representing an immediate decrease in net tangible book value (as decreased by the value of 20,000,000 Class A common stock that may be redeemed for cash assuming no exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option) of ($4.79) per share to our sponsor as of the date of this prospectus and an immediate dilution to public stockholders from this offering of $14.84 per public share. The dilution to new investors if the underwriters exercise their over-allotment option in full would be an immediate dilution of $14.81 per share or 148.1%.

The following table illustrates the dilution to the public stockholders on a per-share basis, assuming no value is attributed to the warrants included in the units or the private placement warrants:

 

 

 

     WITHOUT EXERCISE
OF OVER-ALLOTMENT
OPTION
    OVER-ALLOTMENT
FULLY EXERCISED
 

Public offering price

   $ 10.00     $ 10.00  

Net tangible book deficit before this offering

   $ (0.05   $ (0.05

Increase attributable to public stockholders

   $ (4.79   $ (4.76

Pro forma net tangible book value after this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants

   $ (4.84   $ (4.81
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Dilution to public stockholders

   $ 14.84     $ 14.81  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Percentage of dilution to public stockholders

     148.4     148.1
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

 

 

For purposes of presentation, we have reduced our pro forma net tangible book value after this offering (assuming the underwriters do not exercise their over-allotment option) by $200,000,000 because holders of our public shares may redeem their shares for a pro rata share of the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account (subject to the limitations described in this prospectus) at a per share redemption price equal to the amount in the trust account as set forth in our tender offer or proxy materials (initially anticipated to be the aggregate amount held in trust two business days prior to the consummation of our initial business combination, including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes, if any, divided by the number of the then-outstanding public shares, subject to the limitations set forth in “Proposed Business–Effecting Our Initial Business Combination–Limitations on Redemptions”). In the event the aggregate cash consideration we would be required to pay for all Class A common stock 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, all Class A common stock submitted for redemption will be returned to the holders thereof, and we instead may search for an alternate business combination or seek to revise the terms of such business combination.

The following table sets forth information with respect to our initial stockholders and the public stockholders:

 

 

 

     SHARES PURCHASED     TOTAL CONSIDERATION     AVERAGE PRICE
PER SHARE
 
     NUMBER      PERCENTAGE     AMOUNT      PERCENTAGE  

Initial stockholders (1)

     5,000,000        20.0   $ 25,000        0.01   $ 0.005  

Public stockholders

     20,000,000        80.0     200,000,000        99.99   $ 10.00  
  

 

 

    

 

 

   

 

 

    

 

 

   
     25,000,000        100   $ 200,025,000        100.00  
  

 

 

    

 

 

   

 

 

    

 

 

   

 

 

(1)    Assumes the underwriters do not exercise their over-allotment option and the corresponding forfeiture of 750,000 Class B common stock held by our sponsor.

 

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The pro forma net tangible book value per share after this offering (assuming that the underwriters do not exercise their over-allotment option) is calculated as follows:

 

 

 

     WITHOUT
EXERCISE OF
OVER-ALLOTMENT
OPTION
    OVER-ALLOTMENT
FULLY
EXERCISED
 

Numerator:

    

Net tangible book deficit before this offering

   $ (279,918   $ (279,918

Net proceeds from this offering and sale of the private placement warrants (1)

     202,900,000       232,900,000  

Plus: Offering costs paid in advance, excluded from tangible book value

     299,748       299,748  

Less: Deferred underwriting commissions

     (7,000,000     (8,050,000

Less: Warrant liability (2)

     (20,121,000     (22,516,729

Less: Proceeds held in trust subject to redemption (3)

     (200,000,000     (230,000,000
  

 

 

   

 

 

 
   $ (24,201,170   $ (27,646,899
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Denominator:

    

Class B common stock outstanding prior to this offering

     5,750,000       5,750,000  

Class B common stock forfeited if over-allotment is not exercised

     (750,000      

Class A common stock included in the units offered

     20,000,000       23,000,000  

Less: Shares subject to redemption

     (20,000,000     (23,000,000
  

 

 

   

 

 

 
     5,000,000       5,750,000  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

 

 

(1)    Expenses applied against gross proceeds include deferred offering costs of $299,748 and underwriting discounts and commissions of $7,000,000 (or $8,050,000 if the underwriters exercise their over-allotment option), in each case excluding underwriting fees. See “Use of Proceeds.”

 

(2)    We will account for the Public Warrants and the Private Placements in accordance with the guidance contained in ASC 815-40. Such guidance provides that, because the warrants do not meet the criteria for equity treatment thereunder, each warrant must be recorded as a liability. Accordingly, we will classify each warrant as a liability at its fair value. This liability is subject to re-measurement at each balance sheet date. With each such re-measurement, the warrant liability will be adjusted to fair value, with the change in fair value recognized in our statement of operations.

 

(3)    If we seek stockholder 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, sponsor team, advisors or their respective affiliates may purchase public shares or warrants in privately negotiated transactions or in the open market either prior to or following the completion of our initial business combination. In the event of any such purchases of our shares prior to the completion of our initial business combination, the number of Class A common stock subject to redemption will be reduced by the amount of any such purchases, increasing the pro forma net tangible book value per share. See “Proposed Business–Effecting Our Initial Business Combination–Permitted Purchases and Other Transactions with Respect to Our Securities.”—Permitted Purchases of Our Securities.”

 

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CAPITALIZATION

The following table sets forth our capitalization at June 30, 2021, and as adjusted to give effect to the filing of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, the sale of our units in this offering and the private placement warrants and the application of the estimated net proceeds derived from the sale of such securities:

 

 

 

     JUNE 30, 2021  
     ACTUAL     AS ADJUSTED (1)  

Note payable to related party (2)

   $ 160,361     $ —    

Warrant liability (3)

     —         20,121,000  

Deferred underwriting commissions

     —         7,000,000  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Preferred stock, $0.0001 par value, 1,000,000 shares authorized, 0 shares actual and as adjusted

     —         —    

Class A common stock, $0.0001 par value, 200,000,000 shares authorized:

    

-0- shares actual, -0- shares, as adjusted

     —         —    

-0- shares actual, 20,000,000 shares subject to possible redemption, as adjusted (4)

     —         200,000,000  

Class B common stock, $0.0001 par value, 20,000,000 shares authorized; 5,750,000 and 5,000,000 shares issued and outstanding, actual and as adjusted, respectively (5)

     575       500  

Additional paid-in capital (6)

     24,425       (22,503,328

Accumulated deficit (6)

     (5,170     (1,698,342
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Total stockholders’ equity

   $ 19,830     $ (24,201,170
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Total capitalization

   $ 180,191     $ 202,919,830  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

 

 

(1)    Assumes no exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option and the corresponding forfeiture of 750,000 shares of Class B common stock held by our sponsor.

 

(2)    Our sponsor has agreed to loan us up to $300,000 to be used for a portion of the expenses of this offering. As of June 30, 2021, we had borrowed $160,361 under the promissory note.

 

(3)    The warrants are expected to be accounted for as derivative liabilities in accordance with the guidance contained in ASC 815-40. Such guidance provides that, because the warrants do not meet the criteria for equity treatment thereunder, each warrant must be recorded as a liability. Accordingly, we will classify each warrant as a liability at its fair value. This liability is subject to re-measurement at each balance sheet date. With each such re-measurement, the warrant liability will be adjusted to fair value, with the change in fair value recognized in our statement of operations. The warrants are also subject to re-evaluation of the proper classification and accounting treatment at each reporting period. If the classification changes as a result of events during the period, the warrants will be reclassified as of the date of the event that causes the reclassification.

 

(4)    All of the 20,000,000 shares of Class A common stock sold as part of the units in the offering contain a redemption feature which allows for the redemption of such public shares in connection with our liquidation, or if there is a shareholder vote or tender offer in connection with our initial business combination. In accordance with SEC and its guidance on redeemable equity instruments, which has been codified in ASC 480-10-S99, redemption provisions not solely within the control of a company require common stock subject to redemption to be classified outside of permanent equity. Given that the 20,000,000 Class A common stock sold as part of the units in the offering will be issued with other freestanding instruments (i.e., public warrants), the initial carrying value of Class A common stock classified as temporary equity will be the allocated proceeds determined in accordance with ASC 470-20. Our Class A common stock are subject to ASC 480-10-S99 and are currently not redeemable as the redemption is contingent upon the occurrence of events mentioned above. According to ASC 480-10-S99-15, no subsequent adjustment is needed if it is not probable that the instrument will become redeemable.

 

(5)    Actual share amount is prior to any forfeiture of founder shares by our sponsor and as adjusted amount assumes no exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option.

 

(6)    We will account for the excess of the fair value over consideration of the 1,350,000 founder shares to be sold to the public anchor investors by the sponsor as a cost of this offering in accordance with Staff Accounting Bulletin Topic 5A. Accordingly, the offering costs will be allocated to the separable financial instruments issued in the offering based on a relative fair value basis, compared to total proceeds received. Offering costs allocated to derivative warrant liabilities will be expensed as incurred in the statement of operations. Offering costs allocated to the public shares will be charged to stockholders’ equity upon completion of this offering.

 

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MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF

FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

Overview

We are a newly organized blank check company incorporated on March 24, 2021 as a Delaware corporation and formed for the purpose of effecting a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, share purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses. We have not selected any business combination target and we have not, nor has anyone on our behalf, initiated any substantive discussions directly or indirectly, with any business combination target. We intend to effectuate our initial business combination using cash from the proceeds of this offering and the private placement of the private placement warrants, our capital stock, debt or a combination of cash, stock and debt.

The issuance of additional shares in a business combination:

 

   

may significantly dilute the equity interest of investors in this offering, which dilution would increase if the anti-dilution provisions in our Class B common stock resulted in the issuance of our Class A common stock on a greater than one-to-one basis upon conversion of our Class B common stock;

 

   

may subordinate the rights of holders of our Class A common stock if shares of preferred stock are issued with rights senior to those afforded our Class A common stock;

 

   

could cause a change in control if a substantial number of shares of our Class A common stock are issued, which may affect, among other things, our ability to use our net operating loss carry forwards, if any, and could result in the resignation or removal of our present officers and directors;

 

   

may have the effect of delaying or preventing a change of control of us by diluting the share ownership or voting rights of a person seeking to obtain control of us; and

 

   

may adversely affect prevailing market prices for our Class A common stock and/or warrants.

 

   

Similarly, if we issue debt securities, or otherwise incur significant debt, it could result in:

 

   

default and foreclosure on our assets if our operating revenues after an initial business combination are insufficient to repay our debt obligations;

 

   

acceleration of our obligations to repay the indebtedness even if we make all principal and interest payments when due if we breach certain covenants that require the maintenance of certain financial ratios or reserves without a waiver or renegotiation of that covenant;

 

   

our immediate payment of all principal and accrued interest, if any, if the debt is payable on demand;

 

   

our inability to obtain necessary additional financing if the debt contains covenants restricting our ability to obtain such financing while the debt is outstanding;

 

   

our inability to pay dividends on our common or preferred stock;

 

   

using a substantial portion of our cash flow to pay principal and interest on our debt, which will reduce the funds available for dividends on our common stock if declared, our ability to pay expenses, make capital expenditures and acquisitions and fund other general corporate purposes;

 

   

limitations on our flexibility in planning for and reacting to changes in our business and in the industry in which we operate;

 

   

increased vulnerability to adverse changes in general economic, industry and competitive conditions and adverse changes in government regulation; and

 

   

limitations on our ability to borrow additional amounts for expenses, capital expenditures, acquisitions, debt service requirements and execution of our strategy and other purposes and other disadvantages compared to our competitors who have less debt.

As indicated in the accompanying financial statements, as of June 30, 2021, we had $22,511 in cash and deferred offering costs of $299,748. Further, we expect to incur significant costs in the pursuit of our initial business combination. We cannot assure you that our plans to raise capital or to complete our initial business combination will be successful. These factors, among others, raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern.

 

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Results of Operations and Known Trends or Future Events

We have neither engaged in any operations nor generated any revenues to date. Our only activities since inception have been organizational activities and those necessary to prepare for this offering. Following this offering, we will not generate any operating revenues until after completion of our initial business combination. We will generate non-operating income in the form of interest income on cash and cash equivalents after this offering. There has been no significant change in our financial or trading position and no material adverse change has occurred since the date of our audited financial statements. After this offering, we expect to incur increased expenses as a result of being a public company (for legal, financial reporting, accounting and auditing compliance), as well as for due diligence expenses. We expect our expenses to increase substantially after the closing of this offering.

Liquidity and Capital Resources

Our liquidity needs have been satisfied prior to the completion of this offering through receipt of (i) a $25,000 capital contribution from our initial stockholders in exchange for the issuance of the founder shares and (ii) the advancement of funds by our sponsor to cover our expenses in connection with this offering. We estimate that the net proceeds from (i) the sale of the units in this offering, after deducting offering expenses of approximately $700,000, underwriting commissions of $4,000,000 (or $4,600,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) (excluding deferred underwriting commissions of $7,000,000 (or $8,050,000, if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full)), and (ii) the sale of the private placement warrants for a purchase price of $7,600,000 (or $8,200,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full), will be $207,600,000 (or $238,200,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full). $200,000,000 (or $230,000,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) will be held in the trust account, which includes the deferred underwriting commissions described above. The proceeds held in the trust account will be invested only in U.S. government treasury obligations with a maturity of 185 days or less or in money market funds meeting certain conditions under Rule 2a-7 under the Investment Company Act which invest only in direct U.S. government treasury obligations. The remaining approximately $2,900,000 will not be held in the trust account. In the event that our offering expenses exceed our estimate of $700,000, we may fund such excess with 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 $700,000, the amount of funds we intend to be held outside the trust account would increase by a corresponding amount.

We intend to use substantially all of the funds held in the trust account, including any amounts representing interest earned on the trust account (less taxes payable and deferred underwriting commissions), to complete our initial business combination. We may withdraw interest income (if any) to pay our taxes, if any. We estimate our annual franchise tax obligations, based on the number of shares of our common stock authorized and outstanding after the completion of this offering, to be $200,000, which is the maximum amount of annual franchise taxes payable by us as a Delaware corporation per annum, which we may pay from funds from this offering held outside of the trust account or from interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and released to us for this purpose. Our annual income tax obligations will depend on the amount of interest and other income earned on the amounts held in the trust account. Based on assumed interest rates, we expect that the interest income earned on the amount in the trust account (if any), will be sufficient to pay our income and franchise taxes. To the extent that our equity or debt is used, in whole or in part, as consideration to complete our initial business combination, the remaining proceeds held in the trust account will be used as working capital to finance the operations of the target business or businesses, make other acquisitions and pursue our growth strategies.

Prior to the completion of our initial business combination, we will have available to us the approximately $2,900,000 of proceeds held outside the trust account, as well as certain funds from loans from our sponsor. We will use these funds to primarily identify and evaluate target businesses, perform business due diligence on prospective target businesses, travel to and from the offices, plants or similar locations of prospective target businesses or their representatives or owners, review corporate documents and material agreements of prospective target businesses, and structure, negotiate and complete a business combination.

We do not believe we will need to raise additional funds following this offering in order to meet the expenditures required for operating our business prior to our initial business combination, other than funds available from loans from our sponsor. However, if our estimates of the costs of identifying a target business, undertaking in-depth due

 

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diligence and negotiating an initial business combination are less than the actual amount necessary to do so, we may have insufficient funds available to operate our business prior to our initial business combination. In order to fund working capital deficiencies or finance transaction costs in connection with an intended initial business combination, our sponsor or an affiliate of our sponsor or certain of our officers and directors may, but are not obligated to, loan us funds as may be required. If we complete our initial business combination, we would repay such loaned amounts. In the event that our initial business combination does not close, we may use a portion of the working capital held outside the trust account to repay such loaned amounts but no proceeds from our trust account would be used for such repayment. Up to $1,500,000 of such loans may be convertible into warrants of the post business combination entity, at a price of $1.00 per warrant at the option of the lender. The warrants would be identical to the private placement warrants, including as to exercise price, exercisability and exercise period. Except for the foregoing, the terms of such loans by our officers and directors, if any, have not been determined and no written agreements exist with respect to such loans. Prior to the completion of our initial business combination, we do not expect to seek loans from parties other than our sponsor or an affiliate of our sponsor as we do not believe third parties will be willing to loan such funds and provide a waiver against any and all rights to seek access to funds in our trust account.

We expect our primary liquidity requirements during that period to include approximately $800,000 for director & officer liability insurance premiums; $250,000 for legal and accounting fees related to regulatory reporting obligations; $90,000 for Nasdaq continued listing fees; $360,000 for administrative, financial and support services calculated at up to $15,000 per month; $270,000 for working capital and support costs; $850,000 for legal, accounting and consulting costs related to the initial business combination; $100,000 for a liquidation reserve; and $180,000 for other costs, including franchise taxes.

These amounts are estimates and may differ materially from our actual expenses. In addition, we could use a portion of the funds not being placed in trust to pay commitment fees for financing, fees to consultants to assist us with our search for a target business or as a down payment or to fund a “no-shop” provision (a provision designed to keep target businesses from “shopping” around for transactions with other companies or investors on terms more favorable to such target businesses) with respect to a particular proposed business combination, although we do not have any current intention to do so. If we entered into an agreement where we paid for the right to receive exclusivity from a target business, the amount that would be used as a down payment or to fund a “no-shop” provision would be determined based on the terms of the specific business combination and the amount of our available funds at the time. Our forfeiture of such funds (whether as a result of our breach or otherwise) could result in our not having sufficient funds to continue searching for, or conducting due diligence with respect to, prospective target businesses.

We do not believe we will need to raise additional funds following this offering in order to meet the expenditures required for operating our business. However, if our estimates of the costs of identifying a target business, undertaking in-depth due diligence and negotiating an initial business combination are less than the actual amount necessary to do so, we may have insufficient funds available to operate our business prior to our business combination. Moreover, we may need to obtain additional financing either to complete our initial business combination, either because the transaction requires more cash than is available from the proceeds held in our trust account, or because we become obligated to redeem a significant number of our public shares upon completion of our business combination, in which case we may issue additional securities or incur debt in connection with such business combination. Subject to compliance with applicable securities laws, we would only complete such financing simultaneously with the completion of our business combination. If we do not complete our initial business combination because we do not have sufficient funds available to us, we will be forced to cease operations and liquidate the trust account. In addition, following our initial business combination, if cash on hand is insufficient, we may need to obtain additional financing in order to meet our obligations.

Controls and Procedures

We are not currently required to report and evaluate on our system of internal controls as defined by Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. We will be required to comply with the internal control requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2022. Only in the event that we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer or an accelerated filer and no longer an emerging growth company would we be required to comply with the independent registered public accounting firm attestation requirement. Further, for as long as we remain an

 

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emerging growth company as defined in the JOBS Act, we intend 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 independent registered public accounting firm attestation requirement.

Prior to the closing of this offering, we have not completed an assessment, nor have our auditors tested our systems, of our internal controls. We expect to assess the internal controls of our target business or businesses prior to the completion of our initial business combination and, if necessary, to implement and test additional controls as we may determine are necessary in order to state that we maintain an effective system of internal controls. A target business may not be in compliance with the provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act regarding the adequacy of internal controls. Many small and mid-sized target businesses we may consider for our initial business combination may have internal controls that need improvement in areas such as:

 

   

staffing for financial, accounting and external reporting areas, including segregation of duties;

 

   

reconciliation of accounts;

 

   

proper recording of expenses and liabilities in the period to which they relate;

 

   

evidence of internal review and approval of accounting transactions;

 

   

documentation of processes, assumptions and conclusions underlying significant estimates; and

 

   

documentation of accounting policies and procedures.

Because it will take time, management involvement and perhaps outside resources to determine what internal control improvements are necessary for us to meet regulatory requirements and market expectations for our operation of a target business, we may incur significant expense in meeting our public reporting responsibilities, particularly in the areas of designing, enhancing, or remediating internal and disclosure controls. Doing so effectively may also take longer than we expect, thus increasing our exposure to financial fraud or erroneous financing reporting.

Once our management’s report on internal controls is complete, we will retain our independent registered public accounting firm to audit and render an opinion on such report when required by Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. The independent registered public accounting firm may identify additional issues concerning a target business’s internal controls while performing their audit of internal control over financial reporting.

Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk

The net proceeds of this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants held in the trust account will be invested in U.S. government treasury obligations with a maturity of 185 days or less or in money market funds meeting certain conditions under Rule 2a-7 under the Investment Company Act which invest only in direct U.S. government treasury obligations. Due to the short-term nature of these investments, we believe there will be no associated material exposure to interest rate risk.

Related Party Transactions

On May 5, 2021, certain of our initial stockholders purchased an aggregate of 5,750,000 founder shares for an aggregate purchase price of $25,000, or approximately $0.004 per share (consisting of 5,650,000 founder shares purchased by our sponsor and 25,000 founder shares purchased by each of our independent directors). The number of founder shares issued was determined based on the expectation that such founder shares would represent 20% of the issued and outstanding shares upon completion of this offering. The per share purchase price of the founder shares was determined by dividing the amount of cash contributed to the company by the aggregate number of founder shares issued.

We will not pay our sponsor or any of our existing officers or directors, or any entity with which they are affiliated, a finder’s fee, consulting fee or other compensation in connection with identifying, investigating and completing our initial business combination. However, these individuals will also be reimbursed for any out of pocket expenses incurred in connection with activities on our behalf, such as identifying potential target businesses and performing due diligence on suitable business combinations. Our audit committee will review on a quarterly basis all payments that were made to our sponsor, officers, directors or their affiliates and will determine which fees and expenses and the amount of expenses that will be reimbursed. There is no cap or ceiling on payments that may be made to our sponsor, officers, directors or any of their respective affiliates.

 

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Prior to the closing of this offering, our sponsor has agreed to loan us up to $300,000 to be used for a portion of the expenses of this offering. As of June 30, 2021, we had borrowed $160,361 under the promissory note with our sponsor. This loan is non-interest bearing, unsecured and is due at the earlier of December 31, 2021 or the closing of this offering. The loan will be repaid upon the closing of this offering out of the approximately $3,600,000 of offering proceeds that has been allocated for the payment of offering expenses (other than underwriting commissions) and amounts not to be held in the trust account.

In addition, in order to finance transaction costs in connection with an intended initial business combination, our sponsor or an affiliate of our sponsor or certain of our officers and directors may, but are not obligated to, loan us funds as may be required. If we complete our initial business combination, we would repay such loaned amounts. In the event that our initial business combination does not close, we may use a portion of the working capital held outside the trust account to repay such loaned amounts but no proceeds from our trust account would be used for such repayment. Up to $1,500,000 of such loans may be convertible into warrants, at a price of $1.00 per warrant at the option of the lender. Such warrants would be identical to the private placement warrants, including as to exercise price, exercisability and exercise period. Except for the foregoing, the terms of such loans by our officers and directors, if any, have not been determined and no written agreements exist with respect to such loans. We do not expect to seek loans from parties other than our sponsor or an affiliate of our sponsor as we do not believe third parties will be willing to loan such funds and provide a waiver against any and all rights to seek access to funds in our trust account.

Our sponsor and Jefferies have committed to purchase an aggregate of 7,600,000 private placement warrants (or an aggregate of 8,200,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) at a price of $1.00 per whole warrant (approximately $7,600,000 or $8,200,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) in a private placement that will occur simultaneously with the closing of this offering. Among the private placement warrants, 6,600,000 warrants (or 7,050,000 warrants if the over-allotment option is exercised in full) will be purchased by our sponsor and/or its designees and 1,000,000 warrants (or 1,150,000 warrants if the over-allotment option is exercised in full) will be purchased by Jefferies and/or its designees. Each whole private placement warrant is exercisable for one share of Class A common stock at $11.50 per share. Our sponsor and Jefferies will be permitted to transfer the private placement warrants held by it to certain permitted transferees, including our officers and directors and other persons or entities affiliated with or related to it, but the transferees receiving such securities will be subject to the same agreements with respect to such securities as our sponsor and Jefferies. Otherwise, these warrants will not, subject to certain limited exceptions, be transferable or salable until 30 days after the completion of our business combination. The private placement warrants will be non-redeemable so long as they are held by our sponsor, Jefferies or their permitted transferees. The private placement warrants may also be exercised by the sponsor and its permitted transferees for cash or on a cashless basis. The private placement warrants held by Jefferies will not be exercisable more than five years from the commencement of sales in this offering in accordance with FINRA Rule 5110(g)(8). Otherwise, the private placement warrants have terms and provisions that are identical to those of the warrants being sold as part of the units in this offering, including as to exercise price, exercisability and exercise period.

Certain qualified institutional buyers or institutional accredited investors (none of whom are affiliated with our sponsor, officers or directors), have expressed to us an interest in purchasing up to an aggregate of approximately $1,980,000 units in this offering (which amount will not change if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised), at the public offering price, and we have agreed to direct the underwriters to sell to the anchor investors up to such number of units. Assuming that each anchor investor purchases the number of units for which it provided an indication of interest, the anchor investors will own, in the aggregate, up to approximately 84.6% of the outstanding shares of our common stock (or up to approximately 73.6% if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) upon the completion of this offering (in each case, including the founder shares sold by our sponsor as described herein). In consideration of these purchases, our sponsor has entered into an investment agreement with each of the public anchor investors pursuant to which such anchor investors have purchased in the aggregate up to approximately 1,350,000 founder shares from our sponsor at approximately $0.004 per share (at cost). In the event an anchor investor does not purchase the full amount of units for which it provided an indication of interest, it will forfeit back to our sponsor any and all rights to all of the founder shares such anchor investors purchased. The founder shares owned by the anchor investors are subject to additional restrictions as described under the section of this prospectus entitled “Description of Securities—Founder Shares”.

 

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Because this indication of interest is not a binding agreement or commitment to purchase, there can be no assurance that our anchor investors will acquire any units in this offering, or as to the amount of such units our anchor investors will retain, if any, prior to or upon the consummation of our initial business combination. In the event that our anchor investors purchase such units (either in this offering or after) and vote them in favor of our initial business combination, a smaller portion of affirmative votes from other public stockholders would be required to approve our initial business combination and, in certain circumstances (e.g., assuming only the minimum number of shares representing a quorum are voted and the over-allotment is not exercised), no affirmative votes from other public stockholders would be required to approve a business combination. As a result of the direct and/or indirect interest in our founder shares (and in the case of the UBS O’Connor anchor investors, the private placement warrants) that the anchor investors may hold, they may have different interests with respect to a vote on an initial business combination than other public stockholders. For example, the anchor investors may have an incentive to vote their public shares in favor of any business combination regardless of the fact that the anchor investors have not entered into any agreement with us to do so. In addition, any units purchased in this offering by our anchor investors would not be subject to any lock-up provisions. Each of the UBS O’Connor anchor investors have agreed that if they, together with their affiliates, (i) purchase less than 9.9% of the units sold in this offering or (ii) purchase, but do not hold, 9.9% of the shares sold in this offering through the date that is thirty (30) days following the consummation of our initial business combination, they will forfeit, for no additional consideration or refund, a pro rata portion (up to 75%) of their interest in the founder shares held by our sponsor.

Pursuant to a registration rights agreement we entered into with our sponsor and the investment agreements we entered into with the public anchor investors, in each case, on or prior to the closing of this offering, we may be required to register certain securities for sale under the Securities Act. These holders, and holders of warrants issued upon conversion of working capital loans, if any, are entitled under the registration rights agreement to make up to three demands that we register certain of our securities held by them for sale under the Securities Act and to have the securities covered thereby registered for resale pursuant to Rule 415 under the Securities Act. In addition, these holders have the right to include their securities in other registration statements filed by us. However, the registration rights agreement will provide that we will not permit any registration statement filed under the Securities Act to become effective until the securities covered thereby are released from their lock-up restrictions, as described in this prospectus. We will bear the costs and expenses of filing any such registration statements. See the section of this prospectus entitled “Certain Relationships and Related Party Transactions.”

Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements; Commitments and Contractual Obligations; Quarterly Results

As of June 30, 2021, we did not have any off-balance sheet arrangements as defined in Item 303(a)(4)(ii) of Regulation S-K and did not have any commitments or contractual obligations. No unaudited quarterly operating data is included in this prospectus, as we have not conducted any operations to date.

JOBS Act

The JOBS Act contains provisions that, among other things, relax certain reporting requirements for qualifying public companies. We will qualify as an “emerging growth company” and under the JOBS Act will be allowed to comply with new or revised accounting pronouncements based on the effective date for private (not publicly traded) companies. We are electing to delay the adoption of new or revised accounting standards, and as a result, we may not comply with new or revised accounting standards on the relevant dates on which adoption of such standards is required for non-emerging growth companies. As a result, our financial statements may not be comparable to companies that comply with new or revised accounting pronouncements as of public company effective dates.

Additionally, we are in the process of evaluating the benefits of relying on the other reduced reporting requirements provided by the JOBS Act. Subject to certain conditions set forth in the JOBS Act, if, as an “emerging growth company,” we choose to rely on such exemptions we may not be required to, among other things, (i) provide an auditor’s attestation report on our system of internal controls over financial reporting pursuant to Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, (ii) provide all of the compensation disclosure that may be required of non-emerging growth public companies under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, (iii) comply with any requirement that may be adopted by the PCAOB regarding mandatory audit firm rotation or a supplement to the auditor’s report providing additional information about the audit and the financial statements (auditor discussion and

 

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analysis) and (iv) disclose certain executive compensation related items such as the correlation between executive compensation and performance and comparisons of the CEO’s compensation to median employee compensation. These exemptions will apply for a period of five years following the completion of our initial public offering or until we are no longer an “emerging growth company,” whichever is earlier.

 

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PROPOSED BUSINESS

General

We are a blank check company newly incorporated as a Delaware corporation for the purpose of effecting a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses or entities, which we refer to throughout this prospectus as our initial business combination. We have not selected any potential business combination target and we have not, nor has anyone on our behalf, initiated any substantive discussions, directly or indirectly, with any potential business combination target.

Although we may pursue targets in any industry, we intend to focus our efforts on identifying high growth, U.S. and international acquisition targets in the financial technology (“Fintech”) and Embedded Finance (as defined in this prospectus) sectors. We intend to capitalize on the ability of our sponsor team to identify and acquire and advise a business that can benefit from our founders’ management expertise and disciplined approach to capital allocation and investment oversight.

Our Company

Our sponsor team is comprised of our founders complemented by a group of industry veterans that either hold independent board of director positions or will serve as advisors to the Company, who may assist in the sourcing and evaluation of potential targets. We believe that our sponsor team’s experience in driving operational improvements and organic growth as well as optimizing capital allocation will benefit us following the initial business combination and create value for stockholders. Several members of our sponsor team, including Daniel Ciporin, our Chief Executive Officer, have a track record of building growth-oriented businesses on the foundation of strategic planning, organic growth and opportunistic acquisitions coupled with strong cash flow generation. In addition, Jonathan Rosenzweig, our Chief Financial Officer has 27 years of experience related to equity securities analysis and interacting with asset managers, which we believe enable him to provide value added insight into both the success factors for publicly traded stocks and the demands of institutional investors. In order to take advantage of the depth and breadth of our sponsor team’s industry experience, we intend to consult with the various sponsor team members who have specific expertise and experience with potential targets or their specific industry sectors or markets.

Our Founders

Our founders consist of the following individuals:

Daniel Ciporin will serve as a director of our company and our Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. Mr. Ciporin served as a General Partner at Canaan Partners, a leading institutional venture capital firm that was founded over 30 years ago, from early 2007 until his retirement at the end of 2020. At Canaan Partners, Mr. Ciporin specialized in financial technology, marketplaces, and e-commerce investments. While at Canaan Partners, he he led investments in 19 different companies with a multiple on invested capital (MOIC) of approximately 4.3x. He was a member of the boards of publicly held Lending Club (NYSE: LC), as well as numerous private companies including ShopKeep, Bellhop, Bumped, Bond, CircleUp, Ollie, Ephemeral Solutions, Inc., Homeis and JOOR among others. Mr. Ciporin has also served on the boards of several other publicly held companies, including Borderfree (where he was also chairman) (formerly NASDAQ: BRDR prior to its acquisition by Pitney Bowes International in 2015), Primedia (formerly NYSE: PRM), VistaPrint (formerly NASDAQ: VPRT), and Corel (NASDAQ: CREL). He is the former Chairman and CEO of Shopping.com (formerly NASDAQ: SHOP), where he oversaw growth from approximately zero to approximately $100 million in revenue in six years, culminating in the company’s IPO in October 2004 and later acquisition by eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY) in 2005. Prior to Shopping.com, Mr. Ciporin served as senior vice president of MasterCard International, where he managed global debit services. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree from Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs and a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from Yale University’s School of Management (SOM), where he also sits on the SOM Board of Advisors.

Jonathan Rosenzweig will serve as a director of our company and our Chief Financial Officer and Secretary. Before joining Home Plate, Mr. Rosenzweig served as a Managing Director and Head of Americas Equity Research at Citigroup (NYSE: C) from 2007 until 2020. In this role, Mr. Rosenzweig was responsible for all equity research product in North America and Latin America for more than 13 years. Prior to that position, Mr. Rosenzweig served as a Deputy Director and Associate Director of U.S. Research at Citigroup for five years. From 1993–2002, Mr. Rosenzweig was a Senior Analyst covering the Imaging sector within Citi Research, including an array of

 

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Technology, Commercial and Consumer stocks. He provided detailed analysis, financial forecasts and investment recommendations for institutional investors at top asset management firms and hedge funds. During his career, he covered companies such as Adobe (NASDAQ: ADBE), Macromedia (formerly NASDAQ: MACR), Electronics for Imaging (formerly NASDAQ: EFII), 3M (NYSE: MMM), Xerox (NYSE: XRX), Ikon Office Solutions (formerly NYSE: IKN), and Eastman Kodak (NYSE: KODK), among others. Mr. Rosenzweig earned a top 2 ranking from Institutional Investor Magazine for the sector each year from 1997–2002. Prior to Citigroup, Mr. Rosenzweig worked as a Financial Analyst at Duke University Management Company. Since June 2021, Mr. Rosenzweig has served as a member of the board of directors of eThematics. Mr. Rosenzweig holds a Bachelor’s Degree from Duke University and a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from The Fuqua School of Business at Duke University.

Our Directors

In addition to our founders, our board of directors will be comprised of:

Michael A. DeSimone, an independent director, is currently a general manager at Lightspeed USA Commerce Inc., a company that provides a smart commerce platform to more than 100,000 independent retailers, restaurants, and golf course operators around the world. Prior to its sale to Lightspeed, Mr. DeSimone was the President and CEO of ShopKeep, a cloud-based technology solution that transforms an iPad into a smart, connected cash register that is used by more than 24,000 small businesses, from 2015 through the acquisition of the company by Lightspeed in November 2020. Mr. DeSimone is a global chief executive, with more than 30 years of experience working within the financial services and technology industry. As President and CEO at ShopKeep, Mr. DeSimone led the strategy to sustainably grow and scale the business, which processed approximately $8 billion in transactions in 2019. Prior to joining ShopKeep, Mr. DeSimone was President and CEO of Borderfree (formerly NASDAQ: BRDR prior to its acquisition by Pitney Bowes International in 2015), where he was responsible for the overall strategic direction including the company’s transformation from an online currency conversion service to a provider of global ecommerce solutions. He led the company through their successful IPO in 2014 and its sale to Pitney Bowes (NYSE: PBI) in 2015. He was also a member of the board of Rewards Web Inc. from 2015 until 2021. Mr. DeSimone has also earned recognition on the Smart CEO’s Future 50 list in 2015 and was named a finalist for the Ernst & Young 2013 Entrepreneur of the Year award.

Michele Docharty, an independent director, is a seasoned financial services executive with over 30 years of experience at Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS), including 10 years as a Partner. Ms. Docharty most recently served as the Americas Head of Execution Services, responsible for the firm’s equity sales trading activities, and the Global Co-head of Synthetics Distribution within the Global Markets Division. Ms. Docharty’s extensive knowledge of the asset managers and hedge funds, along with her track record of leading large sales and distribution teams in complex transactional businesses, provide her with a unique perspective on markets and what matters most to equity investors. Among her many roles at Goldman Sachs, Ms. Docharty contributed to the launch and development of the firm’s externalization of data for investing clients, and she led the governance group overseeing that transition. Ms. Docharty has experience with both the uses and the role of data as a product in the financial services sector. Ms. Docharty has built a reputation for leadership, innovation and client driven solutions for equity markets. At Goldman Sachs, Ms. Docharty drove collaboration with engineers to transition risk tools for clients onto the firm’s digital storefront, restructured the firm’s corporate access business globally, and directed the firm’s New Product Marketing team. Ms. Docharty served as Founder and Chair of the Data Services Operating Group, as well as Chair of the Equities Best Execution Sub-committee. At different points in her career, Ms. Docharty managed the Latin American Equity business, participated as a member of the Global Markets Operating Committee, the Americas Inclusion and Diversity Committee, and the Marquee Advisory Committee, and served as a Senior Member of the Firmwide Hispanic/Latinx Network. In September 2021, Ms. Docharty began serving as a member of the board of directors of Neuberger Berman. Ms. Docharty holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from the McDonough School of Business at Georgetown University and currently serves on the Board of Advisors. In addition, Ms. Docharty was named to ALPFAs 50 most Powerful Latinas in 2018, 2019, 2020 and to Latino Leaders Magazine’s top 100 most influential Latinas in 2020.

Ross Fubini, an independent director, is an early stage technology investor. Mr. Fubini founded and has served as Managing Director of XYZ Ventures, a venture capital investment firm since 2017. He also co-founded Village Global, a global investment firm, in 2017. Mr. Fubini is a board member of BeyondHQ, Piazza Technologies, Legion, Beneficial State Bank, LifeRaft Risk Technologies, Inc., Saltbox, Inc., Oro Labs, Inc., Auxilius Inc., Pebble Health Inc., Bureau Inc., Sardine, Inc. and Smash. Mr. Fubini’s investments include Lendup, Optimizely, and Metromile

 

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(NASDAQ: MILE). Prior to XYZ, Mr. Fubini was a partner at Canaan Partners from 2012 to 2015, and Kapor Capital from 2011 to 2012, where he focused on defensible businesses across enterprise applications, FinTech and healthcare IT spaces. Mr. Fubini co-founded and grew CubeTree, a Gartner Visionary enterprise social collaboration company. After CubeTree was acquired by SuccessFactors (formerly NYSE: SFSF, now an SAP company) in 2010, Mr. Fubini served as a vice president of Success Factors. Mr. Fubini also held engineering leadership roles at Symantec (formerly NASDAQ: SYMC), BEA/Plumtree (formerly NASDAQ: PLUM), TellMe Networks, and Netscape (formerly NASDAQ: NSCP). He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Engineering and Art from Carnegie Mellon University.

Rhonda Ramparas, an independent director, has over 20 years of private equity, capital markets, general management, and finance experience. Most recently, Ms. Ramparas was the CFO of Boxed, an ecommerce technology company, from 2019 to April 2021. She currently consults for ecommerce and private equity investment companies. Prior to Boxed, Ms. Ramparas was a Managing Director in the Private Equity Group at Fortress Investment Group for 17 years, where she invested in, built and managed companies across a broad array of industries including consumer finance, insurance, and transportation. While at Fortress, her track record of managing investments in complex financial services businesses included serving as interim CEO of Alea Insurance Group and leading the exit strategy of many portfolio companies. Prior to joining Fortress in 2001, Ms. Ramparas held various investment banking roles at Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette and Credit Suisse (NYSE: CS). Ms. Ramparas holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from McGill University.

Other Members of Our Sponsor Team

In addition to our founders and independent directors, our sponsor team will include:

Shyam Sankar has served in various positions at Palantir Technologies Inc. (NYSE: PLTR) since 2006, most recently as its Chief Operating Officer and Executive Vice President. Mr. Sankar also serves on the board of Ginkgo Bioworks. Mr. Sankar holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Cornell University and a Master’s Degree in Management Science and Engineering from Stanford University.

Ken Denman is an entrepreneur, experienced, serial technology CEO, board member, and early-stage investor. Mr. Denman is currently a general partner with Sway Ventures. Previously, he was President and CEO of Emotient, Inc., an innovative venture-backed software start-up that built an artificial intelligence-based platform for measuring facial expressions, which was acquired by Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) in January of 2016. He has also been CEO of two Silicon Valley public software companies. He directed Openwave (formerly NASDAQ: OPWV), a Nasdaq listed mobile middleware company, through a major strategy transition. As Chairman and CEO of iPass (formerly NASDAQ: IPAS), he led a successful IPO in 2003. Mr. Denman also has served as Senior Vice President for MediaOne, leading a significant portion of this top 4 cable operator’s U.S. operations, as well as Chief Operating Officer for MediaOne International, based in London. In the latter role, he was the operating partner and shareowner representative to many multi-national consortiums of wireless operators in Europe. In addition to numerous private technology company boards, Mr. Denman is a member of the board of directors of Costco Wholesale (NASDAQ: COST), Motorola Solutions (NYSE: MSI), and VMware (NYSE: VMW). He is the Lead Independent Director at Motorola Solutions (NYSE: MSI), where he also chairs the Nominating and Governance committees. In February 2021, he left the board of directors of LendingClub (NYSE: LC), when the company acquired a bank charter. In September 2012, Mr. Denman was appointed to the Edward V. Fritzky Endowed Chair in Leadership at the University of Washington’s Foster School of Business, as a Visiting Professor. He is also a board member of the UW Foster School of Business and a member of the board of directors of the UW Foundation. He is a board of trustee member of Seattle Children’s Hospital. Mr. Denman holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting from Central Washington University and a Master’s Degree in Finance and International Business from the University of Washington.

Craig Farlie is a founder of Harbor Beach Capital. Mr. Farlie is an experienced entrepreneur, having previously started a number of successful businesses, including Farlie Turner & Co., a Fort Lauderdale-based investment bank at which he is still an active Partner and Managing Director. Mr. Farlie’s career includes time spent working for large corporations, as well as smaller, more entrepreneurial efforts. The companies that he has worked for include NYSE-listed Republic Services (NYSE: RSG), Blockbuster Entertainment (formerly NYSE: BBI), and PaineWebber Incorporated (formerly NYSE: PWJ). He also co-founded and served as Chief Executive Officer of PrintSource USA, eventually building the company into a multi-state operation. He has extensive experience buying and selling

 

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companies, both for his own entities, as well as for others, including time spent at Huizenga Holdings, a private investment company based in South Florida. Mr. Farlie received a Bachelor’s Degree magna cum laude from Princeton University and a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business. Neither Mr. Farlie, Farlie Turner & Co. nor Bayshore Partners, LLC where Mr. Farlie is an associated person will participate or be participating members in the offering (as such terms are defined in FINRA Rule 5110).

Damian Gilbert has 25 years of combined experience in investment banking and asset management. He is the founder of Lochearn Capital, a boutique advisory firm. Prior to founding Lochearn, Mr. Gilbert was a Managing Director with Fortress Investments, an asset management firm based in New York, where he worked primarily with growth equity investments in the Fortress Partners Fund. Prior to Fortress, he was a Managing Director with Allen & Company, a New York based merchant bank, where he provided M&A, financing, and strategic advice to family offices, private and public companies globally. Prior to being a member of Allen & Co’s advisory practice, he was a Managing Director with Allen Global Partners, an event driven hedge fund, where he oversaw the international portfolio and invested in a variety of merger arbitrage, special situations, and distressed debt opportunities. His earlier career included roles with event driven hedge fund Chesapeake Partners, and private equity firm Advanta Partners. Mr. Gilbert began his career in the investment banking division of Smith Barney in 1996, working in both the M&A and Technology, Media, and Telecommunications (TMT) groups. Mr. Gilbert holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics from Duke University. Mr. Gilbert will not participate or be a participating member in the offering (as such terms are defined in FINRA Rule 5110).

Ed Neumann is a client centric business leader focused on delivering operational scale and financial results to high-growth business models and organizations. He has more than 30 years of financial and operations experience, serving for the last 15 years in the fintech, e-commerce and cloud-based industries. He is currently the Senior Vice President, Financial Services Operations for Lightspeed. Previously, he was the Chief Financial Officer of ShopKeep, a leading U.S. provider of cloud-based, omnichannel commerce platforms for small and medium-sized businesses, through the acquisition of the company by Lightspeed in November 2020. Prior to ShopKeep, Mr. Neumann was the Chief Financial Officer of PeopleDoc, a cloud-based SaaS business offering HR Service Delivery platform solutions to enterprise organizations. PeopleDoc was acquired by Ultimate Software (formerly NASDAQ: ULTI) in July 2018. Previous to his role at PeopleDoc, Mr. Neumann was the Chief Financial Officer at Borderfree (formerly NASDAQ: BRDR prior to its acquisition by Pitney Bowes International in 2015), an international ecommerce technology and services company, overseeing the growth and expansion of the business through its initial public offering in March 2014 and subsequent acquisition by Pitney Bowes (NYSE: PBI) in June 2015. Prior to Borderfree, he spent almost a decade at Charming Shoppes (formerly NASDAQ: CHRS), a women’s multi-channel apparel retailer, and held several key executive roles, including Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer at Charming Direct, the company’s e-commerce division. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting from West Chester University in Pennsylvania.

Diede van Lamoen is a serial founder, startup executive and angel investor. He founded Groupon China, MyLuxBox, and Commure. He was an early executive at Stripe, serving as its Head of International, and today is an active angel investor and startup advisor. Mr. van Lamoen holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science and Economics from Dartmouth College.

With respect to the above, past experience or performance of our sponsor team is not a guarantee of either (i) our ability to successfully identify and execute a transaction or (ii) success with respect to any business combination that we may consummate. You should not rely on the historical record of our sponsor team as indicative of future performance. Our sponsor team has been involved with other public and private companies in addition to those identified above, not all of which have achieved similar performance levels. See “Risk Factors—Past performance by our sponsor team or their respective affiliates (including our founders) may not be indicative of future performance of an investment in us or in the future performance of any business that we may acquire.” For a complete list of entities for which a conflict of interest may or does exist between our directors and officers and the company, please refer to “Management—Conflicts of Interest.”

Business Strategy & Competitive Strengths

We intend to focus on high growth, U.S. and international acquisition targets in the Fintech and Embedded Finance sectors.

 

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We believe that the Financial Services industry remains well behind others in terms of penetration by disruptive technologies. Examples of traditional sectors within Fintech include digital finance and lending, payment processing and gateways, mobile wallet technologies, electronic remittance, peer-to-peer solutions, authentication and security products, blockchain and digital assets, banking as a service and mobile banking, pre-paid cards, and digital wealth management. This represents only a portion of the vast array of Fintech opportunities from which to select a successful business combination.

“Embedded Finance” refers to the combination of a non-financial service provider with a financial technology. Embedded Finance offers transformational opportunities among consumer or enterprise businesses that can rapidly monetize and scale through the integration of financial technology. There are a vast range of opportunities. As described by Finextra Research and other sources, examples include: an e-commerce site offering a “buy now, pay later” option that serves as a digital loan; a ride-hailing site allowing users to pay directly on the app, rather than handing the driver cash or a credit card; an auto manufacturer or retailer electronically incorporating the application for insurance into the process of buying the vehicle; a consumer service provider allowing employees to receive payment almost instantly through a digital wallet or special debit cards; a health care provider leveraging data sets to match patients with the optimal coverage; and, a real estate service closing a transaction online without an agent as an intermediary.

The potential market for Fintech is large and rapidly expanding, particularly as payments and other embedded finance capabilities have a highly accretive impact on a myriad of consumer and enterprise applications. According to Pitchbook, during 2020, Fintech companies raised over $44 billion from venture capital in over 2,000 deals, with strong momentum in the fourth quarter, and the value of venture capital exits for Fintech companies reached almost $31 billion.

Our strategy and process are the culmination of over 100 years of combined experience of our sponsor team members in venture, private equity investing, mergers and acquisitions advisory services, asset management, equity research, investment banking, and operations/senior management. Collectively, our founders and board members have been members of numerous public and private company boards, while sourcing and providing diligence for a variety of transactions. Two have led successful public offerings as Chief Executive Officers. Our Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Ciporin, is the former Chairman and CEO of Shopping.com, where he oversaw growth from approximately zero to approximately $100 million in revenue in six years, culminating in its initial public offering in October 2004 and later an acquisition by eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY). Mr. Ciporin also has been a member of boards of other companies, including Lending Club (NYSE: LC) and Borderfree (formerly NASDAQ: BRDR prior to its acquisition by Pitney Bowes International in 2015) which have completed initial public offerings. Mike DeSimone, one of our independent directors, led Borderfree in his capacity as Chief Executive Officer and President through its initial public offering in 2014, after which it was acquired by Pitney Bowes (NYSE: PBI).

We believe that our strategic focus, experience, and tested principles will enable us to generate compelling returns for investors through an impactful business combination. In addition, we believe that our sponsor team’s extensive experience differentiates us from other similar special purpose acquisition companies and will enable us to contribute meaningfully across the core skills needed for a successful business combination, including:

 

   

Deal Flow and Screening. Our sponsor team possesses proprietary deal sourcing channels across the Fintech and Embedded Finance landscape, giving them access to a plethora of corporate leaders and highly experienced investors. These relationships derive from decades spent operating businesses, investing in private and public firms, advising managements on transactions, sitting on boards of companies, and researching investment ideas. We intend to source opportunities from these broad networks and historical partnerships, as well as from proactive diligence on investment themes and ideas.

 

   

Process. Our sponsor team has significant experience analyzing fundamentals, valuation and risk adjusted returns to ensure that we target investments with appropriately priced operational and execution risk. In addition to our founders and independent directors, we also intend to seek specialized support from respected industry experts and consultants in target sectors.

 

   

Execution. We believe that our sponsor team brings extensive transaction and deal structuring expertise within Fintech and Embedded Finance.

 

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Value Add. We believe that our sponsor team’s diverse backgrounds as investors, analysts, advisors and operators will enable us to add value for target company management, including future needs related to capital, mergers and acquisitions and strategy.

 

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Additionally, we expect that relationships cultivated from years of transaction experience with management teams of public and private companies, investment bankers, restructuring advisers, attorneys and accountants will provide potential acquisition opportunities for us.

Acquisition Criteria

Consistent with our strategy, we have identified the following criteria and guidelines that we believe are important in evaluating potential acquisition opportunities. We will generally use these criteria and guidelines in evaluating acquisition opportunities, but we may decide to complete an initial business combination with a target business that does not meet these criteria and guidelines. While we intend to acquire a controlling interest in a single company or business, we may acquire more than one company or business if the right opportunities are presented.

We intend to target venture capital-backed growth equity opportunities where we believe that our sponsor team’s collective expertise, relationships, and access to capital can significantly enhance the chances of success for an acquired target company. Though no single criterion will determine whether or not we pursue a business combination, we have identified the guidelines below for evaluating prospective targets. We intend to focus on companies that:

 

   

tie to our broad industry thesis related to Fintech and Embedded Finance, including transformational opportunities as described above;

   

provide products or services which we believe offer discernible and material value to customers;

 

   

demonstrate a consistent ability to monetize their product or service;

 

   

participate in large addressable end-markets;

 

   

harbor robust secular and scalable growth potential, that we believe have a clear path to profitability;

 

   

benefit from near-term fundamental catalysts, which we believe can propel earnings and/or equity value;

 

   

offer a diverse customer base;

   

operate a solid economic model, which we believe will generate stable and predictable cash flows and profits;

 

   

maintain protective competitive barriers with defensible intellectual property or unambiguous differentiation;

 

   

face easily identifiable and manageable product or execution risks;

 

   

have a strong and experienced management team with a successful track-record for driving growth and value for investors;

 

   

maintain the systems, analytics, and processes to effectively manage risk;

 

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stand to benefit meaningfully from the infusion of capital and the partnership with our sponsor team in order to drive future growth and to optimize operations; and

 

   

exhibit readiness to be a public company.

These criteria and guidelines are not intended to be exhaustive. We intend to remain disciplined in thoroughly evaluating the merits of any initial business combination. Any evaluation relating to the merits of a particular initial business combination may be based, to the extent relevant, on these general criteria and guidelines as well as other considerations, factors, criteria and guidelines that our management may deem relevant. In the event that we decide to enter into our initial business combination with a target business that does not meet the majority of the above criteria and guidelines, we will disclose that the target business does not meet the majority of the above criteria and guidelines in our stockholder communications related to our initial business combination, which, as discussed in this prospectus, would be in the form of tender offer documents or proxy solicitation materials that we would file with the SEC.

In addition to any potential business candidates we may identify on our own, we anticipate that other target business candidates will be brought to our attention from various unaffiliated sources, including investment market participants, private equity funds and large business enterprises seeking to divest non-core assets or divisions.

Our Acquisition Process

In evaluating a prospective target business, we expect to conduct an extensive due diligence review which may encompass, as applicable and among other things, meetings with incumbent management and employees, document reviews, interviews of customers and suppliers, inspection of facilities and a review of financial, operational, legal and other information about the target and its industry. We will also utilize our sponsor team’s operational and capital planning experience.

Each of our directors and the members of our sponsor team will, directly and/or indirectly through their membership interests in our sponsor, have an interest in founder shares and/or private placement warrants following this 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, our directors may have a conflict of interest with respect to evaluating a particular business combination if the retention or resignation of any such directors and officers is included by a target business as a condition to any agreement with respect to our initial business combination.

Certain of our officers and directors presently have, and any of them in the future may have additional, fiduciary or contractual obligations to other entities, pursuant to which such officer or director is or will be required to present a business combination opportunity to such entity subject to his or her fiduciary duties. For a list of our officers and directors and entities for which a conflict of interest may or does exist between such persons and the company, please refer to the table and subsequent explanatory paragraph in the section titled “Management—Conflicts of Interest” as well as the disclosure in each of our directors and officers respective biographies. As a result, if any of our officers or directors becomes aware of a business combination opportunity which is suitable for an entity to which he or she has then-current fiduciary or contractual obligations, then, subject to such officer’s and director’s fiduciary duties, he or she will need to honor such fiduciary or contractual obligations to present such business combination opportunity to such entity, before we can pursue such opportunity. If these other entities decide to pursue any such opportunity, we may be precluded from pursuing the same. However, we do not expect these duties or obligations to materially affect our ability to identify and pursue business combination opportunities or complete our initial business combination. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will provide that we renounce our interest in any business combination opportunity offered to any director or officer unless such opportunity is expressly offered to such person solely in his or her capacity as a director or officer of the company and it is an opportunity that we are able to complete on a reasonable basis.

In addition, our officers and directors, are not required to commit any specified amount of time to our affairs, and, accordingly, will have conflicts of interest in allocating management time among various business activities, including identifying potential business combinations and monitoring the related due diligence. See “Risk Factors—Our officers and directors will allocate their time to other businesses thereby causing conflicts of interest in their

 

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determination as to how much time to devote to our affairs. This conflict of interest could have a negative impact on our ability to complete our initial business combination.”

Initial Business Combination

In accordance with the rules of Nasdaq, our initial business combination must occur with one or more target businesses that together have an aggregate fair market value of at least 80% of the net assets held in the trust account (excluding the deferred underwriting discounts held in trust and taxes payable on the income earned on the trust account) at the time of signing a definitive agreement in connection with our initial business combination. We refer to this as the 80% of net assets test. 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 actual and potential sales, earnings, cash flow and/or book value). Even though our board of directors will rely on generally accepted standards, our board of directors will have discretion to select the standards employed. In addition, the application of the standards generally involves a substantial degree of judgment. Accordingly, investors will be relying on the business judgment of the board of directors in evaluating the fair market value of the target or targets. The proxy solicitation materials or tender offer documents used by us in connection with any proposed transaction will provide public stockholders with our analysis of our satisfaction of the 80% of net assets test, as well as the basis for our determinations. If our board of directors is not able independently to determine the fair market value of the target business or businesses, we will obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm that is a member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, Inc., or FINRA, or an independent valuation or appraisal firm with respect to the satisfaction of such criteria. While we consider it unlikely that our board will not be able to make an independent determination of the fair market value of a target business or businesses, it may be unable to do so if the board is less familiar or experienced with the target company’s business, there is a significant amount of uncertainty as to the value of the target company’s assets or prospects, including if such company is at an early stage of development, operations or growth, or if the anticipated transaction involves a complex financial analysis or other specialized skills and the board determines that outside expertise would be helpful or necessary in conducting such analysis. Since any opinion, if obtained, would merely state that the fair market value of the target business meets the 80% of net assets test, unless such opinion includes material information regarding the valuation of a target business or the consideration to be provided, it is not anticipated that copies of such opinion would be distributed to our stockholders. However, if required under applicable law, any proxy statement that we deliver to stockholders and file with the SEC in connection with a proposed transaction will include such opinion.

We anticipate structuring our initial business combination so that the post-business combination company in which our public stockholders 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-business combination 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 stockholders or for other reasons, but we will only complete such business combination if the post-business combination 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-business combination company owns or acquires 50% or more of the voting securities of the target, our stockholders prior to the business combination may collectively own a minority interest in the post-business combination company, depending on valuations ascribed to the target and us in the business combination. 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 stockholders immediately prior to our initial business combination could own less than a majority of our outstanding shares subsequent to our initial business combination. If less than 100% of the equity interests or assets of a target business or businesses are owned or acquired by the post-business combination 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 the 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 and we will treat the target businesses together as the initial business combination for purposes of a tender offer or for seeking stockholder approval, as applicable. We do not currently intend to purchase multiple businesses in unrelated industries in conjunction with our initial business combination.

 

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Subject to foregoing, 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.

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.

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.

Other Considerations

We are not prohibited from pursuing an initial business combination with a company that is affiliated with our sponsor, officers or directors. In the event we seek to complete our initial business combination with a company that is affiliated with our sponsor or any of our founders, officers or directors, we, or a committee of independent directors, will obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm that is a member of FINRA or an independent accounting firm that such initial business combination is fair to our company from a financial point of view. We are not required to obtain such an opinion in any other context.

We currently do not have any specific business combination under consideration. Our officers and directors have neither individually selected nor considered a target business nor have they had any substantive discussions regarding possible target businesses among themselves or with our underwriters. Our sponsor team is regularly made aware of potential business opportunities, one or more of which we may desire to pursue for a business combination, but we have not (nor has anyone on our behalf) contacted any prospective target business or had any substantive discussions, formal or otherwise, with respect to a business combination transaction with our company. Additionally, we have not, nor has anyone on our behalf, taken any substantive measure, directly or indirectly, to identify or locate any suitable acquisition candidate for us, nor have we engaged or retained any agent or other representative to identify or locate any such acquisition candidate.

The members of our sponsor team may sponsor, form or participate in other blank check companies similar to ours during the period in which we are seeking an initial business combination. Any such companies may present additional conflicts of interest in pursuing an acquisition target, particularly in the event there is overlap among investment mandates. However, we do not believe that any potential conflicts with such other companies would materially affect our ability to complete our initial business combination, because we believe there are multiple potential opportunities in the industries and geographies of our primary focus.

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 Class A common stock (or shares of a new holding company) or for a combination of our Class A common stock and cash, allowing us to tailor the consideration to the specific needs of the sellers. We believe target businesses will find this method a more expeditious and cost-effective method to becoming a public company than the typical initial public offering. The typical initial public offering process takes a significantly longer period of time than the typical business combination transaction process, and there are significant expenses in the initial public offering process, including underwriting discounts and commissions, that may not be present to the same extent in connection with a business combination with us.

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well as general market conditions, which could delay or prevent the offering from occurring or could have negative valuation consequences. Once public, we believe the target business would then have greater access to capital, an additional means of providing management incentives consistent with stockholders’ interests and the ability to use its shares as currency for acquisitions. 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 sponsor team’s backgrounds will make us an attractive business partner, some potential target businesses may view our status as a blank check company, such as our lack of an operating history and our ability to seek stockholder approval of any proposed initial business combination, negatively.

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 stockholder 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 this offering, (b) in which we have total annual gross revenue of at least $1.07 billion, or (c) in which we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer, which means the Market Value of our Class A common stock that are held by non-affiliates equals or exceeds $700.0 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.

Additionally, we are a “smaller reporting company” as defined in Item 10(f)(1) of Regulation S-K. Smaller reporting companies may take advantage of certain reduced disclosure obligations, including, among other things, providing only two years of audited financial statements. We will remain a smaller reporting company until the last day of the fiscal year in which (1) the market value of our shares of common stock held by non-affiliates equaled or exceeded $250 million as of the prior June 30, and (2) our annual revenues equaled or exceeded $100 million during such completed fiscal year or the market value of our shares of common stock held by non-affiliates equaled or exceeded $700 million as of the prior June 30.

Financial Position

With funds available for a business combination from this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants initially in the amount of $193,000,000, after payment of the estimated expenses of this offering and $7,000,000 of deferred underwriting fees (or $221,950,000 after payment of $8,050,000 of deferred underwriting fees if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) and assuming no redemptions of our public shares, 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 leverage ratio. Because we are able to complete our initial business combination using our cash, debt or equity securities, or a combination of the foregoing, we have the flexibility to use the most efficient combination that will allow us to tailor the consideration to be paid to the target business to fit its needs and desires. However, we have not taken any steps to secure third party financing and there can be no assurance it will be available to us.

 

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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 this offering. We intend to effectuate our initial business combination using cash from the proceeds of this offering, the private placements of the private placement warrants, our equity, debt or a combination of these as the consideration to be paid in our initial business combination. We may 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, 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 Class A common stock, 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 currently do not have any specific business combination under consideration. Our officers and directors have neither individually identified nor considered a target business, nor have they had any discussions regarding possible target businesses among themselves or with our underwriters. Our founders are continuously made aware of potential business opportunities, one or more of which we may desire to pursue for a business combination, but we have not (nor has anyone on our behalf) contacted any prospective target business or had any substantive discussions, formal or otherwise, with respect to a business combination transaction with our company. Additionally, we have not, nor has anyone on our behalf, taken any substantive measure, directly or indirectly, to identify or locate any suitable acquisition candidate for us, nor have we engaged or retained any agent or other representative to identify or locate any such acquisition candidate.

We have not selected any business combination target and we have not, nor has anyone on our behalf, initiated any substantive discussions with any business combination target. Additionally, we have not engaged or retained any agent or other representative to identify or locate any suitable acquisition candidate, to conduct any research or take any measures, directly or indirectly, to locate or contact a target business, other than our officers and directors. Accordingly, there is no current basis for investors in this offering to evaluate the possible merits or risks of the target business with which we may ultimately complete our initial business combination. Although our management will assess the risks inherent in a particular target business with which we may combine, we cannot assure you that this assessment will result in our identifying all risks that a target business may encounter. Furthermore, some of those risks may be outside of our control, meaning that we can do nothing to control or reduce the chances that those risks will adversely affect a target business.

We may need to obtain additional financing to complete our initial business combination, either because the transaction requires more cash than is available from the proceeds held in our trust account, or because we become obligated to redeem a significant number of our public shares upon completion of the business combination, in which case we may issue additional securities or incur debt in connection with such business combination. There are no prohibitions on our ability to issue securities or incur debt in connection with our initial business combination. We are not currently a party to any arrangement or understanding with any third party with respect to raising any additional funds through the sale of securities, the incurrence of debt or otherwise.

Sources of Target Businesses

Our process of identifying acquisition targets will leverage our sponsor and our sponsor team’s and the underwriters’ industry experiences and broad and deep network of relationships in numerous industries, including executives and management teams, private equity groups and other institutional investors, large business enterprises, lenders, investment bankers and other investment market participants, restructuring advisers, consultants, attorneys and accountants, which we believe should provide us with a number of business combination opportunities. We expect that the collective experience, capability and network of our founders, directors, officers and advisors, combined with their individual and collective reputations in the investment community, will help to create prospective business combination opportunities.

 

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In addition, we anticipate that target business candidates may be brought to our attention from various unaffiliated sources, including investment bankers and private investment funds. Target businesses may be brought to our attention by such unaffiliated sources as a result of being solicited by us through calls or mailings. These sources may also introduce us to target businesses in which they think we may be interested on an unsolicited basis, since many of these sources will have read this prospectus and know what types of businesses we are targeting. Our officers and directors, as well as their affiliates, may also bring to our attention target business candidates of which they become aware through their business contacts as a result of formal or informal inquiries or discussions they may have, as well as attending trade shows or conventions.

We also expect to receive a number of proprietary deal flow opportunities that would not otherwise necessarily be available to us as a result of the business relationships of our officers and directors. While we do not presently anticipate engaging the services of professional firms or other individuals that specialize in business acquisitions on any formal basis, we may engage these firms or other individuals in the future, in which event we may pay a finder’s fee, consulting fee or other compensation to be determined in an arm’s length negotiation based on the terms of the transaction. We will engage a finder only to the extent our management determines that the use of a finder may bring opportunities to us that may not otherwise be available to us or if finders approach us on an unsolicited basis with a potential transaction that our management determines is in our best interest to pursue. Payment of finder’s fees is customarily tied to completion of a transaction, in which case any such fee will be paid out of the funds held in the trust account. In no event, however, will our sponsor or any of our existing officers or directors, or any entity with which they are affiliated, be paid any finder’s fee, consulting fee or other compensation by the company prior to, or for any services they render in order to effectuate, the completion of our initial business combination (regardless of the type of transaction that it is). None of our sponsor, officers or directors, or any of their respective affiliates, will be allowed to receive any compensation, finder’s fees or consulting fees from a prospective business combination target in connection with a contemplated acquisition of such target by us.

We are not prohibited from pursuing an initial business combination with a business combination target that is affiliated with our sponsor, officers or directors or from making the acquisition through a joint venture or other form of shared ownership with our sponsor, officers or directors. In the event we seek to complete our initial business combination with a business combination target that is affiliated with our sponsor, officers or directors, we, or a committee of independent directors, would obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm which is a member of FINRA or an independent accounting firm, that such an initial business combination is fair to our company from a financial point of view. We are not required to obtain such an opinion in any other context.

Each of our officers and directors presently has, and any of them in the future may have additional, fiduciary or contractual obligations to other entities, including entities that are affiliates of our sponsor, pursuant to which such officer or director is or will be required to present a business combination opportunity to such entity. Accordingly, if any of our officers or directors becomes aware of a business combination opportunity which is suitable for an entity to which he or she has then-current fiduciary or contractual obligations, he or she will honor his or her fiduciary or contractual obligations to present such business combination opportunity to such entity, subject to their fiduciary duties. See “Management—Conflicts of Interest.”

Evaluation of a Target Business and Structuring of our Initial Business Combination

In accordance with the rules of Nasdaq, our initial business combination must occur with one or more target businesses that together have an aggregate fair market value of at least 80% of our assets held in the trust account (excluding the deferred underwriting discounts held in trust and taxes payable on the income earned on the trust account) at the time of the agreement to enter into the 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. 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 that is a member of FINRA or from an independent valuation or appraisal firm with respect to the satisfaction of such criteria. We do not currently 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

 

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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.

In any case, we will only complete an initial business combination in which we own or acquire 50% or more of the outstanding voting securities of the target or otherwise acquire a controlling interest in the target sufficient for it not to be required to register as an investment company under the Investment Company Act. If we own or acquire less than 100% of the equity interests or assets of a target business or businesses, the portion of such business or businesses that are owned or acquired by the post-transaction company is what will be valued for purposes of the 80% of net assets test. There is no basis for investors in this offering to evaluate the possible merits or risks of any target business with which we may ultimately complete our business combination.

To the extent we effect our 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, interviews of customers and suppliers, inspection of facilities, as well as a review of financial, operational, legal and other information which will be made available to us. If we determine to move forward with a particular target, we will proceed to structure and negotiate the terms of the business combination transaction.

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, and negotiation with, 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. The company will not pay any consulting fees to members of our sponsor team, or any of their respective affiliates, for services rendered to or in connection with our initial business combination.

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:

 

   

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

 

   

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 sponsor team, if any, in the target business cannot presently be stated with any certainty. The determination as to whether any of the members of our sponsor team will remain with the combined company will be made at the time of our initial business combination. 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 sponsor team will have significant experience or knowledge relating to the operations of the particular target business.

 

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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 additional managers will have the requisite skills, knowledge or experience necessary to enhance the incumbent management.

Stockholders May Not Have the Ability to Approve our Initial Business Combination

We may conduct redemptions without a stockholder vote pursuant to the tender offer rules of the SEC subject to the provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation. However, we will seek stockholder approval if it is required by law or applicable stock exchange rule, or we may decide to seek stockholder approval for business or other reasons.

Under Nasdaq’s listing rules, stockholder approval would be required for our initial business combination if, for example:

 

   

we issue (other than in a public offering for cash) shares of common stock that will either (a) be equal to or in excess of 20% of the number of shares of common stock then outstanding or (b) have voting power equal to or in excess of 20% of the voting power then outstanding;

 

   

any of our directors, officers or substantial security holders (as defined by the rules of Nasdaq has a 5% or greater interest earned on the trust account (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 common stock could result in an increase in outstanding common stock or voting power of 5% or more; or

 

   

the issuance or potential issuance will result in our undergoing a change of control.

The decision as to whether we will seek stockholder approval of a proposed business combination in those instances in which stockholder approval is not required by law will be made by us, solely in our discretion, and will be based on business and legal reasons, which include a variety of factors, including, but not limited to:

 

   

the timing of the transaction, including in the event we determine stockholder approval would require additional time and there is either not enough time to seek stockholder approval or doing so would place the company at a disadvantage in the transaction or result in other additional burdens on the company;

 

   

the expected cost of holding a stockholder vote;

 

   

the risk that the stockholders would fail to approve the proposed business combination;

 

   

other time and budget constraints of the company; and

 

   

additional legal complexities of a proposed business combination that would be time-consuming and burdensome to present to stockholders.

Permitted Purchases of Our Securities

If we seek stockholder 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 initial stockholders, directors, officers or their affiliates may purchase shares or public warrants in privately negotiated transactions or in the open market either prior to or following the completion of our initial business combination. 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. None of the funds in the trust account will be used to purchase shares or public warrants in such transactions. If they engage 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.

 

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Such a purchase may include a contractual acknowledgment that such stockholder, although still the record holder of our shares is no longer the beneficial owner thereof and therefore agrees not to exercise its redemption rights. In the event that our sponsor, directors, officers or their affiliates purchase shares in privately negotiated transactions from public stockholders who have already elected to exercise their redemption rights, such selling stockholders 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 any such purchases of shares could be to (i) vote such shares in favor of the business combination and thereby increase the likelihood of obtaining stockholder 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. The purpose of any such purchases of public warrants could be to reduce the number of public warrants outstanding or to vote such warrants on any matters submitted to the warrant holders for approval in connection with our initial business combination. Any such purchases of our securities 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 Class A common stock or public warrants 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, directors, officers, and/or their affiliates anticipate that they may identify the stockholders with whom our sponsor, directors, officers, or their affiliates may pursue privately negotiated purchases by either the stockholders contacting us directly or by our receipt of redemption requests submitted by stockholders (in the case of our Class A common stock) following our mailing of proxy materials in connection with our initial business combination. To the extent that our sponsor, directors, officers or their affiliates enter into a private purchase, they would identify and contact only potential selling stockholders who have expressed their election to redeem their shares for a pro rata share of the trust account or vote against our initial business combination, whether or not such stockholder has already submitted a proxy with respect to our initial business combination but only if such shares have not already been voted at the stockholder meeting related to our initial business combination. Our sponsor, directors, officers or any of their affiliates will select which stockholders to purchase shares from based on the negotiated price and number of shares and any other factors that they may deem relevant, and will only purchase shares if such purchases comply with Regulation M under the Exchange Act and the other federal securities laws.

Any purchases by our sponsor, directors, officers 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, directors, officers or their affiliates will not make purchases of shares if the purchases would violate Section 9(a)(2) or Rule 10b-5 of the Exchange Act. Any such purchases will be reported pursuant to Section 13 and Section 16 of the Exchange Act to the extent such purchasers are subject to such reporting requirements.

Redemption Rights for Public Stockholders upon Completion of our Initial Business Combination

We will provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their shares of Class A common stock 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 calculated as of two business days prior to the completion of the initial business combination, including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes, if any, divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, subject to the limitations described in this prospectus. 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. The

 

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redemption rights will include the requirement that a beneficial holder must identify itself in order to validly redeem its shares. There will be no redemption rights upon the completion of our initial business combination with respect to our warrants. 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 any founder shares and any public shares they may acquire during or after this offering in connection with (i) the completion of our initial business combination and (ii) a stockholder vote to approve an amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation that would affect the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we have not completed an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering. The public anchor investors have agreed to waive their redemption rights with respect to any founder shares in connection with (i) the completion of our initial business combination and (ii) a stockholder vote to approve an amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation that would affect the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we have not completed an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering. The public anchor investors will not be entitled to redemption rights with respect to any founder shares held by them in connection with the completion of our business combination.

Limitations on Redemptions

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation 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 (so that we are not subject to the SEC’s “penny stock” rules). However, 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 Class A common stock 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 Class A common stock submitted for redemption will be returned to the holders thereof.

Manner of Conducting Redemptions

We will provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their public shares upon the completion of our initial business combination either (i) in connection with a stockholder meeting called to approve the business combination or (ii) by means of a tender offer. The decision as to whether we will seek stockholder 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 stockholder approval under applicable law or stock exchange listing requirement or whether we were deemed to be a foreign private issuer (which would require a tender offer rather than seeking stockholder approval under SEC rules). Asset acquisitions and share purchases would not typically require stockholder approval while direct mergers with our company where we do not survive and any transactions where we issue more than 20% of our shares of outstanding common stock or seek to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation would require stockholder approval. We currently intend to conduct redemptions in connection with a stockholder vote unless stockholder approval is not required by applicable law or stock exchange listing requirement and we choose to conduct redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules of the SEC for business or other reasons. So long as we obtain and maintain a listing for our securities on Nasdaq, we will be required to comply with Nasdaq rules.

If we held a stockholder vote to approve our initial business combination, we will, pursuant to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation:

 

   

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

 

   

file proxy materials with the SEC.

 

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In the event that we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination, we will distribute proxy materials and, in connection therewith, provide our public stockholders with the redemption rights described above upon completion of the initial business combination.

If we seek stockholder approval, we will complete our initial business combination only if a majority of the outstanding shares of common stock voted are voted in favor of the initial business combination. A quorum for such meeting will consist of the holder present in person or by proxy of shares of outstanding capital stock of the Company representing a majority of the voting power of all outstanding shares of capital stock of the Company entitled to vote at such meeting. Holders of our founder shares will count towards this quorum and, pursuant to the terms of a letter agreement entered into with us, our sponsor, officers and directors have agreed to vote their founder shares and any public shares they may acquire during or after this offering, and each of our anchor investors has agreed to vote their founder shares (subject to the right to abstain from voting), in favor of our initial business combination. For purposes of seeking approval of the majority of our outstanding shares of common stock voted, non-votes will have no effect on the approval of our initial business combination once a quorum is obtained. As a result, if all issued and outstanding shares are voted and the over-allotment option is not exercised, in addition to our founder shares (assuming all public anchor investors vote their founder shares in favor of the business combination), we would need 7,500,001 (or 37.5%) of the 20,000,000 public shares sold in this offering to be voted in favor of an initial business combination in order to have our initial business combination approved. If only the minimum number of shares representing a quorum are voted and the over-allotment option is not exercised, in addition to our founder shares (assuming all public anchor investors vote their founder shares in favor of the business combination), we would need 1,250,001 (or 6.25%) of the 20,000,000 public shares sold in this offering to be voted in favor of an initial business combination in order to have our initial business combination approved. In the event that the anchor investors purchase all of the units that they have expressed an interest in purchasing in this offering, hold all such units until prior to consummation of our initial business combination and vote their public shares in favor of our initial business combination, in addition to the founder shares, no affirmative votes from other public shareholders would be required to approve our initial business combination. The anchor investors are not required to vote any of their public shares in favor of our initial business combination or for or against any other matter presented for a shareholder vote. These quorum and voting thresholds, and the voting agreements of our initial stockholders, may make it more likely that we will complete our initial business combination. In addition, as a result of the private placement warrants that the UBS O’Connor anchor investors may indirectly have an interest in through their interest in our sponsor, they may have different interests with respect to a vote on an initial business combination than other anchor investors and public stockholders. Each public stockholder may elect to redeem its public shares irrespective of whether they vote for or against the proposed transaction or whether they were a stockholder on the record date for the stockholder meeting held to approve 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 and any public shares held by them in connection with (i) the completion of a business combination and (ii) a stockholder vote to approve an amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation that would affect the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we have not completed an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering. The public anchor investors will not be entitled to redemption rights with respect to any founder shares held by them in connection with the completion of a business combination.

If, however, stockholder approval of the transaction is required by law or stock exchange listing requirement, or we decide to obtain stockholder approval for business or other reasons, we will, pursuant to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation:

 

   

conduct the redemptions pursuant to Rule 13e-4 and Regulation 14E of the Exchange Act, which regulate issuer tender offers; and

 

   

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.

 

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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 Class A common stock 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.

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 stockholders not tendering more than the number of public shares we are permitted to redeem. If public stockholders tender more shares than we have offered to purchase, we will withdraw the tender offer and not complete the initial business combination.

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will provide 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 (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 shares of our Class A common stock 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 shares of our Class A common stock submitted for redemption will be returned to the holders thereof.

Limitation on Redemption upon Completion of Our Initial Business Combination If We Seek Stockholder Approval

Notwithstanding the foregoing, if we seek stockholder 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 certificate of incorporation will provide that a public stockholder, together with any affiliate of such stockholder or any other person with whom such stockholder 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 the Excess Shares. We believe this restriction will discourage stockholders 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 management to purchase their shares at a significant premium to the then-current market price or on other undesirable terms. Absent this provision, a public stockholder holding more than an aggregate of 15% of the public shares included in the units sold in this offering could threaten to exercise its redemption rights if such holder’s shares are not purchased by us, our sponsor or our management at a premium to the then-current market price or on other undesirable terms. By limiting our stockholders’ ability to redeem no more than 15% of the shares sold in this offering without our prior consent, we believe we will limit the ability of a small group of stockholders 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 stockholders’ ability to vote all of their shares (including Excess Shares) for or against our initial business combination.

Tendering Share Certificates in Connection with a Tender Offer or Redemption Rights

Public stockholders seeking to exercise their redemption rights, whether they are record holders or hold their shares in “street name,” will be required to either tender their certificates (if any) to our transfer agent prior to the date set forth in the proxy solicitation or tender offer materials, as applicable, mailed to such holders, or to deliver their shares to the transfer agent electronically using The Depository Trust Company’s DWAC (Deposit/ Withdrawal At Custodian) System, at the holder’s option, in each case up to two business days prior to the initially scheduled vote to approve the business combination. The proxy solicitation or tender offer materials, as applicable, that we will furnish to holders of our public shares in connection with our initial business combination will indicate the applicable delivery requirements, which will include the requirement that a beneficial holder must identify itself in order to validly redeem its shares. Accordingly, a public stockholder would have from the time we send out our

 

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tender offer materials until the close of the tender offer period, or up to two days prior to the initial 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. Given the relatively short period in which to exercise redemption rights, it is advisable for stockholders 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 a fee of approximately $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.

The foregoing is different from the procedures used by some 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 stockholders’ 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 stockholder to arrange for him or her to deliver his or her certificate to verify ownership. As a result, the stockholder 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 stockholders were aware they needed to commit before the general 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 stockholder’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 two business days prior to the vote on the proposal to approve the business combination, unless otherwise agreed to by us. 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 stockholders 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.

If our initial proposed business combination is not completed, we may continue to try to complete a business combination with a different target until 18 months from the closing of this offering.

Redemption of Public Shares and Liquidation if no Initial Business Combination

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will provide that we will have only 18 months from the closing of this offering to complete an initial business combination. If we have not completed an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering, 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 earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes, if any (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of the then outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidation distributions, if any), subject to applicable law, and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining stockholders and our board of directors, liquidate and dissolve, subject in each case to our obligations under

 

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Delaware 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 warrants, which will expire worthless if we do not complete an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering.

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 if we do not complete an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering. The public anchor investors have agreed to waive their redemption rights with respect to any founder shares held by them in connection with the completion of our initial business combination or otherwise. However, if our sponsor, officers, directors or anchor investors acquire public shares in or after this offering, they will be entitled to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to such public shares if we do not complete an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering.

Our sponsor, officers and directors have agreed, pursuant to a written agreement with us, that they will not propose any amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation that would affect the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering, unless we provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their public 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 earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes, if any (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses) divided by the number of the then 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 (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, we would not proceed with the amendment or the related redemption of our public shares at such time. This redemption right shall apply in the event of the approval of any such amendment, whether proposed by our sponsor, any officer, director, or any other person.

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 amounts remaining out of the approximately $2,900,000 of proceeds held outside the trust account plus up to $100,000 of funds from the trust account available to us to pay dissolution expenses, 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 this offering the sale of the private placement warrants, 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 stockholders upon our dissolution would be approximately $10.00. 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 stockholders. We cannot assure you that the actual per share redemption amount received by stockholders will not be substantially less than $10.00. Under Section 281(b) of the DGCL, our plan of dissolution must provide for all claims against us to be paid in full or make provision for payments to be made in full, as applicable, if there are sufficient assets. These claims must be paid or provided for before we make any distribution of our remaining assets to our stockholders. 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 (other than our independent registered public accounting firm), prospective target businesses and 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 stockholders, 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

 

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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. The underwriters will not execute agreements with us waiving such claims to the monies held in the trust account. 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. In order to protect the amounts held in the trust account, our sponsor has agreed that it will be liable to us if and to the extent any claims by a third party for services rendered or products sold to us (other than our independent registered public accounting firm), or a prospective target business with which we have discussed entering into a business combination transaction agreement, reduce the amounts in the trust account to below the lesser of (i) $10.00 per public share and (ii) the actual amount per public share held in the trust account as of the date of the liquidation of the trust account if less than $10.00 per share, due to reductions in the value of the trust assets, in each case net of the interest that may be withdrawn to pay our taxes, if any, provided that such liability will not apply to any claims by a third party or prospective target business that executed a waiver of any and all rights to seek access to the trust account nor will it apply to any claims under our indemnity of the underwriters of this offering 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, our sponsor will not be responsible to the extent of any liability for such third-party claims. However, we have not asked our sponsor to reserve for such indemnification obligations, nor have we independently verified whether our sponsor has sufficient funds to satisfy their indemnity obligations and we believe that our sponsor’s only assets are securities of our company. Therefore, we cannot assure you that our sponsor would be able to satisfy those obligations. None of our officers or directors will indemnify us for claims by third parties including, without limitation, claims by vendors and prospective target businesses.

In the event that the proceeds in the trust account are reduced below the lesser of (i) $10.00 per public share and (ii) the actual amount per public share held in the trust account as of the date of the liquidation of the trust account if less than $10.00 per share, due to reductions in the value of the trust assets, in each case net of the interest which may be withdrawn to pay our taxes, if any, 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 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 (other than our independent registered public accounting firm), 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 this offering against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. We will have access to up to approximately $2,900,000 from the proceeds of this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants with which to pay any such potential claims (including costs and expenses incurred in connection with our liquidation, currently estimated to be no more than approximately $100,000). In the event that we liquidate and it is subsequently determined that the reserve for claims and liabilities is insufficient, stockholders who received funds from our trust account could be liable for claims made by creditors, however such liability will not be greater than the amount of funds from our trust account received by any such stockholder. In the event that our offering expenses exceed our estimate of $700,000, 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 $700,000, the amount of funds we intend to be held outside the trust account would increase by a corresponding amount.

 

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Under the DGCL, stockholders may be held liable for claims by third parties against a corporation to the extent of distributions received by them in a dissolution. The pro rata portion of our trust account distributed to our public stockholders upon the redemption of our public shares in the event we do not complete our initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering may be considered a liquidating distribution under Delaware law. If the corporation complies with certain procedures set forth in Section 280 of the DGCL intended to ensure that it makes reasonable provision for all claims against it, including a 60-day notice period during which any third-party claims can be brought against the corporation, a 90-day period during which the corporation may reject any claims brought, and an additional 150-day waiting period before any liquidating distributions are made to stockholders, any liability of stockholders with respect to a liquidating distribution is limited to the lesser of such stockholder’s pro rata share of the claim or the amount distributed to the stockholder, and any liability of the stockholder would be barred after the third anniversary of the dissolution.

Furthermore, if the pro rata portion of our trust account distributed to our public stockholders upon the redemption of our public shares in the event we do not complete our initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering, is not considered a liquidating distribution under Delaware law and such redemption distribution is deemed to be unlawful (potentially due to the imposition of legal proceedings that a party may bring or due to other circumstances that are currently unknown), then pursuant to Section 174 of the DGCL, the statute of limitations for claims of creditors could then be six years after the unlawful redemption distribution, instead of three years, as in the case of a liquidating distribution. If we do not complete our initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering, 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 earned on the funds held in the trust account that may be released to us to pay our taxes, if any (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidating distributions, if any) and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining stockholders and our board of directors, dissolve and liquidate, subject in each case to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. Accordingly, it is our intention to redeem our public shares as soon as reasonably possible following our 18th month and, therefore, we do not intend to comply with those procedures. As such, our stockholders could potentially be liable for any claims to the extent of distributions received by them (but no more) and any liability of our stockholders may extend well beyond the third anniversary of such date.

Because we will not be complying with Section 280, Section 281(b) of the DGCL requires us to adopt a plan, based on facts known to us at such time that will provide for our payment of all existing and pending claims or claims that may be potentially brought against us within the subsequent ten years. However, because we are a blank check company, rather than an operating company, and our operations will be limited to searching for prospective target businesses to acquire, the only likely claims to arise would be from our vendors (such as lawyers, investment bankers, etc.) or prospective target businesses. As described above, pursuant to the obligation contained in our underwriting agreement, 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. As a result of this obligation, the claims that could be made against us are significantly limited and the likelihood that any claim that would result in any liability extending to the trust account is remote. Further, our sponsor may be liable only to the extent necessary to ensure that the amounts in the trust account are not 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 withdrawn to pay taxes and will not be liable as to any claims under our indemnity of the underwriters of this offering 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, our sponsor will not be responsible to the extent of any liability for such third-party claims.

If we file a bankruptcy or winding-up petition or an involuntary bankruptcy or winding-up petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, the proceeds held in the trust account could be subject to applicable bankruptcy or insolvency law, and may be included in our bankruptcy estate and subject to the claims of third parties with priority over the

 

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claims of our stockholders. 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 stockholders. Additionally, if we file a bankruptcy or winding-up petition or an involuntary bankruptcy or winding-up petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, any distributions received by stockholders could be viewed under applicable debtor/creditor and/or bankruptcy or insolvency laws as either a “preferential transfer” or a “fraudulent conveyance.” As a result, a bankruptcy or insolvency court could seek to recover some or all amounts received by our stockholders. Furthermore, our board of directors 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 stockholders from the trust account prior to addressing the claims of creditors. We cannot assure you that claims will not be brought against us for these reasons.

Our public stockholders will be entitled to receive funds from the trust account only (i) in the event of the redemption of our public shares if we do not complete an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering, (ii) in connection with a stockholder vote to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation (A) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering or (B) with respect to any other provisions relating to the rights of holders of our Class A common stock, or (iii) if they redeem their respective shares for cash upon the completion of the initial business combination. Public stockholders who redeem their shares of our Class A common stock in connection with a stockholder vote described in clause (ii) in the preceding sentence shall not be entitled to funds from the trust account upon the subsequent completion of an initial business combination or liquidation if we have not completed an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering, with respect to such shares of our Class A common stock so redeemed. In no other circumstances will a stockholder have any right or interest of any kind to or in the trust account. In the event we seek stockholder approval in connection with our initial business combination, a stockholder’s voting in connection with the business combination alone will not result in a stockholder’s redeeming its shares to us for an applicable pro rata share of the trust account. Such stockholder must have also exercised its redemption rights described above. These provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, like all provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, may be amended with a stockholder vote.

Comparison of Redemption or Purchase Prices in Connection with our Initial Business Combination and if We Do Not Complete our Initial Business Combination

The following table compares the redemptions and other permitted purchases of public shares that may take place in connection with the completion of our initial business combination and if we have not completed our business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering.

 

    

REDEMPTIONS IN
CONNECTION WITH OUR
INITIAL BUSINESS COMBINATION

  

OTHER PERMITTED
PURCHASES OF PUBLIC
SHARES BY OUR AFFILIATES

  

REDEMPTIONS
IF WE DO NOT COMPLETE AN
INITIAL BUSINESS COMBINATION

Calculation of redemption price    Redemptions at the time of our initial business combination may be made pursuant to a tender offer or in connection with a stockholder vote. The redemption price will be the same whether we conduct redemptions pursuant to a tender offer or in connection with a stockholder vote. In either case, our public stockholders may redeem their public shares for cash equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account    If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination, our sponsor, directors, officers or their affiliates may purchase shares in privately negotiated transactions or in the open market either prior to or following completion of our initial business combination. There is no limit to the prices that our initial stockholders, directors, officers or their    If we have not completed an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering, we will redeem all public shares at a per share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount, then on deposit in the trust account (which is initially anticipated to be $10.00 per share), including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes, if any (less

 

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REDEMPTIONS IN
CONNECTION WITH OUR
INITIAL BUSINESS COMBINATION

  

OTHER PERMITTED
PURCHASES OF PUBLIC
SHARES BY OUR AFFILIATES

  

REDEMPTIONS
IF WE DO NOT COMPLETE AN
INITIAL BUSINESS COMBINATION

   calculated as of two business days prior to the completion of the initial business combination (which is initially anticipated to be $10.00 per share), including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes, if any (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses) divided by the number of the then outstanding public shares, subject to the limitation that no redemptions will take place if all of the redemptions would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001 and any limitations (including but not limited to cash requirements) agreed to in connection with the negotiation of terms of a proposed business combination.    affiliates may pay in these transactions. If they engage in such transactions, they will not make any such purchases when they are in possession of any material nonpublic information not disclosed to the seller or if such purchases are prohibited by Regulation M under the Exchange Act. 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.    up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses) divided by the number of the then outstanding public shares.
Impact to remaining stockholders    The redemptions in connection with our initial business combination will reduce the book value per share for our remaining stockholders, who will bear the burden of the deferred underwriting commissions and taxes payable.    If the permitted purchases described above are made, there would be no impact to our remaining stockholders because the purchase price would not be paid by us.    The redemption of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination will reduce the book value per share for the shares held by our sponsor, who will be our only remaining stockholder after such redemptions.

 

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Comparison of This Offering to Those of Blank Check Companies Subject to Rule 419

The following table compares the terms of this offering to the terms of an offering by a blank check company subject to the provisions of Rule 419. This comparison assumes that the gross proceeds, underwriting commissions and underwriting expenses of our offering would be identical to those of an offering undertaken by a company subject to Rule 419, and that the underwriters will not exercise their over-allotment option. None of the provisions of Rule 419 apply to our offering.

 

    

TERMS OF OUR OFFERING

  

TERMS UNDER A RULE 419 OFFERING

Escrow of offering proceeds    $200,000,000 of the net proceeds of this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants will be deposited into a U.S.-based trust account with Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, acting as trustee.    $170,100,000 of the offering proceeds, representing the gross proceeds of this offering would be required to be deposited into either an escrow account with an insured depositary institution or in a separate bank account established by a broker-dealer in which the broker-dealer acts as trustee for persons having the beneficial interests in the account.  
Investment of net proceeds    $200,000,000 of the net proceeds of this offering and the sale of the private placement warrants held in trust will be invested only in U.S. government treasury obligations with a maturity of 185 days or less or in money market funds meeting certain conditions under Rule 2a-7 under the Investment Company Act which invest only in direct U.S. government treasury obligations.    Proceeds could be invested only in specified securities such as a money market fund meeting conditions of the Investment Company Act or in securities that are direct obligations of, or obligations guaranteed as to principal or interest by, the United States.
Receipt of interest on escrowed funds    Interest income (if any) on proceeds from the trust account to be paid to stockholders is reduced by (i) any taxes paid or payable and (ii) in the event of our liquidation for failure to complete our initial business combination within the allotted time, up to $100,000 of net interest that may be released to us should we have no or insufficient working capital to fund the costs and expenses of our dissolution and liquidation.    Interest income on funds in escrow account would be held for the sole benefit of investors, unless and only after the funds held in escrow were released to us in connection with our completion of a business combination.
Limitation on fair value or net assets of target business    Nasdaq rules require that our initial business combination must occur with one or more target businesses that together have an aggregate fair market value of at least 80% of our net assets held in the trust account (excluding the amount of deferred underwriting discounts held in trust and taxes payable on the income earned on the trust account) at the time of the agreement to enter into the initial business combination.    The fair value or net assets of a target business must represent at least 80% of the maximum offering proceeds.

 

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TERMS OF OUR OFFERING

  

TERMS UNDER A RULE 419 OFFERING

Trading of securities issued   

The units are expected to begin trading on or promptly after the date of this prospectus. The shares of our Class A common stock and warrants comprising the units will begin separate trading on the 52nd day following the date of this prospectus (or, if such date is not a business day, the following business day) unless Jefferies informs us of its decision to allow earlier separate trading, subject to our having filed the Current Report on Form 8-K described below and having issued a press release announcing when such separate trading will begin. We will file the Current Report on Form 8-K promptly after the closing of this offering. If the over-allotment option is exercised following the initial filing of such Current Report on Form 8-K, an additional Current Report on Form 8-K will be filed to provide updated financial information to reflect the exercise of the over-allotment option.

 

The units will automatically separate into their component parts and will not be traded after completion of our initial business combination.

   No trading of the units or the underlying Class A common stock and warrants would be permitted until the completion of a business combination. During this period, the securities would be held in the escrow or trust account.
Exercise of the warrants    The warrants cannot be exercised until 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination.    The warrants could be exercised prior to the completion of a business combination, but securities received and cash paid in connection with the exercise would be deposited in the escrow or trust account.
Election to remain an investor    We will provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their public shares for cash at a per share price equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account calculated as of two business days prior to the completion of our initial business combination, including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes, if any (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses) divided by the number of the then outstanding public shares, upon the completion of our initial business combination, subject to the limitations described in this prospectus. We may not be required by law to hold a stockholder vote. If we are not required by law and do not otherwise decide to hold a stockholder vote,    A prospectus containing information pertaining to the business combination required by the SEC would be sent to each investor. Each investor would be given the opportunity to notify the company in writing, within a period of no less than 20 business days and no more than 45 business days from the effective date of a post-effective amendment to the company’s registration statement, to decide if he, she or it elects to remain a stockholder of the company or require the return of his, her or its investment. If the company has not received the notification by the end of the 45th business day, funds and interest or dividends, if any, held in the trust or escrow account are automatically returned to the stockholder. Unless a sufficient number of investors elect to remain investors, all funds

 

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TERMS OF OUR OFFERING

  

TERMS UNDER A RULE 419 OFFERING

   we will, pursuant to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, conduct the redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules of the SEC and file tender offer documents with the SEC which will contain substantially the same financial and other information about the initial business combination and the redemption rights as is required under the SEC’s proxy rules. If, however, we hold a stockholder vote, we will, like many blank check companies, offer to redeem shares in conjunction with a proxy solicitation pursuant to the proxy rules and not pursuant to the tender offer rules. If we seek stockholder approval, we will complete our initial business combination only if a majority of the shares of common stock voted are voted in favor of the business combination. Additionally, each public stockholder may elect to redeem its public shares irrespective of whether they vote for or against the proposed transaction.    on deposit in the escrow account must be returned to all of the investors and none of the securities are issued.
Business combination deadline    If we have not completed an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering, we will (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up; (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than ten business days thereafter, redeem 100% of the public shares, at a per share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes, if any (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses) divided by the number of the then outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidation distributions, if any), subject to applicable law, and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining stockholders and our board of directors, liquidate and dissolve, subject in each case to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law.    If an acquisition has not been completed within 18 months after the effective date of the company’s registration statement, funds held in the trust or escrow account are returned to investors.

 

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TERMS OF OUR OFFERING

  

TERMS UNDER A RULE 419 OFFERING

Release of funds   

Except for the withdrawal of interest income (if any) to pay our taxes, if any, none of the funds held in trust will be released from the trust account until the earliest of:

 

(i) the completion of our initial business combination,

 

(ii) the redemption of 100% of our public shares if we have not completed an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering, subject to applicable law, or

 

(iii) the redemption of our public shares properly submitted in connection with a stockholder vote to approve an amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation that (A) would affect the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we have not completed an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering or (B) with respect to the rights of holders of our Class A common stock and any other provisions relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity.

   The proceeds held in the escrow account are not released until the earlier of the completion of a business combination or the failure to effect a business combination within the allotted time.

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, public companies 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 stockholders who exercise their redemption rights may reduce the resources available to us for our initial business combination and our outstanding warrants, 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.

Employees

We currently have two officers, each of whom are executive officers. These individuals 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 they will devote in any time period will vary based on whether a target business has been selected for our initial business combination and the stage of the business combination process we are in. We do not intend to have any full time employees prior to the completion of our initial business combination.

 

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Periodic Reporting and Financial Information

We will register our units, Class A common stock and warrants 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 stockholders with audited financial statements of the prospective target business as part of the proxy solicitation or tender offer materials, as applicable, sent to stockholders to assist them in assessing the target business. In all likelihood, these financial statements may be required to be prepared in accordance with, or reconciled to, GAAP, or IFRS, depending on the circumstances, and the historical financial statements may be required to be audited in accordance with the standards of 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. We cannot assure you that any particular target business identified by us as a potential acquisition candidate will have financial statements prepared in accordance with the requirements outlined above, or that the potential target business will be able to prepare its financial statements in accordance with the requirements outlined above. To the extent that these requirements cannot be met, we may not be able to acquire the proposed target business. While this may limit the pool of potential acquisition candidates, we do not believe that this limitation will be material.

We will be required to evaluate our internal control procedures for the fiscal year ending December 31, 2022 as required by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Only in the event we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer or an accelerated filer, and no longer qualify as an emerging growth company, will we be required to have our internal control procedures audited. A target business 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 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 completion of our initial business combination.

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 stockholder 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 this offering, (b) in which we have total annual gross revenue of at least $1.07 billion, or (c) in which we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer, which means the Market Value of the shares of our Class A common stock that are held by non-affiliates equals or exceeds $700.0 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 during the prior three-year period.

 

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Legal Proceedings

There is no material litigation, arbitration or governmental proceeding currently pending against us or any members of our sponsor team in their capacity as such, and we and the members of our sponsor team have not been subject to any such proceeding in the 12 months preceding the date of this prospectus.

 

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MANAGEMENT

Founders, Officers, and Directors

Our officers and directors are as follows:

 

NAME

  

AGE

  

POSITION

Daniel Ciporin

  

63

   Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and Director

Jonathan Rosenzweig

   52    Chief Financial Officer, Secretary and Director

Michael A. DeSimone

   55    Director

Michele Docharty

   54    Director

Ross Fubini

   45    Director

Rhonda Ramparas

   46    Director

Daniel Ciporin has served as our Chairman and Chief Executive Officer and a director since our inception in March 2021. Mr. Ciporin served as a General Partner at Canaan Partners, a leading institutional venture capital firm that was founded over 30 years ago, from early 2007 until his retirement at the end of 2020. At Canaan Partners, Mr. Ciporin specialized in financial technology, marketplaces, and e-commerce investments. While at Canaan Partners, he led investments in 19 different companies with a multiple on invested capital (MOIC) of approximately 4.3x. He was a member of the boards of publicly held Lending Club (NYSE: LC), as well as numerous private companies including ShopKeep, Bellhop, Bumped, Bond, CircleUp, Ollie, Ephemeral Solutions, Inc., Homeis and JOOR among others. Mr. Ciporin has also served on the boards of several other publicly held companies, including Borderfree (where he was also chairman) (formerly NASDAQ: BRDR prior to its acquisition by Pitney Bowes International in 2015), Primedia (formerly NYSE: PRM), VistaPrint (formerly NASDAQ: VPRT), and Corel (NASDAQ: CREL). He is the former Chairman and CEO of Shopping.com (formerly NASDAQ: SHOP), where he oversaw growth from approximately zero to approximately $100 million in revenue in six years, culminating in the company’s IPO in October 2004 and later acquisition by eBay (NASDAQ: EBAY) in 2005. Prior to Shopping.com, Mr. Ciporin served as senior vice president of MasterCard International, where he managed global debit services. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree from Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs and a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from Yale University’s School of Management (SOM), where he also sits on the SOM Board of Advisors. We believe Mr. Ciporin is well-qualified to serve as a member of our board of directors due to his extensive experience, relationships and contacts.

Jonathan Rosenzweig has served as Chief Financial Officer and Secretary and a director since our inception in March 2021. Before joining Home Plate, Mr. Rosenzweig served as a Managing Director and Head of Americas Equity Research at Citigroup (NYSE: C) from 2007 until 2020. In this role, Mr. Rosenzweig was responsible for all equity research product in North America and Latin America for more than 13 years. Prior to that position, Mr. Rosenzweig served as a Deputy Director and Associate Director of U.S. Research at Citigroup for five years. From 1993–2002, Mr. Rosenzweig was a Senior Analyst covering the Imaging sector within Citi Research, including an array of Technology, Commercial and Consumer stocks. He provided detailed analysis, financial forecasts and investment recommendations for institutional investors at top asset management firms and hedge funds. During his career, he covered companies such as Adobe (NASDAQ: ADBE), Macromedia (formerly NASDAQ: MACR), Electronics for Imaging (formerly NASDAQ: EFII), 3M (NYSE: MMM), Xerox (NYSE: XRX), Ikon Office Solutions (formerly NYSE: IKN), and Eastman Kodak (NYSE: KODK), among others. Mr. Rosenzweig earned a top 2 ranking from Institutional Investor Magazine for the sector each year from 1997–2002. Prior to Citigroup, Mr. Rosenzweig worked as a Financial Analyst at Duke University Management Company. Since June 2021, Mr. Rosenzweig has served as a member of the board of directors of eThematics. Mr. Rosenzweig holds a Bachelor’s Degree from Duke University and a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from The Fuqua School of Business at Duke University. We believe Mr. Rosenzweig is well-qualified to serve as a member of our board of directors due to his extensive experience, relationships and contacts.

Michael A. DeSimone is expected to serve as a director upon the closing of this offering. Mr. DeSimone is currently a general manager at Lightspeed USA Commerce Inc., a company that provides a smart commerce platform to more than 100,000 independent retailers, restaurants, and golf course operators around the world. Prior to its sale to Lightspeed, Mr. DeSimone was the President and CEO of ShopKeep, a cloud-based technology solution that transforms an iPad into a smart, connected cash register that is used by more than 24,000 small businesses, from 2015 through the acquisition

 

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of the company by Lightspeed in November 2020. Mr. DeSimone is a global chief executive, with more than 30 years of experience working within the financial services and technology industry. As President and CEO at ShopKeep, Mr. DeSimone led the strategy to sustainably grow and scale the business, which processed approximately $8 billion in transactions in 2019. Prior to joining ShopKeep, Mr. DeSimone was President and CEO of Borderfree (formerly NASDAQ: BRDR prior to its acquisition by Pitney Bowes International in 2015), where he was responsible for the overall strategic direction including the company’s transformation from an online currency conversion service to a provider of global ecommerce solutions. He led the company through their successful IPO in 2014 and its sale to Pitney Bowes (NYSE: PBI) in 2015. He was also a member of the board of Rewards Web Inc. from 2015 until 2021. Mr. DeSimone has also earned recognition on the Smart CEO’s Future 50 list in 2015 and was named a finalist for the Ernst & Young 2013 Entrepreneur of the Year award. We believe Mr. DeSimone is well-qualified to serve as a member of our board of directors due to his extensive experience, relationships and contacts.

Michele Docharty is expected to serve as a director upon the closing of this offering. Ms. Docharty is a seasoned financial services executive with over 30 years of experience at Goldman Sachs (NYSE: GS), including 10 years as a Partner. Ms. Docharty most recently served as the Americas Head of Execution Services, responsible for the firm’s equity sales trading activities, and the Global Co-head of Synthetics Distribution within the Global Markets Division. Ms. Docharty’s extensive knowledge of the asset managers and hedge funds, along with her track record of leading large sales and distribution teams in complex transactional businesses, provide her with a unique perspective on markets and what matters most to equity investors. Among her many roles at Goldman Sachs, Ms. Docharty contributed to the launch and development of the firm’s externalization of data for investing clients, and she led the governance group overseeing that transition. Ms. Docharty has experience with both the uses and the role of data as a product in the financial services sector. Ms. Docharty has built a reputation for leadership, innovation and client driven solutions for equity markets. At Goldman Sachs, Ms. Docharty drove collaboration with engineers to transition risk tools for clients onto the firm’s digital storefront, restructured the firm’s corporate access business globally, and directed the firm’s New Product Marketing team. Ms. Docharty served as Founder and Chair of the Data Services Operating Group, as well as Chair of the Equities Best Execution Sub-committee. At different points in her career, Ms. Docharty managed the Latin American Equity business, participated as a member of the Global Markets Operating Committee, the Americas Inclusion and Diversity Committee, and the Marquee Advisory Committee, and served as a Senior Member of the Firmwide Hispanic/Latinx Network. In September 2021, Ms. Docharty began serving as a member of the board of directors of Neuberger Berman. Ms. Docharty holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration from the McDonough School of Business at Georgetown University and currently serves on the Board of Advisors. In addition, Ms. Docharty was named to ALPFAs 50 most Powerful Latinas in 2018, 2019, 2020 and to Latino Leaders Magazine’s top 100 most influential Latinas in 2020. We believe Ms. Docharty is well-qualified to serve as a member of our board of directors due to her extensive experience, relationships and contacts.

Ross Fubini is expected to serve as a director upon the closing of this offering. Ross Fubini is an early stage technology investor. Mr. Fubini founded and has served as Managing Director of XYZ Ventures, a venture capital investment firm since 2017. He also co-founded Village Global, a global investment firm, in 2017. Mr. Fubini is a board member of BeyondHQ, Piazza Technologies, Legion, Beneficial State Bank, LifeRaft Risk Technologies, Inc., Saltbox, Inc., Oro Labs, Inc., Auxilius Inc., Pebble Health Inc., Bureau Inc., Sardine, Inc. and Smash. Mr. Fubini’s investments include Lendup, Optimizely, and Metromile (NASDAQ: MILE). Prior to XYZ, Mr. Fubini was a partner at Canaan Partners from 2012 to 2015, and Kapor Capital from 2011 to 2012, where he focused on defensible businesses across enterprise applications, FinTech and healthcare IT spaces. Mr. Fubini co-founded and grew CubeTree, a Gartner Visionary enterprise social collaboration company. After CubeTree was acquired by SuccessFactors (formerly NYSE: SFSF, now an SAP company) in 2010, Mr. Fubini served as a vice president of Success Factors. Mr. Fubini also held engineering leadership roles at Symantec (formerly NASDAQ: SYMC), BEA/Plumtree (formerly NASDAQ: PLUM), TellMe Networks, and Netscape (formerly NASDAQ: NSCP). He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Engineering and Art from Carnegie Mellon University. We believe Mr. Fubini is well-qualified to serve as a member of our board of directors due to his extensive experience, relationships and contacts.

Rhonda Ramparas is expected to serve as a director upon the closing of this offering. Ms. Ramparas has over 20 years of private equity, capital markets, general management, and finance experience. Most recently, Ms. Ramparas was the CFO of Boxed, an ecommerce technology company, from 2019 to April 2021. She currently consults for ecommerce and private equity investment companies. Prior to Boxed, Ms. Ramparas was a Managing Director in the Private Equity Group at Fortress Investment Group for 17 years, where she invested in, built and

 

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managed companies across a broad array of industries including consumer finance, insurance, and transportation. While at Fortress, her track record of managing investments in complex financial services businesses included serving as interim CEO of Alea Insurance Group and leading the exit strategy of many portfolio companies. Prior to joining Fortress in 2001, Ms. Ramparas held various investment banking roles at Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette and Credit Suisse (NYSE: CS). Ms. Ramparas holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from McGill University. We believe Ms. Ramparas is well-qualified to serve as a member of our board of directors due to her extensive experience, relationships and contacts.

Number and Terms of Office of Officers and Directors

Our board of directors is divided into three classes, with only one class of directors being elected in each year, and with each class (except for those directors appointed prior to our first annual meeting of stockholders) serving a three-year term. In accordance with Nasdaq corporate governance requirements, we are not required to hold an annual meeting until one year after our first fiscal year end following our listing on Nasdaq. The term of office of the first class of directors, consisting of Ms. Docharty and Mr. DeSimone will expire at our first annual meeting of stockholders. The term of office of the second class of directors, consisting of Ms. Ramparas and Mr. Fubini, will expire at our second annual meeting of the stockholders. The term of office of the third class of directors, consisting of Daniel Ciporin and Jonathan Rosenzweig, will expire at our third annual meeting of stockholders. We may not hold an annual meeting of stockholders until after we complete our initial business combination.

Prior to the completion of an initial business combination, any vacancy on the board of directors may be filled by a nominee chosen by holders of a majority of our founder shares. In addition, prior to the completion of an initial business combination, holders of a majority of our founder shares may remove a member of the board of directors for any reason.

Pursuant to an agreement to be entered into concurrently with the issuance and sale of the securities in this offering, our sponsor, upon completion of an initial business combination, will be entitled to nominate up to three individuals for election to our board of directors, as long as the sponsor holds any securities covered by the registration rights agreement.

Our officers are appointed by the board of directors and serve at the discretion of the board of directors, rather than for specific terms of office. Our board of directors is authorized to nominate persons to the offices set forth in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation as it deems appropriate. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will provide that our officers may consist of one or more chairman of the board of directors, chief executive officer, president, chief financial officer, vice presidents, secretary, treasurer and such other offices as may be determined by the board of directors.

Director Independence

Nasdaq listing standards require that a majority of our board of directors be independent within one year of our initial public offering. An “independent director” is defined generally as a person other than an officer or employee of the company or its subsidiaries or any other individual having a relationship which in the opinion of the company’s board of directors, would interfere with the director’s exercise of independent judgment in carrying out the responsibilities of a director. Our board of directors has determined that Mr. DeSimone, Ms. Docharty, Mr. Fubini and Ms. Ramparas are “independent directors” as defined in Nasdaq listing standards and applicable SEC rules. Our independent directors will have regularly scheduled meetings at which only independent directors are present.

Officer and Director Compensation

None of our officers or directors have received any cash compensation for services rendered to us. Commencing on the date that our securities are first listed on Nasdaq through the earlier of consummation of our initial business combination and our liquidation, we will pay up to $15,000 per month to our sponsor for administrative, financial and support services. Our sponsor, officers and directors, or any of their respective affiliates will be reimbursed for any out-of-pocket expenses incurred in connection with activities on our behalf such as identifying potential target businesses and performing due diligence on suitable business combinations. Our audit committee will review on a quarterly basis all payments that were made to our sponsor, officers or directors, or their affiliates. Any such

 

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payments prior to an initial business combination will be made using funds held outside the trust account. Other than quarterly audit committee review of such reimbursements, we do not expect to have any additional controls in place governing our reimbursement payments to our directors and officers for their out-of-pocket expenses incurred in connection with our activities on our behalf in connection with identifying and completing an initial business combination. Other than these payments and reimbursements, no compensation of any kind, including finder’s and consulting fees, will be paid by the company to our sponsor, officers and directors, or any of their respective affiliates, prior to completion of our initial business combination.

After the completion of our initial business combination, members of our sponsor team who remain with us, or their affiliates, may be paid consulting or management fees from the combined company. All of these fees will be fully disclosed to stockholders, to the extent then known, in the proxy solicitation materials or tender offer materials furnished to our stockholders in connection with a proposed business combination. We have not established any limit on the amount of such fees that may be paid by the combined company to members of our sponsor team. It is unlikely the amount of such compensation will be known at the time of the proposed business combination, because the directors of the post-combination business will be responsible for determining officer and director compensation. Any compensation to be paid to our officers will be determined, or recommended to the board of directors for determination, either by a compensation committee constituted solely by independent directors or by a majority of the independent directors on our board of directors.

We do not intend to take any action to ensure that members of our sponsor team maintain their positions with us after the completion of our initial business combination, although it is possible that some or all of our officers and directors may negotiate employment or consulting arrangements to remain with us after our initial business combination. The existence or terms of any such employment or consulting arrangements to retain their positions with us may influence our management’s motivation in identifying or selecting a target business but we do not believe that the ability of our management to remain with us after the completion of our initial business combination will be a determining factor in our decision to proceed with any potential business combination. We are not party to any agreements with our officers and directors that provide for benefits upon termination of employment.

Committees of the Board of Directors

Our board of directors has two standing committees: an audit committee and a compensation committee. Subject to phase-in rules and a limited exception, the rules of Nasdaq and Rule 10A of the Exchange Act require that the audit committee of a listed company be comprised solely of independent directors. Subject to phase-in rules and a limited exception, the rules of Nasdaq require that the compensation committee of a listed company be comprised solely of independent directors.

Audit Committee

We established an audit committee of the board of directors. Ms. Ramparas, Mr. Fubini and Mr. DeSimone serve as members of our audit committee. Our board of directors has determined that each of Ms. Ramparas, Mr. Fubini and Mr. DeSimone are independent under Nasdaq listing standards and applicable SEC rules. Ms. Ramparas will serve as the chairman of the audit committee. Each member of the audit committee is financially literate and our board of directors has determined that Ms. Ramparas qualifies as an “audit committee financial expert” as defined in applicable SEC rules.

The primary functions of the audit committee include:

 

   

appointing, compensating and overseeing our independent registered public accounting firm;

 

   

reviewing and approving the annual audit plan for the Company;

 

   

overseeing the integrity of our financial statements and our compliance with legal and regulatory requirements;

 

   

discussing the annual audited financial statements and unaudited quarterly financial statements with management and the independent registered public accounting firm;

 

   

pre-approving all audit services and permitted non-audit services to be performed by our independent registered public accounting firm, including the fees and terms of the services to be performed;

 

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appointing or replacing the independent registered public accounting firm;

 

   

establishing procedures for the receipt, retention and treatment of complaints (including anonymous complaints) we receive concerning accounting, internal accounting controls, auditing matters or potential violations of law;

 

   

monitoring our environmental sustainability and governance practices;

 

   

establishing procedures for the receipt, retention and treatment of complaints received by us regarding accounting, internal accounting controls or reports which raise material issues regarding our financial statements or accounting policies;

 

   

approving audit and non-audit services provided by our independent registered public accounting firm;

 

   

discussing earnings press releases and financial information provided to analysts and rating agencies;

 

   

discussing with management our policies and practices with respect to risk assessment and risk management;

 

   

reviewing any material transaction between our Chief Financial Officer that has been approved in accordance with our Code of Ethics for our officers, and providing prior written approval of any material transaction between us and our President; and

 

   

producing an annual report for inclusion in our proxy statement, in accordance with applicable rules and regulations.

The audit committee is a separately designated standing committee established in accordance with Section 3(a)(58)(A) of the Exchange Act.

Compensation Committee

We established a compensation committee of our board of directors. The members of our compensation committee are Mr. Fubini, Ms. Ramparas and Ms. Docharty, and Mr. Fubini serve as chairman of the compensation committee.

Under Nasdaq listing standards and applicable SEC rules, we are required to have a compensation committee composed entirely of independent directors. Our board of directors has determined that each Mr. Fubini, Ms. Ramparas and Ms. Docharty are independent. We have adopted a compensation committee charter, which details the principal functions of the compensation committee, including:

 

   

reviewing and approving corporate goals and objectives relevant to our executive officers’ compensation, evaluating our executive officers’ performance in light of those goals and objectives, and setting our executive officers’ compensation level based on this evaluation;

 

   

setting salaries and approving incentive compensation and equity awards, as well as compensation policies, for all other officers who file reports of their ownership, and changes in ownership, of the common stock under Section 16(a) of the Exchange Act (the “Section 16 Officers”), as designated by our board of directors;

 

   

making recommendations to the board with respect to incentive compensation programs and equity-based plans that are subject to board approval;

 

   

approving any employment or severance agreements with our Section 16 Officers;

 

   

granting any awards under equity compensation plans and annual bonus plans to the Section 16 Officers;

 

   

approving the compensation of our directors; and

 

   

producing an annual report on executive compensation for inclusion in our proxy statement, in accordance with applicable rules and regulations.

The charter also provides that the compensation committee may, in its sole discretion, retain or obtain the advice of a compensation consultant, legal counsel or other adviser and will be directly responsible for the appointment, compensation and oversight of the work of any such adviser. However, before engaging or receiving advice from a compensation consultant, external legal counsel or any other adviser, the compensation committee will consider the independence of each such adviser, including the factors required by Nasdaq and the SEC.

Compensation Committee Interlocks and Insider Participation

None of our executive officers currently serves, and in the past year has not served, as a member of the compensation committee of any entity that has one or more executive officers serving on our board of directors.

 

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Director Nominations

We do not have a standing nominating committee. In accordance with Rule 5605(e)(2) of the Nasdaq rules, a majority of the independent directors may recommend a director nominee for selection by our board of directors. Our board of directors believes that the independent directors can satisfactorily carry out the responsibility of properly selecting or approving director nominees without the formation of a standing nominating committee. The directors who shall participate in the consideration and recommendation of director nominees are Mr. DeSimone, Ms. Docharty, Mr. Fubini, and Ms. Ramparas. In accordance with Rule 5605(e)(1)(A) of the Nasdaq rules, all such directors are independent. As there is no standing nominating committee, we do not have a nominating committee charter in place.

Our board of directors will also consider director candidates recommended for nomination by our stockholders during such times as they are seeking proposed nominees to stand for election at the next annual meeting of stockholders (or, if applicable, a special meeting of stockholders). Our stockholders that wish to nominate a director for election to the board of directors should follow the procedures set forth in our bylaws.

We have not formally established any specific, minimum qualifications that must be met or skills that are necessary for directors to possess. In general, in identifying and evaluating nominees for director, our board of directors considers educational background, diversity of professional experience, knowledge of our business, integrity, professional reputation, independence, wisdom, and the ability to represent the best interests of our stockholders.

Code of Ethics

We have adopted a Code of Ethics applicable to our directors, officers and employees. A copy of the Code of Ethics will be provided without charge upon request from us. We intend to disclose any amendments to or waivers of certain provisions of our Code of Ethics in a Current Report on Form 8-K. See the section of this prospectus entitled “Where You Can Find Additional Information.”

Conflicts of Interest

In general, officers and directors of a corporation incorporated under the laws of the State of Delaware are required to present business opportunities to a corporation if:

 

   

the corporation could financially undertake the opportunity;

 

   

the opportunity is within the corporation’s line of business; and

 

   

it would not be fair to our company and its stockholders for the opportunity not to be brought to the attention of the corporation.

Certain of our officers and directors presently have, and any of them in the future may have additional, fiduciary or contractual obligations to other entities, including entities that are affiliates of our sponsor, pursuant to which such officer or director is or will be required to present a business combination opportunity to such entity. Accordingly, if any of our officers or directors becomes aware of a business combination opportunity which is suitable for an entity to which he or she has then-current fiduciary or contractual obligations, he or she will honor his or her fiduciary or contractual obligations to present such business combination opportunity to such entity, subject to their fiduciary duties. We do not believe, however, that the fiduciary or contractual obligations of our officers or directors will materially affect our ability to identify and pursue business combination opportunities or complete our initial business combination.

In addition, our sponsor and each member of our sponsor team may participate in the formation of, or become an officer or director of, any other blank check company prior to completion of our initial business combination. As a result, our sponsor and members of our sponsor team could have conflicts of interest in determining whether to present business combination opportunities to us or to any other blank check company with which they may become involved.

 

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Below is a table summarizing the entities to which our officers and directors currently have fiduciary duties, contractual obligations or other material management relationships:

 

INDIVIDUAL

  

ENTITY

  

ENTITY’S BUSINESS

  

AFFILIATION

Daniel Ciporin         
Jonathan Rosenzweig    eThematics    Start-up allowing individuals to invest alongside experienced Portfolio Managers in specific themes    Director
Michael A. DeSimone    Lightspeed USA Commerce Inc.    Commerce Technology    General Manager
Michele Docharty    Georgetown McDonough School of Business    Education    Advisory Board
   Neuberger Berman    Investment Firm    Director
Ross Fubini    XYZ Ventures    Venture Capital Investment Firm    Founder and Managing Director
   Village Global    Early-stage Venture Capital Firm    Co-Founder and Partner
   BeyondHQ    Collaborative SaaS platform helping companies run talent and real estate analyses    Director
   Piazza Technologies    Web service connecting students, teacher assistants and professors    Director
   Legion    AI powered/cloud native workforce management platform    Director
   Beneficial State Bank    Community Development Bank    Director
   LifeRaft Risk Technologies, Inc.    Technology Powered Insurance provider    Director
   Saltbox, Inc.    Flexible lease space/technology service provider    Director
   Oro Labs, Inc.    Enterprise Software    Director
   Auxilius Inc.    Enterprise Software    Director
   Pebble Health Inc.    Technology powered health insurance provider    Director
   Bureau Inc.    Fintech fraud prevention platform    Director
   Sardine, Inc.    Fintech fraud prevention platform    Director
   SMASH    Non-profit (Education)    Director
Rhonda Ramparas         

Potential investors should also be aware of the following other potential conflicts of interest:

 

   

Our officers and directors are not required to, and will not, commit their full time to our affairs, which may result in a conflict of interest in allocating their time between our operations and our search for a business

 

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combination and their other businesses. We do not intend to have any full-time employees prior to the completion of our initial business combination. Each of our officers and directors is engaged in several other business endeavors for which he may be entitled to substantial compensation, and our officers and directors are not obligated to contribute any specific number of hours per week to our affairs.

 

   

Our sponsor subscribed for founder shares prior to the date of this prospectus and will purchase private placement warrants in a transaction that will close simultaneously with the closing of this offering.

 

   

Our sponsor, officers and directors have entered into agreements with us, pursuant to which they have agreed to waive their redemption rights with respect to their founder shares and any public shares held by them in connection with (i) the completion of our initial business combination and (ii) a stockholder vote to approve an amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation that would affect the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we have not completed an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering. The public anchor investors have agreed to waive their redemption rights with respect to their founder shares in connection with (i) the completion of our initial business combination and (ii) a stockholder vote to approve an amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation that would affect the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we have not completed an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering. Additionally, each of our initial stockholders has agreed to waive his, her or its rights to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to their founder shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within the prescribed time frame. If we do not complete our initial business combination within the prescribed time frame, the private placement warrants will expire worthless. Except as described in this prospectus, our sponsor, directors, officers and anchor investors have agreed not to transfer, assign or sell any of their founder shares until the earlier to occur of (A) one year after the completion of our initial business combination or (B) subsequent to our initial business combination, (x) if the last reported sale price of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $12.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock capitalizations, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) for any 20 trading days within any 30-trading day period commencing at least 150 days after our initial business combination, or (y) the date on which we complete a liquidation, merger, capital stock exchange or other similar transaction that results in all of our public stockholders having the right to exchange their shares of common stock for cash, securities or other property. The private placement warrants will not be transferable until 30 days following the completion of our initial business combination. Because each of our officers and directors will own and/or have an interest in common stock and warrants directly or indirectly, they 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.

 

   

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 is included by a target business as a condition to any agreement with respect to our initial business combination.

We are not prohibited from pursuing an initial business combination with a business combination target that is affiliated with our sponsor, officers or directors or making the acquisition through a joint venture or other form of shared ownership with our sponsor, officers or directors. In the event we seek to complete our initial business combination with a business combination target that is affiliated with our sponsor, officers or directors, we, or a committee of independent directors, would obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm which is a member of FINRA or from an independent accounting firm, that such initial business combination is fair to our company from a financial point of view. We are not required to obtain such an opinion in any other context. Furthermore, in no event will our sponsor or any of our existing officers or directors, or any of their respective affiliates, be paid by the company any finder’s fee, consulting fee or other compensation prior to, or for any services they render in order to effectuate, the completion of our initial business combination. We cannot assure you that any of the above-mentioned conflicts will be resolved in our favor.

In the event that we submit our initial business combination to our public stockholders for a vote, holders of our founder shares (including the public anchor investors) have agreed to vote their founder shares, and our sponsor and directors have agreed to vote any shares purchased during or after the offering, in favor of our initial business combination.

 

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Limitation on Liability and Indemnification of Officers and Directors

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will provide that our officers and directors will be indemnified by us to the fullest extent authorized by Delaware law, as it now exists or may in the future be amended. In addition, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will provide that our directors will not be personally liable for monetary damages to us or our stockholders for breaches of their fiduciary duty as directors, unless they violated their duty of loyalty to us or our stockholders, acted in bad faith, knowingly or intentionally violated the law, authorized unlawful payments of dividends, unlawful stock purchases or unlawful redemptions, or derived an improper personal benefit from their actions as directors.

We entered into agreements with our officers and directors to provide contractual indemnification in addition to the indemnification provided for in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation. Our bylaws also permit us to secure insurance on behalf of any officer, director or employee for any liability arising out of his or her actions, regardless of whether Delaware law would permit such indemnification.

We expect to purchase a policy of directors’ and officers’ liability insurance that insures our officers and directors against the cost of defense, settlement or payment of a judgment in some circumstances and insures us against our obligations to indemnify our officers and directors. Our officers and directors have agreed to waive any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to any monies in the trust account, and have agreed to waive any right, title, interest or claim of any kind they may have in the future as a result of, or arising out of, any services provided to us and will not seek recourse against the trust account for any reason whatsoever (except to the extent they are entitled to funds from the trust account due to their ownership of public shares). Accordingly, any indemnification provided will only be able to be satisfied by us if (i) we have sufficient funds outside of the trust account or (ii) we complete an initial business combination.

Our indemnification obligations may discourage stockholders from bringing a lawsuit against our officers or directors for breach of their fiduciary duty. These provisions also may have the effect of reducing the likelihood of derivative litigation against our officers and directors, even though such an action, if successful, might otherwise benefit us and our stockholders. Furthermore, a stockholder’s investment may be adversely affected to the extent we pay the costs of settlement and damage awards against our officers and directors pursuant to these indemnification provisions.

We believe that these provisions, the insurance and the indemnity agreements are necessary to attract and retain talented and experienced officers and directors.

 

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PRINCIPAL STOCKHOLDERS

The following table sets forth information regarding the beneficial ownership of our common stock as of the date of this prospectus, and as adjusted to reflect the sale of our Class A common stock included in the units offered by this prospectus, and assuming no purchase of units in this offering, by:

 

   

each person known by us to be the beneficial owner of more than 5% of our outstanding shares of common stock;

 

   

each of our executive officers and directors that beneficially owns shares of common stock; and

 

   

all our executive officers and directors as a group.

Unless otherwise indicated, we believe that all persons named in the table have sole voting and investment power with respect to all of our common stock beneficially owned by them. The following table does not reflect record or beneficial ownership of the private placement warrants as these warrants are not exercisable within 60 days of the date of this prospectus.

Prior to this offering, our initial stockholders purchased an aggregate of 5,750,000 founder shares for an aggregate purchase price of $25,000, or approximately $0.004 per share. Prior to the initial investment in the company of $25,000 by our initial stockholders, the company had no assets, tangible or intangible. The per share purchase price of the founder shares was determined by dividing the amount of cash contributed to the company by the number of the aggregate number of founder shares issued. In connection with the anchor investment agreements we entered into with each of the anchor investors, our sponsor has sold in the aggregate 1,350,000 founder shares to anchor investors at approximately $0.004 per share in consideration of their expressions of interest to purchase units in this offering.

The following table presents the number of shares and the percentage of our common stock owned by the beneficial owners before and after this offering. The post-offering percentages in the following table assume that the underwriters exercise their over-allotment option in full, that there are 28,750,000 shares of common stock issued and outstanding after this offering and that no founder shares are forfeited back to the sponsor by any of the anchor investors. For a detailed discussion of the arrangements with the anchor investors, please see “—Expressions of Interest” below.

 

 

 

NAME AND ADDRESS OF BENEFICIAL OWNER (1)

   NUMBER OF
SHARES
BENEFICIALLY
OWNED (2)
    APPROXIMATE
PERCENTAGE OF
OUTSTANDING
COMMON STOCK
 
  BEFORE
OFFERING
    AFTER
OFFERING
 

Home Plate Sponsor LLC

     4,300,000  (3)(4)      74.8     15.0

Daniel Ciporin

     4,300,000  (4)(5)      74.8     15.0

Jonathan Rosenzweig

      (6)             

Michael A. DeSimone

     25,000  (7)      *       *  

Michele Docharty

     25,000  (7)      *       *  

Ross Fubini

     25,000  (7)      *       *  

Rhonda Ramparas

     25,000  (8)      *       *  

All executive officers and directors as a group (six individuals)

     4,400,000  (3)      76.5     15.3

 

 

*   Less than one percent.
(1)    Unless otherwise noted, the business address of each of our stockholders is P.O. Box 1314, New York, NY 10028.
(2)    Interests shown consist solely of founder shares, which are Class B shares of common stock. Such shares will automatically convert into Class A common stock on the first business day following the completion of our initial business combination as described in the section entitled “Description of Securities.”
(3)    Includes up to 750,000 founder shares that will be forfeited by our sponsor depending on the extent to which the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised.

 

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(4)    Our sponsor is controlled by Mr. Ciporin. Mr. Ciporin indirectly has voting and dispositive power over the founder shares held by our sponsor and may be deemed to beneficially own the founder shares. Mr. Ciporin disclaims beneficial ownership of the founder shares held by our sponsor other than to the extent of his pecuniary interest in such founder shares. Each of our officers and directors are direct or indirect members of our sponsor.
(5)    Includes an indirect pecuniary interest in (i) 1,131,475 founder shares owned by our sponsor as a result of his membership interest in our sponsor and (ii) 120,003 founder shares owned by our sponsor as a result of the membership interest of the Daniel Ciporin 2014 Trust dated 02/24/2014 in our sponsor.
(6)    Excludes an indirect pecuniary interest in 602,564 founder shares owned by our sponsor as a result of his membership interest in our sponsor. Mr. Rosenzweig does not currently have voting or dispositive power over such founder shares.
(7)    Excludes an indirect pecuniary interest in 26,993 founder shares owned by our sponsor as a result of his or her membership interest in our sponsor since such director does not currently have voting or dispositive power over such founder shares.
(8)    Excludes an indirect pecuniary interest in 20,245 founder shares owned by our sponsor as a result of her membership interest in our sponsor since such director does not currently have voting or dispositive power over such founder shares.

Immediately after this offering, our initial stockholders will beneficially own 20% of the then issued and outstanding common stock (assuming they do not purchase any units in this offering) and will have the right to appoint all of our directors prior to our initial business combination. Holders of our public shares will not have the right to appoint any directors to our board of directors prior to our initial business combination. Because of this ownership block, our initial stockholders may be able to effectively influence the outcome of all other matters requiring approval by our stockholders, including amendments to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and approval of significant corporate transactions including our initial business combination.

The holders of the founder shares have agreed (a) to vote any founder shares owned by it in favor of any proposed business combination (subject to the public anchor investors right to abstain from voting) and (b) not to redeem any founder shares in connection with a stockholder vote to approve a proposed initial business combination.

Our sponsor and our officers and directors are deemed to be our “promoters” as such term is defined under the federal securities laws.

Expressions of Interest

Certain anchor investors (none of whom are affiliated with our sponsor, officers or directors) have expressed to us an interest in purchasing up to an aggregate of approximately 1,980,000 units in this offering (which amount will not change if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised) at the public offering price of $10.00 per unit. No anchor investor is expected to purchase more than 9.9% of the units in this offering (without giving effect to the underwriters’ over-allotment option). We have agreed to direct the underwriters to sell to the anchor investors up to such number of units and such allocations will be determined by the underwriters, subject to our satisfying the Nasdaq initial listing requirements, and such allocations will be determined by the underwriters. Each of the UBS O’Connor anchor investors have agreed that if they, together with their affiliates, (i) purchase less than 9.9% of the units sold in this offering or (ii) purchase, but do not hold, 9.9% of the shares sold in this offering through the date that is thirty (30) days following the consummation of our initial business combination, they will forfeit, for no additional consideration or refund, a pro rata portion (up to 75%) of their interest in the founder shares held by our sponsor.

Assuming that each anchor investor purchases the number of units for which it provided an indication of interest, the anchor investors will own, in the aggregate, up to approximately 84.6% of the outstanding shares of our common stock (or up to approximately 73.6% if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) upon the completion of this offering (in each case, including the founder shares sold by our sponsor as described herein). In consideration of these purchases, our sponsor has entered into an investment agreement with each of the public anchor investors pursuant to which such anchor investors have purchased in the aggregate up to approximately 1,350,000 founder shares from our sponsor at approximately $0.004 per share (at cost). In the event an anchor investor does not purchase the full amount of units for which it provided an indication of interest, it will forfeit back to our sponsor any and all rights to all of the founder shares such anchor investors purchased. The founder shares owned by the anchor investors are subject to additional restrictions as described under the section of this prospectus entitled “Description of Securities—Founder Shares.”

There is no minimum or maximum number of units that may be purchased by the anchor investors in this offering or any limitation on the number of our units, Class A common stock or warrants that the anchor investors may purchase

 

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after this offering, but the anchor investors have not indicated that they would purchase any additional units in this offering or any of our securities after the closing of this offering.

Pursuant to such units, the anchor investors have not been granted any stockholder or other rights in addition to those afforded to our other public stockholders. Further, unlike some anchor investment arrangements of other blank check companies, the anchor investors are not required to (i) hold any units, shares of Class A common stock or warrants they may purchase in this offering or thereafter for any amount of time, (ii) vote any shares of Class A common stock they may own at the applicable time in favor of our initial business combination or (iii) refrain from exercising their right to redeem their public shares at the time of our initial business combination. The anchor investors will have the same rights to the funds held in the trust account with respect to the shares of Class A common stock underlying the units they may purchase in this offering as the rights afforded to our other public stockholders.

There can be no assurance that the anchor investors will acquire any units in this offering, or as to the amount of such units the anchor investors will retain, if any, prior to or upon the consummation of our initial business combination. There is also no guarantee that all anchor investors will participate in the offering. In the event that the anchor investors purchase all of the units that they have expressed an interest in purchasing in this offering, hold all such units until prior to consummation of our initial business combination and vote their public shares in favor of our initial business combination, in addition to the founder shares, no affirmative votes from other public stockholders would be required to approve our initial business combination. The anchor investors are not required to vote any of their public shares in favor of our initial business combination or for or against any other matter presented for a stockholder vote.

If the anchor investors purchase the number of units they have expressed an interest in purchasing in this offering, the anchor investors could have substantial control over us and be able to exercise significant influence over all matters requiring stockholder approval, and the extent of their influence will be even more significant if they purchase more of our securities in or after this offering. In addition, in the event that our anchor investors purchase such units (either in this offering or after) and vote them in favor of our initial business combination, a smaller portion of affirmative votes from other public stockholders would be required to approve our initial business combination and, in certain circumstances (e.g., assuming only the minimum number of shares representing a quorum are voted and the over-allotment is not exercised), no affirmative votes from other public stockholders would be required to approve a business combination. As a result of the indirect interest in our founder shares and private placement warrants that our UBS O’Connor anchor investors may hold and the founder shares that our public anchor investors may hold, the anchor investors may have different interests with respect to a vote on an initial business combination than other public stockholders. For example, the anchor investors may have an incentive to vote their public shares in favor of any business combination regardless of the fact that the anchor investors have not entered into any agreement with us to do so. In addition, any units purchased in this offering by our anchor investors would not be subject to any lock-up provisions.

With respect to the common stock underlying the units they may purchase in this offering, the anchor investors will have the same rights to the funds held in the trust account as the rights afforded to our public stockholders. In addition, the units (including the underlying securities) the anchor investors may purchase in this offering will not be subject to any agreements restricting their transfer.

Pursuant to the anchor investment agreements with us and our sponsor, the public anchor investors have agreed to (a) vote any founder shares held by them in favor of our initial business combination (subject to the right to abstain from voting) and (b) subject any founder shares held by them to the same lock-up restrictions as the founder shares held by our sponsor and independent directors. Since our sponsor has sold founder shares held by it to the anchor investors and we are not issuing any new shares of Class B common stock, there will be no dilutive impact on the other investors in this offering.

Although we and the underwriters are not required to sell the anchor investors units in this offering, we expect the underwriters to sell to each of the anchor investors units up to their expressions of interest, subject to our satisfying the Nasdaq listing requirements. We are not aware of any circumstances (other than the Nasdaq listing requirement)

 

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under which we or the underwriters would prohibit any of the anchor investors from purchasing the applicable number of units they have expressed an interest in purchasing in this offering.

Restrictions on Transfers of Founder Shares and Private Placement Warrants

The founder shares, private placement warrants and any shares of our Class A common stock issued upon conversion or exercise thereof are each subject to transfer restrictions pursuant to lock-up provisions in the agreements entered into by our sponsor and directors (and with respect to Jefferies, pursuant to applicable law). Our sponsor and directors have agreed not to transfer, assign or sell any of their founder shares (other than the founder shares that may have been transferred to the public anchor investors, which are subject to transfer restrictions pursuant to an investment agreement) until the earlier to occur of (a) one year after the completion of our initial business combination and (b) upon completion of our initial business combination, (x) if the last reported sale price of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $12.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock capitalizations, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) for any 20 trading days within any 30-trading day period commencing at least 150 days after our initial business combination or (y) the date on which we complete a liquidation, merger, capital stock exchange or other similar transaction after our initial business combination that results in all of our public stockholders having the right to exchange their shares of Class A common stock for cash, securities or other property. The private placement warrants and the respective Class A common stock underlying such warrants are not transferable or salable until 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination. The foregoing restrictions are not applicable to transfers (a) to our officers or directors, any affiliates or family members of any of our officers or directors, any members or partners of our sponsor or its affiliates, any affiliates of our sponsor, or any employees of such affiliates; (b) in the case of an individual, by gift to a member of one of the individual’s immediate family or to a trust, the beneficiary of which is a member of the individual’s immediate family, an affiliate of such person or to a charitable organization; (c) in the case of an individual, by virtue of laws of descent and distribution upon death of the individual; (d) in the case of an individual, pursuant to a qualified domestic relations order; (e) by private sales or transfers made in connection with the completion of a business combination at prices no greater than the price at which the founder shares, private placement warrants or Class A common stock, as applicable, were originally purchased; (f) by virtue of the laws of the State of Delaware or of our sponsor’s organizational documents upon liquidation or dissolution of our sponsor; (g) in the case of Jefferies, to Jefferies’s affiliates, or any investment fund or other entity controlled or managed by Jefferies, or to any investment manager or investment advisor of Jefferies or an affiliate of any such investment manager or investment advisor or to any investment fund or other entity controlled or managed by such persons; (h) to the Company for no value for cancellation in connection with the completion of our initial business combination; (i) in the event of our liquidation prior to the completion of our initial business combination; or (j) in the event of our completion of a liquidation, merger, capital stock exchange or other similar transaction which results in all of our public stockholders having the right to exchange their shares of Class A common stock for cash, securities or other property subsequent to our completion of our initial business combination; provided, however, that in the case of clauses (a) through (g), or with the prior written consent of the Company, these permitted transferees must enter into a written agreement agreeing to be bound by these transfer restrictions and the other restrictions contained in the letter agreements.

 

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CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS

Prior to this offering, our initial stockholders paid an aggregate of $25,000, or approximately $0.004 per share, to cover certain of our offering costs in consideration of 5,750,000 shares of our Class B common stock, par value $0.0001. The number of founder shares issued was determined based on the expectation that such founder shares would represent 20% of the outstanding shares upon completion of this offering. If we further increase or decrease the size of the offering, we will effect a stock capitalization or share surrender or other appropriate mechanism, as applicable, with respect to our Class B common stock immediately prior to the completion of the offering in such amount as to maintain the ownership of our initial stockholders, on an as-converted basis, at 20% of the issued and outstanding shares of our common stock upon the completion of this offering. Up to 750,000 founder shares are subject to forfeiture by our sponsor depending on the extent to which the underwriters’ over-allotment option is not exercised. The founder shares (including the shares of our Class A common stock issuable upon exercise thereof) may not, subject to certain limited exceptions, be transferred, assigned or sold by the holder.

Our sponsor and Jefferies have committed, pursuant to a written agreement, to purchase an aggregate of 7,600,000 private placement warrants (or an aggregate of 8,200,000 private placement warrants if the over-allotment option is exercised in full) for a purchase price of $1.00 per whole warrant in a private placement that will occur simultaneously with the closing of this offering. Among the private placement warrants, 6,600,000 warrants (or 7,050,000 warrants if the over-allotment option is exercised in full) will be purchased by our sponsor and/or its designees and 1,000,000 warrants (or 1,150,000 warrants if the over-allotment option is exercised in full) will be purchased by Jefferies and/or its designees. As such, our sponsor’s and Jefferies LLC’s interest in this transaction is valued at between $7,600,000 and $8,200,000, depending on the number of private placement warrants purchased. Each whole private placement warrant entitles the holder to purchase one share of our Class A common stock at a price of $11.50 per share. The private placement warrants (including the shares of our Class A common stock issuable upon exercise thereof) may not, subject to certain limited exceptions, be transferred, assigned or sold by the holder.

As more fully discussed in the section of this prospectus entitled “Management—Conflicts of Interest,” 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-current fiduciary or contractual obligations, he or she will honor his or her fiduciary or contractual obligations to present such opportunity to such entity. Our officers and directors currently have certain relevant fiduciary duties or contractual obligations that may take priority over their duties to us.

We currently maintain our executive offices at P.O. Box 1314, New York, NY 10028. Subsequent to the closing of this offering, we will pay up to $15,000 per month to our sponsor for administrative, financial and support services. Upon completion of our initial business combination or our liquidation, we will cease paying these monthly fees.

No compensation of any kind, including finder’s and consulting fees, will be paid to our sponsor, officers and directors, or any of their respective affiliates, for services rendered prior to or in connection with the completion of an initial business combination. However, these individuals will be reimbursed for any out-of-pocket expenses incurred in connection with activities on our behalf such as identifying potential target businesses and performing due diligence on suitable business combinations. Our audit committee will review on a quarterly basis all payments that were made to our sponsor, officers, directors or their affiliates and will determine which expenses and the amount of expenses that will be reimbursed. There is no cap or ceiling on the reimbursement of out-of-pocket expenses incurred by such persons in connection with activities on our behalf.

Prior to the closing of this offering, a portion of the offering expenses will be paid from the proceeds of a loan from our sponsor. These funds will be reimbursed up to $300,000 as described in this prospectus. These funds will be reimbursed upon the earlier of (i) closing of this offering, or (ii) December 31, 2021 out of the approximately $2,400,000 of offering proceeds that has been allocated to the payment of offering expenses.

In addition, in order to finance transaction costs in connection with an intended initial business combination, our sponsor or an affiliate of our sponsor or certain of our officers and directors may, but are not obligated to, loan us

 

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funds as may be required. If we complete an initial business combination, we would repay such loaned amounts. In the event that the initial business combination does not close, we may use a portion of the working capital held outside the trust account to repay such loaned amounts but no proceeds from our trust account would be used for such repayment. Up to $1,500,000 of such loans may be convertible into warrants at a price of $1.00 per warrant at the option of the lender. The warrants would be identical to the private placement warrants, including as to exercise price, exercisability and exercise period. Except for the foregoing, the terms of such loans by our officers and directors, if any, have not been determined and no written agreements exist with respect to such loans. We do not expect to seek loans from parties other than our sponsor or an affiliate of our sponsor as we do not believe third parties will be willing to loan such funds and provide a waiver against any and all rights to seek access to funds in our trust account.

After our initial business combination, members of our sponsor team who remain with us may be paid consulting, management or other fees from the combined company with any and all amounts being fully disclosed to our stockholders, to the extent then known, in the tender offer or proxy solicitation materials, as applicable, furnished to our stockholders. It is unlikely the amount of such compensation will be known at the time of distribution of such tender offer materials or at the time of a stockholder meeting held to consider our initial business combination, as applicable, as it will be up to the directors of the post-combination business to determine executive and director compensation.

We entered into a registration rights agreement pursuant to which our sponsor will be entitled to certain registration rights with respect to the private placement warrants, the warrants issuable upon conversion of working capital loans (if any) and the shares of our Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the foregoing and upon conversion of the founder shares. See the section of this prospectus entitled “Description of Securities—Registration Rights.”

Certain anchor investors (none of whom are affiliated with our sponsor, officers or directors) have expressed to us an interest in purchasing up to an aggregate of approximately 19,800,000 units in this offering (which amount will not change if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised) at the public offering price of $10.00 per unit. No anchor investor is expected to purchase more than 9.9% of the units in this offering (without giving effect to the underwriters’ over-allotment option). We have agreed to direct the underwriters to sell to the anchor investors up to such number of units and such allocations will be determined by the underwriters, subject to our satisfying the Nasdaq initial listing requirements.

Assuming that each anchor investor purchases the number of units for which it provided an indication of interest, the anchor investors will own, in the aggregate, up to approximately 84.6% of the outstanding shares of our common stock (or up to approximately 73.6% if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) upon the completion of this offering (in each case, including the founder shares sold by our sponsor as described herein). In consideration of these purchases, our sponsor has entered into an investment agreement with each of the anchor investors pursuant to which such anchor investors have purchased in the aggregate up to approximately 1,350,000 founder shares from our sponsor at approximately $0.004 per share (at cost). In the event an anchor investor does not purchase the full amount of units for which it provided an indication of interest, it will forfeit back to our sponsor any and all rights to all of the founder shares such anchor investors purchased. The founder shares owned by the anchor investors are subject to additional restrictions as described under the section of this prospectus entitled “Description of Securities—Founder Shares.”

Each of our UBS O’Connor anchor investors have agreed that if they, together with their affiliates, (i) purchase less than 9.9% of the units sold in this offering or (ii) purchase, but do not hold, 9.9% of the shares sold in this offering through the date that is thirty (30) days following the consummation of our initial business combination, they will forfeit, for no additional consideration or refund, a pro rata portion (up to 75%) of their interest in the founder shares held by our sponsor.

There is no minimum number or maximum number of units that may be purchased by the anchor investors in this offering or on the number of our units, Class A common stock or warrants that the anchor investors may purchase

 

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after this offering, but the anchor investors have not indicated that they would purchase any additional units in this offering or any of our securities after the closing of this offering.

Pursuant to such units, the anchor investors have not been granted any stockholder or other rights in addition to those afforded to our other public stockholders. Further, unlike some anchor investment arrangements of other blank check companies, the anchor investors are not required to (i) hold any units, shares of Class A common stock or warrants they may purchase in this offering or thereafter for any amount of time, (ii) vote any shares of Class A common stock they may own at the applicable time in favor of our initial business combination or (iii) refrain from exercising their right to redeem their public shares at the time of our initial business combination. The anchor investors will have the same rights to the funds held in the trust account with respect to the shares of Class A common stock underlying the units they may purchase in this offering as the rights afforded to our other public stockholders.

There can be no assurance that the anchor investors will acquire any units in this offering, or as to the amount of such units the anchor investors will retain, if any, prior to or upon the consummation of our initial business combination. There is also no guarantee that all anchor investors will participate in the offering. In the event that the anchor investors purchase all of the units that they have expressed an interest in purchasing in this offering, hold all such units until prior to consummation of our initial business combination and vote their public shares in favor of our initial business combination, in addition to the founder shares, no affirmative votes from other public stockholders would be required to approve our initial business combination. The anchor investors are not required to vote any of their public shares in favor of our initial business combination or for or against any other matter presented for a stockholder vote.

If the anchor investors purchase the number of units they have expressed an interest in purchasing in this offering, the anchor investors as a group could have substantial control over us and be able to exercise significant influence over all matters requiring stockholder approval, and the extent of their influence will be even more significant if they purchase more of our securities in or after this offering.

With respect to the common stock underlying the units they may purchase in this offering, the anchor investors will have the same rights to the funds held in the trust account as the rights afforded to our public stockholders. In addition, the units (including the underlying securities) the anchor investors may purchase in this offering will not be subject to any agreements restricting their transfer.

Pursuant to the anchor investment agreements with us and our sponsor, the anchor investors have agreed (or will agree) to (a) vote any founder shares held by them in favor of our initial business combination (subject to the right to abstain from voting) and (b) subject any founder shares held by them to the same lock-up restrictions as the founder shares held by our sponsor and independent directors. Since our sponsor has sold founder shares held by it to the anchor investors and we are not issuing any new shares of Class B common stock, there will be no dilutive impact on the other investors in this offering.

Although we and the underwriters are not required to sell the anchor investors units in this offering, we expect the underwriters to sell to each of the anchor investors units up to their expressions of interest, subject to our satisfying the Nasdaq initial listing requirements. We are not aware of any circumstances (other than the Nasdaq initial listing requirement) under which we or the underwriters would prohibit any of the anchor investors from purchasing the applicable number of units they have expressed an interest in purchasing in this offering.

Policy for Approval of Related Party Transactions

The audit committee of our board of directors will adopt a charter, providing for the review, approval and/or ratification of “related party transactions,” which are those transactions required to be disclosed pursuant to Item 404 of Regulation S-K as promulgated by the SEC, by the audit committee. At its meetings, the audit committee shall be provided with the details of each new, existing or proposed related party transaction, including the terms of the transaction, any contractual restrictions that the company has already committed to, the business purpose of the

 

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transaction and the benefits of the transaction to the company and to the relevant related party. Any member of the committee who has an interest in the related party transaction under review by the committee shall abstain from voting on the approval of the related party transaction, but may, if so requested by the chairman of the committee, participate in some or all of the committee’s discussions of the related party transaction. Upon completion of its review of the related party transaction, the committee may determine to permit or to prohibit the related party transaction.

 

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DESCRIPTION OF SECURITIES

We are a Delaware corporation and our affairs are governed by our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and the DGCL. Pursuant to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation we will be authorized to issue 200,000,000 shares of our Class A common stock and 20,000,000 shares of our Class B common stock, as well as 1,000,000 shares of preferred stock, $0.0001 par value each. The following description summarizes certain terms of our capital stock as set out more particularly in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation. Because it is only a summary, it may not contain all the information that is important to you.

Units

Each unit has an offering price of $10.00 and consists of one share of our Class A common stock and one-half of one warrant. Each whole warrant entitles the holder thereof to purchase one share of our Class A common stock at a price of $11.50 per share, subject to adjustment as described in this prospectus. Pursuant to the warrant agreement, a warrant holder may exercise its warrants only for a whole number of the shares of the Company’s Class A common stock. This means only a whole warrant may be exercised at any given time by a warrant holder. No fractional warrants will be issued upon separation of the units and only whole warrants will trade. If, upon separation of the units, a holder of warrants would be entitled to receive a fractional warrant, we will round down to the nearest whole number the number of warrants to be issued to such holder. Accordingly, unless you purchase at least two units, you will not be able to receive or trade a whole warrant.

The shares of our Class A common stock and warrants comprising the units are expected to begin separate trading on the 52nd day following the date of this prospectus (or, if such date is not a business day, the following business day) unless Jefferies informs us of its decision to allow earlier separate trading, subject to our having filed the Current Report on Form 8-K described below and having issued a press release announcing when such separate trading will begin. Once the shares of our Class A common stock and warrants commence separate trading, holders will have the option to continue to hold units or separate their units into the component securities. Holders will need to have their brokers contact our transfer agent in order to separate the units into Class A common stock and warrants.

In no event will the shares of our Class A common stock and warrants be traded separately until we have filed with the SEC a Current Report on Form 8-K which includes an audited balance sheet reflecting our receipt of the gross proceeds of this offering. We will file a Current Report on Form 8-K which includes this audited balance sheet upon the completion of this offering. If the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised following the initial filing of such Current Report on Form 8-K, a second or amended Current Report on Form 8-K will be filed to provide updated financial information to reflect the exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option.

Additionally, the units will automatically separate into their component parts and will not be traded after completion of our initial business combination.

Common Stock

Prior to the date of this prospectus, there were 5,750,000 shares of our Class B common stock issued and outstanding, all of which were held of record by our initial stockholders, so that our initial stockholders will own 20% of our issued and outstanding shares after this offering (assuming our initial stockholders do not purchase any units in this offering). Upon the closing of this offering, 25,000,000 of our shares of common stock will be outstanding (assuming no exercise of the underwriters’ over-allotment option) including:

 

   

20,000,000 shares of our Class A common stock underlying the units issued as part of this offering; and

 

   

5,000,000 shares of our Class B common stock held by our initial stockholders.

If we increase or decrease the size of this offering, we will effect a stock capitalization or share surrender or other appropriate mechanism, as applicable, with respect to our Class B common stock immediately prior to the completion of this offering in such amount as to maintain the number of founder shares, on an as-converted basis, at 20% of our issued and outstanding common stock upon the completion of this offering.

 

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Stockholders of record are entitled to one vote for each share held on all matters to be voted on by stockholders. Prior to our initial business combination, only holders of our founder shares will have the right to vote on the election of directors. Holders of our public shares will not be entitled to vote on the election of directors during such time. In addition, prior to the completion of an initial business combination, holders of a majority of our founder shares may remove a member of the board of directors for any reason. These provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation may only be amended by approval of a majority of at least 90% of our Class B common stock voting in an annual meeting. With respect to any other matter submitted to a vote of our stockholders, including any vote in connection with our initial business combination, except as required by law, holders of our founder shares and holders of our public shares will vote together as a single class, with each share entitling the holder to one vote. Unless specified in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, or as required by applicable provisions of the DGCL or applicable stock exchange rules, the affirmative vote of a majority of our shares of common stock that are voted is required to approve any such matter voted on by our stockholders. Our board of directors is divided into three classes, each of which will generally serve for a term of three years with only one class of directors being elected in each year. There is no cumulative voting with respect to the election of directors, with the result that the holders of more than 50% of the shares voted for the election of directors can elect all of the directors. Our stockholders are entitled to receive ratable dividends when, as and if declared by the board of directors out of funds legally available therefor.

Because our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will authorize the issuance of up to 200,000,000 shares of our Class A common stock, if we were to enter into a business combination, we may (depending on the terms of such a business combination) be required to increase the number of shares of our Class A common stock which we will be authorized to issue at the same time as our stockholders vote on the business combination to the extent we seek stockholder approval in connection with our initial business combination.

Our board of directors is divided into three classes with only one class of directors being elected in each year and each class (except for those directors appointed prior to our first annual meeting of stockholders) serving a three-year term. In accordance with Nasdaq corporate governance requirements, we are not required to hold an annual meeting until one year after our first fiscal year end following our listing on Nasdaq. Under Section 211(b) of the DGCL, we are, however, required to hold annual meetings of stockholders for the purpose of electing directors in accordance with our bylaws, unless such election is made by written consent in lieu of such a meeting. We may not hold an annual meeting of stockholders to elect new directors prior to the completion of our initial business combination, and thus we may not be in compliance with Section 211(b) of the DGCL, which requires an annual meeting. Therefore, if our stockholders want us to hold an annual meeting prior to the completion of an initial business combination, they may attempt to force us to hold one by submitting an application to the Delaware Court of Chancery in accordance with Section 211(c) of the DGCL. Prior to the completion of an initial business combination, any vacancy on the board of directors may be filled by a nominee chosen by holders of a majority of our founder shares. In addition, prior to the completion of an initial business combination, holders of a majority of our founder shares may remove a member of the board of directors for any reason.

We will provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their public 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 calculated as of two business days prior to the completion of our initial business combination, including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes, if any (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses) divided by the number of the then outstanding public shares, subject to the limitations described in this prospectus. The amount in the trust account is initially anticipated to be $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. The redemption rights will include the requirement that a beneficial owner must identify itself in order to validly redeem its shares. 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 and any public shares held by them in connection with (i) the completion of our initial business combination and (ii) a stockholder vote to approve an amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation that would affect the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we have not completed an initial business combination

 

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within 18 months from the closing of this offering. Unlike many blank check companies that hold stockholder votes and conduct proxy solicitations in conjunction with their initial business combinations and provide for related redemptions of public shares for cash upon completion of such initial business combinations even when a vote is not required by law, if a stockholder vote is not required by law and we do not decide to hold a stockholder vote for business or other reasons, we will, pursuant to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, conduct the redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules of the SEC and file tender offer documents with the SEC prior to completing our initial business combination. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation require these tender offer documents to contain substantially the same financial and other information about the initial business combination and the redemption rights as is required under the SEC’s proxy rules. If, however, a stockholder approval of the transaction is required by law, or we decide to obtain stockholder approval for business or other reasons, we will, like many blank check companies, offer to redeem shares in conjunction with a proxy solicitation pursuant to the proxy rules and not pursuant to the tender offer rules. If we seek stockholder approval, we will complete our initial business combination only if a majority of the shares of common stock voted are voted in favor of our initial business combination. However, the participation of our sponsor, officers, directors or their affiliates in privately-negotiated transactions (as described in this prospectus), if any, could result in the approval of our initial business combination even if a majority of our public stockholders vote, or indicate their intention to vote, against such initial business combination. For purposes of seeking approval of the majority of our outstanding common stock, non-votes will have no effect on the approval of our initial business combination once a quorum is obtained.

If we seek stockholder 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 certificate of incorporation provides that a public stockholder, together with any affiliate of such stockholder or any other person with whom such stockholder is acting in concert or as a “group” (as defined under Section 13 of the Exchange Act), will be restricted from redeeming its shares with respect to Excess Shares. However, we would not be restricting our stockholders’ ability to vote all of their shares (including Excess Shares) for or against our initial business combination. Our stockholders’ inability to redeem the Excess Shares will reduce their influence over our ability to complete our initial business combination, and such stockholders could suffer a material loss in their investment if they sell such Excess Shares on the open market. Additionally, such stockholders will not receive redemption distributions with respect to the Excess Shares if we complete our initial business combination. And, as a result, such stockholders will continue to hold that number of shares exceeding 15% and, in order to dispose such shares would be required to sell their shares in open market transactions, potentially at a loss.

If we seek stockholder approval in connection with our initial business combination, pursuant to the terms of a letter agreement entered into with us, our sponsor, officers and directors have agreed to vote their founder shares and any public shares they may acquire during or after this offering, in favor of our initial business combination. As a result, if all issued and outstanding shares are voted and the over-allotment option is not exercised, in addition to our founder shares, we would need 7,500,001 (or 37.5%) of the 20,000,000 public shares sold in this offering to be voted in favor of an initial business combination in order to have our initial business combination approved. If only the minimum number of shares representing a quorum are voted and the over-allotment option is not exercised, in addition to our founder shares, we would need 1,250,001 (or 6.25%) of the 20,000,000 public shares sold in this offering to be voted in favor of an initial business combination in order to have our initial business combination approved. Our directors have entered into a letter agreement similar to the one entered into by our sponsor with respect to any public shares acquired by them in or after this offering. As a result of the indirect interest in our founder shares and private placement warrants that our UBS O’Connor anchor investors may hold and the founder shares that our public anchor investors may hold, the anchor investors may have different interests with respect to a vote on an initial business combination than other public stockholders. Additionally, each public stockholder may elect to redeem its public shares irrespective of whether they vote for or against the proposed transaction.

Pursuant to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, if we have not completed an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering, we will (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up; (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but no more than ten business days thereafter subject to lawfully available funds therefor, 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 earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes, if any (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution

 

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expenses) divided by the number of the then outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidation distributions, if any), subject to applicable law; and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining stockholders and our board of directors, liquidate and dissolve, subject in each case to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. Our sponsor, officers and directors have entered into letter agreements with us, pursuant to which they have agreed to waive their rights to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to their founder shares if we do not complete an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering. However, if our sponsor or members of our sponsor team acquire public shares in or after this offering, they will be entitled to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to such public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within the prescribed time period.

In the event of a liquidation, dissolution or winding up of the company after a business combination, our stockholders are entitled to share ratably in all assets remaining available for distribution to them after payment of liabilities and after provision is made for each class of shares, if any, having preference over the common stock. Our stockholders have no preemptive or other subscription rights. There are no sinking fund provisions applicable to the common stock, except that we will provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their public shares for cash at a per share price equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes, if any (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses) divided by the number of the then outstanding public shares, upon the completion of our initial business combination, subject to the limitations described in this prospectus.

Founder Shares

The founder shares are designated as Class B common stock and, except as described below, are identical to the shares of our Class A common stock included in the units being sold in this offering, and holders of founder shares have the same stockholder rights as public stockholders, except that (i) the founder shares are subject to certain transfer restrictions, as described in more detail below, (ii) our sponsor, officers and directors have entered into letter agreements with us, pursuant to which they have agreed (A) to waive their redemption rights with respect to their founder shares and any public shares held by them in connection with the completion of our initial business combination, (B) to waive their redemption rights with respect to their founder shares and any public shares held by them in connection with a stockholder vote to approve an amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation that would affect the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we have not completed an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering or with respect to any other provisions relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity and (C) to waive their rights to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to its founder shares if we do not complete an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering, although it will be entitled to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to any public shares it holds if we do not complete our initial business combination within such time period, (iii) the public anchor investors will not be entitled to (A) redemption rights with respect to any founder shares held by them in connection with the completion of our business combination, (B) redemption rights with respect to any founder shares held by them in connection with a stockholder vote to approve an amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation that would affect the substance or timing of our obligation to redeem 100% of our public shares if we have not consummated an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering or (C) rights to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to any founder shares held by them if we fail to complete our business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering, although they will be entitled to liquidating distributions from the trust account with respect to any public shares they hold if we fail to complete our business combination within such time period, (iv) the founder shares are shares of Class B common stock that will automatically convert into Class A common stock on the first business day following the completion of our initial business combination as described in this prospectus and in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, and (v) prior to the completion of our initial business combination, only our founder shares will have the right to vote on the election of our directors. If we submit our initial business combination to our public stockholders for a vote,

 

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our sponsor and directors have agreed to vote their founder shares and any public shares they may acquire during or after this offering in favor of our initial business combination.

The founder shares are shares of Class B common stock that will automatically convert into shares of our Class A common stock on the first business day following the completion of our initial business combination at a ratio such that the number of shares of our Class A common stock issuable upon conversion of all founder shares will equal, in the aggregate, on an as-converted basis, 20% of the sum of (i) the total number of shares of our Class A common stock and Class B common stock issued and outstanding upon completion of this offering, plus (ii) the sum of (a) all shares of our Class A common stock issued or deemed issued or issuable upon conversion or exercise of any equity-linked securities or rights issued or deemed issued by the Company in connection with or in relation to the completion of the initial business combination, excluding (1) any shares of our Class A common stock or equity-linked securities exercisable or exchangeable for or convertible into shares of our Class A common stock issued, or to be issued, to any seller in the initial business combination and (2) any private placement warrants issued to our sponsor or any of its affiliates upon conversion of working capital loans, minus (b) the number of public shares redeemed by public stockholders in connection with our initial business combination. In no event will the shares of our Class B common stock convert into shares of our Class A common stock at a rate of less than one-to-one.

Except as described in this prospectus, our sponsor, directors and officers have agreed not to transfer, assign or sell any of their founder shares until the earlier to occur of (a) one year after the completion of our initial business combination, or (b) subsequent to our initial business combination, (x) if the last reported sale price of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $12.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock capitalizations, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) for any 20 trading days within any 30-trading day period commencing at least 150 days after our initial business combination, or (y) the date on which we complete a liquidation, merger, capital stock exchange or other similar transaction that results in all of our public stockholders having the right to exchange their shares of common stock for cash, securities or other property. Any permitted transferees will be subject to the same restrictions and other agreements of our initial stockholders with respect to any founder shares. We refer to such transfer restrictions throughout this prospectus as the lock-up.

Prior to our initial business combination, only holders of our founder shares will have the right to vote on the election of directors. Holders of our public shares will not be entitled to vote on the election of directors during such time. In addition, prior to the completion of an initial business combination, holders of a majority of our founder shares may remove a member of the board of directors for any reason. These provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation may only be amended by approval of a majority of at least 90% of our Class B common stock voting in an annual meeting. With respect to any other matter submitted to a vote of our stockholders, including any vote in connection with our initial business combination, except as required by law, holders of our founder shares and holders of our public shares will vote together as a single class, with each share entitling the holder to one vote.

Preferred Stock

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will authorize 1,000,000 shares of preferred stock and provide that shares of preferred stock may be issued from time to time in one or more series. Our board of directors will be authorized to fix the voting rights, if any, designations, powers, preferences, the relative, participating, optional or other special rights and any qualifications, limitations and restrictions thereof, applicable to the shares of each series. Our board of directors will be able to, without stockholder approval, issue shares of preferred stock with voting and other rights that could adversely affect the voting power and other rights of the holders of the common stock and could have anti-takeover effects. The ability of our board of directors to issue shares of preferred stock without stockholder approval could have the effect of delaying, deferring or preventing a change of control of us or the removal of existing management. We have no shares of preferred stock issued and outstanding at the date hereof. Although we do not currently intend to issue any shares of preferred stock, we cannot assure you that we will not do so in the future. No shares of preferred stock are being issued or registered in this offering.

Warrants

Public Stockholders’ Warrants

Each whole warrant entitles the registered holder to purchase one share of our Class A common stock at a price of $11.50 per share, subject to adjustment as discussed below, at any time commencing 30 days after the completion

 

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of our initial business combination, provided that we have an effective registration statement under the Securities Act covering the sale of the shares of the Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants, and a current prospectus relating thereto is available, (or we permit holders to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis under the circumstances specified in the warrant agreement) and such shares are registered, qualified or exempt from registration under the securities, or blue sky, laws of the state of residence of the holder. Pursuant to the warrant agreement, a warrant holder may exercise its warrants only for a whole number of shares of our Class A common stock. This means only a whole warrant may be exercised at a given time by a warrant holder. No fractional warrants will be issued upon separation of the units and only whole warrants will trade. If, upon separation of the units, a holder of warrants would be entitled to receive a fractional warrant, we will round down to the nearest whole number the number of warrants to be issued to such holder. Accordingly, unless you purchase at least two units, you will not be able to receive or trade a whole warrant. The warrants will expire five years after the completion of our initial business combination, at 5:00 p.m., New York City time, or earlier upon redemption or liquidation; provided, however, that the private placement warrants issued to Jefferies will not be exercisable more than five years from the commencement of sales in this offering in accordance with FINRA Rule 5110(g)(8).

We will not be obligated to deliver any Class A common stock pursuant to the exercise of a warrant and will have no obligation to settle such warrant exercise unless a registration statement under the Securities Act with respect to the sale of the shares of our Class A common stock underlying the warrants is then effective and a prospectus relating thereto is current, subject to our satisfying our obligations described below with respect to registration, or a valid exemption from registration is available. No warrant will be exercisable and we will not be obligated to issue a share of our Class A common stock upon exercise of a warrant unless the share of our Class A common stock issuable upon such warrant exercise has been registered, qualified or deemed to be exempt under the securities laws of the state of residence of the registered holder of the warrants. In the event that the conditions in the two immediately preceding sentences are not satisfied with respect to a warrant, the holder of such warrant will not be entitled to exercise such warrant and such warrant may have no value and expire worthless. In no event will we be required to net cash settle any warrant. In the event that a registration statement is not effective for the exercised warrants, the purchaser of a unit containing such warrant will have paid the full purchase price for the unit solely for the share of our Class A common stock underlying such unit.

We have agreed that as soon as practicable, but in no event later than 20 business days after the closing of our initial business combination, we will use our commercially reasonable efforts to file with the SEC a post-effective amendment to the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part or a new registration statement for the registration, under the Securities Act, of the shares of our Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants. We will use our commercially reasonable efforts to cause the same to become effective and to maintain the effectiveness of such registration statement, and a current prospectus relating thereto, until the expiration or redemption of the warrants in accordance with the provisions of the warrant agreement. Because the warrants are not exercisable until 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination, we do not currently intend to update the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part or file a new registration statement covering the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants until after the initial business combination has been consummated. If a registration statement covering the sale of the shares of our Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants is not effective by the 60th business day after the closing of the initial business combination, warrant holders may, until such time as there is an effective registration statement and during any period when we will have failed to maintain an effective registration statement, exercise warrants on a “cashless basis” in accordance with Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act or another exemption. In addition, if our Class A common stock are at the time of any exercise of a warrant not listed on a national securities exchange such that they satisfy the definition of a “covered security” under Section 18(b)(1) of the Securities Act, we may, at our option, require holders of our public warrants who exercise their warrants to do so on a “cashless basis” in accordance with Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act and, in the event we elect to do so, we will not be required to file or maintain in effect a registration statement, but we will use our commercially reasonable efforts to register or qualify the shares under applicable blue sky laws to the extent an exemption is not available. In such event, each holder would pay the exercise price by surrendering each such warrant for that number of shares of our Class A common stock equal to the lesser of (A) the quotient obtained by dividing (x) the product of the number of shares of our Class A common stock underlying the warrants, multiplied the excess of the “fair market value” less the exercise price of the warrants by (y) the fair market value and (B) 0.361. The “fair market value” shall mean the volume

 

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weighted average price of the shares of our Class A common stock for the ten trading days ending on the trading day prior to the date on which the notice of exercise is received by the warrant agent.

Redemption of Warrants When the Price per Share of Our Class A Common Stock Equals or Exceeds $18.00

Once the warrants become exercisable, we may redeem the outstanding warrants (except as described in this prospectus with respect to the private placement warrants):

 

   

in whole and not in part;

 

   

at a price of $0.01 per warrant;

 

   

upon not less than 30 days’ prior written notice of redemption to each warrant holder; and

 

   

if, and only if, the last reported sale price of the shares of our Class A common stock for any 20 trading days within a 30-trading day period ending three business days before we send to the notice of redemption to the warrant holders (which we refer to as the “Reference Value”) equals or exceeds $18.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like and certain issuances of Class A common stock and equity-linked securities).

If and when the warrants become redeemable by us, we may exercise our redemption right even if we are unable to register or qualify the underlying securities for sale under all applicable state securities laws. However, we will not redeem the warrants unless an effective registration statement under the Securities Act covering the sale of the shares of our Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants is effective, and a current prospectus relating thereto is available, throughout the 30-day redemption period.

We have established the last of the redemption criterion discussed above to prevent a redemption call unless there is at the time of the call a significant premium to the warrant exercise price. If the foregoing conditions are satisfied and we issue a notice of redemption of the warrants, each warrant holder will be entitled to exercise his, her or its warrant prior to the scheduled redemption date. Any such exercise would not be done on a “cashless” basis and would require the exercising warrant holder to pay the exercise price for each warrant being exercised. However, the price of the shares of our Class A common stock may fall below the $18.00 redemption trigger price (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like and certain issuances of Class A common stock and equity-linked securities) as well as the $11.50 (for whole shares) warrant exercise price after the redemption notice is issued.

Redemption of Warrants When the Price per Share of Our Class A Common Stock Equals or Exceeds $10.00:

Once the warrants become exercisable, we may redeem the outstanding warrants (except as described in this prospectus with respect to the private placement warrants):

 

   

in whole and not in part;

 

   

at $0.10 per warrant upon a minimum of 30 days’ prior written notice of redemption; provided that holders will be able to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis prior to redemption and receive that number of shares determined by reference to the table below, based on the redemption date and the “fair market value” of our Class A common stock (as defined below);

 

   

if, and only if, the Reference Value (as defined above under “Redemption of Warrants When the Price per Share of Our Class A Common Stock Equals or Exceeds $18.00”) equals or exceeds $10.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like and certain issuances of Class A common stock and equity-linked securities); and

 

   

if the Reference Value is less than $18.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like and certain issuances of Class A common stock and equity-linked securities) the private placement warrants must also be concurrently called for redemption on the same terms (except as described above with respect to a holder’s ability to cashless exercise its warrants) as the outstanding public warrants, as described above.

The numbers in the table below represent the number of shares of our Class A common stock that a warrant holder will receive upon exercise in connection with a redemption by us pursuant to this redemption feature, based on the “fair market value” of our Class A common stock on the corresponding redemption date (assuming holders elect to exercise their warrants and such warrants are not redeemed for $0.10 per warrant), determined based on volume-

 

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weighted average price of our Class A common stock as reported during the ten trading days immediately following the date on which the notice of redemption is sent to the holders of warrants, and the number of months that the corresponding redemption date precedes the expiration date of the warrants, each as set forth in the table below. We will provide our warrant holders with the final fair market value no later than one business day after the 10-trading day period described above ends.

Pursuant to the warrant agreement, references above to shares of our Class A common stock shall include a security other than shares of our Class A common stock into which the shares of our Class A common stock have been converted or exchanged for in the event we are not the surviving company in our initial business combination. The numbers in the table below will not be adjusted when determining the number of shares of our Class A common stock to be issued upon exercise of the warrants if we are not the surviving entity following our initial business combination.

The stock prices set forth in the column headings of the table below will be adjusted as of any date on which the number of shares issuable upon exercise of a warrant or the exercise price of a warrant is adjusted as set forth under the heading “—Anti-dilution Adjustments” below. If the number of shares issuable upon exercise of a warrant is adjusted, the adjusted stock prices in the column headings will equal the stock prices immediately prior to such adjustment, multiplied by a fraction, the numerator of which is the exercise price of the warrant after such adjustment and the denominator of which is the exercise price of the warrant immediately prior to such adjustment. In such an event, the number of shares in the table below shall be adjusted by multiplying such share amounts by a fraction, the numerator of which is the number of shares deliverable upon exercise of the warrant immediately prior to such adjustment and the denominator of which is the number of shares deliverable upon exercise of the warrant as so adjusted. If the exercise price of a warrant is adjusted, as a result of raising capital in connection with the initial business combination, the adjusted stock prices in the column headings will by multiplied by a fraction, the numerator of which is the higher of the Market Value and the Newly Issued Price as set forth under the heading “—Anti-dilution Adjustments” and the denominator of which is $10.00.

 

 

 

REDEMPTION DATE
(PERIOD TO EXPIRATION OF
WARRANTS)

   FAIR MARKET VALUE OF OUR COMMON STOCK  
   £$10.00      $11.00      $12.00      $13.00      $14.00      $15.00      $16.00      $17.00      ³$18.00  

60 months

     0.261        0.281        0.297        0.311        0.324        0.337        0.348        0.358        0.361  

57 months

     0.257        0.277        0.294        0.310        0.324        0.337        0.348        0.358        0.361  

54 months

     0.252        0.272        0.291        0.307        0.322        0.335        0.347        0.357        0.361  

51 months

     0.246        0.268        0.287        0.304        0.320        0.333        0.346        0.357        0.361  

48 months

     0.241        0.263        0.283        0.301        0.317        0.332        0.344        0.356        0.361  

45 months

     0.235        0.258        0.279        0.298        0.315        0.330        0.343        0.356        0.361  

42 months

     0.228        0.252        0.274        0.294        0.312        0.328        0.342        0.355        0.361  

39 months

     0.221        0.246        0.269        0.290        0.309        0.325        0.340        0.354        0.361  

36 months

     0.213        0.239        0.263        0.285        0.305        0.323        0.339        0.353        0.361  

33 months

     0.205        0.232        0.257        0.280        0.301        0.320        0.337        0.352        0.361  

30 months

     0.196        0.224        0.250        0.274        0.297        0.316        0.335        0.351        0.361  

27 months

     0.185        0.214        0.242        0.268        0.291        0.313        0.332        0.350        0.361  

24 months

     0.173        0.204        0.233        0.260        0.285        0.308        0.329        0.348        0.361  

21 months

     0.161        0.193        0.223        0.252        0.279        0.304        0.326        0.347        0.361  

18 months

     0.146        0.179        0.211        0.242        0.271        0.298        0.322        0.345        0.361  

15 months

     0.130        0.164        0.197        0.230        0.262        0.291        0.317        0.342        0.361  

12 months

     0.111        0.146        0.181        0.216        0.250        0.282        0.312        0.339        0.361  

9 months

     0.090        0.125        0.162        0.199        0.237        0.272        0.305        0.336        0.361  

6 months

     0.065        0.099        0.137        0.178        0.219        0.259        0.296        0.331        0.361  

3 months

     0.034        0.065        0.104        0.150        0.197        0.243        0.286        0.326        0.361  

0 months

                   0.042        0.115        0.179        0.233        0.281        0.323        0.361  

 

 

The exact fair market value and redemption date may not be set forth in the table above, in which case, if the fair market value is between two values in the table or the redemption date is between two redemption dates in the table, the number of shares of our Class A common stock to be issued for each warrant exercised will be determined

 

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by a straight-line interpolation between the number of shares set forth for the higher and lower fair market values and the earlier and later redemption dates, as applicable, based on a 365 or 366-day year, as applicable. For example, if the volume-weighted average price of our Class A common stock as reported during the ten trading days immediately following the date on which the notice of redemption is sent to the holders of the warrants is $11.00 per share, and at such time there are 57 months until the expiration of the warrants, holders may choose to, in connection with this redemption feature, exercise their warrants for 0.277 Class A common stock for each whole warrant. For an example where the exact fair market value and redemption date are not as set forth in the table above, if the volume-weighted average price of our Class A common stock as reported during the ten trading days immediately following the date on which the notice of redemption is sent to the holders of the warrants is $13.50 per share, and at such time there are 38 months until the expiration of the warrants, holders may choose to, in connection with this redemption feature, exercise their warrants for 0.298 Class A common stock for each whole warrant. In no event will the warrants be exercisable in connection with this redemption feature for more than 0.361 Class A common stock per warrant (subject to adjustment).

This redemption feature differs from the typical warrant redemption features used in other blank check offerings, which typically only provide for a redemption of warrants for cash (other than the private placement warrants) when the trading price for the shares of our Class A common stock exceeds $18.00 per share for a specified period of time. This redemption feature is structured to allow for all of the outstanding warrants to be redeemed when the shares of our Class A common stock are trading at or above $10.00 per share, which may be at a time when the trading price of our shares of Class A common stock is below the exercise price of the warrants. We have established this redemption feature to provide us with the flexibility to redeem the warrants without the warrants having to reach the $18.00 per share threshold set forth above under “—Redemption of Warrants When the Price per Share of Our Class A Common Stock Equals or Exceeds $18.00.” Holders choosing to exercise their warrants in connection with a redemption pursuant to this feature will, in effect, receive a number of shares for their warrants based on an option pricing model with a fixed volatility input as of the date of this prospectus. This redemption right provides us with an additional mechanism by which to redeem all of the outstanding warrants, and therefore have certainty as to our capital structure as the warrants would no longer be outstanding and would have been exercised or redeemed. We will be required to pay the applicable redemption price to warrant holders if we choose to exercise this redemption right and it will allow us to quickly proceed with a redemption of the warrants if we determine it is in our best interest to do so. As such, we would redeem the warrants in this manner when we believe it is in our best interest to update our capital structure to remove the warrants and pay the redemption price to the warrant holders.

As stated above, we can redeem the warrants when the shares of our Class A common stock are trading at a price starting at $10.00, which is below the exercise price of $11.50, because it will provide certainty with respect to our capital structure and cash position while providing warrant holders with the opportunity to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis for the applicable number of shares. If we choose to redeem the warrants when the shares of our Class A common stock are trading at a price below the exercise price of the warrants, this could result in the warrant holders receiving fewer Class A common stock than they would have received if they had chosen to wait to exercise their warrants for Class A common stock if and when such Class A common stock were trading at a price higher than the exercise price of $11.50.

No fractional shares of our Class A common stock will be issued upon exercise of a warrant in connection with a redemption. If, upon exercise, a holder would be entitled to receive a fractional interest in a share, we will round down to the nearest whole number of the number of shares of our Class A common stock to be issued to the holder. If, at the time of redemption, the warrants are exercisable for a security other than the shares of our Class A common stock pursuant to the warrant agreement (for instance, if we are not the surviving company in our initial business combination), the warrants may be exercised for such security. At such time as the warrants become exercisable for a security other than the shares of our Class A common stock, the Company (or surviving company) will use its commercially reasonable efforts to register under the Securities Act the security issuable upon the exercise of the warrants.

Redemption Procedures. A holder of a warrant may notify us in writing in the event it elects to be subject to a requirement that such holder will not have the right to exercise such warrant, to the extent that after giving effect to such exercise, such person (together with such person’s affiliates), to the warrant agent’s actual knowledge, would

 

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beneficially own in excess of 4.9% or 9.8% (as specified by the holder) of the shares of our Class A common stock issued and outstanding immediately after giving effect to such exercise.

Anti-dilution Adjustments. If the number of outstanding shares of our Class A common stock is increased by a stock capitalization or stock dividend payable in shares of our Class A common stock, or by a split-up of common stock or other similar event, then, on the effective date of such stock capitalization or stock dividend, split-up or similar event, the number of shares of our Class A common stock issuable on exercise of each warrant will be increased in proportion to such increase in the outstanding shares of common stock. A rights offering to holders of common stock entitling holders to purchase Class A common stock at a price less than the “historical fair market value” (as defined below) will be deemed a stock dividend of a number of shares of our Class A common stock equal to the product of (i) the number of shares of our Class A common stock actually sold in such rights offering (or issuable under any other equity securities sold in such rights offering that are convertible into or exercisable for Class A common stock) and (ii) one minus the quotient of (x) the price per share of our Class A common stock paid in such rights offering and (y) the historical fair market value. For these purposes, (i) if the rights offering is for securities convertible into or exercisable for shares of our Class A common stock, in determining the price payable for Class A common stock, there will be taken into account any consideration received for such rights, as well as any additional amount payable upon exercise or conversion and (ii) “historical fair market value” means the volume-weighted average price of shares of our Class A common stock as reported during the ten trading day period ending on the trading day prior to the first date on which the shares of our Class A common stock trade on the applicable exchange or in the applicable market, regular way, without the right to receive such rights.

In addition, if we, at any time while the warrants are outstanding and unexpired, pay a dividend or make a distribution in cash, securities or other assets to the holders of shares of our Class A common stock on account of such Class A common stock (or other securities into which the warrants are convertible), other than (a) as described above, (b) any cash dividends or cash distributions which, when combined on a per share basis with all other cash dividends and cash distributions paid on the shares of our Class A common stock during the 365-day period ending on the date of declaration of such dividend or distribution does not exceed $0.50 (as adjusted to appropriately reflect any other adjustments and excluding cash dividends or cash distributions that resulted in an adjustment to the exercise price or to the number of shares of our Class A common stock issuable on exercise of each warrant) but only with respect to the amount of the aggregate cash dividends or cash distributions equal to or less than $0.50 per share, (c) to satisfy the redemption rights of the holders of our Class A common stock in connection with a proposed initial business combination, (d) to satisfy the redemption rights of the holders of our Class A common stock in connection with a stockholder vote to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation (A) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering or (B) with respect to any other provision relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity, or (e) in connection with the redemption of our public shares upon our failure to complete our initial business combination, then the warrant exercise price will be decreased, effective immediately after the effective date of such event, by the amount of cash and/or the fair market value of any securities or other assets paid on each share of our Class A common stock in respect of such event.

If the number of outstanding shares of our Class A common stock is decreased by a consolidation, combination, reverse share split or reclassification of our Class A common stock or other similar event, then, on the effective date of such consolidation, combination, reverse share split, reclassification or similar event, the number of shares of our Class A common stock issuable on exercise of each warrant will be decreased in proportion to such decrease in outstanding shares of our Class A common stock.

Whenever the number of shares of our Class A common stock purchasable upon the exercise of the warrants is adjusted, as described above, the warrant exercise price will be adjusted by multiplying the warrant exercise price immediately prior to such adjustment by a fraction (x) the numerator of which will be the number of shares of our Class A common stock purchasable upon the exercise of the warrants immediately prior to such adjustment and (y) the denominator of which will be the number of shares of our Class A common stock so purchasable immediately thereafter.

In addition, if (x) we issue additional shares of our Class A common stock or equity-linked securities for capital raising purposes in connection with the closing of our initial business combination at an issue price or effective issue

 

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price of less than $9.20 per share of our Class A common stock (with such issue price or effective issue price to be determined in good faith by our board of directors and, in the case of any such issuance to our sponsor or its affiliates, without taking into account any founder shares held by our initial stockholders or such affiliates, as applicable, prior to such issuance) (the “Newly Issued Price”), (y) the aggregate gross proceeds from such issuances represent more than 60% of the total equity proceeds, and interest thereon, available for the funding of our initial business combination on the date of the completion of our initial business combination (net of redemptions), and (z) the volume-weighted average trading price of our Class A common stock during the 20 trading day period starting on the trading day prior to the day on which we complete our initial business combination (such price, the “Market Value”) is below $9.20 per share, then the exercise price of the warrants will be adjusted (to the nearest cent) to be equal to 115% of the higher of the Market Value and the Newly Issued Price, and the $10.00 and $18.00 per share redemption trigger prices described adjacent to “Redemption of Warrants When the Price per Share of Our Class A Common Stock Equals or Exceeds $18.00” and “Redemption of Warrants When the Price per Share of Our Class A Common Stock Equals or Exceeds $10.00” will be adjusted (to the nearest cent) to be equal to 100% and 180% of the higher of the Market Value and the Newly Issued Price, respectively.

In case of any reclassification or reorganization of the outstanding Class A common stock (other than those described above or that solely affects the par value of such Class A common stock), or in the case of any merger or consolidation of us with or into another corporation (other than a consolidation or merger in which we are the continuing corporation and that does not result in any reclassification or reorganization of our outstanding Class A common stock), or in the case of any sale or conveyance to another corporation or entity of the assets or other property of us as an entirety or substantially as an entirety in connection with which we are dissolved, the holders of the warrants will thereafter have the right to purchase and receive, upon the basis and upon the terms and conditions specified in the warrants and in lieu of the shares of our Class A common stock immediately theretofore purchasable and receivable upon the exercise of the rights represented thereby, the kind and amount of our Class A common stock or other securities or property (including cash) receivable upon such reclassification, reorganization, merger or consolidation, or upon a dissolution following any such sale or transfer, that the holder of the warrants would have received if such holder had exercised their warrants immediately prior to such event. If less than 70% of the consideration receivable by the holders of our Class A common stock in such a transaction is payable in the form of our Class A common stock in the successor entity that is listed for trading on a national securities exchange or is quoted in an established over-the-counter market, or is to be so listed for trading or quoted immediately following such event, and if the registered holder of the warrant properly exercises the warrant within 30 days following public disclosure of such transaction, the warrant exercise price will be reduced as specified in the warrant agreement based on the Black-Scholes value (as defined in the warrant agreement) of the warrant. The purpose of such exercise price reduction is to provide additional value to holders of the warrants when an extraordinary transaction occurs during the exercise period of the warrants pursuant to which the holders of the warrants otherwise do not receive the full potential value of the warrants.

The warrants will be issued in registered form under a warrant agreement between Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company, as warrant agent, and us. The warrant agreement provides that the terms of the warrants may be amended without the consent of any holder to cure any ambiguity or correct any defective provision. Amending our warrant agreement to allow for our warrants to be classified as equity in our financial statements will require a vote of holders of at least a majority of the public warrants and the private placement warrants, voting together as a single class., Otherwise, amending our warrant agreement requires the approval by the holders of at least a majority of the then-outstanding public warrants to make any change that adversely affects the interests of the registered holders; provided that, solely in the case of an amendment to the terms of the private placement warrants or any provision of the warrant agreement with respect to the private placement warrants that does not adversely affect any of the terms of the public warrants, such amendment will require only the written consent or vote of the registered holders of at least a majority of the then outstanding private placement warrants. You should review a copy of the warrant agreement, which will be filed as an exhibit to the registration statement of which this prospectus is a part, for a complete description of the terms and conditions applicable to the warrants.

The warrants may be exercised upon surrender of the warrant certificate on or prior to the expiration date at the offices of the warrant agent, with the exercise form on the reverse side of the warrant certificate completed and executed as indicated, accompanied by full payment of the exercise price (or on a cashless basis, if applicable), by

 

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certified or official bank check payable to us, for the number of warrants being exercised. The warrant holders do not have the rights or privileges of holders of common stock and any voting rights until they exercise their warrants and receive Class A common stock. After the issuance of our Class A common stock upon exercise of the warrants, each holder will be entitled to one vote for each share held of record on all matters to be voted on by stockholders.

No fractional shares will be issued upon exercise of the warrants. If, upon exercise of the warrants, a holder would be entitled to receive a fractional interest in a share, we will, upon exercise, round down to the nearest whole number, the number of shares of our Class A common stock to be issued to the warrant holder.

Private Placement Warrants

The private placement warrants (including the shares of our Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the private placement warrants) will not be transferable, assignable or salable until 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination (except pursuant to limited exceptions as described under “Principal Stockholders — Transfers of Founder Shares and Private Placement Warrants,” to our officers and directors and other persons or entities affiliated with the initial purchasers of the private placement warrants) and they will not be redeemable by us so long as they are held by our sponsor, Jefferies or their permitted transferees. Our sponsor and Jefferies, or their permitted transferees, have the option to exercise the private placement warrants on a cashless basis. The private placement warrants held by Jefferies will not be exercisable more than five years from the commencement of sales in this offering in accordance with FINRA Rule 5110(g)(8). Except as described below, the private placement warrants have terms and provisions that are identical to those of the warrants being sold as part of the units in this offering. If the private placement warrants are held by holders other than our sponsor, Jefferies or their permitted transferees, the private placement warrants will be redeemable by us in all redemption scenarios and exercisable by the holders on the same basis as the warrants included in the units being sold in this offering.

Except as described under “Description of Securities — Warrants — Redemption of Warrants When the Price per Share of Our Class A Common Stock Equals or Exceeds $10.00”), if holders of the private placement warrants elect to exercise them on a cashless basis, they would pay the exercise price by surrendering his, her or its warrants for that number of shares of our Class A common stock equal to the quotient obtained by dividing (x) the product of the number of shares of our Class A common stock underlying the warrants, multiplied by the excess of the “historical fair market value” (defined below) over the exercise price of the warrants by (y) the historical fair market value. For these purposes, the “historical fair market value” shall mean the average last reported sale price of the shares of our Class A common stock for the ten trading days ending on the third trading day prior to the date on which the notice of warrant exercise is sent to the warrant agent. The reason that we have agreed that these warrants will be exercisable on a cashless basis so long as they are held by our initial stockholders, Jefferies and their permitted transferees is because it is not known at this time whether they will be affiliated with us following a business combination. If they remain affiliated with us, their ability to sell our securities in the open market will be significantly limited. We expect to have policies in place that restrict insiders from selling our securities except during specific periods of time. Even during such periods of time when insiders will be permitted to sell our securities, an insider cannot trade in our securities if he or she is in possession of material non-public information. Accordingly, unlike public stockholders who could exercise their warrants and sell the shares of our Class A common stock received upon such exercise freely in the open market in order to recoup the cost of such exercise, the insiders could be significantly restricted from selling such securities. As a result, we believe that allowing the holders to exercise such warrants on a cashless basis is appropriate.

In order to fund working capital deficiencies or finance transaction costs in connection with an intended initial business combination, our sponsor or an affiliate of our sponsor or certain of our officers and directors may loan us funds as may be required, although they are under no obligation to advance funds or invest in us. Up to $1,500,000 of such loans may be convertible into warrants of the post business combination entity at a price of $1.00 per warrant at the option of the lender. Such warrants would be identical to the private placement warrants.

Dividends

We have not paid any cash dividends on our common stock to date and do not intend to pay cash dividends prior to the completion of a business combination. The payment of cash dividends in the future will be dependent upon our revenues and earnings, if any, capital requirements and general financial condition subsequent to completion of a

 

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business combination. The payment of any cash dividends subsequent to a business combination will be within the discretion of our board of directors at such time. If we increase the size of this offering, then we will effect a stock capitalization with respect to our founder shares immediately prior to the completion of this offering in such amount as to maintain the number of founder shares, on an as-converted basis, at 20% of the issued and outstanding shares of our common stock upon the completion of this offering. Further, if we incur any indebtedness, our ability to declare dividends may be limited by restrictive covenants we may agree to in connection therewith.

Our Transfer Agent and Warrant Agent

The transfer agent for our common stock and warrant agent for our warrants is Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company. We have agreed to indemnify Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company in its roles as transfer agent and warrant agent, its agents and each of its stockholders, directors, officers and employees against all claims and losses that may arise out of acts performed or omitted for its activities in that capacity, except for any claims and losses due to any gross negligence or intentional misconduct of the indemnified person or entity.

Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will contain provisions designed to provide certain requirements and restrictions relating to this offering that will apply to us until the completion of our initial business combination. These provisions cannot be amended without the approval of the holders of a majority of our common stock. Our initial stockholders and their permitted transferees, if any, who will collectively beneficially own 20% of our common stock upon the closing of this offering (assuming they do not purchase any units in this offering), will participate in any vote to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and will have the discretion to vote in any manner they choose. Specifically, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will provide, among other things, that:

 

   

If we have not completed an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering, we will (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up; (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but no 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 earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes, if any (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of the then outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidation distributions, if any); and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining stockholders and our board of directors, liquidate and dissolve, subject in each case to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law;

 

   

Prior to or in connection with our initial business combination, we may not issue additional securities that would entitle the holders thereof to (i) receive funds from the trust account or (ii) vote on our initial business combination or on any other proposal presented to stockholders prior to or in connection with the completion of an initial business combination;

 

   

Although we do not intend to enter into a business combination with a target business that is affiliated with our sponsor, our directors or our officers, we are not prohibited from doing so. In the event we enter into such a transaction, we, or a committee of independent directors, will obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm which is a member of FINRA or from an independent accounting firm that such a business combination is fair to our company from a financial point of view;

 

   

If a stockholder vote on our initial business combination is not required by law and we do not decide to hold a stockholder vote for business or other reasons, we will offer to redeem our public shares pursuant to Rule 13e-4 and Regulation 14E of the Exchange Act, and will file tender offer documents with the SEC prior to completing our initial business combination which contain substantially the same financial and other information about our initial business combination and the redemption rights as is required under Regulation 14A of the Exchange Act;

 

   

In accordance with the rules of Nasdaq, our initial business combination must occur with one or more target businesses that together have an aggregate fair market value of at least 80% of the assets held in the trust

 

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account (excluding the amount of deferred underwriting discounts held in trust and taxes payable on the income earned on the trust account) at the time of the agreement to enter into the initial business combination;

 

   

If our stockholders approve an amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation that would affect the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete an initial business combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering, or with respect to any other provisions relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity, we will provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their shares of Class A common stock upon such approval at a per share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the trust account, including interest earned on the funds held in the trust account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes, if any (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses) divided by the number of the then outstanding public shares, subject to the limitations described in this prospectus; and

 

   

We will not effectuate our initial business combination with another blank check company or a similar company with nominal operations.

In addition, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will provide that under no circumstances will we redeem our public shares in an amount that would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001.

Certain Anti-Takeover Provisions of Delaware Law and our Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation

We will be subject to the provisions of Section 203 of the DGCL regulating corporate takeovers upon completion of this offering. This statute prevents certain Delaware corporations, under certain circumstances, from engaging in a “business combination” with:

 

   

a stockholder who owns 15% or more of our outstanding voting stock (otherwise known as an “interested stockholder”);

 

   

an affiliate of an interested stockholder; or

 

   

an associate of an interested stockholder, for three years following the date that the stockholder became an interested stockholder.

 

   

A “business combination” includes a merger or sale of more than 10% of our assets. However, the above provisions of Section 203 do not apply if:

 

   

our board of directors approves the transaction that made the stockholder an “interested stockholder,” prior to the date of the transaction;

 

   

after the completion of the transaction that resulted in the stockholder becoming an interested stockholder, that stockholder owned at least 85% of our voting stock outstanding at the time the transaction commenced, other than statutorily excluded shares of common stock; or

 

   

on or subsequent to the date of the transaction, the initial business combination is approved by our board of directors and authorized at a meeting of our stockholders, and not by written consent, by an affirmative vote of at least two-thirds of the outstanding voting stock not owned by the interested stockholder.

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will provide that our board of directors will be classified into three classes of directors. As a result, in most circumstances, a person can gain control of our board only by successfully engaging in a proxy contest at two or more annual meetings.

Our authorized but unissued common stock and preferred stock will be available for future issuances without stockholder approval and could be utilized for a variety of corporate purposes, including future offerings to raise additional capital, acquisitions and employee benefit plans. The existence of authorized but unissued and unreserved common stock and preferred stock could render more difficult or discourage an attempt to obtain control of us by means of a proxy contest, tender offer, merger or otherwise.

Exclusive Forum for Certain Lawsuits

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will require, unless we consent in writing to the selection of an alternative forum, that (i) any derivative action or proceeding brought on our behalf, (ii) any action asserting a claim

 

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of breach of a fiduciary duty owed by any director, officer or other employee to us or our stockholders, (iii) any action asserting a claim against us, our directors, officers or employees arising pursuant to any provision of the DGCL or our amended and restated certificate of incorporation or bylaws, or (iv) any action asserting a claim against us, our directors, officers or employees governed by the internal affairs doctrine may be brought only in the Court of Chancery in the State of Delaware, except any claim (A) as to which the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware determines that there is an indispensable party not subject to the jurisdiction of the Court of Chancery (and the indispensable party does not consent to the personal jurisdiction of the Court of Chancery within ten days following such determination), (B) which is vested in the exclusive jurisdiction of a court or forum other than the Court of Chancery, or (C) for which the Court of Chancery does not have subject matter jurisdiction. If an action is brought outside of Delaware, the stockholder bringing the suit will be deemed to have consented to service of process on such stockholder’s counsel. Although we believe this provision benefits us by providing increased consistency in the application of Delaware law in the types of lawsuits to which it applies, a court may determine that this provision is unenforceable, and to the extent it is enforceable, the provision may have the effect of discouraging lawsuits against our directors and officers, although our stockholders will not be deemed to have waived our compliance with federal securities laws and the rules and regulations thereunder.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will provide that the exclusive forum provision will not apply to suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Exchange Act, the Securities Act or any other claim for which the federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction. Section 27 of the Exchange Act creates exclusive federal jurisdiction over all suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Exchange Act or the rules and regulations thereunder and Section 22 of the Securities Act creates concurrent jurisdiction for federal and state courts over all suits brought to enforce any duty or liability created by the Securities Act or the rules and the regulations thereunder.

Special Meeting of Stockholders

Our bylaws provide that special meetings of our stockholders may be called only by a majority vote of our board of directors or by our Chairman of the Board or any Chief Executive Officer.

Advance Notice Requirements for Stockholder Proposals and Director Nominations

Our bylaws provide that stockholders seeking to bring business before our annual meeting of stockholders, or to nominate candidates for election as directors at our annual meeting of stockholders, must provide timely notice of their intent in writing. To be timely, a stockholder’s notice will need to be received by the company secretary at our principal executive offices not later than the close of business on the 90th day nor earlier than the opening of business on the 120th day prior to the anniversary date of the immediately preceding annual meeting of stockholders. Pursuant to Rule 14a-8 of the Exchange Act, proposals seeking inclusion in our annual proxy statement must comply with the notice periods contained in this prospectus. Our bylaws also specify certain requirements as to the form and content of a stockholders’ meeting. These provisions may preclude our stockholders from bringing matters before our annual meeting of stockholders or from making nominations for directors at our annual meeting of stockholders.

Action by Written Consent

Subsequent to the consummation of the offering, any action required or permitted to be taken by our common stockholders must be effected by a duly called annual or special meeting of such stockholders and may not be effected by written consent of the stockholders other than with respect to our Class B common stock.

Classified Board of Directors

Our board of directors will initially be divided into three classes, Class I, Class II and Class III, with members of each class serving staggered three-year terms. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will provide that the authorized number of directors may be changed only by resolution of the board of directors. Subject to the terms of any preferred stock, any or all of the directors may be removed from office at any time, but only for cause and only by the affirmative vote of holders of a majority of the voting power of all then outstanding shares of our capital stock entitled to vote generally in the election of directors, voting together as a single class. Any vacancy on our board of directors, including a vacancy resulting from an enlargement of our board of directors, may be filled only by vote of a majority of our directors then in office.

 

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Class B Common Stock Consent Right

For so long as any shares of our Class B common stock remain outstanding, we may not, without the prior vote or written consent of the holders of a majority of the shares of our Class B common stock then outstanding, voting separately as a single class, amend, alter or repeal any provision of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, whether by merger, consolidation or otherwise, if such amendment, alteration or repeal would alter or change the powers, preferences or relative, participating, optional or other or special rights of the Class B common stock. Any action required or permitted to be taken at any meeting of the holders of our Class B common stock may be taken without a meeting, without prior notice and without a vote, if a consent or consents in writing, setting forth the action so taken, shall be signed by the holders of the outstanding Class B common stock having not less than the minimum number of votes that would be necessary to authorize or take such action at a meeting at which all shares of our Class B common stock were present and voted.

Securities Eligible for Future Sale

Immediately after this offering we will have 25,000,000 shares of common stock (or 28,750,000 shares of common stock if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) issued and outstanding on an as-converted basis. Of these shares, the shares of our Class A common stock sold in this offering (20,000,000 shares of our Class A common stock if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is not exercised and 23,000,000 shares of our Class A common stock if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) will be freely tradable without restriction or further registration under the Securities Act, except for any Class A common stock purchased by one of our affiliates within the meaning of Rule 144 under the Securities Act. All of the outstanding founder shares (5,000,000 founder shares if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is not exercised and 5,750,000 founder shares if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) and all of the outstanding private placement warrants (7,600,000 private placement warrants if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is not exercised and 8,200,000 private placement warrants if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) will be restricted securities under Rule 144, in that they were issued in private transactions not involving a public offering.

Rule 144

Pursuant to Rule 144, a person who has beneficially owned restricted shares or warrants for at least six months would be entitled to sell their securities provided that (i) such person is not deemed to have been one of our affiliates at the time of, or at any time during the three months preceding, a sale and (ii) we are subject to the Exchange Act periodic reporting requirements for at least three months before the sale and have filed all required reports under Section 13 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act during the 12 months (or such shorter period as we were required to file reports) preceding the sale.

Persons who have beneficially owned restricted shares or warrants for at least six months but who are our affiliates at the time of, or at any time during the three months preceding, a sale, would be subject to additional restrictions, by which such person would be entitled to sell within any three-month period only a number of securities that does not exceed the greater of:

 

   

1% of the total number of shares of common stock then outstanding, which will equal 250,000 shares immediately after this offering (or 287,500 shares if the underwriters exercises their over-allotment option in full); or

 

   

the average weekly reported trading volume of the shares of our Class A common stock during the four calendar weeks preceding the filing of a notice on Form 144 with respect to the sale.

 

   

Sales by our affiliates under Rule 144 are also limited by manner of sale provisions and notice requirements and to the availability of current public information about us.

Restrictions on the Use of Rule 144 by Shell Companies or Former Shell Companies

Rule 144 is not available for the resale of securities initially issued by shell companies (other than business combination related shell companies) or issuers that have been at any time previously a shell company. However, Rule 144 also includes an important exception to this prohibition if the following conditions are met:

 

   

the issuer of the securities that was formerly a shell company has ceased to be a shell company;

 

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the issuer of the securities is subject to the reporting requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act;and

 

   

the issuer of the securities has filed all Exchange Act reports and material required to be filed, as applicable, during the preceding 12 months (or such shorter period that the issuer was required to file such reports and materials), other than Form 8-K reports; and at least one year has elapsed from the time that the issuer filed current Form 10 type information with the SEC reflecting its status as an entity that is not a shell company.

As a result, our initial stockholders will be able to sell their founder shares and private placement warrants, as applicable, pursuant to Rule 144 without registration one year after we have completed our initial business combination.

Registration Rights

The holders of the founder shares, private placement warrants and warrants that may be issued upon conversion of working capital loans (and any Class A common stock issuable upon the exercise of the private placement warrants and warrants that may be issued upon conversion of working capital loans) will be entitled to registration rights pursuant to a registration rights agreement to be signed prior to or on the effective date of this offering. The holders of these securities are entitled to make up to three demands, excluding short form demands, that we register such securities. In addition, the holders have certain “piggy-back” registration rights with respect to registration statements filed subsequent to our completion of our initial business combination. However, the registration rights agreement provides that we will not permit any registration statement filed under the Securities Act to become effective until termination of the applicable lockup period, which occurs (i) in the case of the founder shares, as described in the following paragraph, and (ii) in the case of the private placement warrants and the respective shares of our Class A common stock underlying such warrants, 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination. We will bear the expenses incurred in connection with the filing of any such registration statements. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the registration rights relating to the private placement warrants held by Jefferies shall comply with the requirements of FINRA Rule 5110 (g)(8)(B)-(D), namely that Jefferies may not exercise its demand and “piggy-back” registration rights after five and seven years, respectively, from the commencement of sales of this offering and may not exercise its demand rights on more than one occasion.

Except as described in this prospectus, our sponsor and our directors and executive officers have agreed not to transfer, assign or sell any of their founder shares until the earlier to occur of (a) one year after the completion of our initial business combination, or (b) subsequent to our initial business combination, (x) if the last reported sale price of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $12.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock capitalizations, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) for any 20 trading days within any 30-trading day period commencing at least 150 days after our initial business combination, or (y) the date on which we complete a liquidation, merger, capital stock exchange or other similar transaction that results in all of our public stockholders having the right to exchange their shares of common stock for cash, securities or other property. Any permitted transferees will be subject to the same restrictions and other agreements of our sponsor with respect to any founder shares. We refer to such transfer restrictions throughout this prospectus as the lock-up.

In addition, pursuant to the registration rights agreement, our sponsor, upon completion of an initial business combination, will be entitled to nominate up to three individuals for election to our board of directors, as long as the sponsor holds any securities covered by the registration rights agreement.

Listing of Securities

Our units have been approved for listing on Nasdaq under the symbol “HPLTU”. Once the securities comprising the units begin separate trading, we expect that the shares of our Class A common stock and warrants will be listed on Nasdaq under the symbols “HPLT” and “HPLTW,” respectively. The units will automatically separate into their component parts and will not be traded following the completion of our initial business combination.

 

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MATERIAL U.S. FEDERAL INCOME TAX CONSIDERATIONS

The following discussion summarizes certain material U.S. federal income tax considerations generally applicable to the acquisition, ownership and disposition of our units (each consisting of one share of our Class A common stock and one-half of one redeemable warrant) that are purchased in this offering by U.S. Holders (as defined below) and Non-U.S. Holders (as defined below). Because the components of a unit are generally separable at the option of the holder, the holder of a unit generally should be treated, for U.S. federal income tax purposes, as the owner of the underlying share of our Class A common stock and the one-half of one warrant components of the unit. As a result, the discussion below with respect to holders of shares of our Class A common stock and warrants should also apply to holders of units (as the deemed owners of the underlying shares of our Class A common stock and warrants that constitute the units).

This discussion is limited to U.S. federal income tax considerations to beneficial owners of our securities who are initial purchasers of a unit pursuant to this offering and who hold the unit and each component of the unit as a capital asset under Section 1221 of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”). This discussion assumes that the shares of our Class A common stock and warrants will trade separately and that any distributions made (or deemed made) by us on the shares of our Class A common stock and any consideration received (or deemed received) by a holder in consideration for the sale or other disposition of our securities will be in U.S. dollars. This discussion is a summary only and does not consider all aspects of U.S. federal income taxation that may be relevant to the acquisition, ownership and disposition of a unit by a prospective investor in light of its particular circumstances, including:

 

   

our founders, sponsor, officers or directors or holders of our Class B common stock or private placement warrants;

 

   

financial institutions or financial services entities;

 

   

broker-dealers;

 

   

taxpayers that are subject to the mark-to-market tax accounting rules;

 

   

tax-exempt entities;

 

   

S-corporations;

 

   

governments or agencies or instrumentalities thereof;

 

   

insurance companies;

 

   

regulated investment companies;

 

   

real estate investment trusts;

 

   

passive foreign investment companies;

 

   

controlled foreign corporations;

 

   

expatriates or former long-term residents of the United States;

 

   

persons that acquired our securities pursuant to an exercise of employee share options, in connection with employee share incentive plans or otherwise as compensation or in connection with services;

 

   

persons required for U.S. federal income tax purposes to conform the timing of income accruals to their financial statements under Section 451 of the Code;

 

   

persons subject to the alternative minimum tax;

 

   

persons that hold our securities as part of a straddle, constructive sale, hedging, conversion or other integrated or similar transaction; or

 

   

U.S. Holders whose functional currency is not the U.S. dollar.

Moreover, the discussion below is based upon the provisions of the Code, the Treasury regulations promulgated thereunder and administrative and judicial interpretations thereof, all as of the date hereof, and such provisions may be repealed, revoked, modified or subject to differing interpretations, possibly on a retroactive basis, so as to result in U.S. federal income tax consequences different from those discussed below. Furthermore, this discussion does not address any aspect of U.S. federal non-income tax laws, such as gift, estate or Medicare contribution tax laws, or state, local or non-U.S. tax laws.

 

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We have not sought, and will not seek, a ruling from the Internal Revenue Service (the “IRS”) as to any U.S. federal income tax consequence described in this prospectus. The IRS may disagree with the discussion in this prospectus, and its determination may be upheld by a court. Moreover, there can be no assurance that future legislation, regulations, administrative rulings or court decisions will not adversely affect the accuracy of the statements in this discussion.

As used in this prospectus, the term “U.S. Holder” means a beneficial owner of units, shares of our Class A common stock or warrants that is for U.S. federal income tax purposes: (i) an individual citizen or resident of the United States, (ii) a corporation (or other entity treated as a corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes) that is created or organized (or treated as created or organized) in or under the laws of the United States, any state thereof or the District of Columbia, (iii) an estate the income of which is subject to U.S. federal income taxation regardless of its source or (iv) a trust if (A) a court within the United States is able to exercise primary supervision over the administration of the trust and one or more United States persons have the authority to control all substantial decisions of the trust, or (B) it has in effect a valid election to be treated as a United States person.

This discussion does not consider the tax treatment of partnerships or other pass-through entities or branches or persons who hold our securities through such entities or branches. If a partnership (or other entity or arrangement classified as a partnership for U.S. federal income tax purposes) is the beneficial owner of our securities, the U.S. federal income tax treatment of a partner in the partnership generally will depend on the status of the partner and the activities of the partner and the partnership. If you are a partner of a partnership holding our securities, we urge you to consult your own tax advisor.

THIS DISCUSSION IS ONLY A SUMMARY OF CERTAIN U.S. FEDERAL INCOME TAX CONSIDERATIONS ASSOCIATED WITH THE ACQUISITION, OWNERSHIP AND DISPOSITION OF OUR UNITS. EACH PROSPECTIVE INVESTOR IN OUR UNITS IS URGED TO CONSULT ITS OWN TAX ADVISOR WITH RESPECT TO THE PARTICULAR TAX CONSEQUENCES TO SUCH INVESTOR OF THE ACQUISITION, OWNERSHIP AND DISPOSITION OF OUR UNITS, INCLUDING THE APPLICABILITY AND EFFECT OF ANY STATE, LOCAL, AND NON-UNITED STATES TAX LAWS.

Allocation of Purchase Price and Characterization of a Unit

No statutory, administrative or judicial authority directly addresses the treatment of a unit or instruments similar to a unit for U.S. federal income tax purposes, and therefore, that treatment is not entirely clear. The acquisition of a unit should be treated for U.S. federal income tax purposes as the acquisition of one share of our Class A common stock and one-half of one warrant, a whole one of which is exercisable to acquire one share of our Class A common stock, and we intend to treat the acquisition of a unit in this manner. For U.S. federal income tax purposes, each holder of a unit should allocate the purchase price paid by such holder for such unit between the one share of our Class A common stock and the one-half of one warrant based on the relative fair market value of each at the time of issuance. Under U.S. federal income tax law, each investor must make its own determination of such value based on all the relevant facts and circumstances. Therefore, we strongly urge each investor to consult its tax advisor regarding the determination of value for these purposes. The price allocated to each share of our Class A common stock and one-half of one warrant should constitute the holder’s initial tax basis in such share or one-half of one warrant. Any disposition of a unit should be treated for U.S. federal income tax purposes as a disposition of the share of our Class A common stock and one-half of one warrant comprising the unit, and the amount realized on the disposition should be allocated between the share of our Class A common stock and one-half of one warrant based on their respective relative fair market values at the time of disposition. Neither the separation of the share of our Class A common stock and the one-half of one warrant constituting a unit nor the combination of halves of warrants into a single warrant should be a taxable event for U.S. federal income tax purposes.

The foregoing treatment of the shares of our Class A common stock and warrants and a holder’s purchase price allocation are not binding on the IRS or the courts. Because there are no authorities that directly address instruments that are similar to the units, no assurance can be given that the IRS or the courts will agree with the characterization described above or the discussion below. Accordingly, each prospective investor is urged to consult its tax advisor regarding the tax consequences of an investment in a unit (including alternative characterizations of a unit). The balance of this discussion assumes that the characterization of the units described above is respected for U.S. federal income tax purposes.

 

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Personal Holding Company Status

We could be subject to a second level of U.S. federal income tax on a portion of our income if we are determined to be a personal holding company (“PHC”) for U.S. federal income tax purposes. A U.S. corporation will generally be classified as a PHC for U.S. federal income tax purposes in a given taxable year if (i) at any time during the last half of such taxable year, five or fewer individuals (without regard to their citizenship or residency and including as individuals for this purpose certain entities, such as certain tax-exempt organizations, pension funds, and charitable trusts) own or are deemed to own (pursuant to certain constructive ownership rules) more than 50% of the stock of the corporation by value and (ii) at least 60% of the corporation’s adjusted ordinary gross income, as determined for U.S. federal income tax purposes, for such taxable year consists of PHC income (which includes, among other things, dividends, interest, certain royalties, annuities and, under certain circumstances, rents).

Depending on the date and size of our initial business combination, it is possible that at least 60% of our adjusted ordinary gross income may consist of PHC income as discussed above. In addition, depending on the concentration of our stock in the hands of individuals, including the members of our sponsor and certain tax-exempt organizations, pension funds and charitable trusts, it is possible that more than 50% of our stock may be owned or deemed owned (pursuant to the constructive ownership rules) by five or fewer individuals during the last half of a taxable year. Thus, no assurance can be given that we will not become a PHC following this offering or in the future. If we are or were to become a PHC in a given taxable year, we would be subject to an additional PHC tax, currently 20%, on our undistributed taxable income, subject to certain adjustments.

U.S. Holders

Taxation of Distributions

If we pay cash distributions to U.S. Holders of our Class A common stock, such distributions will constitute dividends for U.S. federal income tax purposes to the extent paid from our current or accumulated earnings and profits, as determined under U.S. federal income tax principles. Distributions in excess of current and accumulated earnings and profits will constitute a return of capital that will be applied against and reduce (but not below zero) the U.S. Holder’s adjusted tax basis in our shares of our Class A common stock. Any remaining excess will be treated as gain realized on the sale or other disposition of the shares of our Class A common stock and will be treated as described under “U.S. Holders—Gain or Loss on Sale, Taxable Exchange or Other Taxable Disposition of Our Class A Common Stock and Warrants” below.

Dividends we pay to a corporate U.S. Holder will qualify for the dividends received deduction if certain holding period requirements are met. With certain exceptions (including, but not limited to, dividends treated as investment income for purposes of investment interest deduction limitations), and provided certain holding period requirements are met, dividends we pay to a non-corporate U.S. Holder will be taxed as qualified dividend income at the preferential tax rate for long-term capital gains. It is unclear whether the redemption rights with respect to the shares of our Class A common stock described in this prospectus may prevent a U.S. Holder from satisfying the applicable holding period requirements with respect to the dividends received deduction or the preferential tax rate on qualified dividend income, as the case may be. If the holding period requirements are not met, then a corporation may not be able to qualify for the dividends received deduction and would have taxable income equal to the entire dividend amount, and non-corporate holders may be subject to tax on such dividend at regular ordinary income tax rates instead of the preferential rate that applies to qualified dividend income.

Gain or Loss on Sale, Taxable Exchange or Other Taxable Disposition of Our Class A Common Stock and Warrants

A U.S. Holder generally will recognize capital gain or loss on a sale or other taxable disposition of our Class A common stock or warrants (which, in general, would include a redemption of Class A common stock or warrants that is treated as a sale of such securities as described below, and including on our dissolution and liquidation if we do not complete an initial business combination within the required time period). Any such capital gain or loss generally will be long-term capital gain or loss if the U.S. Holder’s holding period for such share of our Class A common stock or warrants exceeds one year. It is unclear, however, whether certain redemption rights described in this prospectus may suspend the running of the applicable holding period for this purpose.

The amount of gain or loss recognized on a sale or other taxable disposition generally will be equal to the difference between (i) the sum of the amount of cash and the fair market value of any property received in such disposition (or, if the shares of our Class A common stock or warrants are held as part of units at the time of the disposition, the

 

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portion of the amount realized on such disposition that is allocated to the shares of our Class A common stock or warrants based upon the then relative fair market values of the shares of our Class A common stock and the warrants included in the units) and (ii) the U.S. Holder’s adjusted tax basis in its shares of our Class A common stock or warrants so disposed of. A U.S. Holder’s adjusted tax basis in its shares of our Class A common stock and warrants generally will equal the U.S. Holder’s acquisition cost (that is, the portion of the purchase price of a unit allocated to a share of our Class A common stock or one-half of one warrant, as described above under “—Allocation of Purchase Price and Characterization of a Unit”) reduced, in the case of a share of Class A common stock, by any prior distributions treated as a return of capital. Long-term capital gain realized by a non-corporate U.S. Holder is currently eligible to be taxed at reduced rates. See “—Exercise, Lapse or Redemption of a Warrant” below for a discussion regarding a U.S. Holder’s tax basis in a share of our Class A common stock acquired pursuant to the exercise of a warrant. The deduction of capital losses is subject to certain limitations.

Redemption of Our Class A Common Stock

In the event that a U.S. Holder’s shares of our Class A common stock are redeemed pursuant to the redemption provisions described in this prospectus under “Description of Securities—Common Stock” or if we purchase a U.S. Holder’s shares of our Class A common stock in an open market transaction (in either case, referred to in this prospectus as a redemption), the treatment of the redemption for U.S. federal income tax purposes will depend on whether it qualifies as a sale or exchange of the shares of our Class A common stock under Section 302 of the Code. If the redemption qualifies as a sale or exchange of the shares of our Class A common stock, the U.S. Holder will be treated as described under “—Gain or Loss on Sale, Taxable Exchange or Other Taxable Disposition of Our Class A Common Stock and Warrants” above. If the redemption does not qualify as a sale or exchange of the shares of our Class A common stock, the U.S. Holder will be treated as receiving a corporate distribution with the tax consequences described above under “—Taxation of Distributions” above. Whether a redemption qualifies for sale or exchange treatment will depend largely on the total number of our shares treated as held by the U.S. Holder (including any shares constructively owned by the U.S. Holder described in the following paragraph) relative to all of our shares outstanding both before and after such redemption. The redemption of our Class A common stock generally will be treated as a sale or exchange of the shares of our Class A common stock (rather than as a corporate distribution) if, within the meaning of Section 302 of the Code, such redemption (i) is “substantially disproportionate” with respect to the U.S. Holder, (ii) results in a “complete termination” of the U.S. Holder’s interest in us or (iii) is “not essentially equivalent to a dividend” with respect to the U.S. Holder. These tests are explained more fully below.

In determining whether any of the foregoing tests are satisfied, a U.S. Holder takes into account not only our stock actually owned by the U.S. Holder, but also shares of our stock that are constructively owned by it. A U.S. Holder may constructively own, in addition to stock owned directly, stock owned by certain related individuals and entities in which the U.S. Holder has an interest or that have an interest in such U.S. Holder, as well as any stock the U.S. Holder has a right to acquire by exercise of an option, which would generally include shares of our Class A common stock which could be acquired pursuant to the exercise of the warrants. In order to meet the “substantially disproportionate” test, the percentage of our outstanding voting shares actually and constructively owned by the U.S. Holder immediately following the redemption of shares of our Class A common stock must, among other requirements, be less than 80% of the percentage of our outstanding voting stock actually and constructively owned by the U.S. Holder immediately before the redemption. Prior to our initial business combination, the shares of our Class A common stock may not be treated as voting shares for this purpose and, consequently, this substantially disproportionate test may not be applicable. There will be a complete termination of a U.S. Holder’s interest if either (i) all of our shares actually and constructively owned by the U.S. Holder are redeemed or (ii) all of our shares actually owned by the U.S. Holder are redeemed and the U.S. Holder is eligible to waive, and effectively waives in accordance with specific rules, the attribution of shares owned by certain family members and the U.S. Holder does not constructively own any other shares of ours. The redemption of the shares of our Class A common stock will not be essentially equivalent to a dividend with respect to a U.S. Holder if it results in a “meaningful reduction” of the U.S. Holder’s proportionate interest in us. Whether the redemption will result in a meaningful reduction in a U.S. Holder’s proportionate interest in us will depend on the particular facts and circumstances. However, the IRS has indicated in a published ruling that even a small reduction in the proportionate interest of a small minority stockholder in a publicly-held corporation who exercises no control over corporate affairs may constitute such a “meaningful reduction.” A U.S. Holder should consult with its own tax advisors as to the tax consequences of a redemption.

 

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If none of the foregoing tests are satisfied, then the redemption will be treated as a corporate distribution and the tax effects will be as described under “—Taxation of Distributions” above. After the application of those rules, any remaining tax basis of the U.S. Holder in the redeemed shares of our Class A common stock will be added to the U.S. Holder’s adjusted tax basis in its remaining shares, or, if it has none, to the U.S. Holder’s adjusted tax basis in its warrants or possibly in other stock constructively owned by it.

Exercise, Lapse or Redemption of a Warrant

Except as discussed below with respect to the cashless exercise of a warrant, a U.S. Holder generally will not recognize gain or loss upon the acquisition of a share of our Class A common stock on the exercise of a warrant for cash. A U.S. Holder’s initial tax basis in a share of our Class A common stock received on exercise of the warrant generally will equal the sum of the U.S. Holder’s initial investment in the warrant (that is, the portion of the U.S. Holder’s purchase price for the units that is allocated to the warrant, as described above under “—Allocation of Purchase Price and Characterization of a Unit”) and the warrant’s exercise price. It is unclear whether a U.S. Holder’s holding period for the share of our Class A common stock will commence on the date of exercise of the warrant or the day following the date of exercise of the warrant; in either case, the holding period will not include the period during which the U.S. Holder held the warrant. If a warrant is allowed to lapse unexercised, a U.S. Holder generally will recognize a capital loss equal to such holder’s tax basis in the warrant.

The tax consequences of a cashless exercise of a warrant are not clear under current law. A cashless exercise may not be taxable, either because the exercise is not a realization event or because the exercise is treated as a “recapitalization” for U.S. federal income tax purposes. In either situation, a U.S. Holder’s tax basis in the shares of our Class A common stock received generally would equal the U.S. Holder’s tax basis in the warrants exercised. If the cashless exercise was not a realization event, it is unclear whether a U.S. Holder’s holding period for the shares of our Class A common stock will commence on the date of exercise of the warrant or the day following the date of exercise of the warrant. If the cashless exercise were treated as a recapitalization, the holding period of the shares of our Class A common stock would include the holding period of the warrants.

It is also possible that a cashless exercise may be treated as a taxable exchange in which gain or loss would be recognized. In such event, a portion of the warrants to be exercised on a cashless basis could, for U.S. federal income tax purposes, be deemed to have been surrendered in consideration for the exercise price of the remaining warrants, which would be deemed to be exercised. For this purpose, a U.S. Holder may be deemed to have surrendered a number of warrants having an aggregate fair market value equal to the aggregate exercise price for the total number of warrants to be deemed exercised. The U.S. Holder would recognize capital gain or loss in an amount equal to the difference between the fair market value of the warrants deemed surrendered and the U.S. Holder’s tax basis in such warrants. In this case, a U.S. Holder’s tax basis in the shares of our Class A common stock received would equal the sum of the U.S. Holder’s initial investment in the warrants deemed exercised (i.e., the portion of the U.S. Holder’s purchase price for the units that is allocated to the warrant, as described above under “—Allocation of Purchase Price and Characterization of a Unit”) and the exercise price of such warrants. It is unclear whether a U.S. Holder’s holding period for the shares of our Class A common stock would commence on the date of exercise of the warrants or the day following the date of exercise of the warrants.

Due to the absence of authority on the U.S. federal income tax treatment of a cashless exercise, there can be no assurance as to which, if any, of the alternative tax consequences and holding periods described above would be adopted by the IRS or a court of law. Accordingly, a U.S. Holder should consult its tax advisor regarding the tax consequences of a cashless exercise.

While not free from doubt, a cashless exercise of a warrant occurring after our giving notice of an intention to redeem the warrant as described in the section of this prospectus entitled “Description of Securities—Warrants—Redemption of Warrants When the Price per Share of Our Class A Common Stock Equals or Exceeds $10.00” should be treated as a redemption of warrants for Class A common stock that is treated as a “recapitalization” for U.S. federal income tax purposes. Accordingly, a U.S. Holder should not recognize any gain or loss on the redemption of warrants for shares of our Class A common stock. In such event, a U.S. Holder’s aggregate tax basis in the shares of our Class A common stock received in the redemption generally should equal the U.S. Holder’s aggregate tax basis in the warrants redeemed and the holding period for the shares of our Class A common stock received should include the U.S. Holder’s holding period for the surrendered warrants. However, there is some uncertainty regarding this tax

 

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treatment and it is possible such a redemption could be treated in part as a taxable exchange in which gain or loss would be recognized in a manner similar to that discussed above for a cashless exercise of warrants. Accordingly, a U.S. Holder is urged to consult its tax advisor regarding the tax consequences of a redemption of warrants for shares of our Class A common stock.

Possible Constructive Distributions

The terms of each warrant provide for an adjustment to the number of shares of our Class A common stock for which the warrant may be exercised or to the exercise price of the warrant in certain events, as discussed in the section of this prospectus captioned “Description of Securities—Warrants—Public Stockholders’ Warrants.” An adjustment which has the effect of preventing dilution generally is not taxable. The U.S. Holders of the warrants would, however, be treated as receiving a constructive distribution from us if, for example, the adjustment increases the warrant holders’ proportionate interest in our assets or earnings and profits (e.g., through an increase in the number of shares of our Class A common stock that would be obtained upon exercise or through a decrease to the exercise price, including, for example, where additional shares of our Class A common stock are issued in connection with the closing of our initial business combination at an issue price of less than $9.20 and the exercise price of the warrants is adjusted to be equal to 115% of the Newly Issued Price, as described under “Description of Securities—Warrants—Anti-dilution Adjustments”) as a result of a taxable distribution of cash or other property to the holders of shares of our Class A common stock. Such constructive distribution would be subject to tax as described under “Taxation of Distributions” above in the same manner as if the U.S. Holders of the warrants received a cash distribution from us equal to the fair market value of such increased interest. Generally, a U.S. Holder’s adjusted tax basis in its warrant would be increased to the extent any such constructive distribution is treated as a dividend.

Non-U.S. Holders

This section applies to you if you are a “Non-U.S. Holder.” As used in this prospectus, the term “Non-U.S. Holder” means a beneficial owner of our units, Class A common stock or warrants that is an individual, corporation, estate or trust and is not a U.S. Holder, but such term generally does not include an individual who is present in the United States for 183 days or more in the taxable year of disposition. If you are such an individual, you should consult your tax advisor regarding the U.S. federal income tax consequences of the sale or other disposition of our securities.

Taxation of Distributions

Any distributions (including constructive distributions) we make to a Non-U.S. Holder of shares of our Class A common stock, to the extent paid out of our current or accumulated earnings and profits (as determined under U.S. federal income tax principles) will constitute dividends for U.S. federal income tax purposes. Provided such dividends are not effectively connected with the Non-U.S. Holder’s conduct of a trade or business within the United States (and are not attributable to a U.S. permanent establishment or fixed base under an applicable treaty), we will be required to withhold tax from the gross amount of the dividend at a rate of 30%, unless such Non-U.S. Holder is eligible for a reduced rate of withholding tax under an applicable income tax treaty and provides proper certification of its eligibility for such reduced rate (usually on an IRS Form W-8BEN or W-8BEN-E, as applicable). In the case of any constructive dividend, it is possible that this tax would be withheld from any amount owed to a Non-U.S. Holder by the applicable withholding agent, including cash distributions on other property or sale proceeds from warrants or other property subsequently paid or credited to such holder. Any distribution not constituting a dividend will be treated first as reducing (but not below zero) the Non-U.S. Holder’s adjusted tax basis in its shares of our Class A common stock and, to the extent such distribution exceeds the Non-U.S. Holder’s adjusted tax basis, as gain realized from the sale or other disposition of the shares of our Class A common stock, which will be treated as described under “Non-U.S. Holders—Gain on Sale, Taxable Exchange or Other Taxable Disposition of Our Class A Common Stock and Warrants” below. In addition, if we determine that we are likely to be classified as a “United States real property holding corporation” (see “Non-U.S. Holders—Gain on Sale, Taxable Exchange or Other Taxable Disposition of Our Class A Common Stock and Warrants” below), we will withhold 15% of any distribution that exceeds our current and accumulated earnings and profits, including a distribution in redemption of shares of our Class A common stock. See also “Non-U.S. Holders—Possible Constructive Distributions” for potential U.S. federal tax consequences with respect to constructive distributions.

 

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Dividends that we pay to a Non-U.S. Holder that are effectively connected with such Non-U.S. Holder’s conduct of a trade or business within the United States (and if a tax treaty applies, are attributable to a U.S. permanent establishment or fixed base maintained by the Non-U.S. Holder) will not be subject to U.S. withholding tax, provided such Non-U.S. Holder complies with certain certification and disclosure requirements (usually by providing an IRS Form W-8ECI). Instead, the effectively connected income will be subject to regular U.S. income tax as if the Non-U.S. Holder were a U.S. resident, unless an applicable income tax treaty provides otherwise. A Non-U.S. Holder that is a corporation receiving effectively connected dividends may also be subject to an additional “branch profits tax” imposed at a rate of 30% (or a lower treaty rate).

Exercise, Lapse or Redemption of a Warrant

The U.S. federal income tax treatment of a Non-U.S. Holder’s exercise of a warrant, or the lapse of a warrant held by a Non-U.S. Holder, generally will correspond to the U.S. federal income tax treatment of the exercise or lapse of a warrant by a U.S. Holder, as described under “U.S. Holders—Exercise, Lapse or Redemption of a Warrant” above, although to the extent a cashless exercise results in a taxable exchange, the consequences would be similar to those described below in “Non-U.S. Holders—Gain on Sale, Taxable Exchange or Other Taxable Disposition of Our Class A Common Stock and Warrants.” The U.S. federal income tax treatment for a Non-U.S. Holder of a redemption of warrants for shares of our Class A common stock described in the section of this prospectus entitled “Description of Securities—Warrants—Redemption of Warrants When the Price per Share of Our Class A Common Stock Equals or Exceeds $10.00” will correspond to the U.S. federal income tax treatment for a U.S. Holder of a redemption of warrants for shares of our Class A common stock, as described above in “U.S. Holders—Exercise, Lapse or Redemption of a Warrant.” The U.S. federal income tax treatment for a Non-U.S. Holder of a redemption of warrants for cash (or if we purchase warrants in an open market transaction) would be similar to that described below in “Non-U.S. Holders—Gain on Sale, Taxable Exchange or Other Taxable Disposition of Our Class A Common Stock and Warrants.”

Gain on Sale, Taxable Exchange or Other Taxable Disposition of Our Class A Common Stock and Warrants

Subject to the discussion of FATCA and backup withholding below, a Non-U.S. Holder will not be subject to U.S. federal income or withholding tax in respect of gain recognized on a sale, taxable exchange or other taxable disposition of our shares of our Class A common stock (including a dissolution and liquidation if we do not complete an initial business combination within the required time period) or warrants (including an expiration or redemption of our warrants), in each case without regard to whether such securities were held as part of a unit, unless:

 

   

the gain is effectively connected with the conduct of a trade or business by the Non-U.S. Holder within the United States (and, under certain income tax treaties, is attributable to a United States permanent establishment or fixed base maintained by the Non-U.S. Holder); or

 

   

we are or have been a “United States real property holding corporation” for U.S. federal income tax purposes at any time during the shorter of the five-year period ending on the date of disposition or the period that the Non-U.S. Holder held our Class A common stock, and, in the case where shares of our Class A common stock are regularly traded on an established securities market, the Non-U.S. Holder has owned, directly or constructively, more than 5% of our Class A common stock at any time within the shorter of the five-year period preceding the disposition or such Non-U.S. Holder’s holding period for the shares of our Class A common stock. There can be no assurance that our Class A common stock will be treated as regularly traded on an established securities market for this purpose. These rules may be modified for Non-U.S. Holders of warrants. If we are or have been a “United States real property holding corporation” and you own warrants, you are urged to consult your own tax advisor regarding the application of these rules.

Unless an applicable treaty provides otherwise, gain described in the first bullet point above will be subject to tax at applicable U.S. federal income tax rates as if the Non-U.S. Holder were a U.S. resident. Any gains described in the first bullet point above of a Non-U.S. Holder that is a foreign corporation may also be subject to an additional “branch profits tax” at a 30% rate (or lower treaty rate).

If the second bullet point above applies to a Non-U.S. Holder, gain recognized by such holder on the sale, exchange or other disposition of our Class A common stock or warrants will be subject to tax at applicable U.S. federal income tax rates. In addition, a buyer of our Class A common stock or warrants from such holder may be required to withhold U.S. federal income tax at a rate of 15% of the amount realized upon such disposition. We cannot determine

 

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whether we will be a United States real property holding corporation in the future until we complete an initial business combination. We will be classified as a United States real property holding corporation if the fair market value of our “United States real property interests” equals or exceeds 50% of the sum of the fair market value of our worldwide real property interests plus our other assets used or held for use in a trade or business, as determined for U.S. federal income tax purposes.

Redemption of Our Class A Common Stock

The characterization for U.S. federal income tax purposes of the redemption of a Non-U.S. Holder’s shares of our Class A common stock pursuant to the redemption provisions described in the section of this prospectus entitled “Description of Securities—Common Stock” will correspond to the U.S. federal income tax characterization of such a redemption of a U.S. Holder’s shares of our Class A common stock, as described under “U.S. Holders—Redemption of Our Class A Common Stock” above, and the consequences of the redemption to the Non-U.S. Holder will be as described above under “Non-U.S. Holders—Taxation of Distributions” and “Non-U.S. Holders—Gain on Sale, Taxable Exchange or Other Taxable Disposition of Our Class A Common Stock and Warrants,” as applicable.

Possible Constructive Distributions

The terms of each warrant provide for an adjustment to the number of shares of our Class A common stock for which the warrant may be exercised or to the exercise price of the warrant in certain events, as discussed in the section of this prospectus captioned “Description of Securities—Warrants—Public Stockholders’ Warrants.” An adjustment which has the effect of preventing dilution generally is not taxable. The Non-U.S. Holders of the warrants would, however, be treated as receiving a constructive distribution from us if, for example, the adjustment increases the warrant holders’ proportionate interest in our assets or earnings and profits (e.g., through an increase in the number of shares of our Class A common stock that would be obtained upon exercise or through a decrease to the exercise price, including, for example, where additional common stock are issued in connection with the closing of our initial business combination at an issue price of less than $9.20 and the exercise price of the warrants is adjusted to be equal to 115% of the Newly Issued Price, as described under “Description of Securities—Warrants—Anti-dilution Adjustments”) as a result of a taxable distribution of cash or other property to the holders of shares of our Class A common stock. Such constructive distribution would be subject to tax as described under “Non-U.S. Holders—Taxation of Distributions” in the same manner as if the Non-U.S. Holders of the warrants received a cash distribution from us equal to the fair market value of such increased interest.

Information Reporting and Backup Withholding

Dividend payments with respect to our Class A common stock and proceeds from the sale, exchange or redemption of shares of our Class A common stock or warrants may be subject to information reporting to the IRS and possible United States backup withholding. Backup withholding will not apply, however, to a U.S. Holder who furnishes a correct taxpayer identification number and makes other required certifications, or who is otherwise exempt from backup withholding and establishes such exempt status. A Non-U.S. Holder generally will eliminate the requirement for information reporting and backup withholding by providing certification of its foreign status, under penalties of perjury, on a duly executed applicable IRS Form W-8 or by otherwise establishing an exemption.

Backup withholding is not an additional tax. Amounts withheld as backup withholding may be credited against a holder’s U.S. federal income tax liability, and a holder generally may obtain a refund of any excess amounts withheld under the backup withholding rules by timely filing the appropriate claim for refund with the IRS and furnishing any required information.

FATCA Withholding Taxes

Sections 1471 through 1474 of the Code and the Treasury Regulations and administrative guidance promulgated thereunder (commonly referred to as the “Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act” or “FATCA”) impose withholding of 30% on payments of dividends (including constructive dividends) on and, subject to the proposed Treasury Regulations discussed below, proceeds from sales or other dispositions of our securities paid to “foreign financial institutions” (which is broadly defined for this purpose and includes investment vehicles) and certain other non U.S. entities unless various U.S. information reporting and due diligence requirements (relating to ownership by U.S. persons of interests in or accounts with those entities) have been satisfied or an exemption applies (typically certified as to by the delivery of a properly completed IRS Form W-8BEN-E). Foreign financial institutions located in

 

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jurisdictions that have an intergovernmental agreement with the United States governing FATCA may be subject to different rules. Similarly, dividends and, subject to the proposed Treasury Regulations discussed below, proceeds from sales or other dispositions in respect of our units held by an investor that is a non-financial non-U.S. entity that does not qualify under certain exceptions will be subject to withholding at a rate of 30%, unless such entity either (i) certifies to us or the applicable withholding agent that such entity does not have any “substantial United States owners” or (ii) provides certain information regarding the entity’s “substantial United States owners,” which will in turn be provided to the U.S. Department of the Treasury. The U.S. Department of the Treasury has proposed regulations which eliminate the federal withholding tax of 30% applicable to the gross proceeds of a sale or other disposition of our securities. Withholding agents may rely on the proposed Treasury Regulations until final regulations are issued. Prospective investors should consult their own tax advisor regarding the effects of FATCA on their investment in our securities.

THE U.S. FEDERAL INCOME TAX DISCUSSION SET FORTH ABOVE IS INCLUDED FOR GENERAL INFORMATION ONLY AND MAY NOT BE APPLICABLE DEPENDING UPON A HOLDER’S PARTICULAR SITUATION. HOLDERS ARE URGED TO CONSULT THEIR OWN TAX ADVISORS WITH RESPECT TO THE TAX CONSEQUENCES TO THEM OF THE ACQUISITION, OWNERSHIP AND DISPOSITION OF OUR CLASS A COMMON STOCK AND WARRANTS, INCLUDING THE TAX CONSEQUENCES UNDER STATE, LOCAL, ESTATE, NON-U.S. AND OTHER TAX LAWS AND TAX TREATIES AND THE POSSIBLE EFFECTS OF CHANGES IN U.S. OR OTHER TAX LAWS.

 

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UNDERWRITING

Jefferies is acting as the sole book-running manager of the offering and as representative of the underwriters named below. Subject to the terms and conditions set forth in the underwriting agreement between us and Jefferies, we have agreed to sell to the underwriters, and each of the underwriters has agreed, severally and not jointly, to purchase from us, the respective number of units shown opposite its name below:

 

 

 

UNDERWRITERS

   NUMBER OF
UNITS
 

Jefferies LLC.

     19,400,000  

Ladenburg Thalmann & Co., Inc.

     600,000  
  

 

 

 

Total

     20,000,000  
  

 

 

 

 

 

The underwriting agreement provides that the obligations of the underwriters are subject to certain conditions precedent such as the receipt by the underwriters of officers’ certificates and legal opinions and approval of certain legal matters by their counsel. The underwriting agreement provides that the underwriters will purchase all of the units if any of them are purchased. We have agreed to indemnify the underwriters and certain of their controlling persons against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act, and to contribute to payments that the underwriters may be required to make in respect of those liabilities.

The underwriters have advised us that, following the completion of this offering, they currently intend to make a market in the units as permitted by applicable laws and regulations. However, the underwriters are not obligated to do so, and the underwriters may discontinue any market-making activities at any time without notice in their sole discretion. Accordingly, no assurance can be given as to the liquidity of the trading market for the units, that you will be able to sell any of the units held by you at a particular time or that the prices that you receive when you sell will be favorable.

The underwriters are offering the units subject to their acceptance of the units from us and subject to prior sale. The underwriters reserve the right to withdraw, cancel or modify offers to the public and to reject orders in whole or in part. In addition, the underwriters have advised us that they do not intend to confirm sales to any account over which they exercise discretionary authority.

Commission and Expenses

The underwriters have advised us that they propose to offer the units to the public at the initial public offering price set forth on the cover page of this prospectus and to certain dealers, which may include the underwriters, at that price less a concession not in excess of $0.12 per unit. After the offering, the initial public offering price and concession to dealers may be reduced by the underwriters. No such reduction will change the amount of proceeds to be received by us as set forth on the cover page of this prospectus.

The following table shows the public offering price, the underwriting discounts and commissions that we are to pay the underwriters and the proceeds, before expenses, to us in connection with this offering. Such amounts are shown assuming both no exercise and full exercise of the underwriters’ option to purchase additional units.

 

 

 

     PAID BY
HOME PLATE ACQUISITION
CORPORATION
 
     NO
EXERCISE
     FULL
EXERCISE
 

Per Unit (1)

   $ 0.55      $ 0.55  

Total (1)

   $ 11,000,000      $ 12,650,000  

 

 

(1)   

$0.20 per unit, or $4,000,000 in the aggregate (or $4,600,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full), is payable upon the closing of this offering. Includes $0.35 per unit, or $7,000,000 in the aggregate (or $8,050,000 in the aggregate

 

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  if the over-allotment option is exercised in full) payable to the underwriters for deferred underwriting commissions will be placed in a trust account located in the United States as described herein. The deferred commissions will be released to the underwriters only on and concurrently with completion of an initial business combination.

If we do not complete our initial business combination within the time period required by our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, the underwriters have agreed that (i) they will forfeit any rights or claims to their deferred underwriting discounts and commissions, including any accrued interest thereon, then in the trust account and (ii) the deferred underwriters’ discounts and commissions will be distributed on a pro rata basis, together with any accrued interest thereon (which interest will be net of taxes payable) to the public stockholders.

We estimate expenses payable by us in connection with this offering, other than the underwriting discounts and commissions referred to above, will be approximately $700,000. We have agreed to pay for FINRA-related fees and expenses of the underwriters’ legal counsel, not to exceed $25,000, and have agreed to provide Jefferies with a right of first refusal to provide investment banking and/or financial advisory services in connection with certain future transactions. Such right of first refusal shall extend until the earlier of (i) 12 months after the date of the consummation of our initial business combination or (ii) the date on which we complete a liquidation.

Determination of Offering Price

Prior to this offering, there has not been a public market for our securities. Consequently, the initial public offering price for our units was determined by negotiations between us and the underwriters. Among the factors considered in these negotiations were the history and prospects of companies whose principal business is the acquisition of other companies, prior offerings of those companies, our sponsor team, our capital structure, and currently prevailing general conditions in equity securities markets, including current market valuations of publicly traded companies considered comparable to our company.

We offer no assurances that the initial public offering price will correspond to the price at which the units will trade in the public market subsequent to the offering or that an active trading market for the units will develop and continue after the offering.

Listing

Our units have been approved for listing on Nasdaq under the symbol “HPLTU.” Once the securities comprising the units begin separate trading, we expect that the Class A common stock and warrants will be listed on Nasdaq under the symbols “HPLT” and “HPLTW,” respectively. The units will automatically separate into their component parts and will not be traded following the completion of our initial business combination.

Private Placement Warrants

Jefferies has committed that it will purchase 1,000,000 private placement warrants (or 1,150,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full) for an aggregate purchase price of $1,000,000 (or $1,150,000 if the underwriters’ over-allotment option is exercised in full), or $1.00 per warrant, in the private placement that will occur simultaneously with the completion of this offering. These private placement warrants are identical to the private placement warrants being purchased by our sponsor. These warrants have been deemed compensation by FINRA and are therefore subject, pursuant to FINRA Rule 5110(e)(1), to a 180-day lock-up commencing on the effective date of the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part. Pursuant to this lock-up, these warrants may not be the subject of any hedging, short sale, derivative, put or call transaction that would result in the economic disposition of the securities by any person during such period. Additionally, these warrants may not be sold, transferred, assigned, pledged or hypothecated during such period, except to any selected dealer participating in the offering and the bona fide officers or partners of Jefferies or any such participating selected dealer. Moreover, these warrants and the securities underlying them must comply with the registration limitations imposed by FINRA Rule 5110(g)(2), and for so long as these warrants are held by Jefferies or any of its affiliates, they may not be exercised after five years from the effective date of the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part. We have granted Jefferies and its designees or affiliates certain registration rights relating to these securities. Jefferies may not exercise its demand and “piggyback” registration rights after five and seven years after the effective date of the registration statement of which this prospectus forms a part and may not exercise its demand rights on more than one occasion.

 

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Option to Purchase Additional Units

We have granted to the underwriters an option, exercisable for 45 days from the date of this prospectus, to purchase, from time to time, in whole or in part, up to an aggregate of 3,000,000 units from us at the public offering price set forth on the cover page of this prospectus, less underwriting discounts and commissions. If the underwriters exercise this option, the underwriters will be obligated, subject to specified conditions, to purchase a number of additional units as indicated in the table above. This option may be exercised only if the underwriters sell more units than the total number set forth on the cover page of this prospectus.

Lock-up Agreements

We, our sponsor and our officers and directors have agreed that, for a period of 180 days from the date of this prospectus, we and they will not, without the prior written consent of Jefferies, offer, sell, contract to sell, grant any option to sell (including any short sale), hypothecate, pledge, transfer, establish or increase a put equivalent position or decrease a call equivalent position within the meaning of Rule 16a-1 under the Exchange Act, as amended, or otherwise dispose of, directly or indirectly, any units, warrants, Class A common stock or any other securities convertible into, or exercisable, or exchangeable for, Class A common stock, or publicly announce any intention to effect any such transaction; provided, however, that we may (1) issue and sell the private placement warrants, (2) issue and sell the additional units to cover our underwriters’ over-allotment option (if any), (3) register with the SEC pursuant to an agreement to be entered into concurrently with the issuance and sale of the securities in this offering, the resale of the founder shares and the private placement warrants and the securities underlying the foregoing or the warrants and Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants, and (4) issue securities in connection with an initial business combination. Jefferies, in its sole discretion, may release any of the securities subject to these lock-up agreements at any time without notice.

Our initial stockholders have agreed not to transfer, assign or sell any of their founder shares until the earlier to occur of: (A) one year after the completion of our initial business combination and (B) subsequent to our initial business combination, (x) if the closing price of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $12.00 per share (as adjusted for share sub-divisions, share capitalizations, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) for any 20 trading days within any 30-trading day period commencing at least 150 days after our initial business combination, or (y) the date on which we complete a liquidation, merger, capital stock exchange, or other similar transaction that results in all of our public stockholders having the right to exchange their Class A common stock for cash, securities or other property (except as described herein under “Principal Stockholders—Restrictions on Transfers of Founder Shares and Private Placement Warrants”). Any permitted transferees will be subject to the same restrictions and other agreements of our sponsor and directors with respect to any founder shares, private placement warrants and Class A common stock issued upon conversion or exercise thereof. We refer to such transfer restrictions throughout this prospectus as the lock-up.

The private placement warrants (including the Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the private placement warrants) will not be transferable, assignable or salable until 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination (except with respect to permitted transferees as described herein under the section of this prospectus entitled “Principal Stockholders—Restrictions on Transfers of Founder Shares and Private Placement Warrants”).

Stabilization

The underwriters have advised us that they, pursuant to Regulation M under the Exchange Act, and certain persons participating in the offering may engage in short sale transactions, stabilizing transactions, syndicate covering transactions or the imposition of penalty bids in connection with this offering. These activities may have the effect of stabilizing or maintaining the market price of the units at a level above that which might otherwise prevail in the open market. Establishing short sales positions may involve either “covered” short sales or “naked” short sales.

“Covered” short sales are sales made in an amount not greater than the underwriters’ option to purchase additional units in this offering. The underwriters may close out any covered short position by either exercising their option to purchase additional units or purchasing units in the open market. In determining the source of units to close out the covered short position, the underwriters will consider, among other things, the price of units available for purchase in the open market as compared to the price at which they may purchase units through the option to purchase additional units.

 

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“Naked” short sales are sales in excess of the option to purchase additional units. The underwriters must close out any naked short position by purchasing units in the open market. A naked short position is more likely to be created if the underwriters are concerned that there may be downward pressure on the price of our units in the open market after pricing that could adversely affect investors who purchase in this offering.

A stabilizing bid is a bid for the purchase of units on behalf of the underwriters for the purpose of fixing or maintaining the price of the units. A syndicate covering transaction is the bid for or the purchase of units on behalf of the underwriters to reduce a short position incurred by the underwriters in connection with the offering. Similar to other purchase transactions, the underwriters’ purchases to cover the syndicate short sales may have the effect of raising or maintaining the market price of our units or preventing or retarding a decline in the market price of our units. As a result, the price of our units may be higher than the price that might otherwise exist in the open market.

A penalty bid is an arrangement permitting the underwriters to reclaim the selling concession otherwise accruing to a syndicate member in connection with the offering if the units originally sold by such syndicate member are purchased in a syndicate covering transaction and therefore have not been effectively placed by such syndicate member.

Neither we nor underwriters make any representation or prediction as to the direction or magnitude of any effect that the transactions described above may have on the price of our units. The underwriters are not obligated to engage in these activities and, if commenced, any of the activities may be discontinued at any time.

The underwriters may also engage in passive market making transactions in our units on Nasdaq in accordance with Rule 103 of Regulation M during a period before the commencement of offers or sales of our units in this offering and extending through the completion of distribution. A passive market maker must display its bid at a price not in excess of the highest independent bid of that security. However, if all independent bids are lowered below the passive market maker’s bid, that bid must then be lowered when specified purchase limits are exceeded.

Electronic Distribution

A prospectus in electronic format may be made available by e-mail or on the websites or through online services maintained by the underwriters or one of their affiliates. In those cases, prospective investors may view offering terms online and may be allowed to place orders online. The underwriters may agree with us to allocate a specific number of units for sale to online brokerage account holders. Any such allocation for online distributions will be made by the underwriters on the same basis as other allocations. Other than the prospectus in electronic format, the information on the underwriters’ websites and any information contained in any other website maintained by the underwriters are not part of this prospectus, has not been approved and/or endorsed by us or the underwriters and should not be relied upon by investors.

Other Activities and Relationships

We are not under any contractual obligation to engage the underwriters to provide any services for us after this offering, and have no present intent to do so but we may do so at our discretion. However, the underwriters may introduce us to potential target businesses or assist us in raising additional capital in the future including by acting as a placement agent in a private offering or underwriting or arranging debt financing. If the underwriters provide services to us after this offering, we may pay such underwriters fair and reasonable fees that would be determined at that time in an arm’s length negotiation; provided that no agreement will be entered into with the underwriters and no fees for such services will be paid to the underwriters prior to the date that is 60 days from the date of this prospectus, unless such payment would not be deemed underwriters’ compensation in connection with this offering and we may pay the underwriters of this offering or any entity with which they are affiliated a finder’s fee or other compensation for services rendered to us in connection with the completion of a business combination. Any fees we may pay the underwriters or their affiliates for services rendered to us after this offering may be contingent on the completion of a business combination and may include non-cash compensation. The underwriters or their affiliates that provide these services to us may have a potential conflict of interest given that the underwriters are entitled to the deferred portion of their underwriting compensation for this offering only if an initial business combination is completed within the specified timeframe.

The underwriters and certain of their affiliates are full service financial institutions engaged in various activities, which may include securities trading, commercial and investment banking, financial advisory, investment

 

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management, investment research, principal investment, hedging, financing and brokerage activities. The underwriters and certain of their affiliates have, from time to time, performed, and may in the future perform, various commercial and investment banking and financial advisory services for us and our affiliates, for which they received or will receive customary fees and expenses.

In the ordinary course of their various business activities, the underwriters and certain of their affiliates may make or hold a broad array of investments and actively trade debt and equity securities (or related derivative securities) and financial instruments (including bank loans) for their own account and for the accounts of their customers, and such investment and securities activities may involve securities and/or instruments issued by us and our affiliates. The underwriters and certain of their respective affiliates may also communicate independent investment recommendations, market color or trading ideas and/or publish or express independent research views in respect of such securities or instruments and may at any time hold, or recommend to clients that they acquire, long and/or short positions in such securities and instruments.

Selling Restrictions Canada

Resale Restrictions

The distribution of the securities in Canada is being made only in the provinces of Ontario, Quebec, Alberta and British Columbia on a private placement basis exempt from the requirement that we prepare and file a prospectus with the securities regulatory authorities in each province where trades of these securities are made. Any resale of the securities in Canada must be made under applicable securities laws which may vary depending on the relevant jurisdiction, and which may require resales to be made under available statutory exemptions or under a discretionary exemption granted by the applicable Canadian securities regulatory authority. Purchasers are advised to seek legal advice prior to any resale of the securities.

Representations of Canadian Purchasers

By purchasing the securities in Canada and accepting delivery of a purchase confirmation, a purchaser is representing to us and the dealer from whom the purchase confirmation is received that:

 

  (a)

the purchaser is entitled under applicable provincial securities laws to purchase the securities without the benefit of a prospectus qualified under those securities laws as it is an “accredited investor” as defined under National Instrument 45-106—Prospectus Exemptions;

 

  (b)

the purchaser is a “permitted client” as defined in National Instrument 31-103—Registration Requirements, Exemptions and Ongoing Registrant Obligations;

 

  (c)

where required by law, the purchaser is purchasing as principal and not as agent; and

 

  (d)

the purchaser has reviewed the text above under Resale Restrictions.

Conflicts of Interest

Canadian purchasers are hereby notified that the underwriters are relying on the exemption set out in section 3A.3 or 3A.4, if applicable, of National Instrument 33-105—Underwriting Conflicts from having to provide certain conflict of interest disclosure in this document.

Statutory Rights of Action

Securities legislation in certain provinces or territories of Canada may provide a purchaser with remedies for rescission or damages if the prospectus (including any amendment thereto) such as this document contains a misrepresentation, provided that the remedies for rescission or damages are exercised by the purchaser within the time limit prescribed by the securities legislation of the purchaser’s province or territory. The purchaser of these securities in Canada should refer to any applicable provisions of the securities legislation of the purchaser’s province or territory for particulars of these rights or consult with a legal advisor.

Enforcement of Legal Rights

All of our directors and officers as well as the experts named herein may be located outside of Canada and, as a result, it may not be possible for Canadian purchasers to effect service of process within Canada upon us or those

 

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persons. All or a substantial portion of our assets and the assets of those persons may be located outside of Canada and, as a result, it may not be possible to satisfy a judgment against us or those persons in Canada or to enforce a judgment obtained in Canadian courts against us or those persons outside of Canada.

Taxation and Eligibility for Investment

Canadian purchasers of the securities should consult their own legal and tax advisors with respect to the tax consequences of an investment in the securities in their particular circumstances and about the eligibility of the securities for investment by the purchaser under relevant Canadian legislation.

Australia

This prospectus is not a disclosure document for the purposes of Australia’s Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) of Australia, or Corporations Act, has not been lodged with the Australian Securities & Investments Commission and is only directed to the categories of exempt persons set out below. Accordingly, if you receive this prospectus in Australia:

You confirm and warrant that you are either:

 

  (a)

a “sophisticated investor” under section 708(8)(a) or (b) of the Corporations Act;

 

  (b)

a “sophisticated investor” under section 708(8)(c) or (d) of the Corporations Act and that you have provided an accountant’s certificate to the company which complies with the requirements of section 708(8)(c)(i) or (ii) of the Corporations Act and related regulations before the offer has been made;

 

  (c)

a person associated with the company under Section 708(12) of the Corporations Act; or

 

  (d)

a “professional investor” within the meaning of section 708(11)(a) or (b) of the Corporations Act.

To the extent that you are unable to confirm or warrant that you are an exempt sophisticated investor, associated person or professional investor under the Corporations Act any offer made to you under this prospectus is void and incapable of acceptance.

You warrant and agree that you will not offer any of the securities issued to you pursuant to this prospectus for resale in Australia within 12 months of those securities being issued unless any such resale offer is exempt from the requirement to issue a disclosure document under section 708 of the Corporations Act.

European Economic Area

In relation to each Member State of the European Economic Area (each, a “Relevant State”), no shares have been offered or will be offered pursuant to the offering to the public in that Relevant State prior to the publication of a prospectus in relation to the shares which have been approved by the competent authority in that Relevant State or, where appropriate, approved in another Relevant State and notified to the competent authority in that Relevant State, all in accordance with the Prospectus Regulation, except that the shares may be offered to the public in that Relevant State at any time:

 

  (a)

to any legal entity which is a “qualified investor” as defined under Article 2 of the Prospectus Regulation;

 

  (b)

to fewer than 150 natural or legal persons (other than qualified investors as defined under Article 2 of the Prospectus Regulation), subject to obtaining the prior consent of representatives for any such offer; or

 

  (c)

in any other circumstances falling within Article 1(4) of the Prospectus Regulation,

provided that no such offer of the shares shall require us or any of the representatives to publish a prospectus pursuant to Article 3 of the Prospectus Regulation or supplement a prospectus pursuant to Article 23 of the Prospectus Regulation.

For the purposes of this provision, the expression “offer to the public” in relation to the shares in any Relevant State means the communication in any form and by any means of sufficient information on the terms of the offer and any shares to be offered so as to enable an investor to decide to purchase or subscribe for any shares, and the expression “Prospectus Regulation” means Regulation (EU) 2017/1129.

 

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France

Neither this prospectus nor any other offering material relating to the units described in this prospectus has been submitted to the clearance procedures of the Autorité des Marchés Financiers or by the competent authority of another member state of the European Economic Area and notified to the Autorité des Marchés Financiers. The units have not been offered or sold and will not be offered or sold, directly or indirectly, to the public in France. Neither this prospectus nor any other offering material relating to the units has been or will be:

 

  (a)

released, issued, distributed or caused to be released, issued or distributed to the public in France; or

 

  (b)

used in connection with any offer for subscription or sale of the units to the public in France.

Such offers, sales and distributions will be made in France only:

 

  (a)

to qualified investors (investisseurs qualifiés) and/or to a restricted circle of investors (cercle restreint d’investisseurs), in each case investing for their own account, all as defined in, and in accordance with, articles L.411-2, D.411-1, D.411-2, D.734-1, D.744-1, D.754-1 and D.764-1 of the French Code monétaire et financier;

 

  (b)

to investment services providers authorized to engage in portfolio management on behalf of third parties; or

 

  (c)

in a transaction that, in accordance with article L.411-2-II-1°or 2°or 3° of the French Code monétaire et financier and article 211-2 of the General Regulations (Règlement Général) of the Autorité des Marchés Financiers, does not constitute a public offer (appel public à l’épargne).

The units may be resold directly or indirectly, only in compliance with articles L.411-1, L.411-2, L.412-1 and L.621-8 through L.621-8-3 of the French Code monétaire et financier.

Hong Kong

No securities have been offered or sold, and no securities may be offered or sold, in Hong Kong, by means of any document, other than to persons whose ordinary business is to buy or sell shares or debentures, whether as principal or agent; or to “professional investors” as defined in the Securities and Futures Ordinance (Cap. 571) of Hong Kong, or SFO, and any rules made under that Ordinance; or in other circumstances which do not result in the document being a “prospectus” as defined in the Companies Ordinance (Cap. 32) of Hong Kong, or CO, or which do not constitute an offer or invitation to the public for the purpose of the CO or the SFO. No document, invitation or advertisement relating to the securities has been issued or may be issued or may be in the possession of any person for the purpose of issue (in each case whether in Hong Kong or elsewhere), which is directed at, or the contents of which are likely to be accessed or read by, the public of Hong Kong (except if permitted under the securities laws of Hong Kong) other than with respect to securities which are or are intended to be disposed of only to persons outside Hong Kong or only to “professional investors” as defined in the SFO and any rules made under that Ordinance.

This prospectus has not been registered with the Registrar of Companies in Hong Kong. Accordingly, this prospectus may not be issued, circulated or distributed in Hong Kong, and the securities may not be offered for subscription to members of the public in Hong Kong. Each person acquiring the securities will be required, and is deemed by the acquisition of the securities, to confirm that he is aware of the restriction on offers of the securities described in this prospectus and the relevant offering documents and that he is not acquiring, and has not been offered any securities in circumstances that contravene any such restrictions.

Israel

This document does not constitute a prospectus under the Israeli Securities Law, 5728-1968, or the Securities Law, and has not been filed with or approved by the Israel Securities Authority. In Israel, this prospectus is being distributed only to, and is directed only at, and any offer of the units is directed only at, (i) a limited number of persons in accordance with the Israeli Securities Law and (ii) investors listed in the first addendum, or the Addendum, to the Israeli Securities Law, consisting primarily of joint investment in trust funds, provident funds, insurance companies, banks, portfolio managers, investment advisors, members of the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, underwriters, venture capital funds, entities with equity in excess of NIS 50 million and “qualified individuals,” each as defined in the Addendum (as it may be amended from time to time), collectively referred to as qualified

 

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investors (in each case, purchasing for their own account or, where permitted under the Addendum, for the accounts of their clients who are investors listed in the Addendum). Qualified investors are required to submit written confirmation that they fall within the scope of the Addendum, are aware of the meaning of same and agree to it.

Japan

The offering has not been and will not be registered under the Financial Instruments and Exchange Law of Japan (Law No. 25 of 1948 of Japan, as amended), or FIEL, and the Initial Purchaser will not offer or sell any securities, directly or indirectly, in Japan or to, or for the benefit of, any resident of Japan (which term as used herein means any person resident in Japan, including any corporation or other entity organized under the laws of Japan), or to others for re-offering or resale, directly or indirectly, in Japan or to, or for the benefit of, any resident of Japan, except pursuant to an exemption from the registration requirements of, and otherwise in compliance with, the FIEL and any other applicable laws, regulations and ministerial guidelines of Japan.

Singapore

This prospectus has not been and will not be lodged or registered as a prospectus with the Monetary Authority of Singapore. Accordingly, this prospectus and any other document or material in connection with the offer or sale, or invitation for subscription or purchase, of the securities may not be circulated or distributed, nor may the securities be offered or sold, or be made the subject of an invitation for subscription or purchase, whether directly or indirectly, to persons in Singapore other than (i) to an institutional investor under Section 274 of the Securities and Futures Act, Chapter 289 of Singapore, or the SFA, (ii) to a relevant person pursuant to Section 275(1), or any person pursuant to Section 275(1A), and in accordance with the conditions specified in Section 275, of the SFA, or otherwise pursuant to, and in accordance with the conditions of, any other applicable provision of the SFA.

Where the securities are subscribed or purchased under Section 275 of the SFA by a relevant person which is:

 

  (a)

a corporation (which is not an accredited investor (as defined in Section 4A of the SFA)) the sole business of which is to hold investments and the entire share capital of which is owned by one or more individuals, each of whom is an accredited investor; or

 

  (b)

a trust (where the trustee is not an accredited investor) whose sole purpose is to hold investments and each beneficiary of the trust is an individual who is an accredited investor, securities (as defined in Section 239(1) of the SFA) of that corporation or the beneficiaries’ rights and interest (howsoever described) in that trust shall not be transferred within six months after that corporation or that trust has acquired the securities pursuant to an offer made under Section 275 of the SFA except:

 

   

to an institutional investor or to a relevant person defined in Section 275(2) of the SFA, or to any person arising from an offer referred to in Section 275(1A) or Section 276(4)(i)(B) of the SFA;

 

   

where no consideration is or will be given for the transfer;

 

   

where the transfer is by operation of law;

 

   

as specified in Section 276(7) of the SFA; or

 

   

as specified in Regulation 32 of the Securities and Futures (Offers of Investments) (Shares and Debentures) Regulations 2005 of Singapore.

Switzerland

The securities may not be publicly offered in Switzerland and will not be listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange, or SIX, or on any other stock exchange or regulated trading facility in Switzerland. This prospectus has been prepared without regard to the disclosure standards for issuance prospectuses under art. 652a or art. 1156 of the Swiss Code of Obligations or the disclosure standards for listing prospectuses under art. 27 ff. of the SIX Listing Rules or the listing rules of any other stock exchange or regulated trading facility in Switzerland. Neither this prospectus nor any other offering or marketing material relating to the securities or the offering may be publicly distributed or otherwise made publicly available in Switzerland.

Neither this prospectus nor any other offering or marketing material relating to the offering, the company or the securities have been or will be filed with or approved by any Swiss regulatory authority. In particular, this prospectus

 

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will not be filed with, and the offer of securities will not be supervised by, the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority FINMA, and the offer of securities has not been and will not be authorized under the Swiss Federal Act on Collective Investment Schemes, or CISA. The investor protection afforded to acquirers of interests in collective investment schemes under the CISA does not extend to acquirers of securities.

United Kingdom

No shares have been offered or will be offered pursuant to the offering to the public in the United Kingdom prior to the publication of a prospectus in relation to the shares which has been approved by the Financial Conduct Authority, except that the shares may be offered to the public in the United Kingdom at any time:

 

  (c)

to any legal entity which is a qualified investor as defined under Article 2 of the UK Prospectus Regulation;

 

  (d)

to fewer than 150 natural or legal persons (other than qualified investors as defined under Article 2 of the UK Prospectus Regulation), subject to obtaining the prior consent of the representatives for any such offer; or

 

  (e)

in any other circumstances falling within Section 86 of the FSMA,

provided that no such offer of the shares shall require the Issuer or any Manager to publish a prospectus pursuant to Section 85 of the FSMA or supplement a prospectus pursuant to Article 23 of the UK Prospectus Regulation. For the purposes of this provision, the expression an “offer to the public” in relation to the shares in the United Kingdom means the communication in any form and by any means of sufficient information on the terms of the offer and any shares to be offered so as to enable an investor to decide to purchase or subscribe for any shares and the expression “UK Prospectus Regulation” means Regulation (EU) 2017/1129 as it forms part of domestic law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018.

 

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LEGAL MATTERS

Greenberg Traurig, P.A., Miami, Florida will pass upon the validity of the securities offered in this prospectus with respect to units and warrants. Paul Hastings LLP, Los Angeles, California, advised the underwriters in connection with the offering of the securities.

 

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EXPERTS

The financial statements of Home Plate Acquisition Corporation as of May 5, 2021 and for the period from March 24, 2021 (inception) through May 5, 2021 appearing in this prospectus have been audited by Marcum LLP, independent registered public accounting firm, as set forth in their report thereon (which contains an explanatory paragraph relating to substantial doubt about the ability of Home Plate Acquisition Corporation to continue as a going concern as described in Note 1 to the financial statements), appearing elsewhere in this prospectus, and are included in reliance on such report given on the authority of such firm as experts in auditing and accounting.

 

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WHERE YOU CAN FIND ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

We have filed with the SEC a registration statement on Form S-1 under the Securities Act with respect to the securities we are offering by this prospectus. This prospectus does not contain all of the information included in the registration statement. For further information about us and our securities, you should refer to the registration statement and the exhibits and schedules filed with the registration statement. Whenever we make reference in this prospectus to any of our contracts, agreements or other documents, the references are materially complete but may not include a description of all aspects of such contracts, agreements or other documents, and you should refer to the exhibits attached to the registration statement for copies of the actual contract, agreement or other document.

Upon completion of this offering, we will be subject to the information requirements of the Exchange Act and will file annual, quarterly and current reports, proxy statements and other information with the SEC. You can read our SEC filings, including the registration statement, over the internet at the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. We do not have a website, and therefore do not make our public filings available on such a website. Upon request, we will provide electronic copies of our public filings free of charge.

 

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INDEX TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

 

 

 

     PAGE  

Financial Statements of Home Plate Acquisition Corporation:

  

Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

     F-2  

Balance Sheets

     F-3  

Statements of Operations

     F-4  

Statements of Changes in Stockholders’ Equity

     F-5  

Statements of Cash Flows

     F-6  

Notes to Financial Statements

     F-7  

 

 

 

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REPORT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM

To the Shareholders and Board of Directors of

Home Plate Acquisition Corporation

Opinion on the Financial Statements

We have audited the accompanying balance sheet of Home Plate Acquisition Corporation (the “Company”) as of May 5, 2021, the related statements of operations, stockholders’ equity and cash flows for the period from March 24, 2021 (inception) through May 5, 2021, and the related notes (collectively referred to as the “financial statements”). In our opinion, the financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Company as of May 5, 2021, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for the period from March 24, 2021 (inception) through May 5, 2021, in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.

Explanatory Paragraph—Going Concern

The accompanying financial statements have been prepared assuming that the Company will continue as a going concern. As more fully described in Note 1, the Company has a significant working capital deficiency, has incurred significant losses and needs to raise additional funds to meet its obligations and sustain its operations. These conditions raise substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern. Management’s plans in regard to these matters are also described in Notes 1 and 3. The financial statements do not include any adjustments that might result from the outcome of this uncertainty.

Basis for Opinion

These financial statements are the responsibility of the Company’s management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Company’s financial statements based on our audit. We are a public accounting firm registered with the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (“PCAOB”) and are required to be independent with respect to the Company in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.

We conducted our audit in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud. The Company is not required to have, nor were we engaged to perform, an audit of its internal control over financial reporting. As part of our audit we are required to obtain an understanding of internal control over financial reporting but not for the purpose of expressing an opinion on the effectiveness of the Company’s internal control over financial reporting. Accordingly, we express no such opinion.

Our audit included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to error or fraud, and performing procedures that respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. Our audit also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial statements. We believe that our audit provide a reasonable basis for our opinion.

/s/ Marcum LLP

Marcum LLP

We have served as the Company’s auditor since 2021.

Boston, Massachusetts

June 7, 2021, except for Note 4, as to which the date is September 3, 2021

 

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HOME PLATE ACQUISITION CORPORATION

Balance Sheets

 

 

 

     AS OF  
     JUNE 30,
2021

(unaudited)
    MAY 5,
2021
 

Assets:

    

Current assets:

    

Cash

   $ 22,511     $ 25,000  

Noncurrent assets:

    

Deferred offering costs

     299,748       91,322  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Total assets

   $ 322,259     $ 116,322  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Liabilities and Stockholders’ Equity

    

Current liabilities:

    

Accrued expenses

   $ 4,395     $ 3,843  

Accrued offering costs

     137,673       88,022  

Promissory note—related party

     160,361       3,723  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Total liabilities

   $ 302,429     $ 95,588  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Commitments and Contingencies (Note 6)

    

Stockholders’ Equity

    

Preferred stock, $0.0001 par value; 1,000,000 shares authorized; none issued and outstanding

            

Class A common stock, $0.0001 par value; 200,000,000 shares authorized; none issued and outstanding

            

Class B common stock, $0.0001 par value; 20,000,000 shares authorized; 5,750,000 shares issued and outstanding at June 30, 2021, and May 5, 2021, respectively

     575       575  

Additional paid-in capital

     24,425       24,425  

Accumulated deficit

     (5,170     (4,266
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Total stockholders’ equity

     19,830       20,734  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Total Liabilities and Stockholders’ Equity

   $ 322,259     $ 116,322  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

 

 

(1)    This number includes up to 750,000 shares of Class B common stock subject to forfeiture if the over-allotment option is not exercised in full or in part by the underwriter.

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.

 

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HOME PLATE ACQUISITION CORPORATION

Statements of Operations

 

 

 

     FOR THE PERIOD FROM MARCH 24,
2021 (INCEPTION) THROUGH JUNE
30, 2021 (unaudited)
    FOR THE PERIOD FROM MARCH 24,
2021 (INCEPTION) THROUGH MAY
5, 2021
 

Formation, general and administrative expenses

   $ 5,170     $ 4,266  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Net loss

   $ (5,170   $ (4,266
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Basic and diluted weighted average shares outstanding(1)

     2,878,788       113,636  

Basic and diluted net loss per Class B common stock

   $ (0.00   $ (0.00

 

 

(1)    This number includes up to 750,000 shares of Class B common stock subject to forfeiture if the over-allotment option is not exercised in full or in part by the underwriter.

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.

 

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HOME PLATE ACQUISITION CORPORATION

Statements of Changes in Stockholders’ Equity

 

 

 

    PREFERRED
STOCK
    COMMON STOCK     ADDITIONAL
PAID IN
CAPITAL
    ACCUMULATED
DEFICIT
    TOTAL
STOCKHOLDERS’
EQUITY
 
    CLASS A     CLASS B  
    SHARES     AMOUNT     SHARES     AMOUNT     SHARES     AMOUNT  

Balance at March 24, 2021 (Inception)

        $           $           $     $     $     $  

Issuance of shares of Class B common stock to related parties (1)

                            5,750,000       575       24,425             25,000  

Net loss

                                              (4,266     (4,266
 

 

 

   

 

 

   

 

 

   

 

 

   

 

 

   

 

 

   

 

 

   

 

 

   

 

 

 

Balance at May 5, 2021

        $                   5,750,000     $ 575     $ 24,425     $ (4,266   $ 20,734  
 

 

 

   

 

 

   

 

 

   

 

 

   

 

 

   

 

 

   

 

 

   

 

 

   

 

 

 

Net loss

                                              (904     (904
 

 

 

   

 

 

   

 

 

   

 

 

   

 

 

   

 

 

   

 

 

   

 

 

   

 

 

 

Balance at June 30, 2021 (unaudited)

        $                   5,750,000     $ 575     $ 24,425     $ (5,170   $ 19,830  
 

 

 

   

 

 

   

 

 

   

 

 

   

 

 

   

 

 

   

 

 

   

 

 

   

 

 

 

 

 

(1)    This number includes up to 750,000 shares of Class B common stock subject to forfeiture if the over-allotment option is not exercised in full or in part by the underwriter.

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.

 

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HOME PLATE ACQUISITION CORPORATION

Statements of Cash Flows

 

 

 

     FOR THE PERIOD
FROM MARCH 24,
2021
(INCEPTION) TO
JUNE 30, 2021

(unaudited)
    FOR THE PERIOD
FROM MARCH 24,
2021
(INCEPTION) TO
MAY 5, 2021
 

Cash flows from Operating Activities:

    

Net loss

   $ (5,170   $ (4,266

Changes in assets and liabilities:

    

Deferred offering costs

           (3,300

Accrued offering costs

     2,681       3,843  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Net cash used in operating activities

     (2,489     (3,723
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Cash flows from Financing Activities:

    

Proceeds from promissory note—related party

           3,723  

Proceeds from issuance of Class B common stock

     25,000       25,000  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Net cash provided by financing activities

     25,000       28,723  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Net increase in Cash

     22,511       25,000  

Cash—beginning of period

            
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Cash—ending of period

   $ 22,511     $ 25,000  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Non-cash investing and financing activities:

    

Deferred offering costs included in accrued expenses

   $ 1,714     $  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Deferred offering costs included in accrued offering costs

   $ 137,673     $ 88,022  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

Deferred offering costs included in promissory note – related party

   $ 160,361     $  
  

 

 

   

 

 

 

 

 

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements.

 

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NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

Note 1—Organization and Business Operation

Home Plate Acquisition Corporation (the “Company”) was incorporated in the State of Delaware on March 24, 2021. The Company was incorporated for the purpose of effecting a merger, stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses (the “Business Combination”). The Company has not selected any specific Business Combination target and the Company has not, nor has anyone on its behalf, engaged in any substantive discussions, directly or indirectly, with any Business Combination target with respect to an initial business combination with the Company. The Company will be seeking identification and acquisition of a target company in commercial real estate in the United States of America.

As of June 30, 2021, the Company had not commenced any operations. All activity for the period from March 24, 2021 (inception) through June 30, 2021 relates to the Company’s formation and proposed initial public offering of units (the “Offering”). The Company will not generate any operating revenues until after the completion of its initial Business Combination, at the earliest. The Company expects to generate non-operating income in the form of interest income on cash and cash equivalents from the proceeds expected to be derived from the proposed Offering. The Company has selected December 31 as its fiscal year end.

The Company’s sponsor is Home Plate Sponsor LLC, a Delaware limited liability company (the “Sponsor”). The Company’s ability to commence operations is contingent upon its ability to obtain adequate financial resources through a proposed IPO of 20,000,000 units (or 23,000,000 units if the underwriter’s over-allotment option is exercised in full), at $10.00 per unit (the “Units”) which is discussed further in Note 3 below. The Company’s management has broad discretion with respect to the specific application of the net proceeds of the proposed Offering and the sale of 7,600,0000 warrants (or 8,200,000 warrants if the underwriter’s over-allotment option is exercised in full), at a price of $1.00 per whole warrant in a private placement that will close simultaneously with the proposed Offering (“Private Placement Warrants”), although substantially all of the net proceeds are intended to be applied generally toward the consummation of a Business Combination. There is no assurance that the Company will be able to successfully complete a Business Combination.

In accordance with the rules of Nasdaq, the Company’s initial Business Combination must occur with one or more target businesses that together have an aggregate fair market value of at least 80% of the net assets held in the Trust Account (as defined in the following paragraph) (excluding the amount of deferred underwriting discounts and commissions held in trust and taxes payable on the income earned on the Trust Account) at the time of the signing of a definitive agreement in connection with the initial Business Combination. However, the Company only will complete a Business Combination if the post-business combination 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 1940, as amended (the “Investment Company Act”).

Upon the closing of the proposed Offering, the Company has agreed that an amount equal to at least $10.00 per Unit sold in the proposed Offering, including the proceeds of the Private Placement Warrants, will be held in a Trust Account (“Trust Account”), located in the United States at a nationally recognized financial institution, with Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company acting as trustee, and invested only in in United States “government securities” within the meaning of Section 2(a)(16) of the Investment Company Act having a maturity of 185 days or less or in money market funds meeting certain conditions under Rule 2a-7 promulgated under the Investment Company Act which invest only in direct U.S. government treasury obligations. Pursuant to the trust agreement, the trustee will not be permitted to invest in other securities or assets. The Trust Account is intended as a holding place for funds pending the earliest to occur of either: (i) the completion of the initial Business Combination; (ii) the redemption of any public shares properly tendered in connection with a stockholder vote to amend our amended and restated memorandum and articles of association (A) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to provide holders of the Class A common stock the right to have their shares redeemed in connection with the initial Business Combination or to redeem 100% of the public shares if the Company does not complete the initial Business Combination within 18 months from the closing of this offering or (B) with respect to any other provision relating to the rights of holders of the Class A common stock; or (iii) absent the completing an initial Business Combination

 

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within 18 months from the closing of this offering, the return of the funds held in the Trust Account to the public stockholders as part of the redemption of the public shares. If the Company does not invest the proceeds as discussed above, the Company may be deemed to be subject to the Investment Company Act.

If the Company were deemed to be subject to the Investment Company Act, compliance with these additional regulatory burdens would require additional expenses for which the Company has not allotted funds and may hinder the ability to complete a Business Combination. If the Company has not consummated the initial Business Combination within the required time period, the public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.00 per public share, or less in certain circumstances, on the liquidation of the Trust Account and the warrants will expire worthless.

The Company will provide the holders (the “Public Stockholders”) of its Class A common stock sold in the proposed Offering (the “Public Shares”) with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their Public Shares upon the completion of a Business Combination either (i) in connection with a general meeting called to approve the Business Combination or (ii) without a stockholder vote by means of a tender offer. The decision as to whether the Company will seek stockholder approval of a Business Combination or conduct a tender offer will be made by the Company, solely in its discretion. The Public Stockholders will be entitled to redeem their Public Shares for a pro rata portion of the amount then in the Trust Account (initially anticipated to be $10.00 per Public Share).

These Public Shares will be classified as temporary equity upon the completion of the proposed Offering in accordance with the Financial Accounting Standards Board’s (“FASB”) Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) Topic 480 “Distinguishing Liabilities from Equity.” In such case, the Company will proceed with a Business Combination if the Company has net tangible assets of at least $5,000,001 upon such consummation of a Business Combination and a majority of the shares voted are voted in favor of the Business Combination.

If the Company is unable to complete a Business Combination within 18 months from the closing of the proposed Offering (the “Combination Period”), the Company will (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up, (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than ten business days thereafter, redeem 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 earned on the funds held in the Trust Account (less taxes payable and up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of then outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish Public Stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidation distributions, if any) and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of the remaining stockholders and the board of directors, liquidate and dissolve, subject, in the case of clauses (ii) and (iii), to the Company’s obligations under Delaware state law to provide for claims of creditors and in all cases subject to the other requirements of applicable law. There will be no redemption rights or liquidating distributions with respect to the warrants, which will expire worthless if the Company fails to complete its initial Business Combination within the Combination Period.

The Company’s Sponsor, officers and directors have agreed to (i) waive their redemption rights with respect to their founder shares and any public shares held by them in connection with the completion of the initial Business Combination, (ii) waive their redemption rights with respect to their founder shares and public shares in connection with a stockholder vote to approve an amendment to the Company’s amended and restated memorandum and articles of association, (iii) waive their rights to liquidating distributions from the Trust Account with respect to their founder shares if the Company fails to complete the initial Business Combination within the Combination Period, and (iv) vote any founder shares held by them and any public shares purchased during or after the proposed Offering (including in open market and privately-negotiated transactions) in favor of the initial Business Combination.

The Sponsor has agreed that it will be liable to the Company if and to the extent any claims by a third-party (other than the Company’s independent auditors) for services rendered or products sold to the Company, or a prospective target business with which the Company have discussed entering into a transaction agreement, reduce the amounts in the Trust Account to below the lesser of (i) $10.00 per public share and (ii) the actual amount per public share held in the Trust Account as of the date of the liquidation of the Trust Account if less than $10.00 per public share due to reductions in the value of the trust assets, in each case net of the interest that may be withdrawn to pay the Company’s tax obligations, provided that such liability will not apply to any claims by a third-party or prospective

 

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target business that executed a waiver of any and all rights to seek access to the Trust Account nor will it apply to any claims under the indemnity of the underwriter of the proposed Offering against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. Moreover, in the event that an executed waiver is deemed to be unenforceable against a third-party, our Sponsor will not be responsible to the extent of any liability for such third-party claims.

Going Concern Consideration

As of June 30, 2021, the Company had $22,511 in cash and a working capital deficit of $279,918. Further, the Company has incurred and expects to continue to incur significant costs in pursuit of its financing and acquisition plans. The Company lacks the financial resources it needs to sustain operations for a reasonable period of time, which is considered to be one year from the date of the issuance of the financial statements. These conditions raise substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern. Management plans to address this uncertainty through the proposed Offering as discussed in Note 3 below. There is no assurance that the Company’s plans to raise capital or to consummate a Business Combination will be successful within the Combination Period. The financial statements do not include any adjustments that might result from the outcome of these uncertainties.

Risks and Uncertainties

Management is currently evaluating the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the industry and has concluded that while it is reasonably possible that the virus could have a negative effect on the Company’s planned results of its operations and/or search for a target Company, the specific impact is not readily determinable as of the date of these financial statements. The financial statements do not include any adjustments that might result from the outcome of this uncertainty.

Note 2—Significant Accounting Policies

Basis of Presentation

The accompanying financial statements are presented in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“US GAAP”) and pursuant to the rules and regulations of the SEC. In the opinion of management, the accompanying financial statements include all adjustments, consisting of a normal recurring nature, which are necessary for a fair presentation of the financial position, operating results and cash flows for the period presented. The results for the period from March 24, 2021 (inception) through June 30, 2021 are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for the year ending December 31, 2021 or for any future interim periods.

Emerging Growth Company Status

The Company is an “emerging growth company,” as defined in Section 2(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, (the “Securities Act”), as modified by the Jumpstart our Business Startups Act of 2012, (the “JOBS Act”), and it may take advantage of certain exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other public companies that are not emerging growth companies including, but not limited to, not being required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in its periodic reports and proxy statements, and exemptions from the requirements of holding a nonbinding advisory vote on executive compensation and stockholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved.

Further, Section 102(b)(1) of the JOBS Act exempts emerging growth companies from being required to comply with new or revised financial accounting standards until private companies (that is, those that have not had a Securities Act registration statement declared effective or do not have a class of securities registered under the Exchange Act) are required to comply with the new or revised financial accounting standards. The JOBS Act provides that a company can elect to opt out of the extended transition period and comply with the requirements that apply to non-emerging growth companies but any such election to opt out is irrevocable. The Company has elected not to opt out of such extended transition period which means that when a standard is issued or revised and it has different application dates for public or private companies, the Company, as an emerging growth Company, can adopt the new or revised standard at the time private companies adopt the new or revised standard. This may make comparison of the Company’s financial statements with another public company which is neither an emerging growth company nor an emerging growth company which has opted out of using the extended transition period difficult or impossible because of the potential differences in accounting standards used.

 

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Smaller Reporting Company Status

Additionally, the Company is 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. The Company will remain a smaller reporting company until the last day of the fiscal year in which (1) the market value of the Company’s shares of common stock held by non-affiliates equaled or exceeded $250 million as of the prior June 30, and (2) the Company’s annual revenues equaled or exceeded $100 million during such completed fiscal year or the market value of its shares of common stock held by non-affiliates equaled or exceeded $700 million as of the prior June 30. To the extent the Company takes advantage of such reduced disclosure obligations, it may also make comparison of these financial statements with other public companies difficult or impossible.

Use of Estimates

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with US GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates.

Cash and Cash Equivalents

The Company considers all short-term investments with an original maturity of three months or less when purchased to be cash equivalents. The Company did not have any cash equivalents at June 30, 2021.

Other Assets

Other assets consist of retainer payments for professional fees at the balance sheet date.

Deferred Offering Costs

Deferred offering costs consist of underwriting, legal, accounting and other expenses incurred through the balance sheet date that are directly related to the Offering and that will be charged to stockholders’ equity upon the completion of the Offering. Should the Offering prove to be unsuccessful, these deferred costs, as well as additional expenses to be incurred, will be charged to operations.

Net Loss Per Share

Net loss per share is computed by dividing net loss by the weighted average number of shares of common stock outstanding during the period, excluding shares of common stock subject to forfeiture by the Sponsor. Weighted average shares were reduced for the effect of an aggregate of 5,750,000 shares of Class B common stock. As of June 30, 2021, there were 5,750,000 shares of Class B common stock outstanding, of which up to 750,000 shares are subject to forfeiture if the underwriter’s over-allotment option is not exercised in the proposed Offering.

Fair Value of Financial Instruments

The fair value of the Company’s assets and liabilities approximates the carrying amounts represented in the accompanying balance sheet, primarily due to their short-term nature.

The Company applies ASC 820, which establishes a framework for measuring fair value and clarifies the definition of fair value within that framework. ASC 820 defines fair value as an exit price, which is the price that would be received for an asset or paid to transfer a liability in the Company’s principal or most advantageous market in an orderly transaction between market participants on the measurement date. The fair value hierarchy established in ASC 820 generally requires an entity to maximize the use of observable inputs and minimize the use of unobservable inputs when measuring fair value. Observable inputs reflect the assumptions that market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability and are developed based on market data obtained from sources independent of the reporting entity. Unobservable inputs reflect the entity’s own assumptions based on market data and the entity’s judgments about the assumptions that market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability and are to be developed based on the best information available in the circumstances.

Level 1—Assets and liabilities with unadjusted, quoted prices listed on active market exchanges. Inputs to the fair value measurement are observable inputs, such as quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities.

 

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Level 2—Inputs to the fair value measurement are determined using prices for recently traded assets and liabilities with similar underlying terms, as well as direct or indirect observable inputs, such as interest rates and yield curves that are observable at commonly quoted intervals.

Level 3—Inputs to the fair value measurement are unobservable inputs, such as estimates, assumptions, and valuation techniques when little or no market data exists for the assets or liabilities.

Income Taxes

The Company accounts for income taxes under ASC 740 Income Taxes (“ASC 740”). ASC 740 requires the recognition of deferred tax assets and liabilities for both the expected impact of differences between the financial statement and tax basis of assets and liabilities and for the expected future tax benefit to be derived from tax loss and tax credit carry forwards. ASC 740 additionally requires a valuation allowance to be established when it is more likely than not that all or a portion of deferred tax assets will not be realized.

ASC 740 also clarifies the accounting for uncertainty in income taxes recognized in an enterprise’s financial statements and prescribes a recognition threshold and measurement process for financial statement recognition and measurement of a tax position taken or expected to be taken in a tax return. For those benefits to be recognized, a tax position must be more-likely-than-not to be sustained upon examination by taxing authorities. ASC 740 also provides guidance on derecognition, classification, interest and penalties, accounting in interim period, disclosure and transition.

The Company recognizes accrued interest and penalties related to unrecognized tax benefits as income tax expense. There were no unrecognized tax benefits and no amounts accrued for interest and penalties as of June 30, 2021. The Company is currently not aware of any issues under review that could result in significant payments, accruals or material deviation from its position.

The Company has identified the United States as its only “major” tax jurisdiction.

The Company may be subject to potential examination by federal and state taxing authorities in the areas of income taxes. These potential examinations may include questioning the timing and amount of deductions, the nexus of income among various tax jurisdictions and compliance with federal and state tax laws. The Company’s management does not expect that the total amount of unrecognized tax benefits will materially change over the next twelve months.

The provision for income taxes was deemed to be immaterial for the period from March 24, 2021 (inception) through June 30, 2021.

Derivative Financial Instruments

The Company evaluates its financial instruments to determine if such instruments are derivatives or contain features that qualify as embedded derivatives in accordance with ASC Topic 815, “Derivatives and Hedging”. For derivative financial instruments that are accounted for as liabilities, the derivative instrument is initially recorded at its fair value on the grant date and is then re-valued at each reporting date, with changes in the fair value reported in the statements of operations. The classification of derivative instruments, including whether such instruments should be recorded as liabilities or as equity, is evaluated at the end of each reporting period. Derivative liabilities are classified in the balance sheet as current or non-current based on whether or not net-cash settlement or conversion of the instrument could be required within 12 months of the balance sheet date.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements

In August 2020, the FASB issued ASU No. 2020-06, Accounting for Convertible Instruments and Contracts in an Entity’s Own Equity. The update simplifies the accounting for convertible instruments by removing certain separation models in Subtopic 470-20, Debt—Debt with Conversion and Other Options for convertible instruments and introducing other changes. As a result of ASU No. 2020-06, more convertible debt instruments will be accounted for as a single liability measured at its amortized cost and more convertible preferred stock will be accounted for as a single equity instrument measured at its historical cost, as long as no features require bifurcation and recognition as derivatives. The amendments are effective for smaller reporting companies for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2023, including interim periods within those fiscal years. Early adoption is permitted, but no earlier than fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2020, including interim periods within those fiscal years. The Company adopted ASCU No. 2020-06 upon its incorporation. The impact to our balance sheet, statement of operations and cash flows was not material.

 

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Management does not believe that any recently issued, but not effective, accounting standards, if currently adopted, would have a material effect on the Company’s financial statements.

Note 3—Proposed Offering

Pursuant to the proposed Offering, the Company intends to offer 20,000,000 Units for sale (or 23,000,000 Units if the underwriter’s over-allotment option is exercised in full) at $10.00 per Unit. Each Unit is expected to consist of one share of Class A common stock and one-half of one redeemable warrant (“Public Warrant”). Each whole public warrant will entitle the holder to purchase one share of Class A common stock at a price of $11.50 per share, subject to adjustment. The warrants will become exercisable on the later of 30 days after the completion of the initial Business Combination or 12 months from the closing of the proposed Offering (See Note 7).

Certain qualified institutional buyers or institutional accredited investors (including certain funds managed by UBS O’Connor, LLC) which are not affiliated with any member of the Company’s management (the “Anchor Investors”) have expressed to the Company an interest in purchasing up to 19,800,000 Units in the Proposed Public Offering at the offering price of $10.00 per Unit, and such allocations will be determined by the underwriter. There can be no assurance that the Anchor Investors will acquire any Units in the Proposed Public Offering, or as to the amount of such Units the Anchor Investors will retain, if any, prior to or upon the consummation of the initial Business Combination.

Note 4—Related Party Transactions

Founder Shares

On May 5, 2021, the Sponsor and certain directors of the Company paid $25,000 (approximately $0.004 per share) in consideration for 5,750,000 shares of Class B common stock with par value of $0.0001 (the “Founder Shares”). Up to 750,000 of these Founder Shares are subject to forfeiture by the Sponsor if the underwriter’s over-allotment option is not exercised.

Subject to each Anchor Investor purchasing 100% of the Units allocated to it, in connection with the closing of the proposed Offering, the Sponsor will sell up to 150,000 Founder Shares to each Anchor Investor (other than those funds managed by UBS O’Connor, LLC) (or an aggregate of up to 1,350,000 Founder Shares to all of the Anchor Investors) at their original purchase price. The Company estimated the aggregate fair value of these Founder Shares attributable to such Anchor Investors to be $10,328,310, or $7.6506 per share.

The excess of the fair value over consideration of the Founder Shares was determined to be an offering cost in accordance with Staff Accounting Bulletin Topic 5A and 5T. Accordingly, the offering cost will be allocated to the separable financial instruments issued in the proposed Offering based on a relative fair value basis, compared to total proceeds received. Offering costs allocated to derivative warrant liabilities will be expensed as incurred in the statement of operations. Offering costs allocated to the Public Shares will be charged to stockholder’s equity upon the completion of the proposed Offering.

Promissory Note—Related Party

On May 5, 2021, the Sponsor agreed to loan up to $300,000 to the Company to cover expenses related to the proposed Offering pursuant to a promissory note (the “Note”). The Note is non-interest bearing and is due and payable on the earlier of the completion of the proposed Offering or December 31, 2021. As of June 30, 2021 and May 5, 2021, $160,361 and $3,723, respectively, has been drawn by the Company under the Note.

Administrative Services

The Company has committed to pay up to $15,000 per month to the Sponsor for administrative, financial and support services provided to members of the Company’s sponsor team. This administrative service arrangement will terminate upon completion of the initial Business Combination or liquidation of the Company.

Private Placement Warrants

Our Sponsor and Jefferies has agreed to purchase an aggregate of 7,600,000 Private Placement Warrants (or 8,200,000 Private Placement Warrants if the underwriter’s over-allotment option is exercised in full), at a price of $1.00 per Private Placement Warrant ($7,600,000 in the aggregate, or $8,200,000 if the underwriter’s over-allotment option is exercised in full) in a private placement that will occur simultaneously with the closing of the Offering. Each whole Private Placement Warrant is exercisable for one whole share of Class A common stock at a

 

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price of $11.50 per share. A portion of the proceeds from the sale of the Private Placement Warrants to the Sponsor will be added to the proceeds from the Offering to be held in the Trust Account. If the Company does not complete a Business Combination within the Combination Period, the Private Placement Warrants will expire worthless. The Private Placement Warrants will be non-redeemable for cash and exercisable on a cashless basis so long as they are held by the Sponsor or its permitted transferees. Subject to limited exceptions, the Private Placement Warrants will not be transferable, assignable or saleable until 30 days after the completion of the Business Combination (See Note 7).

Related Party Loans

In order to finance transaction costs in connection with a Business Combination, the Sponsor or an affiliate of the Sponsor, or certain of the Company’s officers and directors may, but are not obligated to, loan the Company funds as may be required (“Working Capital Loans”). If the Company completes a Business Combination, the Company would repay the Working Capital Loans out of the proceeds of the Trust Account released to the Company. Otherwise, the Working Capital Loans would be repaid only out of funds held outside the Trust Account. In the event that a Business Combination does not close, the Company may use a portion of proceeds held outside the Trust Account to repay the Working Capital Loans but no proceeds held in the Trust Account would be used to repay the Working Capital Loans. Except for the foregoing, the terms of such Working Capital Loans, if any, have not been determined and no written agreements exist with respect to such loans. The Working Capital Loans would either be repaid upon consummation of a Business Combination or, at the lender’s discretion, up to $1,500,000 of such Working Capital Loans may be convertible into warrants of the post Business Combination entity at a price of $1.00 per warrant. The warrants would be identical to the Private Placement Warrants. To date, the Company had no borrowings under the Working Capital Loans.

The Sponsor, officers and directors, or any of their respective affiliates will be reimbursed for any out-of-pocket expenses incurred in connection with activities on the Company’s behalf such as identifying potential target businesses and performing due diligence on suitable Business Combinations. The Company’s audit committee will review on a quarterly basis all payments that were made to the Sponsor, officers or directors, or their affiliates.

Note 5—Stockholders’ Equity

Preferred Stock—The Company is authorized to issue 1,000,000 shares of preferred stock, with a par value of $0.0001 per share, with such designations, voting and other rights and preferences as may be determined from time to time by the Company’s board of directors. As of June 30, 2021 and May 5, 2021, there were no shares of preferred stock issued or outstanding.

Class A common stock—The Company is authorized to issue 200,000,000 shares of Class A common stock with a par value of $0.0001 per share. As of June 30, 2021 and May 5, 2021, there were no shares of Class A common stock issued or outstanding.

Class B common stock—The Company is authorized to issue 20,000,000 shares of Class B common stock with a par value of $0.0001 per share. As of June 30, 2021 and May 5, 2021, there were 5,750,000 shares of Class B common stock issued and outstanding, of which up to 750,000 shares are subject to forfeiture by the Sponsor depending on the extent to which the underwriter’s over-allotment option is exercised.

Common stockholders of record are entitled to one vote for each share held on all matters to be voted on by stockholders. Holders of the Class A common stock and holders of the Class B common stock will vote together as a single class on all matters submitted to a vote of stockholders, except as required by law or the applicable rules of Nasdaq. Holders of the Class A and Class B common stock will have one vote for every share of common stock with the exception that holders of the Class B common stock have the exclusive right to vote for the election of directors and all other matters properly submitted to a vote of stockholders.

The Class B common stock will automatically convert into shares of Class A common stock concurrently with or immediately following the consummation of the initial Business Combination on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment for share sub-divisions, share capitalizations, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like, and subject to further adjustment as provided herein. In the case that additional shares of Class A common stock or equity-linked securities are issued or deemed issued in connection with the initial Business Combination, the number of shares of Class A common stock issuable upon conversion of all shares of Class B common stock will equal, in the aggregate,

 

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20% of the total number of shares of Class A common stock outstanding after such conversion (after giving effect to any redemptions of shares of Class A common stock by Public Stockholders), including the total number of shares of Class A common stock issued, or deemed issued or issuable upon conversion or exercise of any equity-linked securities or rights issued or deemed issued, by the Company in connection with or in relation to the consummation of the initial Business Combination, excluding any shares of Class A common stock or equity-linked securities exercisable for or convertible into shares of Class A common stock issued, or to be issued, to any seller in the initial Business Combination and any Private Placement Warrants issued to the Sponsor, officers or directors upon conversion of Working Capital Loans; provided that such conversion of shares of Class B common stock will never occur on a less than one-for-one basis.

Note 6—Commitments & Contingencies

Underwriting Agreement

The Company will grant the underwriter a 45-day option from the date of the Offering to purchase up to 3,000,000 additional Units to cover over-allotments, if any, at the Offering price less the underwriting discounts and commissions. The underwriter will be entitled to an underwriting discount of $0.20 per Unit, or $4,000,000 in the aggregate (or $4,600,000 million in the aggregate if the underwriter’s over-allotment option is exercised in full), payable upon the closing of the Offering. In addition, the underwriter will be entitled to a deferred fee of $0.35 per Unit, or $7,000,000 in the aggregate (or $8,050,000 in the aggregate if the underwriter’s over-allotment option is exercised in full). The deferred fee will become payable to the underwriter from the amounts held in the Trust Account solely in the event that the Company completes a Business Combination, subject to the terms of the underwriting agreement.

Registration Rights

The holders of the founder shares, Private Placement Warrants and any warrants that may be issued upon conversion of working capital loans (and any Class A common stock issuable upon the exercise of the Private Placement Warrants and warrants that may be issued upon conversion of working capital loans) will be entitled to registration rights pursuant to a registration rights agreement to be signed prior to or on the effective date of the proposed Offering. The holders of these securities are entitled to make up to three demands, excluding short form demands, that the Company register such securities. In addition, the holders have certain “piggy-back” registration rights with respect to registration statements filed subsequent to the completion of the initial Business Combination. However, the registration rights agreement provides that the Company will not permit any registration statement filed under the Securities Act to become effective until termination of the applicable lockup period, which occurs (i) in the case of the founder shares, as described in the following paragraph, and (ii) in the case of the Private Placement Warrants and the respective Class A common stock underlying such warrants, 30 days after the completion of the initial Business Combination. The Company will bear the expenses incurred in connection with the filing of any such registration statements.

The Company also has entered into contractual commitments of approximately $400,000 for professional services in connection with the Company’s planned public offering and subsequent Business Combination.

Note 7—Warrant Liability

The Company will account for the 17,600,000 warrants to be issued in connection with the Proposed Offering (the 10,000,000 Public Warrants and the 7,600,000 Private Placement Warrants, assuming the underwriter’s over-allotment option is not exercised) in accordance with the guidance contained in ASC 815-40. Such guidance provides that, because the warrants do not meet the criteria for equity treatment thereunder, each warrant must be recorded as a liability. Accordingly, the Company will classify each warrant as a liability at its fair value. This liability is subject to re-measurement at each balance sheet date. With each such remeasurement, the warrant liability will be adjusted to fair value, with the change in fair value recognized in the Company’s statement of operations. The warrants are also subject to re-evaluation of the proper classification and accounting treatment at each reporting period. If the classification changes as a result of events during the period, the warrants will be reclassified as of the date of the event that causes the reclassification.

The Company plans to offer warrants in connection with its sale of Units. Each whole warrant that is part of the Units sold in the Offering is exercisable to purchase one share of the Company’s Class A common stock, subject to

 

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adjustment as provided in the Company’s Offering prospectus, and only whole warrants are exercisable. No fractional warrants will be issued upon separation of the Units and only whole warrants will trade. If, upon separation of the Units, a holder of warrants would be entitled to receive a fractional warrant, the Company will round down to the nearest whole number the number of warrants to be issued to such holder.

The exercise price of the warrant will be $11.50 per whole share, subject to adjustments as described in the Company’s Offering prospectus. In addition, if (x) the Company issues additional shares of its Class A common stock or equity-linked securities for capital raising purposes in connection with the closing of the Business Combination at an issue price or effective issue price of less than $9.20 per share of its Class A common stock (with such issue price or effective issue price to be determined in good faith by the Company’s board of directors and, in the case of any such issuance to the Sponsor or its affiliates, without taking into account any founder shares held by the Company’s initial stockholders or such affiliates, as applicable, prior to such issuance) (the “Newly Issued Price”), (y) the aggregate gross proceeds from such issuances represent more than 60% of the total equity proceeds, and interest thereon, available for the funding of the Business Combination on the date of the completion of the Business Combination (net of redemptions), and (z) the volume-weighted average trading price of the Company’s Class A common stock during the 20 trading day period starting on the trading day prior to the day on which the Company completes the Business Combination (such price, the “Market Value”) is below $9.20 per share, then the exercise price of the warrants will be adjusted (to the nearest cent) to be equal to 115% of the higher of the Market Value and the Newly Issued Price, and the $10.00 and $18.00 per share redemption trigger prices described below will be adjusted (to the nearest cent) to be equal to 100% and 180% of the higher of the Market Value and the Newly Issued Price, respectively.

The warrants will become exercisable 30 days after the completion of the Business Combination; provided that the Company has an effective registration statement under the Securities Act covering the sale of the shares of its Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants, and a current Offering prospectus relating thereto is available, and such shares are registered, qualified or exempt from registration under the securities, or blue sky, laws of the state of residence of the holder (or the Company permits holders to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis under the circumstances specified in the warrant agreement as a result of (i) the Company’s failure to have an effective registration statement by the 60th business day after the closing of the Business Combination as described in the immediately following paragraph or (ii) a notice of redemption described below). If and when the warrants become redeemable by the Company, the Company may exercise its redemption right even if it is unable to register or qualify the underlying securities for sale under all applicable state securities laws.

The Company has agreed that as soon as practicable, but in no event later than 20 business days after the closing of the Business Combination, the Company will use its commercially reasonable efforts to file with the SEC a post-effective amendment to the registration statement covering the sale of the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants, and the Company will use its commercially reasonable efforts to cause the same to become effective within 60 business days after the closing of the Business Combination, and to maintain the effectiveness of such registration statement, and a current Offering prospectus relating thereto, until the warrants expire or are redeemed, as specified in the warrant agreement. If a registration statement covering the sale of the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants is not effective by the 60th business day after the closing of the Business Combination, warrant holders may, until such time as there is an effective registration statement and during any period when the Company will have failed to maintain an effective registration statement, exercise warrants on a “cashless basis” in accordance with Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act or another exemption. Notwithstanding the above, if the Company’s shares of Class A common stock are at the time of any exercise of a warrant not listed on a national securities exchange such that they satisfy the definition of a “covered security” under Section 18(b)(1) of the Securities Act, the Company may, at its option, require holders of public warrants who exercise their warrants to do so on a “cashless basis” in accordance with Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act and, in the event the Company so elects, it will not be required to file or maintain in effect a registration statement, but the Company will use its commercially reasonable efforts to register or qualify the shares under applicable blue sky laws to the extent an exemption is not available.

The holders of the private placement warrants and warrants that may be issued upon conversion of working capital loans (and any shares of Class A common stock issuable upon the exercise of the private placement warrants or

 

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warrants issued upon conversion of the working capital loans) will be entitled to registration rights pursuant to a registration rights agreement to be signed prior to or at the closing of the Offering.

The warrants will expire at 5:00 p.m., New York City time, five years after the completion of the Business Combination or earlier upon redemption or liquidation. On the exercise of any warrant, the warrant exercise price will be paid directly to the Company and not placed in the Trust Account.

Once the warrants become exercisable, the Company may redeem the outstanding warrants (except as described in the Company’s Offering prospectus with respect to the private placement warrants):

 

   

in whole and not in part;

 

   

at a price of $0.01 per warrant;

 

   

upon a minimum of 30 days’ prior written notice of redemption, which the Company refers to as the “30-day redemption period”; and

 

   

if, and only if, the last reported sale price of the Company’s Class A common stock for any 20 trading days within a 30-trading day period ending on the third trading day prior to the date on which the Company sends the notice of redemption to the warrant holders (the “Reference Value”) equals or exceeds $18.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock capitalizations, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like and certain issuances of Class A common stock and equity-linked securities).

The Company will not redeem the warrants as described above unless an effective registration statement under the Securities Act covering the sale of the shares of its Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants is effective, and a current Offering prospectus relating thereto is available, throughout the 30-day redemption period. Any such exercise would not be on a “cashless basis” and would require the exercising warrant holder to pay the exercise price for each warrant being exercised.

Except as set forth below, none of the Private Placement Warrants will be redeemable by the Company so long as they are held by the Sponsor or its permitted transferees.

Once the warrants become exercisable, the Company may redeem the outstanding warrants (except as described in the Company’s Offering prospectus with respect to the private placement warrants):

 

   

in whole and not in part;

 

   

at $0.10 per warrant upon a minimum of 30 days’ prior written notice of redemption, provided that holders will be able to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis prior to redemption and receive that number of shares determined by reference to the table set forth the Company’s Offering prospectus based on the redemption date and the “fair market value” of the Company’s Class A common stock (as defined below);

 

   

if, and only if, the Reference Value equals or exceeds $10.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, rights issuances, subdivisions, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like and certain issuances of Class A common stock and equity-linked securities); and

 

   

if the Reference Value is less than $18.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, rights issuances, subdivisions, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like and certain issuances of Class A common stock and equity-linked securities), the private placement warrants must also concurrently be called for redemption on the same terms as the outstanding public warrants, as described above.

The “fair market value” of the Company’s Class A common stock shall mean the volume-weighted average price of the Class A common stock for the ten trading days immediately following the date on which the notice of redemption is sent to the holders of warrants. This redemption feature differs from the typical warrant redemption features used in other blank check offerings. The Company will provide the warrant holders with the final fair market value no later than one business day after the 10-day trading period described above ends. In no event will the warrants be exercisable in connection with this redemption feature for more than 0.361 shares of the Company’s Class A common stock per warrant (subject to adjustment).

No fractional shares of the Company’s Class A common stock will be issued upon exercise of a warrant in connection with a redemption. If, upon such exercise, a holder would be entitled to receive a fractional interest in a share, the

 

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Company will round down to the nearest whole number of the number of shares of its Class A common stock to be issued to the holder.

Pursuant to the warrant agreement, references above to Class A common stock shall include a security other than Class A common stock into which the Class A common stock has been converted or exchanged for in the event the Company is not the surviving company in our initial business combination.

The Private Placement Warrants will be non-redeemable and exercisable on a cashless basis so long as they are held by the Sponsor or its permitted transferees. If the private placement warrants are held by holders other than the Sponsor or its permitted transferees, the private placement warrants will be redeemable by the Company and exercisable by the holders on the same basis as the warrants included in the units being sold in the Offering. The Sponsor, as well as its permitted transferees, have the option to exercise the private placement warrants on a cashless basis.

Note 8—Subsequent Events

The Company evaluated subsequent events and transactions that occurred after the balance sheet date through September 20, 2021, which was the date these financial statements were available to be issued. Based on this review, the Company did not identify any subsequent events that would have required adjustment or disclosure in the financial statements.

 

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20,000,000 Units

 

Home Plate Acquisition Corporation

 

 

PROSPECTUS

 

 

Jefferies

September 29, 2021

Until October 24, 2021 (25 days after the date of this prospectus), all dealers that buy, sell or trade our common stock, whether or not participating in this offering, may be required to deliver a prospectus. This is in addition to the dealers’ obligation to deliver a prospectus when acting as underwriters and with respect to their unsold allotments or subscriptions.